Survivor: One World

[ajzepp]

I wanted Heidik to win from the 1st episode, so I am a little biased cause of that... but he really was great, which I think you will see if you follow all the way to the end. Incredible final tribal, so much hatred.

 

So far he's pretty much just playin' it cool...pretty good bit of drama going on around him, though. I didn't start watching the show until 2007 (Survivor China), and then I went back and watched what was available on DVD but there were still a few seasons that fell through the cracks. Glad I have the chance to see a bit of what I missed. Even just watching the first several episodes of S5, it's clear to me that the show has become much less intense in terms of the "survival" aspect. I think they need to get back to their roots a little so that those with actual survival skills become more valuable. Makes the show more interesting, too, IMO. The last several seasons have been more like a vacation than an exercise in survival.

[Just Jack]

I just realized I'm probably going to hate the reunion portion tonight. I think Colton is gonna dominate the conversations saying he would have won.

[Talley56]

It's rare that the person who wins Survivor was truly the best player. But I can safely say Kim really was the best player in the entire game this season. Congrats to her and well deserved.

[Rico]

Congrats Kim, what a spectacular, dominating performance tonight! Wins both immunity challenges with a HII in her pocket, doesn't take the worst player to the Final 3, and still wins convincingly. Brilliant social game throughout, and rock solid final tribal, she is one of the all-time greats!

 

ETA: AND it looks like the stache is gone!

Edited May 14, 2012 by Rico

[ajzepp]

Did anyone else feel that Chelsea looked worse with make-up? I thought she was really hot on the island, but way too much eye make-up tonight.

 

Congrats to Kim...she dominated for sure.

 

Alicia won the award for the most annoying player for me with her whole "I'm a kingpin and you would have been pooping bricks if you hadn't taken me out". She has no clue...she was never a threat whatsoever, and the first time they felt she needed to go, she was gone. No game whatsoever, and I was glad that she took crap for her special needs comment to Christina.

 

The final Q&A session at the last tribal council proved just why this season was so lousy...did anyone even ASK a damn question? It seemed like the jury was just up there spewing whatever they felt like talking about...I swear, like four of them didn't even ask a question. Idiots.

 

Oh, and Troyzan, you're nowhere NEAR the level of the greatest players in the game. The greatest players can dictate their outcome to a much larger degree than you could. Even when they're up against it, they find a way to survive another day. The players who are even greater still control the game without even being viewed as a target. You don't fall into any of those categories, brother...

 

I'm glad this season is done...I'm ready for next season and some REAL players!

[Rico]

Did anyone else feel that Chelsea looked worse with make-up? I thought she was really hot on the island, but way too much eye make-up tonight.

 

Congrats to Kim...she dominated for sure.

 

Alicia won the award for the most annoying player for me with her whole "I'm a kingpin and you would have been pooping bricks if you hadn't taken me out". She has no clue...she was never a threat whatsoever, and the first time they felt she needed to go, she was gone. No game whatsoever, and I was glad that she took crap for her special needs comment to Christina.

 

The final Q&A session at the last tribal council proved just why this season was so lousy...did anyone even ASK a damn question? It seemed like the jury was just up there spewing whatever they felt like talking about...I swear, like four of them didn't even ask a question. Idiots.

 

Oh, and Troyzan, you're nowhere NEAR the level of the greatest players in the game. The greatest players can dictate their outcome to a much larger degree than you could. Even when they're up against it, they find a way to survive another day. The players who are even greater still control the game without even being viewed as a target. You don't fall into any of those categories, brother...

 

I'm glad this season is done...I'm ready for next season and some REAL players!

Yeah, LMAO at Troyzan, what a tool... he probably thought he won fan favorite too. How the hell could you vote for Sabrina over Kim? So bitter lol.

[ajzepp]

Yeah, LMAO at Troyzan, what a tool... he probably thought he won fan favorite too. How the hell could you vote for Sabrina over Kim? So bitter lol.

