S29.E03: Actions vs. Accusations

[Tara Ariano]

Another castaway is voted out of the game.

[Maverick]

 

Another castaway is voted out of the game.

 

 Clearly the promo monkeys have heard the complaints about too much info in previews, because that blurb couldn't be any less insightful if it tried.

[magenta]

Bye. Bye John haha

[ratherbereading]

And great rejoicing was had throughout the land.

[ElleryAnne]

Well done, editors.  I really thought Baylor was going home and the editors were only trying to fabricate some suspense.  

[ihartcoffee]

Hahahahaha!!! That was great! Idol in his pocket!

[Ms Blue Jay]

Last season of Survivor was so amazing.  I don't know how to express that enough.  Let me try.  Last season was so compelling and the 'gimmick' was so good that it got me interested in the first season I've watched since Season 6.  It got me so interested in the show that I went back and watched almost every other season that I missed, during its run.  Not kidding.  Last season was amazing, and I feel like I was already hooked by episode 1.

 

I feel like this season really sucks.  I just don't care.

 

But at least that happened....

[cooksdelight]

I wonder why they sent Josh and Baylor back in and let Baylor throw when she didn't throw worth a crap the first time. They should have sent John and Jacquline in a second time. And voting out a strong, athletic player -- even if he is an outspoken hothead -- won't help them win physical challenges. I see a Pagonging on the horizon.

[Haleth]

I kind of feel the same way, Ms Blue Jay. While I'm delighted John is gone, there really isn't anyone I'm interested in rooting for.

Edited October 9, 2014 by Haleth

[lazylump]

I have mixed feelings about John being gone.  I like someone to hate.  But he took it very well.  The same thing happened with Jeff Kent being kicked off.  They seem to be less angry than I'd think.  Perhaps it has something to do with their professional sports training.  Sort of an It's only a game mentality.  But man, he had an idol in his pocket. hehehehe.  I like it when that happens. 

 

The vitriol the blue team expressed to John after the immunity challenge was a bit surprising to  me.

[PaperTree]

Yes!!  That slimeball Rocker gets blindsided.  Another unplayed Idol.  lol    They did have me worried at the TC.

 

Natalie won't last long though.  Too much loud in too small an area.

 

I wanted Jaclyn to say "John, you told us to vote out Dale and we agreed!"

 

Jeremy, you must feel kinda silly now.  Your dumb wife got herself voted out.  

 

eta: I think the Pagonging was well underway.  Time for a tribe swap thing.

Edited October 9, 2014 by PaperTree

[SMP]

Am I the only one who thought Natalie came out looking worse after the Immunity Challenge? I really don't think John would have been voted out if he wasn't know from before. Just based on what happened in the game, I've heard a lot worse things on Survivor that hasn't warranted the reaction John's been getting. 

[cooksdelight]

Probst can put a sock in it with "What article? John, do you know what they're talking about?" He's a producer of the show. He knows everything there is to know about John.

[NYGirl]

What bothered me the most is that they listened to the other tribe so for all intents and purposes they won.  I wouldn't have voted him out this week just because of their big mouths.  (not that they were wrong but it's none of their business)

 

I may be the only one but I don't like Josh.

 

I think it's a mistake at this point to vote out John.  He's strong for competitions and even if he goes far..who cares?  He's going to be a goat either way.

 

I have nobody to root for :(  There's not one likeable person in this bunch.

 

Edited because I had Reed instead of Josh.

Edited October 9, 2014 by NYGirl

[Pepper the Cat]

John may be a strong player, but it's not like he was winning challenges for his team.

Glad to see him gone

[Lantern7]

That felt goooooooooood. Really good. Granted, it probably would've been better with one Twinnie holding John down while the other beat him up, but I take what I can get.

 

And he had an idol in his pocket! To his credit, he didn't try to cash it after the votes were read, but it's still a dumb move, even for a recruit such as himself. I don't feel bad for him. I really don't. Even if he has changed, people like me can't let go of the past. I know he can't rate as an enemy of New York in this day and age, but I'd like to think some Mets fans (and sympathetic Yankees fans) got a kick out of him crashing and burning. And hopefully, Burnett and Probst will take a hint and not invite him back. He could donate all his winnings to charity, and I'd still root against him.

 

I can't hate Natalie. I just can't. With John gone, there's an asshole vacuum, and I'm good with that. I do feel bad for Julie, but not by much. She's probably a better person than John, and maybe she'll go farther in the game without him.

