[Lostie!]

So I finally finished series 1 yesterday after starting it just over a year ago My favorites of the series were Miriam, Saira, James and Rachel, but I didn't dislike anyone in the end (least favourite was probably Raj just because he was pretty dull).

Just watched the first ep of series 2. I can tell Syed is gonna be this year's Paul, but with much less personality.

[TomC]

I have decided to re-watch every series of The Apprentice (something which I've not done in about three years) to explore the evolution (capitulation) of the show, and I've chosen TIBB to record (dump) my opinions, and at least with the good series, I'm gonna get a bit Macie-on-Survivor with it.

I've just finished Series 1, and my goodness this season is incredible. It's simply unbeatable in so many ways; it's so raw, the candidates are so likeable and for the most part rootable, and the editing is fantastic, with a number of compelling storylines.

It's kind of a series of three parts. Episodes 1-4 is focused on the girls' team's failure, and Adele vs everyone emerges as a key storyline. The Adele vs everyone storyline remains amazing. There were three girls on the girls team that scuppered the women's ability to work as a cohesive unit, but Adele seemed to be at the epicentre of it, and watching her go from an irritant in Episode 1, to being universally hated, as well as emotionally drained and grieving her grandmother in Episode 4 is compelling. I had it in my head that Sir Alan was a bit harsh to Adele when she quit, but actually, rewatching the series, she deserved it. She was such a disruptive, passive aggressive team member, and the way she spoke to the Harrods Floor staff in Week 4 is the perfect example.

It kind of feels like the series might be over once Miranda and Adele go and only three girls remain, but Week 5 and 6 are both fantastic, and possibly the best of the series yet. Week 5 is just hilarious with Paul and Matthew's (frustrating) distaste for the art, and Raj and Saira's struggle with the artist. Rachel and Sebastian were both strong PMs in Week 5, but what Week 5 is most remembered for is starting Paul and Saira's iconic feud, and this is actually indicative of one of the key overarching storylines of the series - chauvinism, which I will come to. Week 6 is another fantastic episode. Once again, First Forte worked well, with Miriam really emerging as a strong contender, whilst Impact totally fell apart. Paul just totally lost it, and really did deserve to go, with no efforts to manage his subteam, Saira made a fatal flaw with the poster, and was so hilariously rude to Paul saying 'that won't win you a medal' when SHE WAS THE ONE WHO WAS IN CHARGE OF IT (gotta love Saira x), Rachel is just hilariously bad, and as per, Raj is just there, and we actually see an ounce of personality from him this episode, when he laughs at Paul's ardvark joke. Honestly, seeing Rachel go was terrible because she had so much potential. This episode was bad for both Saira and Paul, but I really felt for Saira when she broke down in the boardroom.

Episodes 7-10 is the kind of final 'segment' of the series. Once again, the series is kind of reborn, as Paul and Saira are separated. What I love about the teams is how they're divided. Impact is basically the reformed former FF, just with Paul now, and what we see on this side is a group of attractive, charming people, the males within which are totally startstruck but Miriam's flirtatious beauty, and on the other side, we have misfits James, Raj and Saira. Week 7's not all that exciting (definitely one of the weakest of Series 1), but Week 8 is fantastic due to the wheels falling off on Impact. Oh my goodness, that boardroom makes me hate Paul so much. The amount of aggression he shows towards Miriam is staggering, but it was great to see Ben go, because he was just such an absent leader, and I also like it because it kind of challenges the chauvinistic tones of the series; somehow Miriam was last to be picked in the team reshuffle, and people are fully expecting her to go, and it seems it's only about this point in the series that they realise there are in fact two female contenders to win. Episode 9 is an all-time great episode for the Apprentice, mainly for the First Forte team. We just see the absolute breakdown of Saira and Raj, Saira in particular, and it seems as though they've just given up. Honestly, you really feel for Saira at this point in the series, and I feel like the edit doesn't allow us to feel this kind of empathy for contestants anymore. Episode 10 is just a glorious hot-mess episode for the Apprentice, and the Wolf Jacket Saga is honestly one of my favourite moments of all time.

The finale is the last individual part of the series I'd like to address. The main thing I have to say is that it was ****ing fantastic to have the Paul/Saira rivalry rebooted, with her in charge of him. His rant at her back at the house was vile and aggressive though, and cemented him as my least favourite candidate of the series. What I love about this scene though, is that we just don't see candidate character moments in the house anymore. This is something I really love from the first few series.

Finally, I'll address the defining overarching storyline of Series 1. Chauvinism....misogyny....sexism.... call it what you will, this was one of the most important parts of Series 1. I honestly feel it was mainly Paul, who propagated, and was so open with, his chauvinism among the boy's team, and it kind of set a precedent for feelings about gender in the competition for the whole series. It's a shame that the girls team lost the first two tasks, and then Miranda and Adele went next, but it was all about the personalities of a few of the girls. It's just so disgusting that Paul says 'put a woman in a position of power, and she becomes Adolf flaming Hitler' when he's led by a woman for the first time: Rachel, probably one of the most placid candidates of the series. By the time Week 7 comes, there are two women and six men left, and discounting Saira, who is picking teams, every man is picked before a woman. Despite Miriam being a strong candidate, and winning as PM in Week 6, the faith in a woman is so low that someone like Raj is picked before her. This makes it all the more frustrating that when in Week 10, despite Miriam having been accepted as a very able candidate, she is fired over Paul, in the very same episode as Paul declaring they'll witness 'Miriam Hitler' if she becomes PM. However, I do feel as though some sense of justice is brought about in the final two episodes when Paul is fired against his arch-enemy Saira (a woman!), and comes back to work for her the next episode.

