S42.E01: Feels Like a Rollercoaster

[Haleth]

Ugh, again with all the advantages and twists.  Less is more, Survivor!  At least this time I got the risk/save your vote thing.

It’s too bad about Jackson. I liked him.

Zach was the right vote but he was pretty amusing.

There isn’t anyone I dislike after this episode, which may be a first. And I love Maryanne!

[meatball77]

6 hours ago, HurricaneVal said:

 

Jackson's removal is all kinds of weird.  So....he was on lithium, but not for the usual reason of bipolar, but for sleeping?  Is that code for he only gets the manic half of bipolar (I have friend like that, who only gets the manic highs and it is exhausting, like being in an involuntary meth bender) or is there really a more obscure use for the drug that fits what Jackson needs from it?  Did he feel he didn't need to disclose it because he was weaning himself off it and by the time filming started, he'd be completely clear?  Maybe he thought he was clean, based on......internet research, then a blood test just prior to filming showed it still in his body, so he had to fess up.  Perhaps he has unique body chemistry that held onto the lithium longer than his research told him.  Either way, if he still had it in his system, that next grueling challenge in addition to the initial days of starvation plus the stress would make that bad reaction be a real risk.  And without immediate access to a particular kind of blood testing, the Survivor medical team wouldn't be able to safely monitor his condition.

CBS also already had that recent experience with another Jackson on Big Brother who had been self medicating a mental illness with a legal and not-so legal drugs before going into the house and going cold turkey.  He won, but it wasn't a good season and as I understand a bit painful to watch on the live feeds as he was clearly not stable.  He also got away with a lot of rule breaking because it seemed that production was handling him with kid gloves due to that.

I don't think CBS wanted to repeat that experience.

 

I was thinking the mental breakdown of Kathy on Fans vs Favorites that they didn't want.

[LizBug]

IMO ... Zach wanted to go and helped engineer his being voted off:

• He came back from the challenge taking all the blame for the loss even though his team was woefully behind in the challenge and there was someone else helping on the puzzle.
• He went for the 1 in 6 chance of being safe.  Those are terrible odds.

Seems that actually playing Survivor may not have been as much fun as watching it on TV.

[Guest]

5 hours ago, MsTree said:

I fail to see the newness of the possible diversity storyline with Jackson because didn't they have another female to male contestant that was outed by a tribe member a few seasons back?

Zeke was on Millennials vs. Gen X (2016) and Game-Changers (2017), which is the one where Varner outed him in the middle of tribal council. So, while it's not totally new, that was 5 years ago and it wouldn't hurt to have this issue put forward again. Plus, the circumstances are different in that Jackson told his tribe at the beginning rather than having it revealed against his wishes mid-game, so we heard more about what led to his transition and how it affected him and his family. So it was a way to present it as another ultimately positive personal story rather than a jarring, traumatic, game-related instance.

[KeithJ]

Just a few thoughts:

#1 - Jackson should have never been allowed to compete and it was fairly selfish of him to not disclose all of his medical information before the show.

#2 - Tori doesn't seem to bright. She even said something along the lines of "the number one rule in survivor is to not go off alone on the first day".  But then the followed it up with "but it's ok, I told them I was looking for food."

#3 - I'm not sure Daniel's shoulder is going to hold up.  I already deleted the episode but I can swear I saw him holding it again out in the boat during the immunity challenge.

 

[peachmangosteen]

7 hours ago, HeShallBMySquishy said:

I know for a fact that Adam Klein was not on this season, but there were several instances at the beginning of the episode, before the first break, where I glimpsed Zach and thought, "Go Adam!"

I was like "Oh, Adam's playing again." I knew it wasn't him but they could be brothers for sure.

There is no doubt in my mind TPTB put Jackson on the show knowing they were going to take him off simply so they could have his story. I just hope he was in on it.

I was kinda glad Zach went over Tori. Tori has the potential to be entertaining with how high she is on herself for literally no reason lol.

I liked Drea (sp?) a lot and I agree that she looks familiar. It's gonna drive me nuts until I figure out who she looks like! I was hoping she'd get her way and Rocks would go because he sucks. He's just gonna get more and more annoying.

I'll be shocked if dislocated shoulder guy doesn't end up getting med evacced soon.

[Lady Calypso]

I actually got the chance to watch the premiere with a group of people at a pub last night, and it was a lot of fun. And I didn't have to totally strain to hear what was being said, which was good.

I thought the first half was very strong, but the second half kind of tapered off as soon as Jackson was booted from the game. I get that Jackson withheld his medication from production until the last day and I know that's completely on him (and he seemed to understand that), but I also think that there's a bigger issue at play with that, and that's the fact that Jackson felt the need to hide it until the very last minute, likely out of fear that he'd be booted (which is what happened anyway). Also, the fact that production likely knew that Jackson couldn't continue, but put him on anyway and only let him play two days for his story. Why couldn't they have just guaranteed him a spot for 43? Tell him "it's a shame you told us so last minute, and it's a shame we may not have an alt ready to go, but you deserve a chance to actually play so you'll be guaranteed a spot for season 43." 

Or, better yet, just ensure that everyone has their medications on the island and not have them feel like they have to wean off of them for five-six weeks for a game. 

And I think that's why I'm more pissed at production than Jackson. Jackson should have told them about his medication right off the bat, but production led him on and let him believe he could continue. And they used him only for his story, from my reading, instead of just letting him come back for season 43. Sure, he got a good 48 hour experience but I bet it would have been nicer for him to actually have the chance to play the game, even delaying it another year. 

