S40.E04: I Like Revenge

[Growsonwalls]

3 minutes ago, ljenkins782 said:

 

I think she's lacking both a female companion and a blindly loyal hanger-on. Rob is the closest ally she has, but she knows better than to make him her long-term plan. Maybe she'll perk up in the swap or merge when she identifies the person she can tuck under her wing. My money would be on somebody like Michele, who clearly has an enormous chip on her shoulder about her win. I could see Parvati weaving her spell around that theme to pull Michele in tight. 

For someone who started off in Cook Islands as the “flirt” you are right — Parvati seems to do the best in female alliances. Even in HvV she always had Jerri and Danielle. I could see her picking up Kim too. Or Nick. We’ll see.

[tvgoddess]

My brother called 20 minutes into watching the show, so I had to wait and go back to watch it later. I loved almost all of it: Ethan's inspiring physicality, the others walking with him in support, Sele's epic comeback in the challenge (I almost would have thought Dakal threw it because that was insane how far ahead they were), Rob and Jeremy's hug, Sele's joy - especially Rob diving in to swim back to camp, and Tyson being voted out. I have no use for him, so let him go chill on EoE, lol at him thinking it was going to be Club Med over there.

Oh, hi Nick. Nice to meet you.

I even have to give props to Adam for coming back in that challenge and not giving up. I can't even begin to imagine how thrilled he was that they won so he wouldn't be at risk.

Okay, off to read what you guys thought!

[ByaNose]

32 minutes ago, bamlouie said:

It seemed legitimate to me. I think it just appeared like they were further ahead with solving the puzzle than reality - there are a couple shots where it looks like one side of their puzzle is fitting correctly, but the back side has swiss cheese holes in it and they couldn't seem to see how their remaining pieces fit in, so something was off, and they were stumped what was wrong because what they had in place did look correct from one side. Hence why I think they began to take some of the pieces off. Now I'm not totally sure why they started taking off the very bottom ones which did seem right, but it was a circular design that could have made the orientation deceiving so maybe they thought they needed to flip it around somewhat. Add on to that panic and pressure from Sele and Wendell trying to dictate from the sidelines, and I could see how they could blow their lead.

RHAP touched on this. Rob thought it was odd that they were almost done (and, it looked correct) but then seemingly took the puzzle all apart. Kinda odd. Stephen didn’t think they threw it. Rob was just playing devils advocate on it but didn’t they threw it. Once again, the puzzle equalizer comes back to bite someone in the a**. 

[zscore]

1 hour ago, tracyscott76 said:

Two possibilities:

1. Perhaps Yul/Sophie/Wendell knew the Tyson vote was in the bag and didn't feel the need to put more votes on Kim, but let Nick do it since his neck was on the block.

2. Perhaps Yul/Sophie/Wendell weren't sure the Tyson vote was in the bag and didn't want to dilute the Tyson vote with Kim votes, but let Nick do it since his neck was on the block.

I didn't say it made sense, just that it was the reason Nick gave for his Kim vote XD

It could be both, plus that Sophie knows that Tyson doesn't have an idol (because she and Kim have it) so no need to split the vote. But she doesn't want Nick to know she has it.

[30 Helens]

2 hours ago, LadyChatts said:

I feel like all we've gotten from Michele so far is that her win was controversial.

Well, that’s more than we got from her on the season she won.

Ethan is awesome. That is all.

[Fake Jan Brady]

1 hour ago, truthaboutluv said:

[Rob] did lie but was subtle about it. He didn't come up with an elaborate story and over complicate it. He kept it simple, saying that Adam's asking him if they're good and what's happening now and he doesn't know what to say because he doesn't trust Adam. That was enough to plant the seeds in Jeremy and Michelle's head that Adam may still be looking for ways to work with Rob and weasel into that side. 

I was disappointed that Jeremy and Michelle didn't even seem to consider the source; of course Rob is going to be throwing somebody else's name out there to move the target off himself.

Adam The Penitent and his labors of remorse in the first half of the episode were comedy gold.

I so wish the episode was titled "I thought Tony was going to be an asshole".

Edited March 5, 2020 by Fake Jan Brady

[bamlou]

9 minutes ago, ByaNose said:

45 minutes ago, bamlouie said:

It seemed legitimate to me. I think it just appeared like they were further ahead with solving the puzzle than reality - there are a couple shots where it looks like one side of their puzzle is fitting correctly, but the back side has swiss cheese holes in it and they couldn't seem to see how their remaining pieces fit in, so something was off, and they were stumped what was wrong because what they had in place did look correct from one side. Hence why I think they began to take some of the pieces off. Now I'm not totally sure why they started taking off the very bottom ones which did seem right, but it was a circular design that could have made the orientation deceiving so maybe they thought they needed to flip it around somewhat. Add on to that panic and pressure from Sele and Wendell trying to dictate from the sidelines, and I could see how they could blow their lead.

