Survivor: Redemption Island

[Just Jack]

Let's see if it is a challenge that will require a lot of foot movement in a speed game. Several of them haven't.

From the previews I think it looked like one of those 'stand on pegs that get smaller as time progresses' challenges. You could see some of the apperatus as he walked into the arena.

[UConn James]

From the previews I think it looked like one of those 'stand on pegs that get smaller as time progresses' challenges. You could see some of the apperatus as he walked into the arena.

 

Didn't notice it. How panoramic was the shot? I believe they have used those perches in a few of the Redemption challenges --- definitely for the grappling hook one. And the tile-match this week, was it a stump or the stone dais? They seem to have an affinity for raising up the contestants. If it is a standing challenge, this might not be a problem for Matt as long as he has one good leg. Remember that Sarita is hurting too, in the facial region, which can do a number on balance. I mean that in the sense that you can often put pain in an extremity out of mind for a time and it can be managed in short bursts. But facial pain is constant, it's got a short receptor path to the brain and is not ignored easily. That said, there wasn't any mention this week of Sarita's possible infection (much more likely that she's just a neurotic hypochondriac like so many other women).

 

What's the engineering on that, tho? Do they switch to smaller pegs after a set amount of time? Or, to borrow from the late Senator Ted Stevens' description of the Internet, is it a series of tubes whose outer layers can drop down, say, a half-inch at a time?

 

Really have to wonder whether the crew pay attention to physical ailments and design challenges that can possibly trip someone up. Like in this case, they might have been planning a different one, but when they heard Matt had a foot injury --- Hppt! We're doing a how long can you stand challenge! It does provide a little extra drama.

Edited March 31, 2011 by UConn James

[Just Jack]

What's the engineering on that, tho? Do they switch to smaller pegs after a set amount of time? Or, to borrow from the late Senator Ted Stevens' description of the Internet, is it a series of tubes whose outer layers can drop down, say, a half-inch at a time?

Here's the video preview for next week, when Matt and Sarita enter, you can see two contraptions to their left that look similar to the ones used in previous seasons. Basically there are sets of pegs mounted on the sides and after a set number of minutes they have to move to the next smaller set. Here's a description from the Tocantins season....

Immunity Challenge: The castaways would brace themselves with their arms between two walls while standing barefoot on two foot pegs. Every 15 minutes, the castaways would move down to smaller foot pegs. When the castaways reached the third set of foot pegs, they would try to remain on them as long as they could. The last castaway to remain on their pegs would win.

[UConn James]

Here's the video preview for next week, when Matt and Sarita enter, you can see two contraptions to their left that look similar to the ones used in previous seasons. Basically there are sets of pegs mounted on the sides and after a set number of minutes they have to move to the next smaller set. Here's a description from the Tocantins season....

Immunity Challenge: The castaways would brace themselves with their arms between two walls while standing barefoot on two foot pegs. Every 15 minutes, the castaways would move down to smaller foot pegs. When the castaways reached the third set of foot pegs, they would try to remain on them as long as they could. The last castaway to remain on their pegs would win.

 

OK, so that's not a one-foot challenge. Yikes. Seriously bad break for Matt.... But it might depend on where exactly the cut is. If it's on the heel, it might not affect him greatly. If it's near the toes, that'll be tough.

 

I've read that men are better able to handle pain in short spurts, whereas women are physically able to endure drawn-out pain. This would seem to correspond with traditional roles vis-a-vis an ability to block out pain during the furtive moments in hunting-gathering, and for women, in childbirth.

[Acantha]

Probst has a great job, man...lol

 

I agree about Rob keeping the idol secret. I've never understood why people want to broadcast it to the world when they find one. From time to time it may be useful to mention it, but as a general rule I'd rather keep it to myself if it were me. Rob is playing a very smart game. I'm glad he's on the show, and I'm even more glad Phillip is on his team. That makes for some pretty entertaining tv lol

For someone that seems to like Russel's game so much, you basically disagree with all of his strategies. He always voted out those most dangerous to him (the strongest on his team). Especially in the first season, his most brilliant by far, he basically assured he brought the weakest team to the merge. And he constantly told people he had idols...hell, he relished in it!

