Common Sense Media Review
By Melissa Camacho
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Intrigue-filled reality game has drinking, lying, language.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 13+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
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The Traitors
Parent and Kid Reviews
Based on 3 parent reviews
What's the Story?
THE TRAITORS is a reality competition where folks live and compete in the Scottish Highlands for a shared cash prize. Hosted by Alan Cumming, it features 20 contestants, 10 of whom are notable reality-TV personalities, housed in a castle and participate in team challenges to bank up to $250K. The catch? Three of the players are chosen to be "traitors," and have the power to sabotage the other contestants (aka "faithfuls") and make them disappear in the middle of the night. Contestants must also face each other at roundtable sessions and vote to banish who they believe are the traitors in the group to avoid being eliminated. Faithfuls who make it to the end of the game may get to split $250K, or will lose it all to any traitors who made it to the end with them.
Is It Any Good?
The U.S. version of the British hit show combines all the drama that comes from unscripted television with murder mystery tropes suitable for a Scottish castle. In Traitors, former cast members from popular reality series like Big Brother, Below Deck, Survivor, and The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills play up the fact that their experiences with strategic backstabbings, over-the-top challenges, alliance building, and dramatic eliminations will help them sniff out liars and help them win. Nonetheless, many of the contestants who lack the same background are just as perceptive. Watching faithful players navigate the game without knowing which of their fellow contestants are lying and manipulating them can be entertaining, but The Traitors takes an uncomfortable turn as paranoid contestants begin taking accusations of disloyalty, and subsequent eliminations, very personally. The traitors also wrestle with their own guilt for betraying those with whom they've built bonds throughout the journey. It's a solid reality game show, but one that may not leave you feeling as good as you'd like to when it's done.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the behavior of the traitors. Why were they happy to be selected? How hard was it for them to behave as if they were as vulnerable as the other contestants?
Who has the advantage among those competing on The Traitors? Are you surprised by how upset players get when they're murdered or accused of being unfaithful? Do they take it personally because they lose the cash prize? Or is there something else?
TV Details
- Premiere date: January 12, 2023
- Cast: Alan Cumming
- Network: Peacock
- Genre: Game Shows
- TV rating: TV-14
- Last updated: May 15, 2023
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