Survivor 37: David vs Goliath

[JirinPanthosa]

Might as well be the one to create the topic this time.

It's a shame that we already lost somebody to a medical evac, especially an injury being boated back from the challenge. He probably had some kind of underlying condition.

Aside from that, I like the cast so far. Nobody is unbearable and there's a few immediately likable people, though I remember nobody's name so far.

By the way, I looked up the cast for Amazing Race 31, which has already been filmed. 5 former AR teams, 3 BB teams, and 3 Survivor teams.

I don't want to give spoilers to anyone who doesn't want them, but we are going to see:

Spoiler

Rupert and his wife!

Also, the Reilly sisters from Big Brother. Janelle & Britney, Nicole & Victor.

The other Survivor and Amazing Race people I don't remember by name but seeing them in person may job the memory. Except, Colin & Christie, from season 5, which if I remember correctly is one of those horribly dysfunctional couples where the guy was seeming borderline abusive.

 

[Spot's Meow]

I thought this was a great first episode to the season, although the ending was quite sad. I listen to a few Survivor podcasts and have heard a couple of interviews with Pat. He seems to have blacked out for the actual event, but based on what others have told him he was launched into the air when they hit a massive wave, and likely hit his head on the top of the boat, causing some sort of compression injury to his spine. Scary stuff.

It was strange how much it seemed to fit the season's theme. Especially strange when you consider what Jeff Probst has said in a couple of interviews, that Pat was basically the inspiration for the David vs. Goliath theme.

I'm feeling good about this season, as I'm already liking several of the personalities. Hopefully it's not like last season, where the most interesting personalities almost all went home pre-merge.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

One thing I didn't like is the way that after Pat was taken away, Jeff gave that speech where he tried to make Pat's injury all about the season's central narrative.

You can make things about the narrative when a game move happens and somebody is blindsided or loses a challenge or something, not when somebody may or may not be horribly injured.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

People already showing that building trust is more important than any easy rule like "Vote out the weakest".

They didn't make people work as hard for the idols as they have in recent seasons. No finding a clue that it's buried right in the camp, or finding a clue that it's hidden somewhere in the challenge. It was just lying there on a rock.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

That elimination was kind of ironic. "Have you never watched Survivor before? You have no self awareness!" *Does the thing that almost invariably gets a person eliminated immediately in every season of Survivor*

 

[JirinPanthosa]

Surprised usual suspects haven’t been posting here. Will try to bump once but let it fall if nobody else posts.

I like the season so far. Has not been predictable, has been played well and only a couple annoying people.

Christian seems like the obvious favorite, early game he is dominating. He has the strategy of Cochrane and the social skills of Rob.

Idol nullifier is interesting twist.

 

[Spot's Meow]

I'm loving this season so far. I appreciate that they're showing us a lot of different characters and perspectives. In the past you could often guess which tribe was going to tribal council solely based on how much footage they show of them before the immunity challenge. This season I feel like we are getting a more balanced and comprehensive view of the game and the people in it.

I like Christian (who doesn't?) and Gabby most of all. Natalie would be horrible to live with but was incredibly entertaining. I was sad to see Lyrsa go, I found her to be an entertaining character as well.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

Natalie strikes me as somebody who would be cool if the power structures were clear. Somebody who would be s good boss and also a good employee, but not someone who you could get along with if you are her equal in the organization.

Mike seems like he’s in very good position for longevity. A few people seem in trouble like Gabby and the guy with 2 idols but besides Christian there are no clear favorites. Plenty of room for almost anyone to step up and make moves.

 

[Timewalker]

They didn't make people work as hard for the idols as they have in recent seasons. No finding a clue that it's buried right in the camp, or finding a clue that it's hidden somewhere in the challenge. It was just lying there on a rock.

One of the idols was at the competition. I don't remember if it was found, though.

Surprised usual suspects haven’t been posting here. Will try to bump once but let it fall if nobody else posts.

Sorry, I've been busy with writing projects and prepping for NaNoWriMo. Now that it actually is November, NaNoWriMo will take up a lot of my time for the next 27 days.

I've been listening to the episodes, more than watching them (hard to watch both the TV and pay attention to the computer at the same time), so there are probably lots of things I've missed.

Christian seems like the obvious favorite, early game he is dominating. He has the strategy of Cochrane and the social skills of Rob.

I like Christian; he's smarter than a lot of the others give him credit for. Hopefully he won't be taken in by others who want to make him think he's one of the "cool kids" but intend to blindside him.

Natalie would be horrible to live with but was incredibly entertaining.

