A decade ago, everyone was losing their minds over reality TV satire, ‘Dead Set’

These comments from 2009 reveal a pack of ‘Dead Set’ legends.

Contestants in the fictional Big Brother house in ‘Dead Set’. Source: SBS

When you mix hardcore gore with internet commentators, you’ve got to expect a little splatter. That’s the lesson to be learned from a deep dive into the SBS archives, where a webpage from over a decade ago still records the audience reaction to the first ever screening of Zombies vs Big Brother contestants satire Dead Set.

While these days comment sections are mostly dead, dusty places, a decade ago they attracted passionate fans looking for a place to tell the world what they thought of a series. And when it came to Dead Set, the fans definitely had a lot on their minds.

Going by Brenton from Adelaide’s reaction, the first episode was a hit:

Source: SBS

But already a trend was developing as far as what the SBS fans wanted to see… a somewhat disturbing trend:

Source: SBS

By episode two TechSpec was firmly on board:

Source: SBS

And episode three was a great opportunity for Filipo to set everybody straight. Mansplaining: the lifeblood of the internet since at least 2009:

Source: SBS

It’s easy to mock these comments, but occasionally one comes along that cuts through all the confusion and really gets to the heart of why a TV show resonates with an audience. Television criticism is often looked down upon, but in the hands of a true master of the art, even a humble comment can bring a series’ appeal into crystal-clear focus and give us all an opportunity to watch it with fresh eyes. And back in 2009, nobody was writing sharper, more incisive commentary on exactly what made Dead Set such a powerful viewing experience than Ollie of Campbelltown:

Source: SBS

With the final episode, Dion from Adelaide was openly auditioning for the role of next Movie Show host:

Source: SBS

But let’s leave the final word on Dead Set’s first run on SBS to Julie, who is definitely a real person and most definitely isn’t the same person whose similar all-caps posts was only six minutes apart from hers: