S30.E10: Bring The Popcorn

[Way Wes Jr]

I want to root for Shirin, but I just don't see how she can win. I wish she could though because it would serve these garbage people right. If the winner is anyone other than Shirin, Mike, or Rodney (I know!), then this season is a dead loss.

 

7. Shirin (8)  They’re willing to keep you around longer to torture you.  I sincerely hope that there is a final three of you, Rodney, and Tyler.  I think you get four votes and they split the rest.

 

 

 

The assumption is F3, eight people on the jury; Hali, Joe, and Jenn are locks for Shirin.  I'm pretty sure Mike'd go that route also, (though there is a small chance he'd vote for Rodney as a Blue tribe member.)  Carolyn votes for Tyler.  Dan votes for Rodney.  Will and Sierra's votes don't matter.  If anyone wants to continue, we should probably move it over to the speculation thread.

[KarateKate]

I was annoyed at the auction when Jeff didn't immediately tell Carolyn that she couldn't get her money back for the letters. All sales should be final. I kind of liked that Mike held back... until his hand was forced by Carolyn demanding her money back.

I thought Jeff should have told her -and expected he would have told her - immediately that all sales are final. And I don't know if Mike "caved" or thought it was about to be the fire without the payoff if Carolyn was allowed to back out (which...still happened). I thought pretending to pony up but then backing out was kind of a dick move, but no where near the worst I'd seen on Survivor. 

Points to Shirin for getting the tribe to bid just $20 and all of them get the letters. I wonder if TPTB will change their rules in the future.

When Will was sent back to camp, we did expect some compensation waiting, but we actually thought it would be the advantage.

 

How funny would it have been if Jenn had won the extra vote and saved it for when she was on jury?

Ohhhh! Interesting!  I wondered what the limitations were for the vote - only to final 4? Surely they had limitations, but wouldn't it be wild if you could use it like that?? MrKate and I were also discussing the timing - the extra vote is played after all the votes, but before the HII. Makes for interesting dynamics. 

[Special K]

I cheered at two points in this sorry-ass shit-fest of an episode:

 

When Mike backed away from buying the letter from home. 

How I wish he had stood by his guns!!

 

When Shirin raised her hand.

How I wish she had said, "Because it's time you learned that your actions have consequences.  Most of us learn this at the age of two, but obviously you have no family and no one who loved you enough to teach you basic human behavior."

[cooksdelight]

As Dan was reading it, it said that the extra vote had to be used when Jeff said he was "going to read the votes." I don't remember if there was a time limit on it, but surely there has to be. I may have to go back and freeze-frame that note.

[peachmangosteen]

I didn't see those fat jokes.  Was it in actual episodes or bonus clips?  

 

The one thing I can think of is when Shirin voted for Will and said in her voting confessional that it was because they needed more room in the shelter. Now, that could actually just as easily be a literal statement about him taking up more room than he needs in the shelter and based on what I know about Shirin I tend to think it was that and not some subtle fat joke.

 

I was so distracted by the women's eyebrows, particularly Sierra's.  What's going on there?

 

Sierra seems to have dark eyebrows tattooed on but since she can't groom them on the island her actual blonde eyebrow hairs are growing over the tattoo and it looks very horrible.

 

But, did we actually see Shirin stirring shit about Will hiding food?

 

I don't believe we were shown Shirin being a part of it at all actually. I don't even remember them showing Mike/Jenn doing anymore than speculating about it among themselves. Then we had Tyler, being the shit-stirring narc that he is, going to Will and telling him people were questioning his story to which case Will asked if it was Shirin and Tyler said it was "Shirin, Mike, and Jenn." So, once again, the editing failed us.

 

And, I've forgotten ... does anyone know about Mike's HII?

 

As far as we know, no they don't. But there's been instances where we were lead to believe that no one knew someone had the HII and then we found out after the season that people did know.

 

And what was up with saying he is not the kind of person to dupe everyone into not taking his letter from home, when 5 seconds before, that is exactly what he was planning to do? It was only the reactions from the rest of the tribe, and possibly Probst, that made him change his mind.

 

I feel like Mike is probably someone who wouldn't really want to do something like that, but he felt he had to because he is playing the game so hard, but once everyone cried about someone actually playing the game he got shamed into going back on it.

 

 

As Dan was reading it, it said that the extra vote had to be used when Jeff said he was "going to read the votes." I don't remember if there was a time limit on it, but surely there has to be. I may have to go back and freeze-frame that note.

 

I paused the note during the ep and it said exactly what Dan was heard reading.

Edited April 23, 2015 by peachmangosteen

[hyukx3]

mike shouldnt back down from his decision to welch the agreement at the auction. i dont know why there's a pause from jeff when carolyn wants her money back. mike woulda won the advantage. u could use that to sway dan and sierra. instead, we got more acting from mike, saying, 'oh, i couldnt do it' blah blah blah. that memory challenge where he threw it for kelly, oh the acting was so bad. so much acting from mike

[Special K]

As Dan was reading it, it said that the extra vote had to be used when Jeff said he was "going to read the votes." I don't remember if there was a time limit on it, but surely there has to be. I may have to go back and freeze-frame that note.

Speaking of Dan reading that advantage, his face looked exactly like a cartoon  -- as he started reading, he looked dumb and slackjawed and showed no reaction (even after reading "this entitles you to a second vote at Tribal Council), until he had read the whole thing slowly.  And then you could see the wheels turning and comprehension dawning on his face like the sun rising in the morning.  

Edited April 23, 2015 by Special K

[sadiegirl1999]

sadiegirl1999, on 23 Apr 2015 - 08:14 AM, said:

    Let's just talk about this for a moment. I know it's Survivor and a game and all that shit but how MEAN was it of the producers to START the auction with..."you have to leave and go back to camp". I guess it just follows along with this season and what a shitfest it has been...

    

  

 

Actually, I thought that was great.  You're in a bidding war over a blind item.  Sometimes they turn out to be crappy.  Deal with it.

 

 

 

 

Crappy is bidding on balut or larvae. We'll just have to agree to disagree and YMMV and all that but it just follows along the sadisitic tone this season seems to be taking.

 

Sure, people have bid on shit food before but to just be...get outta here?

[hyukx3]

yea, he has to go find the clue at camp.

[Wings]

oh the other sites love it. they r lapping it all up. best season ever!

 

 

Not sure where you are reading but I have not found that.  The general feeling is no one likes this season.  Other boards do not complain and go on and on as much as here but they might if they could.  It always depends on the climate of the board and moderation.   It is NOT a popular season.  

[Ms Blue Jay]

I like the season.

 

I also think that Dan having an extra vote is an exciting development.  I've never seen that on another season so it's novel and interesting.

Edited April 23, 2015 by Ms Blue Jay

[pamplemousse]

I don't believe we were shown Shirin being a part of it at all actually. I don't even remember them showing Mike/Jenn doing anymore than speculating about it among themselves. Then we had Tyler, being the shit-stirring narc that he is, going to Will and telling him people were questioning his story to which case Will asked if it was Shirin and Tyler said it was "Shirin, Mike, and Jenn." So, once again, the editing failed us.

Yeah, because she wasn't, at least not according to the editing. What I remember is Mike starting it, Jenn joining in, and then a shot of Shirin sitting with them listening with a blank/serious/constipated/who knows look on her face and I think she may have nodded at one point.

 

I don't even think this is ultimately about OMGZ Will didn't share the good food with us! Will hates Shirin, that much is obvious, although the fail!editing hasn't shown us a lot of why he does other than she talks a lot. IDK, maybe she peed in the invisible sandwiches he was making. I think he was just looking for an excuse to rip her a new one and Tattletale Tyler provided him with the perfect opportunity by mentioning her name and the hoarding food thing and as soon as Will heard her name he barely bothered to hear 'Jenn and Mike,' he was off and blowing up like Mt. Vesuvius. I guess it's because he was recruited since I don't think he's ever watched an episode of Survivor before -- people questioning your honesty and suspecting you of shadiness when you've already shown yourself to be dishonest and shady in the past, especially when those people are the minority alliance and desperate to break up a majority in which you are one of the weakest links and biggest flip floppers? OH NOES how dare they? He thought he was signing up for a show to chill out on the beach, crack some 'black man' jokes, and make some sandwiches for Jesus.

 

I would get excited about this extra vote twist except 1) it seemed obviously thrown in as a way to make a dull season livelier, and yes it is still a dull season because the expected person went home again; 2) Dan has it, which means, being the brain trust that he is, he will totally neutralize any and all of its utility and game changing-ness by doing something utterly boneheaded and nonsensical with it.

Edited April 23, 2015 by pamplemousse

[Guest]

The assumption is F3, eight people on the jury; Hali, Joe, and Jenn are locks for Shirin.  I'm pretty sure Mike'd go that route also, (though there is a small chance he'd vote for Rodney as a Blue tribe member.)  

I don't think anyone's a lock for anyone.  While Jenn was consoling Shirin in video, the audio was her saying how much she hated everyone INCLUDING Shirin.   

 

Not sure where you are reading but I have not found that.  The general feeling is no one likes this season.  Other boards do not complain and go on and on as much as here but they might if they could.  It always depends on the climate of the board and moderation.   It is NOT a popular season.  

Yeah, I have trouble believing this site is unique in seeing these people as vile jerks.  

 

I wonder if Will could've responded to the suspicion he was food hoarding like this:  "Who suspects I hoarded food?  Ok, you three are cut off from the stuff I did share.  And there is nothing else."  But I have a feeling once you choose to share, your control is gone.  

[Nutjob]

This season is like having a whole cast of Hantzes. Mike and Shirin are the only ones left I can even tolerate, and if they both go out, so do I.

 

 

IDK, maybe she peed in the invisible sandwiches he was making.

HEE!

 

Will is heinous, and as a Christian I'm embarrassed that he identifies himself as one. What he said to Shirin went far beyond the game, and was completely uncalled for. I'm not her biggest fan, but I felt horrible for her.

[ChicksDigScars]

Final tribal council with this bunch of unpleasant assholes ought to be a real blast.  Take all the bittercakes from the preceding seasons and combine them into one tribal.  Peachy will have to stand behind a podium, or "put a book in front of it," (tm Dan Conner) to hide his euphoria over how petty and ugly it will get. 

Edited April 23, 2015 by ChicksDigScars

[BarneySays]

Who would have thought there was more nastiness lurking in this crowd.  How was it humanly possible?  Are they shopping around for a new Hantz?  Will's behavior was outrageous, matched only by the cowards refusing to intervene.  Those who stand by and let that kind of crap happen are more dangerous than the attacker.  Kudos to Shirin for calling out Will's all-too-common religious hypocrisy, only to have him admit it.  Yeah, Will, that god thing is for moralizing and getting attention, eh?  Actually living by the standards you spout off to the uninterested just doesn't matter, does it.  At least the editors haven't given us a crypto-Christ fest this season. 

 

The producers better be careful.  This playing fast and loose with the rules shit is wearing thin.  This show is a mere skeleton of what it started as.  Then we watched people foraging for food and actually trying to survive.  Now, everything's essentially handed to them and now they're bartering at every step to get what they want.  It was bad enough when Carolyn wanted to give back her letter.  Why the hell was that even contemplated?  Shouldn't Will then have been able to say, oh, I don't want this prize, I'm giving it back.  What the hell?  Then to have Will barter for his letter was too much.  I applaud Shirin again for having the strength to say no, and she presented it in survivor, not personal, terms.  Good on ya.

 

Dan is almost more repulsive when being maudlin than when being a douche.  Just an all-around shitty person, I suppose. 

 

I do enjoy watching Mike in the challenges.  His work background gives him a good understanding of mechanics.  It's always nice to watch people use those skills to complete a task.  Unfortunately, there's less and less development of these types of skills these days.

[Andromeda]

 

Camera guys for the win?   Sign me up!

 

This stomach-turning bullshit of crying over letters from home makes me want to hose them down with a flamethrower.   They have been away from home for what?   Three weeks?   And they all regress into crybaby pre-schoolers.   What a pathetic bunch of pampered, egotistical, navel-gazing assholes.   "You ruined our special time, ohhhh nooooo!"   Dan ought to be ashamed of himself for that performance.  "I love her like you read about in books ..."  I bet he practiced that line in the mirror before leaving home.  Man up, you loathsome slug.  

 

Thank you for letting me end my broadcast day with a laugh!

I would be VERY happy if they ditched the "letters from home" segments. I hate that crap on any reality show (looking at you, Hell's Kitchen). Always the most boring segments by far. So they love their families -- ooo, big surprise. And this time claiming someone ruined their special moment -- wow, whiny and entitled much? Dan was a ridiculous man-baby. He makes my stomach turn.

[iMonrey]

 

Shirin, Mike, and Jenn outright spread rumours of Will stealing, lying, hiding things based on zero evidence.  They jumped to this conclusion based on nothing and held firm to it.  Why is that just completely forgotten here?  Shirin did play the victim, yet Will was the victim of their shit in the first place.

 

Will was nobody's victim. He won something and some of the others speculated he might have won something else he kept for himself. That is a perfectly reasonable speculation to make in this game. Especially when the whole season started with this "be honest or lie" choice with the bags and just fueled paranoia from then on. Furthermore, nobody actually confronted Will and accused him of anything.  He heard about this speculation second-hand and chose to blow up about it. For all he knew Tyler made the whole thing up.

 

I have never liked Will, he struck me from the beginning as not being very bright. For him to sit there in tribal and first say "I didn't make it personal" and then rebut with "that's true" to every personally insulting thing he said to Shirin seems to suggest he is confusing "personal" with "slander." He probably figures since everyone dislikes Shirin what he did was perfectly fine and he'll be applauded for it. For a "You Tube personality" he has seriously miscalculated audience reaction.

 

 

The tears & drama about Mike ruining the special moment to enjoy their letters from home truly baffled me.

 

Even more baffling is the accusation that Mike nearly "cost them" the chance to get their letters at all. That's utter B.S. Everyone had a choice whether or not they wanted to spend the money for the letter, they just didn't want anyone else to have a better chance at that "advantage" they knew was coming up. That's just priorities, people. Mike wasn't forcing anyone's hand if he didn't join in on the letter-buying. 

[backformore]

I would be VERY happy if they ditched the "letters from home" segments. I hate that crap on any reality show (looking at you, Hell's Kitchen). Always the most boring segments by far. So they love their families -- ooo, big surprise. And this time claiming someone ruined their special moment -- wow, whiny and entitled much? Dan was a ridiculous man-baby. He makes my stomach turn.

Yeah, i thought the "ruining the special moment" thing was crap, and then I realized what was REALLY meant was the "special TV moment".  As in - my chance to emote on TV and get the folks back home, and the TV audience,  to realize what an awesome person I am."

[Andromeda]

No wonder his daytime talk show failed.  That is talk show host 101.  Jeff always allows bullying to go on and thinks the victim is to blame for being weak and not standing up for themselves.  Goes back to Survivor: Fiji when it was Anthony's fault he was weak and that Rocky's bullying him was good for him and Rocky was just doing him a "favor" by being his bully and making him tougher.

I'd forgotten about his crap talk show. Peachy probably thinks he's really savvy about human behavior because of his years hosting Survivor, but he has no true understanding or empathy. At least not when it's anyone but an alpha male.

 

Yeah, i thought the "ruining the special moment" thing was crap, and then I realized what was REALLY meant was the "special TV moment". As in - my chance to emote on TV and get the folks back home, and the TV audience, to realize what an awesome person I am."

 

I believe you've got it! That makes a lot of sense. Which, as I say again, is ridiculous on their parts, because even villains love their families -- no awesomeness there to be had.

Edited April 23, 2015 by Andromeda

[TheFinalRose]

I always feel cold hearted because I can't imagine myself bawling over a letter from home, either. Now, a page with pictures of my pets, like Jenn got, would send me over the edge. 

 

Even more baffling is the accusation that Mike nearly "cost them" the chance to get their letters at all. That's utter B.S.

 

 

I know, right? And the thing about this cast is that half of them are so dumb they probably remember it as happening the way Rodney makes up, and the other half are too scared to get on Rodney's impression-making list to question him.  

[joshmaeks]

This episode was infuriating! Mike's move was a smart one and I wish he'd stuck to it because at that point the damage was done. Rodney and Dan crying like little babies "Mike ruined the moment for us! Waaaaaaah!" was obnoxious. But Will's vitriol went beyond the scope of the game and for once I think someone actually deserves the hatred from the internet. To call on God's name as a justification for such a hateful attack was especially awful. I hope his pastor gives him a long lecture about what it means to be a Christian.

Everyone standing by was complicit in the attacks and Tyler is also at fault for stoking the confrontation. F all of those people, I hate this cast more than any season in the history of the show. These are just straight up bad people. Mike stepping in to get Shirin out of the line of fire was such a stand up move, he put being a decent human being above his game.

[LadyChatts]

Not sure where you are reading but I have not found that.  The general feeling is no one likes this season.  Other boards do not complain and go on and on as much as here but they might if they could.  It always depends on the climate of the board and moderation.   It is NOT a popular season.  

 

The only people online that I have seen enjoying the show are those that were completely anti-NC/anyone in the under 40 crowd, and pro-BC.  Other than that, the reaction has been mixed at best.  Overall, I would say this season would likely go down into the middle compared to others, but for me it is currently ranking at the bottom.

 

In regards to the attack on Shirin, Carolyn at least seems to be getting a lot of flack for not sticking up for her.  Carolyn says everyone needs to go back and watch and that she'd never stand by and watch someone get bullied.

Edited April 23, 2015 by LadyChatts

[scowl]

I always feel cold hearted because I can't imagine myself bawling over a letter from home, either. Now, a page with pictures of my pets, like Jenn got, would send me over the edge. 

After a month, my pets would have thought I had died.

[dbro]

 

The producers better be careful.  This playing fast and loose with the rules shit is wearing thin.  

 

 

I agree. Carolyn should not have been allowed to renege or Will allowed to negotiate for his letters. But i also think Mike should have been forced to honor his agreement with the rest of the letter bidders. Period.

[plurie]

Will was nobody's victim. He won something and some of the others speculated he might have won something else he kept for himself. That is a perfectly reasonable speculation to make in this game. Especially when the whole season started with this "be honest or lie" choice with the bags and just fueled paranoia from then on. Furthermore, nobody actually confronted Will and accused him of anything.  He heard about this speculation second-hand and chose to blow up about it. For all he knew Tyler made the whole thing up.

Absolutely. And even if Mike DIDN'T think Will was hiding anything, it was good game play to try to sow dissention among the "final four" suballiance. And it was entirely in Tyler's interest to play it up in order to isolate Mike and cement his alliance with Will and the others.

[joshmaeks]

Shereen- petty much?

You think it was petty of someone who was viciously and personally attacked to say that Will shouldn't have his letter because he bought himself out of the auction? Will knew he had no chance of winning that or any other challenge, of course he wanted to sit out. I strongly and respectfully disagree with your perception of last night's events.

[Snaporaz]

I didn't go back to watch, because sitting through it once was bad enough and I wanted that shit off my DVR before it infected my saved up episodes of Amazing Race.

But, did we actually see Shirin stirring shit about Will hiding food? (it seems from Dalton's recap at ew that he didn't see it). And my recollection conforms with Dalton's that Mike was the one who brought up the idea to Jenn, and then we saw Mike and Jenn trying to stir the pot. But I couldn't recall Shirin saying anything.

Oh, and how about Peachy still trying to breath life into the "collar" stererotype at the TC. That was just a little sad.

I did rewind that scene, and Shirin did not say one word about Will's food. That doesn't mean it didn't happen, of course, but we didn't see it. But if Shirin really had said anything at all, why would the editors not include that? It just made Will's tirade against her and only her seem even more out of proportion.

Last week's mantra, "I don't know what's going on", still applies.

Edited April 23, 2015 by Snaporaz

[Guest]

We always balk at the letter drama, too, but I guess it's a real thing-- when you're without ALL home-like comforts, one little token is hugely affecting.  You feel so removed from your real life, that a little intervention reminds you.  "Oh yeah, I'm filthy, starving, exhausted and surrounded by people I detest and can't trust or relax around.  My life sucks right now."  

 

I also wonder if the letters ritual affects them because it's a reminder that actual visits from someone from home are right around the corner, and their loved one could actually even be there in the location now.  

[Wings]

They are all emotionally frayed. Getting love from home is poignant for some.  I do wish they would eliminate that though!   As for Mike ruining the moment.  What?  Go take your own moment and make it what you want it to be.  It appeared that they were requested to not read them until they could do it together for filming reasons.  The normal thing to do would be read it the minute you got back to camp but they all sat there holding them.  

[scowl]

The only people online that I have seen enjoying the show are those that were completely anti-NC/anyone in the under 40 crowd, and pro-BC.  Other than that, the reaction has been mixed at best.  Overall, I would say this season would likely go down into the middle compared to others, but for me it is currently ranking at the bottom.

There have been several seasons with awful people ruining the beginning of it for me, then they got voted off and the rest of the season was at least tolerable if not good. This season is shaping to be the backwards of that with fun people getting voted off leaving only horrible people.

[green]

[emphasis added] Wowza. If getting merely teary at being told you are a soul-less, friend-less, essentially value-less human being is the response of a severely psychologically troubled person, then I must be living in Bellevue. Not sure that expressing emotion through a few tears counts as certifiably unstable. I thought Shirin kept her shit together infinitely more than most would have, certainly more than me. But then, I'm the kind of deeply disturbed individual who wants to start breaking fingers when I see assholes talking on their cell phones while driving erratically, so maybe I'm Arkham-bound.

 

Since this and some others seem to be aimed at my comment about Shirin being psychologically disturbed I'll answer this here for all the quotes back and try and clarify.

 

1.  I don't think anyone that goes through what Shirin claims she went through can NOT be but psychologically disturbed by it.

 

2.  I see a troubling pattern of her fixation on the show of Survivor not from a normal fan or happy nerd prospective but also as an alternative world she can escape to since she claims not to STILL have any friends years and years and years after her childhood.

 

3.  There is a continued pattern in every episode we have seen so far.  The way she always tries to get Probst's attention to show off her Survivor trivia for him and runs and basically tattles everything that happens around camp to him makes me think she sees him as "the good father" she never had in real life.  The one she seeks approval from.  Her true protector and savior.  That he will make things right.  So when she felt hurt at what Will said she couldn't wait to tell Probst all about that too.

 

4.  Her need to please Probst is scary.  I think she actually thinks subconsciously that he can heal her hurt and be her shining knight for real and make her life better.  I don't know if this is what shrinks call transference or what.  But something is really really off with her actions with him.  It isn't just a "I'm a big fan of you, Jeff" feeling you get with her which I could toss away as just having bad taste in TV hosts.  It's almost a pleading for him to take her side in everything.

 

I hope I'm wrong but the fact she keeps saying she has no friends even now is a major red flag and should have been for the screeners of this show.  So no this just isn't one of us breaking down (or losing it in anger in Will's case) cause someone ripped into us.  This is much much deeper and this whole experience could scar her further.  Set her back further since it seems she is about 30 now and still hasn't found a way to put her past behind in a healthy way.  Instead she seems to be hung up on a reality TV show as her refuge instead and that show just exploded all over her.

 

Yeah I could be wrong about all this but there is just way to much evidence for me to think otherwise.  Screeneres didn't do their job and now she is more of a mess than before.

 

Also I don't like amateur psycho-analyzing anyone on a reality TV show.  Broke my own rule for the first time here because I just found this too disturbing not to say something about it.  I think Survivor crossed the line with her like they did with that Hantz the Younger guy.  Both of these people are/were in fragile states from everything we have been shown and told by them as well.  Stop using people like this as entertainment fodder.  It just plain wrong.

Edited April 23, 2015 by green

[joshmaeks]

I'm wondering if Shirin's domestic abuse story is real. If I recall correctly, she saved it for TC where the jurors could hear it. She's a student of the game and must remember the guy whose grandmother "died" only for sympathy votes. Her laughter after telling the story was a 'release', hmmmm?

This is such a bullshit comment.

[Special K]

 

 The one she seeks approval from.  Her true protector and savior.  That he will make things right.  So when she felt hurt at what Will said she couldn't wait to tell Probst all about that too.

 

 

I disagree, opinion-wise, with a lot of your post, but thought I would respond factually (not in the Rodney sense, I hope).  This highlighted part is just not true.  If it was, she would have unloaded about Will at the IC when she raised her hand. 

 

Moreover, it was Probst's opening question to Will about his "Bring the popcorn" remark that began the whole discussion at TC (and WIll obviously was the one who brought it up -- and had wanted to since the IC/Bring the popcorn incident).

