Tag Archives: The Mole

July 28, 2008 · 11:17 pm

The Mole (2008) – “Episode Eight”

“Episode Eight”

July 28th, 2008

If you want Mole-like behaviour, there’s an easy solution: give people goggles that display the video feed from a camera being controlled by another contestant, and then let them loose in a variety of simple tasks that are both easy to finish and, of course, easy to sabotage. That seems to be the nature of the game this time around: tasks where every second talking head is “I think that could have been Mole behaviour.”

It’s getting to the point where I really want to see everything just come to an end, because this has been an obsessive season of The Mole. Mark may be the most prominent example, but everyone seems fixated on getting exemptions, on seeing various clues, etc. The game has become a constant search for ways to cheat the game, as opposed to ways to play it: the final four challenges were both strong and unique examples, but when it’s possible for one person to just leapfrog into the Final Three? It just doesn’t feel as natural.

So as we match towards the finale, I’m glad to see that the tricks are out the window (I hope), and it’s time to settle into answering the central question and enjoying what else the show has to offer.

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July 23, 2008 · 1:45 am

The Mole (2008) – “Episode Seven”

“Episode Seven”

July 21st, 2008

This week’s episode of The Mole was all about what people couldn’t do: they couldn’t help themselves from sabotaging the first challenge, they couldn’t possibly sabotage the challenge where contestants could potentially see their loved ones, and one contestant in particular just couldn’t throw the quiz even when they wanted to.

It was exactly what you want from this part of the competition – signs that all of our contestants are struggling to deal with the mental fatigue the game presents while, at the same time, having to stay on their game to discover the Mole’s identity. We got a really important glimpse into this, as we saw the various different (supposed) strategies that all players except for Craig and Paul were using. The question of their strategies, in particular Craig’s, will be very interesting to see in the weeks ahead.

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July 20, 2008 · 7:37 pm

The Mole – “Episode Six”

“Episode Seven”

July 14th, 2008

Yes, I am aware that I am nearly a week late writing this review, and as a result it will be fairly short. However, I want to note for the sake of posterity that I continue to be enjoying this season of The Mole. Yes, the ratings are extremely low, and based on comments at the recent TCA Press Tour the show won’t be returning to the air in the future. However, the season we’re getting has been one where the central mystery has stayed intact while the tasks have remained interesting.

I really enjoyed both tasks in the last episode, particularly the vineyard challenge wherein there were plenty of chances for both sabotage and just outright failure. It was great to see the challenge take on so many levels: how Nicole seemed to be slow in answering puzzles, how Craig only actually really solved one of them, how Paul messed up a few of his radio calls, how Mark had a great chance to NOT look like The Mole playing double duty while on the treadmill, etc. Yes, it was a bit of a cheap way to inflate the pot (Although Mark being on the treadmill for that long is very impressive), but it allowed us to focus less on the bickering (Although there was plenty) and more on the strategies.

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July 1, 2008 · 6:11 pm

The Mole (2008) – “Episode Five”

“Episode Five”

June 30th, 2008

First off, happy Canada Day to my Canadian bretheren! I’ve been out for the day, but wanted to get a chance to catch up on the summer’s most high quality reality series that in recent weeks has been working extremely well. I won’t say it’s on the level of the other seasons of the series, but there is something that feels right about the overall purpose of the series. Or, felt right.

In this episode, it’s all about the psychological on first glance: the first task is entirely mental, demonstrating the emotional breakdown of a contestant who was once most confident in his game. The second task, though, seemed like it was about ingenuity or will but ended up being a giant mind game that demonstrates that these players are really just spoiled children.  It was an episode that showed these players at their worst, and while I saw semblances of the real story for the most part it was just reality show drivel that needs to stop.

And hopefully, as the game wittles down, it might – but losing one of the sane people isn’t going to help much.

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June 24, 2008 · 5:18 am

The Mole (2008) – “Episode Four”

“Episode Four”

June 23rd, 2008

As I become more and more convinced that I know who the Mole is, I’m also becoming convinced of something much more important: ratings be damned, this is turning into a great season of The Mole. And the main reason? Because my main suspect got booted from the game.

