One big problem with Australian reality TV shows

OPINION: Nine, Seven and Ten all launched their first big reality TV offerings of the year last night. I’m already exhausted.

With ratings season back in full swing, last night each of the three commercial networks launched their reality TV offerings for the first quarter of the year.

Nine’s Married At First Sight, Seven’s Australian Idol and Ten’s Survivor: Heroes Vs. Villains all premiered their new seasons in the same 7.30pm timeslot last night.

MAFS ran to a comparatively tight 95 minutes, while Idol and Survivor ran for 105 minutes each.

And all three are on again tonight, tomorrow and Sunday, with all episodes again running well past the 90-minute mark. If you want to watch every episode of all three shows this week, you’re looking at more than 18 hours of television. I could watch Avatar: The Way of Water twice in that time.

We’re one night in and it’s already too much.

#MAFS#SurvivorAU#AustralianIdolpic.twitter.com/AobMbVN6bh

— Deep Longstop 🐶🏏 (@deeplongstop) January 30, 2023

It doesn’t have to be like this. And in other countries, it’s not: American Idol airs twice a week in the US, primetime viewing on Sunday and Monday nights.

The US version of Survivor airs just one one-hour episode per week, for a grand total of 14 episodes her season. That makes it virtually a completely different show to Australian Survivor, which runs to at least 24 episodes a season and gives viewers almost six hours of content per week.

Survivor’s on four nights a week … Photo: Nigel Wright

… as is Australian Idol.

And then there’s Nine’s smash hit Married At First Sight, undoubtedly the biggest reality show on Australian TV in recent years. Last season ran to a mammoth 37 episodes across three months. Nine has a habit of milking their golden calves dry: The Block topped out at 51 episodes last year.

Commercial networks! I am begging you:

if you won’t let us go just let us die pic.twitter.com/I8y3uCQnSC

— ÙŽ (@microceIeb) January 22, 2023

Let us miss you. Make your reality TV offerings once-or-twice a week appointment TV. Hell, you could even give us the occasional hour-long episode (what a novelty). And please, have the shows wrap by 9pm! Yes, I am a nanna, but after 9pm I like to be in bed reading a good book (ok, fine, mindlessly scrolling Instagram).

MAFS, Survivor and Idol are all strong, internationally proven franchises - but right now, Australian viewers we’ve got too much of a good thing.