S46.E02: Scorpio Energy

[Lantern7]

Quote

One tribe struggles to keep their heads in the game after the first tribal council of the season; tribes must use teamwork and persistence during the immunity challenge to keep them from heading to tribal council.

 

Edited March 9 by Lantern7

[LadyChatts]

So having to hear Charlie and Ben have some weird Battle of the Swifties vs Metallica (do their fans have a name?) was made up for by the trash talk at the IC and Bhanu losing his marbles at TC.  I like the guy but I don't think he is cut out for this game.  

My list of who I'm rooting for went down this week.  Purple tribe-not cool trying so hard to trick Jess into not playing her SITD by planting a fake idol and trying to let her find it.  I'm glad she at least had some suspicion it wasn't real, and also got into it a little with Kenzie at TC.  She had a much better attitude about it than I would have.  Kenzie can go anytime.  She's dragging Tiffany and Q down for me just being aligned with them.  I liked her last week, but dang, I'm surprised everyone can fit on that beach with her ego.  Also, what was with all the tears and defeatist attitude so early?  I'm not surprised they managed to lose again. 

Orange tribe-I like Venus.  I'm sure getting her toe run over hurt, and if it was anyone else they probably would have been more sympathetic.  In addition, she seemed upset that no one was listening to her at the challenge when it came to the cart and acted like it was done on purpose.  She's probably not wrong.  I feel like we're missing something at that camp as to why she thinks Tevin is calling the shots and she needs to be in good with him, and why Randen also feels on the outs.  Tevin and Soda both went down for me this episode too.  

Siga tribe-Maria and Charlie are not Denise and Malcolm 2.0.  And I knew that girls alliance would be finished by this episode.  Charlie will probably convince Maria to side with him and the guys.  At least Charlie recognizes that he's on the bottom of the girls alliance, which may not even be accurate.  Not sure if Maria is thinking of her standing with the guys if she sides with them over Jem and Moriah.

Challenge-I'm convinced Survivor took a page out of Big Brother's book and has a secret twin twist and Moriah and Liz are it.  Them sitting on the benches at the challenge and commenting about their cool fashion sense in socks and glasses, along with looking alike...I mean seriously.  

That was a pretty brutal challenge, but I don't think Jess deserved so much blame for losing it.  Why put one of the tiniest people in the middle?  That's where I feel the most weight would be, and you need someone taller to try and be flexible in holding the blocks.  

[dizzyd]

All I can say is TG for Survivor Australia. Another awesome season being delivered by that cast, all of them. Shame we can’t come up with a decent cast in a country with 12x the population. Oh and I wish TAR was before Survivor. 

Edited March 7 by dizzyd

[Skooma]

Glad that next week will only be 90 minutes.  Two hours has been too long these first 2 episodes.  If the editing could have been tighter these episodes would have been better.

Well Jess was totally clueless but a very good sport in the end, good for her.  Meanwhile Bhanu (sp?) doesn't seem to know what game he is suppose to be playing.  Dude, chill.  Because loose lips can sink your ship and I want that painted like a billboard woman out next and not you but you are making this hard on me.

Hope a different tribe loses next week because I can't take much more of Purple Tribe.

And God is there no escape from this Swift lady.  Between the NFL cutting to endless reaction shots of her and now this "competition" that went on for what seemed like hours ... sigh.  I'm not into pop singers so this bit just dragged on forever.

I liked that the two women who didn't compete in the challenge sat there discussing this and that.  The cross editing between them and the sweaty, struggling people in the challenge was great.

Edited March 7 by Skooma

[LadyChatts]

13 minutes ago, dizzyd said:

All I can say is TG for Survivor Australia. Another awesome season being delivered by that cast, all of them. Shame we can’t come up with a decent cast in a country with 12x the population.

It's only episode 2, but I feel like that's my problem with this cast.  They are just...there.  Everyone just seems like they should be so different from each other, yet everyone is the same.  I remember when Kel got voted off of S2 and said in his final words (might have been the extended cut) that he didn't see himself, as an Army intelligence officer, fitting in with a TV chef, a cowboy, a wannabe actress and musician.  Then you had Rudy the previous season saying he had to be the one to fit in with his tribe (I kind of think Hunter is taking that approach so far).  I just miss the diverse personalities and backgrounds.  I also wish it wasn't so much game talk.  I needed a spread sheet about 10 minutes in to keep up with what was happening.  I said above I feel like stuff is just missing about certain dynamics. 

And they really need to stop with the 3 tribes of 6, because I feel that's not helping the strategy of the game.  It just gives someone like Jess and Bhanu no hope.  I wish they could go back to 39 days, but I think that's a budget issue on CBS's part.  

