S32: Scot Pollard

[slowpoked]

I interpreted it differently.  I heard her complaining about Scot's comments during the challenge, suggesting he didn't understand how effective teams work.  She seemed to want him to not say anything negative to her during the challenge because to her that is being anti-team.  YMMV.

That series of conversations, from the actual challenge to when they got back to camp, has been spliced and edited to death I'm sure. Alecia may have said some nasty stuff in between too, but it's kinda telling that editors didn't show it that way. Alecia ended up being an insignificant player anyway so I'm not sure what they would have lost by showing whatever nasty things she could have said, to balance things out, so to speak. To me, TPTB really just wanted to emphasize that these are unrootable guys and the audience should not root for them and they're eventually get their commeupance because they're not going to win anyway. Probst doubles down by tweeting bullying as a teachable moment for parents for this particular episode.

 

What was funny to me in that exchange though is Fatty whining "then why you couldn't be on board with this team???!!!" Um, maybe because you have treated her like shit from Day One and maybe that's why she wants no part of your team? Who wants to be on a team where they get repeatedly shit on??

[Special K]

That series of conversations, from the actual challenge to when they got back to camp, has been spliced and edited to death I'm sure. Alecia may have said some nasty stuff in between too, but it's kinda telling that editors didn't show it that way. Alecia ended up being an insignificant player anyway so I'm not sure what they would have lost by showing whatever nasty things she could have said, to balance things out, so to speak. To me, TPTB really just wanted to emphasize that these are unrootable guys and the audience should not root for them and they're eventually get their commeupance because they're not going to win anyway. Probst doubles down by tweeting bullying as a teachable moment for parents for this particular episode.

 

This is exactly it.

[laurakaye]

I am somewhat floored as to how different Scot is when he's not around Bounty.  But at the same time, shame on Scot for going along with the cool kids and picking on Alecia while they were all on Brawn.  Interesting how he wanted to help break the smallest woman in the game, but has a man-crush on the smallest guy.

 

It will be interesting to see if Scot goes back to his original personality once he's aligned with Bounty.

[KimberStormer]

See, I don't think it's that Scot's nicer now that he's away from Cupcake...I think it's now that he's away from Alecia.  I don't mean that to blame Alecia or defend Cupcake.  But Scot was never really mean to anyone except Alecia and he was relentlessly terrible to her.  (Even more than Cupcake, who did stuff like say "look I don't mean to be an asshole", but Scot just acted like it was objective fact that he was right.)  I think he just hated her, and it wasn't Cupcake's influence.

[fishcakes]

Even more than Cupcake, who did stuff like say "look I don't mean to be an asshole", but Scot just acted like it was objective fact that he was right.

 

I agree with this in terms of what we were shown, but I wonder if Jason didn't get a kinder edit than Scot, and a couple of things make me think that. First, in the episode where Alecia got voted out, Scot was the one we saw being nasty to her in scene after scene, but then Scot did a talking head about Jason regretting his own behavior and Jason did a TH about how he didn't mean to blow up at Alecia the way he did but she's-a-terrible-example-of-womanhood-i-have-daughters-blah-blah-blah, and I was like, "douchebags say what?" When did Jason blow up at her? He was his usual dickish self, but not more dickish than normal. So I have a feeling that there was a nasty incident of Jason tearing into Alecia that was maybe so reminiscent of Will and Shirin that it wasn't shown. And second, because Jason knew he'd crossed some kind of line before the show even aired and talked to his wife about it, leading her to make those preemptive comments on social media about how she knew her husband was going to be accused of bullying and that it was going to be viewer overreaction. 

 

It's pure speculation on my part, but I'm fairly convinced there was a re-edit of this season once TPTB saw the negative reaction to Season 30. I think they thought the audience would side with Dan and Will over Shirin and with Scot and Jason over Alecia. Once they saw the former wasn't the case, they had to soften the depictions of Scot and Jason, but both of them being creeps at heart, there's only so much they can do to make them look better. Even with a soft edit, they both come across like assholes.

 

I think he just hated her, and it wasn't Cupcake's influence.

