S40.E11: This Is Extortion

[GaT]

Watching how excited Tony was about the extortion advantage until he realized it was being played against him was great.

[Hera]

I've been rooting for the Kim/Denise/Jeremy alliance, but I think that's well and truly sunk now. The dynamics of how Tony split them up were really interesting, though: Tony admitted in confessionals he was just pretending to be on their side. Jeremy believed Tony, but Kim saw right through him. Then Tony ended up flipping on his "real alliance" to save Jeremy, who had been his initial target, but in a way that separated him from Kim and Denise. So both Kim and Jeremy ended up being correct about how much they could trust Tony—but he managed to make them wrong about how much they could trust each other.

I saw shades of Tony's Cagayan game in this episode. We'll see if he'll be able to smooth things over with Sarah next week, but between this and his two immunity wins, I think he's the tallest poppy in the game right now. I imagine that if he doesn't win immunity next week, he's definitely getting votes and will have to play his hidden immunity idol. So the question is will the back-up vote be Jeremy, or will the rest of the tribe move on to someone else?

[Primetimer]

Just posted: Joe Reid weighs in on "The Tony Show." Can he go all the way?

https://www.primetimer.com/features/survivor-winners-at-war-has-officially-become-the-tony-show

[HeShallBMySquishy]

8 hours ago, Rachel RSL said:

I’m glad Tony is still around. I just find him so entertaining! 

I love that Ben is Jeremy’s Bitch Eating Crackers. Same, Jeremy, same. 

Oh man, Ben's whole existence is aggravating! But also, I did get to explain to my parents over FB what Bitch Eating Crackers meant, and I think I've inadvertently given my mom a new phrase to use.

6 hours ago, Rachel RSL said:

Yeah, kind of like how they showed Adam randomly looking around the voting booth a few weeks ago. They were laying a foundation for the big “Adam looks for idols in the dumbest places like Probst’s podium” scene. They must have thrown in that comment from Tyson for a reason.

It doesn’t help that almost every single big personality, like them or hate them, is now sitting on EoE. Even good players like Kim and Denise are as interesting as watching paint dry.

That thing with Tyson about Adam was a little strange. And not a peep from Adam all episode. Sad face.

I find Tony equal parts entertaining and irritating, depending on the episode, but that was good game-play on his part, and a fairly good showcase for how he could pull off a win, if he does get that far. His reaction upon reading the Extortion Advantage in its entirety was golden.

But I agree with others that I could not handle dealing with Tony face-to-face for an extended period, as I know I would tire of his Elmer Fudd-squawking very quickly. Be vewy vewy quiet, indeed.

Bye, Sophie! So sad to see her go, especially with an idol in her crotch. I know I ragged on her before about not remembering she was even there, but I've really grown to like her as the season countinued. I love how perceptive and astute she is, correctly calling things how they were more than once. I really should watch her season.

Also, good on Kim for seeing right through Tony's play. I like it when players take note of how transparent others are.

Edited April 23, 2020 by HeShallBMySquishy

[mojoween]

I am not a fan of Sarah and her “I’m funny, and smart, and pretty” didn’t SEEM facetious, but Tony bleating “I could make a better pair of pants than that skirt” was beyond douchey.

Count me in the he seems exhausting camp.  If they go out in the next three boots (after Ben) that would be just dandy.

[Rachel RSL]

1 hour ago, mojoween said:

I am not a fan of Sarah and her “I’m funny, and smart, and pretty” didn’t SEEM facetious, but Tony bleating “I could make a better pair of pants than that skirt” was beyond douchey

I have no doubt that Sarah was joking around when she she said she wasn’t just smart and pretty.  She’s never shown herself to be vain or conceited in the past. Personally, I think she is all of those things but I still think she was just kidding around.

[AncientNewbie]

2 hours ago, mojoween said:

I am not a fan of Sarah and her “I’m funny, and smart, and pretty” didn’t SEEM facetious, but Tony bleating “I could make a better pair of pants than that skirt” was beyond douchey.

Count me in the he seems exhausting camp.  If they go out in the next three boots (after Ben) that would be just dandy.

 

I took it as joking in a way similar to Tyson does it, but I’d be okay with your boot suggestion. Maybe the producers/editors-and forty seasons of Probst tells me he has his tendencies-love the idea they can quote A Real Player (ie muscle man) talking bad about people having social fun, but I like the back at camp scenes. 

[himela]

I think I'm getting crazy. In the last episode's preview did we not see Sarah saying to some people "whatever Tony says this is what we're doing"? Did we see this in this episode? I think it's the second scene that i have seen in a preview and not in the episode. Please reply cause I'm really mad with the editors this season.

