S41.E03: My Million Dollar Mistake

[secnarf]

Quote

Castaways stumble upon a sneaky advantage that comes at a great risk. Truth is tested among castaways as mistakes are made.

Original air date: 10/06/2021

[LadyChatts]

So does anything happen to Sydney or Tiffany since Brad got voted out with a steal-a-vote, or did they already get their punishment by however they voted (seriously I'm so confused about the rules).

Sad to lose Brad and his big smile and chaotic personality.  I am glad J.D. is still there.  Hopefully Ricard does something next week to piss the tribe off, because he and Sydney can go anytime. 

Shan is too emotional in playing this game.  Lot of interesting moves tonight.  I don't like Sydney at all and hopefully she does something to get herself voted out.  I loved how Tiffany was annoyed that Evvie and Liana saw she got an advantage.  I feel like that's telling where she really stands with them, and that they may regret keeping her around.  Glad yellow tribe won tonight, because it was getting boring and Xander would have beena  goner.  I'm glad we got to see another tribe's dynamics.  

[dizzyd]

Well I’m glad that advantage steal a vote was wasted. Even fate is tired of the excess of advantages.

[GenerationX]

Random thoughts on episode 3 “The Fine Print”:

• Advantages have more fine print than a free theme park ticket
• JD needs to work on his layups
• The Ferris Bueller oars for Brad’s legs were an uncanny likeness

Shan is the most entertaining player to watch this season.  Her story about what happened to her when she was five was heartbreaking, and I’m generally immune to reality show sob stories.

[Melina22]

18 minutes ago, LadyChatts said:

So does anything happen to Sydney or Tiffany since Brad got voted out with a steal-a-vote, or did they already get their punishment by however they voted (seriously I'm so confused about the rules).

So how many advantages did Brad get voted out with? And can people still use the die? I'm completely confused as to who has what and what each one does. Brad was fun tonight though, bursting with good nature and excitement. 

Poor Xander. Doomed to talk about butterflies and dead relatives at every challenge forever. 

[LanceM]

I am so glad to see Brad get voted off with all his talk about how this is "new era of survivor, you have to take risks, big moves,  blah blah blah."  No you don't. Atleast not all the time.  Sometimes the best play it to play it safe. 

Oh Sydney definitely has Tiff pegged. and she was only with her for like an hour. lol

[LadyChatts]

4 minutes ago, Melina22 said:

So how many advantages did Brad get voted out with? And can people still use the die? I'm completely confused as to who has what and what each one does. Brad was fun tonight though, bursting with good nature and excitement. 

Poor Xander. Doomed to talk about butterflies and dead relatives at every challenge forever. 

So Brad had the idol clue and a steal-a-vote, and both really would have came in handy tonight.  Xander has an idol clue, but no idol yet, but he has an extra vote.  J.D. has an extra vote.  I'm seriously at a loss because of all the new rules with these idols and advantages who has what based on who voted for what.  Someone on the blue tribe has an extra vote, too, although I don't know who.

I feel sorry for Xander, because at least with Brad sprouting off about broccoli trees it didn't make his butterfly thing seem so crazy.  

[Straycat80]

I think Brad went home with three advantages. I guess they will get replanted. I was hoping Ricard would be voted off but, no. 

[ProfCrash]

5 minutes ago, Straycat80 said:

I think Brad went home with three advantages. I guess they will get replanted. I was hoping Ricard would be voted off but, no. 

Brad had two. He had the steal a vote and the non-functioning idol. The Beware clue he got told him to get on the boat at night and that was when he got the steal a vote. Instead of being sent to the pirate wheel after the challenge, the boat took them to the tiki huts.

Would Brad’s phrase have counted given how badly he butchered it? That was kind of hilarious.

Ricard is still playing too hard and being very open about it. 

Brad got too wrapped up in being tricky.

Tiffany actually handled a balance thing reasonably well. 

JD is awful at basketball.

Outside of that I got nothing. It wasn’t that exciting an episode. 

Oh, at least we can’t complain that they are making the advantages hard to find. Next week there will be one hanging from a fishing rod over the fire pit with a big neon light pointing to it. 

[Guest]

24 minutes ago, LadyChatts said:

Someone on the blue tribe has an extra vote, too, although I don't know who.

Deshawn maybe? At the summit with Evvie, when Evvie basically told him that they would be protecting their vote.

I think.

I grew to enjoy Brad, so that was a bit of a bummer. The Ferris Bueller reference was a winner. His final words showed a good attitude, and a good understanding of where he went wrong.

That was a pretty good challenge! Love when everyone is in it.

[knitorpurl]

So it's come just tossing advantages around camp because they can't trust the players to find them. I guess they need the players to save all their mental energy for trying to decipher how the advantages work.

I liked Boat Oar Brad- well done. But real life Brad didn't understand how to apply his subterfuge skills to the game and proceeded to overshare placing himself as a target for the vote.

