30 Helens

I was rooting for Matt to win the tournament, but I was hoping Juveria would win yesterday’s game. At least she made a decent comeback after the previous day’s less than stellar performance. I enjoyed the gameplay between these three and would have liked to spend one more day with them. Did I hear correctly that this was Matt’s first tournament win? That surprised me. You know what didn’t surprise? The fact that I had no idea for FJ. Do we get normal games and normal clues now? Please?

This reunion was waaay too long with no interesting revelations, unless you count Delores’s boobs. (I do not.) I think Andy Cohen has the contractual option to host anything Housewives-adjacent.

With all the messiness in the turret, I thought this was a great season… up until this episode. Glad to see Danielle dumped on her overly dramatic ass, not sad to see Britney follow her because her gameplay was lackluster at best, but the final four kumbaya was pretty anti-climactic. Dylan and Gaby were my first and second choices to win, because they were pretty consistently savvy all season, but couldn’t they have scraped the Ivan and Delores barnacles off their hull first? Neither of them deserve a penny. I was really hoping that those two would keep voting for each other all the way to the end, up to and including jumping into the fire pit together.

This was a rare tournament final where I like all three players and would be happy to see any of them win. That said, yay Matt! I guessed correctly on FJ simply because he’s the only mathematician with an Italian-sounding name that came to mind. The only thing I know about him is he had a Sequence (and maybe some triangles?), but don’t ask me what it is because I have no idea.

https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/story/the-traitors-season-3-reunion-first-look Reunion preview. Bob TDQ is delusional.

Lord of the Flies tribe needs to look around for a nearby dead animal. Are we sure Stephanie actually left the island last week? There should be a rule, if you tell someone you have an idol it gets taken from you. If the puzzles are so hard it takes a team to solve them, they need easier puzzles. Or smarter players. They definitely need people who can keep advantages to themselves. On that note, I think I’m rooting for Thomas. Just because.

This is why I like watching the veterans play, even when I get tired of seeing the same veterans. They don’t take things personally, they don’t pout when things don’t go their way, and they are quick to congratulate people who best them because they appreciate good strategy and they understand it’s just a game. I’m rooting for either David or Parvati for just this reason. I have liked Lete, but she’s starting to feel a little morally superior and there’s nothing worse than that. I am tired of hearing Philip whine about how nobody likes him when all he does is push people away. CK is not even devious enough to be interesting.

1/5 Since my lone correct response was due to a fortunate pre-clue guess, how about some lucky shamrock pops?

Like most of you, I assume Brit voted for Danielle or why the cliffhanger. I’m just disappointed that it was an accident. I wanted Britney to twist that knife, so I could have a good laugh at what would certainly be an overly dramatic reaction to being heartlessly backstabbed. Who am I kidding, Danielle will writhe on the floor wailing whether the vote is intentional or not. So laugh I will. But there’s also the chance Danielle is not voted out, but is still outed by the Seer. Either way, I think she’s toast. I’m hoping Bargain Efron wins. I think he’s played the smartest game, and I like him. I’m also ok with a Gabby win. She may dress in dry cleaner bags, but I was impressed by how well she stood up to Danielle at the round table. I used to root for Britney, but she’s not even trying to win.

