SnideAsides February 2, 2015 Share February 2, 2015 Freaking Dutch people, making me spell sixteen-letter words in thread titles. *grumble* Link to comment
EllieH February 2, 2015 Share February 2, 2015 Interestingly, the official website shows Rik with a sizable lead in the viewer poll, whereas he's at the bottom of my suspect list. Interesting... I've basically written him off as the Mole, but that makes me think I'm missing something that other folks are seeing? I'll have to pay closer attention next week! Link to comment
SnideAsides February 2, 2015 Share February 2, 2015 By the way, apparently it was Rik's news program that was involved in the whole situation with that gunman last week. Link to comment
stellavision February 2, 2015 Share February 2, 2015 (edited) Apropos of nothing (or, at least, providing absolutely no new information): The flash of the map-of-the-Netherlands challenge that shows in the credits shows a sign that says "Dem [or maybe it's Den] Bosch," which, along with her comment about being night-blind in one of the early challenges, made me swear up and down early on that I was going to pick De Mol early and dammit, it was Evelien (Bosch)! Yeah, see where that got me. Also: Huh, Geldrop is Art's hometown, per Wikipedia. I wonder whether he came up with the idea of that challenge! Edited February 2, 2015 by stellavision Link to comment
SnideAsides February 3, 2015 Share February 3, 2015 Den Bosch. Short for 's-Hertogenbosch. (...Exactly.) Interesting... I've basically written him off as the Mole, but that makes me think I'm missing something that other folks are seeing? I'll have to pay closer attention next week! It may be that he's using a Mole strategy that's been seen before in another Dutch season that hasn't been subtitled yet. I don't actually know if this is the case, but I remember picking the Mole very easily in the Japan season because their style was similar to an old Australian Mole even though apparently it was unexpected for the Dutch. Link to comment
SnideAsides February 3, 2015 Share February 3, 2015 Are we all prepared for the annual Episode 6 underwhelmingness? Link to comment
SnideAsides February 3, 2015 Share February 3, 2015 I mostly needed something to put there because Avrotros doesn't put out episode descriptions (slash they'd be in Dutch anyway), but looking back the past Episode 6s seem to often be the low points in their seasons. The most obvious case is that terrible episode in South Africa with the flight/church/horse challenges (which I would totally submit for the EHG Nonac if audio clips for this show were possible, although I'd probably submit something like the El Salvador premiere for the Canon proper first), but it was also the fairly dull Japan episode with the stairs/photos/rafting challenges, the "remember all the challenges" episode in Mexico, and the "find the pieces of this boat" episode in the Philippines last year. I don't know, it could just be that I'm personally not a fan of the "get inside information!"-style filler challenge which seems to almost always turn up in Episode 6. Link to comment
Trip February 4, 2015 Share February 4, 2015 My least favorite episode is one that I believe was lifted wholesale from Australia: fishing, followed by staying overnight on an island. Boooooring. Link to comment
EllieH February 5, 2015 Share February 5, 2015 It may be that he's using a Mole strategy that's been seen before in another Dutch season that hasn't been subtitled yet. That makes sense, if it hasn't been subtitled, I have not watched it. All my knowledge of Dutch comes from watching this show, with subtitles, which means I have gleaned some random vocabulary words (Mol, Jokers, etc.) over the years. Link to comment
SnideAsides February 5, 2015 Share February 5, 2015 If it's the one I'm thinking of (in the Australia/Bali season), that's also an Episode 6. (I only noticed this because I'm working on an update for the challenge guide I wrote a few years ago, and I always found myself thinking "Oh. That episode." right when I went to start on an Episode 6.) Link to comment
EllieH February 5, 2015 Share February 5, 2015 which I would totally submit for the EHG Nonac if audio clips for this show were possible, although I'd probably submit something like the El Salvador premiere for the Canon proper first Technically they are possible since they could be pulled off YouTube... That being said, I probably spent way too much time stewing over how that could possibly work today. Have someone read the subtitles as a translation/ voiceover while the regular show could be heard in the background? Skip audio clips of the show although and just describe the key moments? Or submit either BtVS's "Hush" or that episode of Frasier where Niles is mostly silent in the first act, but there's a ton of physical comedy with him setting things on fire and passing out from seeing blood, and use that as a litmus test to see how EHG handles a lack of audio? Or perhaps the most obvious -- Trip? Are you up to the challenge of submitting Wie is de Mol next time you're on the podcast? :) Link to comment
