Summary
Paradise and a prize pot of $100,000 await those who work hard for it. This series is an addictive, guilty pleasure watch.
Netflix is on a run with its reality shows, trying to concoct inventive, exciting scenarios to keep audiences hooked. In Surviving Paradise, a group of unsuspecting strangers are led to believe they will be experiencing the summer of a lifetime. However, this show has other plans. Instead of living their best Instagramable life in a luxury villa on a stunning cliff top overlooking the picturesque ocean, the players are banished to the wilderness below it, where they’ll have to fight to survive.
Sounds cruel? It kinda is, but there’s a twist. If they can out-scheme and out-strategize their opponents; the contestants can earn their way back to the resort. And it doesn’t stop there. Once back at the resort, the contestant can compete for a life-changing cash prize of $100,000.
Think Big Brother meets I’m A Celeb, with a stunning villa, and you have this series.
Surviving Paradise Season 1 review and plot summary
This series is throwing a lot into the mixing bowl, and unfortunately, it’s nothing we haven’t seen before. But that doesn’t mean it’s not exciting to watch. There’s an island, a game, there are tasks to survive, there’s the conflict of betrayal, possible friendships and romances, and finally a cash prize.
The cash prize isn’t that impressive — I feel the more game-reality shows that are being churned out the less the prize pot becomes. Now, not all shows have to rely on a giant prize fund (look at The Great British Bake Off — you win no money at all) but you’ve got to have a format that isn’t money. Here, as it’s a “compete for money” game, and in this cost-of-living crisis, $100,000 seems a weak prize pot.
Standup comic, podcast, and TV show host Jessimae Peluso guides the contestants along their rollercoaster of a journey. They’re not heavily involved but do help drive the game along, explaining what each contestant has to do, making everything clear for the audience.
There are some dramatic moments, and sections that pause for suspense, and really drive and disrupt the contestants’ relationships and alliances. The team is split into two with half in the villa living beautifully with hot showers and the other half in the woods surviving on beans and rice (they can’t even brush their teeth.)
The teams must complete tasks in order to stay in the villa and to get to the villa. The teams can vote who they want in the villa, and in the camp. Basically, no one is safe, and alliances matter.
With plenty of tears, tantrums, and tactics, this series is a must-watch for drama. I won’t ruin the end, but it’s more shocking than you can imagine.
Is Surviving Paradise Season 1 A Good Reality Series?
With the structure and the contestants, this reality series is rather addictive. As the show isn’t about falling in love, or dating, but about making connections in order to win money, their motives are all undeniable.
The contestants make a series like this, and whilst they’re all young and attractive (I’d like more age diversity), they all have big personalities and are easy to watch. No one is menacing in a bullying way, so they’re all likable and I found it hard to pick one individual I wanted to win.
What did you think of Surviving Paradise Season 1? Comment below.