[himela]

10 hours ago, Growsonwalls said:

I can't help but think though that part of this move is that Tony is probably a great guy but sort of a bros before hos type of dude. He might just feel more comfortable around Jeremy. Of course his move exposed Kim and Denise so it was a good move game-wise. But I'd say it's 50% gameplay, 50% "I like Jeremy better because he's my kind of guy."

Tony wanted to vote out Jeremy, he said it after he won the immunity challenge. I think what you are saying is a little unfair about him. His biggest ally is Sarah who is not a bro. Actually he voted out Sophie BECAUSE she was getting too close with Sarah.

[skybolt]

That was remarkable play from Tony this week. Where does he have all that mental energy to think up and pull out these moves? He got up early in the morning after a long tribal and found the hidden immunity idol. He then gets extorted for 6 fire tokens and hustles to borrow some form the group. He then wins immunity challenge. You'd think at that point he'd rest because he just dodged a bullet, but no, he waits just before they leave for tribal and convinces Jeremy and Nick to vote out Sophie.

 

Edited April 23, 2020 by skybolt

[Fallacy]

I’m so torn because I didn’t want Sophie to go home, but I also really wanted a true blindside plan to work out at tribal. That blindside was beautiful, except it happened to Sophie, not Ben. Had Tony gone after Ben this vote, I would have called this a perfect episode.

I get why he went after Sophie though. He was right that Sophie was going to continue to disrupt his alliance with Sarah because Sarah did seem far more interested in strategizing with Sophie than Tony. Sarah seemed to be using Tony as a number, but her true strategic alliance was with Sophie.

One minor detail that also made me smile was seeing Boston Rob give Amber a quick kiss goodbye before he went off with the other men somewhere. I don’t know where they were going, but there’s a split second shot that shows Boston Rob once again showing his wife some love. Those two really do make a good team because Amber likes to play the role of devoted wife and mother, and Rob truly appreciates her. He knows he’d be lost without her, so even though he seems to be in the power position in their marriage because he has such a dominating personality, it’s actually Amber who runs his world.

[skybolt]

It's interesting that after the Wendell vote out, players like Jeremy and Sophie talked about targeting Nick as an ally, but now it's abundantly clear that Nick trusts Tony 100%. In hindsight it was an extremely clever move for Tony to sit Nick down after the Wendell vote out to basically get his head straight. He then pulls him into the majority alliance, and now this.

If Jeremy trusted Tony after the last episode (although unfounded), he likely trusts him implicitly now. I don't think Michelle trusts Tony that much , but she's tight with Nick and Jeremy, so that alliance of 4 works. Tony basically pulled a group of stragglers and turned them into the strongest alliance at the moment. Also, by taking out Sophie, he's clearly factored in how Sarah will act. He knows that Sarah will let all her frustrations out when they talk, but then will calm down and stay on his side. He also knows that Ben will vote with the majority, so he'll flip on Denise and Kim in a heartbeat. Finally, Tony is aware that Denise and Kim trust him as far as they can throw him, which is not much. Those 2 know what Tony's gig is, so it'll be interesting to see if they can convince others.

[Lamima]

10 hours ago, Rachel RSL said:

Yeah, kind of like how they showed Adam randomly looking around the voting booth a few weeks ago. They were laying a foundation for the big “Adam looks for idols in the dumbest places like Probst’s podium” scene. They must have thrown in that comment from Tyson for a reason.

It doesn’t help that almost every single big personality, like them or hate them, is now sitting on EoE. Even good players like Kim and Denise are as interesting as watching paint dry.

We got Tony...and Ben. Tony took it up a notch. Ben needs to kick it into gear. Sarah is pretty cray at times too. 

Adam's going to go nutter and/or do something embarrassing. I'm all in for it. Don't let me down, Adam. And I like Adam but, man, I need some good TV right now. This show is all I got. Stupid ass Westworld jumped the shark in The Lost fashion.

[Rachel RSL]

8 minutes ago, Lamima said:

We got Tony...and Ben. Tony took it up a notch. Ben needs to kick it into gear. Sarah is pretty cray at times too. 

That’s why I said almost all the big personalities were on EOE. I’m counting Tony as pretty much the only big personality left. Ben isn’t a big personality, he’s boring. And Sarah is pretty low key, I’ve never thought of her as cray. I hope there’s a lot of good  strategy to come because, if not, it’s going to be a boring ass 2nd half of the show.

[violet and green]

Oh, that ep was a Tony Palooza! Fantastic. Immunity again, after all that. And he found an idol.