I don't mind getting to know everyone, but I also don't care for the backstory packages.  

Quote

 

Hope a different tribe loses next week because I can't take much more of Purple Tribe.

And God is there no escape from this Swift lady.  Between the NFL cutting to endless reaction shots of her and now this "competition" that went on for what seemed like hours ... sigh.  I'm not into pop singers so this bit just dragged on forever.

 

I hope a different tribe loses just to shake things up.  I'd actually like for it to be Siga I think because they seem to have the more interesting dynamics, even though I sadly think it could be Moriah or Jem that goes (just a feeling based on Maria/Charlie teaming up, and them probably going with Tim and Ben).  But at Yanu, I don't see how Bhanu survives.  I think he was lucky to make it out of this TC.  And Nami, I think it'll probably be Venus or Randen.  Tevin, Soda, and Hunter seem like a trio, so that would leave Liz.  But I don't see her siding with Venus/Randen and causing a tie vote this early.  Venus knowing about Randen's idol might be an advantage for her, unless he gets it and feels compelled to play it.

I second the motion on Taylor Swift.

Edited March 7 by LadyChatts

[choclatechip45]

Jess was a good sport so good for her. Bhanu is bonkers. 

[North of Eden]

Ghandi and Metallic in the same episode! That just needed to be said.

Two hours…too long. I actually had to fast forward through the music competition as I was getting bored. Instead of wasting time with that would it be too much to ask to finally see the strategy sessions before a challenge.

Speaking of which that arch challenge was one of the best in many, many years. Legend has it purple is still out there trying to get it to stick.

Venus…Venus I want to root for you so bad but you are making it hard. That was an unforced error bitching about the challenge that they won. I think her real problem is for the first time in her life she can’t trade off on her good looks and cute booty and she doesn’t know how to handle that. I am intrigued by enemies turning to ride or dies. I hope she and Brandon? can follow through.

For some reason I got great glee out of watching Tevin suffer during the challenge.

The two clones bantering back and forth was a delight but it got ruined when Liz turned obnoxious shouting Yes…you…can! Shut up already.

Bhanu will self destruct long before the rise of a dominant alliance post-merge.

Jess….mercy killing but she took it well and is off to Ponderosa to have steak with those ants.

Edited March 7 by North of Eden

[dancingdreamer]

Thank goodness,  it's back to 90 minutes  next week.
Huge personalities  clashing  with one another. I like Bhanu, but he's not cut out for this game anymore than Jess was. Why did Jess even  decide  to do Survivor. 
Kenzie sure has a lot of ink, what will that look like  when she's  70.
Venus is so tiny, but if her toe got crushed,  her team should  be listening  to her, but no need to sit and pout about it, they aren't  coming  to you.

[TVFan1]

I knew Jess would be in trouble if Yanu lost another challenge, and she was.  Now, she's gone. Yanu losing is boring, I want to see other tribes at tribal council.

Nami tribe annoys me to no end. Speaking of, Liz shouting from the sit out bench was also annoying. Now, that's a tribe that I hope to see at tribal council soon. Venus mentioned turning on Nami with a swap or merge, I can't remember. Good, dismantle that tribe, please.

[Cotypubby]

I really wanted one of her teammates to yell at Liz to shut up! Her screaming “Nami Nami Nami Nami!” over and over during the challenge made it difficult for me to hear the others talk, I bet it was worse for those there.

I can’t tell if her bizarre “I am the best, I am so rich and hot and amazing” shtick is an act or real. She is so off-putting.

[bunnyface]

If Bhanu screamed in my face in the middle of a challenge, we'd probably both be goners.  I'd beat the shit out of him and he'd be med-evaced and I'd be ejected.  That was some bullshit.  You can't put someone in the middle that literally cannot reach to hold the pieces and then scream at her.  He says he passionate, I say he's abusive.  I'd also probably tell them I hoped they all died in a fire on the way out, after going to such elaborate means to vote me out, so that might be a personal problem on my part.  She was much more gracious.

[Lantern7]

Two episodes in, and I’m relieved we're going to ninety minutes starting next week. I don’t think there are outright villains in this cast, but I can’t decide which players to root for, or if there’s anyone that deserves it.

Bhanu, Bhanu, Bhanu. Is he a big fan of the show? It looks like he hasn’t been dealing with the usual hardships well, and he’s willing to open his mouth at inopportune times. Also, he grabbed his bag when his vote was announced. Doesn’t Jeff usually serve up a throwaway vote before revealing who’s getting booted? I feel for the guy, I’d probably freak the fuck out in his position (and possibly worse), but he doesn’t look cut out for the game.

