Top 5 German Reality TV Shows

by Courtney Martin

Since I need to pass a German fluency test in exactly one month, I am trying to go on an all-German diet. This includes only watching German movies and TV shows. While there are several popular action, drama, and comedy TV series in Germany, many of these are difficult for me to understand. I have tried watching “Tatort,” which is like German CSI, but between the police lingo and varying dialects, I can’t always keep up. But do you know what I can understand? Reality TV shows!

I loathe American reality TV shows, but for some reason, when it comes to their German counterpart, I just can’t get enough. So if you are looking to learn German yourself or want to brush on your Deutsch by watching some mindless television, here is my list of the top 5 German reality TV shows.

5. Goodbye Deutschland (Goodbye Germany)

As an expat, I find this show pretty interesting. It follows Germans that choose to move abroad for varying reasons from work to weather. Some of them end up having a very successful life. They find a great job, fall in love with a native, the whole shebang. Others realize that they can’t actually speak the language, have no practical skills, and end up moving back home. Unfortunately it is a cheesy reality/drama where everything is quite scripted, but it’s still okay to watch when nothing from higher on this list is on...

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