I'm a bit worried about the repercussions for him of orchestrating that vote, but god it was fun to watch. I find him so endearing. People talk about him being hard to live with; can't be too hard as three people gave him their fire tokens which he may or may not have been ever able to pay back. Anyway, I'd rather be stuck in a shack with someone enthusiastic and imaginative and goofy than any of the rest of those grey-faced sadsacks left on the island.

Such fun getting Sophie out with an idol in her crotch. I would have preferred Jeremy to go, but maybe that's better for Tony's game. All I care about currently!

I am looking forward to next week, and cannot wait also for the obligatory scene of Adam hysterically weeping with a wide open mouth, a touch of drool, and maybe chewing at the sand, also, that was hopefully foreshadowed by Tyson's comment; or else he was just mentioning day to day life with Adam on Extinction.

[Lamima]

3 minutes ago, Rachel RSL said:

That’s why I said almost all the big personalities were on EOE. I’m counting Tony as pretty much the only big personality left. Ben isn’t a big personality, he’s boring. And Sarah is pretty low key, I’ve never thought of her as cray. I hope there’s a lot of good  strategy to come because, if not, it’s going to be a boring ass 2nd half of the show.

Watch...Tony will go next. Then 😴

[Lamima]

2 minutes ago, violet and green said:

Oh, that ep was a Tony Palooza! Fantastic. Immunity again, after all that. And he found an idol.

I'm a bit worried about the repercussions for him of orchestrating that vote, but god it was fun to watch. I find him so endearing. People talk about him being hard to live with; can't be too hard as three people gave him their fire tokens which he may or may not have been ever able to pay back. Anyway, I'd rather be stuck in a shack with someone enthusiastic and imaginative and goofy than any of the rest of those grey-faced sadsacks left on the island.

Such fun getting Sophie out with an idol in her crotch. I would have preferred Jeremy to go, but maybe that's better for Tony's game. All I care about currently!

I am looking forward to next week, and cannot wait also for the obligatory scene of Adam hysterically weeping with a wide open mouth, a touch of drool, and maybe chewing at the sand, also, that was hopefully foreshadowed by Tyson's comment; or else he was just mentioning day to day life with Adam on Extinction.

So exactly how would Sophie have dug out that idol and handed it to Jeffy if she got an inkling she was on the chopping block? Boy, THAT would have been something. 

[ProfCrash]

I don't see Ben as a big personality. I see Ben as a bad player who managed to win because of immunity wins, a new challenge at the final four, and a backstory that was guaranteed to garner votes at final tribal. 

Ben has not been playing a great game this season. He has had some moments but his personal game seems to be about where it was in his first season. He is not easy to play with. He rubs people the wrong way fairly frequently and he is just hard to play with.

I think that the Kim/Denise alliance could be far more interesting if they found a way of clarifying what the hell their plans are. Now, that could be because the two of them have not been clear enough but I am struggling with the disconnect between Kima and Denise not trusting Tony and wanting to work with Jeremy but we don't ever see them talking to Jeremy about the concerns regarding Tony. It is like they just wrote Jeremy off as a lost cause and walked away from him. That allowed Tony to to reel in Jeremy. Tony told Jeremy that Denise and Kim were going to be voting for Michelle and Jeremy and guess what happened? I hope that they had talked to Jeremy about their distrust of Tony before walking away but I suspect that they didn't.

Michelle looked a little too smug at tribal. Yes, she was going to be on the right side of hte vote but she wasn't even the first or second person to be involved in the plan. She was told who to vote for and that was it. So the smug look was over the top. Relief would make sense but not smug.

Jeremy glaring at Ben fit but more because Jeremy really wanted to vote out Ben. 

[AncientNewbie]

The little snippet where Ben commented on a million dollars going fast or not going far or whatever...yeah, that's not something the editors leave in if he's winning. 

[Lamima]

6 hours ago, AncientNewbie said:

The little snippet where Ben commented on a million dollars going fast or not going far or whatever...yeah, that's not something the editors leave in if he's winning. 

True. And while he sucks at the game and bugs the other players...the drama it causes makes for some interesting TV. Better than Michelle and her 'why didn't you ever call me, Wendell' obsession. And now that Wendell is gone she's back to even more boring, piece of furniture, Michelle.

Edited April 23, 2020 by Lamima

[SuburbanHangSuite]

29 minutes ago, ProfCrash said:

Michelle looked a little too smug at tribal. Yes, she was going to be on the right side of hte vote but she wasn't even the first or second person to be involved in the plan. She was told who to vote for and that was it. So the smug look was over the top. Relief would make sense but not smug.

