S41.E07: There’s Gonna Be Blood

[Guest]

32 minutes ago, seacliffsal said:

First my personal pet peeve: I really don't like looking at feet so the immunity challenge was gross in my opinion (more so than the eating weird food, etc.); however, I will acknowledge that it required quite a different skill set from other challenges (I so would be still working on the bottom row even after the filming of the season was finished).

I couldn't even watch that challenge except occasional glances, not because I found it gross, but because I was getting all twitchy just thinking about trying to do it. I get the same way with any challenge where they have to balance a stack of things, especially if it's onto a wobbly platform that they're holding. It gives me the willies!

6 minutes ago, HurricaneVal said:

I used to get extremely frustrated with all the whispering and moving around at TC when it started a couple of seasons ago.  Then I realized that when they do that, it all looks like they're making out with each other.  SO if you think about it as foreplay to the worlds worst orgy, it becomes really amusing rather than frustrating.

The world's worst orgy, where one of the participants is kicked out by the others XD

[laurakaye]

1 hour ago, iMonrey said:

Twists, turns, and surprises are all part of the game. But Survivor has been the gold standard that started the reality craze, and more people watch this show than a lot of the lesser knock-offs. Imagine being a lifelong fan and student of the show and finally you get your dream come true when you're picked to be on it, only to be screwed over by some dumb new twist you had no way of predicting. 

Like Jamal in 39 pulling a piece of paper out of a tree only to have the note read: "You shouldn't have taken this, you just lost your vote" or whatever it said.  Twists can be fun and interesting, but only if they make a modicum of strategic sense.  Winning team immunity and then losing it because someone smashed an hourglass is something no one can prepare for, so at some point it almost makes sense to become apathetic and play possum because who knows when Jeff is going to say, "everyone with green eyes?  You're out of the game!"  It does seem like Survivor is becoming a bit too Big Brother-ish, and it's so much better than that.

At TC when Xander kept on telling Evvie that she was fine, and it was down to one vote and he suddenly said "sorry, Evvie," does anyone know whose vote that was?  Did he really think Evvie was going home?  He just seemed SO certain until right before that last vote.

Edited November 4, 2021 by laurakaye

[ProfCrash]

I don't think Xander was counting on DeShawn using his extra vote.

[Guest]

Just now, laurakaye said:

At TC when Xander kept on telling Evvie that she was fine, and it was down to one vote and he suddenly said "sorry, Evvie," does anyone know whose vote that was?  Did he really think Evvie was going home?  He just seemed SO certain until right before that last vote.

I don't know whose vote it was or if Xander really thought Evvie was going home, but I wish they hadn't shown him saying that...because as soon as they did, I knew the last vote would be for Sydney and she would be out. It was a lame, clumsy attempt at misdirection by the editors, and I'm not even convinced he really said it at the point where they showed him saying it.

[himela]

This episode should have been called "they voted out for me cause they ain't me"

Exciting episode but at what cost?

16 hours ago, dizzyd said:

I’ll only be happy when Shan is blindsided out. 

Sorry Shan is winning.

[DEL901]

If Liane was half the badass she thought she was, when Xander showed off his idol, she should have turned to either Shan or Naseer and stolen their idol.  

[ProfCrash]

1 minute ago, DEL901 said:

If Liane was half the badass she thought she was, when Xander showed off his idol, she should have turned to either Shan or Naseer and stolen their idol.  

That would have accomplished nothing. Xander would still be in a position to protect Evvie and Nasser or Shan would have been pissed.

[meep.meep]

I think Liane's advantage was dead at that point.

A better question:  why did Blue fix on Syd not Tiffany?  Or one of the other non-black women left?

 

[bankerchick]

9 hours ago, BK1978 said:

Also, the way in which Shan sort of led the conversation at TC should have clued Erika in to the fact that she just slipped even further down the ladder of the alliance.  If it was me and I saw a player who came from a tribe of two all of a sudden being one of the driving forces in the conversation I would have to be internally question what the hell is going on.

Right?  Who elected her as the boss?  When she insisted a couple of times that there had been enough talking, that should have been the clue to everyone that here was someone who thought she was in charge.  Plus, she and Liana are clearly aligned with several blue members, which seemed to happen very quickly and we didn't see any evidence of an attempt by green and yellow to discuss an alliance to target the members of blue who hadn't even been to tribal yet.  Either Shan runs this until the end or she gets her comeuppance soon.  I'm hoping for the latter.

4 hours ago, Gummo said:

Oh, Survivor, all is forgiven! I too used to miss the days when remarks at Tribal could only be directed to Probst, but this was just too much fun. I disagree that last-minute scrambling precludes strategic play -- last-minute scrambling IS strategic play, of the most desperate kind. 

Xander, Xander, how I underestimated you! Well-played, sir, well-played. And all the more worth it to see Lianna's ego pop like the empty balloon it is.

Lianna:  "I've come into my own, I'm a bad-ass strong woman player" ... who does everything Shan tells me to do.

As for Shan, this episode just about killed any affection I had left for her. It seems the more wrong she is, the more sure of herself she is. That's a trait that bit her in the ass tonight, and will again, I bet.

Danny's bittercakes did not go  over well with me. This isn't a sporting event, this is Survivor, where everything is designed to play on your last nerve, including the comps, the advantages, the privation, Probst's needling, and yes, even pulling the rug out from under your wins, and then seeing how well you keep your cool and your eye on the prize. DeShawn gets it and props to him for that. I haven't liked him much up 'til now, but he's grown on me tremendously with his roll-with-it attitude.

My trajectory on Rickard seems to be the opposite of most -- I hated him in the beginning, but I'm liking him more as the game progresses.

Naseer seems to be slowly getting a clue as to his position with his old tribemates, if his huddling with the underdogs at TC means anything. I hope Erika wakes up soon or she will be gone, and she'll deserve it.

 

I agree with every word of this except that I still don't like Ricard.

3 hours ago, peachmangosteen said:

I'm completely over Danny. He's still hot as hell though.

Agreed 100%.  I was giving him the benefit of the doubt at the beginning regarding throwing the challenge, but it became apparent that he was on board for that, then the whining about the immunity switch turned me off.  Not that any of that would be enough for me to kick him out of bed for eating crackers, though.

[ProfCrash]

3 minutes ago, meep.meep said:

I think Liane's advantage was dead at that point.

A better question:  why did Blue fix on Syd not Tiffany?  Or one of the other non-black women left?

 

Tiffany and Heather were safe because of Erika's move. The losing team was Xander, Heather, Tiffany, Shan and Liana. Erika was added to their team. All of them were safe from the vote.

The winning team was Ricard, Evvie, Sydney, Danny, and DeShawn with Nasser added to their team. They were the only ones who could receive votes. All the men were safe because DeShawn and Danny wanted to save the men. So the targets had to be Evvie and Sydney.

 

[seacliffsal]

Sooooo....Danny talks about winning/losing and knowing the game he is playing (i.e. NFL days) but is okay with throwing a challenge?  And not with game changes. 

[JudyObscure]

3 hours ago, blackwing said:

Except Roger Goodall didn't say at the start of the game that "this is a season where anything can happen, so don't get too comfortable". 

I don't think anyone heard Jeff say that and thought all rules were off, just that there would be tough challenges and tricky advantages.  

Taken to its extreme, this new game could end up with Jeff on stage at the finale beaming at  the two finalists as he says, "Season 41 will go down in history as the year everything was turned on its head!"  Then tell the others to get ready to vote again, your two finalists are Abraham and Sara

Every decent game show has some rules that should hold fast. Survivor is now just following Big Brother where the only thing anyone can count on is that the producers are going to manipulate the game for anything that they think makes good TV.

[Melina22]

1 hour ago, 30 Helens said:

Old Survivor was about people playing the game. New Survivor is about the game playing the people.

Interesting point. Although I do welcome some change, as someone who gets bored easily, I too was annoyed about Cirie. I like twists and changes, but they can go too far. There has to be a middle ground between stagnation and total chaos. 

[blackwing]

1 hour ago, BexKeps said:

Lol! All that was missing was a door slam!! I'm not sorry to see her gone, she had zero strategic skills, zero social game, zero charisma. She thought she could just smile at the camera and tell the audience how awesome she was. Sorry sweetie, this isn't your bedroom mirror, you have to actually DO something. 

Sydney is just delusional.  So very strange that she walks around in a world in which she thinks she is the shining light.  Like everyone else in the world should be thankful that they are graced with her presence, because she is so incredibly beautiful and smart and a goddess walking amongst mortals.

1) She ain't all that in the looks department.  She thinks she is way better looking than she actually is.

2) With such an odious personality, people in the real world actually like her?

3) I laughed when I saw that she is a law student.  She appears to be one of those that think she can charm her way through law school and then get a job and charm her way to the top.  I do know somebody like that.  Joined a big firm as a young, moderately attractive 27 year old.  Set her sights on the managing partner (who was married).  "Won" him and promptly "retired" and became stepmom to his four kids, the oldest of whom was only 3 years younger than her.  But times have changed, Syd.  That was 20 years ago, before MeToo and Times Up brought a lot more scrutiny to actions like that.

56 minutes ago, laurakaye said:

At TC when Xander kept on telling Evvie that she was fine, and it was down to one vote and he suddenly said "sorry, Evvie," does anyone know whose vote that was?  Did he really think Evvie was going home?  He just seemed SO certain until right before that last vote.