SnideAsides February 5, 2015 Share February 5, 2015 I had a spare hour and decided to rewatch the Survivor parody episode. It's one of those episodes that's really really good and really really bad at the same time, but I think I like it overall. It's odd how quickly and easily they adapt to the actual survival part of the camping challenge, then the Connect Four/Tribal Council segment should in theory be a decent look into team dynamics but instead winds up being an extended popularity contest - not that I'm complaining, because I'm totally #TeamFreek when the alternatives include Tygo - but despite that the real highlight is the village challenge where Freek has to find Art without being detected. It's loosely based on an excellent Australian challenge (where the player had to evade the others in downtown Melbourne for an hour while carrying a mannequin), and I was always sad it never got reused so it was a very welcome surprise to see it randomly turn up here thirteen years later. Also, how hilarious is it that "Survivor films in the Philippines" was such a thing that it got satirised on Dutch television of all places? Link to comment
SnideAsides February 6, 2015 Share February 6, 2015 There's another possibility I just had pointed out to me - we haven't had any straight men in the final three for a while (the last two were Patrick and Art himself four years ago, and apparently the jury's still out on Art), which could mean some people in the audience are expecting the producers to pick one as the Mole to ensure there'd be another one this time. Link to comment
stellavision February 7, 2015 Share February 7, 2015 I have a new theory as to who de Mol might be. I'm only about 50-50 on whether this was a real clue, though. The notes from de Mol were delivered with yellow flowers, which might have been daisies. "Margriet" means "daisy" in Dutch. Just sayin'. Link to comment
Watermelon February 7, 2015 Share February 7, 2015 Which one is Margriet? I can't keep the lady names straight. Too many Ms Link to comment
stellavision February 7, 2015 Share February 7, 2015 Marlijn = the pale-blonde one Martine = the darker-blonde one, I think also the oldest of the group Margriet = short reddish hair. I hadn't been paying attention to Margriet at all until I saw the daisies. Now I want to go back and watch the previous episodes to see whether she was doing anything Mol-like! Link to comment
Watermelon February 7, 2015 Share February 7, 2015 (edited) So Margiet is the one who was the treasurer? I could see it, I suppose. I tend to suspect Marlijn, but I have a hard time differentiating between true mole-ish behavior and behavior made to make the other contestants think they are the mole. I also halfway suspect Chris, because he just looks suspect, and moles tend to be very sad when their actual friends exit the game. Almost guilty. Edited February 7, 2015 by Watermelon Link to comment
Trip February 7, 2015 Share February 7, 2015 The jury's still out on Art? That's my favorite rumor I've read in a long time. (That said, I have excellent gaydar, and he has never pinged it.) Link to comment
Trip February 8, 2015 Share February 8, 2015 (edited) OK, let's talk about the obvious clue. The unused numbers in the game were 3 4 7 8 9 12 14 15 19 21. Those are all within the alphabetical range, and they all lead to really nice letters: C D G H I L N O S U. With three vowels, seven consonants, and no yucky letters like X or Z, that is almost guaranteed to anagram to a clue to the Mol's identity. You can't get anyone's first name out of it (I don't know all their last names), but maybe it's a hometown or a show they were on or something. Or perhaps it's just a two- or three-word phrase, presumably in Dutch, which I won't be able to figure out. ETA: A friend tells me it anagrams into the Dutch word "onschuldig", meaning "innocent". So maybe it's not a clue after all -- perhaps it's like an American puzzlemaker hiding the phrase RED HERRING along a wrong trail. Edited February 8, 2015 by Trip Link to comment
EllieH February 8, 2015 Share February 8, 2015 I also halfway suspect Chris, because he just looks suspect, and moles tend to be very sad when their actual friends exit the game. Almost guilty. He's also had two of his roommates leave, which makes me wonder if he's encouraging them on whatever wrong thinking track they are on? Maybe he feels bad when it works well enough to send them home? Link to comment