RHAP touched on this. Rob thought it was odd that they were almost done (and, it looked correct) but then seemingly took the puzzle all apart. Kinda odd. Stephen didn’t think they threw it. Rob was just playing devils advocate on it but didn’t they threw it. Once again, the puzzle equalizer comes back to bite someone in the a**. 

 

According to Nick (who was asked about it on Twitter), they didn't throw the challenge:

[ByaNose]

Frankly, I was surprised that Rob was on the puzzle again. Not just because he (they) blew it last week but I must be blanking out but I don’t recall Rob being a puzzle whiz to begin with. In his four times playing the game what is his puzzle win/loses? Obviously, the tribe hasn’t had any problem with him doing them but I just don’t recall it being his Survivor wheelhouse. I could be totally wrong though. 

Edited March 5, 2020 by ByaNose

[TVFan1]

Sele finally wins an immunity challenge.  Surprised Dakal lost seeing as how far ahead they were. At least with their loss, Tyson goes. I didn't want Nick or Kim to go, so I was relieved when Tyson got voted out. I never liked Tyson.

Like others I also enjoyed Rob and Michele's talk. Rob was correct in saying, "If you win, you win". I'm rooting for Michele to win again.

[thejuicer]

I felt really bad for Adam when he had to keep going back and forth to get the keys. He just looked so exhausted and demoralized. It was weird to not see Parvati kick butt at a challenge for once. 

I have never liked Tyson and glad to see him go. He's smug and not as funny or charming as he thinks. 

[preeya]

2 hours ago, LanceM said:

What an epic choke job on that puzzle by Dakal

The fix was in.

[Nashville]

2 hours ago, Lamima said:

You know if you google Survivor US wikipedia and click on S40 they list it out. Scroll towards bottom (Nick voted Kim and Tyson voted Nick and all others voted Tyson)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survivor:_Winners_at_War

But that assumes the person updating that portion of the Wikipedia page - who could be quite literally anybody on the planet with a functional internet connection - is NOT counting the voices in their head as a reliable source.

[loki567]

It's interesting the way they're editing this season. I'm not seeing too many story arcs or things of that nature. I wonder if the editors just assume that we know these people enough that they don't feel it necessary to over-indulge on characters explaining themselves again and again, and are just letting things breathe. Also wonder if that means that a minor character at this point (ex. Nick or Wendell) might still be able to suddenly swoop in at the end for a win.   

I am happy that a surprising amount of heavyweights have made it this far: Kim, Sandra, Tony, Yul, Parvati, Rob, Jeremy. 

Also glad that Tony, Adam, and Ben are still in the game. They're acquired tastes I know, but they all have such squirrelness in them that they're all capable of any foolish notation that can suddenly blow the game up. 

[Wandering Snark]

3 hours ago, ljenkins782 said:

Tyson giving his token to Nick was interesting.

I gave the side-eye to that move as well. He'll probably be kicking himself when he learns on Extinction that those silly coins they've been carrying about actually are worth something. Seemed like a rash decision, or like you said just wanting to see the world burn at that point.

1 hour ago, thejuicer said:

I felt really bad for Adam when he had to keep going back and forth to get the keys. He just looked so exhausted and demoralized. It was weird to not see Parvati kick butt at a challenge for once. 

"Let's put the short people on 'grab the keys' detail!" turned out to not be such a great decision. I can see how they stumbled into it though. All previous 'jump for the keys' portions have involved where you could get a running start and leap out with momentum. The way these were situated that wasn't possible and it counted on your ability to jump UP to the keys not OUT. I think part of it was that the beam was fairly short and narrow so the only option left was to scoot to the end and leap. And yeah that poor kid looked like he'd spent about 95% of his energy to finally reach the last key. I don't like him but I respect his effort, especially since they eventually won!

[amazingracefan]

8 hours ago, Eolivet said:

Oh, Nick was so charming at tribal council. "Parvati was my high school crush." So glad he was saved.

That seemed an amazingly stupid thing for him to say at tribal.

[violet and green]

Aw, that was beautiful - for once I enjoyed the extended footage on Extinction, and so glad no one was stretchered out, after all. I found Ethan's commentary and persistence really inspiring and the rest banding together to walk the last trip with him... Damn! 

Great not to see Sele at another tribal, but I was looking forward to seeing Adam being sent to Extinction, so that was disappointing.

I don't understand why they aren't targeting Sandra. It's not like she brings any benefits to the challenges. She'd be my first vote out, first chance.

 

[amazingracefan]

The jumping from a platform to grab something in the air reminds me of the Australian version.

[simplyme]

6 hours ago, ljenkins782 said:

I'd rather lose some of the lesser knowns and let the big dogs fight it out at the end. My worst nightmare would be that the big targets all get taken out and we're left with a final 3 of Adam, Michele, and Sophie or something. 

Heh. I'm the opposite. I'd hate to see all the lesser knowns taken out. I mean, one of the reasons Rob, Parvati, Sandra, and Tyson are so well known is that they've all played at least four times now. I want to see what the people I've only seen once can do. (I like the big dogs, and I don't think they all need to be eliminated, but I'd hate an F3 of Sandra, Rob, and Parvati.)

