Total Drama Island

The introduction of an impressive array of stereotypical characters began this animated reality television show, the most brilliant and unexpected oxymoron I encountered as of late. There's a way to relate almost any of the characters to someone you've met at one point in your life. Each character is memorable in their own way, if only because of the brilliant stereotyping, or the sheer wackiness of some.

On the "reality" half, there is very little real about it, and yet, it actually feels real in ways. At times, it's a biting satire of many of the absurd reality TV programs aired in the past few years. At others, the relations and rivalries between characters feel very realistic. The only problem, really, is that some of the humor feels weak and forced. On the other hand, some of it works really well.

If only this show didn't spawn so much awful fan-fiction...

7/10, for a great concept and intelligent writing, if weak in the humor department at times.

NOTE: This is only a review for "Total Drama Island", the first season of "Total Drama." Since TDI doesn't have it's own IMDB page like some of the subsequent seasons do, the only way to review it is on the IMDB page for the "Total Drama" franchise in general.

I have such fond memories of "Total Drama Island." The summer of 2008 was one of the best times in my life, and this show is one of the reasons for it. It kept me hooked all the way through and really left an impression on me. Revisiting it, it still is a great show to watch.

Created as a parody of shows such as Survivor and Fear Factor, Total Drama Island focuses on 22 teenagers arriving to Camp Wawanakwa to compete on a reality television show. The contestants are divided into two teams and must compete in challenges every three days. While the winning team earns invincibility, the losing team has to vote off one of their own players. Whoever is voted off must walk the Dock of Shame to the Boat of Losers and leave the island. The teams eventually dissolve and the elimination process continues until the last contestant standing wins a grand prize of $100,000.

One thing that makes TDI so good is its extremely likable cast of characters. They all have their own individual personalities and they all feel relatable in some way, like people you would meet in high school. My favorites are Trent, Gwen, Duncan, Leshawna, Cody, Bridgette, Geoff, and Owen (not just because he shares my name).

The interactions between the characters are usually quite engaging and the many storylines built up between them are played out well. We would see most of them again in later seasons, but a lot of them started going downhill and ended up getting derailed in some way. They were all at their most likable in this season.

The first season, I feel, did the best job of utilizing its cast of characters. With only a few exceptions, I feel that everyone was eliminated at just the right time.

The challenges are a lot of fun as well. A lot of them are very creative and are filled with memorable moments. With an ongoing narrative filled with all kinds of interesting stuff happening every episode, it makes you not want to miss a single one.

The show can also be quite hilarious at times and the animation, while rather basic (as to be expected from Teletoon), fits the show quite well.

This season does have a few problems, such as some toilet humor here and there and a few unfair eliminations, but they are all rather minor in the grand scheme of things.

"Total Drama Island" has a special place in my heart, and it still holds up extremely well. Too bad the sequels aren't anywhere near as good (although the spin-off "The Ridonculous Race" was pretty awesome). You should check this show out if you haven't already.

RATING: A

The "Total Drama Series" is a parody of many well-known survival reality shows and their annoying clichés. The animated contestants are teenagers stereotypes that you shouldn't take too seriously, since it's all played for laughs. The premise has a lot of potential, but everything seems horribly written. Also, the show desperately wants the attention of older viewers, yet most of the fans are 9 or 13 years old: that's because it has horrible childish/toilet humor, which is really bad. Also, the animation is below average (though it has improved over time).

Basically, the first two seasons of the series, respectively titled "Total Drama Island" and "Total Drama Action", are uninteresting. However, the third one, known as "Total Drama World Tour", is actually much better than the rest of the series. The writing in Season 3 is good; humor and animation have improved; also, every episode features a nice song, obviously played for laughs, yet they're quite catchy so far (this was probably inspired by Disney's "Phineas and Ferb").

Overall, thanks to its third season, this is an OK show, though not nearly as good as other animated series on TV...

What happens when you mix 22 campers, a crummy summer camp, and all the cheesy drama from a reality show? THE BEST FREAKING PARODY EVER! Honestly, the show is cute in it's own way, it's characters are quite likable (Besides Heather), and it builds upon itself to offer innuendo, while using humor children understand. Oh my god, a cartoon that is appealing for both kids AND ADULTS?! It's hard to come by cartoons like this.

Meaning, it's hard to come by cartoons that parody it's based material, makes the stereotypes convincing and in character, and offer entertainment and humor for both young and old! 9/10! Incredible!

And being a fan of survivor, big brother, and amazing race I'm really into this. It makes me giggle. And it's got stuff for the kids and then dirty jokes for the adults. Super underrated. Can't wait to see what happens lol