S31.E01: Second Chance

[rose711]

Go to his thread here, and read. Be enlightened about Woo.

The things written about Woo are just rumour as far as I can tell. Just thought I would mention that in this thread as you were posting your take on Woo in this thread a couple of times, unless I misunderstood what you meant by "be enlightened", rather than just referring people who were posting positive comments about Woo to his thread. Of course I'm a fan of his and I support him anyway.

As for this episode, I was glad to see Woo beat Joe of the heroic edit at something, stand up for his tribe, be a part of an alliance and talk about getting his buff like getting one of his black belts. He's never going to be a conniving strategist, but that's ok with me.

Edited September 25, 2015 by rose711

[ratgirlagogo]

Welcome back Survivor!

 

I literally did not realize until Tribal that Terry Dietz and Jeff Varner were two different people.  I have no memory of Jeff so I kept thinking he was Terry in a headband and a different shirt  - very confusing.

 

Also the only Kelly I will ever remember from this show is Kelly Wiglesworth - this blond Kelly I cannot remember at all - although Mr Rat swears he does.  I like her now, though, with the quick grab of the HII.  But we all know one of the great Survivor traditions is Kellys Are Always Forgettable.

 

 

In Dalton Ross's EW recap he reminds us all that he has campaigned for years to get TPTB to hide a HII within a challenge.  And look, he got his wish.

 

What was that big dark mammal in the tree that looked kind of bearish or maybe large weaselish, about 25 minutes in?  Very appealing.

Edited September 25, 2015 by ratgirlagogo

[Guest]

Stacey from season 1 sued CBS and Mark Burnett & Co., it was settled out of court, and the contract contestants sign suddenly got thicker. The show wins from that point on, you sign your life away to participate. Production can do whatever they want and you cannot say a word about it.

 

You can't really sign away your basic rights, no matter what any waiver would lead you to believe.  If the show is negligent in some way and that causes someone harm, courts will penalize them.  I'm sure the contestants are sworn to silence on most things and can't sue for 'a bad edit' or anything like that, though.  

 

I'm surprised people give credence to that Woo rumor.  Anyone can type up, "Spencer told me on Reddit that Woo stole food", and their own interpretation of the Weasel Woo nickname.  Who the hell knows if it was even Spencer on Reddit.  I would think Spencer'd be smarter than that, given that silence thing above.  600+ past Survivors and how many are on social media spilling production secrets?  And why would Survivor have this major cheater back on the ballot, and not show us what a bad character he was?  

[Guest]

No, not just "nose job, that is all."  There's a lot that's different, what about the lips.

Lip injections are temporary and not considered plastic surgery.  I think she looks good.  She had a rough nose to start with.

[Way Wes Jr]

It's funny, I remember Borneo, Australia and Africa like they were yesterday.  There are several seasons in the middle where it all becomes a blur.  I sometimes go back and look up cast pictures and I still don't remember the player...like this season's Monica.  I know the face, but have zero clue about anything she did.

 

I wonder if it would ever be possible to have a Survivor made entirely of one-time winners?

 

And you specifically want to exclude Sandra, why?

 

Context to Varner being hungry enough to be swayed by peanut butter, I remember Australia as being the season where contestants were actually starving.  Toward the end, Elisabeth was losing hair by the hand full due to lack of nutrition and the older guy she was aligned with (I forgot his name) was so thin that I actually was concerned for his health. The seasons after that, the food rewards seemed to be more plentiful. No more starving to the point of concave stomachs (Elisabeth, again), or eating rats (Season One). 

The food issue persisted longer than that, I recall reading that both Neleh and Pascal were in therapy for food hoarding after Marquesas. 

 

Forgive my ignorance, but who is this Gordon Holmes that keeps getting mentioned, and why does he seem to have so much information? Is he associated with the show?

Already answered, but there are three (major media) outlets for Survivor related articles:

Entertainment Weekly - done by Dalton Ross - usually video clips.

An Xfinity blog - done by Gordon Holmes

And Parade magazine - with articles by both Josh Wigler

 

Stephen Fishbach does a blog for People.  Yes, that Stephen Fishbach.

CBS, of course does its own stuff, and (for a slightly independent take,) Rob Has a Podcast is really good also.

 

ETA: There's a difference, really, between People and Parade.

Edited September 25, 2015 by Way Wes Jr

[Daisy]

And you specifically want to exclude Sandra, why?

 

The food issue persisted longer than that, I recall reading that both Neleh and Pascal were in therapy for food hoarding after Marquesas. 

 

Already answered, but there are three (major media) outlets for Survivor related articles:

Entertainment Weekly - done by Dalton Ross - usually video clips.

