The Wheel - General Discussion

[Meredith Quill]

Discuss The Wheel Here!

[Neurochick]

I had a feeling the woman on the beach was gong to be the first to tap out.  At first she thought it was great being on a beach, but not so great when it was cold and damp and she couldn't get fire.  

I kind of like the other woman, the model who chopped off her hair.

I'm surprised more aren't watching but it is on at a strange time, 10pm on Friday.

[RedKoolAide]

Yeah, I knew she was gone when she called herself a "badass" the first episode. I don't think it's wise to be overly confident going into situations like this. Nature will humble you really quick.

The former college wrestler Josh(I think) annoys me.

I like the model, too. I can't remember all the names yet. She seems to think before she acts...unlike Josh.

I would think a marine would have more survival skills. He seems to be floundering a bit, too, but I haven't finished episode two yet. Maybe he does better in the Mountain location.

[TrixieBelden]

Are they dropping these people in exactly the same spots when they turn the wheel?  I really like that idea - it's always a debate on other shows like Alone or Naked and Afraid or whatever about whether certain people have been given an undeserved advantage by where they're dropped. 

Is this serving as the episode thread as well?

[Neurochick]

I think they're all being dropped in the same spots, because they say the areas are cleared when they leave.  As for people having an advantage, I think it depends on when they are dropped in the area.  The woman who tapped out was on an island and the weather was cold and damp; the next person could be dropped on the same island, but the weather could be warmer.  All advantages in that case can be seen as undeserved.  

[Quilt Fairy]

I'm haven't caught up watching this show yet (it's on the DVR) myself, but I noticed we didn't have an actual episodes thread, and thought I'd add one.

[Neurochick]

Okay, I'll put my comments here.  I was not surprised that the woman on the beach tapped out first.  She had a pretty bad situation, wet, cold and unable to make a fire.  And, as someone else said, don't call yourself a badass, because Mother Nature is the baddest, badass of all.

[humbleopinion]

The model found some freshly carved marks on a tree so she guessed that it was a previous participant's location/shelter.

[Liberty]

5 hours ago, humbleopinion said:

The model found some freshly carved marks on a tree so she guessed that it was a previous participant's location/shelter.

This was interesting, producers made more drama of her hunt for water than the Marine's hunt for water.  Then they end up at the same campsite, what a coincidence.  Thinking the "small" camera crew, (who only interacts with the participant in an emergency), stays at the same location all season.

[RedheadZombie]

I cannot express how grateful I am that I didn't have to witness the murder of a sloth. 

I'm bothered by the lack of resources these participants were given.  The show puts them in environments where they can barely get water without being assaulted by a cayman.  And the fish are hibernating, and almost impossible to catch.  I'm not sure any of these people are going to make it to 60 days.

The thing that offends me the most, is that the contestants are given nothing during the turning of the wheel.   They have no ability to hunt or even get water during the transfer, so they should minimally be provided with clean water.  

I don't understand the incentive to be on the show.  None of them seem like actor wanna be's, so what the hell?  One guy quite possibly will miss the last days of his dying friend, and for what?  Some of the contestants of Survivor have talked about how their bodies take months to recover.  They get parasites, kidney damage, and other physical conditions due to starvation and long-term dehydration.  Not to mention future skin cancer concerns.

I'm starting to feel like I'm watching torture porn.  I don't care if these people are slipped water and food - there's no reward.  I just can't stand watching these people starving and crying.  They're not saving the world.

[Liberty]

It's a bit vexing that each of them has a backstory, IIRC Lindsay did not mention she was a model in the second episode, which was refreshing.

Totally understand what RedheadZombie is saying.

The individuals in this cast are poorly prepared with survival skills, and do not provide much of an experience for viewers to learn or become engaged with.

[RedheadZombie]

Adam quoted Melisandre from Game of Thrones, so that was interesting.

I don't understand the purpose of this show.  If I knew it was about breaking people, seeing how far their bodies could endure starvation before shutting down, and endless scenes of fruitlessly fishing, I would never have watched.  Why did they choose these locations, knowing there was not enough wildlife to sustain a human?  Why keep the wheel turning time a secret, which limits their abilities to use their equipment?  Did they test out these locations with real people, to ensure it was somewhat safe, and had the basic wildlife to keep people from starving and dropping by the time they reach the half way point?  I just don't get it.

Survivor contestants endure starvation as well, but their camps do not include Cayman and piranha-infested water.  The only way this would be remotely compelling, is if we were watching people who were survivalists by training, and there was a money reward at the end.

[Neurochick]

On February 4, 2017 at 2:38 PM, RedheadZombie said:

I don't understand the incentive to be on the show.  None of them seem like actor wanna be's, so what the hell?  One guy quite possibly will miss the last days of his dying friend, and for what?  Some of the contestants of Survivor have talked about how their bodies take months to recover.  They get parasites, kidney damage, and other physical conditions due to starvation and long-term dehydration.  Not to mention future skin cancer concerns.

I'm starting to feel like I'm watching torture porn.  I don't care if these people are slipped water and food - there's no reward.  I just can't stand watching these people starving and crying.  They're not saving the world.

I really think that there are people out here who just want to be on TV, for whatever reason.  I mean why does anybody want to be on a show like "The Bad Girls Club?" They want to be on TV.  They want to show whoever, that they're big badasses or something like that.  

Discovery had a very interesting show called Everest Rescue, but that show didn't do well, so they just put all of the episodes on demand (and probably on their app).  I guess this show is getting pretty good ratings.  

