User blog:Rhonda the stalker fan!/Opinions on Total Drama All Stars

I wrote this awhile ago. It then got deleted >_> So wrote half of what is here still some time ago. Finally decided to finish this now.

So what did I think of Total Drama All Stars? Well, it went above my expectations…but I had very low expectations. It did some things actually well, but a lot of other things really bad.

It did make me laugh occasionally and I do think they got better writing than previously. But it was also predictable and was kinda the straw that broke the camel’s back for me; I’ve kinda lost hope in Total Drama striving to be good instead of just getting by and making money.

Allow me to elaborate in slightly more detail :P

The Set Up
So let’s talk about the setting/season theme, since that’s probably easy. The island is back to normal, something I think works better than the half-baked ‘radioactive theme’. But we still have some of that radioactivity on Boney Island, as the ‘Fun Zone’.

I like this. We can keep some of the coolness of the radioactive creatures but still have our island. The Fun Zone also feels and sounds very Chris. And it works on Boney Island, which is meant to be an evil, awful place to run from. Fast. Though I kinda like Boney Island cursed theme more (or maybe that’s just because of how well LTDI portrays it :P)

The challenges can be enjoyable. They’re actually combined very decently, some better than other. The highlight of course is Suckers Punched challenge, a very smart idea admittedly. The spa is a nice touch (love the creepy Chris photos) and like the winners watching the losers vote.

I don’t really care for the Chris Head. It could be an interesting plot device…but is basically used for an elimination, although I guess it was for Alejandro’s and Heather’s iiffy romance and developed it. More than the fourth season did with it.

The Exile Island can be funny though. So that’s a plus I guess. As for the Heroes vs. Villians theme…eh. The first episode really played it up well, but then they kinda zigzagged it. I felt more could have been done with it and exploring it. But they didn’t care to do that.

The Flush of Shame is just kinda stupid. But overall the set up isn’t bad, and actually does do some good. I like the spa, the challenges, and the choice of location help create a feel of an All Star season.

Oh, and as for sinking the island…there really was no point, other than to finish with stuff ending in destruction. I think it also further alienates the show from it’s first season and it’s strong ‘sucky’ summer camp feel, along with it's working additions. But that’s just me…

Character Ensemble
So let’s talk about the set up of the characters before the characters.

Part of the reason Revenge of the Island didn’t work, was that it was so short. I didn’t care about most of this cast because I hardly had time to know them and see them form meaningful interactions.

With All Stars, we already know this cast kind of, as the show assumes you’re a fan. So the thirteen episodes here do work better. The show for once does really acknowledge continuity, but it does still have problems.

The biggest example is Courtney and Gwen’s friendship meaning so much to each other, when it was just forming.

Like I said, the Villains vs. Heroes angle was enjoyable, and I wish it was expanded on. It would have been a lot more interesting to seem them facing against each other and the different strategizing. And both teams kinda had an opposite member with Gwen and Courtney (though Gwen deserves that placement as I’ll get to).

Part of the reason the season probably couldn’t be bigger is they didn’t have enough villains to fit that role.

As for the character themselves, how did they hold up? It varies. I think they chose a lot of characters that weren’t usually comic relief (ex. Owen, Izzy, Brick, etc.) And the ones that are usually use as comedy or had big personalities…went home pretty early (ex. Lindsay, Lightning, Jo, Sam, etc.)

I think that because of this, some characters had to become funnier. And they did. I never found Alejandro that funny in TDWT, except for occasional interactions with Heather. But here? He’s a whole lot funnier.

Scott, one of the more annoying and problematic characters of ROTI, was actually developed more into being a kind of idiot country bumpkin. For the most part the four ROTI contestants who made it far were better developed than their established roles.

To me, those four (Cameron, Scott, Zoey, Mike) are the Designated Hero, Designated Villain, Designated Heroine, and Designated Love Interest in ROTI. Cameron and Scott improved significantly, Zoey a little bit and Mike…eh.