An Xfinity blog - done by Gordon Holmes

And Parade magazine - with articles by both Josh Wigler, and Stephen Fishbach.  Yes, that Stephen Fishbach.

 

CBS, of course does its own stuff, and (for a slightly independent take,) Rob Has a Podcast is really good also.

 

I think Stephen writes for People : )                                                                        

[Zuleikha]

I stopped watching Survivor for a long time and got pulled back in last season due to having some acquaintances know Shirin, so it's interesting watching returnees. Off that bat, I love Chaos Kass. I don't know why she's Chaos Kass, but her special talent for frond weaving and general embrace of her reputation cracked me up. Most of the players won't win, so I like when they're also about having fun.

 

Abi didn't seem as bad as I expected. I actually understood what she meant when she said she kept her cool about the bracelet. She talked about it, but she didn't yell at PG or anyone. She also cracked me up when going through her bad behavior in her old season. Since I only knew of her by reputation, those flashbacks were a bit jawdropping. Still, not as bad as I expected is still not great. She is lucky that Vytas was so freaking annoying.

 

I liked Varner a lot in Australia, but he was a bit of sh*t stirrer his season, so I'm expecting that from him this time around, too. I feel like we already saw that this episode. I also liked Kelly Wiglesworth, so I'm bummed she seems to be in the wrong alliance. OTOH, the other alliance includes Abi, so may not last long.

 

I disliked Tasha off the bat for her line about asking for playing than praying for forgiveness. Play hard and dirty because it's a game, sure. But I HATE the attitude that you can do something you consider morally wrong because you can just wash it all away by praying for forgiveness later. She seemed fine after that, though.

 

I was very impressed that Kelly Wentworth actually found the clue. Everything looked the same to me. She was really funny with explaining how she was looking, and her strategic grab of the idol was great. I hope she's able to pull off a great blindside with it.

[SnideAsides]

I'm a little confused why they included Angkor Wat in the opening sequence when it's clear on the other side of the country from where the game is taking place. Sure, it's pretty, but is by far one of the most gorgeous places they've ever been, so it wasn't even necessary. Make it a reward trip instead if you have to use it, you know?

[Kromm]

I'm a little confused why they included Angkor Wat in the opening sequence when it's clear on the other side of the country from where the game is taking place. Sure, it's pretty, but is by far one of the most gorgeous places they've ever been, so it wasn't even necessary. Make it a reward trip instead if you have to use it, you know?

Because the only two things most people know about Cambodia is Angkor Wat and the Kyhmer Rouge/Pol Pot/Mass Murder.  And they can't focus on the second thing, so they highlighted the first thing so maybe there's a handle for people to grab onto.

[henripootel]

And why would Survivor have this major cheater back on the ballot, and not show us what a bad character he was?

If the edit didn't fit Woo's 'persona' for show purposes, they might well not feature it as part of his edit.  Wouldn't be the first time ex-cast members have said that so-and-so got a good (or bad) edit when they were exactly the opposite in person. 

 

As to why they might have Woo back at all - I've previously speculated (in the tinfoil hat thread) that Woo made a deal.  No strong evidence for this, but it goes back to Woo's 'huge mistake' in his original season, which they're now resurrecting as part of Woo's narrative.  Memory refresh: Woo got to final 3 and won immunity, he had the choice of taking Kass (who he thought he could beat, but probably not) or Tony the Cop (who Woo thought he had no chance of beating).  Woo said on camera that taking Tony to the end would be the stupidest thing he could possibly do, nevertheless that's exactly what he did do, and lost in near-record fashion.  

 

Speculation time: it seemed to the jaundiced viewer that the producers really, really wanted Tony the Cop to win, but all of Tony's ridiculous antics (sorry, 'big moves') would be undone simply by Woo doing what Woo knew perfectly well was the smart move.  My speculation at the time was that somebody had a quiet word with Woo and offered him an inducement to take Tony to FTC, namely a guaranteed return invite.  I've seen no further bean-spilling that this is how it actually went down, but I do note that here we are again, back with Woo's boring ass.  I found him pretty unmemorable last time was actually surprised when I heard the cheating rumor - who knew Woo was capable of doing anything interesting at all.

 

As for why would Survivor choose any major cheater to come back, I would remind of two incidence.  First Russell Hantz got a return invite even though production was in possession of court-quality evidence that he'd spoiled at least two seasons, a clear violation of his contract and subject of great interest to production.    Second, Colton got invited back after he quit his first season (and quit again), which Probst himself admitted despite also being vociferous in his condemnation of quitters.  So the real answer: showbiz.  Pretty sure these guys would cast Hitler's ghost if it'd get them a 1% bump in key demographics.  