[vb68]

So if you thought the problem with Survivor that there wasn't enough secret advantages and idols, boy this was the episode for you. There are so many advantages and (potential) idols that it is hard to keep track of them all. You almost need a flowchart.

Outside of all the dubious sneaking around the rest of the episode was pretty dull.

Poor Brad. He basically boxed himself in without a way to protect himself, idols and advantages be damned.

All the other players at the challenge must have figured out after Brad's feeble attempt at reciting his line that lines are in fact a signal or code.

[knitorpurl]

42 minutes ago, GenerationX said:

Random thoughts on episode 3 “The Fine Print”:

• Advantages have more fine print than a free theme park ticket
• JD needs to work on his layups
• The Ferris Bueller oars for Brad’s legs were an uncanny likeness

Shan is the most entertaining player to watch this season.  Her story about what happened to her when she was five was heartbreaking, and I’m generally immune to reality show sob stories.

JD and his showy layups- embarrassing! Have to wonder who he watched this episode with. They probably haven't stopped laughing yet.

[Melina22]

One thing I miss with the bewildering assortment of advantages taking up almost the whole episode, is the Survive aspect of Survivor. What, if anything, are they eating? Are they really hot and sunburned? Itchy? Are they fishing? How are they feeling physically? Are they all just sleeping on the beach or are there good shelters?

A lot of viewers weren't born when Survivor started. There's so much we never see any more that they would probably really enjoy. I know I would. I'm interested in so much more than conniving and advantages and competitions. 

Edited October 7, 2021 by Melina22

[Maverick]

26 minutes ago, Melina22 said:

I'm interested in so much more than conniving and advantages and competitions. 

 Jeff Probst isn't interested in those aspects so you shouldn't be either.    And don't bother tweeting him if you disagree...he won't read it.

[choclatechip45]

JD's trying to do layups was hilarious. Best part was you could see it in the background. 

[TVFan1]

I'm with everyone who has no idea who has what advantage or idol or idol clue and how many everyone has. It seems like everyone is finding them and it's hard to keep track of everything.

JD is horrible at layups. I'd rather have Ricard get voted out this week instead of Brad. At least Brad was likable.

Edited October 7, 2021 by TVFan1

[Vikitty]

Brad was one of my favourites so I'm gutted. 

[Lantern7]

This is still on?

It might be for the best that Brad is out. He looks . . . gaunt? I don't think that's the word. He just comes off as overgrown, and those eyes are a tiny bit freaky. Maybe "zombie" is the word? Great that he stockpiled advantages, only to get voted out. I don't think he'll get the level of abuse reserved for guys people like James and Erik.

Still not caring enough to memorize names. That one woman whose parents made her choose which one she'd go with after their divorce? Holy shit. That is some hardcore stuff to put on a child. On the other hand, I think that when she revealed that during the casting process, Probst probably had to change his pants.

Tiffany finished a challenge! Good for her.

Has anyone tried to perform a lay-up like JD in that situation? I thought the body had to remain on the mat at all times during that game. Strictly free throw shots.

54 minutes ago, Maverick said:

 Jeff Probst isn't interested in those aspects so you shouldn't be either.    And don't bother tweeting him if you disagree...he won't read it.

. . . but what if you find him on the street? Would he listen to you then?

[bunnyface]

I was watching the whole thing, chanting over and over "Shut up, Brad.  Shut up, shut up, shut up!"   Even my parents, who only watch this show when being held in captivity at my house were saying "why is he telling everything he knows?  Shouldn't these be secrets?"  Yes, yes they should.

I was glad to see Yellow win something finally.  Whatever their name is.  And there was some woman on the blue team I don't think I've ever seen before.  Maybe I'll figure her out at some point.

ETA:  Oh yeah, my mother, who again only watches in captivity, did not like that guy having the advantage down his pants.  She suggested they wrap those things in poison ivy so they'd quit doing that because it's gross.  I can't say I disagree.

 

Edited October 7, 2021 by bunnyface

[millennium]

I knew the instant Liana missed the advantage that Tiffany would be the one to find it.   It was like a law of physics.   Person you like misses advantage, person you don't like will get it. 

I'm not embarrassed to say I couldn't understand what was going on at that midnight meeting.   Steal a vote?  Tarp?  Everybody gets tarp?  Two people steal a vote?  Or not?  Only Brad gets it?   What?   Who cares.   I was too tired after working all day to try to figure it out.   Loved that luminous slice of starry sky and surf that flickered across the screen for a second.

J.D. sounds very entitled when he speaks.   And I swear I heard violins when he was talking about how Survivor saved his life at Tribal.

If the butterflies and broccoli moments are intended to inject humor into those scenes, they're an epic fail.   It just awkward and cringey.  Really wish somebody else would look at Xander or whomever and ask "Just what the fuck are you talking about?"