 

I do think that's true. Even if Jason weren't there, Scot still would have been a jerk to her. I just generally get the impression that Jason is a worse person, although that's only a gut feeling, and not based on anything tangible that I've seen.

[peachmangosteen]

It's pure speculation on my part, but I'm fairly convinced there was a re-edit of this season once TPTB saw the negative reaction to Season 30. I think they thought the audience would side with Dan and Will over Shirin and with Scot and Jason over Alecia. Once they saw the former wasn't the case, they had to soften the depictions of Scot and Jason, but both of them being creeps at heart, there's only so much they can do to make them look better. Even with a soft edit, they both come across like assholes.

 

I could easily see this being true. I think it's fairly obvious TPTB did not expect the response to WA to be what it was so I think they might have had to go back and re-edit this season after they realized most people don't actually want to see a bunch of sexist dicks treat a woman like shit.

 

I wonder what it was about Alecia that got to Scot? He seemed oddly obsessed with being a father to her. It kinda gives me the creeps tbh.

[fishcakes]

I wonder what it was about Alecia that got to Scot?

 

My guess is that it bugged him that he couldn't get to her. They could be mean, condescendingly "helpful," or whatever, and she just went on and played her game and lived her life as if their manly opinions from on high were of no consequence to her. How dare she. I mean, it was a terrible way to play the game, but aside from that, it was pretty admirable.

[ByaNose]

It will be interesting to see if Scot goes all Mean Girls once he's back with Jason. When Scot hooked up with Tai he was much friendlier. It really could be that he just didn't get along with Alecia but with Jason egging him on it just made it worse. Next week, I will be keeping my eye on Scot and his buddy, Jason. LOL!!!!

[Dobian]

I interpreted it kind of this way:

 

Alecia:  Teammates cheer on their teammates, even if they aren't contributing the same.  Because that's what teams do.

 

Scot: Don't tell me how teams work.  I was on a team with NBA champions, and we haze and bully anyone less talented.

 

The irony is, Scot was always one of the least talented players on every team he played on.

[Nashville]

I'm guessing it was that she was annoying and phony and pushed his buttons until he snapped some, so she could play the scrappy victim on tv since she couldn't play any other role, given her lack of allies.  I know, I'm reading waaayyy between the lines but that was the feeling I got.  

 

You ain't the only one...

 

I'm getting a vibe, though...

...From both Bounty's and Scot's comments - and attitudes while making the comments - and Cydney's silent-but-apparent agreement on more than one occasion...

...that there was a helluva lot of annoying and provocative behavior on Alecia's part which never made it to our screens.

 

Scot's demeanor in particular.  Purely personal observation on my part, but to me he didn't come across as someone being mean for the sake of being mean - his statements to Alecia had the molar-grinding presentation of somebody who has been tried to their last nerve, and then some.  May be surprising to some, considering what Scot did say, but my impression was he was struggling mightily to hold back what he REALLY wanted to say.

 

I'm betting a helluva lot of interesting film ended up on THAT particular cutting room floor....

[fishcakes]

I do agree that Alecia was annoying, and very well may have pushed the douchebros to their limit. But who knows how long that took? They might be like toddlers who have super short fuses and throw a tantrum the first time things don't go exactly the way they want them to. Scot and Jason being annoyed and angry doesn't mean their treatment of her was justified. Anyone who's ever had a job has probably been irritated by a coworker to the point of snapping every damn day. But that doesn't make it okay to yell, insult, ostracize, and make fun of the person who's irritating them. If Scot and Jason were that irritated, then Cydney likely was too. Based on what we saw, Cydney didn't like Alecia all that much either, but at least she treated her decently.

Edited March 26, 2016 by fishcakes

[peachmangosteen]

When Scot paraphrased that classic abuser line "It's your fault I hit you!" any kind thoughts I had about him evaporated. And then he said something on twitter about how he wanted to be a father figure to Alecia and the whole thing just gave me a very creepy vibe.

Edited March 26, 2016 by peachmangosteen

[fishcakes]

Maybe when he says "I want to be her father figure," he means, "I want her to do what I tell her to do and if she doesn't, I want to have the authority to punish her." Yeah, that sounds great, Scot!

