The camera focused in on a familiar host standing on a wooden, flimsy dock. Chris McLean finished fixing his hair before grinning his charming smile at the audience.
"Yo!" he exclaimed, "and welcome to another exciting instalment in the Total Drama series. We've got ten 'average' American citizens coming for a chance to win fame and the grand prize of one million dollars!"
He paused for dramatic effect.
"However," he continued, "we've made a few changes for this season. For starters…"
The camera zoomed out to show the environment around Chris. The island which was Wawanakwa had somewhat become a tropical paradise, presumably, in the middle of the Caribbean.
"We've moved back to Wawanakwa! Well, sort of anyway... Since the original Wawanakwa had perished during the finale of that every so atrocious season, which I'd prefer to remain undisclosed, we had to relocate to somewhere new. The producers and I came across this place and took it for our own, so welcome to the new and improved Wawanakwa!"
Once again he paused as he raised his hands in the air.
"Anyway, momentarily I will be welcoming the ten new castaways to the island but before all that, let me tell you the basics. Here at Total Drama, we strive to make each and every show the best it can possibly be, but evidently the quality of the most recent ones have slowly deteriorated as the show progressed. So! We decided to contact the folks at CBS to see if they would like to combine Survivor with Total Drama. Which was a success and allowed them to have combined minds to create; Outlast! A new competition reality show where the selected castaways are thrown into the harsh environment of this new Wawanakwa, set somewhere in the Caribbean archipelago." Chris had already lowered his hands during the speech; he took a deep breath as well as another pause for dramatic effect before continuing.
"The contestants must have to battle the harsh and deadly surroundings, home-made camp food and shelter, but most importantly each other. They will have to work within two tribes of five, Saitrionco and Kasa Kasa, whose names were created randomly and have no meaning or purpose whatsoever. Anyway, before I go off on a tangent let me carry on... Within these tribes, the contestants will compete within challenges set every three days in order to win either a reward or immunity, maybe even both, but more importantly to be immune from the vote off. At some point within the game, preferably half way, the tribes will dissolve and the remaining castaways will work individually to win immunity, although will all be a part of the same tribe; Okaterius... The process will then repeat itself up until the finale where the two remaining contestants will battle it out on final time." He then finally gets a chance to breathe, re-adjust himself before continuing once again.
"Now, for this season we made sure we recruited the top contestants to bring drama. Nearly all of them have some form of deceit in them, well that's what I presume and hope for... There'll be lies and secrets; façades and betrayals galore this season. So are you ready for another amazing season of Total Drama? Let's hope so!" Chris says like a giddy child as the theme begins to play.
[Introduction]
"Welcome back to Outlast!" Chris announces as the distant sound of helicopters become increasingly deafening as they get closer and closer to the island. As both of the helicopters land on the beautiful sandy beach of Wawanakwa, Chris continues, "On the left, is all the contestants within the tribe of Saitrionco - their tribe colour is gold. On the right, is all the contestants within the opposing tribe of Kasa Kasa - their tribe colour is green." The helicopters' propellers finally slow down to a halt before the contestants are released individually so that they can receive their allocated introduction.
"And this is..." Chris paused, looking confused, "Wait, who are you? I haven't been given the list of contestants and their introduction order thanks to the producers." He waits impatiently before being handed the list of names from an unseen figure that appeared from the side of the camera. The camera then proceeds to pan towards the female contestant standing eagerly with her luggage in hand.
"Okay, so now I can finally get on with the show..." Chris retorts, "So you are, Esther?" He asks hopefully as if he had got it wrong, she nods her head rapidly in response to his question.
"Yep! It's a pleasure to meet you Mister McLean." She responds politely, even though her response was delivered in a child-like timbre. Esther is shown in a pair of tight, light blue leggings as well as a crop top and a tribal/Aztec design cardigan - she has blonde hair and a very light skin tone, looking as though she has origins from Canada.
"Enough with the pleasantries, let's just get off on the wrong foot to begin with, that way I won't feel bad when I make you participate in such challenges and force you to live like a skank for the next month." Chris replies, still annoyed from being unprepared and seeming unprofessional previously.
"What? I was only trying to be-" Esther was quickly cut off by Chris and pushed to one side, where she stood in silence.
(CONFESSIONAL) Esther: "I mean, I know he was 'evil' on the show, but he didn't have to be that rude to me... I was only trying to be polite and well-mannered; I guess he won't tolerate the ordinary nice type anymore." She sighs before exiting the shack, which was made from bamboo and straw.
