I have a friend whose name is Bryan. He is a naysayer of almost everything. So whenever he gets the chance, he decides to be the Devil's advocate on lots of our conversations. One his favorite Devil's advocate conversations is the realness of Survivor. He claims that none of it is real! Me, being a Survivor junkie and wannabe, asked him to write a guest a blog. He declined my offer (because he knows he is wrong), but gave me points to talk about. So this is from the point of view from a reality TV hater. #HatersGunnaHate
1. "Did you know that they don't even stay out in the wild? They sleep in hotels!"
The back story to this accusation is that Bryan once went to Samoa. It just happened to be the EXACT same time that Survivor was being filmed for Survivor: Samoa. He and his family were supposed to stay in a nice resort there, but Survivor had rented out the "whole place!" So naturally, Bryan decides from that one experience that no, they don't sleep outside, they sleep in hotels.
I am going to go out on a limb and say these are false accusations. The contestants stay in the wild while they are still on the island. HOWEVER when they are voted off, they do get to be wined and dined off the island.
2. "They totally get fed that whole time. There is NO way they can live off what they actually show us they eat."
Well Bryan, sorry to break it to you, but you are for sure wrong here. The only evidence I need to prove you wrong is weight loss. All of the contestants lose upwards of 20 pounds each season! They only get the rice and beans that are portioned out to them in the beginning. Then the occasional food challenge in which they get great dining experiences. Over all though, no. No they do not get to eat whatever they want on the island.
3. "The whole thing is fake. Everything is set up. All the lines rehearsed. Survivor is like every other reality TV show."
Ouch Bryan. That one hurts. Survivor is in a league of its own. It's closest competitors come from the same network. But you are right. Most of Survivor is fake. The challenges aren't naturally there, those are built specifically for the season. And I'll add to your argument again, where tribal council is held is definitely man made and built specifically for the show, again. So yes there are certain aspects of the show that are fake. But it's not all fake.
Now take everything I say with a grain of salt. I have never been on Survivor. I am just a Survivor junkie who'd like to think she knows everything about the show! I could be totally wrong and Bryan could be totally right. But that would be sad, and extremely annoying.
Sincerely, Sherri Riggs
the Survivor Girl
P.S. If you know more about Survivor than me and want to let me know, then let me know! I can take it. Or if you agree with Bryan and want to gang up on me, go for it. This is what I am built for! Just comment below and let me have it ;)