 

Exactly, that's the sort of crap that pisses me off about the jury vote...these people completely lose sight of the fact that it's a game and can't get over being voted out. Kim was clearly the best player, and if there was any doubt she completely erased it at the end. Troyzan ended up being one of the biggest morons of the season, and that's saying a LOT lol.

[UConn James]

Did anyone else feel that Chelsea looked worse with make-up? I thought she was really hot on the island, but way too much eye make-up tonight.

 

Congrats to Kim...she dominated for sure.

 

Alicia won the award for the most annoying player for me with her whole "I'm a kingpin and you would have been pooping bricks if you hadn't taken me out". She has no clue...she was never a threat whatsoever, and the first time they felt she needed to go, she was gone. No game whatsoever, and I was glad that she took crap for her special needs comment to Christina.

 

The final Q&A session at the last tribal council proved just why this season was so lousy...did anyone even ASK a damn question? It seemed like the jury was just up there spewing whatever they felt like talking about...I swear, like four of them didn't even ask a question. Idiots.

 

Oh, and Troyzan, you're nowhere NEAR the level of the greatest players in the game. The greatest players can dictate their outcome to a much larger degree than you could. Even when they're up against it, they find a way to survive another day. The players who are even greater still control the game without even being viewed as a target. You don't fall into any of those categories, brother...

 

I'm glad this season is done...I'm ready for next season and some REAL players!

 

I've gotta say that the studio lighting was terrible. The fake fire was throwing shadows in the worst angles. It got better after they raised the Klieg lights shortly after the vote was revealed.

 

I really don't give a stevestojan about her crocodile tears --- Alicia is a terrible person. She can say that she watched that and didn't know who that was all she wants. She still said it. She can say it was all in the heat of the moment. She still said that sp-ed kids are sub-human idiots/tools. It's like Gel Mibson's excuse that he's drunk every time he shouts Jews-this Jews-that. You're at your most honest in the heat of the moment. Again, if I were a sp-ed parent, I wouldn't let this shrew within 100 feet of my child.

 

Kat's story might actually have helped her if she'd revealed it during the game. The narrative knock on her was her youth = stupidity. I bought that. Having faced open-heart surgery and facing another soon... that adds years and a measure of respect for what she's been through. Still, dumb as a bag of rocks.

 

For all Tarzan's beating on chest, the one doing that most tonight was Troyzan. There's no million bucks for someone who plays into traps and then suddenly realizes he's in a too-small alliance with people who aren't loyal to him and it's too late to do anything about it. You're playing the game from Day 1, not Day 24.

 

Yep, Kim won. Yeah, I can't say I'm surprised that she was recently divorced. Wonder if she told her ex at the divorce proceedings that it's just a game and to be quiet while his throat gets slit. I know her type. Yeah, out of this sorry bunch, she deserved it. If she faced ANYONE who could actually see more than one move ahead or had an attitude other than 'Just happy to be here!' / "I'll try to make your case from within the jury" she would've been toast. In All-Stars, she would be the stuff that Russell picks out of his teeth. What if everyone didn't just lay down for her?

Edited May 14, 2012 by UConn James

[ajzepp]

I've gotta say that the studio lighting was terrible. The fake fire was throwing shadows in the worst angles. It got better after they raised the Klieg lights shortly after the vote was revealed.

 

I really don't give a stevestojan about her crocodile tears --- Alicia is a terrible person. She can say that she watched that and didn't know who that was all she wants. She still said it. She can say it was all in the heat of the moment. She still said that sp-ed kids are sub-human idiots/tools. It's like Gel Mibson's excuse that he's drunk every time he shouts Jews-this Jews-that. You're at your most honest in the heat of the moment. Again, if I were a sp-ed parent, I wouldn't let this shrew within 100 feet of my child.

 

Kat's story might actually have helped her if she'd revealed it during the game. The narrative knock on her was her youth = stupidity. I bought that. Having faced open-heart surgery and facing another soon... that adds years and a measure of respect for what she's been through. Still, dumb as a bag of rocks.