 

What exactly is it you like about him? That he uses all of this bad strategy and still gets to the end?

[ajzepp]

For someone that seems to like Russel's game so much, you basically disagree with all of his strategies. He always voted out those most dangerous to him (the strongest on his team). Especially in the first season, his most brilliant by far, he basically assured he brought the weakest team to the merge. And he constantly told people he had idols...hell, he relished in it!

 

What exactly is it you like about him? That he uses all of this bad strategy and still gets to the end?

 

True...there are two reasons for that: First of all, I'm completely biased. I don't necessarily like Russell as a person, but I love his game play. Second, Russell is really the only person who can carry out his style of game play successfully. He doesn't ever establish long term alliances. He may have one girl he stays with all game, but his alliances with others change at the drop of a hat. He never went after the strongest player per se, he went after whoever was the biggest threat to him at the time. Russell can pretty much strategize effectively from nearly every situation, so the game just isn't the same for him.

 

The reason why I have been so critical of this dumbass tribe so far this season is because 1) I wanted Russell to stay on the show, so I'm butt-hurt over him being voted out, and 2) the mbrs of his tribe are just plain stupid. They don't have the ability to play the game like russell did, so voting out strong players hurts them in the long run. Russell would get to the merge, evaluate the situation, and make alliances accordingly. These idiots will be picked off one by one by Rob's team since that tribe will likely maintain their tribal loyalties. There are a couple wild cards, with Phillip being the most obvious, and they may all decide to go after Rob before doing anything else, but ultimately lurch, dopey, she-he and the rest of them will be sitting ducks.

Edited April 5, 2011 by ajzepp

[UConn James]

Tonight's episode is titled "This Game Respects Big Moves."

 

I'm predicting the following: Matt wins and re-enters (tentatively), Dave turns, and Philip remains (again, tentatively) in the yellow alliance. They pick apart the remnants of purple one by one.

 

I think the title is referring to Dave's move. But I also wouldn't be surprised if Philip plays it stupid and switches to gorilla mode / joins purple alliance, and from there, it'll rely on the individual immunity idol and Rob's secret idol.

 

As I wrote before, it might be smart for Rob to reveal to Grant that he found the idol (in a whole "Hey, look what I just found!" way, but I'd certainly understand if he wants to keep it secret for as long as he can. BTW - does idol use at tribal change any once the merge comes on, or is it still that you have to play it before the vote?

[Ramius]

Tonight's episode is titled "This Game Respects Big Moves."

 

I'm predicting the following: Matt wins and re-enters (tentatively), Dave turns, and Philip remains (again, tentatively) in the yellow alliance. They pick apart the remnants of purple one by one.

 

I think the title is referring to Dave's move. But I also wouldn't be surprised if Philip plays it stupid and switches to gorilla mode / joins purple alliance, and from there, it'll rely on the individual immunity idol and Rob's secret idol.

 

As I wrote before, it might be smart for Rob to reveal to Grant that he found the idol (in a whole "Hey, look what I just found!" way, but I'd certainly understand if he wants to keep it secret for as long as he can. BTW - does idol use at tribal change any once the merge comes on, or is it still that you have to play it before the vote?

 

You (at least in previous seasons) can use the idol right up to the final 5. Nothing has every changed at the merge regarding idol use.

 

A lot rides on who comes back from redemption island. If Sarita finds a way to win, there's no telling which way she'd go. I can see her joining either tribe, or campaigning to remove david. I could also see Rob snagging her and using her to his advantage, ala Russel. The purple tribe is down in numbers, but there's too much variance going into this merge, with philip and david being total wildcards, as well as whoever comes back from redemption island. I dont think either "tribe" is very strong as a whole, but you've got some seemingly solid 4-5 person groups. I guess a lot depends on where those in the middle swing to.