I don't think he knew whose vote it was (it was obviously one of the people who voted for Sydney - Shan, Naseer, Erika, Heather, Lianna) but for it to come down to the final vote when he was so sure Evvie was safe... it was a huge misjudgement on his part.  He thought the threat that he would play the idol for Evvie was enough to deter them from voting for her, but he didn't consider the possibility of a split vote.

 

20 minutes ago, JudyObscure said:

I don't think anyone heard Jeff say that and thought all rules were off, just that there would be tough challenges and tricky advantages.  

Taken to its extreme, this new game could end up with Jeff on stage at the finale beaming at  the two finalists as he says, "Season 41 will go down in history as the year everything was turned on its head!"  Then tell the others to get ready to vote again, your two finalists are Abraham and Sara

Every decent game show has some rules that should hold fast. Survivor is now just following Big Brother where the only thing anyone can count on is that the producers are going to manipulate the game for anything that they think makes good TV.

I agree to an extent, but as much as I despise Jeffy, I do agree with him that to some extent, change needs to be introduced, otherwise after 40 seasons, everyone will just adopt the same strategy of play that has proven successful.

The Edge of Extinction was definitely a new take on a twist.  People have returned to the game before from Redemption Island, but there was never a situation where someone could have been out of the game for so long, made lots of bonds with others exiled, returned to the game in the 11th hour, everyone gets to vote including those who have been long out of the game alongside him, and then get voted the winner.

I know that many viewers/fans hated that as well and viewed it as unfair, but Jeffy is determined to continue to have a huge influence on the game.

[tangentwoman]

5 hours ago, mojoween said:

One thing with TC I am still confused about is Liana knew that Xander knew she had the steal.  So why would she think he would have shown her that he had an idol, knowing that she could then take it?  She should have course-corrected and not used it right then because Xander showing the idol had to have been hinky.  

Exactly! I keep thinking about this. How could she have not realized he was playing her, given that she knew he knew about the steal?

And she was so not cool when she asked Xander how he was going to use the idol (something like, "And you're not going to give it to Evvie directly?") that I thought maybe she was actually TRYING to be obvious about it, but maybe not? 

[Guest]

34 minutes ago, blackwing said:

3) I laughed when I saw that she is a law student.  She appears to be one of those that think she can charm her way through law school and then get a job and charm her way to the top.  I do know somebody like that.  Joined a big firm as a young, moderately attractive 27 year old.  Set her sights on the managing partner (who was married).  "Won" him and promptly "retired" and became stepmom to his four kids, the oldest of whom was only 3 years younger than her.  But times have changed, Syd.  That was 20 years ago, before MeToo and Times Up brought a lot more scrutiny to actions like that.

Deciding how someone would do in law school based on a few minutes of them being unpleasant and tooting their own horn on a TV show seems like a pretty big reach. And whatever Sydney was doing on this show, I don't think trying to "charm her way through" was it. She competed in challenges, targeted some people, and made an alliance which ultimately turned on her because their options were limited. Was she abrasive along the way? Sure. But she wasn't just trying to skate by on her charm.

(Feel free to insert joke about how she had no charm to skate by on, anyway.)

[KittyMom4]

40 minutes ago, blackwing said:

Sydney is just delusional.  So very strange that she walks around in a world in which she thinks she is the shining light.  Like everyone else in the world should be thankful that they are graced with her presence, because she is so incredibly beautiful and smart and a goddess walking amongst mortals.

1) She ain't all that in the looks department.  She thinks she is way better looking than she actually is.

2) With such an odious personality, people in the real world actually like her?

I'm with you on the "she ain't all that in the looks department". But I'm sure mommy and daddy told her she was the prettiest! 

[blackwing]

15 minutes ago, tangentwoman said:

Exactly! I keep thinking about this. How could she have not realized he was playing her, given that she knew he knew about the steal?

And she was so not cool when she asked Xander how he was going to use the idol (something like, "And you're not going to give it to Evvie directly?") that I thought maybe she was actually TRYING to be obvious about it, but maybe not? 

In a season where everyone seems to know everything, maybe they are just getting confused about who knows what everyone has or who knows who knows who knows.  It's like the classic quote from Friends... "they don't know that we know that they know we know".

I think the other issue with Lianna is that in her mind, the Black Alliance is already in the Final Four.  All of these other people are in the way and the sooner they accept their fate and leave the game, the better.  So it was a poor play by Lianna, perhaps brought on by arrogance or the fact that she's already thinking too far ahead.

Maybe she thought that Xander thought she was still with them.

[ljenkins782]

4 hours ago, laurakaye said:

That really was beautiful.  I was exclaiming loudly to my television that Xander!  You should give the idol to Tiffany!  Dude, give it to Tiffany!  They would never suspect Tiffany!!  Why didn't you - ohhhhhh, not only did you give it to Tiffany, you made a fake idol to swing around at TC like a boss.  Sorry, Xander, for calling you a moron in my head.  Now I want you to win the whole thing.

During Probst's Live Tribal Council Extravaganza, did Heather ever get up from her perch one time to talk to anyone, at all?  That's her name, right?

I have to admit, I was faked out by Xander's play. I thought it was obvious that he'd give the idol to someone else and probably not let it be in Evvie's possession in case Liana anticipated that. So when he pulled the note out, I thought okay, he pulled out the note but actual idol will be with someone else. Then the bracelet thing was swinging around and I was completely confused by what he was thinking.

And who knew back in that pivotal TC where Voce got the boot that Tiffany would end up figuring into a successful plan, I was sure she'd be a torpedoing wild card. 

On a shallow note, Tiffany looks great out there. Her skin is clear, her hair is always neatly done and the tribal council lighting really flatters her. Sydney, OTOH, had those really unfortunate sores or scabs all over her face in her final episode, but I'm sure it won't dent her ego.

Quote

And she was so not cool when she asked Xander how he was going to use the idol (something like, "And you're not going to give it to Evvie directly?") that I thought maybe she was actually TRYING to be obvious about it, but maybe not? 

LOL, this whole episode was an exercise in "they can't be that dumb, can they? This has to be an act, right??" 

I have to wonder if Liana was actually as obvious as it seemed or if it's just the editing and stitching of scenes together that make it appear like she's being indiscreet about her new alliance, while trying to pretend she's still with the Yase tribe. I mean, that's all shot to hell after this last tribal, but was she really trying to play both sides so badly.

Quote

Lianna:  "I've come into my own, I'm a bad-ass strong woman player" ... who does everything Shan tells me to do.

Yeah, there's a real big sister/little sister vibe there that I think is going to backfire on Liana. 

Honestly, if Shan had been the one with the advantage and Liana had had the idol, I can totally see Shan turning to Liana and saying "do you have an idol?", taking it, and then spinning a wild tale about how it was in the best interest of the alliance of whatever, when it's really in the best interest of Shan.

She is talented at seizing on whatever aspect of someone's personality she needs to play on to bring them to her side, it's reminiscent of Parvati, who also changed up her vibe to draw people in on different levels. 

Quote

Sydney’s goodbye TH was probably one of the most real ones over the years.  She didn’t try to come off as  faux humble, or fake grateful for the experience, or even pretend to be chagrined that she had been played.  Nope, Syd just let her true self shine.  Her immature, sour, bitter, entitled, teenage temper tantrum self.  Buh-bye, Sweetie. Personally , I am thankful you didn’t make the jury so I don’t need to see YOU anymore.

I laughed at her actually throwing her torch into the holder, definitely a temper tantrum.

Edited November 4, 2021 by ljenkins782

[Johannah]

6 hours ago, Melina22 said:

I know a lot of people fall into this camp, but I'm the opposite. I loved all the chaos at tribal, all the scrambling and whispering. 

I reflected last night that when I started watching Survivor my children were young. Now they're grownups. If I had had to watch straight, classic Survivor all these years, I would be bored witless by now, especially as the players learn quickly what to expect and what strategies to use. The constant surprises keep the players on their toes, and me awake. 

That said, I don't like the surprises to be so convoluted that I can't figure them out for three episodes. This season has verged on that a couple of times. But otherwise, bring on the chaos! (And some blindfold challenges please.) 

I was going to say basically the same thing.  I've never been able to keep up with who is who or who had what idol or whatever, but all these extra things make the game fun for me.  I think you're right.  The "social experiment" part of the game would become stale.  Another alliance, another tribe voted out systematically, those "on the top" always staying on the top, blah, blah, blah.  I like that the underdogs can find a fun way to upset things.  Hoping that they could convince someone in an alliance to turn was fun for a while, but now I want something new.  I want them all to be as confused as a goat on Astroturf.

When did Tiffany become likable?  I liked her this ep.

[blackwing]

6 hours ago, Melina22 said:

I know a lot of people fall into this camp, but I'm the opposite. I loved all the chaos at tribal, all the scrambling and whispering. 

I reflected last night that when I started watching Survivor my children were young. Now they're grownups. If I had had to watch straight, classic Survivor all these years, I would be bored witless by now, especially as the players learn quickly what to expect and what strategies to use. The constant surprises keep the players on their toes, and me awake. 

That said, I don't like the surprises to be so convoluted that I can't figure them out for three episodes. This season has verged on that a couple of times. But otherwise, bring on the chaos! (And some blindfold challenges please.) 

Hahahaha, I think Jeffy's favourite thing about Survivor is all of the whispering at Tribal Council.  But I think his second favourite thing is watching a blindfolded bohunk take it in the nuts.  The challenge where there's a signal caller on a platform and the blindfolded pairs  have to go around and collect big puzzle pieces.  Fence posts everywhere, conveniently at crotch level.