[millennium]

P.S.  I also wish Jeff would ask if anyone is offended by the corrupt syntax of the phrase "you guys's" because I would be the first to raise my hand.

[Steph Sometimes]

I love Survivor. Watched from the beginning. Have very strong opinions on many things and can (have) talked people's ears off about things and people they don't care about. It's hard to put into words though I how I feel so far about this season. I feel like I'm watching a different show. You know how when one show gets super popular, other networks try to copy it and the versions are almost like it, but something's missing? That's kind of how I feel about this season. I mostly just feel confused. Who has what advantage is difficult to follow, and I don't want to have to do so much work to figure out whose advantage cancels whose. And the butterfly/broccoli thing is just absurd (although it does amuse me thinking of past players spouting off crap like that during challenges). Seriously though. I miss learning about the players (and in organic ways not the voiceovers) and how they interact with others and who's aligned with whom. I just feel like I'm watching something else. I felt that way before when Chris won Edge of Extinction and I sort of felt that way when they introduced the "Let's Save Ben" fire challenge. 

I watch for the contestants and strategy and the location. I don't watch for advantage/disadvantages so complex that it sucks up so much time. I'm still watching this season through (and will probably watch forever) and hope someone I like wins, but I don't even really know who I like yet because I still feel like I barely know these people. And I don't mean a random purple here or there (Hi Heather! Hi Erika! I see you), but most of them. 

[Johannah]

14 minutes ago, millennium said:

 

If the butterflies and broccoli moments are intended to inject humor into those scenes, they're an epic fail.   It just awkward and cringey.  Really wish somebody else would look at Xander or whomever and ask "Just what the fuck are you talking about?"

I think it's hilarious.  And after the other two spout their nonsense, it would be the perfect time for whomever finds the last one to say their "confused" line.

Edited October 7, 2021 by Johann

[Chicago Redshirt]

3 hours ago, LadyChatts said:

So does anything happen to Sydney or Tiffany since Brad got voted out with a steal-a-vote, or did they already get their punishment by however they voted (seriously I'm so confused about the rules).

Sydney, Tiffany and Brad had yet another twist on the Prisoner's Dilemma. Which again was not rendered so much a dilemma because people were able to talk openly about what they were planning to do. Somewhere John Nash, the father of game theory and the guy featured in "A Beautiful Mind" is probably spinning in his grave. 

The rules of this one were:

If all players choose tarp, everyone gets a tarp to bring home to their tribe.

If all players choose steal, all players lose their votes.

If there's a mix of steal/tarp votes, the steal players get a steal the vote advantage and the tarp players get nothing.

Tiffany and Sydney ended up voting tarp and so got nothing because Brad did choose steal.

The solution for this game is basically straightforward when you can negotiate in the open: either get everyone to agree to tarp so that everyone wins, or get one player to agree to take it for the team and choose tarp and allow the other two to get the steal the vote advantage.

The players seemingly quickly settled on the latter.  When Sydney said, "I'm going to protect my vote and go tarp," Tiffany should have just said, "OK so Sydney, you stay on tarp, and that leaves Brad and me to go steal a vote. We'll hook you up in the future at the merge with our steal-a-vote advantage or some other way."

Instead, Tiffany blathered some nonsense to antagonize her about "Do you want to play it safe or do you want to play Survivor?" Stupid, you want to cement her playing it safe here! Because if you talk her into taking a risk in this context that's bad for you!

Also, after all her shittalking about playing it safe, Tiffany took the safe option of tarp. She sucks so bad. She's bad at the challenges, bad at the social game. I imagine everyone who has ever played but got booted off in the first couple episodes their seasons are like, "How did I lose Survivor before she did?"

Yes, there is a chance that someone might say "I plan to do X" but then do Y. But that is not a smart thing to do, generally speaking  as it likely does not benefit you in the short term and definitely does not benefit you in the long-term. The best-case scenario for lying would be saying "I'm going for tarp, let's all go for tarp" and then going for steal. Lying and saying "I'm going for steal" and then going for tarp doesn't accomplish anything more than telling the truth and trying to secure an agreement to get tarp and is actively bad because if even one person goes steal, you get nothing. But lying and trying to get an all tarp pact and flipping to steal would require at least one other people to not flip too. And when one person has already declared steal, as Brad seemingly did, trying to pretend to go either way just doesn't matter. Plus, as soon as people find out that they didn't get a tarp, they are going to likely know to distrust you and probably broadcast it far and wide that you aren't to be trusted. Although technically both the other people could have lied, the easiest thing would be to distrust them both AND to diminish the value of the steal a vote because if people know that it's potentially out there, they can try to maneuver around it. 

