At one point, Big Brother was the most popular reality television show on the air.
The hook is simple: you trap a bunch of strangers in a small house with a large sum of money on the line, set up some carnival games every week, and watch them lie and backstab their way to the end.
It was easy to see the appeal, and the show was a mega hit in its early days. But those days have come and gone, leaving us with a series that feels nothing like it did during its heyday.
(Sonja Flemming/CBS)
New Big Brother Doesn’t Have the Same Feel as Earlier Seasons
At some point this summer, Big Brother will return for season 27, and a new batch of houseguests will move in to compete for money.
When you think about some of the most iconic moments in Big Brother history (and the iconic players), you’ll probably start thinking about houseguests from the earlier days like Dr. Will Kirby, Danielle Reyes, Janelle Pierzina, and Kaysar Ridha.
These players played cutthroat and ruthlessly in a time when the game was much more about making it to the end and not just trying to secure a spot in the jury house to increase their social media following and brand opportunities.
Old-school Big Brother players were there for the love of the game and weren’t nearly as cognizant of the cameras in the ways the players are now.
(Sonja Flemming/CBS)
That’s not to say there aren’t still some players nowadays who are there solely to be crowned the winner, but the cast these days doesn’t have the same feel as it once did.
Part of the series’ initial allure was watching everyday people from all walks of life interact in a social experiment, which was only compounded by the monetary prize at the end.
That social element still exists, but CBS seems less concerned with really exploring the social aspect and more about creating a family-friendly show three nights a week that fits their status quo.
What Happened To Live Feeds?
(Courtesy of CBS)
One of the things that set Big Brother apart from every other television show was the live feeds.
In addition to getting episodes a few days a week, ardent fans could watch live feeds of the houseguests inside the house 24/7, meaning they could see them eat, sleep, scheme, hang out, and do various other things.
Considering how heavily produced the episodes are, the live feeds were the only way to see the real gameplay, dynamics, fights, and everything else the show deemed unnecessary to show to the larger audience.
For many fans, it was the only way to watch and enjoy the game each season because it gave them the most information about what was happening inside the game.
A few one-hour episodes during the week can’t encompass everything happening in one day, let alone a whole week, inside the Big Brother house.
(Sonja Flemming/CBS)
But the live feeds are a shell of what they once were. As in, it can seem like the feeds are off more than they’re on nowadays, with the show trying to steer clear of controversy as much as possible by taking them offline whenever there’s a threat of something happening the show doesn’t want to be held accountable for.
Feed outages are normal when production activities are taking place, like competitions or the houseguests needing to discuss the rules of a game, but nowadays, fights and conversations that may veer into what the show deems controversial territory are being censored.
The lack of feeds often leaves viewers jumping to conclusions and spreading a lot of misinformation simply because they don’t actually know what may have happened while feeds are down, but they get bits and pieces of information once they return.
The show has a significant online presence, and with the feed situation worsening every year, many longtime fans have checked out because it’s nearly impossible to enjoy the show the same way you could in the past, because of how much you’re unable to see.
CBS Keeps Cancelling the Best Parts of Big Brother Lately…The Spinoffs!
(CBS)
One of the best Big Brother seasons of the past decade was Celebrity Big Brother Season 1, a neat twist on the series.
Instead of a whole summer, the celebrity guests spent just under four weeks inside the house, competing against each other in the same way the regular folks do, which meant the game was faster-paced with a juicier hook because who doesn’t want to see celebrities on live feeds talking about celebrity things?
It was an incredible season, and the two that followed were just as great. Still, CBS decided not to move forward with any new seasons, disappointing fans who enjoyed the shorter season and different gameplay styles.
The same happened with Big Brother Reindeer Games, which had one memorable season in the winter of 2023 but was never heard from again.
Reindeer Games had no live feeds, and the houseguests did not live together, but the series was more about the games and competition between memorable Big Brother guests fighting tooth and nail to be crowned the Reindeer Games winner.
(Sonja Flemming/CBS)
Both spinoffs attracted regular viewers and newcomers interested in checking out series that wouldn’t require as much time investment as a 100-day season.
But CBS decided neither one should continue, and this is a curious headscratcher because they were universally acclaimed and a positive thing for the Big Brother brand, which took many hits over the years.
The series needs a serious revamp if it wants to stand the test of time like fellow CBS reality TV stalwart Survivor, which has found a tried and true formula that works.
Big Brother is morphing into a different show. While there’s something to be said for changing with the times, there’s also something to be said for killing the very spirit of a show that was once the most fascinating reality television series on the air.
It’s like yelling into the void sometimes, so holler back if you’re out there.
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