A fierce and bitter looking middle-aged woman climbs out of the helicopter and walks towards the green coloured mat that lies astray on the bumpy sand. She is shown wearing full suit attire, complete with a professional briefcase as well as flat shoes, suitable for the occasion. "I have a feeling that I should call you... Viola?" Chris asks, intimidated by her brutish and malicious demeanour. She subsequently nods. Viola also is shown to have black hair and a darker skin tone, earning her heritage from Africa.
"I'm not here to mess about; can we get on with the show? I have a very bad feeling it is going to be a long and dreadful holiday of sorts." Viola asks, having already taken a spot next to Esther on the warm, golden sand.
"What guarantees you that you'll last that long to call it a holiday? With that kind of attitude, I can make a tremendous assumption that you won't likewise." Chris responds with a smirk on his face, she gives him a deadly glare in return before folding her arms and looking in the direction of an abundance of trees, assessing the surroundings. Before Chris can continue, she begins, "Where is our 'shelter'? I'm sure in our contract it said we'd have some form of it, but where is it might I add?"
"Oh, well about that. The shelter will be home-made, meaning you as campers will build your own shelter and pray that it keeps you safe at night from the predators that lurk at night." Chris lets out a menacing laugh which results in Esther's happy-go-lucky expression turning into terror and Viola ultimately rolling her eyes at Chris' ludicrous folly.
(CONFESSIONAL) Viola: "I was told I had to make one of these, as a newly-arrived contestant. So here is my confessional; I have no clue why I signed up for this show at all..." She maintains a deadpan expression as she walks out of the small shack.
A stout, rough looking male in his late teens is the next to arrive to the placed mats. "I'm going to guess... Rupert?" Chris crosses his fingers, possibly only for the attention. The overweight guy smiles, but then quickly changes his expression to a more disgusted utterance as he grunts heavily.
"I don't mean to be rude- Oh wait, of course I do. The reason why I'm being rude is because of you Chris, you disgust me- Wait no, I didn't mean that, sorry. I... um... haven't been in front of a camera before? Yeah that's the reason I'm acting this way, showing off in front of the camera, yeah..." Rupert blurts out; he covers his face with his hands in shame as he walks towards a space next to the two girls. As he walks, he is shown wearing lounge pants and a loose t-shirt with brown hair that has tinges of blonde. Rupert also is of light skin, originating from America.
(CONFESSIONAL) Rupert: "We all have to have one of these? But why? It's not like I have anything to confess, there's nothing wrong with me- I hate you." He says in anguish, before muttering the last bit under his breath from which his expression changed again.
"Hey, are you okay?" Esther begins to blush as she asks the question, causing Viola to once again roll her eyes. Rupert, just stares at her, twitching in the process, resulting in Esther and Viola to back away slowly, without Rupert noticing.
"Wait, I'm fine, what about you?" Rupert responds moments later, only to be blanked by Esther who was focused on the next contestant who had got off the helicopter. Rupert turned around and kicked the sand into the air.
The next contestant to arrive was another male, possibly around the age of twenty-four, good-looking and was built like a tank. He bestowed himself in front of the women, who stared mesmerised by his huge biceps, pectoral muscles and abs. He stood in front of the two girls, a smug grin graced his lips as he continued to show-off and receive worship in the process. All he wears is a pair of extremely inappropriate shorts and a vest that hangs below his chest, exposing his pectoral muscles. He also has blonde hair, which reflects the sun's rays, which causes mesmerisation. Although unheard, he is asks where he's from, to which he replies with America as a whole – no specific reason. Also, due to his accent, he probably has heritage from Australia, other than America.
"Do you even need an introduction?" Chris asks, also mesmerised by his god-like physique. This left Rupert in the blue, who just stood facing the opposite direction - out to sea. Unbeknownst to what was going on.
"I mean, I'll have one if you're offering..." The guy responds, turning his attention from the girls and onto Chris. He prepares himself for his introduction as Chris begins to announce, "Next up we have... Travis!"
"Afternoon ladies." Travis returns his attention to the girls, who were still mesmerised by his body. He winks at them just after finishing his sentence, causing Esther to blush so much it seemed permanent after the minute long staring.
"It's actually the morning but..." Viola begins, however left unable to finish her sentence due to being spellbound on Travis.
(CONFESSIONAL) Travis: "I think this will work to my dominance throughout the game, due to my irresistible and charming beauty as well as my upper hand in challenges due to my physique and strength. It will be easy enough to fool the females, if they're desperate enough..." He leers at the camera before exiting the shack.
