Fall TV Preview: ‘Survivor: China’

Mandy @ Gone Hollywood | Thursday, September 20, 2007

Get ready, Survivor fans – the wait is finally over. The cut-throat reality show is back, and this time host Jeff Probst is taking the contestants to China’s Lake of a Thousand Islands. And as with every new season, there are some twists. Some kidnapping will be involved, and this year each player was given a copy of Sun Tzu’s The Art of War to read. Looks like there’s a playbook this time around. The immunity idol will make an appearance again this year, but no one will win a car.

You can check out some behind the scenes footage here and here. The tribes will be the Zhan Hu Tribe and the Fei Long Tribe. Check out cast bios here.

Season Premiere: Tonight at 8 p.m. EST/7 p.m. CST. Bring on the Survivor!

Some Reviews:

Diane Werts says, “The opening scenic tour is grand indeed — a 16th century Buddhist temple, the Great Wall, pandas and monkeys, bamboo rainforests. …

The show meanwhile dedicates its energy to creating “characters.” Shy/hunky southern gravedigger James. Laconic/older farmer “Chicken.” Shallow NYC waitress Courtney. Bossy Chinese-American Peih-Gee. Gay Mormon flight attendant Todd. And his unlikely confidant, macho/cunning poker player Jean-Robert Bellande [right rear of photo, in black shirt], who hails from Commack but now lives in Vegas (natch).

They’re as mixed a bunch as any, but hardly earth-shakers. And the season’s vaunted China location quickly devolves into ethnic banality. The suspense-boosting music carries a vaguely Asian sound as the teams carry heavy parade dragons through the swamp and over the drawbridge in their premiere-night challenge.”

V. Hughes says, “Searching the Internet I feel I may be one of few who feel that filming in China was not a wise choice for CBS.

Jeff Probst said, ‘The adventure will play out in the shadows of a sacred mountain on the shores of a remote lake in a land known for tigers, giant pandas, snow leopards and ancient tradition.’ He failed to mention poison foods and lead painted toys, human rights abuses, annexation of Tibet, and selling nuclear components around the world. …

Personally, I will not watch Survivor this season.”

Entertainment Weekly says, “A poker player, a WWE wrestler, and a Christian talk-radio host go to China and… No, it’s not the start of a joke: Survivor: China’s players are a diverse array. … And about that wrestler, Ashley Massaro? ‘Ashley throws people around for a living. She wasn’t shy about walking around in her underwear — she’s got a great body. There’s definitely some work for the editors in terms of covering up body parts.’”

Fall TV Preview: ‘Survivor: China’

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