But we know that, from past contestants weaning off medication, it doesn't tend to go well but they also feel the need to lie in the first place. Jackson made a huge mistake, but production should have handled it better. Did they really have no wiggle room to delay the game a day to make a decision? Did they really not have just one alternate on standby? I know it's COVID and all that, but they could have had one alternate ready to go because you never know what'll happen. What if someone had tested positive for COVID right before shooting? What would they have done then? 

And Zach's elimination was...not ideal for me. I would have much preferred Tori or Rocks to go. Zach was mostly fine for me. Tori was annoying and Rocks seems like a person who will get on others' nerves very soon. It seems to be his way or no way. He seems very judgmental and I don't think he'll be hiding it well. 

On first impressions, I really enjoyed Jenny, Drea, Hai, and, surprisingly, Lindsay. She was the one who I was sure I'd dislike pre-season. But I actually didn't mind her. I also like Maryanne.

I liked Daniel pre-season and I do think he was fine here, but his injured shoulder is gonna be an issue, I guarantee it. They included the clip of the doctor saying that he could re-injure it again for a reason, so I worry he'll be the second med-evac. I actually thought this would be the first episode where there was a double elimination through no votes cast against either person. 

I think the loss of Jackson and, thus, the six person challenge turning to a five person challenge was a detriment. The boat aspect might have been better with six people, because it looked absolutely brutal with five. I guess Orange Tribe got lucky with having Tarzan Jonathan on their team. 

I'm surprised that there doesn't seem to be a lot of stronger men. The women may be carrying this season, after all, as they all look stronger than 85% of the men. 

I'm glad we got to see Shot in the Dark played, even if it didn't work out. It was a better play than the one last season. 

I will say, the entire party I was at got a real good laugh at the first challenge with the mud and fake blood fakeout. That was actually a fun thing that they did, especially since it was so blatantly obvious that the fake blood was a dead giveaway to the three. Yet, it doesn't seem like anyone caught on yet. 

[JudyObscure]

10 hours ago, choclatechip45 said:

I don't get why the show put Jackson on the show if he lied about his medication. 

So CBS could get the virtue signaling they live for without risking the bad press they would get if someone, you know, died.  They knew there would be starvation and dehydration when they decided to let him go on -- so Jeff's explanation didn't wash.  Also bogus is Jackson saying no one could do the caregiving thing of a parent with terminal cancer and not need (medication) help.  Right off the top of my head I can think of a best friend and a sister-in-law who did exactly that.

I was surprised the medic didn't wrap Daniel's upper arm to his chest for the first day or two so it wouldn't pop out again -- as I think it did already.  He's got true grit to continue challenges that way, I've had a dislocated knee and it was screamingly painful

On the other hand Rocksroy has a big body, but zero grit, and I will never understand Survivors keeping people like that because, "We need him for the challenges," when he's just got through proving that he was worthless in the challenge because he would rather bark orders at people than do anything like work himself.

[ProfCrash]

1 hour ago, DallasGypsy said:

IMO ... Zach wanted to go and helped engineer his being voted off:

• He came back from the challenge taking all the blame for the loss even though his team was woefully behind in the challenge and there was someone else helping on the puzzle.
• He went for the 1 in 6 chance of being safe.  Those are terrible odds.

Seems that actually playing Survivor may not have been as much fun as watching it on TV.

Zach new he was in trouble and he took his shot n the dark, that was pretty smart. It is a 1 in 6 chance but that is better then a 0 in 6 chance. He knew his vote wasn't going to change anything so why throw one vote that does nothing? 

I do think Zach got into his own head. I don't know if the one women threw Zach under the bus for the idol hunt mess with Tori. She pretty much said "Lets vote off Rockroy." It is possible that they had that conversation and we were not showing it. But Zach went straight to he was going to be screwed because of that and because of the puzzle. It doesn't help that he is scrawny. He seems to think that his debate skills in high school and college would transfer to winning Survivor without having any real idea about what Survivor took. 

58 minutes ago, tracyscott76 said:

Zeke was on Millennials vs. Gen X (2016) and Game-Changers (2017), which is the one where Varner outed him in the middle of tribal council. So, while it's not totally new, that was 5 years ago and it wouldn't hurt to have this issue put forward again. Plus, the circumstances are different in that Jackson told his tribe at the beginning rather than having it revealed against his wishes mid-game, so we heard more about what led to his transition and how it affected him and his family. So it was a way to present it as another ultimately positive personal story rather than a jarring, traumatic, game-related instance.

Ricard has a trans husband that he talked about pretty openly last season. I am glad that the show is bringing on LBGTQ folks and not making it a huge deal. I get why Jackson told his tribe, it is something different and a huge part of his life. I don't think he was overly dramatic about how he revealed the information, I think he he was simply upfront and factual. I thought his tribe was cool and responded well, we all know that is not always the case. 

11 minutes ago, Lady Calypso said:

I thought the first half was very strong, but the second half kind of tapered off as soon as Jackson was booted from the game. I get that Jackson withheld his medication from production until the last day and I know that's completely on him (and he seemed to understand that), but I also think that there's a bigger issue at play with that, and that's the fact that Jackson felt the need to hide it until the very last minute, likely out of fear that he'd be booted (which is what happened anyway). Also, the fact that production likely knew that Jackson couldn't continue, but put him on anyway and only let him play two days for his story. Why couldn't they have just guaranteed him a spot for 43? Tell him "it's a shame you told us so last minute, and it's a shame we may not have an alt ready to go, but you deserve a chance to actually play so you'll be guaranteed a spot for season 43." 