"Next up we have... Bradford" Chris announces as an average looking teen walks towards the group of people, all he wears is an average blue v-neck shirt, khaki shorts and a pair of hiking boots. He stops in front of the others, presumably observing the competition – he has black hair, is of Asian descent, but still has blood relatives from America/England.
"You are adorning the height of fashion, am I right?" Travis snickers as the other two girls laughs unrealistically in the background. Bradford glares at Travis, who's only response is to get angry and violent at Bradford who seemingly did nothing.
"You're good, I'm sure you'll last long..." Bradford says sarcastically to Travis, who begins to once again get flustered and bothered about the situation, "Calm down... Anger management problems much?"
"I don't think your dry sense of humour will allow you to last long either..." Viola defends Travis, who went back to his original state, as if his moment of angst and vexation had suddenly disappeared.
Bradford clears his throat, "Whatever." Was his only response before he proceeded to take a spot next to Rupert, who was sat legs-crossed on the sand, still staring out to sea.
(CONFESSIONAL) Bradford: "I'm not going to waste my time with such morons... I have a plan that will surely succeed if no such person will stand in the way of it, I can guarantee that for sure." He folds his arms, and reassures himself that his plan will work. Afterwards, he gets to his feet, from sitting on the rickety home-made stool and walks out of the shack.
"Okay, half-way through... You see, nobody really understands how tedious these are until you've actually been in one and believe me, I've been in plenty." Chris says towards the camera, even though it was transfixed on the five contestants - all oblivious that they were being watched. "Anyway, here is the next contestant... Simone!" He announces, as the camera finally gives way and focuses its attention on the new arrival. The girl that stood in the line of view acquired flawless beauty, from head to toe her appearance screamed perfection. Simone stands, clad in a knotted checked shirt which exposes half of her stomach, as well as short shorts and a pair of Louis Vuitton heels to finish off the look. She has jet black hair, is tan, possibly half cast, with origins from Jamaica, Spain and America.
She looks towards the group, all of the males enthralled in Simone's gaze, "When virtue and modesty enlighten her charms, the lustre of a beautiful woman is brighter than the stars of heaven, and the influence of her power it is in vain to resist." Travis divulged, whilst tensing his muscles, all for Simone's pleasure.
"Did you make that up on the spot, Casanova? As if I'd let you have this. Who do you think I am?" Simone says in disgust as she looks down upon Travis who's managed to fall to his knees in ardour, "I have higher standards than some washed-up old athlete, how old are you? Fifty?" She asks as Travis' jaw drops open, causing him to momentarily scramble back to his feet.
"As a matter of fact, I'm only in my twenties..." Travis remarks, offended by Simone's accusation.
She laughs, "Oh bless, and ageing has done you no good." Simone then proceeds to push her clear transparent garment rail that holds all of her couture clothing and lingerie. She then thanks her butler, who appeared from a speedboat that is parked on the dock; he turns and walks away from the group.
"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder... I want to look good here, as well as on camera of course." Simone states as she stands in between Viola and Esther, interrupting their individual conversation.
"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to intrude your little tête-à-tête." Simone apologizes unconvincingly.
"Of course you don't..." Viola remarks as Simone scowls at her. "Oh, don't do that... I'm sure that's one way of getting wrinkles, right? I mean I'm no beauty expert but I heard that somewhere." Viola says to prevent Simone from scowling, which works, but only results in her expression becoming odium.
"You must be an expert on that, I guess. I mean, not to offend you or anything, but you're not ripe fruit." Simone whispers before rushing off towards the confessional shack prior to receiving an answer.
(CONFESSIONAL) Simone: "Be so good, they can't ignore you is possibly the worst aphorism I've ever used. It'll probably get me voted off very early on in the game and I don't want that to happen. It's not my fault I was blessed with pulchritudinous." She stares into the camera lens to fix her make-up and hair, before exiting the shack.
"I really don't think she deserved such a long introduction, Chris. I mean, we're all here to win the million and nobody is better than the other." Esther exclaims as she receives angry and sullen looks from a few fellow contestants.
"Well I agree, but then again there is only ten of you and a half hour show, so I think it's okay that she's just filling up some spare minutes that would've been wasted on shameless advertising. I mean who would buy Juggy Chunks or Total Drama Yum-Yum Happy Go Time Candy Fish Tails? They are both vile, aha." Chris chuckles to himself at the thought of eating them. "Anyway, we're getting of track here. Might I remind you that there are still four remaining contestants? Okay, so the next contestant to arrive is... Carmen!"