Edited September 25, 2015 by henripootel

[Paws]

What happened to Abi in her life that she jumps to conclusions that people will always be the worst they can be? When everyone has a bag that looks exactly the same, she assumes someone stole her bracelet?   I would not be able to live with that kind of nastiness in my life and certainly not on a desert island. As much as I understand strategically why they voted out Vytas, Abi would annoy me so much I'd switch alliances.

[Guest]

I'm a little confused why they included Angkor Wat in the opening sequence when it's clear on the other side of the country from where the game is taking place. Sure, it's pretty, but is by far one of the most gorgeous places they've ever been, so it wasn't even necessary. Make it a reward trip instead if you have to use it, you know?

I don't know but Vytas said in an exit interview that one reason he would've rather not been picked than be voted out first was they traveled NINE DAYS to get to their little island in Cambodia.  I think he even said nine days across Cambodia.  I have no idea how it could take that long but I guess if it's very remote and you're sightseeing along the way...?  

[riverheightsnancy]

WTH! What The Hell! How did I not know that Survivor started again? I don't troll the spoilers anymore like back in the day, but I watched Big Bang Theory on Monday night (CBS too) and don't even remember seeing a promo for Survivor. Don't they promote the show at all?  I only stumbled upon it when looking for something OnDemand last night because I couldn't sleep. Survivor is scheduled DVR viewing for me. Of course, I teach all day Wednesdays and tried to get home in time for Empire, so I probably would have watched empire first and recorded Survivor, IF I HAD KNOWN CBS! 

 

Anyway, loving Tasha again. I remember her being a challenge monster in her season. Was she always weak in swimming? I cannot remember. Wigglesworth, this is why too much botox is not a good idea. It just makes her look worse and she cannot even move her forehead. Hate Cass and want her gone ASAP. Not a fan of Spenser, but I never was. I still think that he is very arrogant and really thinks he knows how to play better than everyone else. Something about him rubs me the wrong way. I want to like him, but I can't. I liked some of the old school folks, because I guess I relate, being "old school" myself. Loved the new twists. Hoping for more fun twists. Love that they went through Ankgor Wat. That place is featured on Ancient Aliens! hee. 

[Cthulhudrew]

Abi didn't seem as bad as I expected. I actually understood what she meant when she said she kept her cool about the bracelet. She talked about it, but she didn't yell at PG or anyone.

 

Someone saying "I'm not going to blow up, but keep cool" and then going and blabbing about it to everyone except the other party involved? That's just turning aggressive behavior into passive-aggressive behavior, and to the same end. Any reasonable person with half a brain knows that it is going to get back to the other party. So she really wasn't showing any great improvement from her old ways.

 

And I have very little doubt that if her P-A pressure hadn't prompted Peih-gee to come talk to her, that she wouldn't have been able to restrain herself from eventually blowing up at her anyway. 

[azshadowwalker]

Is it? It sure doesn't seem to be. Russell took and burned someone's socks, Sandra took and burned Russell's hat. I'm sure there are other examples.

 

The first thievery I remember was Rupert stealing shoes to sell in Cook Islands. It's been going on a long time, and no one has ever been punished for it. As for generally going through someone's stuff, you can't take the HII, but people have gone through others' bags and belongings.

[Way Wes Jr]

I just rewatched the episode, and - because I'm obsessed for the moment - I kept track of confessionals.  (I only counted it as one, if they broke away, and then continued.)  I'm just going to give my thoughts, rather than try to cohesively put this down...

 

Bayon had 18 confessionals - everyone had two except for Joe, who still managed a ton of hero-edit time, and Monica, who is this episodes, "Invisible Girl."  (Because it's always a woman.  Sexist pigs.)

 

Ta Keo had 23 confessionals, but three were Kelley's regarding the HII, and two were Spencer's and Abi's mini-confessionals after they found out they were going straight to tribal after the challenge, take those away, and it was an even split by tribe.  But, Ta Keo didn't have an even spread.  Wentworth had 5, (but feel free to drop her down to two,) Abi had 4 (3,) but she was the "other vote getter," and she instigated braceletgate, and Jeff had three (total Narrator edit!.)  Wiggles, Shirin, Vytas, and Spencer had two - nostalgia, strategic drive behind eviction, evicted player, and "do I really count the second," respectively.  With everyone else getting one.  And poor Peih-Gee's was regarding aggressive-passive-aggressive Abi.