4 minutes ago, Johann said:

When did Tiffany become likable?  I liked her this ep.

I know, right?  It's interesting, in the early episodes I hated her and wanted her out ASAP.  In this episode, she was actually likeable.  Granted, it's because she was a foil to Shan and Lianna, but I thought she came across as sensible.  I also liked that even though Xander had technically given his Idol to her, she deferred to him when he said he didn't want to use it.  If that had been Shan, she would have been all "uh uh, you gave it to me, now IT'S MINE and I can do whatever I want with it".

[HurricaneVal]

We haven't had the nut-knocker blindfolded comp in a long time.  I miss it.

[violet and green]

3 hours ago, laurakaye said:

At TC when Xander kept on telling Evvie that she was fine, and it was down to one vote and he suddenly said "sorry, Evvie," does anyone know whose vote that was?  Did he really think Evvie was going home?  He just seemed SO certain until right before that last vote.

I think it was because he did the maths - not knowing Deshawn had an extra vote and was using it on Evvie, thereby voting for her twice.

[blackwing]

https://ew.com/tv/survivor-41-sydney-segal-interview/

Oh. My. Word.  This woman has possibly got to be one of the most vile and delusional contestants to ever play the game.  She freely admits to being narcissistic and seems to believe that everyone should be honoured that she is alive on this earth so they can be graced by her presence.

She considers herself a "very strong player" and that she was the one "out there doing the most".  Uh huh.

I wonder if her parents are proud if they read this interview.  Her friends seem to acknowledge that she is just as nasty in real life as she was on camera.

[Johannah]

To make things more fair, I will cut off my leg, because I am just that awesome.

good grief.

I really couldn't have told you which one was Sydney before she, in all her awesomeness, was voted out.

Edited November 4, 2021 by Johann

[Matty]

It's safe to say we were all on pins and needles during tribal council. Sydney being voted out has no real impact on the game. Pretty forgettable player. I think Ricard is playing a strong game. Maybe he's not likeable, but he seems to be the brains behind what once was the Shan/Ricard alliance. She thought she was in charge of that pair and last night showed that Shan needs Ricard, Ricard doesn't need Shan. The fact he won the first individual immunity shows he's no slouch in challenges. He's cagey and doesn't wear his emotions on his sleeve. Every time the camera panned over the hysterical crowd at tribal Ricard was always stoic and watching everyone else going manic. I don't necessarily like him as a person, well, I like him more than Shan, but I have to give him credit for the way he's playing the game. Xander was brilliant last night. If Shan gets blindsided I will be dancing for joy in my living room. Please make this happen Survivor gods.    

[ProfCrash]

10 minutes ago, Johann said:

To make things more fair, I will cut off my leg, because I am just that awesome.

good grief.

I really couldn't have told you which one was Sydney before she, in all her awesomeness, was voted out.

I liked that the interview was edited for space and clarity. 

She would have been interesting to watch at Ponderosa. 

[ZeeEnnui]

Shut up, Erica! It's time for Jeff-splaining the BIGGEST GAME CHANGER THAT EVER CHANGED GAMES!

I forgot to mention it last week, but why is Erica channeling Blair Waldorf on a desert island? I get wanting something to pull back your hair, but unless vintage CW teen soap style is back then maybe bring one from that you can sweat in. 

If you have a foot fetish (or are Quentin Tarantino) this immunity challenge was for you!

Liana is so immature (and delusional about her game play). Your tribe hasn't done well enough nor have you played well enough for anyone to underestimate you. Xander included. If she were a better player, she wouldn't have focused all of her inexplicable "but he pissed in my Corn Flakes" energy on Xander. And, Xander LIT UP her game like a freshly rolled joint. LOL. Well played. He's going to be remembered for that play alone on Most Shocking Survivor moments, and Liana will be stuck with the realization that she's not as good (or even passably mediocre) at this game as she thought she was in her head. The problem that I have with all these "but I grew up watching the game" people are, is that it's easy to play the game from the couch (we're all doing it here), but the focus seems to be on creating this memorable character for the show not playing the game smart or strategically.

Visor Lady is so lucky. She essentially coasts through and is gonna be on the jury despite doing nothing. I thought she would have been sent back home in time for happy hour at the golf club before now.

Sydney was like a bitchy mall girl from an 80s high school movie but at least she was self-aware enough to know she's a garbage person. 

18 hours ago, Hera said:

Deshawn was able to roll with it, basically saying, "We may not have known they were going to do this specific thing to us, but we did know that they were going to do new stuff." He actually went up several notches in my book for that. I also really liked what he had to say about how all the advantages dilute the value of social skills in the game. That's a very fair point and the fact that his comment was aired suggests to me that the producers are at least aware of that downside and the need to try to keep things balanced. Whether or not they're successful is something I'm sure will be hotly debated among fans.