 

I agree 1000x.  So funny to me that she was whining to Rob about being labeled an Undeserving Winner and she's fallen right back into that sort of gameplay this season.  And she's not alone.  Ben, Kim and Sarah are snoozes.  Even Nick has been fairly invisible.   And for all her analysis about resume-building, Sophie was a snooze too.   (A strong competitor but a snooze nonetheless.) I am happy to see Tony ramp up the action in all his Tony Mania.

 

10 hours ago, Growsonwalls said:

Guys Cirie Fields' instagram does these hilarious endearing color commentary. Check it out. Tbh I;m so relieved that Cirie on SM is exactly the same Cirie we see in the game -- sharp, funny, awesome. And she still works at a nurse too.

I signed up for Instagram just to hear Cirie, that's how much I love her.  Thanks for the intel, Growsonwalls!

[skybolt]

So with Sophie spilling the beans about having an idol in her uhm.....pocket, will that prompt Tony to go out looking for one next morning? 

On a side note, it is interesting that Sandra has always seen through Tony's game. She voted him out in Game Changers and was super close to doing so this time around if Denise didn't flip on her. I know Jeremy was Sandra's first target, but she still had a smug look on her face before her name was read out.

Going back to Tony and his spy nest, I just feel like he can't sleep unless he knows what everyone is up to. If he was 100% sure that the vote would go 8 vs. 1, he would still spy on that one player trying to find out who they were voting for. I guess it makes sense when idols are in play.

Edited April 23, 2020 by skybolt

[watchingtvaddict]

13 hours ago, Haleth said:

Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d be rooting for Tony, but I love his chaotic game. 

Tony is TV gold right now. 

13 hours ago, MerBearHou said:

Loved the blindside and it made sense to split up Sarah and Sophie.  Sophie was not high on my list last week when she announced to her crew in Tribal Council that they should all get up, go over to the side, and decide together who should be voted out.  It really bugged me — felt very schoolyard ringleader stuff.  I know others probably liked that, but I definitely did not.

I’ve never liked Sophie. I find her way too entitled. The way she bossed around here alliance members in her first season Telling them to quit trying to win individual immunity for themselves and focus on helping her win. And seeing her take people to the side last week. I think she still is entitled. 

13 hours ago, Lady Calypso said:

That SUUUUCKS for Sophie, especially she was my number one female to win. But that was a damn good move by Tony. He played VERY well tonight. I am impressed with his moves. He absolutely built up his resume tonight. 

Jeremy was playing dumb for most of the episode, but him being annoyed with Ben did earn him a couple of points. Plus, thank goodness he did believe Tony, for his own game. But he really didn't have any other choice. That was also the most sincere we've heard from Tony. 

The Extortion Advantage was a good one. But Nick, Ben, and Jeremy shouldn't have just handed Tony one token each, as they can't guarantee that Tony would ever repay the favour. If he didn't win immunity, none of them would likely have gotten their tokens back. I wonder which two of the three got the token repayment.

I can't blame Kim for swapping sides with Denise. 

I’m thinking Tony must have returned a fire token to Jeremy... I don’t know why else Jeremy would place trust in him. 

12 hours ago, truthaboutluv said:

I do remember in Sophie's winning season, by the Final Tribal Council, she was the "well, we guess she's probably the least annoying of the three" vote.

The jury was fully ready to vote for Ozzy, but he came up short at the final immunity challenge. And I remember at least one or two jury members calling Sophie smug and condescending during their question. She got pretty hammered. 

So smug... Sophie is smug an entitled. 

[ProfCrash]

I don't have a problem with strategic game play, and Kim, Denise, Nick, and Sofie are more strategic players. I just want to see more of that being aired. 

I like the strategic play but when you have the bombastic players, like Tony, the strategic play gets lost because TPTB want to show Tony running around with his head chopped off.

[SuburbanHangSuite]

5 minutes ago, ProfCrash said:

I don't have a problem with strategic game play, and Kim, Denise, Nick, and Sofie are more strategic players. I just want to see more of that being aired. 

Good point.  I'm calling them snoozes (maybe unfairly) but it's because we're seeing very little of them actually strategizing.  And I agree--I admire a strategic game as well, probably moreso than someone who just outright dominates in a physical way.  But damn if Tony hasn't won me over with the perfect blend of humor, hustle and strategy.  

[skybolt]

Out of all the remaining players I feel like Ben is the only just wanting to make it to the end and hoping to receive the jury vote. IMO, this is not something I want to see from a previous winner. For instance, all the remaining players have made tough decisions up to this point to build their resume. Denise with the Sandra vote out, Tony this week; Nick and Michelle knowing they're at the bottom and jumping around to save their game and playing it up to the jury; Kim going for broke the last 2 episodes, even if unsuccessful, etc. Ben is probably preparing a sob story at the end, but he will get stomped on by the jury.