 

While these later season editors haven't been as obvious about things like "million dollar quotes," it's worth mentioning that we really only had two tonight; one from Kass (who isn't going to win,) and one from Tasha - during the opening spotlight segment - who could contend to win.  [Though in pre-game interviews, lots of players noted Tasha as someone they were concerned about.]

 

Last point, 12/20 players got to say something before the marooning.  The unlucky eight? Stephen, Keith, Monica, Vytas, Terry, Woo, Peih-Gee, and Shirin.

[innocuouspuff]

Yeah a schoolyard pick would quickly turn into a game of spot who doesn't have a pre-game alliance, like Candice Cody's vote out supposedly was in BvW.

Apparently my interests lie in the meta game as I am perfectly happy to watch pre-game alliances fall apart and old-school players try to hang. Gameplay did evolve slowly, but that's just not super relevant to an individual player. Just like your hometown you haven't been back to in fifteen years didn't literally change all at once but that's not going to help you when you weren't there for the stages in between.

Also I remember Colby in S20 being like, who cares about this new-fangled immunity idol, I'm trying to watch a movie! I'm sorry but that was hilarious. None of these who played before the middle seasons are that bad so far, in fact in some cases (Jeff Varner) we may be watching a huge over-correction. Interested to see where it goes.

[survivinmt]

I thought the Abi bracelet thing was all Shirin's doing. Think about it - Shirin has an encyclopedic knowledge of past Survivor play. She would know that Abi would lose it (or close to it) and she picked Peih-Gee as the "bad guy" so as to keep those two as far apart as possible. If someone did that on purpose that was BRILLIANT game play. I don't buy into production interference because I'm a PollyAnna that way and don't want to believe that my show is that corrupt.

At first I thought Kelly missed her chance for the HII but then she played it perfectly - that seems like it will be fun to follow.

Terry was awful because his social game was 0, he was basically better than everyone else due to his mad challenge-skillz, and when he or his alliance was still in danger of being voted out his strategic plan was to go to other people and say, "Vote with us, because then we'll have the numbers." Which never made any sense - people in the other alliance already HAD the numbers.

[cooksdelight]

I thought the Abi bracelet thing was all Shirin's doing. Think about it - Shirin has an encyclopedic knowledge of past Survivor play. She would know that Abi would lose it (or close to it) and she picked Peih-Gee as the "bad guy" so as to keep those two as far apart as possible. If someone did that on purpose that was BRILLIANT game play.

You could be onto something, based also on the tweet or whatever the Shirin posted, trying to start up something between Terry/Abi that (it looked like) didn't happen.

I'll be glad when people can talk about all this stuff!! :)

[Guest]

I would think if Shirin planted it we'd see video evidence or at least her bragging about it in confessional.  But who knows.  The stuff they show vs. not show is always a little puzzling.  

[rose711]

If the edit didn't fit Woo's 'persona' for show purposes, they might well not feature it as part of his edit. Wouldn't be the first time ex-cast members have said that so-and-so got a good (or bad) edit when they were exactly the opposite in person.

As to why they might have Woo back at all - I've previously speculated (in the tinfoil hat thread) that Woo made a deal. No strong evidence for this, but it goes back to Woo's 'huge mistake' in his original season, which they're now resurrecting as part of Woo's narrative. Memory refresh: Woo got to final 3 and won immunity, he had the choice of taking Kass (who he thought he could beat, but probably not) or Tony the Cop (who Woo thought he had no chance of beating). Woo said on camera that taking Tony to the end would be the stupidest thing he could possibly do, nevertheless that's exactly what he did do, and lost in near-record fashion.

Speculation time: it seemed to the jaundiced viewer that the producers really, really wanted Tony the Cop to win, but all of Tony's ridiculous antics (sorry, 'big moves') would be undone simply by Woo doing what Woo knew perfectly well was the smart move. My speculation at the time was that somebody had a quiet word with Woo and offered him an inducement to take Tony to FTC, namely a guaranteed return invite. I've seen no further bean-spilling that this is how it actually went down, but I do note that here we are again, back with Woo's boring ass. I found him pretty unmemorable last time was actually surprised when I heard the cheating rumor - who knew Woo was capable of doing anything interesting at all.

As for why would Survivor choose any major cheater to come back, I would remind of two incidence. First Russell Hantz got a return invite even though production was in possession of court-quality evidence that he'd spoiled at least two seasons, a clear violation of his contract and subject of great interest to production. Second, Colton got invited back after he quit his first season (and quit again), which Probst himself admitted despite also being vociferous in his condemnation of quitters. So the real answer: showbiz. Pretty sure these guys would cast Hitler's ghost if it'd get them a 1% bump in key demographics.