Or, better yet, just ensure that everyone has their medications on the island and not have them feel like they have to wean off of them for five-six weeks for a game. 

I think the issue is that many medications require regular food and hydration. With food as limited on the show, it can be dangerous to take meds. I don't know anything about lithium but the comments that Jeff made and Jackson agreed with makes me think it is unsafe to take lithium in the conditions one uses in Survivor. 

If Jackson knew that he needed specific class of meds in order to control his mental health issue, he should have revealed that to Production. They are not going to risk someone having a serious medical issue because they were taking, or not taking, a needed medication. We would all flip out if someone got seriously ill because they were taking a medication that required more food and water and Production allowed them on. We would all flip out if someone had a serious health or mental health issue because they were not taking a medication for safety reasons and Production allowed them.

I hope this is addressed in exit interviews because it is important. In the end, Production should not have allowed Jackson to start and simply said "It sucks but one tribe starts down a tribe member due to a medical issue and the lack of alternates because of COVID." That is essentially were the tribe ended up as it is. 

[Passing Strange]

I wasn't a fan of all the twists last season so I'm not looking forward to seeing them again. I'm especially not a fan of watching starving, exhausted people struggle through pointless challenges. For me a great twist would be seeing people have the resources and incentive to use their brains to play the game.

I was pro Maryanne until she started freaking out about Jackson. I think that's who she is. It's possible she'll calm down once she settles in.

Re: Tori the therapist

She's a Certified Life Coach as well as a mental health therapist specializing in eating disorders. Her BA is in Christian Care-giving and Counseling with a minor in Psychology, her MA is in Professional Counseling. Looks like both are from Oral Roberts University.

As others have mentioned, I was OK with either Tori or Zach leaving until Zach left and I wished it had been Tori.

[AntFTW]

Shame on me! I didn't know the new season was premiering yesterday. I happened to see that it was airing just 20 minutes before it aired.

This season is looking juicy. I hope it doesn't disappoint.

Zach panicked too soon. Rocks is too assertive and stern, and that will be his downfall. I'm still forming opinions of everyone else.

I understand that Zach and Swati did the puzzle and did not do great at it but the entire team was the last to get to the puzzle so they had less time than anyone else. They have to be prepared with rebuttals and defenses to shift the blame. They seem be willing to fall on the sword, "mea culpa."

Edited March 10, 2022 by AntFTW

[DEL901]

Blue team got lucky they didn’t have to count triangles or gather water to win flint.   Their strongest male, Rocksroy, wouldn’t have done well with the water and I can see triangle counting being contentious.    The green firefighter was smart.  He could have done the water but then what kind of shape would he have been in for what turned out to be a brutal challenge.    Jonathan of Orange was amazing in the physical challenges as a leader not just brawn. And for the mental challenge, he knew his limitations and went off to do something useful instead of watching and contributing nothing.

[Lamima]

Ugh...not a fan of the sappy back stories. Also HATE all the dumb twists. I prefer the hard core old school Survivor. This crap is all showy HS drama time. Blah. Will keep watching and give it a chance bit if they continue with all the sob stories I will want to jam hot pokers in my eyes.

[Cotypubby]

1 hour ago, Lady Calypso said:

Or, better yet, just ensure that everyone has their medications on the island and not have them feel like they have to wean off of them for five-six weeks for a game. 

That made me wonder. Are players not allowed to be on any kind of medication during Survivor? Do they get any kind of basic medical/hygiene supplies?

37 minutes ago, AntFTW said:

I understand that Zach and Swathi did the puzzle and did not do great at it but the entire team was the last to get to the puzzle so they had less time than anyone else. They have to be prepared with rebuttals and defenses to shift the blame. They seem be willing to fall on the sword, "mea culpa."

Yeah I don't know why they thought they were why the team lost and were so eager to take the blame. They didn't lose because of the puzzle, they lost because they took so much time getting to the puzzle. The other two teams were so far ahead in the puzzle there was no way they'd be able to catch up.

[Taeolas]

I wonder if they rejigged the Immunity Idols challenge after Jackson was out? 

It was clearly designed for 3 teams of 6, but because Jackson was taken out, it was 3 teams of 5, which is one less person pulling the boat. Going by how hard it was for 5 people to move it, I suspect they didn't change the weight at all and made it that much more difficult. 

It's a bit interesting, last season both teams took the water challenge instead of the triangle challenge. This time, both teams took the triangle challenge. It does make me wonder if there was some subtle (or not so subtle) pressure on what challenge to do. 

As for the Oar-team, I suspect their instructions were to 'dirty themselves up' to make it look like they had a challenge to retrieve the oars vs just picking them up. The blood was available, but also a bit of a trap; some blood marks to show scratches would make sense. But if someone was tempted to go Carry with the blood, that could blow the challenge illusion. It'll be interesting to see if anything comes of that in the future. 

[DEL901]

18 minutes ago, Cotypubby said:

That made me wonder. Are players not allowed to be on any kind of medication during Survivor? Do they get any kind of basic medical/hygiene supplies  

There is a medical crew nearby.  If you need medicine that won’t interfere with the game, then they supply it on the appropriate schedule like birth control pills.  However, the only hygiene or medical-adjacent supplies that I am aware of are period products and condoms.  No soap or shampoo or aspirin.  

