The Fairy Jobmother

The Fairy Jobmother, adapted from a British show of the same name, follows the model of Supernanny--that child-rearing-rehab spectacular--with a diligent slavishness.

Like too many reality shows, The Fairy Jobmother offers easy, incomplete answers and sometimes doesn't ask the right questions.

Watching someone explain the obvious may not create electrifying television, but once in a while, it's okay for TV to be more valuable than fun. Like when it comes to how you find a job.

The series might be more fun if "jobmother" Hayley Taylor didn't have to stop each time she utters a harsh truth and comfort an angry or weeping spouse.

Some of the stories are touching, but the formula is set and stagy. The viewer has no doubt that the episode will end with a job offer and floods of thankful tears.

Her tips could be found in the nearest public library. And stretched to an hour, Jobmother seems downright inflationary.