I'm Woos biggest fan and supporter. But I'm a realist. No one at CBS is putting Woo in the same category as two of the biggest characters, strategists and legends of Survivor history (Hatch and Russell).

That idea is absurd. I'm not sure why anyone wants to stretch a conspiracy theory so far. It make no sense.

Woo is a good looking athletic guy who fits the surfer dude profile. They have no problem finding and casting that profile.

Edited September 25, 2015 by rose711

[KimberStormer]

Far be it from me to wear the tinfoil hat myself, but henripootel's theory doesn't place Woo on the Russell/Hatch scale, it places Tony there.  His theory is that the producers seduced Woo to bring Tony to FTC by promising him a return visit.  I'm not sure if henripootel believes the vote was rigged (CBS, I believe, actually declared that the fan vote was the sole arbiter of who got picked?) or not...

 

My problem with the henripootel theory is it depends both on Woo being stupid and not-stupid.  He can't have brought Tony, says the theory, because that would be incredibly stupid.  But, to me at least, giving up a very likely million dollars (Kass would have gotten a couple votes....but she's fucking Kass.  She would probably have zero votes by the time she finished talking) for a chance to come back and get voted off first is even stupider.  What makes a second chance such a prize that you'd blow your first?  Makes no sense.

 

 

Ta Keo had 23 confessionals, but three were Kelley's regarding the HII, and two were Spencer's and Abi's mini-confessionals after they found out they were going straight to tribal after the challenge, take those away, and it was an even split by tribe.  But, Ta Keo didn't have an even spread.  Wentworth had 5, (but feel free to drop her down to two,) Abi had 4 (3,) but she was the "other vote getter," and she instigated braceletgate, and Jeff had three (total Narrator edit!.)  Wiggles, Shirin, Vytas, and Spencer had two - nostalgia, strategic drive behind eviction, evicted player, and "do I really count the second," respectively.  With everyone else getting one.  And poor Peih-Gee's was regarding aggressive-passive-aggressive Abi.

 

While these later season editors haven't been as obvious about things like "million dollar quotes," it's worth mentioning that we really only had two tonight; one from Kass (who isn't going to win,) and one from Tasha - during the opening spotlight segment - who could contend to win.  [Though in pre-game interviews, lots of players noted Tasha as someone they were concerned about.]

 

Last point, 12/20 players got to say something before the marooning.  The unlucky eight? Stephen, Keith, Monica, Vytas, Terry, Woo, Peih-Gee, and Shirin.

 

This episode had me really thinking about the editors' "rules" of confessionals.  There are never confessionals during challenges as far as I know, and there are definitely never confessionals during tribal.  This means, in this episode's case, that there was no chance for a confessional from Kelley about getting the idol.  I feel like a lot of shows would have players' confessional voiceovers explaining what happened in challenges, but not Survivor: that's Probst's department.  But what's interesting is that he can only provide public, visible information; he can't do something like say "WHOA, COLBY IS HANDING SOMETHING OFF TO RUSSELL ON THE OTHER TRIBE!  WHAT COULD IT BE?" (no, henripootel, I don't mean 'can't' in some legal sense, I mean he doesn't want to ruin everything that way) and he can't explain how people are feeling about the challenge; like we'd surely hear, on a Project Runway kind of show, how miserable everyone was in that Philippines deadlocked challenge that ended with Penner and Skupin brokering a deal.  But Survivor works differently, a legacy perhaps of its ancient origins as one of the first of reality shows.

 

I possibly am too loose with my definition of "million dollar quote" (do you need to say the words "a million dollars"?) but in any case, I don't think it needs to be in episode one.  Also, it's more of a fun thing to find retroactively when you know the winner, IMO. 

Edited September 25, 2015 by KimberStormer

[Jobiska]

What was that big dark mammal in the tree that looked kind of bearish or maybe large weaselish, about 25 minutes in?  Very appealing.

 

Pretty sure it was a binturong https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Binturong  I especially liked that it was in juxtaposition to someone talking, if I recall correctly, about worker bees vs. those who rest, and it was looking very restful!

[ProfCrash]

The various reports of how the first challenge went have been fun to read. Probst said that they dedicated a camera to following Kelly so that they would not miss her going for the idol if she did go for it. Probst said they knew they could not reshoot that and they had to get it when it happened. Wigler's report on it had Production bitching that she wasn't going to go for it and lots of disappointed folks right up until the moment when she finally got it. Probst also said that not all of the idols are going to be hidden at challenges. It is possible that they might hide the idol for Bayon somewhere around camp now that they are through the first challenge.

 

I would hope that Probst was paying enough attention to the challenge that he did not spot Kelly grabbing the idol.