I wonder if that’s why they didn’t strap up that guy’s shoulder…he could make one, but no artificial aids.  

Edited March 10, 2022 by DEL901

[Nashville]

4 hours ago, Wandering Snark said:

Okay... so... Lithium needs near constant blood work to make sure you don't enter into 'Lithium Toxicity' territory. The issue I'm sure was that they could in no way get said testing for him while on the island. It did seem as though he looked up 'How long does it take Lithium to exit your body' on the internet and attempted a self-ween which was mighty dangerous. I say it was a self-ween because he seemed to be taking the 'it out of my system now so nbd' angle not understanding things a doctor would have told him about the process.

Background: Jackson owns and runs Fox Family Caregivers LLC, which I get the impression is a 1- or 2-person operation (himself, and maybe his wife?) providing “home health” style care - regularly scheduled in-home welfare checks and health services for the elderly and/or incapacitated.

Relevance: Jackson is a healthcare worker, and his wife is a nurse - which necessarily dictates:

1. They may be the world’s best caregivers - but when they themselves require medical treatment, they’ll be the absolute world’s worst patients.
2. They’ll also be the absolute worst about attempting self-diagnosis and self-treatment.

I’ve been married to a (now-retired) paramedic for over three dozen years now - TRUST ME on this.  😆

 

 

[Haleth]

1 hour ago, ProfCrash said:

ope this is addressed in exit interviews because it is important. In the end, Production should not have allowed Jackson to start and simply said "It sucks but one tribe starts down a tribe member due to a medical issue and the lack of alternates because of COVID." That is essentially were the tribe ended up as it is. 

I think this is exactly why they did allow Jackson to participate for two days. The producers can say they were completely transparent by letting us watch it play out on tv rather telling us why one team started off with a deficit. I do hope this taught them maybe they should have an additional person quarantining and on stand by just in case something happens in the future. 

[iMonrey]

I thought this premier did a very good job introducing the cast - much better than usual. The only two players they really didn't spend any time on were Chanelle and Marya, although the latter played a key role in the first challenge. I made the extra effort of making a list of the tribes so I could keep everyone straight and this is probably the first time I've walked away from a season opener without going "who's that?" about at least three or four players. 

The downside to all the time they spent introducing the cast is they skipped over some vital info game-wise. How did Drea, Hai and Lindsay explain why it took them so long in that first challenge and why they had mud and fake blood on them? That had to have played a role in the tribe dynamic because surely at least one of them didn't lie very well and drew suspicion. 

Still not crazy about all the new twists and advantages - especially the way Probst actually brags about them like they're the greatest thing ever. "This ain't your grandmother's Survivor!" Yeah, no shit. Different doesn't mean better though.

Quote

On the live chat thread, it was mentioned in relation to Tori that anyone can call themselves a therapist. I take issue with that.  Therapists are state licensed, requiring a masters degree, and in most states, working under supervision after that, and then passing a licensing exam.

That was me. I think there must be varying degrees or it might be different in different states. But it's possible to be accredited as a therapist simply by working with another accredited therapist. At least that's how it worked on Web Therapy. 😀

Quote

Tori’s CBS bio states “Occupation: Therapist” and Tori herself specifically stated (rather emphatically) she was a therapist - so barring any evidence to the contrary, I guess we have to take her at her word.

Yes but reality show bios have to be taken with a grain of salt. Jonathan is billed as a "beach service company owner." Which means he probably rents out surf boards. Colby Donaldson was famously billed as a garage mechanic or some such - in reality he was living in LA hoping to break into show biz. 

Quote

She's a Certified Life Coach as well as a mental health therapist specializing in eating disorders. Her BA is in Christian Care-giving and Counseling with a minor in Psychology, her MA is in Professional Counseling. Looks like both are from Oral Roberts University.

I rest my case.

I wish she had been voted out instead of Zach. I liked Zach. 

I'm on the fence about Maryanne. I can certainly empathize with the weird girl persona but we've yet to see how she actually plays. So far she's just overly enthusiastic. Nothing wrong with that but I have no idea if she's good at the game.

[fishcakes]

The blue team is a mess. I look forward to watching them self-destruct. I would have rather seen any of them (except maybe Romeo) go before Zach, but they seem like a group that's going to keep losing, so it's fine.

Tori looks like Christa Hastie's Mini-Me. Christa was pretty tall and nearly as strong as Rupert, but she and Tori have the same face and snuffly way of talking.

Everyone not on Blue seems okay so far, although I was looking at the cast list and Chanelle sounded so unfamiliar that I had to look at her picture and I still don't have any memory of her from the episode.

Jeff walking into camp is like the Grim Reaper dropping by. As soon as I saw him on the boat, I knew someone was leaving and maybe this was just editing, but the look on Jackson's face said he knew it was going to be him. I do think the producers knew they were going to pull him before the game even started, but I also think there's more to the story than we heard. The whole thing sounds really strange, starting with lithium being used as a sleep aid. That's just not a normal use for it, and it doesn't seem like a reputable doctor would prescribe it for that.

[SHD]

Why did they pretend they hurt themselves in regards to the fake blood? Clearly a lie once they get back to camp and have no cuts. Why not just say "We had to crawl through pits of mud and this red slop to get to the paddles"?!

