Traitors Review – This Amazing New Development Changes Everything | Traitors

nNew year, new killing spree. This is the third time the BBC has shown a new season of The Traitors on or around January 1, enshrining a great new British tradition of ringing in the new year with a month-long ‘psychological trick-or-treat’ – and after a slow start to the first season in 2022, audiences have now learned to ring Claudia Winkleman’s bell for new blood.

This fourth “civilian” season comes just one month after the series finale of The Celebrity Traitors, which attracted a record 15 million viewers, sent some contestants’ profiles skyrocketing (and put others into question — Nick, what happened?) and continues to generate headlines from retroactive play.

At this point, “Traitors” has become the closest thing to appointment viewing in the streaming era, single-handedly convincing audiences to take on TV licenses. However, after the overwhelming success of The Celebrity Traitors – and that stunning finale that saw Alan Carr, the best worst traitor ever, somehow snatch victory from his loyal followers – perhaps even die-hard fans are wondering: How can this new season top that?

By changing the game of course. The first episode makes it clear almost from the jump — after a typically campy opening scene showing Winkleman in an SUV, silhouetted by an owl — that in this season, even her designated traitors can’t expect to be in complete control. “Just when they think they know how to play…” Winkleman mutters, wearing a distinctive red cloak.

Last year, the show sought to keep the contestants on their toes by requiring three of them to get off the train, even before they reached the castle. This year everyone arrives at the Traitors’ headquarters, with introductions made along the way. With 22 starters, the show does a good job of suggesting who we need to pay attention to. There’s 62-year-old Fiona from Swansea – similar to Amanda in season one, she resorts to indecision to avoid suspicion. Scott Steven is in his 30s – he plans to rely on the “need to be someone different”, and grows up on the isolated Isle of Lewis. Gorgeous, calm and collected head of communications Rachel – who once successfully breached security, pretended to be the daughter of the Irish president, and was shown tapping Winkleman on the shoulder.

They skew older than last year’s crop and, fortunately, are less stressed. Some, like crime writer Harriet, 52, and Amanda, 57, a retired police detective, have already decided to hide their profession. Others – like Hugo, the self-described “psycho bear” lawyer, and 34-year-old bookkeeper Sam, who is expected to be this season’s babyface – bring nothing but brazen confidence. Meanwhile, in series one, there’s a surprise encounter outside the castle doors between nursery teacher Nettie, 42, and personal trainer Ross, 37 (an expired acquaintance), which promises a new dynamic to play out.

Surprisingly, they all want to play as traitors, shocking even Claudia with their bloodlust. He suggests a slight change in the way casting is done, with priority given to those with a great love for the game. Last year’s contestants, selected via a “bar quiz,” quickly turned on each other like rats in a cage, veering between fighting or fawning responses at the round tables in a way that was decidedly not strategically productive and, at times, entertaining to watch. No doubt the pressure will be there as well, but it looks like they are at least prepared.

The buzz around The Traitors was also acknowledged in the episode, with the contestants shown to be thrilled by the famous castle and “Queen Claudia”, suggesting a bit more meta production. (Winkelmann congratulates them on their arrival: “You’ve gotten off the train—that doesn’t always happen.”) But the audience has already been let in on the coming development: In addition to the traitors Winkelmann has chosen at the first round table, there is now a “secret traitor” who knows their identities, nominates those they might kill, and is the only player with full oversight of the game. Not even those watching at home know who, among the supposed believers, lies beneath that crimson cloak.

It’s a bold, shape-shifting decision at the series’ climax, but one that could thwart the emerging dysfunction of The Traitors, where only the most gullible believers stand a chance of reaching the end. In fact, the impact on gameplay is seismic and immediate. Winkleman wastes no time choosing her traitors, but the victory of the chosen three is short-lived once they learn they will have to kill for the Order. (“I don’t need middle management,” complains one of them.) Their anguished expressions when they realize their strategies have been completely upended are extremely satisfying to watch and promise a great recap in the future.

The first challenge also offers a great scene as there are 100 coffins suspended across the lake. Some contain money, and must be hauled to shore – but there’s another twist, forcing players to quickly uncover their suspicions about each other and make split-second decisions about who to protect from banishment. When a secret blood relationship between the two believers is revealed near the end of the episode, you’re left to guess which gems the producers should keep. (Season 2 of Ross and Diane’s Bombshell has been delayed until episode 3.)

Having built up its cult following with The Celebrity Traitors, the BBC could easily have rolled out another urban season using the previous templates and feel confident of a record-breaking audience. Instead, they upped the ante and made the shape more complex. The first episode, with its quick and exciting reveal, leaves us and the players with plenty of thread to draw from – and highlights the producers’ confidence in the payoff to come.