Edited April 23, 2015 by Special K

[Bazinga]

 

They tried to change things this time, twice -

 

First - having Will lose his chance to auction, but instead get a secret "reward" but he misplayed it by thinking that sharing with everyone would get him a million dollars.  Others have thought they would win or be kept around because they are "providers" but it never works out that way.

 

Second - having Dan's advantage be something we have never seen before - a second vote.  People were probably expecting an idol clue or an advantage in a the next challenge.  However, I don't have much faith that Dan will use this advantage wisely.  I can see him splitting his two votes while saying "It is good strategy to split the vote in case someone has an idol."

Adding a few new wrinkles is not change.  Too many things are known to happen.  Auction equals being able to buy an advantage of some sort, so sit on your money and don't bid.  HII are known to exist and usually in tree knot holes.  Reward dinners there will be a clue so look for it.  The winner will be asked to invite others.  Merge will happen at a certain number.  Too many seasons of sameness leads to contestants expecting certain events and not being surprised.  I suggest one season where pretty much nothing that has happened before happens again--no HII, no auction clue, no letters from home, no relatives competing, a merge at a different point than usual etc. 

[Wings]

The only people online that I have seen enjoying the show are those that were completely anti-NC/anyone in the under 40 crowd, and pro-BC.  Other than that, the reaction has been mixed at best.  Overall, I would say this season would likely go down into the middle compared to others, but for me it is currently ranking at the bottom.

 

 

I have not run into that but I can easily see how that would be the case.

 

It is at the bottom for me, too.  But I have noticed that my opinion can change when it is over and I get a different perspective.  

[Guest]

I hope I'm wrong but the fact she keeps saying she has no friends even now is a major red flag and should have been for the screeners of this show.  

Where has she said that?  Bonus clips?  

 

I don't think someone gets to be a tech executive without sanity and people skills.  Though I do think she's probably annoying as hell to be around full time.  

 

I don't listen to Rob's podcasts often but she has friends who have popped in there.  Max liked her, too.  

[survivinmt]

Wil went WAY over the line. As a Christian I was glad to have Shereen say, "Hey, aren't you a Christian?" Which, to me, if he was/is truly wanting to be more Christlike would have shut him up immediately. But saying, "God doesn't like ugly." proves that he's really not much into Christianity or reading the Bible. God actually prefers ugly - or at least what we deem ugly - corrupt tax collectors, people with leprosy, a killer of Christians, etc.

[Snaporaz]

When has Shirin said she doesn't have any friends?

[pennben]

 

Also I don't like amateur psycho-analyzing anyone on a reality TV show.

 

Good rule to abide by.

Edited April 23, 2015 by pennben

[CletusMusashi]

So I guess here are the ones I'm hoping to win, in order:

 

1. Shirin. Honestly, I think if Mike wins, he'll have earned it more. He fights hard for every time he avoids being voted out. But I'd be happier to see Shirin win. Mainly because I like her and almost nobody else does. And because, honestly, this would be huge for her. Mike is already pretty happy and confident and self-actualized. Winning is worth more than just the money, to almost anybody, but to some it's worth way more than to others.

 

2. Mike. This ends the list of winners who I would be happy with.

 

3. Sierra. I don't even like Sierra. She's a spineless follower who's been shooting for the bronze this entire game. But, if she wins, it will annoy Jeff more than...

 

4. Tyler. I also don't like Tyler. He does want to win, but doesn't seem interested in anything besides that. No sense of fun or humor, no snarky confessionals about how he can't believe how horrible the people in his alliance are but he's stuck with them, no... anything, except "Tylerbot seeks victory. Scanning for allies. Alliance confirmed. Simulate humanization by employing interaction protocol with allies. Refuel with rice. Re-confirm alliances. Power down." What the hell does a robot need with a million dollars? I mean, a cool robot like Bender, sure. But not Tyler.

 

5. Carolyn. I think she's a mean, bitter person, but she can be quite scrappy in the challenges, and she was smart enough find an idol. Her gameplay is solid. I just don't like her personally. But I can only take off so many points for her treatment of Shirin, because everyone below her on the list has been at least as noxious.

 

6. Oh boy. Do I really have to vote any of these people? I guess Rodney. Not because I like him any more than I like Dan or Will, but simply because he'd be the most likely to spend all the money on cocaine, Yeager, and a fast new car in order to immediately crash into a tree and kill himself.

 

7. Either Will or Dan, obviously. I think I'd just have to go by their final answers/ speeches. But if that didn't help, I actually might just walk out there and, instead of a jury question, take out a coin and say "You're both assholes, but heads it's you, tails it's you," then flip it, show them, say "Whatever," and walk away.

 

Wow. This season really is awful, isn't it?

Edited April 25, 2015 by CletusMusashi

[Wings]

 

Also I don't like amateur psycho-analyzing anyone on a reality TV show.

 

 

clap clap clap.  I don't either.  I don't know who you are because I copied and pasted your comment from the post above.   I really hate that and I don't often use the word hate. 

[iMonrey]

 

Everyone standing by was complicit in the attacks and Tyler is also at fault for stoking the confrontation.