I always just find it so fascinating though how the annihilation of the girls in the first few weeks, and the feelings of mysogyny in this series interacted; what came first?

As I said though, Series 1 is an A+ series, it's so raw, the editing is fantastic, it's unscripted, the cast is so real, so brilliant, and you just find it so easy to empathise with these candidates and what they're going through, making it an utter joy to get through each time.

Who would I hire?
Miriam
Tim
James
Saira
Rachel
Ben
Sebastian
Miranda
Lindsay
Adenike
Adele
Paul
Raj
Matthew

Who is my favourite?
Saira
Miriam
James
Rachel
Tim
Miranda
Adele
Ben
Sebastian
Adenike
Lindsay
Raj
Matthew
Paul

Adenike and Lindsay are interesting ones. We will never see candidates like them again. Such normal people. I would have liked to have seen more of them. Honestly Adenike (RIP) I feel as though we barely saw at all, and SA did later say he wasn't informed enough to make a decision on this one. Lindsay was such an idiot in Episode 2. Deserved to go.
Miranda is a goddess tbh. I never really appreciated her before, but the way she argued with people like Adele just made me lowkey cackle. She really shouldn't have been fired Week 3. It wasn't her fault she was made PA.
Need I say anything about Adele I haven't already? In this show, she's a mess. She's a whiny nuisance in Weeks 1 and 2, mainly towards Saira and Lindsay, but in Week 3, in the absence of those two women, she kindly moves onto Miranda. Honestly the way she treats her team is hilariously bad. Her performance in Week 4 is sad, but very entertaining.
Matthew's pretty awful tbh. So annoying. He did throw away some comments about how bad the women's team were, and yet he was hands down the worst candidate of the season. So disruptive, and had no stellar moments.
Rachel is a bit of travesty. She was really quite UTR from Weeks 1-4, but she really shone in Week 5 with her leadership. SHe was very diplomatic, and organised her team well, by putting Matthew away from the buyers for example. Week 6 was a bit of a disaster for her, but she still should have survived over Paul. She's just a bit loopy, and that's why I love Rachel. Another candidate who'll never be replicated.
Sebastian is was more beautiful than I ever realised. I like Sebastian because he's just a calm influence. The edit doesn't show us much of him, business-wise, but I feel he did well as PM in Week 5.
I appreciated Ben this time more than I ever have done. Yes he's a miserable, for the most part boring, corporate robot, but he, like Sebastian is a nice guy, and he actually does have a good dry sense of humour which we see from time to time. As I said, he was a very absent leader in Weeks 7 and 8, and so it was about time for him to go.
Raj is just there.
I feel as though I've largely covered Miriam. It kind of disgusts me how underestimated she was at times throughout the series - Saira patronisingly telling her 'WELL DONE KIDDO!' when she returned from the boardroom in Week 8 springs to mind. Honestly, she's exactly the type of person you'd want to employ, and she was such a level-headed, professional person throughout the series, and I doubt there is another firing which is more genuinely unjustified.
James is ****ing hilarious. Such a great guy, and a wonderful candidate. Another one-off, who I love.
Paul, on the other hand is ****ing TERRIBLE. He has such an amazing arc, from being a stellar salesman with a shining personality in Week 1, to an absolutely abhorrent, rude, sexist, arrogant indiviudal in the second half. The interviewers read him totally right. He absolutely felt he was too good for the process.
Saira is an all-time great candidate. Although annoying at times (Episode 6 springs to mind), and perhaps a bit morally skewed (like when she lied about shaking Paul's hand), she is such an emotionally investable character, and she really shines through on some episodes. She has an amazing moment when she's managing Paul, and arguing with him over his sales technique in the final, and exasperated, she says 'you've got to base your technique on results...did you sell anything in there?.' Saira is an all-time great character. That's not to say she deserved to win over Tim, but we will never get another Saira Khan, and I have never loved her more than in this re-watch.
Tim is a great first winner. Whilst he isn't as interesting a character as Saira, he deserved it. He's a fully nice guy, who'd be easy to work with, kept a level head throughout the process, and even though he had a couple of issues (like when he was being ridiculous with Paul in Week 10), he was overall one of the strongest candidates, due to how he conducted himself in almost every role. He also seemed to be friends with almost everyone, and so I'd much rather he beat Saira than someone like Paul.

[TomC]

Well I never thought I'd write so much about one series.

[TomC]

Series 2
Series 2 is a bit of a strange one. It has plenty of great characters and moments, but there's something more...lowkey about it than series 1. I think it's simply due to the fact there's no one really to root for. I LOVE Ruth and Paul for example as characters, but they're not truly likeable, rootable characters. Also, in the second half of the series, we witness a dud run of episodes, due to the tasks simply not being very exciting and not much happening. Series 2 is still a great series, but there's something less colourful (?) about it than Series 1. Possibly, it's more objectively entertaining, but I simply can't empathise with the candidates in Series 2 as much as I could in Series 1. It does show a kind of growth of the show though.