 

I liked Keith's Exile Island reactions to staying with Josh. Or was it Reed? I can't tell those two apart . . . ditto the brothers and Twinees (before Nadiya got tossed, of course).

 

Seriously, I'm so happy. Ding Dong, the Rocker is gone!!

 

ETA: I still figure John will get the most attention anybody has gotten for being the third person gone at the Reunion. For him, a victory would be not getting booed. That should depend on how good the game is played from here on out.

[LanceM]

Probst can put a sock in it with "What article? John, do you know what they're talking about?" He's a producer of the show. He knows everything there is to know about John.

 

Of course he does but he is not going to bring it up, nor should he bring it up. 

[Haleth]

So while both Jeremy and Natalie are fuming at Rocker, he is hanging out at the resort with Val and Nadiya.

[mojoween]

The whole yellow team was pretty rough during the IC, so why John got all the vitriol is a mystery to me. However, knowing the things he has said, I could never ever presume to imagine what Jeremy and Natalie felt.

Jacqueline annoys me. I can't put my finger on why. Perhaps part of it is that her way of wearing her buff is not flattering.

I wouldn't find John to be such an ass if the guy who gave his last confessional is the one who played the game.

[cooksdelight]

And hopefully, Burnett and Probst will take a hint and not invite him back

Oh, dear, you know better than to think those two would listen to fans. They did ask him if he'd like to return and he said "Hell to the no! Never" So no worries, he's gone for good.

[Stardancer Supreme]

I am not a fan of the Twinnies from their shrill jaunts on TAR, but I was hoping that John wouldn't physically go after Natalie.  "If you were a man, I'd knock you out."  That sent chills down my spine.  So he needed to go.

[ElleryAnne]

Jacqueline annoys me. I can't put my finger on why. Perhaps part of it is that her way of wearing her buff is not flattering.

 

 

I always forget she's there, even when she's right in the center of things, like she was at TC.  It's like she's wearing one of The Doctor's perception filters.  

[KaveDweller]

Probst can put a sock in it with "What article? John, do you know what they're talking about?" He's a producer of the show. He knows everything there is to know about John.

 

Of course he knows, but he never volunteers information like that.  He just leads the players into saying stuff.

 

I thought Jaclyn was going to totally blow it with her comments about things turning at tribal.  I can't believe Jon didn't play his idol after that.

[lyric]

Baylor and What's Her Puss are really lucky Rocker didn't play his idol - I couldn't believe they were talking about 'shifting alliances' and 'sticking to the plan' - especially the not-Baylor chick.  They knew he likely had an idol and shouldn't tip him off.  They're very fortunate he was too dense to read between the lines and play it just to be careful.

 

Or yeah, what KaveDweller said.

Edited October 9, 2014 by lyric

[cooksdelight]

I think John's having never watched this show was what did him in. You'd think a pro athlete would pick up on clues, but then again when you think you've got the backs of your teammates and then they turn on you, it's hard to say what was going through his mind. He didn't go into that when I met him as he wasn't allowed to talk about it yet.

[Ms Blue Jay]

That girl with the platinum hair.  Never noticed her on the show until now.

 

Probst can put a sock in it with "What article? John, do you know what they're talking about?" He's a producer of the show. He knows everything there is to know about John.

 

I liked it.

[BigRedCheese]

 

Baylor and What's Her Puss are really lucky Rocker didn't play his idol - I couldn't believe they were talking about 'shifting alliances' and 'sticking to the plan' - especially the not-Baylor chick.

 

I thought that was part of faking out John, since John had told them they were making a move and voting out Dale.

[Mumbles]

 

I liked Keith's Exile Island reactions to staying with Josh.

Too bad Josh had to call him a "hick" in his confessional. Jackass.

[ShadowSixx]

I'm so glad Rocker is out. Thank goodness I cheered and glad they made him feel like he wasn't going to be voted and they blindsided him and he didn't even play the idol. Great plan from Josh. Threatening to knock someone's teeth out man or woman, that's the type of person that shouldn't be allowed to stay in the game. John was being a little too arrogant though, what they said at TC should have tipped him off but he believed that he wouldn't be eliminated. 

 

I know Probst for the most part stirs the pot but being naive to the article like he doesn't know what they're referring to was laughable. He knows full well what article, now he doesn't have to dwell on the article bit and let the other teams talk about it but him just saying, "what the hell, what article? I didn't know casting cast someone who made bigoted remarks and sparks a lot of controversy." GTFO Jeff.

[Wandering Snark]

And right out of today's headlines we have someone (I think it was Keith?) claiming he'd have "whooped" the lazy non-weaver were it his son "because we still spank/whoop in The South." Yes, we are aware of that thanks. Ya watch any football??

[ghoulina]

Wow, I'm honestly a bit surprised that John is gone. I'm not surprised that his team wanted him gone, but that he didn't play the idol - especially with the way Jacqueline was talking during tribal. But nothing makes me happier than someone I hate going home with an idol in their pocket, so - Yeeeehaw!!!

 

And I actually sort of loved Natalie when she called him out. Damnnit, Twinnie! Why are you doing this to me???

 

Drew is annoying as hell. He's the one who mentions they need the roof fixed, then he can't be bothered to help? "I have other assets" - what, sleeping? He's lucky they haven't been to Tribal yet. 

 

Why does Baylor have a perfect orange manicure? That polish must be tough as hell.

[Chit Chat]

The vitriol the blue team expressed to John after the immunity challenge was a bit surprising to  me.

IIRC, back in the old Survivor days tribes weren't allowed to talk to each other at challenges or at Redemption Island.  The blue team was way out of line in trying to oust a member of the opposing tribe.

 

"If you were a man, I'd knock you out."  That sent chills down my spine.  So he needed to go

He said if she were a man he'd knock her teeth out.  She was way out of line speaking of things she only knew by hearsay.

 

Too bad Josh had to call him a "hick" in his confessional. Jackass

 

I like Josh, but I found it insulting that he automatically assumed that Keith wouldn't like him because he's "a gay man from New York."  People can have a difference of opinion on certain issues without resorting to hateful or violent behavior.  Assumptions like this about us southern folks can be quite maddening.  Maybe Josh will learn not to judge people based on geography. :)

Edited October 9, 2014 by ChitChat

[cooksdelight]

He said if she were a man he'd knock her teeth out. Honestly, I had no problem with it. She was way out of line speaking of things she only knew by hearsay.

Which is sort of how the worst rumors about people get started. No one there had read the article, only Jeremy remembered some of the comments, but he didn't quote anything that was written (that we saw). I am not defending John's comments he made 20 years ago, even he said he said some really stupid things back then but so did I. And I'm thankful the people who know me don't hold it against me.

To me, Natalie started the fight and she was out of line to yell as loud as she did. But then again, it's in her nature.

[leighdear]

One thing about having seen the twinnies twice on The Amazing Race, there is absolutely no surprise at hearing obnoxious boasting, flame-fanning confrontational crap  and second-hand gossip come spewing  out of either of their mouths.  Luckily, there's only 1 mouth to have to suffer now.

[poppy-]

Good riddance to John Rocker and his gross mouth thing he does.

 

I was glad when Natalie spoke up.  Usually it doesn't make that much sense for tribes to trash talk to each other like that, but Blood vs Water changes it.

 

I like Wes's approach to Blood vs Water.  Pick a challenge he knows his dad will be awful at.  And his dad being proud  of him for that was kind of adorable.

 

Then he had to go ruin the adorableness by the sad contrast on Exile Island.  

Guy 1: "Isn't it great that me & this guy from such different walks of life get along so well?"

Guy 2: Just to be clear, I'm not gay like Guy 1.  Ha ha ha.  No really I'm not gay.

 

Made me miss good old Rudy. "Me and Richard got to be pretty good friends, not in a homosexual way, that's for sure."

 

Probst is, and always has been, a jackass. But he is good at his job . And stirring the pot by prompting players to talk (without giving away what he knows) is his job.

[lunastartron]

Natalie was visibly more animated, aggressive, and persistent during the post-IC confrontation. She is the one who launched a verbal attack on the other team and, more specifically, John. From what I just watched, she was demonstrably more out of control and volatile than Rocker.

 

John never "threatened" anyone with physical violence. Natalie is not a man. If she or her team didn't want verbal grenades thrown back at her, she should have desisted and/or kept her mouth shut from the beginning. Don't start no shit, won't be no shit.

 

It's also ironic that she is so sensitive to political correctness that her outburst was occasioned only by vague hearsay but her sister is comfortable enough with problematic stereotypes to refer to Josh as "a girl" simply because he's gay.