 

I'm tempted to lay some of the blame on Tyler, but the fact is, nobody left is bright enough to make the connection between Tyler and the shit-stirring. As soon as Will started ripping into Shirin, the logical response should have been "who told you I said that?" Deny, deny, deny, until Will fesses up that Tyler brought him this info. Then accuse Tyler of stirring the pot.

 

By the same token, there should have been some fallout from Tyler blabbing to Mike about Joe's idol clue, at least from Joe himself if nobody else. Honestly, the fact that nobody has yet confronted Tyler about any of this speaks less to Tyler's strategy and more to the idiocy of everyone else.

[ProfCrash]

Shirin is an executive at Google. The coders, programmers, and the like who work at Google, Apple, Microsoft and the like are very different people then those of us who work other 9-5 type jobs. Very different. That is not a bad thing but to say that they tend to be very detailed oriented, mathematically inclined, geeks who will super focus on a particular project for hours. There is a reason why all of the high tech companies that are dependent on programmers are set up so that they rarely leave work. I am talking rooms to sleep in, showers, free meals, booze, you can bring your pets, rec areas with all the latest and greatest video toys, massages, hair salons available on the campus. You let the programmers have whatever they want and they will happily work 16 hour days. I know some of these folks, they are different types of people.

 

So Shirin is an executive who was in charge of the development of a new software/platform (I want to say Google Plus type thing). She needs to get along with the Cochran and Maxes of the world, smart, nerdy, geeky and, well, lacking in general social skills for the most part, not the Jenn's, Carolyn's, Will's, Rodney's of the world. She is not working at a law firm or insurance company or a financial institution or some place along those lines. If she was and she was an executive at 29, that would be seriously impressive.

 

She interacts with executives who are used to dealing with programming nerds, not the VP of Wells Fargo Bank. Google hires other people to handle those interactions.

[Calamity Jane]

Will showed himself to be a pathetic excuse for a human being, and most especially for one who claims to espouse Christian values.  As pointed out above, questioning whether there was more food was eminently logical given how the season started and how Survivor goes in general.  And asking whether someone might be holding something back is whole universes of heinousness separated from the vitriol Will proceeded to heap on Shirin, and only Shirin.  

 

I am sadly now forced into the corner containing Mike and Shirin as the only acceptable human winners.  I've been gaining respect for Shirin, who I think can now be seen to be playing a more subtle and effective game than I realized for a long time.  Mike won my regard for literally stepping in to shield Shirin.  At that moment, I was wondering if Will would launch some kind of physical attack, he was so out of control emotionally.  I had held some thought that Tyler might be a winner I could endorse, but not after this.  He started the foofaraw, probably never dreaming how over the line Will would go, but he did nothing to mitigate it.  

 

Beautiful green lizard gets my vote.  

[Guest]

Shirin discusses her logic behind not letting Will get his letters.  It's pretty interesting.

 

http://www.cbs.com/shows/survivor/video/B6PIcJLcwpWtYpF3K3Wh8r6pdRUuVZ4l/survivor-it-made-me-a-villain/

(If you can't view it, in a nutshell she says he gave up nothing for a huge prize, since he wouldn't have won immunity and didn't need it anyway, so on that basis alone she felt justified saying no, regardless of it being Will.  She said it was like if she asked for cheeseburgers daily to sit out one challenge.  She also said she's well aware that the more she is a villain, the more likely she is to last just because she's a goat who'd be good to sit next to at the end, and she has few options left.)

 

From other clips:

 

Ha, Rodney says the auction was "like my coming out party".  WTH.  

 

Will goes on and on about what a victim he is by getting screwed at the auction.  I actually thought his prize was the big twist they've been talking about.  Food for WEEKS?  And he just says, "I'm not that kind of person, I'm sharing."  As if this is a character contest.  Outshare, I guess.  

 

(Shirin actually works at Yahoo, not Google.)

Edited April 23, 2015 by Guest

[LadyChatts]

Adding a few new wrinkles is not change.  Too many things are known to happen.  Auction equals being able to buy an advantage of some sort, so sit on your money and don't bid.  HII are known to exist and usually in tree knot holes.  Reward dinners there will be a clue so look for it.  The winner will be asked to invite others.  Merge will happen at a certain number.  Too many seasons of sameness leads to contestants expecting certain events and not being surprised.  I suggest one season where pretty much nothing that has happened before happens again--no HII, no auction clue, no letters from home, no relatives competing, a merge at a different point than usual etc. 

 

It's why I think a season without twists is almost a twist in itself anymore.  But Jeff has said that won't ever happen, they won't be doing away with idols, the double vote will probably be here to stay for awhile, and who knows what else they'll add.  I still expect a complete coup d'etat reward down the road ala Big Brother.  I'd feel better about the twists if I thought they were being on the up and up introducing them.  But if they're introducing them solely to spare someone (which is what I always thought the very first tribal swap in Africa was meant to do) or because the season is too dull on its own so they need a twist, then I don't like it.  It takes away the game play almost.  Maybe people would be more likely to flip flop around without idols and advantages coming their way to save them.  I don't really mind the idols, though.  They've led to good moments.  But I wish they'd find a different tactic of hiding them or making the clues more exclusive to the finder.  How the heck did that clue in the soda bottle stay dry?  I'm almost scared to ask.