[Eolivet]

1 hour ago, Lamima said:

So exactly how would Sophie have dug out that idol and handed it to Jeffy if she got an inkling she was on the chopping block? Boy, THAT would have been something. 

A crotch idol is not exactly unprecedented, right, @HeShallBMySquishy?

[peachmangosteen]

 

6 hours ago, mojoween said:

I am not a fan of Sarah and her “I’m funny, and smart, and pretty” didn’t SEEM facetious, but Tony bleating “I could make a better pair of pants than that skirt” was beyond douchey.

I thought that was clearly a joke. It came out of nowhere from her though as she is not usually a funny person lol. Anyway, that whole scene was the most I've ever liked her. I agree that Tony came off like a complete asshole there. He actually always does with Sarah imo and I do not understand why she works with him.

1 hour ago, Lamima said:

Watch...Tony will go next. 

That would be awesome! I would love to see Kim (or anyone really but she's probably the best bet) orchestrate a blindside of Tony with an idol in his pocket. It's feeling like Tony's going to either immunity win his way to the end or that these fools are gonna allow him to get there though so I don't have high hopes.

39 minutes ago, skybolt said:

So with Sophie spilling the beans about having an idol in her uhm.....pocket, will that prompt Tony to go out looking for one next morning? 

I don't think unplayed idols are rehidden but I'm not 100% on that. If they are then, yes, Tony will for sure find that one.

Tony falling in his spastic sprint to read his note, his obvious glee over it, and then his face immediately falling when he sees what exactly it is was a perfect segment. He really is entertaining to watch. I just struggle to understand how and why people continue to believe him/want to play with him though. Tony always makes everyone else look so stupid for letting him get far and I find it frustrating to watch.

Jeremy's Ben hate is delicious. Him just glaring at Ben during like the entire TC was hilarious but also scary. He is so intense!

This ep was a good example of how you can show us just enough that we have an understanding of how things happened while still allowing us to be surprised by the vote.

[ProfCrash]

Sofie's idol is from a different camp so it wouldn't be rehidden. Tony has the idol from the merge beach. 

[Guest]

I can't fully dislike Ben because sometimes he comes up with gems like this:

Jeremy, trying to convince Ben that he's in trouble: "Now that Tyson's gone, who do you think is the biggest target?"

Ben, looking right at him: "You!"

It made me laugh. Tony made me laugh. Then the last five minutes happened and it did not make me laugh. :C

I'm over it now, though. I'm not even mad at Tony or Nick anymore. They can still win. Or Kim or Denise. Or maybe Jeremy. Or...or Sarah.

 

 

or ben or michele -____- 

[peachmangosteen]

Just now, tracyscott76 said:

Jeremy, trying to convince Ben that he's in trouble: "Now that Tyson's gone, who do you think is the biggest target?"

Ben, looking right at him: "You!"

And then Jeremy's, "OK." I rolled!

[Rachel RSL]

7 minutes ago, tracyscott76 said:

I can't fully dislike Ben because sometimes he comes up with gems like this:

Jeremy, trying to convince Ben that he's in trouble: "Now that Tyson's gone, who do you think is the biggest target?"

Ben, looking right at him: "You!"

All that scene did was remind me how much Ben sucks at the social game. He wouldn’t even let Jeremy speak, which is beyond irritating. How would it have hurt him to hear Jeremy’s ideas? But nope, he just immediately started to be an ass. Typical Ben.

Edited April 23, 2020 by Rachel RSL

[Guest]

16 minutes ago, Rachel RSL said:

All that scene did was remind me how much Ben sucks at the social game. He wouldn’t even let Jeremy speak, which is beyond irritating. How would it have hurt him to hear Jeremy’s ideas? But nope, he just immediately started to be an ass. Typical Ben.

I saw it more as Jeremy trying to sell Ben on something to get him in line with Jeremy's plans, and Ben seeing through it and not buying. Didn't think Jeremy's social game was on fire in that moment, either, since he was kind of talking down to Ben.

Not that I disagree that Ben's social game isn't the greatest, but I guess scenes like that make me laugh more than get me irritated. Two players not in sync and butting heads is often funny to me, as long as it doesn't get personal, which this didn't.

[enoughcats]

Question: 

How are they going to get rid of all those warm bodies?

Right now eight survivors plus at least one from the island. That's nine.

Now I know that Survivor can do anything it wants to, but I really expected a double elimination last night.

There are only three Wednesday nights left.So the last episode is May 13.

HOW do you get the numbers down at the same time come to some sort of resolution of the folks on the island?

I can see getting three maybe four votes off, but that leaves five.  

Five competitors try to make fire in a 10mph wind and the first three advance?