Edited October 7, 2021 by Chicago Redshirt

[Melina22]

14 minutes ago, millennium said:

Steal a vote?  Tarp?  Everybody gets tarp?  Two people steal a vote?  Or not?  Only Brad gets it?   What?   Who cares.   I was too tired after working all day to try to figure it out

For some reason, I heard this in Liz Lemon's voice and it made me laugh. It was also almost exactly what was going through my head, except for the working all day part, so I didn't even have that excuse. It's like soon the island will have drifts everywhere, just piles of little pieces of canvas with writing belonging to Survivors present and departed. 

[BK1978]

30 minutes ago, Chicago Redshirt said:

Also, after all her shittalking about playing it safe, Tiffany took the safe option of tarp. She sucks so bad. She's bad at the challenges, bad at the social game. I imagine everyone who has ever played but got booted off in the first couple episodes their seasons are like, "How did I lose Survivor before she did?"

After reading the above paragraph, I just came to the realization that Tiffany is probably going to end up in one of the final three seats.  Basically because of what you stated above.  One would be dumb not to drag her with them to the end.  The problem will be trying to her there.

I was a little shocked by Brad being a early boot.  With the edit he was getting I thought he was going to be in it for the long haul.  Well I was wrong.  Which is not a bad thing, for years I have been saying I would love for them to put some focus on the early boots like they used to do back in the first few seasons and they did just that with Brad.  We probably know more about him than any other early boot players who played in the last thirty seasons. 

Also, I forgot to add.  I guess the sitting out in back-to-back challenges is no longer a rule because the woman with blonde hair on the blue tribe has sat out in back-to-back challenges.  Unless there are challenges they are not showing on the show.

Edited October 7, 2021 by BK1978

[Chicago Redshirt]

6 minutes ago, BK1978 said:

After reading the above paragraph, I just came to the realization that Tiffany is probably going to end up in one of the final three seats.  Basically because of what you stated above.  One would be dumb not to drag her with them to the end.  The problem will be trying to her there.

I was a little shocked by Brad being a early boot.  With the edit he was getting I thought he was going to be in it for the long haul.  Well I was wrong.  Which is not a bad thing, for years I have been saying I would love for them to put some focus on the early boots like they used to do back in the first few seasons and they did just that with Brad.  We probably know more about him than any other early boot players who played in the last thirty seasons. 

I have been trying to figure out if she is potentially the GOAT of being a Survivor Goat. I can't see anybody ever voting for her, so she has that going for her. And her sucking at challenges once things turn into an individual game is a strength because she essentially will never be competitive to take an individual immunity spot (unless they start awarding them based on on physical or mental prowess but for paranoia or crazy eyes).

But I would think at some point, being around her would be too exhausting, and she would do some of the things she's already shown willingness to do here in the early going:

1. Be insistent on calling a shot, even if the shot makes little sense

2. Be delusional about her ability/contributions to things

3. Work someone's last nerve. (Or maybe that's just me and Sydney)

I don't see how people will put up with that down the stretch. 

[GaT]

4 hours ago, LadyChatts said:

So does anything happen to Sydney or Tiffany since Brad got voted out with a steal-a-vote, or did they already get their punishment by however they voted (seriously I'm so confused about the rules).

 

3 hours ago, knitorpurl said:

So it's come just tossing advantages around camp because they can't trust the players to find them. I guess they need the players to save all their mental energy for trying to decipher how the advantages work.

Maybe if they would feed these people they would be able to find the damn advantages without them being put under their noses. I don't knw how any of them even understand them (I sure don't), why is everything so complicated this season?

Did anybody else wonder about all the fruit from the reward challenge? If these people haven't even been eating rice, aren't they all going to get massive cramps & diarrhea from eating only fruit?

How did everybody happen to bring all the clothes in the correct color for their tribe?

Brad getting eliminated surprised the hell out of me, I didn't see that coming at all. My DVR keeps cutting off before I can see the exit interview, anyone else have this happening?

[Andyourlittledog2]

I realize it is all gross there, but I would never ask a man to refill my water flask on his way back from hitting the outdoor latrine. 

I have watched Survivor since the second season and really am only interested in the challenges and the interactions around camp so these new game changes exhaust me. I have neither the energy or interest to figure out who has what advantage and how it either is or isnt' playable etc. Even while they are explaining it my eyes glaze over. Too Much Information.

The way Survivor played before some folks would prepare themselves before the game. They'd learn how to make fire from a flint in case it came up or to be useful at camp. They might have prepared their bodies to acclimate to tropical fruits and rice, etc. Not most players, most players do nothing to prepare. But some. But with this season it wouldn't help much. You lose your flint if you lose a challenge. Make fire with no help, if you can. Survivalists and Eagle Scouts might do it but not your regular players. And no rice. Just fruit. A diet of fruit and perhaps some random sea creature you might catch on the beach. How do their bodies adapt to such a diet?  I mean the rice is important to balance your digestion out.  Doesn't an all fruit diet (if you aren't adapted to it especially) give you digestive problems after a short while?  Will everyone get the runs?  We've just had episode three and Jeff has offered no way to win rice and your flint could disappear at any challenge. No way any of them were prepared to live like that.

