'Extreme Couponing' – 3 out of 5 stars

Posted to Arts & Entertainment by Melissa Gilstrap at 8:53 p.m., April 7, 2011

Two million viewers learned the new commandment, "thou shalt not pay retail price," after tuning in Wednesday night to TLC’s newest show, “Extreme Couponing." The documentary series follows the lives of extreme couponers, people who spend hours finding coupons, clipping them and then astounding fellow shoppers by saving thousands of dollars on grocery purchases.

The couponing magic happens when these savvy savers reach the checkout line. Before adding the value of her coupons, Tiffany, one shopper on the show, racked up a $555 bill. After applying the value of her heap of coupons, the bill became a mere $5. Another shopper bought $1902 worth of groceries and then practically stole it by only paying $103.

The riveting part of the show is the extreme payoff, and it constantly leaves you guessing how much the fanatical shoppers will be able to save each shopping trip. Although the series is probably most appealing to middle-aged women in mom jeans, college students may find it appealing because it demonstrates how you can buy more than packs of ramen on a $5 dollar budget.

“Extreme Couponing” may lose fans because it starts off pretty slow and follows a fairly predictable template in the first 10 minutes. The series likens the shopping experience of the extreme couponers to a game of chess, but really it’s more like a longer version of normal person’s grocery run, which can get bland in a hurry.

Overall, “Extreme Couponing” has an interesting premise and may inspire watchers to start couponing – just don’t expect the excitement of an MTV show from this reality series.