 

For all Tarzan's beating on chest, the one doing that most tonight was Troyzan. There's no million bucks for someone who plays into traps and then suddenly realizes he's in a too-small alliance with people who aren't loyal to him and it's too late to do anything about it. You're playing the game from Day 1, not Day 24.

 

Yep, Kim won. Yeah, I can't say I'm surprised that she was recently divorced. Wonder if she told her ex at the divorce proceedings that it's just a game and to be quiet while his throat gets slit. I know her type. Yeah, out of this sorry bunch, she deserved it. If she faced ANYONE who could actually see more than one move ahead or had an attitude other than 'Just happy to be here!' / "I'll try to make your case from within the jury" she would've been toast. In All-Stars, she would be the stuff that Russell picks out of his teeth. What if everyone didn't just lay down for her?

 

So true...I give her credit for winning, but to put her on the same level as Russell or some of the other top players just doesn't hold water. In a way, this season almost reminded me of the one where that JT guy won. For whatever reason, nobody ever really stood up to him or challenged him after a certain point. I think that was Coach's first season, but even he sort of acted pretty soft toward JT...I don't think anyone wrote his name down even once that entire season. Same thing sort of happened with Kim this season, except the people she played with and against were nowhere near as strong as the ones JT had around him. I give Kim credit for winning immunity as often as she did, but she just really didn't seem to have any serious challenge to her position at all.

 

All I know is that I've seen about 19 of the 24 seasons of the show, and this one was easily the worst group they've ever assembled. I wish Colton wouldn't have gotten hurt, because at least things were a bit more stirred up when he was around. I would much rather have someone I really don't like but who keeps it interesting as opposed to someone I do like who is boring. I like that the next adventure will be in the Philippines...that's a very interesting place...I just really hope they assemble a stronger group.

[Rico]

Sorry, but Russell was 0-3 in Survivor. Very entertaining, yes. Great for ratings, yes. Horrible social game, yes. He never had a prayer of winning any of his seasons and thus was a bottom-line failure as a player. Kim would've used her spectacular social game to get rid of him pretty early on... and even if production helped him (again!) and kept him around longer, he wouldn't have a chance against Kim in the end.

[UConn James]

All I know is that I've seen about 19 of the 24 seasons of the show, and this one was easily the worst group they've ever assembled. I wish Colton wouldn't have gotten hurt, because at least things were a bit more stirred up when he was around. I would much rather have someone I really don't like but who keeps it interesting as opposed to someone I do like who is boring. I like that the next adventure will be in the Philippines...that's a very interesting place...I just really hope they assemble a stronger group.

 

Can this season end the dopey men vs. women crap once and for all? Or at least make it 9 women vs. 9 men (rather than 7 men, 1 girlie-man, and 1 total ing pleonastic buffoon). This narrative has never worked for the show, it didn't work this time without the producers' intervention early-on, and its ending here really sucked.

 

As for the S25 medical redshirts, the only one I can remember (I stopped watching for a number of seasons) was the guy with the impacted bowel (Bruce?) who up until that time seemed to be playing a good social game. I don't think Colton might be making a quick return. They certainly spent the lion's share of the reunion show on him... for a purpose, methinks. Seemed to have a pre-game fat reserve build-up going on. But then again, Christina appeared to have bulked back up as well.

 

Speaking of, besides being the only thing they could nit on her for, I don't get why the Final Three snarked on her at the last tribal. The writing was on the wall for everyone to see. They had told her that she was next. That alliance had been cemented, bronzed, platinumed.... No amount of Christina making the rounds saying, "Will you vote for Sabrina??! C'mon, you know you want to!" I was with my father, who was a delegate, at a state political convention in 2010 and the people who came around asking b/w nomination rounds if he would switch his vote (governor was the most contested, I think there were 6 candidates) were just ing annoying. I don't understand how anyone could be that fickle even when a million bucks isn't at stake.