Five have to eat those chicks still in the shells and keep three of them down the longest as sounds of people throwing up fill the airwaves.

Let the folks on the island chose with their tokens?

See who can balance upside down while completing a Sudoku puzzle?

[tvfanatic13]

Nooooooooo!!!

[Guest]

32 minutes ago, enoughcats said:

Question: 

How are they going to get rid of all those warm bodies?

Right now eight survivors plus at least one from the island. That's nine.

Now I know that Survivor can do anything it wants to, but I really expected a double elimination last night.

There are only three Wednesday nights left.So the last episode is May 13.

HOW do you get the numbers down at the same time come to some sort of resolution of the folks on the island?

I can see getting three maybe four votes off, but that leaves five.  

Five competitors try to make fire in a 10mph wind and the first three advance?

Five have to eat those chicks still in the shells and keep three of them down the longest as sounds of people throwing up fill the airwaves.

Let the folks on the island chose with their tokens?

See who can balance upside down while completing a Sudoku puzzle?

There's going to be a 2 hour episode the week before the finale, which should help. So theoretically it would go:

April 29: 8 players down to 7

May 6 (2 hour episode) : 7 to 6, 6 to 5

May 13 (3 hour finale plus reunion) : Returnee comes back taking it back up to 6, two tribal councils to get down to 4, fire making to 3, final tribal. Just like the last EoE season.

Edited April 23, 2020 by tracyscott76
Removing unwanted emoji

[iMonrey]

Quote

Jeremy was playing dumb for most of the episode, but him being annoyed with Ben did earn him a couple of points.

I'm no fan of either one but I'm giving that point to Ben. Everyone was visibly annoyed with Jeremy coming back from that tribal council he bailed on. Jeremy was trying to talk up Ben's imminent danger and Ben wasn't having it. I thought Jeremy came off kind of desperate and delusional right there. Also, much as I dislike Ben (well, mostly I dislike how he won his season), I respect the fact that he never even pretends to listen to anyone's bullshit. It's probably not smart game play though.

Quote

It appears to me that they're reacting to the idea that "THE PRODUCERS THROW IDOLS AT THEIR FAVORITES!!!" by showing more & more footage of people fruitlessly searching before finding one.

I'm still highly suspicious of the way people find these "hidden" idols. I mean, there's a whole island there and an idol is under a rock against a tree. Granted there is probably a limited area in which it would be hidden but it seems like the odds are against finding something like that in that terrain. Plus the regularity with which players needing them the most seem to always find them makes it hard to convince me there isn't some outside help involved.

[mojoween]

The more Entertainment Weekly, Dalton Ross, Jeff Probst and David Sampson (former Florida Marlins Vice President and first boot from Brains vs. Brawn) tell me how awesome Tony was last night, the more root for his boot.

He wasn’t THAT impressive.  God.

[healthnut]

I like Sophie a lot but I gladly sacrificed her for some real gameplay. This season has been so tame. I do think she has risen her status as a winner and I’m happy for her that she’ll be appreciated more going forward. 

Ben and Nick have zero win equity at this point. No one is going to vote them out because they want to drag them to the end. I don’t know if I would’ve bought Michele’s story or not but kudos to her for coming up with one. She probably had already thought of a story in case someone asked. I don’t know that I want to see an extortion advantage again but it was hilarious to watch because Tony is the perfect character for it.

[AncientNewbie]

34 minutes ago, mojoween said:

The more Entertainment Weekly, Dalton Ross, Jeff Probst and David Sampson (former Florida Marlins Vice President and first boot from Brains vs. Brawn) tell me how awesome Tony was last night, the more root for his boot.

 

I tend to be a contrarian by nature, so I'm suspicious when they give me a hard sell. If the product can't speak for itself at 40 seasons, that's a separate problem.

[healthnut]

37 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

Plus the regularity with which players needing them the most seem to always find them makes it hard to convince me there isn't some outside help involved.

Typically, they don’t show idol hunts that aren’t fruitful. Amber’s attempt earlier this season being a rare example. Players always say after the season they were all looking all the time, it just isn’t shown.

[ljenkins782]

13 hours ago, Hera said:

I've been rooting for the Kim/Denise/Jeremy alliance, but I think that's well and truly sunk now. The dynamics of how Tony split them up were really interesting, though: Tony admitted in confessionals he was just pretending to be on their side. Jeremy believed Tony, but Kim saw right through him. Then Tony ended up flipping on his "real alliance" to save Jeremy, who had been his initial target, but in a way that separated him from Kim and Denise. So both Kim and Jeremy ended up being correct about how much they could trust Tony—but he managed to make them wrong about how much they could trust each other.