I also have sympathy for Venus. She got her toe rolled over, and no one was taking it seriously. I didn’t see that as bratty, though I get that her vibe isn’t landing. Also, I’ll have to remember to see if Soda is always up for snatching the idol, because that’s a bit of a red flag to me, and I want to like her.

Watching Jess’s final day at camp was painful. She was already on the outs with her tribe. Why screw with her by making a fake idol? It was funny how Tiffany assumed Jess would find it if she put it in the exact spot where she found it. The remark about Jess going to remedial clown college? That was uncalled for.

Challenge was a nightmare. I wonder how long it took the testers to make the PERSISTENCE arch stick. I did get a kick out of Moriah and Liz bonding. Nice that Liz made a friend (especially one that looks eeriely like her), because she’s not gelling with her tribe. I get why she’d want to play the game, but talking about her wealth was a dumb move.

I’m okay with Taylor Swift in general. I’m just putting that out there. Cute watching Charlie and Ben bond over music. It was a nice bit of an otherwise blah episode.

ETA: Who said the title quote?

Edited March 8 by Lantern7

[30 Helens]

That was a challenge designed for tall people, so of course the Purples lost. They had the shortest people. There was literally no place for Jess in that contest— she wasn’t strong enough to bear the weight of the end pieces, and as her grasping upstretched arms proved, she wasn’t tall enough to place the middle blocks. I guess Bhanu thought if he screamed loud enough, he could scare her into growing a few more inches? 

I was hoping Bhanu’s crazy talk would provoke a last minute vote change. I will miss Jess and her cheerful quirky personality, but at least she had a very classy exit.

I get Venus’s frustration, and I’m sure she was in pain, but she did not handle that conversation with Soda well. She could have earned a little sympathy with her injury, but instead she went on the attack. Forcefully telling someone “you have to listen to me more” is a good way to make them listen to you less. 

If I’m ever in a situation where Liz starts to cheer for me, please stuff a gag in her mouth. That was not support, it was a verbal assault.

[HurricaneVal]

I am starting to really dislike the three tribe version of Survivor.  It seems season after season there is one tribe that just loses and loses.  With so few players on each tribe, it just really weakens that losing tribe, not only for challenges, but for the ability to form alliances, and they go into merge with nothing.  Then the focus goes to that losing tribe, because that's where all the drama is--sorry Tevin, Bhanu is the drama queen this season--and we go to the merge clueless about the other players.  When it was two tribes, I feel like the coverage was more even.  We just whipped back and forth between two camps, not three.

I'm feeling a little sorry for Venus.  I know we were manipulated into feeling that with the editing, but there was some epic mean girl smirking at her and eye rolling from Soda and Tevin that I didn't think was kind--or called for.  I mean, over at loser camp they were working a scam on Jess with the fake idol, but even when Jess couldn't be led by hand to the fake idol, the hissing and eye rolling between Q and Tiffany was more exasperation and incredulity than outright meanness.  On the other hand, Venus seems to be embracing that martyr role, sooooo.....

That "build a freestanding arch, and spell it correctly" challenge was a truly new and innovative challenge, and I applaud Survivor for finding something new and innovative.  Tribes truly needed to communicate and work together to make that happen.  My only quibble is the challenge favored taller competitors who could more easily brace across more of the arch.  Maria was a beast, though.  Mama's got depth.

[Fake Jan Brady]

5 hours ago, North of Eden said:

Venus…Venus I want to root for you so bad but you are making it hard. That was an unforced error bitching about the challenge that they won.

She went on about it for so long I forgot that her team hadn't lost and fully expected her to be voted out at Tribal.

2 hours ago, HurricaneVal said:

That "build a freestanding arch, and spell it correctly" challenge was a truly new and innovative challenge, and I applaud Survivor for finding something new and innovative.  

It was on Survivor UK a couple of months ago.

[violet and green]

8 hours ago, LadyChatts said:

That was a pretty brutal challenge, but I don't think Jess deserved so much blame for losing it.  Why put one of the tiniest people in the middle?  That's where I feel the most weight would be, and you need someone taller to try and be flexible in holding the blocks.  

To be fair, she was literally standing around waiting for the others to take care of crucial parts of the cart getting to the final resting place, on multiple occasions. Towards the end, she just stood in front of it while the others pushed.

6 hours ago, 30 Helens said:

That was a challenge designed for tall people, so of course the Purples lost. They had the shortest people.

I really liked Jess, but if they'd kept that tall whatsisname and voted her out last episode they would have had a fighting chance of getting that puzzle up in the air (may not have been able to spell it, but it would have been airborne).

