The Rebel Billionaire: Episode 1
Mind Your Manners and Conquer Your Fears
By Eleanor Meilinger
November 10, 2004
The lead in to the show sets the pace for the entire series - frantic, frenetic and just a bit confusing.
We are introduced to Sir Richard Branson, who went from high school dropout to one of the richest men in the world, and told that conquering the business world was not enough for him. He has lived his life pursuing death-defying adventures and breaking records in many extreme challenges. He informs us that he is on a quest for a billionaire in the rough.
The voiceover tells us that the sixteen contestants will be competing for a million dollars and what they think is a job with one of Branson's companies, but in the end Branson will turn over HIS job as president of The Virgin Group, over 360 companies worth "tens of billions of dollars".
Before Virgin stock plummets, let's clarify that Branson has made it clear in recent interviews that he will remain in control and the "job" will be for a couple of months - not a lifetime position. He is certainly not turning over ownership of the companies or any control of the assets.
The "Keys to the kingdom" will grant the winner a chance to prove his or her mettle at the helm of a major conglomerate.
At his estate in Oxford, England, Branson outlines his expectations - he has chosen this group from over 500,000 applicants. Some are book smart and some street smart. He will test them to the limits of their physical and mental abilities. In the end he will settle for nothing short of excellence. He is ultimately hoping to find someone who he deems worthy to run his companies, someone with "…an adventurous spirit, sterling character and a brilliant entrepreneurial mind". Good Luck. The contestants will arrive by taxi to be greeted by two hostesses decked out in the familiar Virgin Airline Uniform. They are a combination of British reserve and stewardess perkiness. Georgia and Frankie will accompany the players on most of their globetrotting.
As we see the contestants being loaded into the cab by what is meant to resemble a typical old London cabdriver, it is obvious that this is Sir Richard in prosthetic makeup. Hard to believe these so-called future entrepreneurs with high IQ's are fooled by the ruse but judging from the way they behave it is obvious that they are. Perhaps the excitement of anticipating the journey they are about to embark on has clouded their vision. This is the first of many flaws and inconsistencies that will occur during these initial programs.
I suppose I should point out early on that even though I found this show extremely entertaining, being so enmeshed in the field of Reality Television has perhaps made me hypercritical. There are a multitude of flaws in the production and editing in this series. The format is very vague and undefined; the explanations of the challenges and the expectations for the performances are even more so; the theme song "Live and Let Die" is a questionable choice and plays in a pounding pace over the credits that, though vivid, are equally hard to follow, moreover, on most reality shows the names of the players are shown during key parts of the action, even after the contestants have become household names and recognizable to almost anyone with a television. I can't imagine why, on this first episode, key scenes were shown without the benefit of these labels, especially considering that there are three longhaired blondes who are hard to distinguish at first, and unless you have been studying the pre-release pictures, the names of the players have only been shown it the whirl-wind opening credits. I was left with many questions after viewing these two episodes (that is what the premiere was - two episodes shown back-to-back for maximum impact) I enjoyed the ride but would have preferred a more organized driver. Speaking of drivers - back to the taxi…
The "cabbie" questions the groups about their destination and thoughts on Branson. Once he has revealed his ruse to his two co-hostesses, Branson explains that the cab ride was a test to see how the applicants would treat a typical, working-class individual and based on his observations, two will be sent packing - literally. I want to avoid constant comparisons to the other shows that this one has copied from; we'll just accept that it is derivative from the get-go and move on. Suffice it to say that though there are many aspects of this series that are directly "borrowed" from its predecessors, there will be enough innovations to insure that it is unique and holds our interest on its own merit.
Frankie and Georgia meet the group up at the mansion where they have settled in and escort them to the welcome party. In what will prove to be words he'll live to regret, we are treated to Spencer's assessment of himself "I'm young, I'm motivated, I'm greedy -and I'm definitely a winner."
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