Edited March 26, 2016 by fishcakes

[pfk505]

His edit has drastically changed now that Alecia is gone which suggests to me that the narrative the editors went with in the beginning wasn't exactly fair and balanced.  Not really an excuse for shitty behaviour but I'll bet she was extremely annoying.

[fishcakes]

I don't know why I'm being a Scot apologist, I don't exactly love the guy

 

Ha, I know, I felt the same way when I was defending Peter a couple of weeks back. I was thinking, "why am I bothering with this? This guy is nothing to me."

[KimberStormer]

fishcakes, on 25 Mar 2016 - 07:26 AM, said:

My guess is that it bugged him that he couldn't get to her. They could be mean, condescendingly "helpful," or whatever, and she just went on and played her game and lived her life as if their manly opinions from on high were of no consequence to her. How dare she. I mean, it was a terrible way to play the game, but aside from that, it was pretty admirable.

 

I think this has been proven absolutely right with this episode.  Scot was gleeful when he hid the machete and axe.  He didn't do it out of rage but calculated dickishness.  What made him lose his temper?  When these mere girls had the temerity to not be phased by his sabotage.  He didn't get to them, they simply got along without the tools.  And he got angrier and angrier until he exploded.  This guy just needs to have people (women) react, be cowed and humbled and terrified by him.  Super gross, and absolutely pathetic.

[Dobian]

Scot's just a douchebag, I'm sure he was a cancer on every team played in the NBA.  The thing is, he's too stupid to realize that he undermined any hope he had of winning the million.  He gets a vote maybe if Jason or Tai are on the jury, and that's it.

Edited April 16, 2016 by Dobian

[peachmangosteen]

What made him lose his temper?  When these mere girls had the temerity to not be phased by his sabotage.  He didn't get to them, they simply got along without the tools.  And he got angrier and angrier until he exploded.

 

Honestly I found him slightly terrifying as he sat and simmered over the fact that the women didn't need him/were able to live despite his sabotage. Like really that was scary.

Edited April 15, 2016 by peachmangosteen

[NutMeg]

Why do TPTB think we need villains? Granted, Scot played into their hand, but they always find a way to make someone a villain. I think I would quite like a season with no villain, Alas, Jeff thinks the seasons when villains are voted out early are boring. Jeff and I have very different tastes. And I'm such a loyal viewer that I stick with even the worst seasons, because I think a bad Survivor season is still better that most other reality shows.     

[fishcakes]

There have always been villains, but they used to just be game villains. Hatch for secretly forming an alliance, Jerri for openly forming an alliance, Boston Rob for voting out Hunter the Golden Boy, Amazon Rob for lying and breaking promises right and left. Somewhere along the line, TPTB decided that it might be fun to have actual dirtbags on the show (not that Hatch isn't a dirtbag, but we didn't know until later) treating other people as badly as possible. They figure that no conflict is boring, but even if they cast an entire group of decent people, there would still be conflict, just not the kind that makes me despair for humanity. It's like they have no confidence in the basic premise of their own show, so they bring in the garbage people to unnecessarily liven things up.

[laurakaye]

What Fishcakes said.^^

 

If I want uncomfortable conflict, I'll tune into any reality show on VH1.  Survivor is better than that, at least in my mind.  It's been running for - what - 17 years now?  It's doing a lot of things right.  I'd hate to see it devolve into something it doesn't need to be by casting the likes of Foley, Bench and Bounty.

 

I still hold a bit of a grudge for Brandon Hantz ever being cast.  There's no way that kid went through extensive interview processes and not one person picked up on the fact that he was unstable.  He was cast because of who his uncle is, and provided me with several hours of squeamish behavior that made me want him to get off my show and not ever come back.  Same with Foley, Will, Bounty, Bench.  I don't want to see these people on Survivor ever again.

[ProfCrash]

Scot is a douche but I don't see him as a Dan or a Will. I am not certain I even see him like Russell although his behavior falls into Russell terrain.

 

I could care less about his NBA career. He had to be a talented basketball player to make it to the NBA and an above average player for his position to last 11 years. He was not a super star but he is clearly a gifted athlete. That should have helped his tribe in group challenges but his height and weight will probably hurt him in many of the individual challenges.