I too would like to see more camp interaction. 

[Andyourlittledog2]

5 minutes ago, GaT said:

Did anybody else wonder about all the fruit from the reward challenge? If these people haven't even been eating rice, aren't they all going to get massive cramps & diarrhea from eating only fruit?

I was just writing that when you posted!  Too Much Fruit!  My stomach lurches just thinking about the results.

[Primetimer]

Primetimer's Joe Reid just posted his take on this episode, here's a taste:

Quote

One of the most fascinating things about the revamped Survivor 41 is that it didn't come in response to a crisis. Ratings weren't in freefall. CBS wasn't considering pulling the plug. Instead, it just seems that after a year in COVID purgatory and left to his own devices, Jeff Probst couldn't keep from mad-scientisting the show he's hosted for 20 years. Speaking generally, fans and critics had two common complaints: 1) that the game had become too choked with immunity idols and other advantages, and 2) that Season 39's sexual harrassment scandal brought to light that structural changes needed to be made. Probst has at least given lip service to addressing the latter concerns, making a point in the Season 41 premiere of opting for more inclusive language. But when it comes to many fans' belief that Survivor's once-simple, elegant strategies have become glutted with too many idols, advantages, and secret twists, Probst has noted those concerns and doubled down anyway. If you're a Survivor lover and those complaints resonate with you, Wednesday night's episode was likely not your favorite.

More here:
https://www.primetimer.com/features/if-you-think-survivor-has-gotten-too-advantage-heavy-this-was-not-the-episode-for-you

[30 Helens]

50 minutes ago, Andyourlittledog2 said:

I realize it is all gross there, but I would never ask a man to refill my water flask on his way back from hitting the outdoor latrine. 

Seriously.

I am very torn. On the one hand, I am very happy to have Survivor back. On the other hand, where the hell is Survivor? I’m not normally a change-averse, kids-get-off-my-lawn kind of person, but this is too much. I’m so busy trying to figure out the rules that I still have no idea who most of these people are. I usually have a pretty good handle on everyone by the third episode.

I swear to god, every time someone opens one of those little packets, I expect a Wicked Wango card to drop out.

Dude needs to quit yapping about his butterfly relatives. People are going to catch on (if they haven’t already [in which case they’re stupid] ) that he’s up to something. If I were him, I’d wait for both other phrases to be spoken before I brought up Uncle Monarch again.

[SVNBob]

6 hours ago, Melina22 said:

So how many advantages did Brad get voted out with? And can people still use the die? I'm completely confused as to who has what and what each one does.

5 hours ago, vb68 said:

So if you thought the problem with Survivor that there wasn't enough secret advantages and idols, boy this was the episode for you. There are so many advantages and (potential) idols that it is hard to keep track of them all. You almost need a flowchart.

A flowchart...or perhaps a Tracker.

4 hours ago, TVFan1 said:

I'm with everyone who has no idea who has what advantage or idol or idol clue and how many everyone has. It seems like everyone is finding them and it's hard to keep track of everything.

I Track it, so you don't have to. 😉

5 hours ago, LadyChatts said:

So Brad had the idol clue and a steal-a-vote, and both really would have came in handy tonight.  Xander has an idol clue, but no idol yet, but he has an extra vote.  J.D. has an extra vote.  I'm seriously at a loss because of all the new rules with these idols and advantages who has what based on who voted for what.  Someone on the blue tribe has an extra vote, too, although I don't know who.

It's Deshawn.  Brad was unlucky in that the one advantage (the HII) negated the other (the Vote Steal).

 

5 hours ago, ProfCrash said:

Oh, at least we can’t complain that they are making the advantages hard to find. Next week there will be one hanging from a fishing rod over the fire pit with a big neon light pointing to it. 

I give TPTB a pass on making these Bewares easy to find.  Unlike the 3-way idol, these were time-sensitive.  The boats were going to show up that same night to take the riskers away, and the results were found out the next morning before the IC.  TPTB needed at least two to be found in order to justify the Dilemma.

 

2 hours ago, BK1978 said:

Also, I forgot to add.  I guess the sitting out in back-to-back challenges is no longer a rule because the woman with blonde hair on the blue tribe has sat out in back-to-back challenges.  Unless there are challenges they are not showing on the show.

Whenever there have been combined RC/ICs in Survivor, they've done away with the back-to-back sit out rule.  So this is not new.  The actual rule seems to really be that no one may sit out back-to-back challenges between 2 consecutive TCs.

[Tsunami1981]

The Broccoli and Butterfly lines had me cracking up. They're apropos of nothing, and they have to say them at every challenge. 

Xander, having to say his a second time, played it off very well. I'm sure those not in the know are like, WTF. 