[Pepper Mostly]

On 2/4/2017 at 2:38 PM, RedheadZombie said:

I cannot express how grateful I am that I didn't have to witness the murder of a sloth. 

I'm bothered by the lack of resources these participants were given.  The show puts them in environments where they can barely get water without being assaulted by a cayman.  And the fish are hibernating, and almost impossible to catch.  I'm not sure any of these people are going to make it to 60 days.

The thing that offends me the most, is that the contestants are given nothing during the turning of the wheel.   They have no ability to hunt or even get water during the transfer, so they should minimally be provided with clean water.  

I don't understand the incentive to be on the show.  None of them seem like actor wanna be's, so what the hell?  One guy quite possibly will miss the last days of his dying friend, and for what?  Some of the contestants of Survivor have talked about how their bodies take months to recover.  They get parasites, kidney damage, and other physical conditions due to starvation and long-term dehydration.  Not to mention future skin cancer concerns.

I'm starting to feel like I'm watching torture porn.  I don't care if these people are slipped water and food - there's no reward.  I just can't stand watching these people starving and crying.  They're not saving the world.

I could have written this myself. There's no point to this show. I don't want to watch people starving and suffering. I want to see them adapt to their circumstances and use their wits. I think the nurse and the hippie kid who tapped out early had the right idea. This reminds me of that show about Alaska (not the good first season, where people were placed somewhere and had to make a go of it, the terrible second season, where the showrunners thought we'd all just love to watch people trudging through the snow for an hour). Or that show (another Burnett outing?) Expedition Impossible? People---walking. And walking. And walking. Only this is people starving. and starving. And what is the point of rousing them in the middle of the night to be moved? Lindsay and Shon are breaking my heart. They are all spirit and guts, but they are killing themselves.

[Neurochick]

3 hours ago, Pepper Mostly said:

I could have written this myself. There's no point to this show. I don't want to watch people starving and suffering. I want to see them adapt to their circumstances and use their wits. I think the nurse and the hippie kid who tapped out early had the right idea. This reminds me of that show about Alaska (not the good first season, where people were placed somewhere and had to make a go of it, the terrible second season, where the showrunners thought we'd all just love to watch people trudging through the snow for an hour). Or that show (another Burnett outing?) Expedition Impossible? People---walking. And walking. And walking. Only this is people starving. and starving. And what is the point of rousing them in the middle of the night to be moved? Lindsay and Shon are breaking my heart. They are all spirit and guts, but they are killing themselves.

I really agree with this.  On Naked and Afraid, they know they're there for 28 days.  What's interesting about that show is seeing how people work together, or don't.  On Alone, they're doing it for half a million dollars, so there is incentive. 

But, I remember one woman from Naked and Afraid, Manu, who wound up with dengue fever.  She was in terrible pain, my heart broke for her, everybody was writing her on Twitter, telling her to be strong.  Well, last summer, I saw Manu on another survival type show on NatGeo, I think it was called "Mygrations."  I think they were in the Serengeti, following the wildebeests, it was a pretty good show because of the group dynamics, but I was stunned to see her again.  I guess some people just like the challenge.

[Subrookie]

Murder of a sloth? I probably wouldn't have been a fan had someone on a reality show hunted a sloth for food but the sloth we saw here is quite common in South America and likely hunted for food by locals. I enjoyed the segment. Murder is a strong word for what is called hunting. 

I'm interested to know what the travel time between zones is. Seems like it could take a while and that isn't reflected in the filming. The alpine zone is the only one I don't think is fair. There doesn't seem to be any food there. It's not the shows fault Saun or however he spells his name can't figure out the net. Had he done that he probably would have had more food than he knew what to do with. 

[Liberty]

55 minutes ago, Subrookie said:

I'm interested to know what the travel time between zones is. Seems like it could take a while and that isn't reflected in the filming. The alpine zone is the only one I don't think is fair. There doesn't seem to be any food there. It's not the shows fault Saun or however he spells his name can't figure out the net. Had he done that he probably would have had more food than he knew what to do with. 

Was wondering about the travel time too.  Things like food, rest, hygiene during transit.

Shon does seem poorly qualified, yet is classified as a "survivalist".  Have ex-military ever done well in a reality TV survival show?  

[Neurochick]

On February 15, 2017 at 11:42 AM, Pepper Mostly said:

I could have written this myself. There's no point to this show. I don't want to watch people starving and suffering. I want to see them adapt to their circumstances and use their wits. I think the nurse and the hippie kid who tapped out early had the right idea. This reminds me of that show about Alaska (not the good first season, where people were placed somewhere and had to make a go of it, the terrible second season, where the showrunners thought we'd all just love to watch people trudging through the snow for an hour). Or that show (another Burnett outing?) Expedition Impossible? People---walking. And walking. And walking. Only this is people starving. and starving. And what is the point of rousing them in the middle of the night to be moved? Lindsay and Shon are breaking my heart. They are all spirit and guts, but they are killing themselves.

This bears quoting again, especially the bolded part.  I remember that Alaska show, it was called "The Alaska Experiment.  It was very interesting; the season season,not so much.  I wasn't interested in seeing people trudge through the show and wonder which one was going to "tap out."  

1 hour ago, Subrookie said:

The alpine zone is the only one I don't think is fair. There doesn't seem to be any food there. It's not the shows fault Saun or however he spells his name can't figure out the net. Had he done that he probably would have had more food than he knew what to do with. 

First, his name is spelled Shon.  I also wonder, were these people taught basic survival skills?  Back to Shon, in an earlier episode, he ate something that didn't agree with him and made him sick; I don't think he ever recovered from whatever that was.