S10.E10: Rats

[Quilt Fairy]

Quote

As the remaining survivalists near day 50, conditions at Reindeer Lake intensify.  Desperation rises as the temperatures continue to drop, and personal demons bubble to the surface.  One participant's shelter is endangered by the elements, while an unwelcome predator visits another.

Air date: August 10, 2023 

NOTE:  Going to get it right this time.  An episode of Alone - Australia follows this episode.  Alone - Australia has it's own thread in the Other Competitive Reality Shows forum. 

Edited August 11, 2023 by Quilt Fairy

[DropTheSoap]

Hey…it’s Mikey’s kid’s birthday. Who knew?!? (It’s what, the 3rd or 4th ep it’s mentioned.)

Stay strong, Wyatt and Alan. I’m going team Canada this season. 

[Blackie]

I thought this week was the finale for some reason so was expecting some kind of tragic end.

oh Mikey.... you look like Prince Harry when you are in the tent with the night camera's so you have that, maybe that is worth something????

They keep fore shadowing Mikey not making it and Wyatt as home free so either it will be opposite or Alan will come up the middle.

I like Alan but I just don't think he can take the cold. I think he may as well eat as much fish as he can now and hope for the best. When he caught the gnarly fish I said "just boil the hell out of it" about 1 minute before he did. 

I like Wyatt. he's not someone who owns a survival school or teaches bushcraft, he is just a guy who grew up in the boreal forest and is using his skills. I don't mind if he wins. I am going to be around the area where Wyatt is from for the next couple weeks so if I see him driving around in a fancy new truck then I will know that he won!!

Probably Mikey will start a go fund me when this is over, I don't think he will win it . He might beat out Alan because Alan isn't going to risk his health if he gets too cold but I don't think Mikey can beat Wyatt unless something tragic happens to Wyatt 

Edited August 11, 2023 by Blackie
spelling

[iMonrey]

I thought this was the finale too. It's episode 10. About 70 minutes in I couldn't figure out how they were going to wrap it up with only 20 minutes left. Strange there should be 11 episodes. Has it always been that way?

It might as well have been the finale, frankly, for what little happened in this episode. They are really zooming through the days in these final two. This episode covered eight days. Most of them so far covered one to three. 

I can't believe how many times contestants have lost food to predatory small game while they were away from camp. You'd think they'd be more careful. 

Wyatt sounds like he's had a tough life, drinking at age 14, etc. He may be the toughest one left, and that might be what it takes to pull this off. He seems to be catching more fish than anyone else. Also, who knew he could act? He could be an extra on Vikings.

What the hell did Mikey's father go to prison for?

Wow. Alan lost 53 pounds in 46 days. That can't be healthy. I like him but I don't think he's going to make it. He seems to "need" it the least of the final three.

[Blackie]

oh and I forgot to say I hope the reindeer moss wasn't literally Mikey's butt wipe paper from the night before. 😆

[Quilt Fairy]

2 hours ago, iMonrey said:

What the hell did Mikey's father go to prison for?

"Something you can't forgive" sounds like a sex crime IMO.

[Skooma]

15 hours ago, DropTheSoap said:

Hey…it’s Mikey’s kid’s birthday. Who knew?!? (It’s what, the 3rd or 4th ep it’s mentioned.)

That's because he loves the kid and feels bad he doesn't have the money to help him so he feels guilty about it.  I greatly respect him for trying to earn that money instead of just trying to beg for money online.  Shows he has a strong work ethic.

Yeah he might be forced into the begging route but I appreciate him trying hard to provide for his kid himself first.

And people who have never had to struggle too hard to make a decent living have no idea how hard it is working yourself to the bone yet still finding yourself living in poverty.  Especially in such a rich country where this shouldn't happen to anyone like this.

Edited August 11, 2023 by Skooma

[mlp]

At this point, I sort of wish they all could win for different reasons.  Mikey probably needs it most but his obsession with his son seems to border on unhealthy.  Maybe he just doesn't have anything else to talk about.  I do give him credit for creativity and keeping himself busy.  He doesn't seem real bright so a sudden windfall might be a lot for him to handle.

I've been rooting for Alan all along but he seems to be fading and, as said above, he probably needs the win the least of the remaining three.  

By the end of last night's episode, I realized that I'm hoping that Wyatt wins.  I wonder what he does for a living.  He talked about working hard every day but he didn't say what his job is.  Maybe he said in an earlier episode and I've forgotten.  Anyway, after listening to his thoughts on his life, I'm cheering him on.

[rmontro]

49 minutes ago, mlp said:

At this point, I sort of wish they all could win for different reasons.  Mikey probably needs it most but his obsession with his son seems to border on unhealthy.

I don't think it's unhealthy, I'm just tired of hearing about it.  Maybe that makes me insensitive.  The kid does get to hear the worst sung Happy Birthday song ever.