[Wandering Snark]

3 hours ago, peachmangosteen said:

I was kinda glad Zach went over Tori. Tori has the potential to be entertaining with how high she is on herself for literally no reason lol.

In the beginning the second there was to be people needed for running she got herself ready to go without really being 'nominated' she just flew on out of there... so yeah she obviously thinks of herself as a big asset to the tribe but her opinion and reality? Might not exactly match up.

[survivinmt]

I would think the way to solve the triangle puzzle is to draw it out on the ultimate whiteboard - the sand -- and label all the intersections with numbers or letters and then start listing them. Have a few people do it and keep comparing notes.

[bankerchick]

8 hours ago, Nashville said:

Unless, maybe… think there’s any chance when Tori describes herself as a “therapist”, she means like a massage therapist or something…?  😁

That's what I assumed she meant.  She doesn't come across as someone smart enough to have a job that requires a Masters Degree.  Didn't she say something like she had seen lots of Survivor and she knew that when people went off on their own they were looking for idols, but her teammates wouldn't think this about her because she was looking for food?  (Taro? I've never heard of it, never mind know what it might look like.)  Cut to her teammates all speculating about her out looking for an idol.

I though Maryanne would be unlikeable based on her preview clip of 'I'm weird so now it's ok to be weird.'  People humble-bragging about being weird or different are usually just 'look at me' narcissists.  However, the full clip did soften that some and I decided she was actually quite delightful.  At least until she started caterwauling over Jackson's ouster like someone had killed her dog.  That might get old pretty fast.

I don't usually like the he-man type (except to look at) but the Yellow team guy didn't bitch and moan, he just dug in and got to it.  Plus it seems like he can do it all - run, push, lift, swim.

The whole mud and blood thing was weird.  At least one of the three kept making comments about it having to look realistic, but when the guy mixed them and swirled them around his chest, then made a circle around his hairline and chin but left the centre of his face completely clean, it clearly wasn't going to fool anyone.  Rather than look like they had exerted themselves or had to do some type of battle, it just looked like they had followed instructions to 'smear this goop around.'

Edited March 10, 2022 by bankerchick

[HurricaneVal]

3 hours ago, JudyObscure said:

I was surprised the medic didn't wrap Daniel's upper arm to his chest for the first day or two so it wouldn't pop out again -- as I think it did already.

 

1 hour ago, DEL901 said:

I wonder if that’s why they didn’t strap up that guy’s shoulder…he could make one, but no artificial aids.

I think that the rules are that any medical intervention beyond basic first aid are grounds for withdrawal from the game for medical reasons.  So resetting the shoulder was OK...though I think if the medic had had to fiddle around more than she did to pop it into place, or had to administer muscle relaxants etc., then that would have crossed that line.  As would strapping it up.  Daniel obviously had the option of strapping it up himself, or fashioning his shirt/buff into a sling, but chose not to wear such an obvious signal of "I'm weak!  I'm weak!  I'm injured!  I'm weak!" to his tribemates and thus put a target on his back.  I can't remember who sat out for Daniel's tribe in that gruelling immunity challenge, but he was very lucky they didn't lose because with his apparent recurring injury--nice guy or not--he's going to be seen as a liability for the tribe in challenges and will get voted out.  I think he's trying to hide how injured he is for that reason.  Probably not good for his long term health, and he might be giving himself a permanent injury by gritting his teeth and pretending all is OK, but he's living his best superfan dream right now.

And now that I typed all that, I can see that having to monitor Jackson's blood chemistry to check for the adverse effects of lithium toxicity would be medical intervention clearly beyond basic first aid, so there really was no choice but to pull him from the game.  All that would be known going in, after his last minute revelation, so I don't know why they let him start, but pull him after two days.  I'm not buying the "wait and see" thing.  I think the issue was that maybe production either already used up the alternates cast members established for this season, or there were no alternates so they had to go forward with starting the season with Jackson so as to have evenly numbered tribes, but pulling him before dehydration, starvation, or bodily stress could cause problems.  I also think that somewhere Probst et al were gleefully gloating over being socially relevant again with their virtue signaling (great term I stole from another poster) over not only transgender issues but also mental health issues without having to, you know, actually having to deal with either through the course of filming.  One and one, neatly tied up in a nice package.  On with the rest of the game!

 

On another note, I woke up this morning thinking about the cast, and I realized there are very few bartender/pharmaceutical rep (see also: waiting for my big Hollywood break!) types in this cast.  I won't just say diversity, but there is also a big variety of people from different occupations and different walks of life in this cast.  Nobody looks like an obviously recruited production plant.  It's nice!

[Jeffurry]

3 hours ago, Passing Strange said:

I was pro Maryanne until she started freaking out about Jackson. I think that's who she is. It's possible she'll calm down once she settles in.

I'm so glad someone else said it. I still like her, but Jackson was trying to put on a smile and Maryanne's loud crying makes it all about trying to console her. While I'm sure that was her natural reaction based on everything we've seen so far, it's exhausting. 

[simplyme]

3 hours ago, JudyObscure said:

So CBS could get the virtue signaling they live for without risking the bad press they would get if someone, you know, died. 

I would have phrased it a bit differently, but agree in essence.

3 hours ago, JudyObscure said:

Also bogus is Jackson saying no one could do the caregiving thing of a parent with terminal cancer and not need (medication) help.  Right off the top of my head I can think of a best friend and a sister-in-law who did exactly that.

