I love The Traitors but one huge mistake nearly ruined it all
Let's just get this out of the way before we go any further: I love The Traitors. I think it is amazing television and it's been a joy to watch it with my family (my young daughter loves it too).
It's a brilliant concept brilliantly executed and I can't shower enough praise on everyone involved in getting it on our screens. I have looked forward to it every week and loved listening to the chat in the office and in WhatsApp groups after every episode. I'm not sure I know anyone who doesn't watch it.
The constant crying is a bit annoying but as someone who wept silently through the entire Gavin and Stacey Christmas finale I can't really say much.
Before you read on, this article contains spoilers including who won Friday night's The Traitors final. So, as much as you want to read this opinion from a random mansplainer you've never met, just think about whether it's worth ruining the final for if you haven't seen it yet.
Because, as much as I love it, there was one fatal mistake in this series of The Traitors which killed the final for me: The Seer. I enjoyed the build-up that came early in the series about a "never seen before" power that would be bestowed on one player before the final. I was excited to see what it was. But once it was introduced the game was virtually over.
Frankie got the power, she chose to find out Charlotte's true identity and that was that. You knew that Charlotte — a thoroughly likeable traitor who went from totally innocent faithful with a fake Welsh accent to ultimate back-stabbing traitor with a devastating genius — was done at that point. You knew Frankie was probably for the chop too and that there was no way Alexander wasn't going to be removed by whoever was left.
And that's exactly how it panned out. The last minutes of the final were still a decent watch, but there is very little jeopardy in a final without a traitor, and this final was nothing compared to season two when you had to watch through your fingers as traitor Harry broke faithful Mollie's heart.
Might it have panned out differently if Frankie had not chosen Charlotte? Perhaps. But there was always a risk that the Seer would choose a remaining traitor and that the traitor would be done for if so. The choice also meant that a large part of the final degenerated into which of Frankie and Charlotte could lie the best and most emphatically repeat "I am a 100% faithful".
Gone was the element of psychology and the three-steps-ahead chess-like planning of Minah. Speaking of Minah, I think she was the show's real winner, providing a masterclass in calm calculation from the second she was picked as a traitor to the moment she was unlucky to be banished from the round table. It's between her and Harry for the title of best The Traitors contestant yet.
It seems like a few viewers agree that The Seer ended up being a flaw, taking to social media to voice their opinion.
"I've loved this series but I feel like The Seer power has ruined the final a bit. Yeah it's added drama but it's made it a two horse race rather than all the cast in the end," said one.
Another was a bit harsher: "The Seer has ruined it for me this year, absolute nonsense."
And another said: "Even if you didn’t believe Frankie, there is no way you wouldn’t get rid of Charlotte anyway. The game has been ruined."
Anyway, The Seer aside, The Traitors remains the best reality TV show I have ever watched. I already can't wait for series four.