 

His behavior towards Alecia was pretty awful but she didn't seem to be too upset by or it. She sure as hell told him what she was thinking and was comfortable talking to him about their differences. It looked more like a personality clash then any thing else. He was not exactly mature in how he dealt with it bt he never came close to Will or Dan levels of awfulness.

 

His childish reaction to losing Nick was awesome to watch. Talk about a melt down that is going to cost him the game. Hiding crap and putting out the fire was just beyond stupid. First, it hurts him because he needs to water and the fire as much as everyone else. Second it destroys any good feelings that he might have had with people in the other alliance. He might make the finals but he cannot win unless he is up against Tai and Kyle. In that scenario I see Tai winning it unless people are pissed that Tai didn't say something to Scot or Kyle.

 

This is beyond Russell level of stupid game play. This is announcing that you are sabotaging everyone and that you don't care. It is the equivalent of mooning the other team that has just whooped up on you so that no matter what else you do in your playing career all anyone is going to remember is your mooning the other team that just whooped you.

 

So he is a douche but it is entertaining watching him melt down this badly. I mean, really? Listening to RHAP after this episode was absolutely amazing.

[Guest]

What's so weird is it's like he doesn't recognize the jury effect.  I can kind of see going all villain for the cameras if your game is already shot but he was sitting kind of pretty before this, it seemed like.  

 

I hope there are many more challenges where huge feet are a huge detriment, like the last few.  

[ByaNose]

I wonder if he and Jason have discussed going to the Final to help each other? Basically, they think they will both lose against anyone else. It could have been talked about but cut out of the show. I can see Jason not realizing it or caring but Scot does seem smarter but playing carelessly. Of course, if it's a Final 3 forget everything I said. LOL!!!

[kikaha]

I don't think Scot and Jason were so crazy or stupid.  They lost their numbers and thought they were going next (which was probably true.)  Their goal was to shake up the others, so they might make some poor decisions.  I personally think the others DID make a poor decision.  They booted one of their own, and it didn't cost the Terrible Trio a thing.  The TT still have two idols, which they can turn into a super-idol.  And now the women's alliance has one less member. 

 

Scot and Jason are so arrogant, it will really surprise me if they make F3.  If they do, one of them has a fair chance to win.  They need to start doing damage control, though, real soon. 

 

As we head into the home stretch, this is still the most uninspiring season I've seen, by a landslide. 

[ByaNose]

The season started out great pre-merge. Also, Scot was more likable when he wasn't with Jason. Now, I am beginning to see why Probst didn't push it as much when promoting it. There have been worse seasons but I guess he could see where the Scot & Jason stuff might turn people off. Also, if they make it to the Final 2 I could also understand why he didn't scream "Great Season" since he knows they are pretty unlikable together. TIme will tell........

[LadyChatts]

Lesson to future Survivors: never assume you are safe.  Especially safe enough where you purposely drop out of a challenge.  If you feel that confident, you are going home.  

 

Also, don't give your friends the immunity idol.  Even if you trust them.  What's worse than going home with your idol in your pocket, is your idol going home in their pocket.

 

Lastly?  Tai rocks.  Good bye Scot.  Enjoy Ponderosa.  Hopefully your BFF joins you there very, very soon.

[piequinn35]

Byebye asshole. :)

[Bryce Lynch]

Lesson to future Survivors: never assume you are safe. Especially safe enough where you purposely drop out of a challenge. If you feel that confident, you are going home.

Also, don't give your friends the immunity idol. Even if you trust them. What's worse than going home with your idol in your pocket, is your idol going home in their pocket.

Lastly? Tai rocks. Good bye Scot. Enjoy Ponderosa. Hopefully your BFF joins you there very, very soon.

Maybe Scot and Jason will sabotage Ponderosa together.

[LanceM]

Interview with Scot.

 

http://www.ew.com/article/2016/04/21/survivor-kaoh-rong-scot-pollard

 

I have to laugh at him labeling tai's move as selfish. Well duh, of course it is selfish.  This is an individual game after all and Tai is going to use the idol to save himself not others.