 

Edited October 7, 2021 by Ike Mana

[violet and green]

Oh, Brad. I screamed 'Brad, NOOO!' at the tv when he shared his advantage thing with Shan, of all people. Then he shared his other advantage thing with Shan! So I screamed it louder, 'Brad, NOOOOO!' Man, he was too trusting with the wrong person.

I am not really liking this new version of Survivor very much. I don't care about all these stupid beware parchments with overcomplicated rules sucking up all the screen time in a dull fashion, and my (few) favorite players are playing dumb and/or are doomed.

[Brynnjk]

Add me to the people not enjoying this season of Survivor and it's silly advantages/changes much at all.  I miss shelter building and idol hunting (which we saw a little of tonight) instead of getting advantages hand delivered to them.  I miss reward challenges ahead of immunity challenges.  I miss the things I fell in love with on Survivor and loved watching.  Who okayed this confusing mess?  I want to get to know the players but it's very clear at this point that we're going to get alot of Shan and alot of Tiffany (who I can barely watch as she annoys me so much) and alot more of confusing advantages and word salad challenges.  Sigh!  

[ProfCrash]

5 hours ago, GaT said:

 

Maybe if they would feed these people they would be able to find the damn advantages without them being put under their noses. I don't knw how any of them even understand them (I sure don't), why is everything so complicated this season?

Did anybody else wonder about all the fruit from the reward challenge? If these people haven't even been eating rice, aren't they all going to get massive cramps & diarrhea from eating only fruit?

How did everybody happen to bring all the clothes in the correct color for their tribe?

Brad getting eliminated surprised the hell out of me, I didn't see that coming at all. My DVR keeps cutting off before I can see the exit interview, anyone else have this happening?

There wasn’t that much fruit. I wish they would show us what they are eating, we saw the crab chase and the breadfruit knockdown. And there is coconut. Not a lot but I am not so certain that the rice that they had been getting adds that much. They were getting maybe a cup a day of rice.

3 hours ago, SVNBob said:

I give TPTB a pass on making these Bewares easy to find.  Unlike the 3-way idol, these were time-sensitive.  The boats were going to show up that same night to take the riskers away, and the results were found out the next morning before the IC.  TPTB needed at least two to be found in order to justify the Dilemma.

I don’t. Production could stop trying to make the game into a giant advantage fest. None of these advantages have done crap for the players yet. They are poorly set up and executed.

The Prisoner’s Dilemma ones allow the other people you are playing the game with to know you that you could have an advantage. Everyone who has returned to their tribe has told people what happened, what the options were, and who they played with. Danny should know that JD and Xander both have the possibility of an extra vote. Sydney and Tiffany knew Brad had an extra vote. How much of an advantage is it when the other tribe knows it exists?

The hidden idol is ridiculous because the stupid phrases have to tip off the other tribes that something weird is up. And then the other idol holders know you have an idol. 

The advantages are set up to over complicate the game because people know that they exist and will share that information, see Evvie to Deshawn about the idol and everyone returning from the boat advantage. 

All this is going to lead to is Tiffany voting for herself because she gets so confused with who has what advantage and idol and the only person she knows has nothing is herself but then she isn’t allowed to vote for herself and will die from an anxiety attack trying to vote out a fish. 

There are too many stupid advantages. Make them go away and get back to playing Survivor.  Seriously. The players are sharing the map and telling each other where they have looked for the hidden idol. How much more ridiculous can we get? 

And I can totally see Tiffany trying to vote for herself because she is that dense and she over thinks that much. 

[JudyObscure]

7 hours ago, millennium said:

J.D. sounds very entitled when he speaks.   And I swear I heard violins when he was talking about how Survivor saved his life at Tribal.

Thank you for joining me in the cynical boat.  I think his cavalier attitude when he messes up reveals a young guy who has talked his way out of trouble with stories about crystals far too many times.  The Shan's of the world fall right into his plan and feel oh so good about themselves for doing it.  He's already told his story about being a nerd in school, and Survivor being his dream, too many times and I want to tell him to look around, that's probably true of almost everyone there.  Brad said it, "He's over confident and under performing."

[PhoneCop]

Jeff. The advantages. STAAAHP. Allison Grodner is surely laughing at how dumb your twists are.

9 hours ago, Melina22 said:

So how many advantages did Brad get voted out with? And can people still use the die? I'm completely confused as to who has what and what each one does. Brad was fun tonight though, bursting with good nature and excitement. 

Poor Xander. Doomed to talk about butterflies and dead relatives at every challenge forever. 

"Yeah, Jeff, I'm shocked to see Brad gone. Cast into the wind like the butterflies that I truly believe are dead relatives saying hi, if you will."

[himela]

Only one page of comments? Aren't people interested in Survivor anymore?

