Top Five Cruel Reality Show Twists

1. Outcast Tribe, Survivor: Pearl Islands
The castaways voted off Survivor in the early tribal councils are never supposed to be heard from again. Their chance at a million bucks is over and done with in the matter of days. It's not like they're even part of the jury. Well, maybe not quite. In this season of Survivor, the first six people to be voted off the island were kept at a separate camp, supposedly living and eating under the same conditions as the remaining castaways (though they did look remarkable well-rested and nourished). They returned to compete in a challenge as the Outcast Tribe, with the incentive that up to two Outcasts would return to the game if their tribe could defeat either or both of the other tribes in an immunity challenge.

2. Non-Elimination Leg Penalties, The Amazing Race 5-9
Each season, several of the legs on The Amazing Race are predetermined non-elimination legs. Starting in Season 5, in order to penalize the team that would have otherwise been eliminated from the race, Phil Keoghan required them to turn over all their money. They would not receive money to begin the next leg either and would be forced to beg on the streets for cash. Then, in Season 7, they upped the ante by stripping teams of not only their money but of all their possessions except their passports and the clothes on the back. Ironically, this penalty actually seemed to help the last-place teams, since they could continue the race unencumbered. (This penalty has apparently been discontinued as of season 10.)

3. Living In Tents, The Apprentice 6
In The Apprentice's first season outside of New York, Donald Trump decided to add a little twist, just because he's cruel and just because he could. Instead of living in a suite or a mansion, the losing team each week would have to live in tents in the backyard, without such modern comforts as heat, hot water, appliances, or proper toilets. The candidates who thought they'd be tested on their business acumen ended up getting a challenge to their physical hardiness. In a way, it became urban Survivor.

4. Fast Forward, Big Brother All-Stars
In the eighth week of the show, Danielle was evicted on Thursday night's live show. But the excitement had just begun. Julie Chen informed the houseguests that they would proceed through another week's worth of events -- Head of Household competition, nomination ceremony, Power of Veto competition, veto ceremony, and eviction -- all in the span of 20 minutes. It caught the houseguests by surprise, and with no time to campaign or prepare for the challenges, Chicken George found himself on the outs even after dodging eviction the first time.

5. Colored Pebble Tiebreaker, Survivor: Marquesas
When it came down to the final four on this season of Survivor, the remaining castaways deadlocked on a 2-2 vote. But instead of breaking the tie based on previous votes received as had been done in seasons past (or a challenge) Jeff Probst explained that all the tribe members (except the person with the immunity necklace) would draw a stone from a bag. Whoever ended up with the purple pebble would be eliminated, regardless of whether they were one of the two castaways over whom the tribe was deadlocked. As a result, Paschal English, despite not having had a single vote cast against him the entire season, had his torch extinguished.

Honorable Mention: My Big Fat Obnoxious Fiance
This twist doesn't quite fit into the category, since it was a surprise only to the hapless, gullible, sole contestant, and not to the viewing public. After putting up with this ill-mannered, unseemly buffoon for two week, after lying to her family that she was getting married, after convincing them to come to California and be there for the ceremony, Randi Coy saw her efforts supposedly go up in flames when her phony fiance announced that the whole thing was a setup. Her family became irate and stormed out of the ceremony. Eventually she found out that her fiance was actually an actor and that she had indeed successfully completed the challenge and won half a million dollars.