“Thanksgiving Island” stars the white trash Woods clan, the clearly planted model/actor Fitch family, the African American Hughes, and the seemingly normal yet deeply disturbed Bixby brood. Each 90- to 120-second promo features scenarios lifted straight out of the absurd world of reality TV, and is purposefully rife with reality TV clichés. These include the all-knowing, manipulative host (played by Brian Unger), the “confessional” where cast members expound on a variety of inane subjects, the use of time-lapse footage as a transition device, and the use of wrenching emotional music that turns the smallest moment into an overblown, emotional situation.


Along with the ubiquitous “eating bugs” challenge seen on other shows, Thanksgiving Island also has the “Grace-Off,” in which each team’s patriarch sits at a Thanksgiving spread and engages in what the host calls “the most brutal, intense, once-a-year prayer action on earth.” Another spot shows the hillbilly Woods family checking out the Grand Prize—the Scion XB. The daughter comments that she’s particularly excited since most of her kids were born in cars, while Mr. Woods screams, “This car is amazing! I can’t wait to live in it!”