I thought this was going to be the finale too, because I didn't think they would overlap this season with the Australia show.  But about an hour and a half in with nobody tapped out, I started thinking something was up.  I really thought we were going to get an extra long final, followed by a short 10 minute introduction to the Australian contestants getting dropped off.

Wyatt seems to be the one most thriving out there, so I lean towards picking him as the winner, but the previews show him having problems with more fire and freezing feet.  Could be a red herring though. 

I think Allen's first to tap out, he seems less invested in being there than the other two.  He said his goal was 50 days, so that doesn't sound like he planned on winning.

[DrewPaul2010]

Unless he burns his shelter down Wyatt will probably win. He's been getting the most food it seems. Can you imagine if he wins and they take him to a seafood restaurant? That would be cruel. I consider the last 3 standing to be winners...1st 2nd and 3rd place. Its never a total loss the longer they stay the more they make for being on TV.

I imagine if I was starving I'd eat a fish with worms but I would cook it until it was crispy.

 

 

[iMonrey]

4 hours ago, mlp said:

By the end of last night's episode, I realized that I'm hoping that Wyatt wins.  I wonder what he does for a living.  He talked about working hard every day but he didn't say what his job is.  Maybe he said in an earlier episode and I've forgotten.  Anyway, after listening to his thoughts on his life, I'm cheering him on.

He's a contractor, per the show's bios. Not to be a cynic but I think that's a fancy way of saying he does odd jobs as a handyman.

[rmontro]

21 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

He's a contractor, per the show's bios. Not to be a cynic but I think that's a fancy way of saying he does odd jobs as a handyman.

There's a lot of wiggle room in that definition.  He could be doing very well, or not.

[Yeah No]

I agree with what pretty much everyone has said so far.  I have been rooting for Alan and didn't really like Wyatt that much up until now, but he impressed in this episode so if he won I'd be OK with it.   I was nodding all through his philosophical take on what this experience has done for him and how it would help other people too.  I can relate to his tale of a rough life.  I'm sure mine was never nearly as rough as his but I could still relate enough to it to understand where he is coming from.   I often think that if I had the skills to survive out there the mental part of it would not do me in.  I have been a solitary person my entire life.  I have a husband and friends but not much family and never had kids, so I would not be one of those people out there whining about missing my family.   I have been used to doing without and being tough about things. 

I also have often thought about the way the experience of doing this show could change a person for the better if they are open to it, so hearing Wyatt say what I have thought myself was pretty cool.  I hope that Wyatt's experience has changed him like he says it has.  I know people who have gone through very compelling life experiences that have permanently changed them and given them new perspective and meaning in life, and it can be very inspiring.  Whether he wins or not I only hope that happens with him.  

[SassyCat]

If I were Alan, I could not have eaten that infested fish. Nope. No matter how hungry I was at the moment. There’s always more fish in the water. Then there’s that yummy lichen to fall back on. I would not be surprised if next episode shows Alan not feeling too well. Even if he cooked the heck out of it, and completely killed whatever that horror was that was lurking inside that fish, mentally, it’s got to affect him and just make him feel sick with the possibility he might not have gotten it all cooked out of it.

It would give me nightmares.

I have wanted it to be Wyatt who wins after watching the last few episodes now. I feel kind of bad for not rooting for Mikey the most because of his honorable intentions for his son. Actually, I am rooting for all of them, just that Wyatt’s my favorite. The preview looks like it starts really getting hairy for all of them next week, pushing them all to the limits edge.

I thought this last episode was supposed to be the last one too.
I really liked the Alone Australia episode that showed after this. The landscape was a nice change from what we normally see, and I liked how quickly they whipped through the introductions and dropping them all off at their spots. All ten in a row, without spacing that part over multiple episodes.

[Blackie]

8 hours ago, rmontro said:

There's a lot of wiggle room in that definition.  He could be doing very well, or not.

 

There is such a shortage of skilled people to get jobs done he could be very busy if he wanted, especially where he lives is on the edge of "cottage country" for Ontario. 

[AZChristian]

22 hours ago, iMonrey said:

What the hell did Mikey's father go to prison for?

If I found the right guy in my Googling, it involved child molestation.  He was released from prison after serving his sentence and went back to inappropriate behavior.

[rmontro]

16 hours ago, Yeah No said:

I often think that if I had the skills to survive out there the mental part of it would not do me in.  I have been a solitary person my entire life.

I'm an introvert myself, and I do fine on my own.  I don't think being alone out there would bother me either.  I guess you never know until you're in that position yourself though.  I always wonder how they feel about the weekly medical checkups, where they get a little socialization.  Do they welcome the chance to interact, or are they annoyed by the intrusion? 