6 hours ago, ljenkins782 said:

Tyson giving his token to Nick was interesting. Not sure if it was a desire to see the world burn kind of move or if maybe he has an interest in preserving the people he feels less threatened by in the event that he returns to the game. If they can give their tokens to anyone at all, he could have helped his "poker alliance" buddies on the other tribe, but chose not to. Would be curious to hear his reasoning on that one. 

My assumption was that he felt slightly betrayed by everyone else, so they wouldn't get it. Nick he at least had a weird grudging respect for. Kind of how sometimes you end up respecting the enemy, but allies who turn traitor you don't.

I'm having trouble figuring out how to say what is mostly a gut feeling. 😝

6 hours ago, ljenkins782 said:

They need to tighten up the editing on the EOE stuff.

This. For the love of Pete, yes.

[truthaboutluv]

45 minutes ago, amazingracefan said:

The jumping from a platform to grab something in the air reminds me of the Australian version.

They’ve done it a few times in the U.S. version, though it’s often one key the competitors have to get. And for some thinking the fix must have been in because Sela won, this is more or less exactly how Kass won individual immunity at F4 in the Cagayan season.

She sucked at getting her key and the other three were well ahead of her, with Spenser, someone really good at puzzles halfway done until he realized something was wrong but couldn’t figure out what. Then Kass finally got her key and solved the puzzle in one quick go.

[Guest]

8 hours ago, Growsonwalls said:

For someone who started off in Cook Islands as the “flirt” you are right — Parvati seems to do the best in female alliances. Even in HvV she always had Jerri and Danielle. I could see her picking up Kim too. Or Nick. We’ll see.

Apparently Parvati would have Nick wrapped around her finger, if Nick's crush confession is to be believed.

When Tyson was "forgetting" Sophie's name, did anyone else think of Halloweentown? "SOPHIE!"

[himela]

Good riddance Tyson. Not remembering Sophie's name (who btw won on the first season she played, unlike you SoB) was really disrespectful, but I can't expect more from this moron. I hope I never see or hear you again.

The EoE scene was WAYYYY too big and boring.

It seems the alliances that are going to last till the end have already appeared. I mean, I don't see Tony and Sarah NOT making it to the end. There is not an episode that Tony has not had a scene, a confessional, a decision being made etc. Tony is getting the winner's edit so obviously I want to scream from frustration.

[CloudySky]

I don't think 'revenge' was the sole reason Sandra wanted Tyson out. Tyson is tight with and thus a number for Boston Rob who is her nemesis in this game. If they hooked up in a swap situation, that would be bad for her.

It was funny that Yul said he hasn't been doing much math because I remember thinking at the beginning of the episode that his tight 4 he had so much confidence in is a minority in a 9 person tribe. It reminded me of those 4-person popular kids/muscle alliances of the olden days. It worked out in his favor but it could have turned out differently.

That challenge didn't seem fair and I hope they change that up in the future. I don't like it when a person's physique is that much of a determining factor for whether or not you succeed. I don't remember jumping for keys ever taking that much effort in 20 years of survivor. I thought they might have messed up the allignment or something.

I don't mind EoE but they could have slimmed down that segment just a bit. I still feel like we get a decent amount of camp life from each tribe. The entertainment value of EoE is about the same as a reward challenge so *shrug*

[nlkm9]

5 minutes ago, CloudySky said:

 

3 things.

1) I love Yul

2) why was michelles win contraversial? I have watched a lot of seasons but do not remember everyone still

3) why the heck is Sandra sitting out every challenge except 1? I thought you had to rotate the folks who sit out??? How can that be good for her gameplay??

[Guest]

I can’t stand Sandra. I haven’t liked her any season and really, really hope she goes soon. 
 

 

[ProfCrash]

Tyson was an idiot when he mentioned Sandra's name ages ago. The rule for playing with Sandra is you don't mention her name until you absolutely have to. Because someone will bring her name back to you and she can develop about 19 reasons why you are the better person to send home.

And while Tyson was right, there is an alliance between the 4 unconnected players, his connections to the other tribe are far more worrisome then a foursome that has the ability to be flexible. Sandra can work with Yul but she cannot work with Tyson. Sara and Tony have a solid alliance, that I am sure everyone is aware of, but not many connections to people on the other tribe. Tyson pairing up with Rob and Parvati would be dangerous. And seeing the tribe come back three times with Rob and Parvati not being voted out is problematic. Tossing a solid third their way is a bad idea.

As much as everyone should know it has not worked in the past, Sandra is not going to win a challenge. She is far easier to cut then Rob, Parvati or Tyson who can all win challenges. So getting rid of the guy with ties to the other tribe who can win challenges makes more sense then voting off the person who has played with loyalty to alliances, limited ties to the other tribe, and sucks at challenges.

9 hours ago, LadyChatts said:

While I didn't get the reaction I was hoping for from Adam, I did like the comparison Jeremy made to him being a kid that got in trouble, and now he was trying to make up for it.