[GenerationX]

It looked like Kenzie was holding up the ENCE.  How were the other four tribe members unable to get the remaining six letters placed?

It's pretty clear that the blood sugar levels of many people have dipped, as we got a whole bunch of random crying.

I always roll my eyes at the senseless gasping when the previous bootee is announced ("X voted out at the last tribal council").  At least this time, the overreactions were more than made up for with the trash talking.  That was the best two minutes of the two hours.

[me5671]

7 hours ago, bunnyface said:

If Bhanu screamed in my face in the middle of a challenge, we'd probably both be goners.  I'd beat the shit out of him and he'd be med-evaced and I'd be ejected.  That was some bullshit.  You can't put someone in the middle that literally cannot reach to hold the pieces and then scream at her.  He says he passionate, I say he's abusive.  I'd also probably tell them I hoped they all died in a fire on the way out, after going to such elaborate means to vote me out, so that might be a personal problem on my part.  She was much more gracious.

Couldn’t agree more. Especially about Bhanu.  Like you said, it’s not Jess’s fault she’s short. But even if she was the worst challenge performer in the world, it wouldn’t justify bellowing in her face like that. Bhanu’s screaming at her was unhinged. Passion, my ass. That was a precursor for abuse. Glad Jess is off the island and away from those a-holes on the Purple tribe. 

[Haleth]

33 minutes ago, violet and green said:

I really liked Jess, but if they'd kept that tall whatsisname and voted her out last episode they would have had a fighting chance of getting that puzzle up in the air (may not have been able to spell it, but it would have been airborne).

Yeah, but he probably would have quit.

I don't really like many (any?) of these people.  The ones I kind of liked last week (Bhanu, Soda) showed their ugly sides this week.

This may be incorrect, but in the past didn't they actually do more challenges that weren't shown on TV because of time constraints?  With the 1.5 and 2 hour time slots you'd think the show could fit in additional challenges instead of all the plotting and complaining.  It's getting tedious.  Every season is the same.  

[JudyObscure]

Agree with the rest of you that my list of people I no longer like got really long this episode

Venus was being shunned and it was hard to watch.  I've seen the beautiful girl shut out of the group on jobs and the only thing she can do about it is work really hard on her personality and use self-deprecating humor to work her way in.  Otherwise the regular girls will swear she's stuck up and conceited, with no evidence.  Venus  hasn't learned any of that yet and is making matters worse by being a little bit high maintenance and pouting about it. 

I feel really sad for her and at the same time this is the sort of dynamic I like to watch on Survivor's "social experiment,"  and why I'm glad we have the two hour episodes.

Liz's  tribe should have thrown the challenge so they could vote her out.  Even the show's horrific sound track couldn't drown her out.

Soda was my favorite last week, now she's gone down a little, but still a favorite.

Bhanu is really smart and clearly a quick learner, going from one culture to another as quickly as he has, so maybe he knows now that his "passion" comes across as terrifying  and will learn how to suppress it.  I hope.

Jess was refreshing and restful  in the midst of all the extroverts.  Sorry to see her go.

Kenzie's tattoos bother me only  because I hate to see young, beautiful skin covered up with comic book art.  I like her, but I think her strong personality will either get her voted out soon -- or she'll make it to the end. I wanted Jess to cast one vote for her to warn her.

Tiffany. She's very smart and strong but I can't really like her because I can't look at her.  I automatically turn my head away from the TV or even in real life when confronted with someone who has things hanging out of their nose.  I'm sorry, but I'm instinctively repulsed.  I would never be that way about an unattractive feature that someone was born with, but when they've gone out of their way to purchase and insert the nose hanger, I find it downright  rude and antisocial. 

 

[North of Eden]

48 minutes ago, JudyObscure said:

 

Tiffany. She's very smart and strong but I can't really like her because I can't look at her.  I automatically turn my head away from the TV or even in real life when confronted with someone who has things hanging out of their nose.  I'm sorry, but I'm instinctively repulsed.  I would never be that way about an unattractive feature that someone was born with, but when they've gone out of their way to purchase and insert the nose hanger, I find it downright  rude and antisocial. 

 

This 100% I really do not care for those. She's an attractive lady so it unfortunate. I don't even like the ones on the side of the nose.

[phlebas]

I respect Taylor Swift a lot, even if her music doesn't always speak to me. She has a couple of decent tunes but I'm not going to be taking out a second mortgage to buy a concert ticket.  But she annoys some of our dumber talking heads on the news shows, so more power to her. 

That said, being able to name all her songs is not quite the flex Charlie seems to think it is. If Taylor had been watching that, she would have gone from flattered to touched to uncomfortable to creeped out.

