The problem right off the bat, which’ The Bridge ‘never finds work around, is that while bridges are interesting, the process of building a bridge is not
From the depths of the lockdown commissioning basement comes The Bridge (Channel 4), not a Scandinavian murder mystery, but some sort of office-based TV team-building exercise Twelve Strangers (in a Covid bubble , is it hurriedly explained) are sent to a shack near a reservoir in North Wales All they know up front is that they are going to try to win £ 100,000 They don’t know how until they arrive and find out they have 20 days to build a wooden bridge to an island 850 feet across the water, where the money is in. a metal box
Applicants are mostly young, with types of jobs – PR, hotelier, plumber, fashion designer – that suggest they haven’t spent much time building bridges Fortunately, there are textbooks of instructions in the cabin, as well as piles of wood and rope Those hoping to take an engineering course at the Open University will be disappointed The emphasis is on group dynamics rather than the technical aspects of the bridge building
The problem right off the bat, which The Bridge never finds work around, is that while bridges are interesting, the process of building a bridge isn’t.Given the nightmare of the outside world, it could be soothing to see people cut and saw and get along, but it would be a different type of series, and you can see why the producers thought it wouldn’t last five hours Sunday evening
Instead, they resort to the usual tricks to sow discord The messages are announced by a flare fired from a tower, for no obvious reason The first job is to vote for a team leader, a competition of popularity won by stripper Zac Then a couple are sent on an overnight trip and are given the choice between individual greed and the good of the group.These formats all become stretched versions of the prisoner’s dilemma, and the contestants have long been savvy Inevitably the bridge as a metaphor relies heavily on the whole business Maybe the real bridge will turn out to be the enemies they make along the way?
With the traditions of the format so well established, a show like this either lives or dies of its cast Looking at the first episode, there are too many affable young people for a truly captivating dynamic These sober, thoughtful men and women mainly want to get along and make money There’s a whiff of leave about the cohort and you wonder if the coronavirus has restricted the pool of applicants
Obviously, the best character is the aptly named Sly, the ex-statesman, an infuriating egotist marked by personal tragedy He is the only member of the group with relevant experience, as a car manufacturer. It should help, but he is by turns precious and bossy, a brooding man-baby who takes even the lightest of criticism as a serious insult. He refuses to volunteer for the team leader election but immediately sets out to undermine Zac and outright intimidates the likeable Billie, whose fame is for being the daughter of daytime television legend Trisha Goddard. If Sly continues in the same vein, there could still be a murder, especially given the number of axes around, but that wouldn’t be much of a mystery
Independent Premium Reviews can be posted by members of our membership program, Independent Premium It allows our most engaged readers to debate big issues, share their own experiences, discuss concrete solutions, etc. Our journalists will try to respond by joining the threads when they can to create a true independent Premium date The most insightful comments on all topics will be published daily in dedicated articles You can also choose to be sent by e- mail when someone replies to your comment
Existing Open Comments feeds will continue to exist for those who are not Independent Premium subscribers Due to the size of this comment community, we are not able to rate every post to the same level of ‘attention, but we have preserved this space in the interest of an open debate Please continue to respect all commentators and create constructive debates
Want to bookmark your favorite articles and stories to read or review later? Start your independent Premium subscription today
The Bridge
World News – UK – Channel 4’s The Bridge casts too many affable youngsters for a truly captivating dynamic – review