I laughed at that because I was thinking just that as Adam was working to atone for his sins. Rob made the obvious Adam play. It is an easy thread to pull on. I don't think for a second that Adam would have gone home if they had gone to tribal. There would have been more then enough time to cool down and vote with their heads.

9 hours ago, truthaboutluv said:

So an interesting thought just occurred to me. Anyone else think that scene with Rob and Michelle discussing how her win was controversial and essentially people didn't think she should have won, was totally random and out of place in the episode?

Dear God, could this have been foreshadowing a Michelle win? Interestingly, as much as I'm one of those who called bullshit on her win during her season, no joke, I'd laugh my ass off if that somehow ended up happening. 

I liked that scene. Michelle is playing a bit tentative and with a bit of a chip on her shoulder. We might not be seeing it but I am sure that it is more noticeable around camp. She has a reason for feeling that way. Rob has more confidence then god and probably could careless that people think that his win was lame. It probably helped her to have that conversation.

8 hours ago, ByaNose said:

RHAP touched on this. Rob thought it was odd that they were almost done (and, it looked correct) but then seemingly took the puzzle all apart. Kinda odd. Stephen didn’t think they threw it. Rob was just playing devils advocate on it but didn’t they threw it. Once again, the puzzle equalizer comes back to bite someone in the a**. 

If they put a top piece on the bottom and didn't figure that out until they were almost done then they would have to take apart the puzzle to take the piece out.

37 minutes ago, himela said:

Good riddance Tyson. Not remembering Sophie's name (who btw won on the first season she played, unlike you SoB) was really disrespectful, but I can't expect more from this moron. I hope I never see or hear you again.

The EoE scene was WAYYYY too big and boring.

It seems the alliances that are going to last till the end have already appeared. I mean, I don't see Tony and Sarah NOT making it to the end. There is not an episode that Tony has not had a scene, a confessional, a decision being made etc. Tony is getting the winner's edit so obviously I want to scream from frustration.

Yeah, the kill the contestants to get a token was a bit much. I liked how Natalie crushed it. Glad that Ethan is ok. I did laugh when Tyson got to the beach and commented on the large amount of fire wood that they had.

I don't remember who Sophie or Michelle are so I am not worried that someone playing the game doesn't remember them. Hell, I don't remember Dani. Tyson wasn't being disrespectful, he was being honest. None of the three of them are particularly memorable, at least based on the number of people who have posted that they don't remember them.

 

[ProfCrash]

36 minutes ago, nlkm9 said:

3 things.

1) I love Yul

2) why was michelles win contraversial? I have watched a lot of seasons but do not remember everyone still

3) why the heck is Sandra sitting out every challenge except 1? I thought you had to rotate the folks who sit out??? How can that be good for her gameplay??

I barely remember Michelle but I believe that she beat a player who appeared to play a stronger game and did not have a great performance in the final tribal. I had to look it up because I don't remember Michelle but I do remember Aubrey, kind of. Aubrey played a great game but it was not visible and she could not explain it at final tribal.

That is all I have for right now because I really don't remember it but I think there was bitter jury comments and a good amount of up roar because Michelle was not edited to have seen to do much. Given that she was the winner and they had a ton of material it is hard to believe that Production wouldn't have given her a better story arc if they had the footage. So it felt like Michelle won because people didn't like Aubry and less that Michelle won because she "earned" the victory.

[Fake Jan Brady]

1 hour ago, CloudySky said:

It was funny that Yul said he hasn't been doing much math because I remember thinking at the beginning of the episode that his tight 4 he had so much confidence in is a minority in a 9 person tribe. It reminded me of those 4-person popular kids/muscle alliances of the olden days. It worked out in his favor but it could have turned out differently.

In Cook Islands Yul’s tight four overcame an alliance of eight in one of the most satisfying end runs ever. Maybe four is his lucky number. 

[preeya]

1 hour ago, nlkm9 said:

3) why the heck is Sandra sitting out every challenge except 1? I thought you had to rotate the folks who sit out??? How can that be good for her gameplay??

THIS↑  I thought there is a rule that you can't sit out two challenges in a row, or was that changed to.

[AncientNewbie]

I don't have a horse in the race this season, so it's pure enjoyment (or rage-inducing frustration, depending on the moment) so I liked this one. I do enjoy Tyson--I enjoy his deadpan comments and am always surprised any fans take anything he says on the show as legitimate. But it was good move. 

I don't think a fix was in on the puzzle--one thing I'm always trying to remember when watching is that this is highly edited and scenes aren't necessarily in order or complete. But we were seeing one side of the puzzle and didn't get a good look at the other, so if they had a Tetris issue and had to replace a foundation piece, I would believe what happened. 

[ProfCrash]

13 minutes ago, preeya said:

THIS↑  I thought there is a rule that you can't sit out two challenges in a row, or was that changed to.

Only when there is a reward and immunity challenge. The rule doesn't apply when there are joint challenges. 

Sandra sits out because she sucks at challenges. It is the reason that people stupidly don't vote her out quickly. She is never going to win an immunity challenge.

