Well, tonight is the night.
After (cough) a mere six weeks, The Benefactor will finally reveal how a network can take three episodes of a reality TV show and pack it into one. It will, obviously, do a disservice to the footage that was initially supposed to make it to TV screens across the country — but then again this is TV: and there’s no crying in TV. (Except on hour-long dramas with adultery.)
Originally, the last three episodes included the following (there are no spoilers here, FYI):
Episode 6: Down to three players, Mark visits each of their hometowns, staying with their families and getting to know more about them. At the end of this episode, Mark would get rid of one, leaving only two contestants.
Episode 7: Now down to the final 2, Mark asks the players to spend the million as if they’ve already won the money. He tells them that he also may hold them to one or two of their choices, and in the case they win, will force them to spend the money on those items so they must choose wisely. The Players go out and put together a presentation for Mark with how they’d spend the million. At the end of this episode (as revealed in last week’s “next on The Benefactor” coming attraction) the big twist is revealed. Mark will tell both players they have LOST THE GAME, to see how well they handle failure.
Episode 8: The two players, thinking they have lost, go through the typical “I’ve lost” moments after being kicked off a show — the interviews, the photo shoots, the unfortunate disappointment. But then, after being separated (both thinking they’ve lost) they return to the house for a show-reunion, thinking the other has actually won. Based on how gracious they handled losing, Mark announces who will win the million bucks.
I’ll tell you this — from being on the road throughout Episode 6, there is some great stuff in the hometowns. The spending of the million bucks (sort of) was definitely intriguing. And the final episode has some really great moments with the twist. Now, I could see combining two episodes into one, but three?
Nevertheless, be sure to check out the final episode. Any guesses on who it’s gonna be? Femia, Linda or Dominic? I know the answer but I’m not telling.
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