Comments:

1. It's ridiculous that Shen is so obviously getting the winner edit and I hope I'm wrong.

2. Why the hell is Shen the one to call the shots???

3. I thought the same people are not allowed to sit out of challenges back to back. Heather sits out again. Why is she even there?

4. I'm sick of the stupid advantages. We spent 20 mins (!!!!) on them.

[Haleth]

The convoluted advantages are making me dizzy.  Why is everything so complicated?  So does the stupid phrase idol get buried again so someone else will have to start commenting about broccoli?

I was sad that either Brad or JD was going, hoped everyone would surprise me and vote out Ricard instead.

Poor Shan, talking about how her parents made her choose one over the other.  Good God, what parent does that to a child???

9 hours ago, Melina22 said:

One thing I miss with the bewildering assortment of advantages taking up almost the whole episode, is the Survive aspect of Survivor. What, if anything, are they eating? Are they really hot and sunburned? Itchy? Are they fishing? How are they feeling physically? Are they all just sleeping on the beach or are there good shelters?

A lot of viewers weren't born when Survivor started. There's so much we never see any more that they would probably really enjoy. I know I would. I'm interested in so much more than conniving and advantages and competitions. 

Hear! Hear!

[alexa]

I agree with everything about the advantages not working this season.  I can't even keep up with the three tribes much, so also have no idea who has what advantage and if they will actually even get to use it.  They have overdone it.  I am not sure if they were trying to eliminate easy advantages, but this isn't working either.  Plus the last two votes were people I actually liked so that kind of sucks too.  Oh well.  

[cowgirlwen]

Shan to JD:  "You should have told me that you had an advantage.  Now I know that I can't trust you."

Shan to Brad: "Thanks for telling me you have the advantages.  You have too much power, so now I need to vote you out."

Did anyone else think that Shan was talking down to JD for not sharing his advantage details with her?  Almost like a parent scolding a child for doing something wrong.  I find it hard to believe that she would have talked to Ricard, Jeanie, or Brad in that same condescending manner.  

Brad's ultimate mistake was sharing too much with the wrong person!  

[himela]

5 hours ago, 30 Helens said:

Dude needs to quit yapping about his butterfly relatives. People are going to catch on (if they haven’t already [in which case they’re stupid] ) that he’s up to something. If I were him, I’d wait for both other phrases to be spoken before I brought up Uncle Monarch again.

He is obligated to say the phrase at every immunity challenge. I don't know what will happen now that Brad left though. Either they hide it again or it's useless.

[seacliffsal]

What I really, really, really wanted to know more about was why members of Brad's tribe were all sleeping on the ground-had they not built a shelter?  What are they doing instead of building a shelter?  THAT'S what I want to know-not what convoluted gimmick are the producers coming up with that nobody is going to be able to use anyway since there are a million steps to the activation of the advantages.  I think that only Deshaun and TJ have advantages that can be used-everyone else's advantages are tied up in ridiculous nonsense.  And yet, we have to watch these survivors read through and try to understand the gimmicks er rules attached to their advantages instead of watching camp life and why various alliances are being formed.  

I think another problem is that the survivors themselves are confused about what the rules are.  And how is it supposed to be fun for us as viewers when survivors who worked to find advantages are punished for finding them via losing their votes until all of the pieces fall into place.  I hope they do not replace Brad's immunity idol punishment so that for the rest of the season Xander has to talk about dead relatives and butterflies.

I think it would be really interesting if the contestants start just leaving the advantage packets where they find them because they are too confusing and punitive.  What would Jeff do then?

I know very little about blue tribe's camp life and I still want to see the scrambling for shelter and food.

This may sound a bit cruel, but I think Jeff wants more than this truly successful show.  He has tried writing movies and really, really wanted a talk show which he got and then lost as the viewers just weren't interested.  Is he punishing us, the loyal viewers, by ruining his one endeavor that we supported because we haven't supported his other (vanity) projects?  I just don't understand why he doesn't care what loyal, long-term viewers want and enjoy.

[Lamima]

Same as everyone else, I hate all these dumb advantages and idols. Too confusing and a big time suck.

I was sad about Brad. I really thought Shan (Shen?) should have chosen Brad as her Philip (with Boston Rob). But it appears she chose JT (TJ?). And I think that is a big mistake as he is like Brad said BIG talk with ZERO results. I guess he could work as a Phillip shield. I mean, folks are going to have their eye on him. He is a 'hey, look at me' type. But, he won't win anything to bring to her (Shan's) table. I think Philip did win a thing or 2 to help he and Rob at the right moment. JT (TJ?) won't be winning anything. 

Yep, I agree with whoever posted above that Tiff is the worst player. All around. She does suck! Maybe she will be Evvie's Philip though. But, again, she won't be  contributing any wins to bring to Evvie's table. It seems, at least, Liana is not as sold on Tiff. Maybe. I hope!