Individual Characters
I’m gonna quickly run over my thoughts on the characters in order of elimination.


 * Lindsay- Lindsay started off great, and I would have loved to see her interact with the other characters on her team…and actually the villains more. But then they made Lindsay a quitter.
 * It would have been less bad if they just had eliminated her for getting tired (when it was really most of the rest of her team’s fault). But by quitting, they just makes it feel like she doesn’t care and if she competes again, she won’t really try. This season actually managed to make one of the most consistent and lovable characters weak.


 * Lightning- I had originally made rankings of the contestants in the first episode. That too sadly got deleted. But Lightning was actually in my top 5. And I hated Lightning in ROTI. But I found him funnier here (and more memorable and less annoying than others). So of course he goes soon.


 * Jo- I was really enjoying Jo. She just worked really well, I think her personality was something different on the villains, but I have trouble pinpointing what. Maybe it’s because the first episode really built up her interactions and focus on her. And I loved her rivalry with Heather, would have preferred to see that than most of the plots.


 * I also think her elimination was kinda stupid. Yeah she messed up and fired at a teammate, but she was the last standing. But whatever.


 * Sam- Why was Sam here? He really had no reason to be here, he was pretty unmemorable, and really there’s nothing to comment on, besides being a kinda funny injured guy.


 * I guess he’s here cause they needed another person from ROTI but also a hero. Sam fits the likable enough to be an All Star…but not likable enough for us to get upset about (like say if this was Brick).


 * Heather- Heather was also disappointing. She was still her basic characterization, except coming across an as idiot for not keeping that idol. As for her and Alejandro…they were funny somewhat. I do think Alejandro wouldn’t come off as strong a character if Heather wasn’t there. Still, she was interesting but lost in a move that made her seem stupid and wasted potential.


 * Also, ‘nice’ Heather is hilarious.


 * Sierra- Sierra doesn’t really stick out to memory, she was kinda funny I guess but not that funny. And the fact she made a lot of Cody jokes even though he wasn’t here was just weak. Not to mention if you’re new to the series how are you suppose to get into her if she keeps referencing someone not even there.


 * Duncan- My feelings on Duncan are…mixed. I still hate him, he’s still sexist and doesn’t care for the women he hurts. He doesn’t even really care he and Gwen split. But Duncan does get so punishment.


 * I initially disliked how Duncan was put on the Heroes team and was kinda made to seem like a nice guy. No, he’s an awful person. But the fact he hates how it ruins his reputation, well I found that funny. And him being driven to prove it gets him in prison. That’s hilarious punishment.


 * Cameron- I barely remember Cameron in the first few episodes but he grew on his own as a character and proved to be more comedic. He become much more his own identifiable character here.


 * Alejandro- Alejandro proved to better this round. First, he wasn’t playing God Mode this time. People were actually aware of him, called him out and weren’t fawning over him. And he was actually funny and while he still had the same personality it was played for laughs.


 * Courtney- At first I really enjoyed Courtney. She didn’t care about Duncan and cared more about her actual friendship with Gwen. Yes this was forced, but the fact she cared more about a friendship than a bad boy is strong, at least for Total Drama, which is usually sexist. And she was still kinda funny.


 * Her friendship with Gwen, competing together and being generally nice was enjoyable. And her relationship with Scott was funny. They’re kinda opposites but they worked together, and it helped humanize and strength both. But despite this, she still cared about her friendship more than some boy.


 * And then they changed it to where Courtney abandons Gwen to make out with Scott. And then they had Cameron kiss Courtney. And Scott and Courtney just basically ends there.


 * And let’s get this straight, Cameron kissing Courtney is no way similar to Gwen kissing Duncan.


 * First, Gwen was kinda Courtney’s friend, so Gwen went behind Courtney’s back. Cameron was Scott’s enemy. Second, Gwen was accused of liking Duncan, which she denied. Cameron and Courtney barely had any interaction.