 

My prediction for the "big move" is that Matt comes back and tries to oust Rob right away. He was close to freaky-wide eyes girl on rob's tribe and i could see the other 2 morons (natalie and ashley) swinging to his side. But i also predict that Rob, in a shrewd move, tells the old purple tribe to vote for Matt, and Matt goes home after Rob plays his idol.

[UConn James]

You (at least in previous seasons) can use the idol right up to the final 5. Nothing has every changed at the merge regarding idol use.

 

A lot rides on who comes back from redemption island. If Sarita finds a way to win, there's no telling which way she'd go. I can see her joining either tribe, or campaigning to remove david. I could also see Rob snagging her and using her to his advantage, ala Russel. The purple tribe is down in numbers, but there's too much variance going into this merge, with philip and david being total wildcards, as well as whoever comes back from redemption island. I dont think either "tribe" is very strong as a whole, but you've got some seemingly solid 4-5 person groups. I guess a lot depends on where those in the middle swing to.

 

My prediction for the "big move" is that Matt comes back and tries to oust Rob right away. He was close to freaky-wide eyes girl on rob's tribe and i could see the other 2 morons (natalie and ashley) swinging to his side. But i also predict that Rob, in a shrewd move, tells the old purple tribe to vote for Matt, and Matt goes home after Rob plays his idol.

 

Purple's gray-hair Steve looked pretty nonplussed when Sarita got booted, and from all his other comments, he was the other Dave vote.

 

If Sarita were to survive Redemption, I could see Rob offering protection in exchange for her vote, probably for about 4-5 weeks. Beyond that, he's got other commitments. I don't know; I don't think Matt is a battle Rob would choose to pick right now, unless Matt turns to the purple alliance (and possibly takes the blonde with him... but there was some distance b/w this former pair at Redemption the other week, so it will be key to find out where Matt's loyalties are now. If the injury to his foot is bad, he'll have to ally, b/c he won't be able to count on winning individual immunities as those get more physical and movement-oriented).

 

That's what makes post-merge the best part of the show. The possibility of things changing really big, really fast.

[WWVaBeach]

That as David said was a genious move. They (Rob's tribe) eliminated Matt's wishywashyness. And as his comments at the end show proved he's clueless.

Edited April 7, 2011 by WWVaBeach

[Rico]

That as David said was a genious move. They (Rob's tribe) eliminated Matt's wishywashyness. And as his comments at the end show proved he's clueless.

Disagree, I think Robfather had the slight numbers edge and needed to get rid of at least 2 other members of the other tribe first., Then again, he looks OK though based on next week's previews, plus he still has the Idol & the other one got used this week. I will be very disappointed if he doesn't win, no one else is close to being worthy, at least up to this point.

[UConn James]

Again, this was written as it went:

 

On Redemption, Sarita is talking up Purple and it's got Matt questioning whether he'll re-up with Yellow.

Philip is back to Lion and cooling his defection talk, and heating up his bushido code talk --- blah blah blah. Holy crap, Phil can talk a streak and not say anything of coherence or consequence. As much as he is disliked, Philip could hang around.

 

The cut on Matt's foot ain't too bad, and not in a critical spot. And even squirming a lot, he wins. A new round of Redemption Island after the merge! Wow. It's been a great addition to the game this season. I'd much rather have a player get another shot than watch some dumb reward challenge. How dumb was it that some in Yellow weren't going to take all their stuff?

 

Matt's getting friendly with Andrea again. Mike making promises to Mike --- "I have access to the idol if you need it..." The scheming was to vote out Steve, then Philip, to keep everyone on guard, and then move to the ultimate goal to blindside Rob. So there it is. Only, after sleeping on it, maybe it's not.

 

I thought Grant would've done better on the challenge. What threw Mike there --- the fly?? Natalie's safe! Boy, can she handle those balls! Good news for Rob and the Yellow alliance; this may help sway Matt into it. Wavering before tribal.... And voted off via Rob; back to his home base on Redemption. Dave: "Genius move, that was."