I didn’t feel the episode made a big deal out of Eva being autistic. It just seemed to be part of her introduction. As to why it was important? There are a number of reasons. One, it forms the backbone of Eva’s alliance with Joe. She chose to share that with him even though she’s not looking for it to be broadcast. But because she decided to trust him, they are bonded. And if we hadn’t seen that share, we would not know why. Two, there’s a very real possibility that Eva may respond to certain people and/or situations differently than some might expect. And now we have the context to understand why. Three, it’s an interesting story. And if you’re trying to get people to watch the season, you don’t hide your more interesting people until episode 3. And I didn’t find it exploitative at all. They didn’t present her as someone to gawk at, or hold her up as the face of Autism. They just introduced a contestant and gave us a little of her story. Besides, Eva was certainly not the only person we got to meet. We learned about Kyle’s deep shame and paranoia over being a lawyer. (Or at least being outed as one.) We saw Sai play too hard and too fast, while hiding from no one the fact that she’s playing too hard and too fast. And we saw Kevin complain about his shoulder like nobody’s ever bumped a knee and had to suck it up before, except Kevin didn’t just bump his shoulder, he actually seriously injured it which we would have known about if that footage had been shown. (See, context is important to understanding!) But the one thing that I can’t believe nobody is talking about is that ridiculous opening montage of people getting the call to come on the show, like they’re finding their goddamn Big Brother house keys stuffed inside a pile of laundry while some random cameraman pops in at that exact moment just to capture their glee? Can we all just agree to hate on that little sequence instead?

Here’s a link to the NYT article: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/27/business/media/jeopardy-wheel-of-fortune-streaming.html

Good god, that was an annoying game. I turned to my husband after round two and sighed “oh no, there’s still one more?” Pre-game, I only knew Yvette Nicole Brown and have always liked her. But while she was wearing on my nerves a bit, that was nothing compared to the whiny complainer at Podium One. The constant protests when she was ruled wrong, the shouting out at every turn… I just wanted her to shut up, already. I still have fond feelings for Yvette, but I’m glad Guy in the Middle won. He played the least irritating game by far. Oh, and consider me as further proof that you don’t need kids to be aware of The Very Hungry Caterpillar. It was an instaget.

Mondrian was my pre-clue SWAG. I have no idea why, since it’s not a name that often (or ever) comes to mind, but yay! That hasn’t happened in a long time. Also yay! for Juveria. I’d have rooted for her even if I had remembered the other two, which I didn’t.

Unless you’re a person who lives with autism or has specialized knowledge about autism, I think you should refrain from discussing whether someone’s symptoms are worthy of the label. As has been mentioned, autism exists on a very wide spectrum, with associated characteristics that vary from person to person. You can’t compare two people and say one is more or less autistic than another, because everyone is different. As for Eva, I think her high functioning attributes are a given, because how else could she play the game? You couldn’t drop Dustin Hoffman’s Rainman character into an environment like this, unless every challenge was about going slow on the driveway. That doesn’t mean she won’t have difficulties or look to others for support. That’s not manipulation, that’s just her coping. And Joe offering to be that support does not mean he’s being manipulated. He’s a grown-up, he can make choices. He can give his heart without sacrificing his head. And he can change his mind at any time. It’s Day One, guys. Let’s give the autistic lady a break. So far she seems like a lovely person. And who knows, maybe we can all learn something from watching her journey.

I knew Stephanie was a goner as soon as I saw that hat. I hate mud challenges because I can never tell who is who. And why does nobody ever rinse off afterwards? The water’s right there. Eva talking about how a gentle squeeze helps to keep her calm and centered made me think of Temple Grandin. And how Firefighter Joe can be Eva’s hug machine. Sweet.

Same here. I didn’t really expect anyone to “let” her in, nor would I want them to, really, but I saw how hard she was struggling on that buzzer and I felt her frustration. I wish she had done better. Oh! I was not aware of this. And now I’m triply sad that she did not win, or at least get to play FJ. What an awful thing to endure.

I was rooting for Ryan and bummed that he didn’t win. But I also like Ray very much, so I’m ok with the outcome. I think the contestants get to say where they’re from, and some choose to have the big city announced because it’s more recognizable than the suburb. So maybe that’s what happened here. I feel your brain strain. While I am enjoying seeing (some of) these people play again, I will be happy when the regular games return. They say Jeopardy is exercise for the brain, but my brain fell off the treadmill a few weeks back and is currently sitting in a corner, eating Cheetos and getting flabby.

My answer: “Hemingway. No, Faulkner.” In other words, a reverse Amy. I wonder what the criteria was in selecting players for this tournament. Other than, we called a bunch of people and this is who showed up? Every day seems so random.

