Why Big Brother Canada 7 didn’t work (and how to fix it)
We’d call this season polarizing, but that doesn’t even seem adequate given that the majority of the comments we’ve seen have been negative. This has been one of the most-panned seasons of Big Brother in recent memory — it’s not Big Brother 19 bad, but it’s had consistent problems from start to finish. It’s also not an issue of no one being able to predict some of its struggles, either; some of these should have been apparent from the start.
With that in mind, we’re offering up in this piece a list of humble suggestions as to how to improve the series for season 8, and maybe avoid some of the bumps in the road we’ve had this spring. To go along with that, we also have a video below describing this further — for some more insight, remember to subscribe to CarterMatt on YouTube and check out our official Big Brother Canada playlist. There are more updates coming that you don’t want to miss.
Casting – We know that this is an insanely difficult job, so we want to make it clear that we’re not going to be on a whole tear of “we could do it better.” For example, it may be hard to criticize casting on the number of passive players this season since maybe some of these people really popped in casting and then fizzled out in the house. Casting also can’t predict losing firecracker personalities like Maki and Laura (seemingly, based on what we saw) in the early going.
What they can limit, however, is casting the number of “alpha” bros that they did this season. You may not consider Mark that archetype, but Adam, Dane, and Anthony all fit into that perfectly. Since Damien was an athlete, you could’ve even assumed that pre-show. Casting all of these guys on a single season feels misguided and almost like a course-correction from all of the years the alpha dudes don’t go far. The same goes for not casting as many traditional super-fans/live-feed viewers. Ultimately, though, casting can only do so much in order to make a season good or bad, so it’s unfair to put everything on them.
The twists – Let’s be clear — we’re fine with a season not having any of them, but if you’re going to have them, make them legitimately great. The Blood Veto was an awesomely put together prop, but within the game, its power was so muted in that flipping the vote after an eviction only works in certain situations. There isn’t a huge incentive for playing it the way in which it was played and found. Meanwhile, the advantages for Damien in the Leon’s Lounge were disappointing and while Adam’s advantage with the tape recorder was effective, it was barely hyped at all. It just feels like none of these really managed to add any spark to the game. Meanwhile, the twist to keep the HoH out of Veto Competitions just felt like Canada differentiating itself from America and, in retrospect, it could have played out worse than it did.
Canada’s vote – Instead of giving us a chance to vote in a houseguest without actually seeing them in the game, why not put them in the game for a few days and let us vote for who stays? You’re giving more people a chance to have the experience while also giving Canadians a real trial run with the players to see what they’re like. Soundbites don’t cut it. Meanwhile, if you’re going to have Canada vote on advantages, do more with them than giving Damien information that may not matter all that much … especially since there’s no guarantee anyone would believe him.
Live feed activity – Big Brother Canada can do so much more to spice these up, especially since they do make money from them on their website with all of the advertising. Why not go hard on the idea of giving these people more to do? Given that they’re blocked for long periods, why not try to at least offer up more little things for feeders to enjoy throughout the season … at least if the game isn’t spiced up in its own right?
These four changes aren’t enormous things, but we don’t think Big Brother Canada needs to make enormous changes. The format for the most part works, the house design is gorgeous, and the competitions are often better than on the American version of the show. The issues with this season started mostly with the people in the house and then, how little the twists and votes contributed to actually shaking up the house. If the goal was to let the Pretty Boys just ride it out, that’s fine, but if there are meant to be twists, they have to mean something. Otherwise, it’s false hope for very little reason.
For more Big Brother Canada live feed news…
Be sure to check out the link here for our take on the final four Veto winner!
What do you want to see Big Brother Canada change for season 8? Be sure to share in the comments! (Photo: Global.)