Worth It was an American entertainment web series by BuzzFeed. Starring Steven Lim and Andrew Ilnyckyj, it ran from September 18, 2016 to April 8, 2023. Posted to Hulu and YouTube, each episode of the series compares three different food dishes from three locations that are sold at low, medium, and high price points.
| Worth It | |
|---|---|
 Worth It show logo | |
| Genre | Travel, Food |
| Created by | Steven Lim |
| Starring | Steven Lim Andrew Ilnyckyj Adam Bianchi |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 12 |
| No. of episodes | 81 (excluding special episodes) (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Steven Lim, Andrew Ilnyckyj, Adam Bianchi |
| Production company | BuzzFeed |
| Original release | |
| Network | YouTube BuzzFeed |
| Release | September 18, 2016 – April 8, 2023 |
Background
editSteven Lim came up with the idea for Worth It when he debated whether it was worth bringing a date to an expensive sushi restaurant or if it would be better to get a takeout California roll. The premise connected with YouTube viewers, and so he created another video and published it a week later. By the fourth episode, the show and premise demonstrated that they had staying power.[1] Lim was also motivated by how the premise allowed him to weave Asian-American themes into his work.[1][2] According to Lim, Buzzfeed's original plan was to feature two white hosts while Lim wrote the show's scripts.[3]
Worth It was one of several food shows Buzzfeed launched around this time, and Worth It's cast and crew came together as part of those efforts.[4] One of Buzzfeed's goals for Worth It and other shows launched around the same time was to compete for advertising dollars that would traditionally go towards network television shows.[5]
Premise
editEach episode sees presenters Steven Lim and Andrew Ilnyckyj, along with cameraman Adam Bianchi,[A] visiting three different restaurants to try similar foods at three "drastically different price points"—affordable, mid, and luxury.[7][8] The three are invariably positive about the food that they eat, a differentiating factor from BuzzFeed's other video content.[7]
Impact
editThe series airs on Hulu and YouTube and episodes were frequently featured at the top of those sites' "trending" videos—a factor that allowed the series to garner a global audience.[7][9][10][11][12]
Worth It won the 2017 and 2018 Streamy Award for best online food show.[13][14][15] As of October 2017, the series had been viewed more than 300 million times for a total of over 2 billion minutes;[5] in 2018 alone, viewers watched 1.5 billion minutes on the show.[16] "When we watch the pair appraise a $1 coffee versus a $914 coffee in Tokyo," Candice Chung of Australia's Special Broadcasting Service writes, "we are watching the reaction of 'food civilians' who would marvel as we would at the heart-stopping price difference at a drink so humble and quotidian."[13] The show's popularity has led to it being described by BuzzFeed as a Zagat guide for millennials,[17] and has created extreme upticks in patronage for some restaurants featured on the show.[9][18]
The success of Worth It influenced Buzzfeed's decision to launch a new reviews section in 2018.[16]
The series ended on April 8, 2023.[19]
Episodes
edit| Season | Episodes | Originally aired | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First aired | Last aired | |||
| 1 | 9 | September 18, 2016 | January 8, 2017 | |
| 2 | 10 | March 12, 2017 | May 14, 2017 | |
| 3 | 11 | August 27, 2017 | February 1, 2018 | |
| 4 | 12 | March 18, 2018 | June 3, 2018 | |
| 5 | 6 | September 9, 2018 | October 14, 2018 | |
| 6 | 6 | July 14, 2019 | August 18, 2019 | |
| 7 | 6 | October 13, 2019 | December 22, 2019 | |
| 8 | 6 | August 16, 2020 | September 20, 2020 | |
| 9 | 5 | November 18, 2017 | March 31, 2019 | |
| 10 | 4 | May 20, 2020 | November 15, 2020 | |
| 11 | 3 | November 27, 2021 | December 11, 2021 | |
| 12 | 3 | December 3, 2022 | December 17, 2022 | |
| 13 | 3 | March 11, 2023 | April 8, 2023 | |
Spin-offs
editA spin-off series, Worth It: Lifestyle, was first aired in January, 2017 on BuzzFeedBlue, featuring Lim as host and a variety of BuzzFeed employees as co-hosts. The spin-off has the same premise as the original series, except that the hosts try three different experiences and items as opposed to only food.[20][21]
Two international spin-offs of Worth It have been produced: Worth It UK, hosted by Richard Alan Reid with various alternating hosts and Joseph Bor as the "sound guy" (Bor also co-hosted the fish and chips episode of the series);[22] and a pilot episode for BuzzFeed India, hosted by Akash Iyer and Arshad Wahid with Aishwarya Katkade as the "sound guy."[23] Andrew Ilnyckyj appears in two episodes of the UK spin-off.