I took Jackson's statement as encompassing the whole situation. Sure, there are people who can (and do) manage the caregiving of a parent with terminal cancer with no medication to help. But a lot depends on the surrounding situation and people and support. People who have a network of supportive and supporting friends and family will often (though not always) do better. It shouldn't be overlooked that in addition to his caretaking and grief over his mother, he was having to re-establish a relationship with his father, which can be very emotional and fraught even at the best of times and even if it ends well. 

And frankly, I also know a number of people who were the caretakers for a terminal parent. Some went on meds. Some didn't. Some probably should have seen a counselor and maybe considered medication for a period to help, because wooo boy. 

So what a caretaker needs at that time is support. What kind of support depends on the exact situation. For some, medication and counseling are appropriate, and they shouldn't be judged for that. For others, they aren't.

Also, bless your best friend and sister-in-law.

3 hours ago, JudyObscure said:

Rocksroy has a big body, but zero grit, and I will never understand Survivors keeping people like that because, "We need him for the challenges," when he's just got through proving that he was worthless in the challenge because he would rather bark orders at people than do anything like work himself.

Rocksroy did at least have enough self-awareness to realize he was used to dealing with his children and he needed to back off. I'm not sure he was horribly successful at that. I expected him to be more effective when it came to moving the boat, that's for sure, but I also am reminding myself that not all areas of the track were equally hard.

Other things... There's a Chantelle? Now I have to go look... I think I really like Marianne a lot as a person, but that I might have difficulty living with her 24/7 without killing her. I disliked both Tori and Zach, but Zach did a terrible job all around. He stunk in the challenge and tried to take the blame for the loss. He did specifically name Drea to Tori. He failed to really bond with anyone other than maybe Romeo, and that was mostly Romeo realizing that voting to "keep the strong" meant he'd go right after Zach. No one likes Tori, but they think she pulled her weight in challenges.

[Kenzie]

21 minutes ago, Jeffurry said:

While I'm sure that was her natural reaction based on everything we've seen so far, it's exhausting. 

Exhausting, that's the word I've been looking for.

You would have thought she had just found his bloody body in a bathtub at the Bates motel.

[ProfCrash]

58 minutes ago, simplyme said:

I would have phrased it a bit differently, but agree in essence.

I took Jackson's statement as encompassing the whole situation. Sure, there are people who can (and do) manage the caregiving of a parent with terminal cancer with no medication to help. But a lot depends on the surrounding situation and people and support. People who have a network of supportive and supporting friends and family will often (though not always) do better. It shouldn't be overlooked that in addition to his caretaking and grief over his mother, he was having to re-establish a relationship with his father, which can be very emotional and fraught even at the best of times and even if it ends well. 

And frankly, I also know a number of people who were the caretakers for a terminal parent. Some went on meds. Some didn't. Some probably should have seen a counselor and maybe considered medication for a period to help, because wooo boy. 

So what a caretaker needs at that time is support. What kind of support depends on the exact situation. For some, medication and counseling are appropriate, and they shouldn't be judged for that. For others, they aren't.

Also, bless your best friend and sister-in-law.

Rocksroy did at least have enough self-awareness to realize he was used to dealing with his children and he needed to back off. I'm not sure he was horribly successful at that. I expected him to be more effective when it came to moving the boat, that's for sure, but I also am reminding myself that not all areas of the track were equally hard.

Other things... There's a Chantelle? Now I have to go look... I think I really like Marianne a lot as a person, but that I might have difficulty living with her 24/7 without killing her. I disliked both Tori and Zach, but Zach did a terrible job all around. He stunk in the challenge and tried to take the blame for the loss. He did specifically name Drea to Tori. He failed to really bond with anyone other than maybe Romeo, and that was mostly Romeo realizing that voting to "keep the strong" meant he'd go right after Zach. No one likes Tori, but they think she pulled her weight in challenges.

Except that he told Sowili (sp) that she needed to wash her shoes off and do something else before discussing her vote with her. So he really isn't listening to his own advice to himself.

[Guest]

1 hour ago, simplyme said:

No one likes Tori, but they think she pulled her weight in challenges.

Regarding Tori and Zach's relative challenge prowess, I was amused by one point in the immunity challenge when, after hauling the boats up the ramp, they were moving the chests off the boat next to the puzzle. Tori had one of the chests and was trying to get to the drop-off area, but Zach was standing there in a fog and was in the way, so Tori just yelled "move!" so she could drop the damn thing. I mean, after all that exertion, I would have been wandering around like the Walking Dead just like Zach so I sympathize, but it was still funny.

[AncientNewbie]

5 hours ago, Passing Strange said:

Her BA is in Christian Care-giving and Counseling with a minor in Psychology, her MA is in Professional Counseling. Looks like both are from Oral Roberts University.

Can I change my mind and get Zach back? 

[himela]

16 hours ago, ProfCrash said:

I get that it is a chance of a life time but it sounds like they would have pushed him a season if he had been honest. Instead he is taken out on day 2. 

But if he is taking this medicine, he would never have a chance to actually play unless he spends some time getting off it. Maybe a doctor can gice us some more info?

I loved Maryanne, her smile at the beach just made my day.

I'm sorry for Zach, he is a superfan and he must be devastated.

