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BigBrotherCritic
Like working a job 24/7, for 2 days on the trot
I scored it a 5. Its passable, but has issues.
This season feels souless. Its like the echos of Big Brother past. Mel is doing fantastically but the budget is really showing. The eviction episode was incredibly disappointing, it felt too much like a daily show.
I do however really like the nominations format. Very quick paced but with live reveals is quite exciting.
I'm hoping that this years low budget and general sloppiness is just a sign that BB will return next year bigger and better, and LONGER.
This season feels souless. Its like the echos of Big Brother past. Mel is doing fantastically but the budget is really showing. The eviction episode was incredibly disappointing, it felt too much like a daily show.
I do however really like the nominations format. Very quick paced but with live reveals is quite exciting.
I'm hoping that this years low budget and general sloppiness is just a sign that BB will return next year bigger and better, and LONGER.
BigBrotherCritic
Like working a job 24/7, for 2 days on the trot
wilsonwilson
Member
Absolutely better! Ironically it would be less work for the production team as well.
BB12
Well-Known Member
My thoughts exactly, you're already on limited time, why make it harder for yourselves?
BB12
Well-Known Member
I'm basing my opinion on the very first promo we got last year. I really want to see the full credits for this season as I'm convinced Peter Abbott had absolutely no input regarding the casting or production, bar the voice for the original promo. I hope I'm wrong, but it begs the question, why bother? I feel he'd be pretty unhappy with what they are churning out, it's not staying true to its roots.
andrewpatrick_
Well-Known Member
At the moment it’s sitting on a 6 from me.
When they nail it it’s fantastic and exactly what I wanted. When they fumble, they fumble hard.
The housemates are a good selection but there are many of them we are just not seeing enough of. It’s a short season, focusing on the same two or three people is making me lose interest.
The house and set look cheap. I expected this unfortunately but the house not even having a roof? Big no.
Mel Tracina is great, and was the correct choice for hosting. But I am frustrated for her because she’s not being given a chance during their rushed and poorly structured live shows to really show us what she can do. Gretel felt like a leader. And her presence gave the show its structure. Mel just feels like a second narrator at this point.
In a positive, the live stream has been an absolute winner.
It’s been good enough to satisfy the BBAU void for me, but they have a lot they could work on to make it better.
When they nail it it’s fantastic and exactly what I wanted. When they fumble, they fumble hard.
The housemates are a good selection but there are many of them we are just not seeing enough of. It’s a short season, focusing on the same two or three people is making me lose interest.
The house and set look cheap. I expected this unfortunately but the house not even having a roof? Big no.
Mel Tracina is great, and was the correct choice for hosting. But I am frustrated for her because she’s not being given a chance during their rushed and poorly structured live shows to really show us what she can do. Gretel felt like a leader. And her presence gave the show its structure. Mel just feels like a second narrator at this point.
In a positive, the live stream has been an absolute winner.
It’s been good enough to satisfy the BBAU void for me, but they have a lot they could work on to make it better.
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wilsonwilson
Member
I'm certain he isn't involved. I doubt there's any producers from the channel 10 days. If it wasn't for the livestream I'd be really disappointed. In terms of the production of live shows and even on daily shows I feel channel 9 did a much better job. It's felt really amateur at times and some of the music and editing choices make it feel too much like any other reality show.
I have given it a 5.
The pre-show promotions/marathons that were targeting OG fans and the show we have now feels like a bait and switch. It feels like a round Love Island ball being shoved in a Big Brother square hole. The amount of production interference via Big Brother is unacceptable.
The daily show editing seems to have its off and on days. I feel like we saw a lot more and less editing in the half an hour version. For an hour and a half show there this too much editing and too much stuff being chopped out. There is a clear favoritism in the editing as well.
The live shows seem pointless in an hour and a half show, Mel is only shown for 15 minutes max? Mostly just doing segues in and out of breaks? And when the part of the show that requires the live element, it's rushed in an "okay, we did it kthxbye" way.
Big Brother himself is not good at all. I was glad Leon was gone because I hated the cadence in his voice. Pete is just emulating it and does not sound authoritarian at all. He sounds likes their friend or even flirting with them. He should not respond to them whenever they want him to. He should not talk in the first person or call the house "my house". Big Brother is not a disembodied 14th housemate nor an executive producer/director of a movie. Big Brother is the only connection to the outside world for the housemates and is only there as a means of communication between production and housemates.
