YMMV / The Traitors (UK)

• Base-Breaking Character: Paul from Series 2. While some fans enjoy his machinations and find him to be an interesting villain due to his Fake Ultimate Hero status and the adoration so many of the Faithful feel for him, other fans find him smug and are turned off by his overtly villainous attitude in confessionals and in the Traitors Tower, as well as his overconfidence. Notably, he at one point hatches a plan based almost entirely on being voted the most popular player, putting him under the microscope of several players when he isn't. ^note Essentially, the Traitors were asked to pick four people to condemn, one of whom would be murdered the next night. The traitors picked Paul, fellow Traitor Ash, and Faithful Meg and Andrew to condemn. When Andrew won the immunity instead of Paul, the Traitors were forced to murder the far more introverted Meg as opposed to Paul, drawing the suspicions of some Faithful who rationalized that as such a popular person, Paul should be a prime candidate for murder. Notably, Andrew and Paul had been voted the two most popular contestants - and had Meg been banished then nobody would have been murdered that night, all but confirming the identity of two Traitors. Had the Traitors selected any other Faithful, the plan would have gone off without a hitch. As the game went on, many viewers were increasingly annoyed at his propensity to escape scrutiny, despite his Obviously Evil tendencies, especially as any Faithful who suspected him either realized that his popularity would make him hard to banish or were confronted by Faithful for suspected him.
• Broken Base: Kieran's reference to his vote for Wilfred as a "parting gift" greatly polarized the fanbase and there's still little agreement on how viewers should feel about it. One general faction says that Kieran toed the line of revealing Wilfred's true nature and thus broke the Traitors' Oath in spirit if not to the letter by making it near-impossible for Wilfred to win. The other says that Wilfred reaped what he sowed in terms of banishing both Alyssa and Amanda (and being the one to move against Amanda in that case) and, as a result, was owed no loyalty from Kieran. The third, smaller group believes that the impact of Kieran's words has been exaggerated and what really doomed Wilfred was his response to Kieran rather than what Kieran said himself.
  • When Andrew and Harry recruited Ross as a Traitor in Episode 9, Claudia made a comment about them recruiting another man, saying it was "just like the olden days". This sparked a debate among fans about whether or not the Traitors in Season 2 have been unconsciously sexist. One faction has pointed to the fact that, with the exception of Aubrey (the very first murder victim) and later Zack (the last victim), all the murder victims were women ^note  Admittedly, in the case of the Dungeon plan going awry, Meg was the only possible victim, since Andrew had been given a shield and Paul was a Traitor, whereas only men have been recruited, and that the Traitors have been all male since Ash (who was admittedly a weak player) was thrown under a bus by the others. The other side claims that it's ultimately a game, and decisions are made based on tactics. Harry's statement shortly afterwards that Diane was murdered because she "needed to be put in her place" has not helped matters. Claudia Winkleman herself made a statement that she believed this trend was “problematic”.
• Crowning Moment of Awesome:
  • In Series 1, Episode 5, Ivan's farewell speech after Tom led the charge against him and claimed that his abilities as a magician allowed him to figure out that Ivan was a Traitor:
    Ivan: No hard feelings. I came here to play a game, and today that’s exactly what I got. This was fun. Tom – this was your big flourish, and here’s the prestige. That was not my card. I’m a Faithful.
  • In Series 1, Episode 10, the challenge tasks the contestants with stealing as many valuable objects from a nearby stately home as they can in 20 minutes - only the objects are protected by a Laser Hallway and a minute from the clock is deducted each time they trip the laser. The majority of them fail, with only Aaron and Kieran managing to steal one object each, but the awesome moment belongs to Wilfred, who reveals his background as both a dancer and a boxer and shows off his skills by successfully stealing two objects, as well as directing both Aaron and Kieran through the lasers.
• Cry for the Devil: Loyal fans of the Traitor faction were devastated at the banishments of Alyssa and Amanda in Series 1, and the banishment of Miles in Series 2, due to the perception that the game had been rigged against him with the task of poisoning Diane. The banishments of Wilfred and Kieran in Series 1, and Ash in Series 2 were more divided.
• Fan Nickname: "Maddy Marple" for Maddy in Series 1. "Princess Di" for Diane and "Jazatha Christie" or "Jaztradamus" for Jaz in Series 2. ^note The former for his detective skills, the second for his suspicions of Andrew and Ross as Traitors prior to either of their recruitment.
• Game-Breaker: The Traitors' ability to recruit a Faithful to their side when down to two players. Whilst this does prevent them from murdering that night, it allows them to replenish their numbers and, for a particularly canny Traitor, provides additional canon fodder at the (relatively minor) cost of potentially reducing their portion of the prize money. And while the "seduced" Faithful can theoretically refuse to switch sides, doing so places a murder target on their back (as Alex learned in Series 1).^note This is especially the case in most other countries, which allow the Traitors to murder straight after a failed recruitment.
• Memetic Mutation: Miles' expression of sheer panic when he sees Diane at breakfast.
  • ... but Ross is.
• Spiritual Successor: While based on the Dutch show Der Verraders, many viewers have described this series as being akin to the unrelated Trapped! and Raven for adults. It has the same basic mechanics as the social deduction game Are You A Werewolf? and Among Us.

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