 

I do kind of agree with him to a point about Alecia as well in that I am sure lots of footage of what Alecia was saying to him was left on the cutting room floor.

Edited April 21, 2016 by LanceM

[piequinn35]

I wished Tai didn't return Bounty's idol so he can have 2 hahaha :D

[LadyChatts]

I wished Tai didn't return Bounty's idol so he can have 2 hahaha :D

 

On the plus side, at least Bounty doesn't even have his idol, thanks to it being voted off with Scot.  But yeah, it'd be great if Tai still had both.

[Jersey Guy 87]

So Scot called Tai selfish for siding with an alliance that will just get rid of him when they don't need him.  Unlike Scot and Kyle who were just using Tai and will get rid of him when they don't need him.

 

He also thinks that people are claiming Tai was bullied by Kyle and himself - I haven't seen people making those claims, just claims they were using Tai.  Which they were.

 

His comments about Alecia show he has no clue.  If he thinks Kyle stared calling her Alecia as a friendly name he's even dumber than he played.  Of course it was used in a derogatory way.

[LadyChatts]

From the EW interview:

 

And if anybody is beatable in the game of Survivor this season, it’s Scot and Jason. Scot because he’s an athlete and nobody’s going to give him a million dollars, and Jason because of the way that him and I played the game and seemingly, according to the audience, have made everybody in the tribe not like us.

 

 

Actually Scot, you weren't getting the million for the same reason Jason wasn't: you are both assholes.  Your "status" had nothing to do with it.

 

I’m sitting there going, ‘Why would Tai betray us to go back to an alliance that is literally just using him to get rid of us?

 

 

Isn't that exactly what he and Jason were doing with Tai?  Those two can not tell me with a straight face that they actually intended to take Tai to the end.  I don't know that I believe they even realized they had no shot of winning, until watching back and getting the feedback from the fans.  I haven't read his other interviews yet, but he doesn't seem very self aware.

Edited April 21, 2016 by LadyChatts

[fishcakes]

So big of him that he bears Alecia no ill will. So very very big.

 

And did I call her Blondie all the time? No. I may have called her Blondie once or twice, but who called her Blondie when she was voted out? Neal! The next episode after she’s out, Neal goes ‘Bye, bye Blondie.’ And, by the way, is that a derogatory term. She’s got blond hair.

 

Ah, the Ben Browning defense. "How is calling Yasmin 'ghetto trash' racist? She's from the ghetto and she's trash. I'm not a racist. I'm just saying facts."

[Special K]

I bet if Scot called someone "Fatty" instead of their name it would be OK so long as that person was actually fat. 

 

Seriously, don't you learn this by middle school?

[backformore]

Why would Tai betray us to go back to an alliance that is literally just using him to get rid of us?’ So that was what was going through my mind. And I was shocked and I expressed it. I don’t have any hard feelings towards Tai. I think it was a very selfish move and we’ll see if it plays out in his favor and works for him long-term.… As it appears, he just got manipulated by Aubry.

 

Yeah, how dare Tai get manipulated by someone else, when you were trying to manipulate him!  What a traitor!

[Wings]

This is the best part.  Hysterical!

 

"I think it was a very selfish move and we’ll see if it plays out in his favor and works for him long-term.… As it appears, he just got manipulated by Aubry."

Edited April 22, 2016 by wings707

[ByaNose]

I will say the one thing I had forgotten (from his exit interviews) was Alecia. It's funny how I always forget about the pre-merge people. It seems so long ago that the big storyline was Alecia, Jason & Scot. And, it was only 2 months ago. I have horrible short term and long term memory. I would be horrible in a memory challenge on Survivor. LOL!!!

[slowpoked]

So wait, when someone else did a legitimate gameplay, Fatty's Sidekick called it a very selfish move? But if he had done the same thing, I'm sure he would have said "This is Survivor."

 

Typical airhead jock.

 

So far, that's been his defense so far for all of his asshole moves and villain edit - "It's a game for a million dollars, come spend time with me in real life and you'll see how I really am."

