I’ve seen ‘Traitors’ in the US and UK – and it’s clear which version is better

• “The Traitors” is a reality game show with both US and UK versions – one of which is clearly better.
• The British show is played by regular people, which makes you root for them even more.
• The use of reality stars and overproduction in the American version distracts from the spirit of the show.

“Traitors” is the best reality TV show ever.

As a Brit, I’ve only ever watched the UK version. I avoided “Traitors to the United States” for no real reason. Maybe it’s a simple bias or the devotion Claudia Winkleman has gained from being a constant presence on my television since I was born. (She is also a co-presenter of ““Strictly Come Dancing”, the British version of “Dancing With the Stars.”)

I’ll admit that I was a bit skeptical about using real-life celebrities instead of unknowns, thinking it would dilute some of the magic.

But I wanted to give it a fair chance. Within days, I’d blasted through both seasons available in the UK (both are available on Peacock for US viewers) and taken lots of notes.

Now that I’ve watched both, I can confidently say that I know which one is better.

Instant hit

The setting of “Traitors” is what makes it so special. It hinges on deception and teamwork in equal measure against the backdrop of a magnificent, isolated Scottish castle.

It’s loosely based on the Mafia or Werewolf board games and debuted as “De Verraders” in the Netherlands in 2021.

Contestants have to work together to make the most of the challenges and increase the prize pool. The majority of them, known as “Believers”, must eliminate any “traitors” they kill one by one.

Each night, the contestants gather at a round table and eliminate the person they believe is most likely to be one of the traitors. Later, the traitors meet and decide who their next victim will be. Believers only know who hasn’t made it when they don’t return for breakfast the next day, and their photo is unceremoniously thrown to the ground.

Fans have known that the UK version was a hit since the first episode on November 29, 2022. The US version, while still good, also suffers from wanting to dramatize the lightning-in-a-bottle drama that the show has already achieved – something I think It hinders him.

Spoilers ahead!

Teamwork and deception

The UK presentation is hosted by Claudia Winkelmann, who leads players through the game’s rules and various challenges. In the American version, he is Alan Cumming. They’re both excellent hosts and fashion designers, and I’d love to see them collaborate together at some point, even just for the sake of dressing in beautiful country tartan outfits.

While “traitors” in the UK fill the castle with complete strangers, many of the contestants in the US version have already appeared on reality TV shows like “Big Brother” or one version of “Real Housewives.” Granted, I only recognized Kate Chastain from Below Deck, and John Bercow, the former Speaker of the UK House of Commons.

I understood the vision, but right away, it made me a little wary because reality show contestants already have an idea of ​​how production works. They know how to have screen time and have their moment in the spotlight.

My concern was that in the American version, both the audience and the contestants have prejudices about each other. You’re also missing important context if you haven’t watched those other shows.

On the other hand, the involvement of strangers sets the audience up well to get to know them as the game progresses.

Another difference was in the players’ attitudes. In the UK version, there was a great emphasis on teamwork. All the players knew that there were traitors among them, but their camaraderie as a team always came first.

In the American version, almost everyone seems to have a secret. This made it difficult for players to trust each other.

That’s actually the fate that the UK’s third season, whose finale airs on Friday, appears to be suffering. The show relies on a delicate balance between trust and deception. But a common criticism this year is that the contestants don’t play as a team like they did in previous seasons.

Is this how reality TV works when it proves popular? Does it suffer from a bad reputation and then attract a different type of person?

You need to root for someone

In both versions of the show, there is little evidence to go on, so the faithful are voted out at an initially alarming rate. But in the American version, they’d be weirdly upfront about voting for someone else just to save themselves.

This is a flaw from my point of view. It made them all very difficult to root for. In the end, I kind of wanted Cirie to win, but I also didn’t really care.

In the first and second seasons in the UK, Wilf and Harry, respectively, would be considered unmitigated traitors. Wilf fell at the final hurdle while Harry played all his fellow contestants like putty until the end.

UK racers also seem to have more respect for the game. Whenever someone was banished, they would leave immediately. In the States, they all used their reality show moment, getting the last word, swearing, hurling insults, and more.

Other players also got up to say goodbye, which seemed a bit jarring and at odds with the escape aspect. I say respect the decorum of the game!

The American show certainly has its great moments. In Season 1, when the players voted Christian out after chaotic gameplay, it was very satisfying. But that’s nothing compared to what happened with Hannah, in the first season of UK, who flipped the script on her best friend and traitor, Wilf, at the last second, throwing her bag into the fire until it burned red, revealing that she was finally seeing him. What it was.

The reality stars bring their own drama, but no amount of needless suspense can compare to Miles’ horrified reaction that Diane survived an attempt to kill him, or, in fact, Ross throwing a wink at the camera in plain sight while his fellow believers know nothing about Diane made his wife. Actual mother. Also nothing could beat Harry taking down Paul because he got too big for his shoes.

There’s also none of the glorious clownishness that UK is known for, like when Meryl wins Season 1 completely by accident, or when Ross is recruited as a traitor only to fail spectacularly.

In the United States, the whole thing seemed very serious at times. When Cirie took all the money for herself at the end of Season 1, it was bittersweet rather than as exciting as when Harry betrayed Molly in the UK Season 2 finale.

Harry was right to be surprised after his victory. “Traitors” is truly the best game in the world.

But ordinary people with no aspirations to fame are an important part of that. It’s dramatic, emotional, tense and silly at its core – no need to paint the lily in gold.