Weeks 1-4 are an iconic run of episodes. The series really comes in with bang in Week 1 with an explosion of new colourful characters such as Jo, Ruth and Paul, and the hilarity of the girls using Sex to Sell as a tactic, and then degrading themselves even further by stocking shop with substandard produce, culminating in a candidate breaking down in the boardroom is immensely entertaining. Then, the girls team having to discuss a strategy of convincing Sir Alan they should win is just such an unprecedented, spontaneous moment that we wouldn't see nowadays. Week 2 is a CARCRASH. Jo takes us to whole new levels of loopy, whilst seeing two men on the show breakdown on the boys side is something I don't think we've ever seen, and Tuan, Samuel and Mani being overruled by Ansell, Syed and Paul is a sorry state of affairs. Nargis' cat pitch as well is an iconic moment, and I really love Nargis as a character <3 Week 3 is another carcrash, but mainly for the girls. The Jo Saga continues with her erratic management, and Michelle, Ruth and Sharon losing patience with her is fun to watch. It's a shame Karen goes this episode, as I really feel she had a lot of potential. And of course, it goes without saying that Week 4 is one hell of an episode. Mani is an immensely entertaining character, and I used to feel sorry for Sharon but she's actually ****ing annoying so seeing her bring her back to earth was great Alexa's team is just awful, and the anger of Alan in the boardroom at the Ł800 loss is so intense, like you could tell he really took the show seriously, and his firing of Alexa is so jaw-droppingly brutal.

Weeks 1-4 is a very intense, colourful run of episodes on a scale we didn't really see in Series 1, and unfortunately it certainly wasn't replicated for the rest of Series 2. It's about this point in the series that you realise how poor the caliber of the contestants is, and in reality, there's no one to root for. There's no James Max, no Saira Khan, no Tim, no Miriam. We have Ruth, but she's cocky albeit entertaining. Week 5 is a decent episode. In fact, it's not much worse than Weeks 1-4 at all, and Invicta's ad replicating masturbation still cracks me up. Week 6 as a task is boring, although the interaction of the team with the guy who runs the car lot is very entertaining, and something which is sorely missed in the current period of TA - dickish outside influences really make it all the more entertaining. It's a real shame that Jo goes in this episode, but her going out in one of the least dignified fashions of all time is so fitting <3

The argument on the reward we saw in Week 6 was a bit of a forbearer to what was to come, on Invicta, made up of Paul, Syed, Tuan and Sharon. But unfortunately, NONE of them are really likeable. I love Paul as a bit of a prick of a character, Syed is just really kind of annoying as a human, Sharon is a bit of a dick, and Tuan is such a nonentity, and so the drama that unfolds on this team from Week 6-8 really isn't as great as it sounds, and apart from Paul, none of them have a great deal of credibility in the process anyway. On the other side, things are far worse. Ruth continues to be a selling machine, and a great character, and Michelle is just there with Ansell, and Samuel kind of sucks.

Week 9 is really not great. The Final Six is just TERRIBLE! Ruth and Paul are the only good candidates (although Michelle starts to come thru at this point). Tuan and Ansell are SO boring, and Syed is really kind of annoying at this point. Week 10 is a good task, but again nothing of note seems to happen.

Week 12, is a classic early Apprentice finale. Candidates come back and clash and it's great <3 Michelle winning is kind of poetic, with her overcoming Syed, and the drama on that team was pretty great, cos we could champion Michelle, in the same way we could Saira over Paul in the S1 finale.

Who would I hire?
Ruth
Michelle
Paul
Ansell
Karen
Sharon
Mani
Nargis
Ben
Samuel
Tuan
Syed
Alexa
Jo

Who do I like?
Ruth
Paul
Jo
Michelle
Karen
Nargis
Syed
Alexa
Sharon
Ansell
Ben
Tuan
Mani
Samuel

Ben Meh. I feel sorry for him going first cos he didn't do much wrong, but he was never gonna go far with SA.
Nargis This woman is so underrated! She has so many lowkey funny moments in Week 1 and then turns into this stressed out robot in Week 2 who fails so dramatically
Karen She managed well in Week 1, was a very likeable character, and was literally scapegoated by SA to keep entertaining Jo in.
Alexa Although she was responsible for one of the biggest **** ups ever, she's a bit meh. She was so UTR for most of the time, and a bit of a wet blanket.
Mani He's a total cock, but he's an entertaining candidate. I do feel his nouse was a bit overlooked, but he was a prick.
Jo Absolutely insane, and lucky to last as long as she did.
Samuel Soooo boring. He was a bit of a wanker in Week 4, and he just did nothing.
Sharon Sharon really didn't prove herself as a candidate. She was a flat-out irritant in Week 3 and 4, flopped Week 5, flopped Week 6, and went in the huff in Weeks 7 and 8. Syed telling her she would be great in Disneyland
Tuan Like Samuel, I've no idea how this guy got on the show. Boring, and a bad candidate
Syed A loveable douche. Like he's so deluded, and has no view for his own faults, but he's an all-time memorable character. His arguments with SA
Paul He was a pretty decent candidate... Probably in the Top 3 most well-rounded. He's also just SO funny and I never really appreciated it. Like him muttering 'cock' as Syed walks off is just the kind of Paul moment I love.
Ansell Another boring male sales-bot.
Ruth She's a hilarious character, and a great candidate, but I find her really hard to root for. I think it's cos she's got not sense of humility.
Michelle She's kinda similar to Miriam, in that she just got on with the job, with no major blunders, but Michelle doesn't really have any shining skills. I like Michelle, but she's really not that entertaining either. You know there's an issue when your favourite moment from a candidate is them belligerently saying 'what' to Sir Alan when he addresses them. Scratch that, her 'YOU LIVE IN ****ING DISNEYLAND' rant is my favourite moment from her. Oh, and her drinking 2 bottles of champagne during her first run as PM. Yeah, she's alright.