Notes
edit- ^ The first two episodes featured only Lim and Keith Habersberger.[6]
References
edit- ^ a b Shields, Mike. "Millions of people are watching Steven Lim, star of the BuzzFeed show 'Worth It,' eat his way across the globe". Business Insider. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
- ^ Mendez, Rose. "Steven Lim spotlights Asian American representation in media". Daily Titan. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
- ^ Gupta, Varun (February 26, 2020). "Buzzfeed 'Worth It' Host Fuses Asian Heritage and Entertainment". The Emory Wheel. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
- ^ Roker, Al (March 15, 2018). "Al Roker goes behind the scenes with the guys of BuzzFeed's Worth It". Today. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
- ^ a b Shields, Mike (August 17, 2017). "BuzzFeed's food-fest series 'Worth It' has racked up 280 million views — and cable TV should be worried". Business Insider. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
- ^ Zhou, Grace (May 30, 2017). "The Patriotism of BuzzFeed's Worth It Series". ComicsVerse. Archived from the original on September 22, 2018. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
- ^ a b c Zhou, Grace (May 30, 2017). "The Patriotism of BuzzFeed's Worth It Series". ComicsVerse. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
- ^ Mannarino, Al (June 15, 2017). "How BuzzFeed's 'Worth It' Became The #1 Show On YouTube". Social Media Week. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
- ^ a b Main, Sami (June 1, 2017). "These BuzzFeed Videos Are Unexpectedly Impacting Local Businesses Around the World". Adweek. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
- ^ "Al Roker goes behind the scenes with the guys of BuzzFeed's Worth It". Today. NBC. March 15, 2018. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
- ^ Lim, Steven [@stevenkwlim] (September 26, 2016). "Surreal to me that my new series is 2 for 2 on hitting @YouTube trending & front page. More is coming, thank you all for watching!! ❤️" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Lim, Steven [@stevenkwlim] (January 9, 2017). "Worth It is trending #2 and #3 on YT! How many times can I say thank you lol? But seriously – thank you guys for watching and supporting!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ a b Chung, Candice (January 23, 2018). "The YouTube show that's disrupting food criticism". Special Broadcasting Service (SBS). Retrieved September 22, 2018.
- ^ @streamys (September 26, 2017). "In the best mood, because @BuzzfeedVideo's "Worth It" just won for Food! And now I'm hungry. #streamys" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Brown, Kelsey. "Winners Announced for the 8th Annual Streamy Awards®". The Streamy Awards. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
- ^ a b Willens, Mike (August 28, 2018). "BuzzFeed dives further into commerce with BuzzFeed Reviews". Digiday. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
- ^ Main, Sami (October 5, 2017). "Why BuzzFeed Is Hosting Real-Life Events to Promote Its Digital Shows". Adweek. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
- ^ Gutelle, Sam (August 2, 2017). "For Featured Restaurants, BuzzFeed's 'Worth It' Delivers Invaluable Exposure". Tubefilter. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
- ^ Gutelle, Sam (March 10, 2023). "BuzzFeed's 'Worth It' is coming to an end. The food show's final season begins March 11". Tubefilter. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
- ^ Schlappig, Ben (September 24, 2017). "Must-See BuzzFeed Video About Three Different Airline Experiences". One Mile at a Time. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
- ^ "$80 Tattoo Vs. $875 Tattoo". YouTube. BuzzFeedBlue. January 8, 2017. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
- ^ "Worth It UK – Trailer". YouTube. October 29, 2017.
- ^ "₹50 Dosa Vs ₹500 Dosa". YouTube. BuzzFeed India. August 2, 2018.