Reality TV shows, and reality TV competitions are not new. They've been around for decades. We used to watch shows like Survivor, The Amazing Race, but they wore thin, especially when you realize that what you see is what the show wants you to see. They edit the show in a way to maximize the emotional impact. And boy, did this show have emotional impact.
If you're unfamiliar with the show, it's like the game Mafia or Werewolf, or Murder. A group of people gather. Some are chosen as the killers and the rests are victims. The killers then go about establishing trust with the victims all the while scheming their demise. The participants engage in activities in order to build up the nest egg that the winners will split. Throw in some twists and turns and you've got a show.
One thing I liked was the murder reveal. They waited until the beginning of the next show to let us know who got the axe...brilliant. In addition to the person being chosen by the killers--or in this case, the traitors--everyone meets each night in order to eliminate who they collectively believe is a traitor. Let's just say the victims--or in this case, the faithfuls--did not have the best track record against the traitors to begin with.
We were about halfway through with the series this morning. We watched one episode, then another, then another. We finally finished the series and found out how it ended.
Turns out, the Americans and the Australians have their own The Traitor series. We'll be checking those out as well, but I doubt they'll be as good. The Brits do a good job at telling a story. Americans seem to over-sensationalize everything.
The series is on the Peacock network. Also, be advised, the Brits do enjoy their swear words. Yes, we got sucked in. They manipulated us almost as the players manipulated each other.