[peachmangosteen]

This season is off to a very rough start. Yikes lol. I'm hoping maybe it's just because of the absolute overkill of 2 straight weeks of 2 hour episodes, which is just beyond unnecessary.

Soda saying she actually liked Venus and connected with her but decided she'll just shun her and treat her like shit simply because the others don't like her really irritated me. That's nasty.

And the fake idol stunt Q/Kenzie/Tiffany pulled on Jess was also really nasty. I wouldn't have been gracious at all. They're assholes.

I figured the women on green would fall apart and I knew it would be because of Maria. Sigh.

I don't particularly like any of these people but I could be interested in a fun little enemies to allies with Venus and Randen.

[Lamb18]

11 hours ago, LadyChatts said:

Siga tribe-Maria and Charlie are not Denise and Malcolm 2.0. 

No, Siga wins too much. They have to be on a loser tribe to be Denise and Malcolm.

This season is boring so far. 

[fishcakes]

I wish I had a tenth of the self-esteem that Liz has, but only a tenth because that woman is seriously deluded about her own appeal. "No man could handle being married to someone like me who's wealthy and doesn't need him," as she trundles around in her sweater of a thousand colors. Too bad she and Jelinsky weren't on the same tribe so they could talk to each other about themselves in the third person.

The trash talk at the challenge was good, but I loved Jeff taking out a knife and cutting Nami's buff off the idol. He's so done with all these fools and it shows.

A lot of crying and mean-girling this episode on more than one tribe, and no one is emerging as particularly likable. Maybe it will get better, but I'm not getting my hopes up.

[Cheyanne11]

42 minutes ago, peachmangosteen said:

And the fake idol stunt Q/Kenzie/Tiffany pulled on Jess was also really nasty. I wouldn't have been gracious at all. They're assholes.

Same.  It came off as mean-spirited, not gameplay. As I was leaving I would've said "hilarious, guys.  BTW, gonna go eat a cheeseburger now--you can have my extra ants." 

Sigh, two episodes in and I don't have anyone I truly like yet.  That's a bad sign.  Also, really hate the three team set-up where, every year now, one team sucks and loses almost all their members before the merge.   

[Valerie]

Liz is so annoying. She can go.

I really like Ben. Charlie, not so much. His alliance with Maria made me lol, they are a far cry from Denise and Malcolm.

Sad to see Jess go, but she seemed to take it in stride. Bhanu needs to go -- if we have the purple tribe decimated and have a tribe swap like last season, he's going to blab all of Yanu's secrets to his new tribe.

[BradandJanet]

So far, and it's early, I don't see enough players with a clear game plan, or at least one with a chance of succeeding. Players need to be flexible, smart, and friendly, while also being quietly cunning. The players who have been highlighted are either too obvious or clueless.

 

[iMonrey]

4 hours ago, GenerationX said:

I always roll my eyes at the senseless gasping when the previous bootee is announced ("X voted out at the last tribal council").  At least this time, the overreactions were more than made up for with the trash talking.  That was the best two minutes of the two hours.

I don't get this either - Jeff says "Jalinksy, voted out at the last tribal council." Cut to reaction shots of other tribes literally putting their hands over their mouths in shocked amazement. As if . . . they even knew the guy? Or cared? WTF.

However, I did not appreciate the trash talk. I didn't think it was funny or cute or just game play, it seemed childish and was not a great look on Soda. 

There is a real problem with the cast this season, as I am liking the people they focus on less and less, leaving only the people they haven't shown much of to root for. I guess I like Ben OK, and maybe Hunter. And that's about it. The biggest assholes seem to be the decision makers on each of the tribes.

It was Q who insisted Jalinsky go first, when everyone else had settled on Jess. Who knows if they might have won that challenge if they'd kept Jalinsky instead, but the fact is they lost again, and they can't blame that one on Jalinsky. So clearly he wasn't the only problem.

I agree the three team format has become a problem. There is bound to be one team that is weaker at these obstacle course/puzzle challenges they always do, and denying them flint and supplies just compounds the problem. Plus the show is bound to focus on the losing tribe every week which makes the episodes feel lopsided. I could tell Yanu was going back to tribal again within the first five minutes, same as last week. Editing is really bad about that.

Plus everyone immediately scrambles to make a four person majority with sub-alliances and options within. It's all pointless and too soon. Especially before they've even had their first challenge. The show has really trained people to overplay.

