It's New Year 2025, and BBC's The Traitors is back.
*This post contains spoilers for the first three episodes of season three's The Traitors.*
This is my first time watching the show having heard very positive reviews for the first two seasons. And I have got to say, so far it has not disappointed. Mafia is one of my all time favourite games to play with friends, but of course it's exciting to try and work out who the mafia are amongst you – so when they create a TV show where you, as the audience, already know who the Traitors are, you might expect all the intrigue to be sucked away, but that is absolutely not the case here.
This is a fun, light-hearted show, with incredibly dark twists and turns. How can something be light-hearted and dark at the same time? Trust me, it's possible, which is part of what I love about the show. With such a diversity of characters and personalities, everyone brings a different feel to the group, with their own interesting set of opinions, without it feeling forced. I love the range of personalities on view without it appearing that people are there just to tick boxes for TV being diverse, but it seems like a natural group of people to throw together.
From the cunning (in the very best sense of the word) Minah, to the calm and collected Kasim, to the outspoken Jake, to bolshy Armani, to the quiet, niceness of Maia and Freddie, this drama represents a range of fascinating people, and we are here for it.
The unfiltered interview moments are a real highlight for me – whether it's Faithfuls sharing that they've already met a lot of people on the show they'd have no problem in killing, or Traitors venting their frustrations of their companions' lack of cooperation, these fiery moments break up the challenges and other moments of the show nicely, and give revealing, yet almost always amusing, insights into what is going on inside the minds of the players.
The tasks they've been given to do so far in episodes two and three have been relatively straightforward, and yet the twists involved have really got your heart beat racing just watching events unfold. Suspense is cleverly created throughout the whole show, especially at round table moments, through the use of eery background music and the process of going around each individual person to see who they have voted before revealing who has been banished.
Minah is a standout traitor for me – this woman literally won my heart from episode one. She has played such a good game of blending in so far, and played super smart in voting out her fellow traitor – a move that inevitably had to happen. In my opinion, she could end up going very far if she continues the way she's started.
One downside of the show is the very frequent use of strong language – I feel like this could be such a great programme for families to enjoy together, with the mystery also being exciting for younger viewers as for older, and yet there is nothing gory to see as there is on your typical Midsomer Murders, but the language used is just not suitable for under 12s in my opinion, which is a real shame because it's an unnecessary addition.
Also, it's beginning to become a little bit annoying how many people just start crying at the round table – I understand that tensions get high, but it is just a game and seems to make people feel bad for voting you.
All in all though, it's a brilliant programme and I can't wait until Wednesday to find out where The Traitors will strike next.
The first three episodes of The Traitors are available to watch now on BBC iplayer.
I completely agree with you about the show somehow being light-hearted and dark at the same time. It's such a delicate balance and it makes the whole thing feel totally unique.
I kinda love the crying at the round table. It's all a part of the emotional manipulation. How do you tell if someone is crying for real?