 

Still, I was a little surprised that Kim took Sabrina. Chelsea was a coat-tail rider and it was obvious to everybody; she based her argument on attracting jury members who were butt-hurt, to use aj's word. Not that it was really a question about who was going to win, but Kim took a strong competitor over someone who was viewed as weak. Maybe it was a "to be the best, you've gotta beat the best" mentality to it. Or leave a possibly sympathetic player out and just take people who had backstabbed/schemed just as she had? Yeah, that last one.

 

Sorry, but Russell was 0-3 in Survivor. Very entertaining, yes. Great for ratings, yes. Horrible social game, yes. He never had a prayer of winning any of his seasons and thus was a bottom-line failure as a player. Kim would've used her spectacular social game to get rid of him pretty early on... and even if production helped him (again!) and kept him around longer, he wouldn't have a chance against Kim in the end.

 

I wasn't implying that Russell would win the whole shebang just with the variable of Kim being there, but the point is that she would have actual competition, rather than, as I wrote, stupid people just laying down for her.

[Ramius]

Wow. Kim was one of the worst winners in the history of the game. Yes, technically she played the best game on her specific season, but overall it was crap. Kim's ability rates somewhere on the 3-4 range out of 10 scale. If she had been with anyone with some type of firing synapses, she wouldn't have made it very far past the merge. She didn't win the game so much as the guys completely imploded this season (from going to tribal after a win to them falling apart after the merger to tarzan being a complete tool).

 

Also, it seemed as if none of the top 6 were playing to win. Tarzan was playing to be the last guy left, and the girls were all playing to get to eliminate the guys, and then seemingly had no idea what to do when there were no more guys to vote out. I just can't respect anyone of them. Basically, no effort was required to win this season because everyone just laid down. I'll give Kim props for winning challenges, but that's it.

 

Alicia is an absolute scumbag, and is nothing more than a legend in her own mind. She never had control of the game, and never had power over anyone. The single chance she had to take control of the game she squandered by voting Tarzan out.

 

As AJ said, i hope they get some real players next season. Enough of these single 20-somethings. Get a good mix of players from all backgrounds and ages. I think the real problem started when they began recruiting and casting players instead of sifting through applications.

 

EDIT: (regarding the medical redshirts for next fall) I dont particularly like bringing back old contestants anymore, because it seems as if they just run the show and everyone else follows them. That being said, some people who got evacuated that could be coming back:

 

Colton - i bet anything he's coming back

Kourtney - the first out this season

James - he did get evac'ed but has played the game what 2-3 times now?

Johnathan Penner - the snarky writer, but he's also played multiple times.

Russell Swan - The guy from a few seasons back who passed out during the labryinth challenge in Samoa. IIRC, his tribe was strong until he left and then they fell apart http://www.realitytvworld.com/news/russell-swan-gets-medically-evacuated-from-survivor-samoa-9806.php

Edited May 14, 2012 by Ramius

[Just Jack]

As for the S25 medical redshirts, the only one I can remember (I stopped watching for a number of seasons) was the guy with the impacted bowel (Bruce?) who up until that time seemed to be playing a good social game.

Season 2 - Michael Skupin - fell into fire

 

Season 12 - Bruce Kanegai

 

Season 14 - Gary "Papa Smurf" Stritesky - allergic reaction to bug bites

 

Season 16 - Jonathan Penner - infected knee

- James Clement - infected finger

 

Season 18 - Joe Dowdle - infected leg

 

Season 19 - Mike Borassi - hurt during immunity challenge

- Russell Swan - fainted during immunity, low heart rate

 

Season 24 - Kourtney Moon - injured wrist

- Colton Cumbie - appendicitis

 

I'd like to see Kourtney come back, she was the earliest of everyone to have to leave. I don't want to see Colton, but I think they will have him back since it's good for ratings.

[Rico]

Pretty much confirmed elsewhere that Skupin will be back.

