Hello fans of reality TV! Hello television bingers! Hello strategy gamers! I have arrived (like a cloaked messenger in the night) to deliver your new favorite reality television sensation: The Traitors!
The Traitors, which is based on a Dutch show, is basically just a large game of Mafia (also known as Werewolf and similar to Among Us) which puts 20 contestants in a Scottish castle and has them duke it out for $250,000.
First, let’s talk about the cast. Twenty people. Ten are reality TV stars. Ten are normies who are honestly mostly duds, but they don’t matter. Let me introduce our famous players, though.
First up, we’ve got two Survivor alumni, beginning with the great Cirie Fields.
The other Survivor alum is Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick.
Moving over to Survivor‘s sister show on CBS, Big Brother, we have Cody Calafiore.
There is no higher Big Brother royalty, however, than Rachel Reilly.
While we’re talking about Big Brother, we might as well discuss Brandi Glanville, a reality TV legend who appeared on Celebrity Big Brother 1.
Another Celebrity Big Brother alum is Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte.
Pivoting into the world of Bravolebrities, we have Kyle Cooke from Summer House.
There’s also one Bachelor nation star: Arie Luyendyk Jr.
And last, but not least, we have THE QUEEN HERSELF Kate Chastain from Below Deck.
As I said, there are 10 other contestants, but they don’t matter. Someone who does matter, however, is Alan Cumming, who serves as an incredible host of the show.
But back to the game! So, 20 contestants arrive at the castle, and Cumming informs them that a few of them will be “Traitors” while the rest will be “Faithfuls.”
If the Faithfuls can eliminate all the Traitors by the end of the game, they’ll split the money. If, however, a Traitor can make it to the end, they’ll take home the entire prize pot and leave the Faithfuls with nothing.
Each night, the Traitors get together and select one Faithful to murder.
In an always fun bit, the contestants arrive in the breakfast room each morning a few at a time, before it is revealed which contestant was murdered, and therefore, not eligible to eat the continental breakfast.
The contestants who survived are always giddy, and it’s fun to watch the Traitors try to pretend that they are also surprised by who is alive and who isn’t.
Then, Alan comes and X’s the portrait of the dead person, and informs the remaining players about the day’s “mission.”
The missions, which are the least exciting part of the show, allow the cast members to earn money which will go to the prize pot at the end.
The missions are a VIBE, though, and include ringing creepy church bells…
Spinning on a creepy old Ferris Wheel…
And in my favorite mission of the season, rolling large barrels through the countryside for miles.
After the mission, the cast returns to the mansion to strategize about who they think the Traitors might be and prep for the “Round Table.”
Then, everyone files in for the Round Table, which is honestly the best part of each episode. The group all speculate on who they think the Traitors are before voting to “banish” a Traitor. Once banished, the contestant reveals if they are a Traitor or a Faithful.
Usually, the group votes out a Faithful, which is cathartic for the viewers because everyone is sooooooooo self righteous, and usually, they are wrong.
The 10-episode series is a MUST WATCH if you love strategy-based reality TV, and also a MUST WATCH if you want to see Alan wear some of the best outfits ever assembled.
And this middle-part/broach combo.
TL;DR The Traitors is my reality TV obsession. I need everyone to watch it, and I need there to be a second season without any normies. It’s available to stream only on Peacock.
