S33.E13: I'm Going For A Million Bucks / S33.E14: Reunion

[Tara Ariano]

Quote

Season 33 concludes with the final three castaways being questioned by the jury, who then vote for the winner.

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The winner is announced as the castaways reunite to discuss the season.

[Lamb18]

Comments as I watched:

Oh how funny, Jay found the idol! Epic, his glee, not know he found the fake one. I actually am a little sorry for him because he has absolutely no suspicion that he's been had.

I was right! I knew the Legacy Advantage would give Ken a free pass! Good for him. Ha ha, what if Ken wins the immunity challenge? Oh, this challenge - seen it before. A steak is not that great of a award - think of Joe from last season.  Regarding the numbers, each station should have a different combo unlock the keys. Then looking at someone else's wouldn't be an advantage - but it sure would be funny to watch! Come on David!  Yay, David wins immunity - both he and Ken are safe!!

Ha ha, Jay is stealing the reward! Well, he is getting revenge against David for tricking him with the fake idol and he doesn't even know it!

Brett is getting better looking as he loses weight. Ha ha Hannah, "Plus [Brett] has friends and he hasn't killed anyone!" Why isn't anyone talking to Ken? Adam doesn't talk so loudly anymore - now he's using his inside voice during confessionals.

Oh oh!! This is going to be so funny! Aw, David should have gotten the fake idol back. I wonder if Ken could have used his advantage at the next tribal or only this one. Now they only showed three votes. How does 2 Jay, 1 Ken show that Jay was voted out?

Blow it, Brett! Don't win! Yay! Ken win!! Now vote out Brett, you guys! Boo, David is the target. Guys, vote out Brett. Oh, oh, now that Adam's found the idol, David's going to go. Ha ha Hannah is so sneaky! I'm pretty sure she's on David's side. But Hannah, it's not a choice if it's split between Adam and David, and Adam has the idol.

YES!!!!! Brett is voted out!!!!! And Adam played his idol for nothing! But he couldn't have played it after tonight, but he could have taken it home with him.

What a doofus challenge. But not too strenuous for day 38. Good job, Ken!!! But is he another Wu?? However, I guess I want to David to win, or then, Ken. I like how Adam is so honest with David and how David takes it so calmly. Is Ken stabbing the squid foreshadowing that Ken will stab David in the back??  Oh dear, I'm afraid the editing is showing David being overconfident and that he's going for a fall. And I was right! Aw, David! Why couldn't he be on the next season instead of Zeke or Michaela?

David looks better with his beard. Taylor is kind of pudgy. Hannah, don't interrupt Adam's answer! Hannah didn't go rogue on the Brett vote, she stayed with her alliance. Oh dear, Zeke on the evolution of the game, how pedantic.  Gosh, the jury is just ignoring Ken for the most part. Oh dear, Adam is going to talk about his mom.

Congratulations, Adam! So sad to see it's just his dad and brother hugging him. I don't think Brett and Zeke's moment is the pivotal moment; I'd say Jay's and Adam's was. Ha Hannah and Ken! This reunion is going pretty well. At least there's no weirdos jumping on the stage and so far no focus on people from other shows. Were Scot and Bounty just on last season? Seems so long ago!

Aww, I'm going to miss this season. It was fun to watch! P.S. I guess "evolution of the game" is the new catchphrase!

Edited December 15, 2016 by Lamb18

[mojoween]

OMG Malcolm and Ozzy and Caleb yaaaaaasssss.

Sandra ugh no.  I feel like I'm the only person on earth who cannot stand her. Also fuck Tony.

A brief note on the winner - my favorite never wins but I'm not mad at it this time.  I don't feel like it was pity based on the questioning from the jury.  I am selfishly sad that my generation was bested by that young whippersnapper though.

Anyways.  On to my favorite.

Ken wrote Justin for Jay.

Ken took the necklace off for Jeff.

Ken said "thank you" to Jeff.

Ken called Hannah "Banana".

Ken rubs people's backs during times of stress (I will stand in line for that).

Ken broke the curse of hot guys losing their hotness off the island.

I can't hate on Jeff loving the hot he-men because sometimes, I do too.

When Jeff took the necklace off Ken the last time it seemed like he held it up so he could caress Ken's shoulder and fuckall I would too.

I've said it every year since they stopped doing it, but I don't care - I miss The March of the Dead Survivors.