But yeah, basically Series 2 is a chaotic, quickburner, in the first few episodes, that really runs out of steam far too quickly due to the candidates that remain. Whilst a few such as Ruth and Paul really are excellent candidates, they're too polarising to really root for. The rest are either horrible humans or horrendously dull; and almost all are lackluster candidates.

[TomC]

Series 3

Series 3 is an amazing series for storylines, and big characters. Some of the unfolding plots and recurring themes are truly gripping. I can't help but feel Series 3 suffers on a re-watch though especially when I've re-watched these seasons so many times. Kristina outing Katie and Paul's romance, Simon twiddling his cock and Katie quitting may have been truly earthshattering moments back in 2007, but they aren't much fun when you've seen them about five times. Series 3 is a great series, and sustains itself much better than Series 2, but I can't help but also feel it lacks likeable characters, and the standard of candidates isn't really up to stratch. But yeah, something about Series 3 makes me kinda indifferent to it these days, even though in theory it's a top-tier series, and it must just be the kinda series you get bored of.

It starts with a great opener. The PM swap twist is so interesting, Andy is such a ****, weak PM, Jadine's clashes with Tre are hilarious etc. One thing I noticed is that a lot of the cast had next to no airtime; Ifti, Ghazal, Naomi, Lohit and others simply weren't present. I think this episode was kinda dedicated to showing what the show is all about to the new BBC One viewership, as well as showcasing big characters like Jadine and Tre to keep people hooked.

Week 2 is another kind of standalone chaotically good episode. This is where Katie emerges as a strong, levelheaded PM if being slightly intimidating. Whilst on the boys' team we have ****ing madman Rory who is just a total prick, and Tre continues to show no respect for the leader this week. Week 2 is a great episode, and another kind of explosion to start the season with. Again though, this would have been amazing in 2007 but I AM YOUR BOSS doesn't do much for me anymore.

Week 3 is where the big storyline of Katie emerges. In one episode we see a kind of metamorphosis of storylines, with Tre clashing with yet more colleagues (Katie and Paul), and the limelight shifts to Katie, and her feud with Adam. Katie and Paul were a bloody nightmare on this task and it's kinda infuriating to watch. The girls on the other hand are a carcrash with Naomi's leadership, and Jadine being vocal. Jadine kinda got a rough deal this week, she really wasn't that bad and got pretty lambasted. Kissograms is tragic. Like this is the kind of thing the viewers would complain about nowadays.

Weeks 4 and 5 are kinda similar. Neither task in themselves is particularly fun, and Stealth are kinda obscure; it's all about Eclipse, and how people are gradually ganging up on Adam. Honestly, I feel there was some real classist snobbery going on here, between Simon saying 'never approach anyone in a cheap suit' and Katie saying 'I want Adam run over' it kinda leaves a sour taste.

Week 6 is obviously a corker of an episode, and I don't feel I need to say much. It's great poetic justice seeing Katie and Paul getting their episode.

Week 7 is a kinda dull task, but the half-hour boardroom (probably the longest ever? idk) is bloody ICONIC, with Kristina's expose getting exposed, and Katie's relentless rampage against Adam. Week 8 is the point where the whole Katie storyline comes to an end, with Ghazal going - I do really love Ghazal this episode, she's just a hot mess.

Weeks 9 and 10 are okay episodes. Both have very memorable moments in Jadine's breakdown and Simon's trampoline incident. Honestly it was so sad to see Jadine suffer so badly emotionally, and I legit cried when she broke down when SA said 'go home and see your daughter'.

Week 11 is pretty good as far as interview episodes go, but it kind of becomes clear how unemployable this group is? Lohit has been to UTR, Tre is ****ing loose cannon, Simon is just a bit weak, Kristina's a bit old for SA, and Katie's just Katie. The biggest thing I took from this episode is that PAUL KEMSLEY IS A C U N T. Katie quitting is obviously an iconic moment, but a Katie vs Kristina final would have been iconic.

Week 12 is the last of the 'iconic finales' IMO, whereby old candidates come back and reignite their feuds. Rory was honestly even worse this episode than he was in Week 2. It was a great culmination of the feud between him and Tre though.

But yeah, Series 3 is kind of overrated. Bar the iconic moments and storylines, it's all a bit lackluster, and the characters are kind of.... appalling? And the standard is just as bad as Series 2.

Below you will see nobody gets green, everyone is stuck in 'teal' or worse, because I simply don't like ANY of them that much.