Regarding Tori, she has said in interviews that people see her and think of her that she is the typical mean girl, but she is not and she is very caring and loving etc but she showed the exact opposite; throwing poor Zach who tried to help her under the bus and being mean about it (her eyerolls and the sarcasm while he was leaving "good job with the puzzle". Why are you doing that Tori?

I think it's unfair that Jackson's tribe was just left with 5 people. If they didn't have the beast person in their tribe, they would have lost that immunity challenge. Also I think this immunity challenge was made for 6 people but they had to switch to 5 after Jackson left that's why it was that hard.

 

[himela]

14 hours ago, kassandra8286 said:

No player who dominated the show with their own theme music.

Amen to that.

[tvfanatic13]

Table of... one, apparently. Not a fan of Maryann. She seems very immature and emotional. 

[LadyChatts]

30 minutes ago, himela said:

Regarding Tori, she has said in interviews that people see her and think of her that she is the typical mean girl, but she is not and she is very caring and loving etc but she showed the exact opposite; throwing poor Zach who tried to help her under the bus and being mean about it (her eyerolls and the sarcasm while he was leaving "good job with the puzzle". Why are you doing that Tori?

I think it's unfair that Jackson's tribe was just left with 5 people. If they didn't have the beast person in their tribe, they would have lost that immunity challenge. Also I think this immunity challenge was made for 6 people but they had to switch to 5 after Jackson left that's why it was that hard.

 

I don’t understand why she was throwing Zach under the bus, when he gave her the heads up that people knew what she was up to.  It was a stupid decision to go off by herself and try to say she was looking for food.  Unless she wanted to keep Drea around for the whole girl-power thing.  I was actually surprised at TC when Jeff asked her if she was being sarcastic about something and she said yes.  Don’t get that honesty very often.  Hope she enjoys the villain role.
 

I don’t know if they had much choice in changing the challenge that quickly.  I think Jackson left the game the same day as the IC.  I really don’t think having Romeo helping his tribe, instead of sitting out, was going to matter that much for his tribe.

Edited March 10, 2022 by LadyChatts

[himela]

21 minutes ago, LadyChatts said:

I don’t understand why she was throwing Zach under the bus

Zach told her that Drea mentioned her name and she told everyone that "someone" had told her that Drea had mentioned her name. I thought it was obvious that this is what happened. She knew she was in trouble and she betrayed Zach to save herself.

23 minutes ago, LadyChatts said:

I don’t know if they had much choice in changing the challenge that quickly

They could change it like not having to also pull the boat along with the crates or they should pull only the boat without the crates in it.

[violet and green]

2 hours ago, HurricaneVal said:

I also think that somewhere Probst et al were gleefully gloating over being socially relevant again with their virtue signaling (great term I stole from another poster) over not only transgender issues but also mental health issues without having to, you know, actually having to deal with either through the course of filming.  One and one, neatly tied up in a nice package.  On with the rest of the game!

Jeff really did seem keen talking to Jackson, like a promo for his new show The Jeff Probst Hour of Honesty.

The segment was a bit confusing so I had to rewatch it, and reading everyone's replies it now makes sense to me that even on a tapered down dosing, there were still risks posed to being starved and dehydrated and overexerted in a tropical setting, and there were not the facilities for the constant blood testing that would be needed to monitor his lithium/other bloodwork levels.

That sad note aside, I am really enthused for this season, which after the gawky beginning with Probst and last season, amazes me.

[simplyme]

1 hour ago, ProfCrash said:

Except that he told Sowili (sp) that she needed to wash her shoes off and do something else before discussing her vote with her. So he really isn't listening to his own advice to himself.

Ha! Yes. I was trying to say that with "I don't know how successful he was with that." but clearly understated it. I found half of that tribe to be a complete miss for me so far. I did appreciate that Romeo appears to be strategic, socially capable, and somewhat flexible in his plans. I don't know that I liked him, but I thought he did okay with the hand he had. Swati was mostly background except for making a basic strategic decision on where to put the target, so no real feelings on her. I kind of liked Drea but like someone else said think she may be too intense right out of the gate.

I enjoyed both calm, rationale Jenny and slightly nerdy Omar. I'm pretty sure that's the kiss of death. Sorry, Jenny and Omar!

[Haleth]

I didn’t realize Albert Brooks and Kelly Cuoco had been cast for this season. 

[peachmangosteen]

2 hours ago, ProfCrash said:

Except that he told Sowili (sp) that she needed to wash her shoes off and do something else before discussing her vote with her. So he really isn't listening to his own advice to himself.

And he said it to her in the most douchetastic way possible. He's an asshole and I hope he goes soon.

[TVbitch]

I watch too much TV. When Jackson said he was tapering off lithium before the season started, I wondered if he might be pulling a Carrie Matheson, so he could utilize his hypomanic brain for enhanced strategizing and puzzle solving. 

[Mahamid Frauded Me]

1 hour ago, violet and green said:

Jeff really did seem keen talking to Jackson, like a promo for his new show The Jeff Probst Hour of Honesty.

 

Yeah CBS already gave him a whirl, but after 1 season his torch was snuffed

[eel21788]

1 hour ago, violet and green said:

The segment was a bit confusing so I had to rewatch it, and reading everyone's replies it now makes sense to me that even on a tapered down dosing, there were still risks posed to being starved and dehydrated and overexerted in a tropical setting, and there were not the facilities for the constant blood testing that would be needed to monitor his lithium/other bloodwork levels.