 * And, Courtney and Duncan clearly had something going on, Courtney clearly had shown she cared for him and though their relationship status wasn’t clear, Duncan and Courtney acted like they were together. Gwen knew this. But she went on anyway and participated in the kiss with Duncan. Courtney didn’t kiss Cameron; he forced himself on her.


 * Gwen wasn’t even really apologetic it about and the distressed it caused Courtney. Gwen was a villain.


 * And then after Courtney almost gets this resolved, they go and have her fall back into a meaner, selfish role. They put her through punishment for it when they were so close to redeeming her. The writers just didn’t care to be consistent with where they were going. They were doing a good job of caring about the fans but ended up still being wrong. And instead of positively changing their characters they make them fall back into their old convections. WEAK. WRITING. LACK. OF. CARE.


 * Gwen- I’ve pretty much ranted about how Gwen was a villain (Read above). I do feel Gwen is a Creator’s Pet, as they made her come off as always right and the other characters in the wrong. But I do like she chose friendship over Duncan and was nice to others and was funny at times. Just weakened by this poorly done Gwen and Courtney plot. Also, I'm just thinking about this but Heather and Gwen didn't really interact did they?


 * Scott- Like I’ve said, Scott really improved as a character. He’s actually funny, and has some real interactions with people. Courtney and Scott is admittedly cute.And he doesn’t fall into the old conventions he had last season. This is stronger writing.


 * Mike/Zoey- The Mal plot took up most of this season. The problem with it, is that we all know how this is gonna end. Mal’s going to take control and pretend to be Mike, causing eliminations and being evil. But Mike will defeat Mal for his love for Zoey, and they’ll be happy together. And that’s what happened.


 * I will say I actually enjoyed Mal. The voice was actually good, and he was actually one of the better villains. He pretended to be nice to get to people and betray them. And he was occasionally funny. And compared to boring Mike (who Mal even calls boring) Mal is interesting.


 * I kinda wanted Mal to take control. Yeah that’s pretty awful but could have been funny in a dark comedy way. Mike was still just a nice ish guy and nothing more than Zoey’s love interest.


 * Zoey herself was better here. She had some more interactions and a conflict I cared for more; Can she trust Mike or is he gone? Was Mal the real personality and is lost? She didn’t stick out greatly however and most of her time was still being obsessed with Mike.


 * I also kind of find it weird that in the beginning Mike used his personalities and Zoey was okay with them; basically their whole plot of ROTI was pointless. Go figure. Overall, the two were boring and predictable; Mal just strengthened them.

Rankings
Based on all that I’ve said, here are my rankings (Mal is a separate entry based on how I enjoyed him):

15th Lindsay

14th Sam

13th Courtney

12th Mike

11th Sierra

10th Duncan

9th Heather

8th Zoey

7th Gwen

6th Lightning

5th Mal

4th Jo

3rd Cameron

2nd Alejandro

1st Scott

…I’m not even sure how I feel about these rankings. Even if Scott is my number one, I still wouldn’t say I loved his character. Even the characters that improved didn’t make them my favorites. It was really hard to rank.

Overall
Overall this season while improved things and had a good backdrop and ideas, it didn’t run with it’s ideas, it focused too much on the boring, predictable stuff, with all the merge plots being weak and poorly wrapped up.

I can just feel them giving up, not caring to have it work out cleverly. They just don’t care to try new things, try new characters, or have their characters change. The ending just destroyed the good beginning.

All the characters are back to square one for the most part: most have no relationships (Geoff and Bridgette, Sam and Dakota and Zoey and Mike are the only three still going relationships), having their old personality traits, etc. Only now Mike has super skills and less personality than ever, Lindsay’s a quitter, Heather made a stupid move, and we have no island.

This season was a cash-grab, the writers didn’t really care to try too hard. I really don’t think we’re ever gonna get to have something as well put together as TDI. But I'm sure will get more predictability.