[Lady Calypso]

I'm glad that Dakal lost, because I really needed to see the episode focus more on them and hear them talk game. Plus, Sele winning immunity probably helped Adam a little bit, as well as Rob/Parvati. They better hope for a tribe swap ASAP, though.

Speaking of Adam, I will say that I do like the guy, even if he's fairly immature. He's self aware but has also done nothing to change that part of himself. But he put in 110% in working more around camp (though, yeah buddy, of course they see through that) and also helped earn them the win at the end. Since Sele had Parvati, Denise, and Adam as the ones to grab the keys and since all three are just a bit too short to reach them like Dakal could, I think Adam taking one for the team by doing the jumping was a good way to help him earn a little good grace with his tribe. 

Plus, Rob finally redeems himself with the puzzle! Him and Michele did quick work, but that could also be because Sarah and Nick were taking their time on it, to the point where they weren't even halfway done when Sele caught up. 

I am glad for more Dakal this episode. Hearing them talk game was very much needed. I'm glad Yul and his alliance is safe. I'm a bit surprised to hear that Nick basically doesn't do much around camp, but I like the guy more than Tyson so...I'm glad for who actually left. Plus, Nick kicked it into high gear when Yul told him that he was the target. 

I didn't hate Tyson in the...one other season I've seen him in, but I thought he was not a good player in HvV and I don't feel differently here. He screwed up big time by telling everyone that he was going after Nick, even after confiding in Sarah Sandra about Yul's alliance that he was on to. 

Plus, out of all the members of Dakal, besides Sandra, Tyson was the one I wanted gone.

The EOE stuff takes too much away from the actual players. That being said, I actually really liked what they showed here with their own challenge. I found that it seemed to be really tough and added an element that I feel has been missing from Modern Survivor, which is, quite literally, the survival aspect. That's why I appreciated watching it, even with Ethan needing medical to check on him, and Amber/Natalie both breaking down emotionally. 

Not that I want the challenges to be so hard that they need medical, but I appreciate what stakes it brought back to the show.

Edited March 5, 2020 by Lady Calypso
Sandra not Sarah

[Eolivet]

1 hour ago, ProfCrash said:

That is all I have for right now because I really don't remember it but I think there was bitter jury comments and a good amount of up roar because Michelle was not edited to have seen to do much. Given that she was the winner and they had a ton of material it is hard to believe that Production wouldn't have given her a better story arc if they had the footage

I believe this was coming off Jeremy's hero edit and extremely predictable win in Second Chances, and it was widely believed that the next seasons (Kaoh Rong and Millennials vs Gen X, and maybe even Game Changers) hid the winner in plain sight to make for more "exciting" and "unpredictable" winners. Michele, Adam and Sarah were underedited winners with "surprise" winner arcs (where others were more heavily edited), I believe in response to the "predictable" winner arcs. Or that's fan lore, but it always made sense to me. That's why Michele had so little footage: they were trying for a "surprise" win.

The "hero" arc returned when Ben won Heroes Healers Hustlers. At least that's how I always saw it.

[ProfCrash]

2 minutes ago, Eolivet said:

I believe this was coming off Jeremy's hero edit and extremely predictable win in Second Chances, and it was widely believed that the next seasons (Kaoh Rong and Millennials vs Gen X, and maybe even Game Changers) hid the winner in plain sight to make for more "exciting" and "unpredictable" winners. Michele, Adam and Sarah were underedited winners with "surprise" winner arcs (where others were more heavily edited), I believe in response to the "predictable" winner arcs. Or that's fan lore, but it always made sense to me. That's why Michele had so little footage: they were trying for a "surprise" win.

The "hero" arc returned when Ben won Heroes Healers Hustlers. At least that's how I always saw it.

Sarah was shown doing a good amount when she won. She was not that much of a surprise, or I wasn't surprised. She made good connections with people and did a good amount of strategizing. Adam's winning was kind of bleechy but you could see it coming. It wasn't a clear cut win, like Ben's, but it wasn't a surprise. They discussed his Mom's illness far to much that season for him to not win, especially when he finally mentioned it at the final tribal.  I still don't remember Michele's win or much about that season. I have a vague recollection of feeling like it was more an Aubrey loss then a Michele win and then moving on.

[SevenCostanza]

2 hours ago, nlkm9 said:

3) why the heck is Sandra sitting out every challenge except 1? I thought you had to rotate the folks who sit out??? How can that be good for her gameplay??

Didn't there used to be a rule that the same player can't sit out challenges back to back? 

[Guest]

22 minutes ago, Lady Calypso said:

I didn't hate Tyson in the...one other season I've seen him in, but I thought he was not a good player in HvV and I don't feel differently here. He screwed up big time by telling everyone that he was going after Nick, even after confiding in Sarah about Yul's alliance that he was on to.

I wonder about this. Did Tyson for sure know about Yul's alliance with Nick/Sophie/Wendell, or was he just speculating that The Unconnected COULD form an alliance to counter the people with connections? And so his Nick targeting was a way to nip that in the bud, but he didn't realize the bud had already bloomed. Or something.