 

I don't know. Rob was definitely trying to remove any form of uncertainty, and like he said, any form of cohesion (through religion here). Some will say that he should've gone after someone from Purple first to get up on numbers a bit. But, I can see his logic. Like Probst said, Matt was a hinge vote --- to wit, Matt sat in the dead middle tonight --- that any could sway either way, any week, and held sway over Andrea in a powerful two-vote bloc that had eliminating Rob as its goal, no matter what Matt said in the cliff-talk and bible-talk. Rob is putting Andrea on an island, figuratively, by putting Matt on an island, literally. She now either has to conform to Yellow or try her luck in a switch with Purple, which no longer has a hidden idol. To have any chance next week, they have to win immunity and try to turn Andrea... and they may have to steal Rob's idol.

[ajzepp]

Wow, I cannot BELIEVE that Matt ran his mouth like that...I was really happy for the kid when he won the last redemption challenge and got to rejoin the tribes...but FUX SAKE MAN...you don't go running your mouth like that! lol If he just would have told Rob he was loyal to their group and was ready to kick some butt, he would have been fine...but he just had to tell Rob EVERYTHING, so Rob basically had no choice but to get rid of the wild card.

 

I was glad to see that there were actually signs of life on the dumbass tribe. For a minute there, I really thought Mike the former Iraqi vet was going to become the new mastermind. He had a great plan in place to make a huge move, but Matt left his balls on redemption island

 

Looks like Rob still has a leadership position within his group, but that will change at some point....just a matter of when.

 

All in all, another good episode. And I agree with James about the continuation of redemption island...I thought that was it, but to re-start it is brilliant! It will be REALLY interesting to see when they come back into the game this time...and the duels will be much more intense from here on out.

[CosmicBills]

Wow, I cannot BELIEVE that Matt ran his mouth like that...I was really happy for the kid when he won the last redemption challenge and got to rejoin the tribes...but FUX SAKE MAN...you don't go running your mouth like that! lol If he just would have told Rob he was loyal to their group and was ready to kick some butt, he would have been fine...but he just had to tell Rob EVERYTHING, so Rob basically had no choice but to get rid of the wild card.

 

I was glad to see that there were actually signs of life on the dumbass tribe. For a minute there, I really thought Mike the former Iraqi vet was going to become the new mastermind. He had a great plan in place to make a huge move, but Matt left his balls on redemption island

 

Looks like Rob still has a leadership position within his group, but that will change at some point....just a matter of when.

 

All in all, another good episode. And I agree with James about the continuation of redemption island...I thought that was it, but to re-start it is brilliant! It will be REALLY interesting to see when they come back into the game this time...and the duels will be much more intense from here on out.

Also, there's no a pretty big strategic possibility, more than during the team portion, of sending someone to redemption just to eliminate a strong competitor who's already on it. For example, if Mike goes and starts dominating on Redemption (I don't think Matt can go on another run like that), then maybe it's in Rob's best interest to (knowingly) send Grant just to beat Mike and make sure he doesn't come back into the game.

 

That's a huge risk obviously, and I'm not sure people will be savvy enough to make it in the first season with RI, but who knows.

 

It could also be stupid (on my part).

[ajzepp]

Also, there's no a pretty big strategic possibility, more than during the team portion, of sending someone to redemption just to eliminate a strong competitor who's already on it. For example, if Mike goes and starts dominating on Redemption (I don't think Matt can go on another run like that), then maybe it's in Rob's best interest to (knowingly) send Grant just to beat Mike and make sure he doesn't come back into the game.

 

That's a huge risk obviously, and I'm not sure people will be savvy enough to make it in the first season with RI, but who knows.

 

It could also be stupid (on my part).

 

That's actually an interesting concept...you're basically saying that Rob could send Grant as a hitman, so to speak...knowing that Grant is a solid competitor and would likely have a good chance of re-entering the game. I like it

[CosmicBills]

That's actually an interesting concept...you're basically saying that Rob could send Grant as a hitman, so to speak...knowing that Grant is a solid competitor and would likely have a good chance of re-entering the game. I like it

Exactly. It'd have to be something they'd talk about and not something they do too early. The idea being, "hey, let's send you just to make sure that Mike (or whoever) doesn't come back into the game." It'd be a HUGE risk for whoever goes, but for Rob it'd be win-win as it would take Grant out of individual immunity for a bit.