A young teenage girl approaches Chris and the others; she has a very delicate and fragile mien and wears a simple floral summer-dress and sandals – She has vibrant red hair and pale skin, with origins from England and Sweden. She also has her luggage in hand, with one holding a violin case. "Hello everyone! It's a pleasure to be here and to compete with all of you!" She says cheerfully, although she was denied acknowledgement from the others.
"Come on guys, perk up! Be happy for this moment, for this moment is your life." Carmen quotes and smiles to one's heart's content, although reduces the others to cringe uncontrollably. "True happiness comes from the joy of deeds well done, the zest of creating new things!" Carmen quotes once again.
"Please stop." Bradford beseeches, her expression turns to embarrassment because of his request, as if she was offended by it.
"But what is happiness except the simple harmony between a person and the life they lead?" Carmen quotes, as well as asks rhetorically.
"If you're a musician, just play some music instead of making a fool out of yourself by quoting about happiness." Bradford says with an intellectual tinge.
"Okay!" She says happily, before retrieving her violin from it's case, she then proceeds to play. It also sets everyone else at ease, as she plays the sweet tune of Beethoven Kreutzer Sonata.
(CONFESSIONAL) Carmen: "Phew, that was a comeback and more. I was making such a fool of myself, I literally couldn't stop quoting silly things I was told by my mother. I mean, it could've been nerves but still, it is only a reality show and you're working alongside other people fighting for the same objective. We're all here for the same reason, so I don't even know why I freaked out, I'm also freaking out now because I have no idea what to confess, do I have to confess anything? I don't know..." She looks puzzled at the camera, before returning to play the classical piece of music like she did prior to the confessional.
"Okay here is the eighth contestant... Paisley!" Chris announces as the camera swings round to a quirky-looking girl clad in a rainbow tie-dye shirt, stirrup leggings and white converse pumps. The camera takes an arc shot and closes up on her face; she can be seen wearing white-rimmed hipster glasses and a black beanie. She also has blonde hair that has highlights of both pink and blue. Also she has a light-ish skin tone, showing her origins from America – like she had previously told, although unheard.
"Please, if you don't mind..." Paisley asks, as she motions her hands in a move away signal. "Thank you." She responds, tranquil at that moment.
"Are you a hipster?" Esther asks eagerly, a desperate expression takes over, as if it seems that she is trying hard to make friends.
"Of course." Paisley replies with a smile, "Why haven't you heard of me? I'm like the queen of social media... I'm everywhere; Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Snapchat. You name it." Paisley exclaims happily, as if she's finally found someone who cared.
"I was only asking, I didn't need the details." Esther replies uninterested by Paisley, she removes her attention from her and instead focuses on the helicopter where the next contestant is about to be released from.
"Oh I see. I'm not that interested in it either, I'm just extremely popular on there that's all, no big deal." Paisley says, although being ignored by the others. She makes one's way towards the confessional shack, which stands just to the left of the group.
(CONFESSIONAL) Paisley: "Seriously? That was rude and so uncalled for, I'm sure people weren't so rude when they were introduced? Have I tried too hard to make a good and lasting first impression? Is it what I'm wearing? I mean it is a bit mediocre and cliché trope for a hipster. I'll stop..." She stands to her feet after firing the rhetorical questions one after another at the camera.
"So, here is the ninth contestant... Matthew!" Chris announces as a ruggedly handsome looking guy in his late-twenties/early-thirties, walks across the sand barefoot, with his black combat boots in hand. However, in the other hand he carries a backpack, that takes the possession of a vast array of canisters of spray paint - well that's all that can be seen through the partly open section of the zipper. He is also shown sporting very child-like clothing; light green plain shirt with rolled up sleeves and baggy capris with a pair of pumps to go along with the outfit. He has black hair with green highlights and is also light of skin, possibly coming from the latter said before – more than likely Canada or America.
"Well hello guys, I'm Matthew and it's a pleasure to meet you all." He waves, before quickly sheathing his hand into his pocket - ignorance fills the atmosphere. He shrugs off the discourtesy from the group and quickly locomotes to an empty space within the huddled batch of contestants.
Matthew grabs one of the selections of canisters from his bag and then soon begins to spray paint the sand, to pass the time and consume his boredom. "Hey, does that look any good?" He asks, even though everyone's attention was already on him, pique looks address each and every one's face.
"I think you should stop, the paint fumes are making me feel slightly faint." Simone makes a rejoinders, Matthew reluctantly stops at this solicit.
"Or it could just be the scorching sun on your dainty skin. Or it could be all the makeup you've smothered your face with. I mean, ingredients found in cosmetics and beauty products could pose a serious risk to one's health." Matthew ripostes with a jerk. Simone turns, unable to retrieve anything to retaliate with.
