Kevin O’Leary might be blunt, but one shark is way more savage on ‘Shark Tank’ — you’ll see why
'Shark Tank' has been a hit reality TV show since its premiere in August 2009. The show has helped many entrepreneurs succeed, thanks to sharks like Kevin O'Leary, Barbara Corcoran, Mark Cuban, Lori Greiner, Robert Herjavec, and Daymond John. However, they sometimes forget that their words carry weight and can do more harm than good to aspiring contestants. Viewers have often seen Kevin O’Leary deliver the harshest comments during pitches. However, of late, another shark is giving O'Leary a run for this title, and that's none other than Barbara Corcoran.
Corcoran, who has been on the show since its debut, has built a strong reputation as a successful entrepreneur. Her journey from waitress to founding one of New York’s top real estate firms, The Corcoran Group, speaks volumes. But on the show, she sometimes seems to forget those humble beginnings. According to Fandomwire, in Season 11, Melissa Bartow pitched her company 'Wanna Date?' and mentioned living with her father. Corcoran declined to invest, saying Bartow wasn’t financially independent. Fans slammed Corcoran for dismissing the contestant on personal grounds and accused her of bullying. Since then, fans have pointed to several other instances where the real estate mogul rejected contestants for questionable reasons.
On a Reddit thread titled 'Kevin is not the meanest shark on Shark Tank,' a long-time viewer made a fair point and said, "Don’t get me wrong, Kevin can act like a d*** sometimes, but it’s not often that he insults the entrepreneur as a person. He usually just says their business model is bad and they should stop doing it." He explained with an example: "Which again can be really harsh and really cruel depending on the person in the backstory, etc., etc., but the majority of the time It’s just him saying “you have a really bad business model, and it’s not sustainable, and it’s not gonna make me, any massive investor, any kind of profit, so I’m not going to invest in you, and for your sake I advise you to not put yourself through financial ruin over this business.'" It’s not often that he’s going to attack the entrepreneur as a person. Barbara, however, will sometimes say the most out-of-pocket things for no reason."
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Noting another example, a viewer added, "When she revealed that she couldn’t stand when her employees had photos of their families on their desks, I finally understood why Kevin buys her a new broom every year." Echoing the sentiment, another said, "I agree she is mean." Agreeing with the sentiment, a netizen posted, "Kevin keeps it real and is the most generous to give offers out of all the sharks." A person whose mother worked closely with Corcoran told, "She does say some absolutely out-of-left-field things to people. My mom also worked with a guy who worked with Barbara and said she was pretty creepy towards him, which I think about every time a muscular or handsome dude is on the show and she goes all googly-eyed."
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While fans continue to criticize Corcoran for her harsh judgments, Kevin O’Leary seems to be earning some redemption. "Kevin is so misunderstood. When I started watching, I immediately liked him for his blunt yet accurate comments. He is hilarious and can laugh at himself too and lets the other sharks hassle him in good fun. EVERYONE else seems so egotistical and precious, especially Robert. The show would be nothing without Kevin," a Reddit user wrote on the same thread.