[Lady Calypso]

11 minutes ago, tracyscott76 said:

I wonder about this. Did Tyson for sure know about Yul's alliance with Nick/Sophie/Wendell, or was he just speculating that The Unconnected COULD form an alliance to counter the people with connections? And so his Nick targeting was a way to nip that in the bud, but he didn't realize the bud had already bloomed. Or something.

I thought he was on to them, but I'd have to go back and listen to what Tyson said exactly. I thought he said that he saw the four (although, tbh, I can't remember for sure if he included Nick but I think he did) as an alliance, but maybe it was him fearing that they would. But still...if he suspected them, why run to everyone but Nick to let them know that he was going after Nick? Again, I think because we missed out on a lot of Dakal game talk due to Sele losing the last couple of episodes, we've missed out on some very vital connections and thought processes. 

With them going to Tribal on Day 11 after a full week of them not having to go...I'm just surprised that Tyson felt comfortable enough to even attempt a unanimous vote, even when he expressed some fear in alliances forming. I guess Tyson really put in trust that everyone would be on board with not rocking the boat but for me, I think that with them being a quarter into the game, even though this is only their second time going to Tribal, enough time has passed for a true unanimous vote to happen. I know it could happen, but not when they've all had 11 days to form bonds and Tyson was already suspicious of Nick working closely with Yul, Wendell, and Sophie.

I think Tyson took a gamble and it didn't pay off. It's not the dumbest move this season, but it was a glaring mistake for him. 

[ProfCrash]

19 minutes ago, tracyscott76 said:

I wonder about this. Did Tyson for sure know about Yul's alliance with Nick/Sophie/Wendell, or was he just speculating that The Unconnected COULD form an alliance to counter the people with connections? And so his Nick targeting was a way to nip that in the bud, but he didn't realize the bud had already bloomed. Or something.

Agreeing with @Lady Calypso, Tyson was on to them but didn't know with any certainty. He played out the various connections and scenarios and could see how that group would form.

Tyson's problem wasn't with his thinking but that he targeted Sandra too publicly too fast. I also get the impression that Tyson wasn't doing much around camp. Yul had the line last week that Sandra was helping around camp and Tyson wasn't. It was another rationalization for keeping Sandra over Tyson.

[Guest]

Just now, Lady Calypso said:

I think Tyson took a gamble and it didn't pay off. It's not the dumbest move this season, but it was a glaring mistake for him.

It's not even the dumbest move Tyson's ever made XD

[peachmangosteen]

I'm still bored lol.

I enjoyed seeing Natalie once again be bad ass (and everyone comment on how bad ass she is) and Ethan triumph but I still could have done without what felt like a 15 minute EoE segment.

I was fine with Tyson going but he had so many great lines in this ep. Honestly, my fave parts of the ep were his eyeroll about Nick's Parvati crush and his, "I'd rather just swallow it," about giving away his fire token. I'm almost glad for EoE now just because we'll probably get some fun quips from him still in every ep.

I hate that I like Adam this season. It makes me feel uneasy!

And now for a shallow moment: Sandra looks stunningly beautiful this season. And she looks younger with each ep. Parvati also looks absolutely beautiful. 

Speaking of Parvati, I'm simultaneously enjoying and saddened by how subdued she is so far.

[JudyObscure]

2 hours ago, ProfCrash said:

I don't remember who Sophie or Michelle are so I am not worried that someone playing the game doesn't remember them. Hell, I don't remember Dani. Tyson wasn't being disrespectful, he was being honest. None of the three of them are particularly memorable, at least based on the number of people who have posted that they don't remember them.

 

Tyson is the guy who said Survivor was his job so he should have gone on the show knowing all he could find out about all the other Winners.  Names being basic.  More importantly, he's been living at a tiny camp for 10 or 12 days, working, eating and sleeping with a small group of people, half of whom he knew already.  So he had four or five names to learn, if that, and he couldn't remember Sophie's after living that closely with her all that time. Wonder why?  He's like the guy in the office who knows all the men's names and all the pretty women's names, but can't ever remember the name of the nice plain girl who is there being helpful every day.  I usually like a dry sense of humor like his, but when it's not backed by much it gets old.

Sandra's shtick is getting old, too.  She was refreshing the first time she played, because she was so openly out for herself only. It's not that attractive over time.  She also reminds me of office life.  The older woman who only cares about her paycheck and never develops the slightest feeling for the people she works for everyday, never hesitating to lie about you to the boss to further herself, or lie to you to get you to work Christmas Eve for her.  

 This is the first year I haven't loved the show. So far it's just a display of smugness by the people who consider themselves Survivor royalty and star-struck behavior by the rest of them.  I don't care if Nick gets a thrill when he hears Parvati's voice or Michele hangs slack jawed on Rob's words of wisdom ("If you win, you win." Awesome.) It's like watching a bunch of "D list" celebrities posing and fawning for each other at a party.