Rules are not being properly enforced. Big Brother is too friendly to housemates.
The 'rest day' is complete bullshit. Big Brother should be 24/7. No, Pete doesn't need to be there all day every day for Big Brother to operate. This was never an issue in the past so why now are they so worried that we will hear another voice in the morning or during the day?
Also, actively shutting down any conversations of interest so much so that the housemates themselves are sick of it because you're not going to use it in the daily show is bullshit also. You have staff there clearly, surely someone can keep track of things, and it can be reviewed later?
The live stream is a double-edged sword. It's a riveting watch but the direction of it is so poor. There is too much muting and cut-aways. You can't say with a straight face that housemates are talking about something that can get you in legal trouble every 20 minutes or so. The camera and audio work is poor (but slowly getting better). Too many static shots, not following housemates around, focusing on just one, having all mics on at the same time or switching to a different part of the house but keeping the previous mics on. There are too many ads on the 10 stream. There are a lot of people who would be more than happy to pay for an ad-free stream.
Cameras. Yes, they need to be behind mirrors again. I get that they cannot all be manned 24/7 anymore due to budgets but housemates should not know where they are and be allowed to play up to them. That should be considered attempting to communicate with the outside world (same as responding to riders).
The housemates are an overall good mix. Too many guys on the right-wing, incel spectrum. We should have known about Jane's love of Donald Trump before she went in.
Colin. Yes, it's clear that he is the producers favourite and things are being manipulated to allow a clear path for him to win, this is unacceptable. The only good thing is that his problematic behaviour is slowly creeping in and he's likely to take himself out one way or another before he can win. If he does win, based on what people who know him say about him, it will be a giant slap in the face to victims of domestic violence and abuse.
The pre-show promotions/marathons that were targeting OG fans and the show we have now feels like a bait and switch. It feels like a round Love Island ball being shoved in a Big Brother square hole. The amount of production interference via Big Brother is unacceptable.
The daily show editing seems to have its off and on days. I feel like we saw a lot more and less editing in the half an hour version. For an hour and a half show there this too much editing and too much stuff being chopped out. There is a clear favoritism in the editing as well.
The live shows seem pointless in an hour and a half show, Mel is only shown for 15 minutes max? Mostly just doing segues in and out of breaks? And when the part of the show that requires the live element, it's rushed in an "okay, we did it kthxbye" way.
Big Brother himself is not good at all. I was glad Leon was gone because I hated the cadence in his voice. Pete is just emulating it and does not sound authoritarian at all. He sounds likes their friend or even flirting with them. He should not respond to them whenever they want him to. He should not talk in the first person or call the house "my house". Big Brother is not a disembodied 14th housemate nor an executive producer/director of a movie. Big Brother is the only connection to the outside world for the housemates and is only there as a means of communication between production and housemates.
Rules are not being properly enforced. Big Brother is too friendly to housemates.
The 'rest day' is complete bullshit. Big Brother should be 24/7. No, Pete doesn't need to be there all day every day for Big Brother to operate. This was never an issue in the past so why now are they so worried that we will hear another voice in the morning or during the day?
Also, actively shutting down any conversations of interest so much so that the housemates themselves are sick of it because you're not going to use it in the daily show is bullshit also. You have staff there clearly, surely someone can keep track of things, and it can be reviewed later?
The live stream is a double-edged sword. It's a riveting watch but the direction of it is so poor. There is too much muting and cut-aways. You can't say with a straight face that housemates are talking about something that can get you in legal trouble every 20 minutes or so. The camera and audio work is poor (but slowly getting better). Too many static shots, not following housemates around, focusing on just one, having all mics on at the same time or switching to a different part of the house but keeping the previous mics on. There are too many ads on the 10 stream. There are a lot of people who would be more than happy to pay for an ad-free stream.
Cameras. Yes, they need to be behind mirrors again. I get that they cannot all be manned 24/7 anymore due to budgets but housemates should not know where they are and be allowed to play up to them. That should be considered attempting to communicate with the outside world (same as responding to riders).
The housemates are an overall good mix. Too many guys on the right-wing, incel spectrum. We should have known about Jane's love of Donald Trump before she went in.