[Yeah No]

25 minutes ago, rmontro said:

I'm an introvert myself, and I do fine on my own.  I don't think being alone out there would bother me either.  I guess you never know until you're in that position yourself though.  I always wonder how they feel about the weekly medical checkups, where they get a little socialization.  Do they welcome the chance to interact, or are they annoyed by the intrusion? 

You know I think it would only bother me if I thought it was permanent.  Knowing that it would probably at most last 3 months would make it tolerable.  I have sacrificed more for less in my life so it wouldn't be that hard for me.  I also would look at being alone kind of like the solitude of Thomas Merton.  I read parts of his famous book "The Seven Story Mountain" when I was young and it stuck with me.  Living a solitary life can cleanse the soul and give you a new perspective on your life like nothing else can.  I have seen many of the contestants on this show go through a similar process probably without ever reading any Merton.  For Merton it was part of his spiritual journey but even without that focus it seems to bring people to a similar perspective about life, themselves and other people.

I think what would do me in first before the isolation is feeling that I was doing permanent damage to my body.  

[madmax]

I feel bad for Mikey's other children.  He has barely mentioned them.  But damn if he ain't talented!  Cool toys for the boy.

 

[rmontro]

5 minutes ago, madmax said:

I feel bad for Mikey's other children.  He has barely mentioned them.

It could be that he's mentioned them, but the show edited that out to focus on the autism angle.  But even if that's the case, I don't think it's too unusual for him to focus on the one child who is most vulnerable, and needs the most care.  He probably doesn't think he has to worry about the other kids so much, while the boy is a constant concern.

[iMonrey]

15 hours ago, madmax said:

I feel bad for Mikey's other children.  He has barely mentioned them.  But damn if he ain't talented!  Cool toys for the boy.

Does he have other children? I make notes on the participants when they are introduced because I think the ones with spouses and children are the most likely to tap out. I only noted the one autistic son when they showed Mikey's intro package.

Whoa - never mind. He has five children. Yeah I wonder how the other four feel.

Edited August 13, 2023 by iMonrey

[rmontro]

Sorry, this is off topic, but I wanted to warn you.  I went over to the forum for the Australia show, and I started running into spoilers from future shows.  Apparently it's being broadcast or is available somewhere.  I backed out of the forum, because I didn't want to get spoiled anymore.  It's over in the "Other Competitive Reality Shows" (I think it was called) section, or whatever it is, if you are looking for it.  Just be forewarned.

I guess I won't be able to discuss the Australian show, which is a shame, because I thought it was interesting.

[Yeah No]

57 minutes ago, rmontro said:

Sorry, this is off topic, but I wanted to warn you.  I went over to the forum for the Australia show, and I started running into spoilers from future shows.  Apparently it's being broadcast or is available somewhere.  I backed out of the forum, because I didn't want to get spoiled anymore.  It's over in the "Other Competitive Reality Shows" (I think it was called) section, or whatever it is, if you are looking for it.  Just be forewarned.

I guess I won't be able to discuss the Australian show, which is a shame, because I thought it was interesting.

That's because it was shown in Australia earlier this year.  I just skipped over all the earlier posts so as not to be spoiled on who the winner is.  I've gone through this before with overseas competitions (like MasterChef Canada, etc.) but I agree with you and think that either there should be a US only thread or spoiler warnings put on the existing thread for shows like this.

[iMonrey]

9 hours ago, rmontro said:

Sorry, this is off topic, but I wanted to warn you.  I went over to the forum for the Australia show, and I started running into spoilers from future shows.  Apparently it's being broadcast or is available somewhere.  I backed out of the forum, because I didn't want to get spoiled anymore.  It's over in the "Other Competitive Reality Shows" (I think it was called) section, or whatever it is, if you are looking for it.  Just be forewarned.

I guess I won't be able to discuss the Australian show, which is a shame, because I thought it was interesting.

Yep, same. I thought the scenery was far more interesting than anywhere they've gone in the U.S. version.

[rmontro]

6 hours ago, iMonrey said:

Yep, same. I thought the scenery was far more interesting than anywhere they've gone in the U.S. version.

Not to mention they have a different set of animals, which is a nice change of pace.

[madmax]

On 8/12/2023 at 9:41 PM, rmontro said:

It could be that he's mentioned them, but the show edited that out to focus on the autism angle.  But even if that's the case, I don't think it's too unusual for him to focus on the one child who is most vulnerable, and needs the most care.  He probably doesn't think he has to worry about the other kids so much, while the boy is a constant concern.

Could be, but focusing on one child, even if that child is special needs, can have a negative effect on his remaining children.  I have seen it happen and is it not pretty.

[DrewPaul2010]

If I had the skills to survive in that situation (which I don't) the loneliness would do me in. Not just the lack of company, but being unable to know what's going on in the world. It would probably do me some good initially but it would also drive me nuts.