At least we still have some competitive, reality TV on EoE.   It's the only thing I'm enjoying this year and I would love to see Natalie go back and win. I bet Tyson doesn't know her name.

[ProfCrash]

Sandra can be playing for herself and still get along with other people. The people she dislikes, she dislikes and everyone knows it. Think Fairplay and Russell. Everyone knew she didn't like them. Hell, they knew she didn't like them. She was fine with pretty much everyone else on her tribe and I cannot remember anyone saying that Sandra treated them poorly, was mean, or ignored them. I am trying to remember hearing anyone complain about Sandra outside of the game.

Yes, she plays for herself but everyone out there is playing for themselves. The Woo's and Colby's of the world are rare. 99.9% of the players out there are gunning for the money. They might not be as upfront about it but they are not suffering out there to help someone else win.

But that is a far distance from not caring about the other people out there. Sandra is regularly chatting with people, laughing with people, and exchanging quips with people. She seems to be well received by her tribe mates.

I am wondering how Nick is going to play off that Kim vote.

[Rachel RSL]

13 minutes ago, peachmangosteen said:

And now for a shallow moment: Sandra looks stunningly beautiful this season. And she looks younger with each ep. Parvati also looks absolutely beautiful. 

Sandra always seems to get prettier the longer she's out there.  Her skin just gets this natural island glow that I'm very jealous of.

13 minutes ago, JudyObscure said:

 More importantly, he's been living at a tiny camp for 10 or 12 days, working, eating and sleeping with a small group of people, half of whom he knew already.  So he had four or five names to learn, if that, and he couldn't remember Sophie's after living that closely with her all that time. Wonder why?  He's like the guy in the office who knows all the men's names and all the pretty women's names, but can't ever remember the name of the nice plain girl who is there being helpful every day.  

I don't believe for a second that Tyson didn't know Sophie's name.  I think he just momentarily forgot who the other person in the alliance was and then was being tongue-in-cheek when he made the comment about not even remembering her name.

12 hours ago, bamlouie said:

Add on to that panic and pressure from Sele and Wendell trying to dictate from the sidelines, and I could see how they could blow their lead.

I really wonder why they don't put Wendell on the puzzle part of the challenges.  He was really good at them in his season and it always seems like he's dying to jump in and help with them this season.  

1 hour ago, SevenCostanza said:

Didn't there used to be a rule that the same player can't sit out challenges back to back? 

This has been answered already just a few posts above yours.

[peachmangosteen]

 

2 minutes ago, Rachel RSL said:

I really wonder why they don't put Wendell on the puzzle part of the challenges.  He was really good at them in his season and it always seems like he's dying to jump in and help with them this season.  

I really don't understand why they're not putting him on the puzzles. He's always on the sidelines backseat navigating and I feel like that would be a horrible strategy that's more likely to hinder than help.

[Guest]

Just now, Rachel RSL said:

I don't believe for a second that Tyson didn't know Sophie's name.  I think he just momentarily forgot who the other person in the alliance was and then was being tongue-in-cheek when he made the comment about not even remembering her name.

I'm pretty sure this is exactly what happened. Some people, when they mess up or forget something, will automatically slip into self-deprecating humor. Tyson automatically slips into whatever the opposite of self-deprecating humor is. Like when he voted himself out in HvV and said "I'm still awesome". It's just his way. Not everyone's cup of tea, humor-wise, but certainly not an indication of rampant sexism, I don't think.

[himela]

3 hours ago, ProfCrash said:

Tyson wasn't being disrespectful, he was being honest.

Remember that Tyson has a podcast with Rob Cesternino and Sophie has podcasted in RHAP many times and sometimes even REPLACED Rob on the Know it Alls with Stephen because Rob would be on the finale. I mean, if he truly didn't remember her name (someone who btw has LIVED with for 15 or so days), this is disrespectful to himself AND Rob not listening to Rob's other podcasts. Even Rob on RHAP, when Stephen said "Tyson didn't remember Sophie's name" said "He DID remember Sophie's name". As always Tyson was trying to be funny by making a fool out of someone. Just like what I hate. But he won't like it if someone would say the same thing about his daughters one day.

Edited March 5, 2020 by himela

[Daisy]

31 minutes ago, ProfCrash said:

Sandra can be playing for herself and still get along with other people. The people she dislikes, she dislikes and everyone knows it. Think Fairplay and Russell. Everyone knew she didn't like them. Hell, they knew she didn't like them. She was fine with pretty much everyone else on her tribe and I cannot remember anyone saying that Sandra treated them poorly, was mean, or ignored them. I am trying to remember hearing anyone complain about Sandra outside of the game.

Yes, she plays for herself but everyone out there is playing for themselves. The Woo's and Colby's of the world are rare. 99.9% of the players out there are gunning for the money. They might not be as upfront about it but they are not suffering out there to help someone else win.

But that is a far distance from not caring about the other people out there. Sandra is regularly chatting with people, laughing with people, and exchanging quips with people. She seems to be well received by her tribe mates.