 

I have not run into that but I can easily see how that would be the case.

It is at the bottom for me, too.  But I have noticed that my opinion can change when it is over and I get a different perspective.

 

 

In reality, some of my least favorite seasons became favorites years after the fact.  And even those that seemed horrible at the time aren't so bad now.  But when you have other really bad seasons to compare it to, that will happen.  Fiji and Thailand used to be bottom tier of my list, but they've moved up a few notches.  Still not anywhere close to good seasons, but they were more boring than bad and nasty.  Well, I guess Thailand could be considered nasty.  I somewhat enjoyed Fiji, I just wish they didn't do the haves/have nots twist and had so many contestants.  I'm still a fan of the forgotten Guatemala season, even though many aren't.  Worlds Apart started really strong, and I was thinking there were good things ahead.  But now that it's boring, predictable, and nasty, there's no going back for me right now.  All the fun people are at Ponderosa.  A final 3 of Dan/Rodney/Will or even Carolyn/Sierra/Mike is nauseating to think about.  I'm rooting for Shirin or Tyler by default.

 

Seems like the cast is getting called out on twitter, too.

[Calamity Jane]

Since this and some others seem to be aimed at my comment about Shirin being psychologically disturbed I'll answer this here for all the quotes back and try and clarify.

 

1.  I don't think anyone that goes through what Shirin claims she went through can NOT be but psychologically disturbed by it.

 

2.  I see a troubling pattern of her fixation on the show of Survivor not from a normal fan or happy nerd prospective but also as an alternative world she can escape to since she claims not to STILL have any friends years and years and years after her childhood.

 

3.  There is a continued pattern in every episode we have seen so far.  The way she always tries to get Probst's attention to show off her Survivor trivia for him and runs and basically tattles everything that happens around camp to him makes me think she sees him as "the good father" she never had in real life.  The one she seeks approval from.  Her true protector and savior.  That he will make things right.  So when she felt hurt at what Will said she couldn't wait to tell Probst all about that too.

 

4.  Her need to please Probst is scary.  I think she actually thinks subconsciously that he can heal her hurt and be her shining knight for real and make her life better.  I don't know if this is what shrinks call transference or what.  But something is really really off with her actions with him.  It isn't just a "I'm a big fan of you, Jeff" feeling you get with her which I could toss away as just having bad taste in TV hosts.  It's almost a pleading for him to take her side in everything.

 

I hope I'm wrong but the fact she keeps saying she has no friends even now is a major red flag and should have been for the screeners of this show.  So no this just isn't one of us breaking down (or losing it in anger in Will's case) cause someone ripped into us.  This is much much deeper and this whole experience could scar her further.  Set her back further since it seems she is about 30 now and still hasn't found a way to put her past behind in a healthy way.  Instead she seems to be hung up on a reality TV show as her refuge instead and that show just exploded all over her.

 

Yeah I could be wrong about all this but there is just way to much evidence for me to think otherwise.  Screeneres didn't do their job and now she is more of a mess than before.

 

Also I don't like amateur psycho-analyzing anyone on a reality TV show.  Broke my own rule for the first time here because I just found this too disturbing not to say something about it.  I think Survivor crossed the line with her like they did with that Hantz the Younger guy.  Both of these people are/were in fragile states from everything we have been shown and told by them as well.  Stop using people like this as entertainment fodder.  It just plain wrong.

Although I only partially agree about Shirin, I do think she is a very odd person. 

 

I would add this season's boundary-clueless Vince as another screener fail.  

[LadyChatts]

It seems like last night's episode didn't earn a lot of love for Will from former Survivors.  In fact, I'm not sure this season is earning a lot of love from formers.  Anyway, Spencer Bledsoe is a favorite of mine and one Survivor whose tweets I love following.  This made me love him even more:

 

Spencer Bledsoe
‏@SpencerBGM
In a final three of Dan, Will and Rodney, the tribal council stools would win #Survivor

 

Spencer Bledsoe
‏@SpencerBGM
Actually Dan, this decision has no bearing on your 0% chance of winning #Survivor

 

[meep.meep]

I hope Mike wins. I can't stand Shirin (or as Rodney spells it, Shareen) but I'm neutral about her winning now.

 

Dan is....married? REALLY??

 

Well he was...... I can't imagine his wife sticking with him after watching those comments about how the manly men have to speak to the stupid women in the earlier episode.

 

That auction was weird.  It used to be there would be covered items, and the bids would be made, and only after someone won would the cover be removed.  So, you might get the advantage, or the letters, or you might get a glass of water or a cooked bat.  Peachy was actually announcing what the items were at this auction.

 

Shirin is an executive at Yahoo, not Google, I believe.  And people who work in high tech are not some weird species - they generally work longer hours than most people in America do.

 

After all these years, seeing different groups of people get all teary at the letters from home, has led me to realize that it is the normal reaction of people playing this game.  They've spent about three weeks with a bunch of people who they can't trust for more than an hour at a time.  Getting to spend a little time with a connection back to the real world, actually does reduce pretty much everyone to tears.