Trip February 9, 2015 Share February 9, 2015 I was really surprised by this week's elimination. Between Viktor's leaving last week and the helicopter shenanigans this week, I was just about ready to lock down Carolina as my Mol. I still really doubt it's Chris; his Mol-ing is just too obvious. He feels like the eventual winner to me. I feel like it has to be one of the M's, but I don't know which one. Link to comment
SnideAsides February 9, 2015 Share February 9, 2015 Apparently. My clumsy use of Google Translate when fact-checking that point seems to suggest he's one of those people who's not particularly in-your-face with their sexuality, but that he's co-hosted the network's coverage of Amsterdam's Gay Pride parade with Kees from the South Africa season for a couple of years now. Link to comment
B-Side February 9, 2015 Share February 9, 2015 I've been thinking it's one of the M's as well, and I've had my eye on Martine/Margriet since the beginning of the three - Marlijn just seems like she's in it for the fun of it. At this point, I've written off Martine for the mol as well - she's clearly trying to seem Mol-ish, but can't decide on a consistent strategy to do so. There's been a few instances where she's tried to play the dumb blonde, but it's not consistent enough. With her actions this episode, I'm definitely leaning more to Margriet as the mol - she argued for the E over a comma and a dash, which needed more cars AND made the final display for the helicopter appear more like a code than an amount. During the ropes on the beach challenge, she seemed to immediately pull one of the ropes that Art called while also yelling to check with the group. Link to comment
SnideAsides February 9, 2015 Share February 9, 2015 No, I am Spartacus! (Wait. No.) No, I am de Mol! Link to comment
stellavision February 9, 2015 Share February 9, 2015 (edited) - she argued for the E over a comma and a dash, which needed more cars AND made the final display for the helicopter appear more like a code than an amount. This, plus the maybe-daisies, is what made me start to wonder about her. There was just no way they were going to be able to drive the trucks such that the euro sign was distinguishable as a euro sign and not a capital E. Edited February 9, 2015 by stellavision Link to comment
Trip February 14, 2015 Share February 14, 2015 I don't think I've ever been so confused by a season of WIDM. I can make good arguments for why everyone left could be the Mol, and I have no good idea which person it actually is. 1 Link to comment
stellavision February 14, 2015 Share February 14, 2015 There were daisies on the table when the kandidaten were having breakfast and Martine stepped out so that Margriet (or was it Marlijn?) could plant the seed about the black exemption. It's starting to feel like this is like the fishing boats in S14 being a reference to Susan's last name of Visser (fisher). So I'm not 100% sure, but I'm still betting on Margriet. I'm ruling out Rik based on his having pointed out how he's contributed no money to the pot. Two or three of the players spoke in more generalities -- I would think the real Mol would do that rather than try to get the other players thinking about what he or she has really done to keep the pot empty. Which...OMG, the pot is SO empty. Link to comment
Watermelon February 14, 2015 Share February 14, 2015 I checked my old predictions and I had Rik as a possible mole. Yay me for him still being in the running. All of these people are super suspect. I get the feeling Rick or Marlijn are the mole because they both know Martine supposedly has the black exemption and STILL neither one of them have bothered to ask to see it. Either one of them, as a mole, would be happy to let that lie linger in the group as it scares the other contestants into not using the jokers. Link to comment
Trip February 14, 2015 Share February 14, 2015 I mean, the problem is that in some respects, ALL of them are the Mol. They're all actively trying to keep money out of the pot so that people will think they're the Mol, and nobody's trying to put money into the pot as a result. The problem becomes determining which of them is SUPPOSED to be doing this. Link to comment
Watermelon February 14, 2015 Share February 14, 2015 I guess I'll change my 2 guesses to Rik and Chris. Only because of the emotional reaction to Ajoued leaving. I cannot wait until the finale when things finally become clear. Link to comment
EllieH February 15, 2015 Share February 15, 2015 (edited) Which...OMG, the pot is SO empty. It'll either be a surprisingly cheap season or they'll have some really high euro games at the end to try and bring the balance up to a normal level? Also, it occurred to me going into the episode that this was the point last season where they had a "nobody gets eliminated" episode, and shocker, here we are at another one! Edited February 15, 2015 by EllieH Link to comment