 

Agree with everything you said. I really appreciate people that are adaptable in ever-changing situations, and DeShawn had a good, realistic outlook about the Cher advantage. I get that Danny was pissed (I probably would be too) but we're all living in Probst's crazy world, and you gotta suck it up. 

Man, I hope that Xander sprinkles Shan with some magical stoner shark Dorito dust and sends her packing, because this is how you play a freaking game!

[ByaNose]

On RHAP, I could barely understand Sydney. She is originally from LA but currently lives in Brooklyn, NY. I would have thought it was the other way. I don’t think it’s any great loss if she never speaks to the cast again. Good lord! She used the F word every other second because she’s dumb and can’t actually have an intelligent conversation. I think I heard or read enough from her with Parade.com, ew.com and RHAP to get the full picture of Sydney. She’s a heinous person who thinks she’s really smart when she isn’t. She also thinks she’s hysterical because her real friends get her. If that’s that case I hope I never meet her friends. 

Edited November 4, 2021 by ByaNose

[treeofdreams]

That EW interview was hilarious.  Production is manipulating the game to get all the interesting people voted off?  <scratching head>  Remind me why that would be in their best interests??

It's too bad she won't be on the jury - I think that would be very entertaining!

Edited November 4, 2021 by treeofdreams

[LanceM]

My goodness, Sydney's exit interview are comedy gold. lol

https://tvline.com/2021/11/04/survivor-season-41-sydney-segal-eliminated-interview-episode-7/

I am glad to see the players are calling out Jeff on his twists BS 

"Danny basically reamed Jeff out. He was like, “This isn’t a twist. This is a lie! You told us that if we won the challenge, we would get immunity,” and there was a long conversation about it. Jeff’s like, “OK, well maybe I can make it better for future seasons. What can I change?” I’m thinking like, “Really, bro?” I don’t want a change to go benefit someone else that I don’t f–king know because I don’t have empathy for them. What the hell do I care? This is about the now, and it’s about me getting f–ked over. That twist was intended to get a threatening player out, and I said during my pre-game interviews, in order to win Survivor, you can’t be the best at anything. So looking back, I was f–ked from the beginning because I’m the best at everything."

lol

 

 

[Blissfool]

I liked Lianna until Shan got a hold of her. So glad her plan backfired. Embarrassing! 

I kept imagining Shan being so disappointed in her little apprentice.

[Cheyanne11]

Liana getting burned on her advantage was *chef's kiss.*  I'm still chuckling at Xander's "no, but you can have this fake one" answer to what she thought was her gotcha question. 

I hate all the strategizing *at* TC.  I wish that wasn't allowed, because everyone should have a plan, a backup plan, and a backup to the backup going in.  The scrambling makes it less suspenseful (even though tonight was suspenseful).

So, assuming Tiffany gives Xander back his idol, he has that and the extra vote, and Nasser has an idol.  Is that all that's left in play right now?

[DEL901]

Remember Shan has an idol and an extra vote.  I think Xander might have an extra vote too.  

[fishcakes]

The thing that stood out to me is how dumb Liana is. She knew Xander knew she could steal his idol, yet she still went after it, assuming he wouldn't hand it off to someone else. And then when he didn't have it, she turned to Shan and said, "so Evvie isn't protected." She seemed to think that Xander never had the real idol, even though she rifled through his bag and saw it and the note. And now that I think about it, she probably saw his fake idol at the same time. She gives boxes of rocks a bad name.

Edited November 5, 2021 by fishcakes

[txvoodoo]

Replying before I read the thread but I swear, this show: it keeps on throwing up people I didn't even know were playing! Who's the older blonde lady who said she doesn't know how to talk anymore?

Edited November 5, 2021 by txvoodoo

[Cheyanne11]

48 minutes ago, DEL901 said:

Remember Shan has an idol and an extra vote.  I think Xander might have an extra vote too.  

Right, I know Xander has an extra vote, but, yikes, I forgot all about Shan having exactly what he has. 

[Grizzly]

I'm mad we missed the Sydney faceplant. How did she gets those cuts on her forehead and nose?

[BK1978]

2 hours ago, Blissfool said:

I liked Lianna until Shan got a hold of her. So glad her plan backfired. Embarrassing! 

I kept imagining Shan being so disappointed in her little apprentice.

Why did my mind immediately go to the Emperor and Darth Maul after reading this post?

I also forgot to say in my previous post, if I was in the Blue alliance and saw how fast/willing Lianna was to ditch her former alliance.  That would have been a huge red flag to me, because if she was so willing to turn on the people who she had been with for twelve days, then what would make me think she would turn on me just as quick?

[Tdoc72]

13 hours ago, blackwing said:

 

 

Yep.  Jeffy has stated in the past that he loves when people whisper and talk to each other at tribal, he thinks it is exciting and loves the last minute scrambling.  "THIS is what Survivor is all about."  I fully agree with you that I am sick of seeing him grinning and acting like "this is so shocking and amazing" while he orgasms into his pants.  Then scours the internetz the next day looking for people commenting on how much they "LOVED" the tribal.

