UNITED STATES—I have not purchased a book with my own money for entertainment purposes in years. That may be a direct result of being an English and film major as an undergraduate student. I read so many books, at least 5 to 6 per class each semester and that was solely for my English courses. Let’s be honest I probably read 20 books a semester over a course of 4 years. That is a lot of reading people; it exhausted me.
Imagine my intrigue when I discover a book was written about one of my favorite reality competition series of all time, “Big Brother.” It’s like that dirty little secret not a lot of people know about, but you secretly watch and you want others to watch, but it’s not always easy to convince them why they should. It is very difficult to describe “Big Brother” to people; they don’t always get it, and that is frustrating for fans of the series.
However, this book “Behind the Mirror: Inside the World of Big Brother” by author Taran Armstrong is an exceptional read. This is not me saying that because I’ve been a fan of “Big Brother” since season 1 or that I keep up with the live feeds and what is happening each summer. Sorry, but BB is indeed my summer guilty pleasure that I must watch no matter how dreadful the gameplay or contestants are in a given season.
This book was such an easy read and that is something that is important for me when it comes to reading; you have to hook me right away or I’m checking out and I mean just that; I’m checking out. When I purchased the hardcover my first thought was oh, this book is going to take me awhile to complete. Nope, I finished the book within a week, probably could have done it in a day or two if I didn’t have to be interrupted by work or personal responsibilities.
Armstrong does a terrific job of introducing us to his world, his connection to this series that he adored as a kid and ultimately has become a career for him, something as he quotes in his own words he would have done for free if anyone asked him. As a writer, Taran does an exceptional job of putting the reader in his shoes by talking about his life experiences and how they mirror “Big Brother” at times. It’s a slice of the real world that sometimes many people ignore, but fans of the series see more than you notice.
As a fan of BB, I forget some things that the book totally opened my eyes to, how some of the contestants in season 1 were singled out simply because other houseguests couldn’t “connect” with them or how the racism was prevalent in season 1, but not as overt as BB15 and BB21. It wasn’t potent because the series didn’t highlight it on the episodes, yes, the producer’s control what is aired and what is not, which is why the live feeds as Armstrong puts it is so critical to the show’s success. People are watching everything and with them being accessible 24/7 it makes it possible. Of course there are down times, but then there are times when things erupt and utter chaos ensues that leaves fans giddy.
Reading this book literally took me back directly as the book explores the gameplay of Dr. Will and season 2. I felt like I was literally in the BB house reading this book; I was transported back into town, and I loved every minute of it. BB2 hands down was the season that hooked me, season 3 of BB was the one that locked me in. I love the way this book breaks down the dynamics of the earlier seasons that set the tone for the game as we see it today. I was easily transported back to my favorite season of BB6 with that divided house and that heated rivalry between the Friendship and the Sovereign 6. Kaysar was adored and Jennifer Vasquez was absolutely hated by the fans for her treacherous move; Taran captures that mayhem in a way that I felt I was watching the drama unfold in real time even though it happened almost 20 years ago.
Not many people realize that the jury was not always sequestered, that was a direct result of the ending for BB3, or how about the fact that the Silver Power of Veto was the first introduction of that element where the owner of that power could ONLY use it on someone else, not themselves, that didn’t change until the Golden Power of Veto was introduced at the end of season and we had that iconic moment where Marcellus Reynolds didn’t use it and was blindsided in epic fashion by Danielle Reyes and Jason Guy; the first secret alliance in the game.
The floater strategy comes into play in season 4 courtesy of Jun and Allison, and we got the sequestered jury who couldn’t see what they really thought about their competitors, not to mention how Arnold Shapiro totally changed the game as we know it after season 1. Yes, I didn’t realize that from seasons 1-9 it was all a bit of a gimmick. How can we take the game to the next level? What twist can be introduced to change things and make them more competitive, which was like constantly retooling the game to make it work. We had the twin twist in BB5, the siblings who didn’t know each other, till this day is shocking, the secret pairs twist in BB6, the one and truly ONLY all-stars season with BB7, and then you had the foes season in BB8.
Yeah, when you take a moment and reflect back the earlier seasons of BB did attempt to deliver shocking twists to keep viewers tuned in, whereas previous and current seasons have been more focused on twists in the game that haven’t really worked the best. We had the increased number of contestants in BB15 to 16 from previous entries around 12-14 hat delivered more controversy than one can ever imagine. It was hard to fathom seeing the racism so brutally in your face on the live feeds and the producers hide it until they could no longer do it because the fans were ensuring everyone in the world knew about it.
Reading “Behind the Mirror” was liking transporting back to those earlier seasons of “Big Brother” where it was in its glory in my opinion. Unfiltered Diary Room sessions with pure authenticity where the contestants said exactly how they felt with no sugarcoating. Today there is a bit more pandering to the audience, which is not always fun, as some players fail to realize the live feeders know how you really think, feel or behave. Armstrong captures all those inner workings of the game with tact and details that even someone like myself who has studied and watched the series since the beginning had forgotten.
I’m really hoping Taran considers another installment, this time considering a deeper dive into the twists in the game and how they have impacted in both a negative and positive way the dynamics of the game. “Behind the Mirror: Inside the World of Big Brother” gives fans and those completely unaware a slice of the game that is so riveting to read and I’m eager to see further analysis of the game broken down even further.
