One of the longest reality show in America with 21 seasons The Bachelor has came to Thailand last year. The bachelor is said to be a reality show which a single man with perfect background, career and appearance comes to date many women and finally chooses the best woman he wants to settle with. After the first season of The Bachelor Thailand was aired, it had become very popular. We know how much Thai people love dramas. They love when dramatic things happen in reality shows because they think those things are supposed to be real, not merely scripts. However, the characters are set to entertain audience. For example, in The Bachelor Thailand, there were different characters like a perfect woman with good manner that people would cheer for her, a bitchy one whom people in the show hate, a funny one, a naïve one, etc.
Alice (on the top) always fight with Gift (on the bottom)
Alice character is a woman who wants to win the game. She doesn't care about anyone and likes to say bad things to others.
While Gift was set to be Alice opponent and rival so that drama was boosted all the time.
Gift had her own team who always assisted her to fight Alice as well - it's like I'm watching a soap opera, isn't it?
Gift's team
The point is it lets audience picking a team, choosing side and make them feel like they are a part of the show. Audience were really into the show that they hate Alice and left so many bad comments on the Bachelor Thailand Facebook page and Alice's Instagram account. Some young teens cannot distinguish between reality and the script or the images of it. The actions that they fight and talk back to each other like mean girls are actually meant to replicate reality. However, honestly, no one would want to be hate by showing all of their dark sides to the whole country through TV. It is the power of script.
It reaches the climax of the show when Natalie (below) grabbed the back of Alice's head and pushed her into the pool. The drama was on fire! Although there was no video clip or pictures as a proof, most people tend to belief that it actually happened. For me, I think it was just a script, again.
Like The Face Thailand, another reality show about fashion and models, honestly, who cares about fashion? The majority of Thai people don't even have any profound knowledge about fashion. They just like watching those beautiful faces and dramas! Reality is again being betrayed. Many Thai people still lack discretion when perceiving something through media. Being able to watch TV and knowing "how to watch TV" are different. They put too much of themselves into TV shows, into hypereality that they think it is real.
