Making the Band 2: The Best of Season 1

Executive produced by Real World creators Jonathan Murray and the late Mary-Ellis Bunim, along with music mogul P. Diddy (a.k.a. Puff Daddy, a.k.a. Shawn Combs), this “best of” compilation of the MTV reality series provides highlights from the search for vocalists, followed by the polishing of the band selected to be part of the celebrated Bad Boy Entertainment record label, headed up by Diddy. A sort of urban American Idol, the contestants of Making the Band 2 seem more focused and earnest than the often laughable AI competitors, and out of the 40,000 hopefuls, the finalists push themselves hard while feeling the pressures of living together and enduring various tests (songwriting collaboration, MC battles). After the anger, the tears, and the bravado, the ultimate six become Da Band (with the tolerable single “Bad Boy This, Bad Boy That”). An intermittently interesting look at hip hop's version of assembling a musical group reality-style, the extra features on this single disc include profile featurettes, audio segments for two unreleased Da Band songs, text bios, and picture-in-picture interview links that are accessible during the program. A strong optional purchase. Aud: P. (J. Williams)