 

John's remarks in the article are indefensible and he's been consistent enough over the years in his ignorance to prove that's a substantial and genuine aspect of his personality, but, per the footage that was just broadcast, he was actually one of the more restrained cast members during that back and forth between the tribes.

Edited October 9, 2014 by lunastartron

[North of Eden]

After tonight I have a sickening feeling that this season is going to amount to little more than THE JOSH SHOW. We just went through that with THE TONY SHOW last season. Every boot so far has been influenced by one particular person F'ing Josh. It's getting too much like Derrick on BB and that was boring. Do I like John Rocker? No. Am I a fan of SURVIVOR and like good television yes! So do I want the villain voted out in the third episode? Of course NOT! I was looking forward to more piling on of Rocker by Natalie and the other tribe because that was the best part of tonight's episode.

Unfortunatly the editors clearly have a hard on for Josh....so much that 90% of the confessions were all....you guessed it...Josh. These same editors were so busy suckling on his teat that we wasted precious airtime watching him eat snails when they dropped the ball regarding Julie. We needed to SEE her reactions at two pivitol points...when she returned from the bush after crying about John and second after her OWN tribe piled on him after the Immunity challenge. How did she take that? What the walk back to their beach like.

Did we get anything interesting like that? Nope just more Josh and the old man's paranoia about "spoonin" with one of them fellers we don't see to much of in Lousiana.

Can we please get off the Josh train before it takes over the whole season?

Edited October 9, 2014 by North of Eden

[BigRedCheese]

 

John's comments he made 20 years ago

 

The comments were made at the end of 1999, so it's been more like 14 or 15 years since that interview, and even as late as 2006 he was still publicly making what many consider homophobic comments. 

[LanceM]

Josh as clearly behind every vote off so far no doubt but something caught my eye tonight that may come back to bite him in the ass. Near the end of the episode we had a confessional from him that Baylor was supporting him 100%. Yet earlier in the episode not only did we have Baylor saying the exact opposite of that babout not trusting Josh but that she tried to get a 4 person alliance together between herself, Jaclyn, Wes and Alec. No Josh. Trusting Baylor is going to be his undoing, my opinion.

[Alapaki]

I can't fucking stand either of those "twinnies".  So, I say, "fuck you" to whichever one of them mouthed off after the IC.  Because she actually had me sort of hoping that John Rocker (whom I can't stand just as fucking much) wouldn't get eliminated!

 

And, did something happen during the IC that had people on the Blue Team accusing John of "bad sportsmanship"?  Because I didn't see anything out of line.

[ghoulina]

And, did something happen during the IC that had people on the Blue Team accusing John of "bad sportsmanship"?  Because I didn't see anything out of line.

 

It looked, to me, like he intentionally and unnecessarily shoved someone when he was crawling under to get his ball.

[Wandering Snark]

Yeah he kind of body blocked while going through the common middle where people met up... and he was being his loud obnoxious self while an observer as well.

 

Oh, and that Pagonging I heard warmin' up last week? Yeah I can hear it pretty loud and clear abouts now... they need a clue or an intervention and I think it will have to be the latter 'cause the clue ain't comin'

[Eolivet]

I don't know how Julie should've handled the revelation that her boyfriend had said some awful things in the past, but it wasn't that way. By leaving the tribe to cry and complain, it made it seem like she was upset John was being called out -- when she should've expected it once people found out who he was. She should've stayed, and attempted to control the narrative herself. By leaving, she gave her tribe carte blanche to commiserate about what an awful person John is (and perhaps her by extension). But running off makes it seem like calling her boyfriend a bigot hurts her feelings. Which...no.

[LanceM]

Yeah he kind of body blocked while going through the common middle where people met up... and he was being his loud obnoxious self while an observer as well.

 

Oh, and that Pagonging I heard warmin' up last week? Yeah I can hear it pretty loud and clear abouts now... they need a clue or an intervention and I think it will have to be the latter 'cause the clue ain't comin'

 

The Blood vs. Water set up kind of makes a pagonging less likely once we hit the merge.

[ghoulina]

Yeah he kind of body blocked while going through the common middle where people met up..

 

And it looked like he actually moved from the path he was on to do it. In the previous round, Julie got shoved, but it looked accidental. Like the dude was going fast and collided into her. But with John, it looked very purposeful - like he was trying to prove himself or something.