I am wondering how Nick is going to play off that Kim vote.

No one ever does.  😉


We're talking survivor here at work, and there are a lot of people who don't like Sandra, and I get it (I suppose 😉 ). but I adore her. And while it would make me sad as heck if she got booted out like before the actual jury (I dunno how EOE is gonna work) - I think it's a testament about her and her game. 

Like you said. Sandra can hate your guts - but she's never really. rude like a Scott, Jason, etc. She'll never go out of her way to make you feel small (maybe outside of burning Russel's hat,) and basically, it's sort of like my mom. When she's done. she's done. She doesn't really super dwell on it or pick at it.

I even said it in the live thread. No one ever goes after Sandra. Even in Gamechangers - JT legitimately had to push to get people to vote her off. Because Sandra is - for the most part, the "perfect" alliance mate. If she's in your alliance/wants to protect, you she's going to do it. You need recon - Sandra is your girl. She's never gonna be a "threat" to you physically (ever), or in puzzles (ever). and she might win her second ever challenge (if it's endurance).  

and - as people tend to like their meat shields - Sandra's is the best one. Because she's still the ONLY one (until the end of this season) who has won twice. (and if i recall correctly - in both wins never had a vote thrown against her - though she did have votes thrown her way the day she played her idol so maybe an asterisk there).  The dangerous thing (which is what a lot of people tend to underestimate) is that Sandra can (and has) taken that time you given her being "crappy" to devise reasons why she deserves to win. Because she is loyal. She is dependable. She does make moves and if it doesn't work, oh well, but moves don't always have to work. etc etc etc. 9x10 Sandra's big moves is basically not pissing people off, where as most other people tend to burn bridges as they go and they hope the person beside them sucks. 

Sandra is also one of those rare people who tend to play "anyone but me" (ie: just tell me, and we'll go for it). but for good chunks of the game seems to also be RUNNING the show. but making people believe that they are. (which is what JT completely pushed in Gamechangers and used that to boot her out).

I'm biased. I want Sandra to win 3 times. (only because it would make Jeff's head explode and that intself would be a wonderful thing). but if she does get voted out i really want her to be on the jury. that's something we've never seen. (same with Rob I think and i'd really like to see that as well)

so in regards to the Tyson thing - while i was kinda-surprised that Sandra did vote him out, it makes total sense why she did. A: he's a threat because he tossed her name out (Don't ever let Sandra find out lol), so she can't trust him. and B: as others mentioned above - Tyson's got a lot of connections on the other side. She can't control a Tyson (at all). She can a Tony, etc. etc. 
 

 

13 hours ago, Lamima said:

You know if you google Survivor US wikipedia and click on S40 they list it out. Scroll towards bottom (Nick voted Kim and Tyson voted Nick and all others voted Tyson)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survivor:_Winners_at_War

I didn't know. Thank you. 
(however - it still doesn't change the fact that the show, should show who voted whom out.  that's still part of the show. i don't think people should have to rush to wikipedia and research it out when it could be super simple to do a split screen or something)

 

[ProfCrash]

I don't take it literally, especially not on day 15. More like he doesn't remember the game that they played because they were not all that memorable. And I don't disagree with him.

I am not a Tyson fan but he is not wrong that there are people playing who are not very memorable. Michele touched on the very subject with her talk with Rob. Who they are and how they played is not all that familiar to anyone.

Tyson was not his normal biting self this season. I thought that he had some good insights and was far less cutting then he has been in the past. I am fine with his being voted out, he is not a favorite of mine, but I was fine with him.

So far there is no one who really annoys me. I think there is some interesting game play and people thinking of different alliances and ways to approach the game. Outside of Adam's massive blunder, most folks seem to be approaching the game with clear heads and some different strategies.

[Guest]

5 minutes ago, Daisy said:

I want Sandra to win 3 times. (only because it would make Jeff's head explode and that intself would be a wonderful thing).

I don't know, I actually think Jeff would be kind of tickled if Sandra managed to win for a third time. It would appeal to his love of epic, historic moments. And I've never seen any sign from him that he dislikes Sandra or feels that her wins were a blot on the show.

Jeff does love his alpha males, especially in the physical challenges, but sometimes I think that reputation gets over-stated.

[Daisy]

3 minutes ago, tracyscott76 said:

I don't know, I actually think Jeff would be kind of tickled if Sandra managed to win for a third time. It would appeal to his love of epic, historic moments. And I've never seen any sign from him that he dislikes Sandra or feels that her wins were a blot on the show.

Jeff does love his alpha males, especially in the physical challenges, but sometimes I think that reputation gets over-stated.

True

I'm biased because Jeff is ticking me off this season. 😉 
 

[meep.meep]

"Wow!  You guys really have a lot of firewood!"

I was in tears.

Regarding our boy Ethan and his heroic quest to do what the other people managed to do - it wasn't near sunset when he finished.  He could have sat down for a five minute rest and water drink after every lap and still completed the 20 trips.  It's dehydration that does you in.  Natalie is a beast!