Now, it is not an unequivocally great season, don’t get me wrong: there are still some quirks here and there in terms of the quiz and interpersonal dynamics, but the one task in this episode focused solely on that conflict was either edited less dramatically or finally featured these players realizing that this game is actually probably a lot of fun.

And this episode was just that: the first task had numerous twists and turns, the journals were finally put into play, and while there’s plenty of drama with injuries and missing persons, it felt more like a show that plays mind games with its players as opposed to attempting to put them at each other’s throats. The result is perhaps the best episode yet, with a good story and a reason to keep watching – if only millions more were doing the same.

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June 17, 2008 · 12:02 am

The Mole (2008) – “Episode Three”

“Episode Three”

June 16th, 2008

If there is a single thing that sets The Mole apart from other reality shows, it’s the tasks that the players are forced to do. They’re different than the other shows, relying not on skill but rather skills like communication, trust and in some cases pure ingenuity. The two tasks at the centerpiece of the fifth season’s third episode represent those which open up the game’s best elements, leaving room for the players to hang themselves and for them to have to think fast on their feet in tough situations.

There’s a lot of elements here that remind us of the show’s previous seasons, including more strong hosting from Jon Kelley and a pre-execution shocker that changes the dynamics of the game in a major way. And yet, there are still subtle differences: perhaps it’s that it isn’t new, but there’s a certain shift in the way the game is being portrayed (and in some ways played) that reminds us that this isn’t the same show.

That being said, it still remains the most watchable reality series for the summer months, and a worthy successor to its predecessors.

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June 3, 2008 · 12:56 am

Season Premiere: The Mole – “Episode One”

“Episode One”

June 2nd, 2008

For the sake of not repeating my excitement from yesterday’s blog post, let’s get right to it: ABC’s new season of The Mole has a lot to live up to, and there’s a lot of unknowns. With a new host and with a new format, watching this first episode is all about keeping an open mind to a show that is similar but certainly not quite the same.

This really hasn’t happened with a reality show like this before, so it’s interesting to see how much the producers have tried to follow the original show’s structure. Starting with the opening music, it is clear that this is at least similar to the series we once loved.

When the first task hits and they’re jumping over a waterfall after one contestant is singled out to make the decisions for the group, the flashbacks hit: it was the second season all over again, and all of a sudden we’re literally plummeting over the waterfall of suspicion. We want to figure out who the Mole is, what tasks will follow, and what these people have in store.

And this is enough to float this return: I have some issues with the hosting, issues with a few changes, but at the end of the day the game is almost identical to before. And with real people as opposed to celebrities playing the game yet again, the balance between silly and serious is back on the right path, and I am once again excited to learn who, precisely, is The Mole.

And that’s really what I want, in the end. And since that’s what I got, who can complain?

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June 2, 2008 · 2:21 pm

June @ Cultural Learnings: A Preview

As far as TV months go, you’d think that June would be pretty dead.

All the finales have ended, there is largely still a lack of quality in summer network offerings, and enough major films release that it seems that other media formats are outweighing my personal favourite.

However, at the same time, June is a month in which I have a fair amount of time: summer is here, DVD prices are continuing to drop rapidly, and after pontificating to great length over various finales there is a desire to continue on the same path. As a result of this, perhaps even more than last year, I have every intention on keeping busy during this month.

Most pressing is tonight’s guest spot on the /Filmcast, the official podcast of SlashFilm.com. My old pals from The Watchers have gone corporate, but with good reason: /Film’s a great site, and the podcast remains a great community in which to discuss film and television. I’ll be on for the first half hour of the show or so to discuss Lost’s season finale, so tune in @ the live uStream Channel at around 10 EST to listen to me attempt to condense 5000 words of analysis into quippy contributions to a group discussion!

Elsewhere, however, there’s plenty of other things to chat about.

First off, I’m in the process of what I’d like to call “Myles Meets HBO,” a chance for me to catch up on shows that aired on a cable network I didn’t get, and to a certain extent pre-date my interest in television. First and foremost, I am now 2+ seasons into Six Feet Under, a show I picked up on DVD and have been enjoying greatly (I’ll probably talk about this later in the week, maybe once I hit the official halfway point).

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