[seacliffsal]

The whole "new Era" formatting of Survivor just doesn't work for me as a viewer.  Especially with only 26 days-one of the tribes just took the pre-cut and gathered bamboo stalks and just laid them on the ground.  They all know there's no point to really focus on the shelter (other than a roof) as they only have 26 days.  Why bother?  And then they are all surprised that they are wet, tired, and hungry.  Also, as mentioned by others, too much focus on determining who the outcasts/early outs on their teams will be.  Maybe they should try mixing up the tribes after every tribal council so that there isn't any chance of creating long-term alliances (i.e. after TC everyone picks a rock that will put them on a tribe until after the next challenge and TC after which they again get randomly assigned to a tribe, etc.).

Okay, another quick thought.  What if they just left all of the participants on the island without any tribes, supplies, or even a greeting from Jeff and we just watched what they did for the first 4-5 days before Jeff finally met them, put them on tribes and held the first challenge?  Just several days of them trying to figure anything out.

[bunnyface]

6 minutes ago, seacliffsal said:

Okay, another quick thought.  What if they just left all of the participants on the island without any tribes, supplies, or even a greeting from Jeff and we just watched what they did for the first 4-5 days before Jeff finally met them, put them on tribes and held the first challenge?  Just several days of them trying to figure anything out.

I'd watch that.  Also, have no idols or advantages or non-advantages.  Don't tell them that though.  Let them keep looking and assuming someone else has it and watch the paranoia bloom.  

[meep.meep]

Toooooo long!

Liked the green guy asking if Jelinsky had received several votes.

[Tango64]

46 minutes ago, seacliffsal said:

What if they just left all of the participants on the island without any tribes, supplies, or even a greeting from Jeff and we just watched what they did for the first 4-5 days before Jeff finally met them, put them on tribes and held the first challenge?  Just several days of them trying to figure anything out.

Absolutely brilliant. That would counter what we see now in late-stage Survivor in which everyone arrives knowing exactly what will happen, when and how it will happen, what strategies they have to employ, and how they don't have to worry about the actual "surviving" part of the game. Restore the game to "Oh crap, what's happening? What do we do?" instead of "Okay, here's where I lounge on the beach and try to create alliances while we wait for the task where we can earn a fishing kit."

[LadyChatts]

4 hours ago, peachmangosteen said:

This season is off to a very rough start. Yikes lol. I'm hoping maybe it's just because of the absolute overkill of 2 straight weeks of 2 hour episodes, which is just beyond unnecessary.

Soda saying she actually liked Venus and connected with her but decided she'll just shun her and treat her like shit simply because the others don't like her really irritated me. That's nasty.

And the fake idol stunt Q/Kenzie/Tiffany pulled on Jess was also really nasty. I wouldn't have been gracious at all. They're assholes.

I figured the women on green would fall apart and I knew it would be because of Maria. Sigh.

I don't particularly like any of these people but I could be interested in a fun little enemies to allies with Venus and Randen.

I've never been a fan of planting fake idols/advantages.  I don't like to see people embarrassed like that, and I feel like the way they went about it was mean-girlish.  Don't get me wrong, I love a good villain, but that's not what I would consider those people.  I like that they showed Jess wasn't as dumb as her tribe liked to think.  I know she played the idol despite having doubts, but I can't blame her for taking that shot.  Bhanu already was about to self-implode but the look on his face when Jess played the idol and Jeff said it wasn't real, you knew he could tell he was more on the outs than he thought.  But just to make sure she didn't play her SITD?  I'm sure Kenzie thinks that was a legendary moment.  Whatever happened to just convincing them to vote for someone and laying it on thick that they are safe?  

Randen/Venus surprised me, considering Randen said one minute she was a liar, and the next he's telling her a very big secret that could come back to bite him.  If he realizes they are both on the bottom maybe he figures she's all he's got at this point.  Venus is one of about three people I'm rooting for so I hope she manages to hang in there, but I think she either needs Nami to keep winning or someone else on her tribe to screw up very badly. 

I will say the one thing I liked about Soda this episode was the trash talk at the IC.  Especially when Venus was trying to reign her in and she was all 'he started it' meaning Q.  Though I think Hunter's actually the one that started it, but whatever, it was a great moment.  

Edited March 7 by LadyChatts

[30 Helens]

11 hours ago, HurricaneVal said:

I am starting to really dislike the three tribe version of Survivor.  It seems season after season there is one tribe that just loses and loses.  With so few players on each tribe, it just really weakens that losing tribe,

And when Jeff does things like withhold flint, it makes them even weaker. Unfair. It’s almost like the show wants to ensure it has one sad sack tribe for the narrative. 

4 hours ago, peachmangosteen said:

And the fake idol stunt Q/Kenzie/Tiffany pulled on Jess was also really nasty. I wouldn't have been gracious at all. They're assholes.