I wish some of “the people on the streets” would tell him they don’t like it. 

13 hours ago, laurakaye said:

 

During Probst's Live Tribal Council Extravaganza, did Heather ever get up from her perch one time to talk to anyone, at all?  That's her name, right?

 

I don’t remember seeing her huddled. I know at one point, the camera panned out and everyone was talking in different groups and she was just sitting there like an actual bump on a log. I thought “ oh yeah, she’s there too!”  I had forgotten about her existence. 

2 hours ago, Cheyanne11 said:

Liana getting burned on her advantage was *chef's kiss.*  I'm still chuckling at Xander's "no, but you can have this fake one" answer to what she thought was her gotcha question. 

 

I wish he had just said no and left it at that. Just to make her whine to Jeff about the rules and then had Zander clarify. I think it would’ve been better tv. 

[SVNBob]

4 hours ago, Cheyanne11 said:

So, assuming Tiffany gives Xander back his idol, he has that and the extra vote, and Nasser has an idol.  Is that all that's left in play right now?

 

4 hours ago, DEL901 said:

Remember Shan has an idol and an extra vote.  I think Xander might have an extra vote too.  

That's correct.  Per the Tracker, Nasser has the Goat Idol, Shan has JD's extra vote and the Broccoli Idol, and currently Tiffany has the Butterfly Idol and Xander's extra vote.  (In the flashback, he said he gave her both, since Liana could have taken either.)

[Artsda]

That was an interesting tribal.

[CountryGirl]

I felt like I was FINALLY watching Survivor last night.

I love that Erika smashed the hourglass. Safety vs a potential boot when you know you're on the bottom? An easy decision to make. The looks on the faces of the no longer safe made me LOL.

I had a feeling Ricard would pull off the win. I'll bet he does yoga.

Liana's tunnel vision with getting Xander's idol out when Naseer's is ripe for the taking was her downfall. That and telling Shan about her advantage as Shan has been quite the town crier.

Xander knew it and played her like a violin. Although I was worried that he would give it to Evvie and Liana would guess right. I was literally screaming at my TV: "Give it to TIFFANY!!!!!!" And he DID. Him pulling out the fake idol, with the real parchment was GENIUS. I had to rewind his deadpan reply to the oh-so-sure-she-guessed-right Liana asking him if he had the idol, "No...but you can have this fake" a few times.

It reminded me of the Edgardo boot. And just about as satisfying.

I am really liking Xander, Evvie, and Tiffany. Tiffany?!? When did THAT happen? I'm also rooting for Naseer and Erika. Although I'm side-eyeing both of them siding with their former tribemates who want them out.

Sydney grated from Day 1 and she lost me entirely with her quoting Brady's eye-roll-inducing line about "you hate me 'cuz you ain't me." Girl, bye. I'm so glad Xander didn't waste his idol on her.

ANDDDDD....they got DeShawn's extra vote knocked out as it was wasted on Evvie.

[CountryGirl]

On 11/3/2021 at 9:43 PM, iMonrey said:

I am more than ever convinced the reason for all these extra advantages and twists is to encourage the type of tribal council we saw this week: one as chaotic as possible. It's something that's been happening with increasing frequency, and clearly Probst and the other producers love it. I, for one, do not. I hate it. I'm tired of it. It was fun the first time it happened but now it happens all the time. And it's ruining the game. Everyone is supposed to strategize and make their plan before TC, not during. So playing this game is no longer about strategy, it's about scrambling. Who's best at scrambling at the last minute and who has the best luck. That's what it's come down to now. And I'm sick of looking at Probst's smug-ass face grinning away while everyone runs around like chickens with their heads cut off, even narrating like it's a freaking immunity challenge. 

As much as I enjoyed this tribal, I absolutely HATE the whispering and scheming. It is not entertaining for anyone but Peachy. They should have had to vote immediately. 

[KeithJ]

20 hours ago, blackwing said:

Sydney is just delusional.  So very strange that she walks around in a world in which she thinks she is the shining light.  Like everyone else in the world should be thankful that they are graced with her presence, because she is so incredibly beautiful and smart and a goddess walking amongst mortals.

1) She ain't all that in the looks department.  She thinks she is way better looking than she actually is.

2) With such an odious personality, people in the real world actually like her?

3) I laughed when I saw that she is a law student.  She appears to be one of those that think she can charm her way through law school and then get a job and charm her way to the top.

I'm not sure just how much of a law student she really is.  If you look at her Instagram page (fittingly enough her handle is @queensydney) , it seems all she does is travel.  Not sure how you can be both a law student and world traveler at the same time.  Both cost plenty of $$$ and time.