[ratgirlagogo]

 

Me:What was that big dark mammal in the tree that looked kind of bearish or maybe large weaselish, about 25 minutes in?  Very appealing

 

Jobiska:Pretty sure it was a binturong https://en.wikipedia.../wiki/Binturong

Thanks Jobiska!  also had to laugh when I read in the wikipedia entry:

 

Its genus name Arctictis means ‘bear-weasel’, from Greek arkt- ‘bear’ + iktis ‘weasel’

[HurricaneVal]

I am pleased with the actual new twists. I hope they continue, and I hope there's more new stuff waiting in the wings. Hiding the clue to the HII around camp, and then actually placing the HII into the immunity challenge, forcing the clue-finder to make some tough decisions is genius. And diabolical! You may be able to "Hantz" the clue, but not the actual idol. Kelley purposely positioned herself to be at the back end of the raft so she she could snatch it, then got caught up in the heat of the moment and ran past it, and you very visibly saw her shouting "FUCK!" when she realized what she'd done. Watching her glance back, then glance around, realize she was in Vytas's eyeline, then do the slow fade, then when everyone's attention was focused on the pole and key retrieval, whirling and snatching it up and stuffing it down her pants.

 

Then? "Immediate" Tribal Council! Awesome!

[JudyObscure]

I had bracelet-gate all settled in my mind when I figured PG just picked up what she thought was an empty bag.  Now this information that she tried to smuggle in flint has made me kind of suspicious of her for the first time.  If she was willing to do one crooked thing for a game advantage, why not another?  Why not send Abi on a short trip to crazy-town?  Not that anything excuses Abi for making such a big deal about it.  When someone is that quick to think there's a thief around, I usually suspect that they might be one themselves.

[dustoffmom]

 

Now this information that she tried to smuggle in flint has made me kind of suspicious of her for the first time.

WAIT......what information?  And who tried to smuggle in flint, Abi or PG?  And how did they catch it??  First I have heard of this tidbit.

[Guest]

PG, a jewelry designer, had some flint as some embellishment on her shirt or jewelry.  She openly showed it to everyone at camp and suggested they use it to start a fire, it sounds like.  I guess the production people in view (cameramen, I suppose) said no-can-do.  I think it was in Dalton Ross tidbits from his site visit?  

 

All these stories make me wonder how much mild cheating they DO get away with, and they all know about.  It seems to be fair game to try whatever and see if it flies.  

[ghoulina]

edit - winston beat me to it.

Edited September 25, 2015 by ghoulina

[Jobiska]

Yeah, but flint ornament is very clever and well planned out, whereas the bracelet thing, if Peih Gee had indeed done it, would have been foolish and nonsensical.  What would she have wanted to get out of it, and whatever that would have been, how would she have gotten it out of such a move?  And she would have had a better story made up after the discovery, too.

[ratgirlagogo]

 

 

Already answered, but there are three (major media) outlets for Survivor related articles:

Entertainment Weekly - done by Dalton Ross - usually video clips.

An Xfinity blog - done by Gordon Holmes

And Parade magazine - with articles by both Josh Wigler, and Stephen Fishbach.  Yes, that Stephen Fishbach.

Dalton Ross doesn't just do video clips, he also does text recaps for EW - extremely funny ones, IMO, and some of the best since he is THE major media Survivor recapper who's been around since the beginning and always remembers the little details.

examplis gratis:

http://www.ew.com/recap/survivor-season-31-premiere

[Zuleikha]

I wish PG had been allowed to use her flint. Given that production had plenty of time to examine her items and catch on, it doesn't seem any different to me than the time someone successfully started fire with glasses or Colby's Texas flag luxury item. That was clever thinking on PG's part.

 

Reading behind-the-scenes for ep 1 makes it clear how much doesn't make it in. Both PG's flint and the Varner bomb seem like they should have been included and would have made great TV moments.

[Wings]

I understand why they didn't allow the flint.  That is like bringing beef jerky.  They can't ask someone to play without their glasses.  I would bring a pair of reading glasses if I needed them or not.  It isn't that easy either; a flint is.  If that were allowed every castaway in the future would incorporate a flint into their accessories.  

[Guest]

They could be like the TSA and wait til someone successfully got an item into the game and THEN ban it for future seasons.  "Ok, now it's in the rule book!  No flint jewelry or clothing adornments!"  That's kind of what they did with the giant flag thing.  

 

This might be a whole new twist for future seasons.  See what, where and how the cast smuggles in booty.  

"I have an MP3 player in my manbun!"  

"My bra underwire is a cell phone!"