This clarifies things slightly:

https://www.insider.com/first-openly-trans-survivor-player-sent-home-risky-medication-2022-3

[ProfCrash]

Listening to Rob Has a Podcast, Jackson is not doing normal exit interviews, he didn't do RHAP. The few that I have read have been less of an interview and a bit of a write up.

[ZeeEnnui]

Welcome to a new era of Survivor AKA Jeff Probst's Ongoing Pandemic Fever Dream. At least it looks like he washed his hair this season.

Gotta love boob/ball sweat advantage idols.

Okay, I'll be the asshole here. Maryann it's not that you were a "weirdo" in high school it's that you're ANNOYING. Ugh. Maryann's personality type works my last nerve. Her wailing on the beach when Jackson announced he was leaving was ridiculously overwrought. Was she trying to win a Razzie with that performance? People like her always act like they're so sweet but really they make everything about them. You just met Jackson, calm down. 

In the first challenge, I get wanting to make it seem like the survivors got dirty but fake blood from Spirit Halloween? Hai looked like an extra in a horror movie. Someone on his team asked about the blood and seemed concern, but no one thought to ask where the wound was? Sticky red flag right there people!

As for Jackson, I feel for him but not disclosing his medical situation -- even if he totally had it under control and is fine -- isn't going to fly with the CBS legal team. BUT I do think it's bullshit that they pulled a "wait and see." It was so obvious that Jeffy and the producers wanted to have a teachable moment with a transgender man on the show. It's gross, cynical, and unfair to Jackson. 

So far I like Jenny, Jonathan, Hai, Swathi, and maybe Drea (jury is still out on her).

Rocks should watch his back. Assertive players historically rub people the wrong way. I totally understood his frustration, but his attitude is that of the middle manager that everyone hates and talks smack about in a separate Slack channel. 

[millennium]

23 hours ago, Keely said:

 Because, as harsh as this is to say, Jackson lied about why he was taking it. He was not using it for sleep. There are far safer drugs out there for sleep. Lithium is a serious drug given for mood disorders. Usually bipolar disorder. Weaning off it is just as bad if not worse than being on it in terms of the show. Essentially, he'd be out there unmedicated, in a high stress environment. The mental and physical strain is huge. In that environment, I would say it was a matter of when his moods unstablized, not if. 

The first thing that came to mind was Russell Hantz's nephew melting down.  Doubt they wanted to risk anything remotely resembling that fiasco.

[ByaNose]

6 hours ago, Haleth said:

I didn’t realize Albert Brooks and Kelly Cuoco had been cast for this season. 

Spot on.

1 hour ago, ZeeEnnui said:

Welcome to a new era of Survivor AKA Jeff Probst's Ongoing Pandemic Fever Dream. At least it looks like he washed his hair this season.

Gotta love boob/ball sweat advantage idols.

Okay, I'll be the asshole here. Maryann it's not that you were a "weirdo" in high school it's that you're ANNOYING. Ugh. Maryann's personality type works my last nerve. Her wailing on the beach when Jackson announced he was leaving was ridiculously overwrought. Was she trying to win a Razzie with that performance? People like her always act like they're so sweet but really they make everything about them. You just met Jackson, calm down. 

In the first challenge, I get wanting to make it seem like the survivors got dirty but fake blood from Spirit Halloween? Hai looked like an extra in a horror movie. Someone on his team asked about the blood and seemed concern, but no one thought to ask where the wound was? Sticky red flag right there people!

As for Jackson, I feel for him but not disclosing his medical situation -- even if he totally had it under control and is fine -- isn't going to fly with the CBS legal team. BUT I do think it's bullshit that they pulled a "wait and see." It was so obvious that Jeffy and the producers wanted to have a teachable moment with a transgender man on the show. It's gross, cynical, and unfair to Jackson. 

So far I like Jenny, Jonathan, Hai, Swathi, and maybe Drea (jury is still out on her).

Rocks should watch his back. Assertive players historically rub people the wrong way. I totally understood his frustration, but his attitude is that of the middle manager that everyone hates and talks smack about in a separate Slack channel. 

Not to be cruel or insensitive but your take on Maryann was HYSTERICAL. Okay, I now have to leave to be the kind ,caring and sensitive individual that I am.

[millennium]

9 hours ago, simplyme said:

No one likes Tori, but they think she pulled her weight in challenges.

I like Tori.  She's this season's pretty girl and that makes her an automatic target.

So glad they got rid of Zach.  He was creeping me out.  There was an emotional blankness behind his perpetual smile, like a ventriloquist's dummy come to life. 

[Nashville]

Personally, I kinda wish TPTB would’ve simply given the last of Jackson’s lithium to Maryann - wouldn’t that have killed two birds with one stone?  😁

 

1 hour ago, millennium said:

I like Tori.  She's this season's pretty girl and that makes her an automatic target.

On the outside, maybe - but on the inside…?  🙄
I’m pretty certain Tori personally illustrated every pet peeve she listed in her CBS bio in the very first episode.

[millennium]

19 minutes ago, Nashville said:

Personally, I kinda wish TPTB would’ve simply given the last of Jackson’s lithium to Maryann - wouldn’t that have killed two birds with one stone?  😁

 

On the outside, maybe - but on the inside…?  🙄
I’m pretty certain Tori personally illustrated every pet peeve she listed in her CBS bio in the very first episode.

I don't investigate the players that thoroughly, just go by what I see on the screen.