Secrets, Lies and Expanding Winkies
So another year over with and another 9 weeks of my life to
look back over at with a mix of nostalgia, regret and fondness, and when it is
all and other with do I think that Big Brother 14 was worth it, well that certainly
depends in my view on which way I look at the show. There’s no denying at all
that Big Brother 14 has been the strongest of the Channel 5 series to date, but
it was still a fundamentally flawed series which at times let it’s drawbacks
show a touch too obviously for my liking, this doesn’t mean to say that I
dislike the series though, quite the opposite, this is a season which belongs
with the likes of 9, 10 and 13 as a higher tier season, albeit one that is
still too flawed to ever reach the gold arches of being a so-called classic.
Firstly we shall begin with some of the positives about this
season, namely in particular some of the breakout stars of the season whom I
feel have the potential to be considered full on allstars when discussed in the
future. Gina and Dexter, both as a unified entity and as individuals, were
absolutely fantastic television, and for a large majority of the show helped to
carry it into being some of the most entertaining weeks of television this
summer. Gina in particular was my preference between the two, with her Derek
Laud meets Nikki Grahame hybrid personality Gina showed herself to be snarky,
funny and managing to brilliantly walk a fine line of being ridiculous and
over-the-top without ever being too overbearing about it, and added with her
storyarc of being one of the most obvious first boots ever to being at one
point a realistic contender to win made her the most engaging housemate of the
series. Dexter too had a lot of great points as well, at first I dismissed him
as another Sezer clone who would come and go in early weeks and yet he showed
himself to be strangely rootable with his Alan Partridge mannerisms and goofy
demeanour, whilst he did somewhat descend into Siavash territory by the later
stages the product on the whole was thoroughly satisfying and earned Dexter a
lot of my respect as a television viewer. Supporting members of the cast also
delivered well in the show as well, whilst not ever leaving up to the ‘new
Noirin’ prediction I gave her at the start of the season Hazel was a great
contributor herself and proved to be a good foil for Gina in their feud, Callum
was a revelation in going from a cautious and cynical game-bot overly sure
about his outside perception to unravel to become one of the most unpredictable
and offbeat characters of the show whilst Charlie Travers was able to escape
her mothers shadow to become an unlikely central point of the show as the
centre of affection in the Dexter and Callum feud, a brilliant piece of
strategic manoeuvring which I don’t think gets as much credit as it deserves.
Some of the storylines from this season I also felt were
particularly strong as well, and arguably at times had more depth and layers to
it then what was comparatively seen in Big Brother 13 which descended into a
rather basic ‘us vs them’ storyline. Not only did this give us the much lauded
Ginxter alliance but also saw Gina and Hazel’s series long feud, the Dexter,
Charlie and Callum love triangle beautifully mechanised by Charlie as well as
sub-stories like the twins’ feud with Dexter, Sam and Gina’s live feed
friendship and the random Sophie vs Sam feud which seemed to catch nearly all
highlight show viewers off guard when it was brought up at the many face to
face nominations. However one gripe that I will bring up in regards to the
storylines of the series was that at times they did become too dominant for
their own good and in the process strangle and slow some of the momentum of the
later weeks, but at the same time they did culminate and end at the right time
and prove for more fitting arc endings then they did in BB12 and BB13 comparatively
(arguably because of the introduction of vote to evict).
But it is with the mention of vote to evict that I bring up
some of the flaws of this series, beginning with the re-introduction of this
much maligned process. Whilst the damage done with vote to evict wasn’t as bad
as I had initially feared at the start of the series it still managed to show
itself at times and in the process hurt the show, losing Dan over Sam and
Sophie being the obvious example of this, and losing these bigger characters at
times did cause a major slowdown of the show by it’s end, and the inclusion of
the likes of Sam, Sophie and the twins in the later stages of the process does
in my opinion highlight the issues with the process, in saying that however it
was incredibly lucky that the Gina and Dexter alliance formed in the early
stages and in the process allowed the public to turn VTE on its head and in the
process keep them around in the show far longer then their obvious early boot
statuses indicated.
However the biggest gripe for this season came in my opinion
in the winner of the series, was it a series defining character that helped to
carry the show in the show? Far from it actually, in fact it was actually
someone who helped make me question the attitudes of the voting public and how
casual viewers interpret this show that I love so much. I certainly don’t by
into the perception on some internet forums that Sam was some vicious, vulgar
yob (bare in mind this is the same show that cast Conor McIntyre) but there is
no denying in my opinion that he is a thoroughly undeserving winner who has in
the process robbed a far more deserving contributor to the show of their much
more deserved win, almost akin to an extra in a Hollywood movie being rewarded
the Oscar for best picture over the lead actor. It has also made me wonder
about how the casual viewers of the show interpret Big Brother as a show, and
what the show means to those casual viewers. As a hardcore, die-hard and at
times overly analytical viewer I am left wondering because of Sam’s win what is
the point of getting so emotionally involved in the show, digesting every bit
of entertainment and storyline only to have the casual voting audience deciding
their winner on such superficial and shall reasons? Sam is certainly more likable
then some other winners that the show has had, but simply because of his irrelevance
and lack of contribution to the series he has to be considered one of the worst
winners ever.
It’s a shame as well because I do feel that the series is
one of the better outings for the show, and certainly the best of the civilian Channel
5 era so far, whilst I do feel it was a bit more inconsistent in quality then
compared to Big Brother 13 the highs of this series were Everest bound, with
everything from Dexter and Gina in the safe house through to Daley’s ejection
being some of the most compelling television going. Whether the series manages
to hold the test of time I’m not sure, but what I am sure about is that as of
now this series gets my hearty seal of approval.
7/10