That obnoxious, bossy loudmouth was entertaining?!

Good riddance to her, and thank goodness the jury doesn't have to put up with her, either.

 

[DigificWriter]

This post isn't really related to the current season, but it is related to Survivor.

I've been binge-watching some of the previous seasons, specifically last year's Ghost Island and the two Blood vs Water seasons, and was wondering what people thought about them. Personally, I thought Ghost Island was as good as this current season has been (which is to say really good), and both BvW seasons are/were also good, with BvW1 winner - and fellow Utahn - Tyson playing one of the best games I've seen in a long time, and BvW2 (which I'm not quite finished with) producing an extremely strong cast full of players who have either already been asked to come back and play again or who should be asked to come back and play again.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

I enjoyed last year's Ghost Island, it was an above average season. I thought the Ghost theme was laid on a bit thick but the drama turned out good toward the end and the right person won.

I'm not a huge fan of the Blood vs Water seasons. I agree Tyson played a great game but that was the only positive of that season. The family twist got in the way and the duels ate up too much screen time. And COLTON. The second one just didn't have interesting gameplay until the last few episodes, and John Rocker is the second worst cast choice after Colton.

 

[DigificWriter]

I actually like both Colton and John Rocker, personally (largely because of some things Colton said in an Afterbuzz TV interview and my opinion that John R did seem at least somewhat remorseful). The people who were the worst from the second BvW, IMO, were Drew and Julie.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

I like watching jerks if they play an entertaining game, but Colton was just a dick for the sake of being a dick. In his first appearance he called someone 'ghetto trash'. And he quit twice. I don't remember Drew & Julie, I just remember it was dull at the start then Natalie played a great endgame.

 

[DigificWriter]

1) Jeff wrongly accused Colton of quitting One World by faking appendicitis, but later conceded that he didn't in fact quit and was legitimately medivacced (this incident is the only time I've been annoyed with Jeff's behavior)

2) Drew was the dweeb who stupidly thought he could trade the Hunaphu tribe's extra flint for the fishing gear they'd had to give up in order to get said flint in the first place and then got himself voted out by intentionally causing his tribe to lose their first immunity challenge and spilling his plan - beforehand - to Kelley Wentworth (Dale's daughter)

2) Julie is John Rocker's girlfriend who stole the trail mix the Huyopa tribe got at the merge feast and then quit the game in a temper tantrum because she couldn't handle "being away from the love of her life" any longer

 

[JirinPanthosa]

Colton is the rich kid whose parents paid for him to go to expensive college then declared “I don’t believe in handouts” in his tirade to call Bill trash for being a standup comedian. To me he’s the worst human being to appear on the show not named Hantz. But at least Russell put on a good show,

Who else here is praying the 6 person alliance with Christian, Nick, Gabby, Alec, Mike wins out over the Goliath majority? All the best people in one alliance and more interesting drama than just one original tribe picks off the other.

 

[DigificWriter]

@JirinPanthosa, you ought to listen to Colton's interview with Afterbuzz TV.

Angelina really should have been voted out last night because she's an idiot who thinks she's the smartest person in the room, and it's frustrating that every other player in the game besides Elizabeth didn't get rid of her.

I'm now watching Cagayan and I lost a lot of respect for Sarah despite liking her in Game Changers because of her blind trust in Tony AND her boneheaded suggestion and attempt to intentionally lose an Immunity challenge.

I'm also really frustrated with the "Brains" tribe, all of whom are seriously dumb despite supposedly having extremely high IQs.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

Sarah is someone I couldn’t remember their first game. I doubt her first game was as bad as Cochrane’s though.

I was rooting for Angelina to be voted out but I can’t honestly say it was in anyone’s best interest. The group of 6 need the Goliaths not in the alliance not to suspect anything until they have outright majority.

 

[DigificWriter]

Having made it through the tribe swap, my opinions of Sarah and the surviving Brains tribe -Spencer, Kass, and Tasha - have improved a bit, but we'll see if that continues.

One thing that's occurred to me is that, as much as I've liked it so far, this season's theme of David vs Goliath might have actually been better if it were Brains vs Brawn vs Beauty again, because there are a bunch of similarities between it and the two B3 seasons.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

By the way, did anybody get the impression there was an advantage under that sign that said "Everything you need is right here" and nobody found it?

 

[Timewalker]

By the way, did anybody get the impression there was an advantage under that sign that said "Everything you need is right here" and nobody found it?

Of course. After all, the camera did linger on it during the speech one of them made about there usually being something hidden at the merge feast.

As for who I want to win this time: Christian. I like him.