 ; )

[fishcakes]

Yeah, but flint ornament is very clever and well planned out, whereas the bracelet thing, if Peih Gee had indeed done it, would have been foolish and nonsensical.  What would she have wanted to get out of it, and whatever that would have been, how would she have gotten it out of such a move?  And she would have had a better story made up after the discovery, too.

 

I agree. Besides, if Peih Gee had done it simply to wind Abi up -- and I doubt she did since she has zero history as that kind of shit-stirrer -- why on earth would she stick it in her own bag? She might drop it in the ocean or put it in someone else's bag, but she wouldn't be dumb enough to target herself that way, especially knowing how vindictive Abi can be.

 

Apparently, Production Assistants go through all the contestants clothing and bags beforehand so I've always thought that if I were to play (which I wouldn't because I'm weak and elderly), I wouldn't try to smuggle anything; instead, I'd just blatantly pack a bunch of contraband on the chance that something gets through. Cans of soup, candy bars, lighters, blankets, fake HIIs, fake treemail. They're bound to miss something.

[henripootel]

But what's interesting is that he can only provide public, visible information; he can't do something like say "WHOA, COLBY IS HANDING SOMETHING OFF TO RUSSELL ON THE OTHER TRIBE!  WHAT COULD IT BE?" (no, henripootel, I don't mean 'can't' in some legal sense, I mean he doesn't want to ruin everything that way)

In this case I'm right there with you - no way Jeffy is gonna draw attention to somebody grabbing an HII, that's fair.  Gonna be a bit weird though when word gets out that there are HIIs at ICs - what if people start ignoring the objectives of the contest to frantically search for it?  Getting an HII could be argued to be a bigger win (for yourself) than getting team immunity, meaning a substantial change in what it means to 'win' a challenge.  This could get out of hand.

 

And now that you bring it up, it's the same deal with celebrating rule-breaking (like passing HIIs between tribes).  More evidence (as if any were needed) that Probst and the other producers are colluding on (or at least green-lighting) at least some of the 'big move' nonsense we see - the camera guys know to film it and Probst knows not to draw attention to it.

Edited September 26, 2015 by henripootel

[RedheadZombie]

I'm so glad they showed the clip of Spencer saying "Kass, you have zero chance of winning this game."  It made zero sense for TPTB to back that clip with Spencer narrating that he was too arrogant in Cagayan.  Actually his statement was 100% accurate, especially right when he said it.  Spencer is a fascinating player because he was so visibly frustrated all the time and didn't filter himself.  Didn't care about hurt feelings.  Unfortunately he might change that all this time around; hopefully he'll be fascinating in a different way.

 

What Spencer said may have been correct, but he was arrogant in his delivery.  He did everything but wave his finger in her face.  I liked Spencer, but that really irritated me.

 

Kelly lost her Screech/Dylan Klebold look with all of her surgical procedures. I don't know if it's a good thing or a bad thing.

 

Part of Kelly's transformation seems to be botox and fillers.  We may see a slow transformation back to the Kelly 1.0 if she stays long enough.

 

It was only the 7th season, but for me, Rupert was the catalyst for the shift from hard work and cooperation to gamesmanship and treachery.  And consequently, that was the season of Jonny Fairplay and his un-dead grandma.  

 

Please don't blame Rupert for that pig.  JF planned the dead grandma lie before he ever left home.  That's on him and only him.

 

I would like Woo except for the stunt he pulled in his first season.  I admit it's been long enough for me to forget all the details, but didn't he rifle through Spencer's pants and steal the idol clue?  Then shared it with everyone else?  I thought it was dirty play to steal the clue and he lost me there.  (Coming from a Spencer fan, of course.)

 

Yes, that's when I stopped liking Woo.  He stole the clue, then sprinted back to daddy (Tony) so he wouldn't have to be confronted by Spencer.  That made him sneaky and gutless, in my opinion.

 

I remember Jeff, but not really the peanut butter thing. When I think of Survivor and peanut butter I think of Heidi and Jenna from the Amazon. 

 

So Jeff, all we have to do is jump down to get the peanut butter?  Ok.  We're just going to throw in exposing our breasts, and pulling down our bottoms to flash our crotches.  For the peanut butter, of course.

[RedheadZombie]

Context to Varner being hungry enough to be swayed by peanut butter, I remember Australia as being the season where contestants were actually starving.  Toward the end, Elisabeth was losing hair by the hand full due to lack of nutrition and the older guy she was aligned with (I forgot his name) was so thin that I actually was concerned for his health. The seasons after that, the food rewards seemed to be more plentiful. No more starving to the point of concave stomachs (Elisabeth, again), or eating rats (Season One). 