That was some very unfortunate scheduling. If whatever caused JJ to take off for a few days had happened just a few days later, he could have had the big scenes with Becky and JK, and the sub could have laid in the hospital bed. (Hell, they could have just used a male version of wig-on-a-stick.) I’m assuming whatever it was happened very quickly, with no time for rescheduling or revisions. I’m glad he came back quickly, at least.

I have tried very hard to accept this new Brennan as a suave international super spy, and I just can’t. At first, I had him pegged as the owner of a moderately successful car dealership. Then, when I heard he was from a plumbing family, that opened up another plausible profession. If we hadn’t already met Jack Brennan, maybe I could buy it. But we did, and I can’t. Carly should be weeping over the downgrade. Things I can’t buy #2: La Femme Joss. Unless WSB qualifications now include impulsiveness, inability to consider consequences, and absolute conviction that you’re always right, no matter what. Hey, maybe Lulu should apply! She clearly has the right temperament, and it would be a shame to let all those Girl Detective investigative skillz go to waste.

I was thinking it would be a great drag name, only to find out someone’s already taken it! (Of course.) Brisbane’s favorite drag queen was my only correct answer this week as well, so 1/5 for me. This cake has nothing to do with anything other than I came across it and thought it was adorable, so I will bring some to share:

Exit interview with Carolyn. Worth reading if only for her overreaction to the idea of touching Boston Rob’s face. (The horror!) https://ew.com/the-traitors-carolyn-wiger-reacts-roundtable-dying-inside-11683644 It’s a little surprising that she doesn’t understand just where she went wrong. If not for completely exposing herself at that challenge (and also completing the quiz in the turret, where she made the big mistake of misreading the others’ opinion of her), she would have had Discount Efron’s vote. He was with her until that.

She is really, really good at the social game. Maybe the best ever. People know she’s dangerous, but they don’t think she’s a threat to them, just the others. So they want to stay on her side. Here, she also had the advantage of no one knowing her history. (Which is still shocking to me.) At least until Will blew that up. Sort of. What ever happened with that? Because unless I’m forgetting something, it seems like it was mentioned and then dropped, like nobody cared. I can’t say I’m sad that Will has gone back to his underground crypt, because I really can’t stand his villain act, but I will miss his gameplay. I get very impatient watching players who get caught up in their emotions, constantly crowing about personal integrity while sulking over being “betrayed”. I’d so much rather see people like Will and Rob and Parvati and David, who understand it’s just a game and take nothing personally— even if I am watching them for the umpteenth time. At least they know how to play. And pick a damn suitcase without giving it a backstory.

Which may make Gabby a strong candidate for the next murder. Britney heard her suspicions and if she wants to protect Danielle, she’ll tell her. Carolyn, Carolyn. So wrapped up in her own insecurities that she couldn’t see that people actually were listening to her, nobody suspected her, and she could have ridden this train to the end. But instead she engineered such an obvious trainwreck that not even Porter Efron could stay on board. I was really hoping she’d prevail over Danielle because Danielle irritates me more every week. I also think Carolyn would have made a smarter recruiting choice. But maybe Danielle is playing a long con. Maybe she is recruiting Britney just to betray her and get long-smoldering vengeance for those Reindeer Games that wounded her so deeply. But my money is on Britney, and if she manages to “backstab” Danielle a second time, I’ll laugh for days. So do his fellow players.

What a clever idea! I bet there are lots of nursing mothers who would love to have such a thing. For the record, that lovey blanket above is a floppy-eared dog. I made it for a baby nephew. The face and ears are my own design; the overall pattern I got online, from Shannon Fabrics. The original had instructions for a bunny and a kitty, which is probably why my dog looks like a rabbit. 😆 It’s actually pretty easy. I’d be happy to walk you through it sometime, if you want. Just send me a PM.