By Ashley Thompson

 

Welcome to Utopia. By definition it is "an imaginary place in which the government, laws, and social conditions are perfect". Pioneers compiled of 15 diverse Americans (out of 5,000 hopefuls) are placed on 5 acres for one year in the hopes they can build a successful society. In Utopia there is no church, no state, no rich, no poor. Each month the population will rotate, with a new member coming in and an original member leaving. The secluded area is equipped with only a barn, a few animals, a lake, a waterfall and 30 robotic cameras that never turn off. You can indulge in your own voyeuristic curiosity by watching them online outside of episode times.

 

The participants moved in over a week ago, allowed only a few personal items placed in a communal crate. It begs the question: if you were going to be away from home for an entire year, what would you take? Which leads into follow up questions like: personal hygiene... is each female responsible for bringing their own feminine items or are those provided by production? They are given $5,000 to spend on additional items they feel are necessities, once the money is gone they will have to earn it themselves. How will they spend the money... will they chose toilets or beds? Food or clothing? And how will they decide... is this a dictatorship or a democracy? Will they trade with the outside world or live completely cut off? The latter will most likely depend on how effective they are with gardening and raising animals to feed themselves.

 

The participants:

Aaron, a military man and chef from Mississippi who opts to take a skillet as his most prized possession. In his Utopia everyone has a place and a job. I shall name him "Chef". He's the first to notice that Amanda is pregnant...

 

Amanda, a behavioral specialist from Seattle, due sometime near November/December. I don't know if she's concerned with this but how will she get prenatal care in Utopia?? Perhaps from Nikki...

 

Nikki, a doctor and yoga instructor from New York. But I'm not sure what kind of doctor she is, holistic it says... so maybe she wouldn't be of much help to Amanda. But she has a namaste friend in Dedeker...

 

Dedeker, a polyamorous belly dancer from Los Angeles who says goodbye to her boyfriend, her other boyfriend, and her girlfriend as she entered Utopia. I can't imagine she'll be popular with uber republican Rob from New Jersey...

 

Rob, a gun enthusiast from Jersey. Surely a southerner like Red would be his closest confidant as the year progresses. I'm not so sure, though...

 

Red, a self proclaimed "hillbilly" from Kentucky who choses bourbon as one of his personal items. Cliche. But this redneck finds a bestie in the most random person, Dave...

 

Dave, an ex con from New York who flips his lid about placing personal items in the communal crate saying, "I'm not jacking that!". Which apparently means something along the lines of "I'm not feeling that". But I'm not 100% sure. He turns around and becomes pretty valuable early on. However, Dave's Utopia is not Christian. That should go over well with Jonathan...

 

Jonathan, a Pentecostal Pastor who is aiming to baptize as many as possible. His item of choice is his bible, fittingly, and the first few days are proving to be the most difficult for him due to his strong faith and the sinful nature of the other participants. But, he quickly finds an unlikely ally in Hex...

 

Hex, an Atheist bow hunter from the midwest. She is my favorite so far. She's strong, smart, kind and considerate. Well, with exception from her getting drunk and trying to put "Tool Bag" in his place after his unwelcome advances towards her. I would rename Hex "Amazon Woman" or something but Hex is a killer name on it's own.

 

Josh, a general contractor from Salt Lake City who intelligently keeps his tool bag as his item. But since he is so sexist and harassing in the start (thanks to alcohol, I'm sure) I will refer to him as.. "tool bag". It's fitting. You can't go grabbing girls and putting your crotch in their face. Bella's not a big fan, either...

 

Bella, a happy hippie doomsday prepper from Georgia who is crazy knowledgeable about the land and how to tend to it. I will refer to her as "the cheerleader" because she just wants to have everyones back. (Except "Tool Bag" when she votes to send his ass home after fearing for her safety.) But Mike's legal proceedings keep "Tool Bag" in Utopia and Bella quickly warms up to him.

 

Mike, a lawyer from Manhattan who is vegetarian and very rational. His plan is to form some sort of government to ensure some order and justice. This is fine with "the musician" as long as they formally announce they are using a democracy here in Utopia.

 

Chris, a Chili farmer and guitar player from North Carolina. We don't know too much about "The Musician" so far, with exception to the fact that he and Bri are getting quite cozy, spending every night together thus far. I mean, it was bound to happen but on night one?? Guess they have the same idea of Utopia...

 

Bri, a veterinarian aide from SoCal who decides bug spray is her go-to item of choice. Don't worry, Bri, "The Musician" will cuddle you so the bugs stay away.

 

Online we see Krista and Rhonda as Utopians, but we don't meet them on the show. Instead we Meet Dave (ex con) and Rob (gun toter). Wonder what's up there? If your online viewing just isn't enough, tune in to the other two episodes this week. Maybe together we can figure out if these people are actors or real, every day folk... because I'm kind of sensing that this is all a ruse.

 

Photo courtesy of FOX