 

I remember Nick being extremely emaciated.  In the scene immediately following Mike falling in the fire, they panned to Nick who looks like he just escaped Auschwitz.  He kind of points toward Mike, and says in a weak robotic way, "He's hurt real bad".  It was like he was too weak to even react to what happened.  And Roger was Elisabeth's friend.

 

I know that I'm the only one who ever cares about the chickens, but I couldn't watch that first challenge because I was sure they were going to carelessly toss a chicken in to drown.  I heard that one of the chickens got away, so perhaps one did.

[Wandering Snark]

So Jeff, all we have to do is jump down to get the peanut butter?  Ok.  We're just going to throw in exposing our breasts, and pulling down our bottoms to flash our crotches.  For the peanut butter, of course.

To be fair I believe at that point there was chocolate for the girls too...

[pennben]

So, I had to decompress from Big Brother before watching the season opener here.  Two thoughts:

 

1.  I'd love for it to be a running gag throughout having Abi in her talking heads talk about:  [xxxxxx], that was a mistake; [yyyyy], that was a mistake, etc.  I don'l know why, but that/she amuses me.

 

2.  I forgot how much I enjoyed seeing Terry's face when the vote didn't go his way (and I saw it a lot in his season), it never gets old.

Edited September 26, 2015 by pennben

[LadyChatts]

I would think if Shirin planted it we'd see video evidence or at least her bragging about it in confessional.  But who knows.  The stuff they show vs. not show is always a little puzzling.  

 

I do agree with that, but I can't believe they would not show something like that.  Every season is its own HvsV.  Of course, after last season, they may not want to paint Saint Shirin in a bad light.  Or could be if someone did plant it, that person goes on to the final 3 and TPTB worry it'll cast a potential winner in a negative light.  I'm still mad they left out the TC scene with Varner.  I thought this whole episode, after the marooning, was edited oddly.  

[Wings]

Lip injections are temporary and not considered plastic surgery.  I think she looks good.  She had a rough nose to start with.

 

 

They can be either permanent or temporary.  I think she looks good too.  

[Wings]

What did Shirin plant?  Are you talking about last season?  

[peachmangosteen]

What did Shirin plant?  Are you talking about last season?  

 

They're talking about the possibility that Shirin planted Abi's bracelet in Peih-Gee's bag.

Edited September 26, 2015 by peachmangosteen

[fishcakes]

Is there any basis for that theory at all? I don't remember anything from the episode that would indicate that Shirin had anything to do with it.

[Wings]

Logic tells me PG thought the bag was empty.  Occam's razor.  .  

[Guest]

I agree.  Someone in another thread, I think, suggested maybe Shirin planted it.  I thought that was a little farfetched.

 

I know that I'm the only one who ever cares about the chickens, but I couldn't watch that first challenge because I was sure they were going to carelessly toss a chicken in to drown.  I heard that one of the chickens got away, so perhaps one did.

Spencer nearly landed on one, jumping into the little boat.  My daughter pointed out that they had a camera under the basket with the chicken that got away.  Spencer(?) lifted the basket and the view switched to the ground by the chicken.  Crazy.  I guess they knew someone would lift the basket and the chicken would escape and it'd be a cool shot?  It was.  

 

The photography and even sound on this show amazes me.  I don't even know how we hear the people so well, I almost never see mic packs on them.  Are they miced at tribal and some challenges, and around camp there are boom mics we don't see or what?  Do they ask them to strategize within range of the boom mics they've got set up?  Like at certain spots in the woods or beach?  Or do the cameramen also carry sound equipment and just stay pretty close to them?  I don't even hear a lot of wind or ocean noise.  

[ratgirlagogo]

 

The photography and even sound on this show amazes me.  I don't even know how we hear the people so well, I almost never see mic packs on them.  Are they miced at tribal and some challenges, and around camp there are boom mics we don't see or what?  Do they ask them to strategize within range of the boom mics they've got set up?  Like at certain spots in the woods or beach?  Or do the cameramen also carry sound equipment and just stay pretty close to them?  I don't even hear a lot of wind or ocean noise.

If you look at the photos at the bottom of the page in this link from Dalton Ross's recap, you can get an idea of just how big the crew on this show actually is.  Look at that big crowd on the beach!

http://www.ew.com/recap/survivor-season-31-premiere/3

Edited September 26, 2015 by ratgirlagogo

[cooksdelight]

Probst said that they dedicated a camera to following Kelly so that they would not miss her going for the idol

Really? Then booooos to the bozos who weren't watching the camera people. That's your first clue as to a hidden idol... follow the camera. I know they each have their own camera person, but if one is focusing in on the raft, well.....