I saw shades of Tony's Cagayan game in this episode. We'll see if he'll be able to smooth things over with Sarah next week, but between this and his two immunity wins, I think he's the tallest poppy in the game right now. I imagine that if he doesn't win immunity next week, he's definitely getting votes and will have to play his hidden immunity idol. So the question is will the back-up vote be Jeremy, or will the rest of the tribe move on to someone else?

That was a genuinely impressive performance by Tony. The feat of hustling 3 extra tokens alone was pretty huge, when it would have been easy enough for the people he told about it to let him twist in the wind. But the gymnastics of engineering a secret Sophie vote was also pretty impressive. 

Sophie was a threat to him with little upside, since she didn't have a strong tie to him and threatened his alliance with Sarah, who will probably be mad but with few options for recourse at this point. He's in danger now, but with an immunity idol to see him through the next tribal and depending on who's left standing after that, he may be able to scramble himself back into a majority alliance. 

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I'm no fan of either one but I'm giving that point to Ben. Everyone was visibly annoyed with Jeremy coming back from that tribal council he bailed on. Jeremy was trying to talk up Ben's imminent danger and Ben wasn't having it. I thought Jeremy came off kind of desperate and delusional right there. Also, much as I dislike Ben (well, mostly I dislike how he won his season), I respect the fact that he never even pretends to listen to anyone's bullshit. It's probably not smart game play though.

It seems like at least half the people who were mad at Jeremy were mad at him because they'd planned to vote him out, which is nothing he should feel bad about. But Ben not believing Jeremy's spiel about him (Ben) being a threat seems like more self-awareness that I can give Ben credit for. He has inexplicably called himself one of the big threats since the beginning, when it seems obvious that he's riding the current as a spare vote.

I'm finding this season challenging because there's no one left that I'm invested in seeing win. Someone coming back from EOE could maybe reignite my interest, but if it's like last season, that won't be until the very end. 

I did like Kim seeing through some of Tony's machinations, but since she was on the wrong side of the vote anyway, it doesn't seem to have mattered. She's been so invisible so far that it's hard to root for her unless the last part of the season has a lot more of her gameplay in it. 

[skybolt]

8 minutes ago, healthnut said:

I like Sophie a lot but I gladly sacrificed her for some real gameplay. This season has been so tame. I do think she has risen her status as a winner and I’m happy for her that she’ll be appreciated more going forward. 

Ben and Nick have zero win equity at this point. No one is going to vote them out because they want to drag them to the end. I don’t know if I would’ve bought Michele’s story or not but kudos to her for coming up with one. She probably had already thought of a story in case someone asked. I don’t know that I want to see an extortion advantage again but it was hilarious to watch because Tony is the perfect character for it.

Michelle is not that far behind Tony in telling a fib on the fly and making it sound believable. She's definitely in the top 6 this season of players that can do that (including Rob, Parvati, Tony, Denise and Sandra). I think Natalie, Tyson, Sarah and Kim are capable as well.

[eel21788]

1 hour ago, iMonrey said:

I'm still highly suspicious of the way people find these "hidden" idols. I mean, there's a whole island there and an idol is under a rock against a tree. Granted there is probably a limited area in which it would be hidden but it seems like the odds are against finding something like that in that terrain. Plus the regularity with which players needing them the most seem to always find them makes it hard to convince me there isn't some outside help involved.

I think it was Spencer's first season, I was pretty convinced that someone from production was walking down a path 10 feet in front of him "accidently" dropping idols.

[skybolt]

2 hours ago, iMonrey said:

I'm still highly suspicious of the way people find these "hidden" idols. I mean, there's a whole island there and an idol is under a rock against a tree. Granted there is probably a limited area in which it would be hidden but it seems like the odds are against finding something like that in that terrain. Plus the regularity with which players needing them the most seem to always find them makes it hard to convince me there isn't some outside help involved.

Idols are fairly easy to find these days if you spend a couple of hours looking. Kim, Sophie and Denise pretty much found their idols the same way as Tony. 

[cheetahchirps]

20 hours ago, Alice Mudgarden said:

What I want to know is what that little snippet of Tyson saying to Wendell that Adam won't be able to handle losing was all about. It felt like they were laying a foundation for something that's gonna happen but I can't imagine a superfan like Adam bailing on the game before it was done, even if it's to be a jury member.

 

Jeremy: "Everything Ben does annoys me."

When they showed the view from on top of the cliff after Tyson spoke, I got a little apprehensive about Adam...

[peachmangosteen]

Tony had 18 confessionals in this ep which is a record, even including finales. Also, that's more confessionals than Natalie White got her entire season lol. Honestly, I can't say I blame them though since Tony was the driving force behind everything that happened in this ep.

