Rating: 1/10
Through forty seasons, Survivor's simple premise has reliably mined entertainment. Take a cross-section of folks, throw them into a primal location, have them forage for food and shelter, give them some fun challenges to compete in and make them get rid of someone every few days. It's an antifragile formula. The location and challenges don't really matter, and the people on the show aren't even that important. No matter who's on screen, the ruthless format dependably develops drama as players are first forced to live with people they normally wouldn't, then forced to betray those who have gained their intimacy. The formula almost always works.
Survivor: Thailand didn't work. It was a perfect storm of unwatchability, a remarkably atrocious season descending the franchise into inconceivably dreary territory. Thailand was an unmitigated failure in every category determining a season's enjoyment.
Survivor's most important component is its cast. More interesting and articulate people are more enjoyable to watch. Principled players develop compassion from viewers as each season progresses; we see the moral quandaries they face along with their repercussions. The show is more effective when the viewers care about the people they're watching. Hardly anyone in Thailand was worth a care. The oldest player, Jake, garnered respect throughout; Shii Ann's lucid confessions earned her the only return appearance of the castaways. No one else is worth mentioning. You had to wonder if and why producers deliberately chose unlikable people to play Thailand.
Strategic intrigue can supercede an uninspiring cast. But Thailand's votes were painfully obvious from start to finish. Both tribes started by voting out their weakest, most abrasive and least loyal members. After they merged, the larger tribe eliminated the smaller tribe one-by-one without anyone considering a blindside. Down the stretch, the Alpha male won the immunity challenges. We never found out if his allies would have recognized his status and conspired against him. He won a boring Final Tribal against an unsavory ally.
The spectacular geography of Australia and Africa - and Marquesas to a lesser degree - provided compelling ambience distracting the audience from their predictable voting sequences. The adventure of those exciting locales dissipated in Thailand, which was hyped for its quaint culture and giant snakes. On screen it just appeared to be a pretty hot place with canoes and caves.
Innovation is best saved for moments when a staple becomes stale. Thailand would have been the perfect time for a radical innovation, as Marquesas had raised a red flag on a downward trend of tedium. Thailand introduced three innovations, but each backfired. First they had the two oldest players draft tribes rather than pre-select them. Jake appeared to draft a stronger team than Jan, but their advantage faded after Jan's tribe was trimmed. The second was an offer to each castaway to switch tribes two weeks in. Some wanted to, but nobody had the guts to do it. Finally, there was a fake merge in which the tribes appeared to be living as one, but were technically still distinct despite sharing the same camp. That innovation backfired horribly when the most likable player on the most likable tribe (Shii Ann) fell into the trap and schemed with the other tribe to eliminate one of her own. Shii Ann's treachery was outed, her tribe lost the immunity challenge and she was voted out. The remaining members of her tribe were then executed one-by-one. After Shii Ann's exit there were no surprises, no twists convoluting Brian's inexorable march to the million.
Brian was certainly a strong player and deserving winner. His victory was one of the easiest in Survivor history, as he never received a vote or even any televised consideration. He cruised through what he deemed "a business trip" with remarkable dispassion. The unflappability Brian displayed throughout the season was an emblematic quality shared by many of the greatest to ever play Survivor.
But while future coldblooded Alpha champs like Boston Rob, Tyson and Jeremy revealed they did have humanity in confessionals, Brian may have just been a psychopath. Those GOATs fought tears while recalling the family they were playing the game for; Brian's closest brush with humanity came one night when he drank too much wine and barfed on the beach. There was never a moment of endearment, never a concern for anyone outside the game or anyone in it. His expression hardly changed when viewing his family video, but he did express concern for how the other castaways might view him upon seeing his home. Brian's wife, who acted alongside him in the softcore porn industry, wouldn't even attempt to eat a roach in order to see him. "Bye sweetheart," was all Brian managed to say as she left. A few months later Brian got a restraining order against her after an alleged assault. A few years after that they divorced. Somewhere in there Brian was arrested for shooting a puppy with an arrow.
One person recognized Brian as the preeminent threat down the stretch, and that person didn't even compete on the show. Helen's husband won that roach (and spider, and scorpion) eating challenge to spend a day with her in camp. He quickly recommended Helen vote Brian out, but she refused on account of Brian's integrity and loyalty. The used car dealer and softcore porn actor had promised her a trip to final two, after all. Helen got exactly what she deserved when Brian blindsided her in fourth place.
Thailand is most remembered as a chapter in Survivor's long history of sexual harassment. Thailand's scandal erupted after a brand-new father named Ted grinded against Ghandia in the middle of the night. The details of the incident weren't disputed: Ghandia and Ted had grown friendly, Ghandia mentioned having a friend like Ted was like having her husband on the island, they cuddled during the night, Ted grinded against her and bit her shoulder erotically. Ghandia confronted Ted the next day; he apologized and explained it as the behavior of a man who believed he was sleeping alongside his wife. Ghandia appeared appeased by the apology, but hours later she began complaining about the incident to the other castaways while omitting Ted's apology and explanation. They discussed the incident in front of all their tribemates, who appeared to side with Ted when they voted Ghandia out at the next Tribal Council. The edit appeared fair to both. We'll never know if the incident was legitimate confusion or an unused opportunity for Survivor producers to confront sexual harassment before it upended their franchise.
