Survivor still going strong with new twists

CBS' classic reality show hit Survivor kicked off its seventh season with all new twists and surprises four weeks ago. The show's ratings have remained strong as millions of viewers tune in every week for the latest battles between tribes.

The basic premise of Survivor is the same as always. Sixteen Americans are chosen out of thousands of applicants to live on a deserted island, endure torturous conditions and challenges, and compete for the final prize of $1,000,000.

Season seven of the show takes place on the Pearl Islands, an old pirate haunt off the coast of Panama. Piracy is the theme of Survivor now, with two tribes of eight castaways each named after two famous pirates – Morgan and Drake.

There are several new features of the game this year. For starters, the castaways were not told when they were departing their ship for the island, instead being unexpectedly cast into the sea. They had to swim to shore and barter for survival goods in a small Panamanian town, as well as somehow secure a lift to their campsites.

From there, the tribes have battled each other for the last four weeks, with Drake turning out to be a massive winner. Their tribe won six successive challenges – every challenge between the tribes that has happened so far, except for the final immunity challenge that they intentionally lost. So far, Drake has seven remaining members and Morgan has five. Drake has also had the opportunity to raid the Morgan tribe's campsite three times, once for each immunity challenge they have won.

Survivor: Pearl Islands has all of the problems that its predecessors suffered from. The show compresses three days of footage into an hour-long show, meaning viewers see a very selective version of reality. Some people even insist many events on the show are simply faked, a rumor CBS vigorously denies.

However, on the whole Survivor: Pearl Islands is every bit as entertaining and exciting as the six previous seasons. This season has the same carefully chosen cast of personalities and innovative challenges that made it a success. Wacky castaways like the huge, kilt wearing Rupert and the skinny, frat boy John bring a touch of laughter and make each episode fun to watch. And of course, the show has interpersonal conflicts to rival Jerry Springer.

The events on Survivor, whether faked or not, are certainly interesting to watch. Seemingly commonplace events like losing a fishing hook or a water pot become momentous occurrences that threaten an entire tribe's very existence.

And every week there is of course the ultimate moment of suspense – tribal council. The tension underlying the entire show rests upon this event, where one castaway from the losing tribe is voted off weekly. The uncertainty and scheming about who will be ousted from the tribe weekly is what transforms the show from being simply a look at how people might live on a deserted island into the high stakes, high suspense game that it is.

So, will you, an average TV viewer, find Survivor an interesting and worthwhile show to watch? Well, diehard fans of the series will certainly find it as engaging as ever to watch. But viewers who hate reality TV, as millions of Americans do, will not find anything new or innovative to draw them in. Bottom line: fans of the reality genre should definitely check out Survivor, and everyone else should probably stay away.

Survivor: Pearl Islands airs Thursdays at 8:00 on CBS and is appropriate for older children and adults.