Would you participate in a reality TV series if you had the chance to?

Reality TV shows are quite a mixed bag. There are some feel-good shows like Masterchef Australia, which is a cooking competition. There are shows that document different events in people's lives like house hunting and home renovations. There are also some shows with questionable morals like the Bachelor, which is a dating competition. Personally, the latter kind of reality TV is not my cup of tea.

My absolute favorite reality TV series is Masterchef Australia because it is so interesting to see the different dishes that the contestants come up with. Also, the contestants are so supportive of each other despite the fact it is a competition, and it is heart-warming to see them become close friends and cheer each other on. I also really love to watch house hunting and house renovation shows. Unfortunately, these shows are not so popular in Japan but in Australia there is a TV channel practically dedicated to them, so I love to watch them with my mum when I visit my hometown. I also really love the Japanese reality TV show Sasuke, and its Australian version called Ninja Warrior Australia. These shows challenge contestants to overcome various extremely difficult obstacle courses. In most cases, if they fall at any point of the course, it is game over for them until next year. It is so exciting to see the contestants try to tackle the insanely difficult obstacles but, like in Masterchef, it is heart-warming to see the camaraderie between them as well.

While the shows I have listed above are some of my favorite reality TV shows, I wouldn't actually want to participate in any of them. I am not a good cook so Masterchef is out of the question, I am very unfit so Ninja Warrior is a no-go and, when I house hunt, I prefer to just take my time and I wouldn't really want a TV show to be involved. However, I have recently gotten hooked on a different reality TV series that I would actually be somewhat interested in taking part in. It is called 'The Amazing Race' and many countries have their own version of it including Australia, the US and Canada. The show itself has actually been around for a long time but I only just started watching it this year. In simple terms it is a race and contestants compete in teams of two. Teams might be comprised of a married or dating couple, exes, friends, coworkers, siblings, a parent and their grown-up child, the possibilities are endless. The race takes place over several weeks and in order to progress, teams must undertake various challenge as quickly as they can. These challenges range from being terrifying, like jumping off a bridge, to disgusting, like eating whale blubber, to tedious, like searching for a needle in a haystack, to downright wacky, like racing with a toilet full of water strapped to your head. To be honest, I am not that brave a person and there are some things I just couldn't eat or do, so I don't think I would make it very far in the Amazing Race. However, it would be such a memorable experience and maybe I would surprise myself and do better than I think I would.

Belinda

Vocabulary

feel-good (adjective) – causing a feeling of happiness and well-being
not my cup of tea (phrase) – not what one likes or is interested in
camaraderie (noun) - a feeling of good friendship among the people in a group
insanely (adverb) – to an extreme degree
out of the question (idiom) –not possible or allowed
ex (noun) – a former partner in a relationship
wacky (adjective) - funny or amusing in a slightly odd or peculiar way