 

I dunno, but I'm a believer of the worst situations actually bring out someone's character more than the good times. Not every single player of Survivor played the game in an asshole way.

 

Buh-bye.

[NutMeg]

What's worse than going home with your idol in your pocket, is your idol going home in their pocket.

Very well put. And I burst out laughing when I read that! Isn't that a first on Survivor?

 

Edited to clarify: is it the first time that someone goes home with someone else's idol in his/her pocket? 

Edited April 22, 2016 by NutMeg

[violet and green]

Someone else's idol in their pocket. This is so good!

[LadyChatts]

Very well put. And I burst out laughing when I read that! Isn't that a first on Survivor?

 

Edited to clarify: is it the first time that someone goes home with someone else's idol in his/her pocket? 

 

Yep.  Which made it all the more better.  Hey, they aren't winning the game, but at least he and his tattooed BFF still made their mark on this season.

[Guest]

My perspective was, you want to get to the end of the game with people you think you can beat.

 

Scot doesn't understand he screwed up by letting Tai know he wasn't going to the end with those two, even if he had saved him. 

 

“Now, I don’t know if that’s reality, with a few exceptions, but the portrayal of the villains made us unlikable to the tribe..."

 

I don't understand this.  The tribe didn't see a portrayal, they saw the actual events.  Were you a villain or was that an edit?   He seems to want it both ways.  

 

“He (Jason) could have waited (to give Scot the idol only when he needed it), but it was just a sign of trust…. And Tai didn’t do that and that should have been my first clue that he wasn’t going to give me the idol,

 

Tai didn't have individual immunity like Kyle, idiot.

 

On whether the sabotage was actually strategy or just revenge:

“It was absolutely both. It was a reaction. And again, what people don’t see — there was nobody else out in the ocean getting giant clams besides me. There was nobody else spear fishing and collecting crabs besides me.

 

So they were getting revenge on you for ... collecting clams?  

[simplyme]

I still hold a bit of a grudge for Brandon Hantz ever being cast.

That was the point where I quit watching for a long time. This is the first season I've watched any part of since, and I've only watched sporadically. Before that Survivor had been my favorite show, but casting people who were obviously unstable made me so uncomfortable and disgusted that I quit watching. Eff that.

So they were getting revenge on you for ... collecting clams?

Those were some baaaaaaad clams, man,

[azshadowwalker]

Scot doesn't understand he screwed up by letting Tai know he wasn't going to the end with those two, even if he had saved him.

When did this happen? I don't remember either of them ever saying that to Tai. I remember them promising him final three till the very end. There was never any indication whether they were being truthful with the promise to him or the same one to Julia, but they were shown making the promise to him right before Scot left.

So they were getting revenge on you for ... collecting clams?

That's not what he's saying. He's saying *he* was getting revenge because he was a provider, then they went against him. It's still petty bullshit, but it makes perfect sense.

Edited April 24, 2016 by azshadowwalker

[Guest]

Yeah, I think you're right about me misunderstanding the revenge thing.  I thought the question was about the sabotage of the guys' plan to use the super idol, not Scot's sabotage of camp.

 

But I recall Scot saying in confessional that he and Kyle wouldn't take Tai to the end because they'd lose, I think.  Or maybe he just said it to Julia but I tend to believe him.  Julia would get labeled a coat tail rider in final 3 with them in a way Tai, who had found an idol and won challenges and provided around camp, wouldn't.  

 

While he didn't outright tell Tai he wouldn't take him to the end, his overall treatment of Tai let Tai know he was no equal.  

Edited April 24, 2016 by Guest

[azshadowwalker]

By his own way of thinking, Alecia should have put out the fire because they were targeting her.

[LanceM]

This is really not a good look for Alecia at all, and it makes me wonder as I said on the previous page what was left on the cutting room floor regarding Alecia's behavior on the island.

 

https://twitter.com/ScotPollard31/status/724449517047685120

[azshadowwalker]

Did he say something about her dad? If so, who cares? If you can dish it out about other people's family relationships, you better be ready to take it, too. This "my kids are minors, so you can't say anything about my relationship with them" is bullshit. If you meddle in other families' lives, you are looking for the same in return.