SnideAsides February 16, 2015 Share February 16, 2015 Prepare for a massacre? (Or not, since the reunion is scheduled for March 5th which just means it'll be the same mid-finale elimination format as last year.) (Also, mid-finale eliminations have to be the only recurring reality TV twist worse than second-chance webisodes.) Link to comment
SnideAsides February 17, 2015 Share February 17, 2015 It does seem like the show's getting more and more formulaic in the last couple of seasons. I can't wait to see which popular board game will be turned into the challenge for the Exemption For The Finale. Link to comment
stellavision February 17, 2015 Share February 17, 2015 I get the feeling Rick or Marlijn are the mole because they both know Martine supposedly has the black exemption and STILL neither one of them have bothered to ask to see it. Either one of them, as a mole, would be happy to let that lie linger in the group as it scares the other contestants into not using the jokers. Would the mole want people to hold onto jokers, though? I think a candidate would, since the longer people don't use their jokers, the greater the chance that one of them will be eliminated with jokers that s/he could have used. The mole, on the other hand, is still around no matter who uses the jokers -- but would like players to keep trading money for more jokers. And trading money for jokers is a less appealing proposition if you think they're going to be negated by the black exemption. I suspect Rik and Marlijn know there's no black exemption any longer, and are trying to get the other players to believe there is one so that they're not at a disadvantage vs players who are using jokers. Link to comment
Watermelon February 17, 2015 Share February 17, 2015 Would the mole want people to hold onto jokers, though? I think a candidate would, since the longer people don't use their jokers, the greater the chance that one of them will be eliminated with jokers that s/he could have used. The mole, on the other hand, is still around no matter who uses the jokers -- but would like players to keep trading money for more jokers. And trading money for jokers is a less appealing proposition if you think they're going to be negated by the black exemption. I suspect Rik and Marlijn know there's no black exemption any longer, and are trying to get the other players to believe there is one so that they're not at a disadvantage vs players who are using jokers. I don't think I'm smart enough for this game lol. So at this point the two older M ladies know Martine is lying about the black exemption and want to convince the others about it. Rik & Marlijn go back and forth over whether they believe Martine has it. And Chris thinks it's bullshit and knows Martine doesn't have it. Link to comment
stellavision February 17, 2015 Share February 17, 2015 I don't think I'm smart enough for this game lol. So at this point the two older M ladies know Martine is lying about the black exemption and want to convince the others about it. Rik & Marlijn go back and forth over whether they believe Martine has it. And Chris thinks it's bullshit and knows Martine doesn't have it. No, I'm the one who isn't smart enough. I was thinking Rik and Marlijn were the ones who knew for certain it doesn't exist, not the ones who are being put through a snow job. At first I thought it was Chris who gave the interview basically saying, "black exemption? Yeah, right!" but it must have been Rik. *Chris* and *Margriet* are the ones who know for sure. So, *Martine* steps out of the room conveniently long enough for Chris and Margriet to try and convince Rik and Marlijn that the black exemption still exists. Right. I still don't get why the Mole would try and do that, though. I think I have circular-argued myself into confusion. Link to comment
Watermelon February 17, 2015 Share February 17, 2015 No, I'm the one who isn't smart enough. I was thinking Rik and Marlijn were the ones who knew for certain it doesn't exist, not the ones who are being put through a snow job. At first I thought it was Chris who gave the interview basically saying, "black exemption? Yeah, right!" but it must have been Rik. *Chris* and *Margriet* are the ones who know for sure. So, *Martine* steps out of the room conveniently long enough for Chris and Margriet to try and convince Rik and Marlijn that the black exemption still exists. Right. I still don't get why the Mole would try and do that, though. I think I have circular-argued myself into confusion. No no no, you were right before. Chris was the one at the breakfast table(and in the interview) who was laughing when Martine left and Margriet said she saw the black exemption. Rik didn't really seem to say anything at the table and Marlijn wasn't there. Link to comment
EllieH February 22, 2015 Share February 22, 2015 Another person I didn't suspect, gone... Link to comment
