Survivor: The Australian Outback

Paramount | 712 minutes | 2001 | Not Rated | Standard DVD reviewed by: Matt Brighton

With the unprecedented success of "Survivor: Borneo", it was truly inevitable that the series would stop there. And it didn't. As of the writing "Survivor: Palau" is being shown and auditions are being held for "Survivor 11" so the so-called "Grandfather of Reality TV" is still going strong and shows no sign of slowing down. "Survivor: The Australian Outback" is widely considered to be one of the better seasons out there, due in no small part to the casting. Colby, Tina, Keith, Alicia and Jerri are just a few of the names that have become ingrained in Reality TV viewers' heads.

Location, location, location. "Survivor: The Australian Outback" featured one of the more colorful and diverse places for the show to take place. With future locales in Africa, Thailand, The Amazon and Panama; the Australian Outback offered the contestants challenges they certainly weren't ready for. Take, for instance, the group literally running out of food and having to trade their camp for more rice. The flooding of the camp. Tina crossing a roaring river to rescue a can of rice. Michael Stupin falling into the fire and being evacuated from the game, etc. For anyone out there who thought this game was just about getting 15 minutes of fame - "The Australian Outback" showed that it would take work to win the vaunted million-dollar prize.

The second installment included a cast of sixteen that were as diverse as any season out there. Colby, the All-American guy with the would be million dollar smile and his ultimate downfall, Tina - the housewife from Tennessee. Keith, a gourmet chef from Michigan and Alicia, a personal trainer from New York City. Granted, one of the show's gratest moments is between Alicia and fellow New Yorker Kimmi (a vegetarian). Ultimately, the season will be remembered for Michael Stupin falling into the fire and being taken out of the game. Not only did this provide one of the most brutal scenes in Reality TV history but it changed the course of the season. Why, you ask? The Kucha tribe had the advantage in numbers going into the merge, but with Mike out the tribes were now even. Clearly the ultimate winner would have been different if this incident wouldn't have occurred.

Love it or hate it, "Survivor" has played an important part in television history. The onslaught of Reality programming is still going strong with only a few of the shows being wathcable (I mean to we really need a Reality-based show with Nick and Jessica)? "Survivor" has set the bar high with creative casting, original challenges and showing the extreme lengths that people will go to for fame and/or fortune. Paramount has done a fine job with the seasons, plenty of bonus material to make the purchase worthwhile. True fans are awaiting their favorite season (mine is "Survivor: Thailand" by the way) and it appears that Paramount will eventually get around to releasing all of these seasons on DVD. "Survivor" is great entertainment, amazingly addictive and if you've never seen a season of it - this would be a good place to start.

“Survivor: The Australian Outback” is shown in a full-frame format (consistent with most shows on TV). The colors are rich and bright and adequately reflect the atmosphere; the show looks as good as any others I’ve seen (television-wise). I saw no real compression artifacts, the black levels were dead on and the detail was incredible. This looks as good as I remember seeing it the first time (though I didn’t have my widescreen TV then) and that’s about all we can expect. If you’re like me, you can finally throw those old VHS copies of “Survivor: The Australian Outback” out as the DVD has finally arrived.

“Survivor: The Australian Outback” is presented in a Dolby Digital Surround mix and it’s nothing that we didn't hear while watching it on TV the first time around. There isn't a whole lot to the mix here and dialogue is crisp. Suffice it to say you can hear every confessional, outbreak and the ultimate one-liner “The Tribe Has Spoken”. Surrounds are used very sparingly as well. This mix is best classified as a good surround mix...which it is.

The six disc set comes with a plethora of extras, the most notable of which are the audio commentaries. Certain select episodes contain comments from several of the members of the cast and two of them have commentaries from buddies Jeff Probst and Colby Donaldson on the first and last episodes of the season. Their tracks are pretty chummy and actually make for a decent listen. Obviously these two guys became friends after the show ended and about the only thing that would make it better is the addition of more cast members (though it was nice to hear Probsts’ comments). The next commentary is on the second episode with Keith, Rodger, Tina and Amber (eventual winner of “Survivor All-Stars”). This track is a bit more confusing than the rest (this group also participates in another track, episode 11) as Amber seems out of place. I’m guessing that her stint on All-Stars and her original appearance here made it a natural, but the group seems to have some fun seeing themselves emaciated. The next group comments on the fifth and sixth episodes and the participants are Kimmi, Alicia and Mike. Those familiar with the series know that Kimmi and Alicia had quite a little catfight, but it seems that it’s all water under the bridge now. Mike comments on his departure from the game after his fall into the fire which is an interesting listen.

Four other featurettes are included on the last disc, these are: “Surviving the Australian Outback", "The Luxury Items", "Dining: Survivor Style" and "Keith Famie's Paella”. "Surviving the Australian Outback" is merely an overview of the season, the hardships, the fights and playing the game. Some interviews with the cast of the show, along with Probst, tell it like it was. "The Luxury Items", something which isn't on the new shows anymore (it stopped with Amazon), shows some of the personal items that the castaways brought with them. The notable ones would be Colby's huge Texas flag and Keith's frying pan. This is an interesting little featurette that shows us a glimpse into the personal lives of the Survivors. "Dining: Survivor Style" gives us a look at how and what they ate. The show did a pretty good job of this as well, showing the rice and what little natural resources were around for food. Lastly, Chef Keith gives us a few recipes of his own along with a text-based recipe for his Pealla. He also has a cookbook which you can pick up, should you be so inclined. "Back From the Outback" catches up with the Survivor's once they've gotten home and shows how, if any, their lives have been changed by their experience Down Under.

The only other extra is the previously available “Survivor Australia: The Greatest and Most Outrageous Moments” which has been repackaged in a smaller, slimmer case (like the rest of the set). We’ve already taken a look at that disc in our earlier review. The wait is over and “Survivor: The Australian Outback” is now on DVD. Everyone has their favorite season, but for many this is it. Paramount hasn’t really been consistent with the order of the seasons, so next up could either be the next in the series, “Survivor: Africa” or a newer season, “Survivor: Vanuatu”.