Yep. And if the editing followed the timeline, when Q gave her that idol, he wasn’t sure if they were voting for Jess or Kenzie. What was he planning to do if she played the idol, learned it was fake, then stayed? Laugh about what a scamp he is and expect her forgiveness? (Although he probably would have gotten it. Jess was far too nice for the room.)

 

[Kenzie]

5 hours ago, JudyObscure said:

Kenzie's tattoos bother me only  because I hate to see young, beautiful skin covered up with comic book art.

It's tragic really. I don't care how talented a tattooist may be, the final result is beautiful skin covered in doodling.

And the lady with the nose bull-ring -  it's not doing her any favors.

[Madding crowd]

When Kenzie asked the camera person how blue her eyes looked after crying I thought we had a great match to conceited Liz talking about herself in third person. Hated the fake idol thing and wish Jess would have told them off before leaving.

[ponygirl]

I want to see more of Hunter.  
 

[fishcakes]

The first part of this video is from the moment Bhanu screamed at Jess during the challenge. I did a screen grab of right before the blocks dropped.

Jess is trying to hold up four blocks by herself. Kenzie, Tiffany, and Q are on the other side together holding up five blocks and they're in the wrong order. Bhanu is trying to place an S, which would be wrong on either side. Jess is the only one not being completely useless there.

[Duke Silver]

Liz (I think?) really loves herself some Liz, huh?  Hubris runs especially high this season...  between her and Jelinsky, lots of, uhhhhhh, confidence.

[Haleth]

1 hour ago, meep.meep said:

Toooooo long!

Liked the green guy asking if Jelinsky had received several votes.

Did the Jelinsky several/seven convo occur when all the tribes were together?  I thought it was at TC so I was wondering how anyone on another tribe knew about it. 

 

53 minutes ago, 30 Helens said:

nd when Jeff does things like withhold flint, it makes them even weaker. Unfair. It’s almost like the show wants to ensure it has one sad sack tribe for the narrative. 

Yes!  And it’s getting boring. 

[eel2178]

19 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

Challenge was a nightmare. I wonder how long it took the testers to make the PERSISTENCE arch stick.

I kept wondering if they held the 4 letters on each end in place then put the 5 middle letters together on the ground and lifted them into place as a solid block instead of trying to put each of the letters in place individually, would it have been easier to accomplish?

I guess I'll never know because no one tried it. 

Edited March 8 by eel2178

[LadyChatts]

Here's a secret scene from Youtube about Tevin and Venus.  I wasn't 100% disliking the guy but after seeing this, I really hope Venus is his downfall.  I think it's kind of rich that he says Venus needs to be more real, when I think Tevin is the fakest one out there.  And he didn't talk to her for 4 days because "that's what Tevin needed".  Seriously what is it with the third-person this season?  Venus gets it, and yet is another example of why this 3-tribe format of 6 people sucks.  She's screwed if they lose.  I'm worried Randen might purposely try to throw a challenge in order to be able to get the HII and his vote back.

https://youtu.be/fUBfn8J4CnY

Quote

Jess is trying to hold up four blocks by herself. Kenzie, Tiffany, and Q are on the other side together holding up five blocks and they're in the wrong order. Bhanu is trying to place an S, which would be wrong on either side. Jess is the only one not being completely useless there.

I felt like they were all pretty useless and lacking communication, but having Jess (the second smallest person in the tribe) stand in the middle there at the end and try to hold up multiple blocks and extend her short arms, and then they wonder why they lost?

Edited March 7 by LadyChatts

[Straycat80]

I’m not liking this new Survivor and not a fan of these longer episodes. To me it’s just more time for commercials and then watching the Survivors crying, whining and complaining. And too much talking, it’s like watching a therapy session. Just play the game already. 
I think I might switch to Survivor Australia. 

[JudyObscure]

Thank you @Fishcakes.  Your clip matches my memory but I thought I had to go back and check to make sure.

I've been rooting for the Asian women since Survivor began.  I just like their manner so much better than the Liz and Kenzie types who are just too brash and over confident for my taste. 

It's sad that the group as a whole seems to require that others brag about themselves before they grant their respect.

[iMonrey]

2 hours ago, LadyChatts said:

Bhanu already was about to self-implode but the look on his face when Jess played the idol and Jeff said it wasn't real, you knew he could tell he was more on the outs than he thought.  But just to make sure she didn't play her SITD?  I'm sure Kenzie thinks that was a legendary moment.  Whatever happened to just convincing them to vote for someone and laying it on thick that they are safe?  

That went out the window when the show added the shot in the dark gimmick. 