Colin. Yes, it's clear that he is the producers favourite and things are being manipulated to allow a clear path for him to win, this is unacceptable. The only good thing is that his problematic behaviour is slowly creeping in and he's likely to take himself out one way or another before he can win. If he does win, based on what people who know him say about him, it will be a giant slap in the face to victims of domestic violence and abuse.
Melore
Tiny Member
I am so cross the producers are pushing this toxic little cunt down our throats and that people are swallowing his act. It's one thing to cast him, but quite another to promote him to this degree. It's like they have never met an immature bogan with a couple of catchphrases before. You can find one in most pubs.
I originally voted 7 but I'll change to 6/10 for now. Like everyone else has already said we went in being promised original old school BB but what we have been given is a channel 9 format with channel 7 editing on a channel 10 budget. That is is pretty much my thoughts shortened into a single sentence.
The live stream is the key player here, I watch it whenever I have nothing else to do and I prefer to watch it rather than the episodes which we have touched on more than enough already, we know what we want them to look like so all we have to do is hope our comments are heard and taken on board.
Mel is fantastic though and it is such a shame she's almost being wasted. Eviction shows need to be 90 minutes in length and no more than 30 minutes dedicated to the daily show segment since all we get is footage from Friday. The eviction shows were the real highlight of the week in the early days, even on channel 9.
I will continue to delusionally agree with those who are looking at this season as a pilot season and I hope and pray that a bigger budget is used next year. Honestly a permanent studio/house will make a world of difference to the vibe.
The live stream is the key player here, I watch it whenever I have nothing else to do and I prefer to watch it rather than the episodes which we have touched on more than enough already, we know what we want them to look like so all we have to do is hope our comments are heard and taken on board.
Mel is fantastic though and it is such a shame she's almost being wasted. Eviction shows need to be 90 minutes in length and no more than 30 minutes dedicated to the daily show segment since all we get is footage from Friday. The eviction shows were the real highlight of the week in the early days, even on channel 9.
I will continue to delusionally agree with those who are looking at this season as a pilot season and I hope and pray that a bigger budget is used next year. Honestly a permanent studio/house will make a world of difference to the vibe.
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matts bb
Always Watching 👀
Is that vesna?the comments there are nailing it.
kamui
Well-Known Member
I gave it a 5.. initially I thought about giving it a 6 but with the audio issues I didn't want to place it in the upper half of the scale. It's not just an accessibility issue, but it's one of the most basic things. If you can't put a show together, let somebody else do it.
But other than that, I think putting it in the middle seemed justified to me. I wasn't expecting any OG format or production style... I've been disappointed by reboots so many times in my life, I stopped having expectations. Yes, absolutely. Do I want it to be an OG style show though? Absolutely. Have I loved the hype and vibe? You bet. Will I acknowledge that they promised an OG style show? Yes, definitely. Are they delivering on their promises? Absolutely not.
I would still have put it in the middle because it has the potential. The marketing was phenomenal. We have a great host. We have the live stream. It's something to build on, especially with the live stream. I've seen so many seasons saved by the live stream. And lot of the times, I think they hold themselves back by the poor execution as evidenced by the small fixes that are suggested on here, which would elevate the show quite a bit.
We have producers listening to us, but at the same time it seems like they absolute don't care for the show. We've had a lot of discussions about cameras being visible. I said that the show works with cameras being visible. I still think that the show would work with cameras being visible. But if they cast fame-hungry housemates, they need to enforce that people should not play up the cameras. It works for other franchises and it's a huge failure for them to not act on it. With them not enforcing anything, it's guaranteed to have somebody on next year's cast that will do the same. (Which is why I'd also switch to team hidden cameras, even though I suspect that people like Colin will keep looking for the cameras. Very often it's not that hard to guess where the cameras are behind the mirrors).
That half-arsed approach is also reflected in the housemates. Overall, I don't hate the cast. But I also don't love the cast. But there might be potential. I think this cast would benefit from having vote to evict and actually losing some of the major characters along the way.
I think this mixed bag impression leads to me give it a 5 (or 6). It entertained me more than it annoyed me. But it didn't catch me as much as I want it to catch me.