Who do I like?
Kristina
Jadine
Katie
Lohit
Tre
Ghazal
Simon
Naomi
Sophie
Adam
Gerri
Andy
Natalie
Paul
Ifti
Rory

Who would I hire?
Kristina
Katie
Simon
Lohit
Jadine
Naomi
Tre
Ghazal
Paul
Adam
Gerri
Rory
Ifti
Sophie
Andy
Natalie

Andy is a wet blanket. Sucky candidate too.
Ifti, you're a loser. You weren't gonna win it mate.
Rory you're an even bigger loser. Go home and don't come back.
Gerri I like your laugh.
Sophie was really sweet, but just had no place in the process tbh.
Natalie really sucks. I never noticed how bad she was before, but she's such an inept candidate, and with Katie and Simon, and Paul in the final as well, with regards to Adam, she's just that thick-as-f girl at school who thought she was being clever and funny when the cool kids smiled at her when she said one of her dumb-ass things.
Paul sucks too. His whole thing with Katie in Week 3 was pathetic, and how he conducted the taask in Week 6 was just awful.
Adam is a bad candidate, but he's a nice guy and I felt sorry for him.
Ghazal was a bit of a non-entity. Certainly no strong contender, but her YES OR NO rampage against Naomi in her exiting boardroom was pretty neat.
Jadine I do love. I actually feel she was a really strong candidate who led well on the tasks she run, and she's just the kinda savvy chick you'd want in your Amstrad! I wasn't joking when I said I cried when she was fired.
Naomi I like, but she has no standout moments as a candidate or character.
Lohit is such a sweet boy. Like I really willed for him to do well, but Siralan was never going to hire Lohit. He was just a calming force in this crazy season.
Tre is Tre.
Katie is Katie. I stilllll can't decide if I like her. She's an absolutely compelling character, but even back in 2007 it feels contrived, and her pride in 'stealing a husband' disgusts me. Her lines that made me CACKLE though are 'my ideal scenario would be Kristina to be fired. Although perhaps more in a physical than boardroom scenario' and 'we were due to get some bloke called Derek. And I was very dubious about the credentials, from an R&B/Soul perspective of anyone that's been named Derek at birth'.
Kristina I have no doubt in my mind is the strongest candidate of this season. I just didn't really have an urge for her to win. Behind her Irish charm, she's just not warm enough.
Simon is a bit of a naff winner. Pretty spineless and annoying (snobby) the whole season. He did pull it out of the bag in Week 12 with his management and pitch though I guess. Kristina was robbed though.

On to Series 4, a personal favourite of mine!

[TomC]

Series 4
This series is a ****show and I love it SO much. Every single episode is wall-to-wall entertaining, the characters are so loveable and hateable in such an intense way, and yes, there may have been a lack of rootable candidates, and the firings of Raef and Lucinda at the time for example may have been crippling, but this series is relentless entertainment, and moments such as Marrakech are utter gold.

It is clear from the moment Week 1 starts that this is a more...em...colourful cast than possibly ever with nutters like Michael, Nicholas and Sara yelling at us. Week 1 is a good episode, the male class divide is really interesting. It kind of sets up some stories early, like how nasty this series is gonna be. Weasel Alex appears for the first time here. Week 2 is a classic. The laundry task in itself is intriguing, but moments such as Raef, Michael and Kevin idly ordering coffee as their team slave away in the launderette, and Lindi and Jennifer with their 24 hour hotline are just classic. Of course, the nastiness progresses this episode with Jenny viciously attacking Lucinda. This moment was mindblowing, and the lack of sympathy from Jennifer for example just shows how cold most of Series 4's cast was. Of course the boardroom too is iconic with HarshButFairHelene surfacing for the first time, and the wheels totally coming off the girls's team, and Jenny C claiming she's had to breastfeed the girls. The girls honestly excelled under Sara in Week 3 though, like seriously, that is one of the strongest pre-team-swap performances I can remember, and this is where Rottweiler Claire appears for the first time The guys are another story however, like Ian was so ****, and him going was the right decision. It's interesting how the guys unified in Week 2, but fractured in a totally different way to Week 1 in Week 3.

Week 4 is more ground-breaking television! While the task itself isn't as interesting as last time, the Lucinda vs Helene argument is bloody iconic. "DO NOT SPEAK TO ME LIKE THAT. How dare yoU?!" And then half an hour later Lucinda starts being passive aggressive to Helene The other team is great too, but the disintegration of Simon is kinda sad to watch. He utterly fell apart, and Claire was a total dickhead this episode, Alex was more weasely and Jenny C completed the evil threesome. Claire getting a dressing down is a great moment.

Week 5 is great as it's a turning point for two major characters, Lucinda and Claire, whilst some less savoury characters start to fall apart. Claire manages her team so well. As does Lucinda. It was amazing to see Lindi and Jennifer who basically looked down on Lucinda as a manager **** up so hard and get their comeuppance in the boardroom. Lucinda vs Helene round 2 is also iconic. "If I was gonna have a problem workin' with anyone it would of been you!"(with bulging eyes) is an iconic quote. Jennifer M really shows herself as being pretty nasty this week, like where did calling Lucinda a 'liar and chat' come from? Also Lucinda's '"the probability is one in three" line makes me cackle.

Week 6 is all in all pretty historic, but it doesn't come clear why until approximately the fifty seventh minute of the episode. I rate Michael as a PM, and his screaming in the boardroom is a howl - this is where he really emerges as a messy character. On Renaissance however, Kevin is just terrible. Like the whole pitch and planning for it were diabolical. Jenny C is a ****ing nutter this episode, like her orgasming at the photos they were taking, and her satanic grin in the pitch. Of course, she turns into a right vicious cow against Sara, and it was sweet when SA defended her <3 Honestly though, the attack against Sara was awful at the house, and really cements Raef as a hero, and Alex, Jenny and Lee as pretty awful. Helene and Jennifer M were enabling it too. It's also jawdropping viewing though.