[UConn James]

Wow, I cannot BELIEVE that Matt ran his mouth like that...I was really happy for the kid when he won the last redemption challenge and got to rejoin the tribes...but FUX SAKE MAN...you don't go running your mouth like that! lol If he just would have told Rob he was loyal to their group and was ready to kick some butt, he would have been fine...but he just had to tell Rob EVERYTHING, so Rob basically had no choice but to get rid of the wild card.

 

I was glad to see that there were actually signs of life on the dumbass tribe. For a minute there, I really thought Mike the former Iraqi vet was going to become the new mastermind. He had a great plan in place to make a huge move, but Matt left his balls on redemption island

 

Looks like Rob still has a leadership position within his group, but that will change at some point....just a matter of when.

 

All in all, another good episode. And I agree with James about the continuation of redemption island...I thought that was it, but to re-start it is brilliant! It will be REALLY interesting to see when they come back into the game this time...and the duels will be much more intense from here on out.

 

Jeff Probst's blog entry is up. Says that the challenges are designed and scheduled far in advance, so it was fate coinciding that Matt had a challenge tough on the feet the day after his cut.

 

I also didn't realize until I just read it that Andrea voted for Matt, since there was only one vote for Steve. That's just a wow factor right there. Per a bonus video, Matt really pissed her off by revealing all to Rob on the cliff there, without having consulted with her first. At that point, she needed to show loyalty over her connection with Matt. Probst questions what this does to Matt's worldview, even outside of the game. I think Matt's smart enough to realize that it is a game, and at least in last night's broadcast, he could probably see the strategic error of his way with flip-flopping.

 

Probst also comments about Redemption, that he loves it, and is "shocked" that anyone could be bored about it (and the complexity it adds to the game).

 

It was such a small sophomoric detail, but the whole Murlonio tribe-naming thing is just a testament to how much Rob is controlling this game.

 

That's actually an interesting concept...you're basically saying that Rob could send Grant as a hitman, so to speak...knowing that Grant is a solid competitor and would likely have a good chance of re-entering the game. I like it

 

I dunno about it. That's a hell of a chance to take / volunteer for (assuming that Grant volunteers rather than being sent by Rob). If it were attempted, it would certainly have to come later, probably after about 4 or 5 tribals. They're probably content right now to see if anyone they send can knock Matt off in the meantime. For now, they need to concentrate on winning the individual immunity and picking off the remnants of Purple.

 

And at this point, owing to his "genius" comment last night and his problems among Purple, I think it's very possible that Dave might join the Yellow alliance until the rest of Purple is sent packing. Gotta assume that they target Mike first.

Edited April 7, 2011 by UConn James

[Rico]

Well, I think one of the worst things you can do out there is to overthink the game... easy to do with all that time on your hands. Too easy to make mistakes... not a problem for the under-the-radar players, they just let things work out naturally & more often than not, they end up winning.

[UConn James]

Tonight's episode is titled "The Buddy System" and there will be a double tribal elimination. And from the previews, it looks like Phillip is again considering gorilla/red-headed-stepchild mode.

 

I don't know how they're going to work that WRT the individual immunity challenge, or how they'll be coordinating the Redemption Island match.

 

It'll also be interesting to find out if they start again with only four people witnessing it.

Edited April 13, 2011 by UConn James

[ajzepp]

Tonight's episode is titled "The Buddy System" and there will be a double tribal elimination. And from the previews, it looks like Phillip is again considering gorilla/red-headed-stepchild mode.

 

I don't know how they're going to work that WRT the individual immunity challenge, or how they'll be coordinating the Redemption Island match.

 

It'll also be interesting to find out if they start again with only four people witnessing it.

 

As much as I want Rob to win it all, I find myself really looking forward to the show each week primarily to see what Phillip's crazy ass will do or say lol