A free fall, in the true sense of the word. “Big Brother” is reaching the lowest point in its television history with numbers that leave no room for too many interpretations. If the debut on 29 September was at least an acceptable result, with a decent 20.4% share, equal to 2.8 million spectators, in the following weeks the red alarm was raised when the percentage dropped to 15.5, 14.4 and, on Monday 20 October, to 14.2%. Translated: one million people lost on the streets in the space of just three weeks.

Simona Ventura is not the problem

One might think that the problem lies in the helmsman, or in a Simona Ventura who took over the relay from Alfonso Signorini, to try her hand at a ‘nip’ version of the reality show that Mediaset had shelved for more than five years. Nothing could be more wrong.

Of course, it is well established and clear to everyone that Ventura is no longer the one from “The Island of the Famous”. The effervescence, energy and playful spirit of the past have disappeared, replaced by an obsequious respect for the setlist. But to lash out at the handle, ignoring the rest, would be to sweep the enormous problems under the rug.

The truth is that the “Gf” brand is boiled

The truth is that the “Gf” brand is boiled. And not from this year. The lemon has been squeezed to the last drop and the format is practically emptied, aggravated by an anachronism that only Cologno pretends not to see.

The broadcast has nothing left to say and offer. The table is empty and the menu is devoid of dishes. The purpose of the mission is missing at the base, with the elimination of the primary concepts of seclusion and deprivation, to which is added the absolute watering down of the voyeuristic principle, overcome in an era in which social networks already give the various competitors their daily live online broadcast.

It is surprising, however, that the ‘funeral’ is celebrated in the months of the silver anniversary celebrations of the programme, which arrived for the first time on Italian screens in September 2000. And it makes us smile, to say the least, the decision by Biscione to obscure the wonderful celebratory doc – relegated to Mediaset Infinity – which would most likely have received more success and appreciation than this umpteenth and dull edition.

The beautiful documentary on 25 years of “Big Brother” that isn’t newsworthy. If Netflix had produced it…

Big Brother is now transparent: no one talks about it, no one is indignant

The paradox of this “Big Brother” also lies in the absence of judgement. Neither positive nor negative. Nobody attacks the contents, nobody is indignant, nobody speaks badly of it. Practically transparent, devoid of any appeal or interest, proving how the public has evidently reached a level of saturation that only Canale 5 did not grasp.

It should have been understood that the pot was full at the end of last season, with “L’Isola” paying the price of having arrived after the flop of “The couple” which, in turn, had suffered the legacy of six exhausting months of “Gf”.

It would therefore be necessary to pull the plug, as Mediaset did (without mercy) with “La Talpa”, which at least offered something new in terms of narration and construction. The closure, in that case, came early, with the last episodes – already shot and packaged – collected in a single and very long final episode, when on the contrary they could have been relocated to Italia 1 (a network which, among other things, would have identified better with the product).

Unfortunately, however, the real danger is that of finding ourselves in January with “Gf Vip” on the air, perhaps convincing ourselves that with well-known (or pseudo-known) personalities the soup appears less poor. If this were to happen, it would be yet another illusion. The patient died. There’s no point in continuing to carry him around like Bernie Lomax in “Weekend with the Dead”, pretending that he isn’t.