"You want to play the game, you better know the rules, love." - Harry Callahan, The Dead Pool
Over the last week of reality TV, I've seen two situations which are remarkably similar, both in the actions that were taken, and how the shows' representatives (producers, hosts, etc.) reacted to them.
In last week's episode of Survivor, the "twist" was that each team stole two tribe-members from the opposing faction. So now, in both tribes, there is a majority of "natives" (to that tribe) and two "outsiders" (who can most likely be counted on to be voted out next). The Zhan Hu tribe, in an absolutely brilliant strategic move, threw this week's immunity challenge, which both allowed them to eliminate one of the opposing faction members from within their tribe, but also protecting their own former tribe-mates in the enemy camp. It's clear from their conversations that will probably do the same thing at the next immunity challenge as well. This is brilliant because it gives their original tribe a significant advantage when the tribes finally merge, which will make their opponents (in the Fei Long) the minority, and easy pickins. Jeff Probst, the host, was clearly annoyed during the challenge as he watched two Zhan Hu participants, who are normally great at puzzles, completely make a mess of the puzzle challenge, even going so far as to throw one of the puzzle pieces into the weeds to ensure that the Fei Long member who was also in that stage of the challenge wouldn't be able to complete the puzzle.
Then, (and I'm not a viewer, but I read about it on Reality Blurred) apparently in last night's Biggest Loser, there was a "twist" where they reorganized the teams as part of a surprise, or something like that, and (essentially, here's my understanding) this guy Neil forced himself to gain 17 pounds, specifically so that he could get his team (which was composed of his opponents) into an elimination situation. It is, again, a classically brilliant strategic move, completely within the rules of the game. The show's hosts/trainers were apparently furious at Neil for "messing with peoples' lives" and such.
What these shows forget is that they are, first and foremost, games, and they are games with rules. Reality shows today are all about the "twist" because it gets people to watch and increases the ratings, but those same writers and producers are shocked, shocked I say!, when the players use those rules to their own advantage.
The same thing happened in Big Brother this season. Jen was on the chopping block, but she was also on slop. The producers had been fucking with her all season (mostly because she was that rare breed who spent time during the show sitting around reading the rules), and she was sick of it. She realized that the penalty for "eating food while on slop" was a penalty nomination in the next elimination. Having a penalty nomination for the following week would almost certainly ensure that the current week she would survive... because why vote her out now, when you can get another guaranteed shot at her next week? So she went ahead and ate... everyone was up in arms about how that screwed the "innocent" person who was on the block with this this week, etc., etc., and the producers went so far as to change the rules mid-game, all because a player knew the rules and used them to their advantage.
Reality producers are quick to use the rules to their own advantage time and again, especially if it helps them promote the contestants who have a large fan-base, or if it acts to the detriment of the "villains" of the show. But they simply cannot accept that those rules are also there for the contestants to use to their own advantage.
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