[Alapaki]

I don't know how Julie should've handled the revelation that her boyfriend had said some awful things in the past, but it wasn't that way. By leaving the tribe to cry and complain, it made it seem like she was upset John was being called out -- when she should've expected it once people found out who he was. She should've stayed, and attempted to control the narrative herself. By leaving, she gave her tribe carte blanche to commiserate about what an awful person John is (and perhaps her by extension). But running off makes it seem like calling her boyfriend a bigot hurts her feelings. Which...no.

 

 

I don't think she ran off because of his being called out for his bigotry.  Unless it was edited out, I don't think that ever came up at the Exile Island Duel.  Rather, he was called out as being the one running the show on his Tribe, and therefore the one who should be a target.

 

And I don't think Jeremy brought up the bigotry stuff back at camp (when he referred to Rocker's making "homosexual" comments, heh) until after Julie walked away.

Yeah he kind of body blocked while going through the common middle where people met up..

 

And it looked like he actually moved from the path he was on to do it. In the previous round, Julie got shoved, but it looked accidental. Like the dude was going fast and collided into her. But with John, it looked very purposeful - like he was trying to prove himself or something.

 

 

I'll never be one to defend John Rocker, but it seems to me that the challenge was set up to invite those sorts of run-ins.  It was designed to have the competing pairs intersecting with each other.  For that matter, it seemed to me that in her last time through the "twinnie" might've thrown a hip at the other team.

[bluebonnet]

I'm pretty glad John got voted out.  I like trash talkers and controversial, but malicious just isn't entertaining for me.  The trash talking from Hunahpu was annoying but John talking about knocking someone's teeth out went way too far.  You'd think a lifelong sportsman would know how to navigate trash talking while still stay just inside the lines of sportsmanship.  Good riddance.

 

I'm not sure how I feel about Natalie and Jeremy.  At first, it seemed like within the group, Jeremy was using trash talk about John Rocker as a strategy.  I respected that.  His TH made it a little less clear whether it was just personal revenge feelings or if it was at least some strategy.  I leaned more towards strategy.  I didn't see any strategy in Natalie's yapping.  It might have had the side effect of getting Coyopa thinking, but it didn't seem like she actually sat down and thought about how this could be a good strategy for the game.  More like she was just repeating what she heard.  I don't know, though.  I might not be giving her enough credit or giving Jeremy too much credit.  They both pretty much did the same thing so it's weird that I see it differently.  

 

I'm starting to like Baylor a bit more.  She previously came off as a doormat, but now it's looking more like subtle movements.  She knows she's been on the chopping block, so her scrambling needs to have a much more gentle touch.  It also helped that Josh said he and Baylor made an alliance from the very beginning so her agreeing to whatever he wanted early on made more sense.  

 

Very fond of Josh.  He's enjoyable to watch. Keith and Wes are also pretty awesome.  I like that they've had so much focus because they audience isn't left with seeing them as merely as a stereotype.  They seem like genuinely good people, yet still entertaining, which is kind of a breath of fresh air on this show.  

 

Still iffy about Julie.  On the one hand, I grew irritated by the number of times she said "my boyfriend John".  We know, everyone knows.  Just saying "John" or "my boyfriend" would suffice.  On the other hand, I like that when she walked away it wasn't because they were picking on her poor little boyfriend but because she was sincerely worried how John's game and people's perception of him would effect her own game.  Previously it appeared as though she couldn't stand on her own without "my boyfriend John" but there's a hint here that she has her own identity and can possibly develop her own strategy.  

 

This season still isn't doing it for me.  It always gets boring when one team loses so much because we don't get enough focus on the other team.  I still don't know who those other players are and that's annoying. 

[lunastartron]

I don't really see how Natalie's display is worthy of "you go, girl" props. If there was any indication she was educated vis-à-vis the subject about which she was screaming, I could see how it would be admirable for her to take a stand against xenophobia. But, absent any degree of substantive information on the Sports Illustrated article, she was really just being a dumbass loudmouth.

[NYGirl]

As far as John bumping into someone during the challenge this one was no different than last week's. This is the direction the show is heading. These types of competitions invite this violent behavior. I'm not crazy about these types of challenges. I tend to cringe while watching.

[Barton88]

Ok, Baylor, you made your bed....

What was it that John said last during that post IC altercation. I played it back several times and still didn't hear what he said.