(CONFESSIONAL) Matthew: "I think I made some form of lasting impression on the group, besides, I was only trying to pass the time so then the real fun can begin... Graffiti art would hurt nobody, the fumes do no harm at all, just looks at me for example." He makes a forced smile which results in a very macabre-esque sort of vibe; the camera quickly switches point of views and returns to Chris.
"…And finally!" Chris lets out a sigh of relief, his craving for torture becoming more and more evident as the time progresses, "The tenth and final contestant... Isaac!" He announces as the two helicopters disperse and head off in opposite directions. The male castaway left in front of the other nine people looks overly exaggerated in terms of clothing choice; he is clad in an ordinary white shirt, but was also dressed in patterned mosaic-like designed trousers that were held up by black suspenders that are placed on either shoulder. He is also wearing a red bow tie and to finish his outfit off, black smart shoes. Isaac is also shown with ochre hair and with dark-ish skin – claiming heritage from Brazil and America.
The majority of the other contestants snicker at his appearance, somewhat amused by his clothing choices, "Anything the matter?" Isaac asks rhetorically, removing his scrutiny from the book he had held in his hand to look vacantly at the others - receiving gawks as forms of response. "That's what I thought..." He murmurs under his breath before returning his attention back to the book.
(CONFESSIONAL) Isaac: "I believe I'm good enough and above everyone else to not stoop to such a level that is beyond me. I am highly intelligent and I plan on using my wit in order to gain a further advantage into this game and since previous 'smart' people who have competed on this show have somewhat failed I know for certain that I have what it takes to take away the million dollar cash prize. Looking at the competition, I can assure myself that I do actually have a fair edge above the others and since there's only ten of us, getting that million dollars might be the easiest million dollars ever made." He lets out a slightly demonic laugh, whilst rubbing his hands together at the thought of having the prize money. After composing himself to his previous emotionless and dry self, he exits the shack.
The ten castaways stand on the lush, golden sands before Chris. All of them obnoxiously looking in other directions. "Well finally that's over, now we can actually get on with the show!" The focus reappears and Chris captures all twenty eyes peeled on him.
"Welcome to Outlast!-" Chris is cut off by the group's jubilant cheers and claps. "Now, let me lay down the basics... You will all be split into two tribes of five, when you are I'll continue. Let's see... Bradford... Carmen... Rupert... Simone and... Paisley! All of you come take your spot on the yellow carpet here." He points to the right and they all obey. "So, Esther... Viola... Matthew... Isaac and... Travis! Take your spot on the green carpet here." He points to the opposite direction where the carpet lies, they all follow his orders.
Chris turns and walks forward slightly, further than touching distance just to be on the safe side - extra precaution. "So, as I was saying. You have been split into two teams; Saitrionco, which is the yellow tribe and Kasa Kasa, which is the green tribe. Within these two tribes you will learn to survive using your surroundings instead of the basic necessities you're all used to back at home-" Chris is once again cut off, this time by Rupert who suddenly becomes relevant after going invisible.
"Wait, I've never done anything like this before. Are you sure it's safe to do?" Rupert asks, worried about Chris answer.
"There's always a first for everything, so I wouldn't worry. Besides, the production team have their own camp somewhere on the island; they'll come if there are any problems." Chris reassures him, before continuing. "Also, within these two tribes, you will compete in challenges set every three days where you could win one of two things; immunity or reward, maybe even both if you're lucky, but that would more than likely happen at merge. So at the moment, you'll all be playing for immunity for a good portion of the game."
"Intriguing, might I add. Why are their teams when we can just play anarchy?" Paisley asks, throwing her suggestion into the mix.
"Well, actually I have no clue. But still, don't interrupt me please." Chris replies, and receives an incline in return to his question. He continues, "Okay, since I'm feeling generous, I'll throw in some items that will help you feel comfortable for the start of the game." Chris opens a box that was just placed there prior to his short speech, he takes out a tarp, a small piece of flint and two blankets and gives them to Saitrionco and then continues to do the same thing to Kasa Kasa.
"You'll all have tonight off. But tomorrow, the game will start. Find your base camp and build your shelter before nightfall, I heard from a forecast that the Caribbean is due rain over night so I'd suggest you hurry up and find base camp." Chris throws the two tribes two separate maps leading to opposite ends of the tropical island.
The two tribes go in their autonomous direction as the camera closes up on Chris, "Well that's it for the first episode, join us next time as plenty of lies and secrets; façades and betrayals enrol!" He announces, before he shouts; "Have fun in paradise..." to the two tribes before the camera turns to static and the credits roll in.