Week 7 is great and we all know why. It's basically Heroes vs Villains. Lee is a pretty good PM and it's wonderful to see Lucinda and Sara flourish under him <3 Renaissance however is a carcrash, and it's wonderful to see Alex and Michael get a telling off, and Jenny C and Jennifer M finally getting what's been coming around. It's literally the perfect culmination of the bubbling under storylines of the first seven weeks

Lucinda excels again in Week 8 which is lovely to see, and Lee and Claire do really well too on sales, and the real contenders begin to emerge. I actually think Helene's an okay manager but she did make a mistake on the choice. SHe's just so personable, and a good saleswoman. It really sucks that Sara went, like there was reason to go, but Michael's sales were worse, and he had all that drama in Week 7 so it did kinda suck.

Week 9 is pretty brilliant. Raef and Michael going all Scorsese is fab, whilst Lucinda going mental against Alex is great <3 I kinda went back off Lee again here as he sided with Alex over Lucinda. Alex as usual was just there even though he was PM. Raef being fired is pretty terrible. Like he wasn't a good PM, but once again MICHAEL WAS THERE. Michael had three dire weeks on the trot and it doesn't make sense. I bloody love Raef, and I imagine if I'd been watching this in 2008, I'd have been devastaed.

Week 10: Justice at Last. Unless you're Lucinda. I felt so bad for Lucinda, Lee and Alex had basically begun to disregard her feelings, and to add insult to injury, SA wasn't nice to her in the boardroom Claire and Helene both did well this week, and it was sweet (as much as he's a great character) to see Michael go at last. He really had faded to nothing.

The interviews are crazy. Like of course, if it was on likeability, Lucinda would be in the final 2. But the thing is, all five have so many positives, but even more negatives, making it all the more bizarre that four stay, and CRIPPLING that the one that goes is Lucinda. Alex did perform badly in the interviews though, but I also feel like Helene was only let through because SA liked Alex, Claire and Lee equally. In reality, Lucinda was never going to be hired, and her being outed as 'not wanting the job' in the boardroom is another jawdropping moment.

I had it in my head that only the first three series had stunning finales, but Series 4's is pretty damn good. I mean, the finalists are really bizarre, like Helene as much as I love the chick didn't shine in any way, Alex sucks, and Lee and Claire both have vast negatives as well as positives. Seeing Alex being lumbered with, and schooled by Helene is pretty sweet though, and him crying in the car home after his treatment of Nicholas, Simon and Lucinda is very justified. The finale just honestly feels so emotionally charged though, like Renaissance is kinda anger, whereas Alpha is more emotion that it's over. I bloody love Claire, and it's a shame she didn't win, but Lee (besides the Sara incident) does seem like an okay person, and did well in the process compared to Alex and Helene, without the risk Claire possessed.

But yeah, Series 4 is just a series you can get hooked on over and over again. It may not have been that fun to watch Raef and Lucinda getting fired in 2008, but the series is just compelling. It has panto villains, despisable characters, loveable underdogs, and candidates who blossom. I love Lucinda, Raef, Sara, Claire and Helene a lot <3

Who would I hire?
Lucinda
Claire
Lee
Sara
Helene
Raef
Alex
Jenny C
Michael
Jennifer Maguire
Shazia
Simon
Ian
Kevin
Nicholas
Lindi

Who do I like?
Lucinda
Raef
Claire
Helene
Sara
Michael
Simon
Lee
Shazia
Lindi
Jennifer Maguire
Ian
Kevin
Nicholas
Jenny C
Alex

I can't decide if I prefer Series 1 or 4. Like Series 1 is wholly more satisfying in terms of likeable people winning out, but Series 4 provides entertainment on a level no other series bar maybe Series 9 does. Maybe I just need to let the dust settle.

[GoldHeart]

I finished watching Series 1 & 2 .

I was happy with the winner in series 1 Tim was a nice guy .But the wrong person was runner up , i found Saira to be too overbearing and condescending . Raj was very boring , Adele was miserable and had a bad attitude, Matthew was pompous and sort of inadequate and rude . But most of the other candidates i liked and didn't mind .

I actually found Paul more bearable and funny and couldn't understand why Sugar would keep him for so long but then get rid of him at the last hurdle yet keep Saira makes no sense to me when both had confrontational personalities .


Series 2 had a boring winner imo Michelle just didn't stand out much but she did have some good skills . and the runner up was good but a bit dominant at times .

Syed was so irritating and too arrogant , Jo was completely crazy . And Sharon was a moaner and a cry baby , Nargis came across as stuck up and rude .

The others i didn't mind from that season , Paul & Ansell were very good aswell .

[reece(:]

I'm currently re-watching Series 6, and am up to episode 4. Edgic'ing as well x

Thoughts so far...

- Alex would totally be in CBB if this aired series aired now
- Melissa is an argumentative MESS who hasn't had a single positive attribute shown in every episode so far, shook she has managed to evade the boardroom
- Dan was car crash, he would've become intolerable if he lasted longer than 1 episode.
- Joy was irrel, glad she got booted because Joanna and Laura are LEGENDS <3 Amazed how Laura escaped the boot in episode 2, she was useless
- MORN Sandeesh popping up here and there to get dragged or fight her corner <3
- I LOVE Chris, I didn't really rate him first time I watched but his wit and sarcasm are godly, as are his eyes
- Stuart (RIP) has been surprisingly UTR since his first episode OTTness.
- Paloma thinks she's so above everyone else and it's hilarious, the way she tore down Shibby in the boardroom was iconic. Paloma Vivanco is such an iconic name
- Christopher and Liz are both invisible so far
- Stella is very corporate, but her personality has shone through on occasion and I'm rooting for her
- Jamie isn't as bad as I thought he'd be for the "lad" contestant

[reece(:]

Sandeesh, Paloma and Laura sub-team in episode 4 is among the all time greats.

