Intervention is a reality show on A&E that follows addicts as they indulge in and cope with their problems. The scope of the show is not limited to drug and alcohol dependency. Sometimes the show features an individual who engages in obsessive or emotionally unhealthy behaviors that do not fall within the public's conventional perception of addiction. Even while reality television continues to be reviled as the supposedly lowest form of entertainment, Intervention remains compelling and essential viewing. Here are some reasons why this show is so compulsively watchable.
Real People, Real Problems
The people who are the focus of each episode have been told that they are the subjects of a documentary, so they go about their daily lives without regard for being caught doing unseemly or illegal things. They feel so emboldened and flattered by the documentary set-up that they open up about their personal lives and allow the cameras to follow them wherever they go. The cameras catch them doing things that their friends and family members did not even know about before the show became involved. The effect of all of this honesty on the viewers at home is staggering; these are real people, and they really do these horrible things without thinking twice.
Serious Stakes
A condition of being accepted for the show is that the intervention has to happen. None of the addicts' family members can soften or back out. They have to follow through on threats to kick the addicts out of their homes and stop giving them money. They must sit there and not fight the show's threats to take addicts' children away from them and otherwise coerce them into agreeing to receive treatment. The sober participants in an intervention may even be compelled to reveal private things about themselves in the course of airing the addicts' baggage. The biggest revelation Intervention imparts is that addiction affects whole families, not just the addicts themselves.
Blended Genre
Intervention blurs the line between documentary and reality television. Reality shows place normal people in unusual situations and film their interactions. Documentary shows capture people who are already living uncommon lives without making any narrative or dramatic changes. Intervention does not make any effort to adjust the day-to-day lives of its subjects in the beginning of the filming process, but by intervening it forces a shift that would not have occurred otherwise.
Uncomfortable Truths
People do not want to believe that their loved ones could ever succumb to addiction. They push away the notion of drugs as something foreign to their lives, but Intervention proves that anyone from any walk of life can find himself in a situation that calls for professional help. The blurring of genres extends into real life. Audiences watch Intervention to get a glimpse into the lives of unusual people, only to realize that those people are completely normal.
Entirely Unscripted
Intervention is one of the few unscripted shows that is not contrived to any degree. The producers of most reality shows now freely admit to provoking situations or editing footage in ways that feed into pre-planned storylines. Intervention, by its very nature, is entirely organic. There is no way to create an addict out of someone who does not already have a drug problem, nor is it possible to coax hired actors into the dangerous situations that are commonplace on the show. The honesty of Intervention's production makes it a genuine drama. Viewers cannot expect every episode to end happily because the reality of addiction does not play out that way. Intervention is suspenseful up until its final moments, when it is revealed whether or not the titular interventions were effective.
Jeffrey Goode has contributed to many writings such as How To Become A Substance Abuse Counselor for others who are interested in the rewarding career of counseling.
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