In recent days though, I start to be more annoyed with their decisions as well. I was able to excuse not showing Colin's outburst at the family dinner because of time constraints and it not being that important for nominations since nobody brought it up directly. There is no excuse for today's edit. Not revealing twists in advance and not showing showing how Michael came to his decision are a huge no-go.
I've seen people making fun of "conspiracy theories". But none of them can proof that there was no manipulation involved. It wouldn't even have to be producers telling Michael to name Holly as Head Housemate. Who says that they didn't tell him "You can pick one housemate who might get the chance to save themselves from nominations". And there is nothing wrong about that claim, but it would steer him to either Jane or Holly. And they could have avoided all these discussions by just revealing twists to the audience. The viewers knowing more than the housemates is such an integral part of the show.
I'm also annoyed with them relying so much on given storylines. You call people ugly or stupid and of course somebody will be (or at least play) upset. You give somebody a phone call from home, they will obviously be excited. But it's not exciting to watch, it's predictable. Why should anyone be excited for Big Brother when producers can't be excited for the original format?
That's the biggest disappointment so far. Them being too scared to even try their orginal format. I feel like it's worth to look back what OG producer Jonathon Summerhayes said in the SMH article about the OG era and how they've not been following anything.
Now they have rest days and when housemates get bored, they tell them to stay bored.
Now we get tasks and storylines where we know exactly what will happen, the only thing we might not know in advance is who will fill play the role in the current storyline.
It's a shame and I feel it will get worse when they'll eventually flood the season with twists after twists.
But other than that, I think putting it in the middle seemed justified to me. I wasn't expecting any OG format or production style... I've been disappointed by reboots so many times in my life, I stopped having expectations. Yes, absolutely. Do I want it to be an OG style show though? Absolutely. Have I loved the hype and vibe? You bet. Will I acknowledge that they promised an OG style show? Yes, definitely. Are they delivering on their promises? Absolutely not.
I would still have put it in the middle because it has the potential. The marketing was phenomenal. We have a great host. We have the live stream. It's something to build on, especially with the live stream. I've seen so many seasons saved by the live stream. And lot of the times, I think they hold themselves back by the poor execution as evidenced by the small fixes that are suggested on here, which would elevate the show quite a bit.
We have producers listening to us, but at the same time it seems like they absolute don't care for the show. We've had a lot of discussions about cameras being visible. I said that the show works with cameras being visible. I still think that the show would work with cameras being visible. But if they cast fame-hungry housemates, they need to enforce that people should not play up the cameras. It works for other franchises and it's a huge failure for them to not act on it. With them not enforcing anything, it's guaranteed to have somebody on next year's cast that will do the same. (Which is why I'd also switch to team hidden cameras, even though I suspect that people like Colin will keep looking for the cameras. Very often it's not that hard to guess where the cameras are behind the mirrors).
That half-arsed approach is also reflected in the housemates. Overall, I don't hate the cast. But I also don't love the cast. But there might be potential. I think this cast would benefit from having vote to evict and actually losing some of the major characters along the way.
I think this mixed bag impression leads to me give it a 5 (or 6). It entertained me more than it annoyed me. But it didn't catch me as much as I want it to catch me.
In recent days though, I start to be more annoyed with their decisions as well. I was able to excuse not showing Colin's outburst at the family dinner because of time constraints and it not being that important for nominations since nobody brought it up directly. There is no excuse for today's edit. Not revealing twists in advance and not showing showing how Michael came to his decision are a huge no-go.
I've seen people making fun of "conspiracy theories". But none of them can proof that there was no manipulation involved. It wouldn't even have to be producers telling Michael to name Holly as Head Housemate. Who says that they didn't tell him "You can pick one housemate who might get the chance to save themselves from nominations". And there is nothing wrong about that claim, but it would steer him to either Jane or Holly. And they could have avoided all these discussions by just revealing twists to the audience. The viewers knowing more than the housemates is such an integral part of the show.
I'm also annoyed with them relying so much on given storylines. You call people ugly or stupid and of course somebody will be (or at least play) upset. You give somebody a phone call from home, they will obviously be excited. But it's not exciting to watch, it's predictable. Why should anyone be excited for Big Brother when producers can't be excited for the original format?
That's the biggest disappointment so far. Them being too scared to even try their orginal format. I feel like it's worth to look back what OG producer Jonathon Summerhayes said in the SMH article about the OG era and how they've not been following anything.
Now they have rest days and when housemates get bored, they tell them to stay bored.
Now we get tasks and storylines where we know exactly what will happen, the only thing we might not know in advance is who will fill play the role in the current storyline.
It's a shame and I feel it will get worse when they'll eventually flood the season with twists after twists.
I'd give this season a 6, propped up by the live stream (and the amazing contributors documenting everything in the fan diary). Some comments:
My wishlist for Sunday evictions this season (so far):
- Happy to have the iconic theme tune back after what Ch7 did, but it is used inconsistently.
- Opening title sequence is too short and conveys nothing about what Big Brother is.
- I've had my say about the amazing human eye logo that was ditched last minute, so won't say anymore on this.
- The emotion-influencing music in daily shows? Get. rid. of. it.
- Editing of the daily shows generally miss the mark, focusing too much on things like hookups and a lot of time wasted from unnecessarily long transition scenes. When live stream viewers say they're seeing a different house dynamic to what is dished up in the daily shows, this just shouldn't happen.
- BB needs to stop participating in house conversations outside of the diary room. And remember to speak in third person.
- The live shows stink. The timing for transitioning to and from video packages is awkward, the audio mixing is terrible... it used to be a polished production and I miss this.
My wishlist for Sunday evictions this season (so far):
- 90 minute timeslot:
- 60 minute DS (NO live segments)
- 30 minute live eviction
- Somewhere for evictee and Mel to sit
- Longer eviction interviews including a set of standard questions asked of every evictee (like the 10 Big Brother questions of yesteryear)
- At least one prepared video package showing the evictee's time in the house, but ideally also a second one showing which housemates nominated them.
- Voting graph
- Potentially something from a family member or close friend - if budget doesn't allow for them to be there in person, a short video clip will do.
- Evictee chooses the next head housemate during the live broadcast (but keep the house announcement for Monday's show as now)
- Full crew credits at end of Sunday show
All 3 aged over 33 are up for eviction in the first two weeks,
I am definitely not the target audience anymore. I'm having fun with the livestream this year, but if the cast is this young next season, I won't tune in. And that's ok, cos it's not made for me anymore.
The nostalgia has been fun and I will enjoy it to the max for what it is this season
I am definitely not the target audience anymore. I'm having fun with the livestream this year, but if the cast is this young next season, I won't tune in. And that's ok, cos it's not made for me anymore.
The nostalgia has been fun and I will enjoy it to the max for what it is this season
sav0001
Well-Known Member
I don't feel like this cast is much younger than what we used to get on the OG BB on 10All 3 aged over 33 are up for eviction in the first two weeks,
I am definitely not the target audience anymore. I'm having fun with the livestream this year, but if the cast is this young next season, I won't tune in. And that's ok, cos it's not made for me anymore.
The nostalgia has been fun and I will enjoy it to the max for what it is this season
Correct. But I am older than I was then. So thats what I am saying. I was around the same age as the housemates when the show began, now I am a lot older than them and it fees a bit like watching playschool as a teenager, to me personally.
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That is OG BB though - they cast young and the "oldies" were usually the early nominees. Difference now is the oldies are 33+ rather than 25+.All 3 aged over 33 are up for eviction in the first two weeks,
I am definitely not the target audience anymore. I'm having fun with the livestream this year, but if the cast is this young next season, I won't tune in. And that's ok, cos it's not made for me anymore.
The nostalgia has been fun and I will enjoy it to the max for what it is this season
(I remember rewatching BBUK2 a couple of years back and being shocked to discover the HM who was thought at the time to be the old boring one was in fact 28!)
I'm talking about my age in relation to the show. Its not as appealing to me at the age I am now, as it was when I was the age of the majority of the housemates. And thats fine, not all shows are made for everyone, and this one is no longer made for my demographic.
I still choose to enjoy it for what it is this season, but I accept its not aimed at people like me going forward. I was chasing the feeling the show gave me back then, it doesnt do that anymore. I hadnt seen BB for years before Celeb BBUK, so thats why I am only having this revelation now
I've never been of the opinion because I'm older I want to see older HMs - indeed part of the appeal of BB is it take me back to my youth. That said what I consider "young" has certainly shifted up a decade or so. We often find in BB though it's the teenagers who have an old head on young shoulders whilst the 40 year olds act like spoiled brats.