The 15th edition of "Survivor" kicks off tonight in China, with 16 new tribe members competing for $1 million. It's the first U.S. TV show to film an entire season in China, and one thing's certain: The scenery is sure to be gorgeous.
I don't expect "Survivor" to stray too far from its formula, but there are some intriguing things about this edition. The castaways will begin their challenges on separate islands in a man-made lake in the remote Jiangxi Province, and each will be given a copy of Sun Tzu's The Art of War. They'll also be camping on the Great Wall, and seriously, how cool is that?
Do you think "Survivor" still has any life in it as it moves into its 15th year? You can meet the contestants over here, or you can check out some behind-the-scenes videos from host Jeff Probst if you read more
Photo courtesy of CBS
Has it been 15 years already? Wow. I remember when the first one came out -- I was taking a Cultural Anthropology course and we "studied" the show, doing a breakdown of what was going on using different philosophical and anthropological methods. It was fascinating.
Yes, I think these shows remain popular because they show us a lot about human nature at its most elemental. You can learn a lot about politics from this show. In fact, I'm surprised that no one has thought of filming Congress the way Burnett has Survivor filmed to make it more interesting to younger crowds.
(I don't watch the show anymore, but still know a lot of people who do.)