[iMonrey]

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The more Entertainment Weekly, Dalton Ross, Jeff Probst and David Sampson (former Florida Marlins Vice President and first boot from Brains vs. Brawn) tell me how awesome Tony was last night, the more root for his boot.

He wasn’t THAT impressive.  God.

Tony can definitely get to the end and say he outplayed everyone. For that reason alone he needs to be voted out pronto. The problem is that he seems so manic that overplaying seems like it works for him by accident rather than design.

I never saw his original seasons so I don't have any preconceived ideas about him. I don't particularly care for him but he's racking up the resume points right and left. If he wins, it will be one of many seasons when I feel like they deserved it even if I didn't like them. Which makes for a pretty "meh" season overall.

[Vikitty]

With the focus so heavily on Tony I thought for sure he was getting the episode's bootee edit. I couldn't stand him in Cagayan but he's definitely growing on me in WaW. I would still rather the title go to anyone currently on the Edge with the exception of Danni or Adam.

[Bouffe]

20 hours ago, Alice Mudgarden said:

What I want to know is what that little snippet of Tyson saying to Wendell that Adam won't be able to handle losing was all about. It felt like they were laying a foundation for something that's gonna happen but I can't imagine a superfan like Adam bailing on the game before it was done, even if it's to be a jury member.

It was very strange. He may not be my favourite, but I don't really want to see a winner quit. I didn't like that Sandra did (although I can understand why she did).

20 hours ago, leocadia said:

I loved the looks that Jeremy was shooting Ben during the reading of the votes.  Priceless!

The very definition of "if looks could kill"! Shaking his head at him with daggers in his eyes. LOL

20 hours ago, riprock said:

I want to echo that Tony pulled off something masterful. He learned from being voted out early in Game Changers.  He’s laid low and played his way into a game starting point where more than half the players are on EoE. The path to the final is clearer and he’s got a group of 4 with 8 players left. Plus he's the one calling the shots in that group.

Tony played this very, very well. He's not my favourite but last week he grew on me a little. And this week, he was just on fire. I was glad Jeremy believed him and went with him on the vote. And glad it was Sophie that went. She just rubs me the wrong way for whatever reason. Going out with an idol in her pocket/crotch adds insult to injury... But wow, what a blindside.

20 hours ago, SuburbanHangSuite said:

At first, I was throughly pissed with Tony and Crew that they had the nerve to be annoyed with Jeremy playing his Safety.  "How dare Jeremy not let us vote him out!"   And on top of that, he finds an idol??

So Tony deciding to switch the target to Sophie gives me more joy than should be allowed from just watching a show.  Sophie and Sarah were waaaaaay too comfortable.  Break that shit up.  Kadooz to the editors for throwing me off because I really, really, really thought Jeremy would never believe Tony.  That blindside was perfection **chef's kiss**

I just remembered, Tony flying around with that bag, gleefully thinking that he really had an Advantage from E0E was some seriously funny shit.  He was so giddy thinking that he could play that against someone and then he reads, "This advantage is being played against you."  I hollered.  You visibly saw the defeat wash over him.  

It always amazes me that players will get mad at another player they targeted in the first place, especially when said player save themselves. Like really, they should just stay there, not play, let you vote them off? LOL

Perfect blindside indeed, and I didn't see it coming either!

That scene of Tony with the red bag, and the realization of what the "advantage" really meant... Love love love loved it!

18 hours ago, healthnut said:

The extortion advantage was entertaining but I’m not sure if I really like it, I’m not crazy about the Edge people having so much influence over the game but I did like that we finally saw someone have to beg for fire tokens. 

It's a lot of power given to the people on EoE. I"m not sure I like it either. But I guess with a season full of winners, production has to put in some new things, some unexpected things... 

9 hours ago, Fallacy said:

I get why he went after Sophie though. He was right that Sophie was going to continue to disrupt his alliance with Sarah because Sarah did seem far more interested in strategizing with Sophie than Tony. Sarah seemed to be using Tony as a number, but her true strategic alliance was with Sophie.

That's why I was glad Sophie was sent to EoE. She and Sarah needed to be broken up. Sarah clearly was playing with her much more than she ever intended to play with Tony.

7 hours ago, skybolt said:

So with Sophie spilling the beans about having an idol in her uhm.....pocket, will that prompt Tony to go out looking for one next morning? 

7 hours ago, ProfCrash said:

Sofie's idol is from a different camp so it wouldn't be rehidden. Tony has the idol from the merge beach. 

I was annoyed that Sophie let everyone know she had an idol! I wonder if the players will know it comes from another beach or not. They may still go out and search for it.