Survivor: Thailand didn't work. It was a perfect storm of unwatchability, a remarkably atrocious season descending the franchise into inconceivably dreary territory. Thailand was an unmitigated failure in every category determining a season's enjoyment.
Survivor's most important component is its cast. More interesting and articulate people are more enjoyable to watch. Principled players develop compassion from viewers as each season progresses; we see the moral quandaries they face along with their repercussions. The show is more effective when the viewers care about the people they're watching. Hardly anyone in Thailand was worth a care. The oldest player, Jake, garnered respect throughout; Shii Ann's lucid confessions earned her the only return appearance of the castaways. No one else is worth mentioning. You had to wonder if and why producers deliberately chose unlikable people to play Thailand.
Strategic intrigue can supercede an uninspiring cast. But Thailand's votes were painfully obvious from start to finish. Both tribes started by voting out their weakest, most abrasive and least loyal members. After they merged, the larger tribe eliminated the smaller tribe one-by-one without anyone considering a blindside. Down the stretch, the Alpha male won the immunity challenges. We never found out if his allies would have recognized his status and conspired against him. He won a boring Final Tribal against an unsavory ally.
The spectacular geography of Australia and Africa - and Marquesas to a lesser degree - provided compelling ambience distracting the audience from their predictable voting sequences. The adventure of those exciting locales dissipated in Thailand, which was hyped for its quaint culture and giant snakes. On screen it just appeared to be a pretty hot place with canoes and caves.
Innovation is best saved for moments when a staple becomes stale. Thailand would have been the perfect time for a radical innovation, as Marquesas had raised a red flag on a downward trend of tedium. Thailand introduced three innovations, but each backfired. First they had the two oldest players draft tribes rather than pre-select them. Jake appeared to draft a stronger team than Jan, but their advantage faded after Jan's tribe was trimmed. The second was an offer to each castaway to switch tribes two weeks in. Some wanted to, but nobody had the guts to do it. Finally, there was a fake merge in which the tribes appeared to be living as one, but were technically still distinct despite sharing the same camp. That innovation backfired horribly when the most likable player on the most likable tribe (Shii Ann) fell into the trap and schemed with the other tribe to eliminate one of her own. Shii Ann's treachery was outed, her tribe lost the immunity challenge and she was voted out. The remaining members of her tribe were then executed one-by-one. After Shii Ann's exit there were no surprises, no twists convoluting Brian's inexorable march to the million.
Brian was certainly a strong player and deserving winner. His victory was one of the easiest in Survivor history, as he never received a vote or even any televised consideration. He cruised through what he deemed "a business trip" with remarkable dispassion. The unflappability Brian displayed throughout the season was an emblematic quality shared by many of the greatest to ever play Survivor.
But while future coldblooded Alpha champs like Boston Rob, Tyson and Jeremy revealed they did have humanity in confessionals, Brian may have just been a psychopath. Those GOATs fought tears while recalling the family they were playing the game for; Brian's closest brush with humanity came one night when he drank too much wine and barfed on the beach. There was never a moment of endearment, never a concern for anyone outside the game or anyone in it. His expression hardly changed when viewing his family video, but he did express concern for how the other castaways might view him upon seeing his home. Brian's wife, who acted alongside him in the softcore porn industry, wouldn't even attempt to eat a roach in order to see him. "Bye sweetheart," was all Brian managed to say as she left. A few months later Brian got a restraining order against her after an alleged assault. A few years after that they divorced. Somewhere in there Brian was arrested for shooting a puppy with an arrow.
One person recognized Brian as the preeminent threat down the stretch, and that person didn't even compete on the show. Helen's husband won that roach (and spider, and scorpion) eating challenge to spend a day with her in camp. He quickly recommended Helen vote Brian out, but she refused on account of Brian's integrity and loyalty. The used car dealer and softcore porn actor had promised her a trip to final two, after all. Helen got exactly what she deserved when Brian blindsided her in fourth place.
Thailand is most remembered as a chapter in Survivor's long history of sexual harassment. Thailand's scandal erupted after a brand-new father named Ted grinded against Ghandia in the middle of the night. The details of the incident weren't disputed: Ghandia and Ted had grown friendly, Ghandia mentioned having a friend like Ted was like having her husband on the island, they cuddled during the night, Ted grinded against her and bit her shoulder erotically. Ghandia confronted Ted the next day; he apologized and explained it as the behavior of a man who believed he was sleeping alongside his wife. Ghandia appeared appeased by the apology, but hours later she began complaining about the incident to the other castaways while omitting Ted's apology and explanation. They discussed the incident in front of all their tribemates, who appeared to side with Ted when they voted Ghandia out at the next Tribal Council. The edit appeared fair to both. We'll never know if the incident was legitimate confusion or an unused opportunity for Survivor producers to confront sexual harassment before it upended their franchise.
No comments:
Post a Comment