Survivor

The thing I do most Saturday, Sunday and Monday nights is to watch the TV show Survivor. What the basically is that they drop 20 volunteers on an island and let them starve, while they dangle food in front of them to motivate them to play several games requiring condition, concentration and coordination.

Although the morals of this competition is questionable, it is surely fun to watch and is very exciting.

The goal in this competition is pretty clear; survival. Although they start out as teams, it all comes down to individuals and who appeals to the public the most, because, I don't know about the other formats of the competition, but in Turkey, who goes and who stays is determined by the votes of the audience.

This competition seems fit for the Turkish audience, thanks to all the drama and the sadness, but I guess there is always an audience ready for emotional exploitation in every nation.

In the end, it entertains the common audience (one of them being myself), but I'm watching the show of survival, limited food, almost no shelter and loneliness with a bowl of strawberries in front of me and my iPad and family next to me. It may not be so "entertaining" to someone who has bought the TV they're watching the show in by giving up eating red meat for three months. Just saying.

Supernatural

My new favorite TV series is Supernatural, produced by Eric Kripke and starring Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki, as two brothers who hunt monsters in the real world, taking on the family business. I know, I know, it sound very cheesy and if we're being honest, I thought it was cheesy and lame when I watched the first five or six episodes.

In every episode of Supernatural, the Winchester brothers hunt a new monster. But don't be fooled by the word "monster", they are creatures we know and love from our fairy tale books and lores. They hunt everything from vampires to Skinchangers, creatures which can take the form of anything they want to, and from angry spirts (they have to "salt and burn" the bones to get rid of the angry spirits) to raged Pagan gods because they have been ignored for a long time, looking for sacrifice.

What makes the series cool and enjoyable to watch is the fact that everything they hunt there, has a corresponding lore or tale here. Also, I really like the music they use and the references they make to popular culture.

In one of my favorite episodes of Supernatural, the Winchester brothers visit a town in which there is a "Mystery Spot", in which time travels differently - under normal circumstances, nothing more than a tourist trap. And, they are caught in a time warp. They keep on living the same Tuesday over and over again,  yes, like Groundhog Day, and Sam (Jared Padalecki), the little brother, has to watch his big brother Dean (Jensen Ackles) die everyday in every possible way. We later learn that this is the job of a Trickster, a creature which tricks people and has fun with the misfortune of others, trying to teach the Winchester brothers a lesson.

In another episode, the brothers stumble upon a Rabbit's Foot, the one that actually brings unbelievable good luck to whom possesses it, but dooms the person to bad luck, eventually killing them, when they lose the rabbit's foot. Sam gets kidnapped by rival hunters, and Dean comes to save him...with the rabbit's foot, here's what happens.

The cleverly written script, the constant change, the jokes, and the excellent acting are only a few of the reasons I love Supernatural. <3 So, have I convinced you to watch at least an episode of Supernatural?