Did anyone watch the special? It aired at 11am and was an hour and 30 minutes long. It just went over the high points and the low points of the 20 seasons of the show. A few of the past cast members came to talk about the show, with the majority of them coming from newer seasons. But there were a few from the older seasons: Heather B (NY), Andre (NY), Beth S (LA), Syrus (Boston), Amaya (Hawaii), and Cara (Chicago).
lori, I hope it's all worth it also!
Surfing through other sites, it looks like a lot of old-time fans are getting excited for this season, especially after viewing the trailer (check the official site for it, I'm sure they have it there). I'm seeing a lot of people say that they find the cast intriguing and that the trailer gave them vibes of older seasons. I can't exactly speak for older fans since I'm a fairly new viewer, but the trailer focused solely on the interaction between the cast members and absolutely no partying, so that's probably the reason why people are getting excited.
Speaking of Hollywood, I thought it was a great season. The Hollywood cast did get drunk and wasted quite a few times, but when Joey was there, I felt that there was an actual story behind all the partying and drinking in that they they had to try and control themselves when he was around. The cast was unlikable (except for Bri, who I eventually really liked

), but I thought the season was exciting.