“The Devil’s Plan” has launched a reality show on Netflix. MeinMMO editor Benedikt Schlotmann has seen the series and is enthusiastic. This is mainly due to the clever mix of competition and human relationships.
What kind of series is it anyway? In “The Devil’s Plan”, 12 people compete against each other in various games for 7 days and collect points here. Anyone who has no points left at the end of a round is immediately eliminated from the game and has to pack their things. The two losers of a round end up in a “prison” and only receive bread and water.
Honestly, the show put me off a bit at first. Because only people participate in the reality show who I, as a German, don’t know at all: all stars, starlets, and personalities from Korean life.
But in the end, I watched the series with my partner in a few days. Because what makes the series so brilliant is not only the really well-staged competitions, but also the interactions around them.
The Devil’s Plan has been running since September 26 on Netflix. Currently, there is one season with 12 episodes, each about 70 minutes long. A second season has already been announced (via Netflix).
You never know if my friend might not be my next enemy
What makes this series so brilliant? What makes this series so clever and brilliant is the combination of competition and social interaction. Because the special thing is that the contestants live together in a house all the time between competitions: They eat and drink together and sleep in the same rooms. This brings the participants closer together – for 7 days straight.
Here, friendships and alliances are forged, and in the end, no one really knows who is friend or enemy anymore.
The next morning, it goes back to the next competition, which takes place in the same building. And then the heated discussions between the players start again:
- Who could be eliminated in the next round?
- Who should I or we support? Am I fighting only for myself or supporting a player who is in worse shape?
- Do I prefer to play alone or join the strongest player to possibly survive another round?
Quickly, cliques form just like many know from the playground. The loss and elimination of a fellow player is much harder because, in the end, everyone has gotten to know each other. Even the toughest player has tears in their eyes because they have to say goodbye to their buddy who stood behind them in the last three competitions.
Because the devilish thing about The Devil’s Plan is having to betray a valued teammate at the end to stay in the game yourself. And this affects almost all players psychologically, because everyone knows: In the end, only one player can win.
Also nasty: After the competition, the next step is a prize game: Here, the participants have to collaborate to increase the final prize money. Because suddenly, the players who were previously actively competing against each other have to play together again.
What I also really like: The series completely avoids physical violence. No one gets beaten up, hurt with weapons, or killed. The series relies primarily on brain work and the interactions between the players.
Perhaps that’s why I am also looking forward to a sequel and waiting for the second season. Because rarely has a series captivated me so much.
More on Netflix: You can find more good series on Netflix directly on MeinMMO in the following top list:
