Be Excellent To Each Other

We just watched the first episode of this on iPlayer.

It's basically Claudia Winkelman hosting a game of Mafia with some weird Fort Boyard bits shoe horned in.

I am gripped!

Episode 2 down.

This has the lot. Being forced to go to bed before I binge watch the lot.

This is all kinds of ace.

It's great, they are all so clueless.

I was sceptical when I heard about it but two episodes in and I'm hooked.

I'm very impressed with the editing and story telling.

Running hot and cold on Winkelmann at the moment. It's good for her to play against type but occasionally she's not as in control as I'd like: when she misses a beat it's really noticeable.

Oh that's a nice touch!

Did you spot the Only Collect alumnus, Kern?

No, but I can imagine OC contestants playing a lot of Mafia!

It took me a few moments to work out where I’d seen him before, but Ivan has been on OC.

Watched the penultimate episode last night.

The final

This slipped under my radar, and I was only told about it on BeeX. I was very sceptical about the show and the host. I stayed away until some other people mentioned it, then binged the first three episodes in one go as it swiftly became my TV show of the year, and totally unexpectedly.

I absolutely loved how carefully constructed each episode was, telling the stories in just the right way whilst also allowing us to get to know the players and care for them. I kept on switching from being Team Faithful to Team Traitor. The dramatic tension wouldn't have worked if the audience didn't know who was who.

Despite my doubts about Claudia, I now think she was a great choice, getting the mix of sympathy and spice just right.

The set design and b-roll of the Scottish highlands were a visual treat.



Back in July, I wrote about my experiences of Mafia and how I'd long since moved on but have very fond memories of those days. If anything, this reminds me how much fun GMing it is. I wonder if the players were specifically forbidden from playing a quick round during the show?

"Next time" trailers should fuck off to the end of the credits, or just fuck off altogether however. Part of the excitement is not knowing who will be back. I had to remember to have the remote in hand to cut the picture to avoid them every episode.

Traitors Australia : enjoyable from the start, they are all so very Australian. Better than the UK version I thought, but not by much.

Traitors USA : horrendous people, some of which you will genuinely despise. Almost turned it off after a couple of episodes as it is all so fake and "American". Stick with it though as the second half is great.

Where can you watch the Australian version, Troops? We watched half of the first episode of the American one and bailed on it. Those people are all just horrendous and fake, just as you say. Not sure I can push on through with it.

I had to torrent the Australian version, don't think it's on UK TV anywhere

I binged this fairly recently. Far better than it had any right to be. Worried that another season wouldn’t work as the combo of contestants were absolutely perfect.

Finished the US version at the weekend.

Alan Cumming hosts in a very different way to Claudia Winkelmann. He certainly isn't as motherly and far more icey, but adds a sense of mystery and feels naturally at home in the environment. In a way, it's like the difference between the classic hosts of the Crystal Maze: you could picture O'Brien living in that world whilst Tudor-Pole was only visiting.
I liked how he started to create a character for his groundkeeper - again, shades of O'Brien and Mumsey.



It was fun, and definitely builds over time, but was carried more by the host - Alan lit up every scene he was in, and not just due to his fashion choice. As with the UK version, I didn't feel like I got a sense of the geography of the castle: which rooms lead where, who can overhear who, etc. I also wish the producers would give us some hint as to how people find out about the murder - are they all summoned to the diary room each night to record their reflections and one person finds the death note? Or is it just a note under the door saying "don't come in today".