The view of the Caribbean Sea from the 15-meter-high cliff from which El Conquistador contestants must jump to make their debut on the survival reality show La 1 isn’t exactly your idea of a vacation paradise. The place is dizzying and has claimed no fewer than three victims in this first edition. Two participants from the green team (the Atabey), Perla and Magda, were forced to retire almost immediately due to the injuries they sustained and Mar, the second’s romantic partner, decided not to participate alone, so she also left the competition voluntarily. In just three episodes there were six deaths, in addition to the three expulsions that provided for the mechanics of the program produced by Hostoil (The Mediapro Studio).
The person in charge of the tests that the participants then undergo gives them instructions to prevent them from getting hurt, but neither of them knew how to follow his advice when long jumping into the water, and they ended up in the infirmary.
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Julian Iantzi, who presents the room together with Raquel Sánchez Silva, emphasizes that those who take part in the competition, no matter how extreme it may be, are normal people. “They are street people, some are city dwellers and some are not; there are half men and half women; Some are athletes, others are not… We are all equal. It is not necessary to be a CrossFit mazao. But it is true that people who are mentally strong and whose body also helps them usually win,” he commented this summer during the taping of this first season of TVE in the Dominican Republic, where EL PAÍS along with another group of media The producer and the broadcaster traveled by invitation. Strategy and knowing how to move the pieces well are the key to success in this competition, according to the Basque communicator. “The one who knows how to bring out the animal in him, his inner conqueror, especially when he finds himself in a messed up situation, is the one who wins,” he says. Knowing exactly when to compete as a team and when alone is another key to this competition. Even letting yourself win so that your rivals think you are weak, emphasized Raquel Sánchez Silva, an expert in this type of formats.
Julian Iantzi and Raquel Sánchez Silva, hosts of “El Conquistador,” observe two participants during one of the “Reality” survival tests. Hostoil (The Mediapro Studio)
To differentiate itself from other similar competitions, The Conqueror lasts less time, barely a month, to make the experience more extreme. The reactions of the award contenders, both good and bad, are also more emotional. It was one of the things that most impressed the host, who usually acts as a referee in the participants’ various games. “The first part I did for this program, the tension was so great that at the end I sat down and said to myself, ‘Will I be able to take this?’ My adrenaline was spiraling out of control after screaming at 20 Titans who were wholeheartedly protesting against you. For the first time I had the feeling that the situation was going to pass me by,” he explained in the final days of recording this adventure. “The outdoor setting in the middle of nature, where the wind hits you in the face, is the hardest. But also the one that offers you the most options. Storms, sun and vermin also put the presenter in a helpless position. And that makes you more sensitive to them,” he continued.
Yasel Ochoa “Guyo”, one of the survival program participants, during one of the tests. Hostoil (The Mediapro Studio)
In addition to the initial jump, there are classic tests that are repeated in this new version of the program. The labyrinth and the challenge with a plague of tarantulas, which were already seen in the first broadcast episodes, are two of them. The wildest and most awaited game, the Cannibal Game, will also be featured in La 1. It consists of tearing off parts of a dead animal with your mouth, without cooking it or dismembering it with its raw entrails. The team that manages to collect the most grams will receive immunity and avoid this week’s nomination. In other words: whoever shows the greatest hunger to win comes first.
Patxi Alonso, creator of El Conquistador and its executive producer since it first aired on Basque channel ETB in 2005, celebrates the qualitative leap the format has made with the move to a national broadcaster. “A format like this, born on such a small regional television, is like having a size 46 foot shoe and getting a size 29 shoe. To produce up to 24 episodes from 30 days of survival… the shoe had to be stretched.” . A lot. “I did The Island of the Famous (Antena 3) and I know what the money was spent on, which isn’t ideal either,” he said in June.
The members of the all-female Atabey team.Hostoil (The Mediapro Studio)
The La 1 version will in principle have fewer episodes and take place on Monday evenings, although it will mimic the original reality show structure and feature a weekly debate every Wednesday. Marc Calderó will take over the moderation from September 20th, accompanied by Sánchez Silva himself, who replaced Paula Vázquez at the last minute. The public broadcaster has preferred that the Galician take charge of other projects within its schedule and the choice of her successor was more than obvious: she is the one who lived the experience in Los Haitises National Park with the participants who visit the set and has already taken over the replacement of Vázquez in extreme competition formats such as Pekín Express (Cuatro) and the various VIP editions of Supervivientes (Antena 3 and Telecinco). Both are accompanied by two collaborators who arouse great interest among the young audience: Carlos Peguer and Mariang Maturana, hosts of one of the popular podcasts: La pija y la quinqui. The pair will analyze the program’s impact on social networks.
“The pandemic has been very good for the program. People were bored at home, they started playing around on the Internet and viewers from all over Spain discovered a reality show on Basque television that captivated them. We were a national trending topic on Twitter every Monday and Wednesday without appearing on national television,” says Iantzi, who has presented the format on ETB for almost 20 years.
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