Jeffurry February 22, 2015 Share February 22, 2015 At least I'm less likely to confuse the three M's now. 1 Link to comment
Trip February 22, 2015 Share February 22, 2015 So if Rik is telling the truth that he hasn't been voting for Marlijn, and he's still there, then I guess it pretty much has to be Margriet? (I still believe that Chris has been fake-Moling and Rik has just been keeping money out way too obviously.) Link to comment
stellavision February 22, 2015 Share February 22, 2015 So if Rik is telling the truth that he hasn't been voting for Marlijn, and he's still there, then I guess it pretty much has to be Margriet? (I still believe that Chris has been fake-Moling and Rik has just been keeping money out way too obviously.) I also think Rik is being way too obvious. The only thing that's keeping me from being sure about Margriet: does anyone know what "Kukelpapa" means? I couldn't get Google Translate to tell me. If it means "crocodile" -- I wonder. There's a crocodile in the opening credits and in this episode there was a lingering shot of a crocodile statue. Also, I wonder whether Marlijn wins, because they conspicuously avoided saying who she thinks de Mol is and she now says she's locked onto one person. Link to comment
SnideAsides February 23, 2015 Share February 23, 2015 I'm wondering whether it is Rik, actually. I agree it's not Chris (though frankly, as much as I enjoyed the early part of this season I'll probably only rewatch the whole season any time soon if it IS Chris, just so I can watch for the things I'm missing), but Rik definitely has the sabotage and he seems to be getting what look like a few hidden clues. I skimmed through some of the episodes over the weekend to update the challenge guide I'm working on, and I noticed Rik had on a shirt with number plates all over it for the driving challenge, as well as Art going out of his way to repeat season ten's hint "kennis is macht" twice during the bowl game in which Rik picked bowl #10. (Keep in mind though that I only just learned that Chris's rainbow flag armband is just for show and Rik is the season's actual Token Gay But It Never Gets Mentioned Because The Dutch Don't Care [edit: Margriet apparently is too, which is the least shocking lesbian TV news since Ellen got the joke about the toaster oven], so... that's the sort of level my observational skills work at. But I'm kind of happy about that because seriously, Rik is a total DILF, while Chris kind of looks like a hipster hobo?) (I am sorry, hipster hobos and lovers thereof. Don't email me.) Link to comment
SnideAsides February 23, 2015 Share February 23, 2015 I'm calling it: That question mark envelope is the annual Vrijstelling For The Finale. Link to comment
Trip February 23, 2015 Share February 23, 2015 I guess I'd just be disappointed if it's either Rik or Chris, because I prefer my Mols to actually attempt to be subtle about it. Looks-wise, Chris strikes me as the type of guy who might be good-looking if he actually made an attempt, but I'm not sure. Link to comment
SnideAsides February 23, 2015 Share February 23, 2015 I'm still trying to figure out what the image on the red screen is this season - it was always a full red screen in the past, but now it looks kind of like a silhouette of a cliff with a tiny lighthouse on top. I have no idea how that could be tied to any of the players though, especially because... you know, the Netherlands isn't exactly known for its rugged coastline so it probably isn't a picture of the Mole's hometown or whatever. At first I figured the tablets were just playing up by having so much white space on the green and red screens, but (1) the black screen before it shows up fine, and (2) the same image was used on Rik's green card in the previous episode. Hope they explain that in the reunion. Link to comment
Trip February 25, 2015 Share February 25, 2015 My predictions: Mol: Margriet Winner: Chris Runner-Up: Marlijn Mid-Episode Boot: Rik Link to comment
Watermelon February 25, 2015 Share February 25, 2015 I can't possibly make a prediction until I'm down to final 3. I feel very secure that Chris is not the mole, which of course means Chris will probably end up being the mole. I picked Rik in the beginning, and Marlijn is sneaky, much in the way Kim(?) was that season she was the mole. Link to comment
SnideAsides February 27, 2015 Share February 27, 2015 Oooh, look at me, remembering to go to the website and check what the episode title was for once. (I also spoiled myself for the final three, so let me just say: eyebrow raise.) Link to comment
EllieH February 27, 2015 Share February 27, 2015 I also spoiled myself for the final three, so let me just say: eyebrow raise. Intriguing! I'd post a predication, but I'll hold off until after the episode. Link to comment
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