The other gal that went to the secret night meeting. I like her because she figured out Tiff real quick. This will put a kink in Evvie's all girls alliance whenever they merge. If what's her name (girl who went to secret night thingy) is still there. That might prove to be interesting. 

Shan (Shen?)...her story was sad. And most normal folks would agree that was a shitty thing to do to a little kid. Most normal folks would not have done that. But...there are a LOT worse things that 5 year olds go through. Things way more scarring and traumatic and some don't get to see their 6th birthday. Just go on WebSleuths and you will see. So, Shan, cry me a river! And just go play Survivor. 

[laurakaye]

8 hours ago, bunnyface said:

ETA:  Oh yeah, my mother, who again only watches in captivity, did not like that guy having the advantage down his pants.  She suggested they wrap those things in poison ivy so they'd quit doing that because it's gross.  I can't say I disagree.

Reminds me of when Adam Klein pulled his immunity idol from down the front of his pants and Probst was all, "yeah....just set that down, thanks, I'm not touching that."  

 

8 hours ago, millennium said:

If the butterflies and broccoli moments are intended to inject humor into those scenes, they're an epic fail.   It just awkward and cringey.  Really wish somebody else would look at Xander or whomever and ask "Just what the fuck are you talking about?"

I ended up averting my eyes in second-hand embarrassment in preparation for those stupid phrases.  I get the concept, but why couldn't the phrases be something that a semi-normal person would actually say?  And once one person has said it, I don't think they should have to say it at every immunity challenge - once someone says their phrase and later on another person finds the advantage and reads it, I think it would be interesting for them to try and recall who said it last time.  Repeating it just makes it look way more suspicious.

 

8 hours ago, Steph Sometimes said:

I love Survivor. Watched from the beginning. Have very strong opinions on many things and can (have) talked people's ears off about things and people they don't care about. It's hard to put into words though I how I feel so far about this season. I feel like I'm watching a different show.

I'm still watching this season through (and will probably watch forever) and hope someone I like wins, but I don't even really know who I like yet because I still feel like I barely know these people. And I don't mean a random purple here or there (Hi Heather! Hi Erika! I see you), but most of them. 

+++1 to your entire post.  I will always watch because to me, "meh" Survivor is better than no Survivor, and I have an emotional connection to this show.  But once it gets rolling and I don't have a clue who some of these people are three episodes in (literally didn't know there was an Erika) and the confusing advantages start pouring in, it gets to be a chore to figure things out.  I want my Survivor to be appointment viewing and fun, and so far this season has been too much like work.

I started watching Australian Survivor during lockdown in 2020 and at first I thought it was painfully slow.  But now, comparing it to what we're watching this season - at least I can say that I absolutely get to know every player in the Aussie version, I know their backstories, I understand their strategies, and they don't trip over advantages at every turn.  In trying to grab onto new viewers, I feel like Probst is alienating the old schoolers.  At the risk of going full-tilt "get off my lawn," I miss the old days!

 

[DEL901]

8 hours ago, BK1978 said:

Also, I forgot to add.  I guess the sitting out in back-to-back challenges is no longer a rule because the woman with blonde hair on the blue tribe has sat out in back-to-back challenges.  Unless there are challenges they are not showing on the show.

Back to back challenges is only a thing when there are 2 challenges in the same episode.   

And add me to the list of those. Who think there are toooooooooo many advantages and disadvantages.   

[ProfCrash]

1 hour ago, cowgirlwen said:

Shan to JD:  "You should have told me that you had an advantage.  Now I know that I can't trust you."

Shan to Brad: "Thanks for telling me you have the advantages.  You have too much power, so now I need to vote you out."

Did anyone else think that Shan was talking down to JD for not sharing his advantage details with her?  Almost like a parent scolding a child for doing something wrong.  I find it hard to believe that she would have talked to Ricard, Jeanie, or Brad in that same condescending manner.  

Brad's ultimate mistake was sharing too much with the wrong person!  

Shan is playing really well, she is everyones number one. She was Brad and JD's and she is clearly working with Ricard. JD doesn't seem to be offended with how Shan is talking to him, probably because he is a young kid who has self esteem issues and is trying to look super confident when he isn't. Brad told Shan about his plan to spy on Ricard and JD and what he heard. He also showed Shan both of his advantages.

Seriously, Shan is playing one hell of a game here.

But we will never know it because we have to worry about stupid advantage hunts and missions.

I would prefer the reward challenges over this stidity. You know they had to cut the reward challenges for time purposes but also because there was no way to show them when people had to "sneak" off to catch a boat to discuss tarps.

1 hour ago, himela said:

He is obligated to say the phrase at every immunity challenge. I don't know what will happen now that Brad left though. Either they hide it again or it's useless.

Technically, he is only obligated to say it if someone else says their stupid line to activate his idol. I would not say it again until after I heard the other two phrases now.