How Survivor changed the world 20 years ago. Plus: Masked Singer's fake audience, TAR's return, and more
Dear newsletter friends,
Last Sunday was the 20th anniversary of Survivor: Borneo’s finale, which I rewatched this week. It holds up, and from Sue’s legendary speech at the final Tribal Council to Rich’s decision to quit the final immunity challenge, it’s just as dramatic two decades later.
I’d forgotten so much, though, like how bored the jury is! And the tie vote at the final four!
In my recap, I wrote about how Survivor Borneo’s finale changed Survivor, TV, and the world forever, with attention to Rich and Kelly’s strategies.
A show that will not change the world but is perhaps what some people living in the world really need right now is Love Island.
I recapped its dumb, pretty premiere.
The Masked Singer is coming back in a few weeks, and it will be doing so with a fake audience, which prompted me to write about how fake its audience already was during parts of the episode.
In other fall TV news:
We now know when BB22 and Love Island will end their seasons
NBC, CBS, and ABC announced their schedules. I’ve added all their reality show premieres to the latest reality TV schedule.
More news:
Where the next Eco-Challenge will be held, and how to apply (hurry! applications are due tomorrow!)
Dancing with the Stars fired Tom Bergeron so it could give us a “fresh take” on the show. I guess they already gave up on that: the second confirmed contestant is Backstreet Boy AJ McLean.
Ask Andy—my cleverly named feature where people ask me reality TV-related questions and I try to answer—is back, with two new answers:
Have a question? Just reply to this message and ask me!
Interviews I loved reading this week:
How did 90 Day Fiance take over TLC? The network’s president, Howard Lee, talks to Joe Adalian, and says it is “our version of a Marvel Comics Universe.” If you’re wondering when/if they’ll run out of shows, especially ones that have international border-crossing at their center, Lee says, “we’re okay well into 2021 — with our entire lineup.”
Selling Sunset’s Christine Quinn tells all—well, almost all. She refers us to a past interview for something she got in trouble for saying.
How Drag Race’s Resident Composer Is Bringing a Queer Sensibility to TV Music
Eco-Challenge’s camera operators talk about having to run the course themselves
Finally this week, meet Virginia Oliver, who’s 100 and still lobster fishing.
Have a great weekend, wear a mask around other people, and enjoy your reality TV-watching!
best,
Andy
🌄 This is Reality in Focus issue 209, first sent 28 August 2020, and it may not remember yesterday, but it still remembers watching that Survivor finale.
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📷 Photo of a sunrise in Uden, Netherlands, by Joran Quinten