[ajzepp]

Sorry, but Russell was 0-3 in Survivor. Very entertaining, yes. Great for ratings, yes. Horrible social game, yes. He never had a prayer of winning any of his seasons and thus was a bottom-line failure as a player. Kim would've used her spectacular social game to get rid of him pretty early on... and even if production helped him (again!) and kept him around longer, he wouldn't have a chance against Kim in the end.

 

True, but in all honesty, since the Jury is the one who decides the winner and we all know that they often vote out of anger with little-to-no objectivity, I think you can pretty much throw all of the FINALISTS into the same group and determine from there who the best players are. If Russell had control over the jury vote like he had control during the game, then he would have won. But when you take the power out of the players hands and shift it to the jury, anything can happen, and it's very clear that the jury does NOT always vote for the most deserving. That blonde girl who won on Russell's first season was the most absurd "winner" in the history of the game next to Sandra (I don't really mean that about Sandra, but had to take another shot for Rico's sake lol). She didn't do SQUAT except to do whatever Russell told her to do. You may has well have voted for one of the chickens (RIP) to win the game. Anyone who watched the show that season knows who the best player was, and there is absolutely no argument to be made that the blonde girl was worthy of the "sole survivor" title. She was the biggest beneficiary in the history of the show. So Russell is 0-3 but with at least one asterisk!

[Rico]

True, but in all honesty, since the Jury is the one who decides the winner and we all know that they often vote out of anger with little-to-no objectivity, I think you can pretty much throw all of the FINALISTS into the same group and determine from there who the best players are. If Russell had control over the jury vote like he had control during the game, then he would have won. But when you take the power out of the players hands and shift it to the jury, anything can happen, and it's very clear that the jury does NOT always vote for the most deserving. That blonde girl who won on Russell's first season was the most absurd "winner" in the history of the game next to Sandra (I don't really mean that about Sandra, but had to take another shot for Rico's sake lol). She didn't do SQUAT except to do whatever Russell told her to do. You may has well have voted for one of the chickens (RIP) to win the game. Anyone who watched the show that season knows who the best player was, and there is absolutely no argument to be made that the blonde girl was worthy of the "sole survivor" title. She was the biggest beneficiary in the history of the show. So Russell is 0-3 but with at least one asterisk!

No asterisk needed here

 

[ajzepp]

No asterisk needed here

 

damn you

[ajzepp]

So I've been watching a couple past seasons of the show...

 

I finished watching B.Heydik (or whatever his name is) and honestly I didn't think he played THAT great of a game. I didn't see the very last episode or the reunion, but I saw all the other episodes. He doesn't even really start to strategize until half way thorough. I don't consider him to be a top 5 survivor at all.

 

I'm half way through Survivor Fiji, which was S14 from 2007. Honestly, I think they were on to something with this one. One of the tribes damn near starved and they kept mixing up the tribes. On the last episode they even split them into two teams after the merge for an immunity challenge and then sent the losers to tribal IMMEDIATELY with no time to strategize at all. They have kept everyone on the move all season and some of them have really had to struggle with the environment. That's how the show SHOULD be. It should be you having to function during challenges and in a social environment WHILE you're also struggling with your basic needs. The show coddles them too much now...I don't know if something happened or what, but this is more my idea of how the game should be played. One team was having to lick the dew off of plant leaves because they were unable to get fire going for a day or two and couldn't boil their water. THAT'S survivor...

[ajzepp]

I just finished S14 and I don't understand why Yau-Man doesn't get more credit...he played one of the best games I've ever seen! That dumbass "Dreamz" guy is one of the biggest d-heads ever to be on the show, too. But Yau has a new place on my top 5 survivors of all-time for sure...excellent strategic, social, and competitive game.

[Rico]

I just finished S14 and I don't understand why Yau-Man doesn't get more credit...he played one of the best games I've ever seen! That dumbass "Dreamz" guy is one of the biggest d-heads ever to be on the show, too. But Yau has a new place on my top 5 survivors of all-time for sure...excellent strategic, social, and competitive game.

Lord Heidik rules all.

 

Dreamz rocked, pure entertainment.

 

 

Yao-Man sucked zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.