The early seasons depicted actual gold hunters wandering about the outback looking for gold. It showcased the challenges associated with trying to find gold with metal detectors and small operation mining equipment.
Unfortunately, the producers became bored with reality and felt the need to introduce "tension" into the show. Now we are treated to desperately untalented actors repeating every two minutes how if they don't find gold they won't have gold. As if this were some deep revelation worthy of repetition because we could never figure that out for ourselves. It's insulting. Minor, routine situations - a split hose, a fly bite, rain, summer heat - are treated as though they are life and death situations. They aren't, and no amount of "if we don't fix this our season is over" can transform a flat tire into something exciting. It's all moronically simpleminded. Worse, it isn't interesting or compelling or worthy of our time.
Early seasons were an 8, later seasons a 2.