[GoldHeart]

Just finished series 3 & 4

Wow so many arrogant idiots !

Series 3 I disliked Katie still and even before her controversial gargoyle troll media frenzy she was still bitchy and she was clearly excluding herself from the group with one of the contestants she fancied .

Simon was an utter dithering bufoon no idea how he won Sugar clearly had a soft spot for him . He did well in some tasks but not winner material.

jaydene was strong and had potential it's ashame her personal family issues got in the way of her possibly getting to the interview stage .

Tre was an arrogant idiot , Christine was too hard faced and lacked a bit of professional attitude .but she performed ok in some tasks . Most of the others from that series was either forgettable, clueless or lacked the proper business experience.


Series 4

The Winner ( Damn forgot his name) . He performed well and he was lucky to avoid the boardroom and he was mostly on the winning team but I still found him to be a cocky pratt but he had good skills.

Alex was honestly like a moody perplexed one , he deliberately slipped under the radar to avoid getting fired, in the end he did good but he just always had that vibe where he was always posing and trying to look handsome as he moans about stuff I think his young age showed through .


Claire was so overbearing and loud and irritating , she should of been fired from the 4th week !. , and she disrespected her own team mates and interrupted them .


Raef was a decent guy , he was misunderstood . He came across pompous but he's just an articulate very posh educated guy and he was entertaining to watch , he seemed more of a gentleman than most .

Michael was a slimeball and sucked up to sugar to the point where it was cringy .

Helene was forgettable no idea how she lasted , and she was hard faced and snappy at times .

Lucinda wasn't very co-operative and behaved helplessly at times . She was quirky and a bit ditzy but she clearly was a good PM .


The other candidates were either to nice, out of their depth and messed up badly.

[GoldHeart]

Originally Posted by reece(:

I'm currently re-watching Series 6, and am up to episode 4. Edgic'ing as well x

Thoughts so far...

- Alex would totally be in CBB if this aired series aired now
- Melissa is an argumentative MESS who hasn't had a single positive attribute shown in every episode so far, shook she has managed to evade the boardroom
- Dan was car crash, he would've become intolerable if he lasted longer than 1 episode.
- Joy was irrel, glad she got booted because Joanna and Laura are LEGENDS <3 Amazed how Laura escaped the boot in episode 2, she was useless
- MORN Sandeesh popping up here and there to get dragged or fight her corner <3
- I LOVE Chris, I didn't really rate him first time I watched but his wit and sarcasm are godly, as are his eyes
- Stuart (RIP) has been surprisingly UTR since his first episode OTTness.
- Paloma thinks she's so above everyone else and it's hilarious, the way she tore down Shibby in the boardroom was iconic. Paloma Vivanco is such an iconic name
- Christopher and Liz are both invisible so far
- Stella is very corporate, but her personality has shone through on occasion and I'm rooting for her
- Jamie isn't as bad as I thought he'd be for the "lad" contestant

How did you get access to series 6??? , i can't find it anywhere .
It's annoying how i can't find it atall ,and youtube blocks everything on copyright rubbish claims .

[reece(:]

Originally Posted by GoldHeart

How did you get access to series 6??? , i can't find it anywhere .
It's annoying how i can't find it atall ,and youtube blocks everything on copyright rubbish claims .

Some episodes are on dailymotion, and the others I've torrented

[Oaker]

TA6 has my second favourite female cast after TA9 tbh <3333

the only flop was Joy (and somewhat Liz), the others were all AMAZING

[reece(:]

Paloma, Laura, Joanna, Sandeesh, Stella, Melissa all ICONS

[Lostie!]

Stella and Paloma (I don't feel like I should like Paloma but I really did)

[GoldHeart]

Originally Posted by reece(:

Some episodes are on dailymotion, and the others I've torrented

Daily motion is rubbish it only has some in parts instead of full videos . Damn I don't want to have to download them .

[reece(:]

Originally Posted by GoldHeart

Daily motion is rubbish it only has some in parts instead of full videos . Damn I don't want to have to download them .

It has full episodes

[GoldHeart]

Originally Posted by reece(:

It has full episodes

Yeah but i could only find that first episode of series 6 , where's all the others ?? . For some reason most websites have most of the series except for series 6 which is strange .

[reece(:]

Originally Posted by GoldHeart

Yeah but i could only find that first episode of series 6 , where's all the others ?? . For some reason most websites have most of the series except for series 6 which is strange .

There's some more of 6 on that person's channel

[GoldHeart]

Originally Posted by reece(:

There's some more of 6 on that person's channel

I can only see episode 1, 3 & 5 .
I wish there was a reliable website which had every episode .

[TomC]

Series 5:

A heavily character-driven series with some very strong candidates.

I always get to the end of Episode 3 wondering what all the fuss is about. There are no great storylines/drama, although Yasmina does do really well as PM in Week 2.

It's Week 4-7 that really make Series 5 though. Honestly it's just a massive car-crash with Lorraine at the centre Week 5 is actually a fab episode, and Philip's downfall is just amazing.

It does get a wee bit dull Weeks 8-10 I'd say.

Who do I like?
Lorraine
Yasmina
James
Kate
Kimberly
Paula
Debra
Mona
Howard
Ben
Anita
Majid
Noorul
Rocky
Phillip

Who would I hire?
Yasmina
Kate
Howard
Debra
Lorraine
James
Paula
Ben
Mona
Kimberly
Majid
Rocky
Anita
Phillip
Noorul

Anita: Ehh I wish she'd survived longer.
Rocky: Don't like him. Incompetent and seemed a bit of a nob.
Majid: Who?
Paula: Lovely lady, just a shame she ****ed up so bad Week 4. Was unforgivable really.
Kimberly: I love Krazy Kim. Her boardroom meltdown Week 5 is iconic.
Noorul: Genuinely one of the worst candidates of all time. His performance in the Week 6 boardroom kinda makes me cringe, cos he'd performed sooo weakly, and was clearly just there cos he was a fan.
Phillip: One of the greatest downfalls of all time. Likeable, and quite strong from Weeks 1 to 3, but Lorraine ends him up to his demise in Week 7.
Mona: She was just kinda there tbh.
Ben: Such an entertaining dickhead.
Howard: Howard's pretty bland, but he performed really well, and shouldn't have gone Week 10 tbqh.
James: Great guy, but had to go first in Week 11.
Lorraine: 'She's got some issues that woman'. ****ing love Lorraine. Some of her best moments are 'I think Phillips behaving like a complete dick'ed', her telling her team that their criticisms 'actually aren't very nice', and her randomly yelling at Yas in Week 8 - a very underrated argument. Oh, and she ended Phillip.
Debra: Great villain.
Kate: Underrated character, and fantastic task performer.
Yasmina: Deffo an all-time great. Fantastic performer, and has so many great moments. She's just so down-to-earth, fun and watchable.

[TomC]

Melissa shaking ha head in the week 2 boardroom as the girls argue and are berated by LS as if she wasn't on the task always makes me howl

[TomC]

Originally Posted by reece(:

I'm currently re-watching Series 6, and am up to episode 4. Edgic'ing as well x

Thoughts so far...

- Alex would totally be in CBB if this aired series aired now
- Melissa is an argumentative MESS who hasn't had a single positive attribute shown in every episode so far, shook she has managed to evade the boardroom
- Dan was car crash, he would've become intolerable if he lasted longer than 1 episode.
- Joy was irrel, glad she got booted because Joanna and Laura are LEGENDS <3 Amazed how Laura escaped the boot in episode 2, she was useless
- MORN Sandeesh popping up here and there to get dragged or fight her corner <3
- I LOVE Chris, I didn't really rate him first time I watched but his wit and sarcasm are godly, as are his eyes
- Stuart (RIP) has been surprisingly UTR since his first episode OTTness.
- Paloma thinks she's so above everyone else and it's hilarious, the way she tore down Shibby in the boardroom was iconic. Paloma Vivanco is such an iconic name
- Christopher and Liz are both invisible so far
- Stella is very corporate, but her personality has shone through on occasion and I'm rooting for her
- Jamie isn't as bad as I thought he'd be for the "lad" contestant

How far are you with Series 6 now? I'm watching it too.

How is Jamie the 'lad' contestant? Some series don't have any lads,w hich is refreshing x

[TomC]

Series 6:

Tbh I've never enjoyed this series more than this re-watch. It's basically Series 5 but with even crazier characters, although the final 4 are a tad less interesting than Series 5's.

Week 1 is a great opener. Like Dan is a great one-episode character, and Stuart really shines here too. Week 2 is a bit of a classic? Laura totally collapsing, Joanna getting 'aggressive', Melissa 'that's just bitchy for nothing'. I mean it's just iconic for the girls falling apart tbh, their product was pathetic. Week 3 is another good one. Week 4 as Reece said is fantastic for the Laura/Sandeesh/Paloma fiasco, and also it's the first time Stella scalps Stuart Mel's exit is iconic too. Week 5 is the first of only two dud episodes, but it's still decent. Week 6 is a bit iconic cos of the two tragic adverts. Alex's WHEN is amazing, and Laura continues to be tragically moany. Week 7 is not as much of a dud as I remembered. Like watching Stu lead for the first time is pretty great, watching Stella and Joanna fume at him. Week 8 is a good one. Week 9 has a really good boardroom, although I went off Stella a bit here?. Week 10 is just a great, really fun task with a fantastic final 6. Liz going was a bit farcical though. Obviously Week 11 is great cos we're left with a really strong final four and then Baggs is torn apart. Week 12 is a kind of lackluster final 2, but Stella is a worthy winner - a strong candidate throughout.

Who do I like?
Joanna
Stella
Alex
Liz
Chris
Paloma
Sandeesh
Jamie
Shibby
Melissa
Raleigh
Laura
Stuart
Joy
Dan
Christopher

Who would I hire?
Stella
Liz
Chris
Jamie
Joanna
Paloma
Sandeesh
Alex
Shibby
Christopher
Joy
Melissa
Laura
Raleigh
Stuart
Dan

So far I think... 1/4 > 6 > 5 > 3 > 2

[GoldHeart]

Originally Posted by reece(:

There's some more of 6 on that person's channel

I've given up as I can't find series 6 anywhere , dailymotion literally has episodes missing so there's no point in me watching it if I'm missing certain episodes .

I don't want to skip to series 7 without finishing series 6, I've literally only seen the first episode of series 6 as I can't find episode 2 which is frustrating .