As for Bhanu, they could have avoided his meltdown beforehand by telling him they were telling Jess he was the target. That's all it would have taken. After all it was Jess who told him that they were throwing out his name and Q was standing right there. So I don't know why Q didn't enlighten him since he was only considering Jess or Kenzie. 

The whole tribe is a mess.

[LadyChatts]

6 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

That went out the window when the show added the shot in the dark gimmick. 

As for Bhanu, they could have avoided his meltdown beforehand by telling him they were telling Jess he was the target. That's all it would have taken. After all it was Jess who told him that they were throwing out his name and Q was standing right there. So I don't know why Q didn't enlighten him since he was only considering Jess or Kenzie. 

The whole tribe is a mess.

But there've been new era seasons where castaways try to convince their target they are safe so they won't play their SITD.  They've never gone to such extremes to plant a fake idol.  I mean no offense to Jess, but the fact that she couldn't take the hint about the idol, that Tiffany had to ask her why she was just standing around and not even looking in the first place...I mean she did have suspicions so she wasn't completely hopeless, but I think they worried too much for nothing.  Frankly I'm surprised Jess didn't play her SITD, but again, that's been successful one time in voiding a vote since it's been introduced in S41.  I think that would have been a chance worth taking.  As long as they got Jess to vote Bhanu in case she did play a successful SITD, they would have been fine.    

I'm surprised Bhanu didn't go up to Jeff last night and asked him if he was safe.  Seriously that guy is going to paranoia himself right out of the game.  If he had any shred of hope of sticking around I'd say that went out the window last night.  I feel bad for him but I just don't think he's cut out for this game.  

[Rodney]

7 minutes ago, LadyChatts said:

As long as they got Jess to vote Bhanu in case she did play a successful SITD, they would have been fine.

Not possible, since playing the Shot in the Dark means forfeiting your vote.

[violet and green]

My short list of favorites sure got whittled down this episode. With Jess gone, there's only Hunter I really like. Ben seems okay. Venus? Maybe? Then again no.

The little hints here and there of an actual human to get invested in are thin on the ground. It seems to be Survivor: Obnoxious vs Delusional this season.

[Lady Calypso]

Honestly, it made me sad to see how Jess was treated. Sure, not all of it was to her face, and maybe part of it was strategic for the tribe, but the way they talked about Jess all episode, the way they played with her just because her ADHD was causing her to be more spaced out than what I assume she usually is, the way they mocked her for not daring to find the fake idol planted in the fake location, the way they compared her and Bhanu to clown school or whatever, all of it felt more mean spirited than it should have been.

I may understand that Jess didn't fit in, I understand that she wasn't doing well socially and someone had to go. I may understand that the fake idol play was to prevent a SITD play. But it felt so unnecessary and extra, all for more camera time, at the expense of another player being humiliated, or an attempt at being humiliated. 

I'm trying to separate feelings from objectivity but I still come out of the episode, feeling like Kenzie, Tiff and Q blamed the challenge loss on Jess (it was all of their faults equally), blamed Jess for being too stupid at Survivor "but she's SUCH A NICE PERSON!", and then laughed at the idea that she didn't buy the ugly fake idol Q handed her. 

There was just a lot there that made me uneasy. And now Bhanu will be the next scapegoat for that tribe because he had a full on meltdown. Not that I'm happy with Bhanu, either. His "passion" was really just angry screaming and being frustrated. Don't mistake passion for outright anger, Bhanu. 

Similar to Venus, who has been consistently talking about being on the outs, being ostracized, and we're actively seeing that in small clips (not just Soda, but Tevin was rolling his eyes at Venus at one point). I know that she got way too obsessed with the challenge and the cart running over her foot and she absolutely should not have brought that up back at camp the way she did, but she's expressed feeling on the outs (as has Randen), and it's clear that it's gotten to her. 

Though, can she be more on the outs as Liz, who is almost guaranteed to either be an early boot or a goat dragged to the end? Bragging about her wealth, then nonstop cheering loudly during the challenge? 

I like Venus but she's definitely a sloppy player. She's going to talk herself off the island if she keeps it up, but at the same time, I don't think she's done anything horrible to warrant not just the ostracization, but Soda trying to rip the immunity idol out of her hands twice.

It makes me not like Soda at all. Venus may also want the attention, but Soda's definitely gravitating toward it as well. 

I think the only tribe I marginally like is the green tribe. I really like Maria, and I love Ben. I'm on the outs on everyone else but at least their tribe seems to like each other.

I don't know, I'm all for villains and catty and sneaky behaviour but I think the episode was sloppily edited, so something made it very awkward to watch.