[fishcakes]

Anyone this season who believes they have a strong alliance to the end are kidding themselves. With the Sydney vote, Deshawn and Danny showed that alliances for them are fluid. Liana, I think, wants to be loyal (she didn't want to vote out Evvie so soon) but she's dumb and is letting herself be manipulated and intimidated by Shan. Shan is just flat-out untrustworthy. She voted out everyone who thought they were her number one on Green and she'll do it again. She and Ricard are both holding knives, each one waiting for the chance to shank the other.

Erica and Naseer want to be part of Blue, and seem to think they're still Blue Strong, but nah. It kind of hurts to watch them hanging around on the fringes of whoever Deshawn and Danny are currently allied with and thinking they're part of it. It's a grade school dynamic, not mean or bullying or anything, but a clear in-group and out-group.

Heather will be fine. She's an extra vote in what's currently the majority alliance. If they stay in the majority, they'll keep her until they no longer need her, and if it's an F3 this season, she could even nab that third slot. If Blue+ loses the majority, she'll still be safe because no one will target her as a threat. Unless her edit is a Purple Herring and she's secretly a strategic genius, she's going to go far into the game but not win and then give speech about how she was just happy for the experience when it's over.

Evvie, Xander, and Tiffany maybe? will stay together, but Tiffany has shown a lot of mistrust of Xander in the past and both she and Xander are vying to be Evvie's number one. Although if they get Pagonged, which seems likely right now, then I guess they'll stay together as they get voted out in order.

Edited November 5, 2021 by fishcakes

[iMonrey]

Quote

Old Survivor was about people playing the game. New Survivor is about the game playing the people. 

Bingo.

Quote

"Danny basically reamed Jeff out. He was like, “This isn’t a twist. This is a lie! You told us that if we won the challenge, we would get immunity,” and there was a long conversation about it. 

How I wish they had the guts to show this on the air. I mean they did show us how disgruntled Danny was but not the part where he called out Jeff. They'd never do that. I predict we'll have several more bitter exit interviews before the season is over. 

[ProfCrash]

43 minutes ago, KeithJ said:

I'm not sure just how much of a law student she really is.  If you look at her Instagram page (fittingly enough her handle is @queensydney) , it seems all she does is travel.  Not sure how you can be both a law student and world traveler at the same time.  Both cost plenty of $$$ and time.

In the episode that they introduced her in they had a chyron that she was a law student but she happily said that she spent her parents money to travel and buy stuff. She came across vapid then and has done nothing to improve that impression. The downside is that Daddy and Mommy might be lawyers and she might get a good job out of law school because of family connections.

2 hours ago, CountryGirl said:

Liana's tunnel vision with getting Xander's idol out when Naseer's is ripe for the taking was her downfall. That and telling Shan about her advantage as Shan has been quite the town crier.

 

Liana should have not played the advantage. Targeting Naseer did her no good. He was not a target and he was suppose to be a part of the group that she was working with. Taking his idol does nothing to make Evvie an easy target and it encourages Naseer to vote with Evvie, Tiffany, and Xander.

Liana should have known that Xander was not holding his idol or advantage and simply not played her advantage. She knew that Xander knew about her advantage and how it worked. She knew that Xander told Danny that he thought Liana was going to be targeting someone with an idol with her advantage. Why Liana thought that Xander trusted her after that, I have no clue. She should have simply not played it.

Now she is out her advantage and Xander has both of his. And her alliance lost a member in Sydney.

DeShawn should have reminded or told his alliance that he had an extra vote and told them he was going to use it on Evvie. I don't think Evvie told her tribe mates about DeShawn having the extra vote and I don't think DeShawn told his alliance that he would have had it. If he had, and Evvie had forgotten about it, then Sydney would have had a reason to vote for Evvie, there would have been a tie, and Evvie would have gone home.

Kind of ironic that the one person who may not have actually told everyone about their advantage got burnt by withholding that knowledge.

[survivinmt]

I may have to go back and watch, but I could have sworn at that crazy tribal that Danny said over his shoulder, "Vote Syd." directly to Sydney.

Also, I get being upset about the Turn Back Time Twist, but its less random than drawing rocks - and that's how Danny got to be on the winning tribe in that challenge. That was complete luck of the draw that nearly ALL the athletes were on one team, and SURPRISE they won. He had an Immunity Challenge and time at camp to solidify his position. They have had twists like this all along. In China when golden boy and 2-idol James got put into the minority on a tribe.  If you like the random-ness that favors you, you kind of have to roll with the times it doesn't.

[SweetSable]

22 hours ago, blackwing said:

In a season where everyone seems to know everything, maybe they are just getting confused about who knows what everyone has or who knows who knows who knows.  It's like the classic quote from Friends... "they don't know that we know that they know we know".

Ha!  I actually said that line out loud when my husband and I were watching this Tribal Council.