[LadyChatts]

Well, this season really went downhill for me by the end.  They should have just handed Adam the check at 8 and spared us 2 hours.  They couldn't have made it more obvious he was winning.  Honestly, I think he was kind of a jerk, trying to come off as a master mind.  What the hell, trying to tell Hannah what she can and can't talk about when trying to answer the juries questions?  He got credit for moves he didn't make.  He seemed to enjoy setting her off and pick on her during that final questioning.  With Hannah and Ken's confessionals about why they deserved to win, and Ken talking about being the provider around camp, I knew they were losing.  It was already obvious, but that cemented it.  And I just can't get behind people who play a sob story.  At least at the very end.  If you talk about it throughout the season, maybe it won't seem like such a strategy thing.

Oh well.  Okay season all around, just another win that clouded what was good about it.  Guess we'll be getting a ton of sob stories in the future.  Maybe 3 people with real sob stories, and 17 Jonny Fairplays who make stuff up to gain sympathy.

And for the record, I lost my dad to lung cancer, so I sympathize with Adam's struggle.  I get it.  I can't imagine being in his shoes, and knowing my loved one was back home dying.  But that's why I have a hard time getting behind people who use that to get ahead.

[dkb]

First if I'm remembering correctly from another thread; Happy Birthday @piequinn35

That was great editing with the fake idol. Did David wrap the note that comes with the hidden immunity around the fake one? Feel bad for Jay for that mistake at the combination. You can tell how bad they are feeling/thinking with David having to go over multiple times to get the right numbers.

Smart choices again by Jay for the reward. Adam made a great decision back when he didn't use it and when he gave Jay the advantage. He's gotten the rewards for that multiple times now. But maybe he should have gone with Brett and Hannah instead. Jay's eviction was great, everyone is just going out showing great sportsmanship.

Brett's still annoying. Their not crazy just because their not making decisions to get Brett to the end.

That was a great challenge at final 4. Aww, I was rooting for David. But smart decision by all of them to vote him out.

How did Chris come to the decision that it was Adam who changed Ken's mind? He didn't even allow the others to point out why that wasn't true. I thought that someone would vote for Hannah, I thought she articulated her game very very well. But out of the three we really did see how Adam got to the final 3 more than the others. It felt like most people had already made up their mind for Adam before even getting there, and the rest might have because of his story but also because others were praising him.

Congratulations Adam. Happy for him. Oh my god, poor Adam; I'm crying again at Survivor. Glad he got to say goodbye to his mom.

LOL, at Hannah. She's really seems to have grown. They all seem to just like each other which is awesome to see. I think Figgy handled her question pretty well. I think this was a great season, nobody was overtly horrible and it was just fun to watch the twists and turns from the first episode.

Ugh, Jeff please talk to the people from this season, so many other stuff to be asked. Why take away from them by bringing in next seasons players? Not cool.

 

[Rachel RSL]

That fake idol was totally unnecessary but damn did it make for an amusing TC! I thought David was going to wear it and make people think he had an idol. Planting it for Jay to find was brilliant. And I love that Jay was such a good sport. I wouldn't have minded Jay winning but it would have made for an anti-climactic final TC since he would have been a shoo-in to win. (Also lol at Ken voting for "Justin".)

I'm so happy that Ken made it to the end of the game. I can't believe he voted out David. I didn't think he had it in him! I wish he could be on every season. He doesn't have to play, just hire him to walk around in the background. I love his oddball, dorky, unintentionally hilarious personality and the man is just *beautiful*. Yes, I'm shallow but seriously...look at him. (Also, I finally figured out who he sounds like sometimes...Sylvester Stallone. Random.)

What a fantastic season! I love that these people can discuss strategy and tell someone straight up "I'm voting you out" but still be respectful and genuinely kind to each other. Even little things like Adam cutting into Hannah at that final TC and then Hannah leaning over to say how sorry she was about his mom. And that was one of the best final Tribal Councils. (Although I do think Bret was an unnecessary asshole to Ken. Jerk.) Three gamers who were all fighting for it, owning their strategies and making legitimate cases to win. 

I'm not really looking forward to next season where we get to see the same people playing again, some more. I want fresh meat every season!

Edited December 15, 2016 by Rachel RSL

[wallflower75]

 First off, I was really bummed that we weren’t able to comment on the episode while it was happening.  I’ve had a blast doing that the last two or three Survivor finales.

My thoughts on this finale: kudos to Jay for taking his defeat in good spirits and with a smile on his face.  They got him and he knew it.  Not-kudos to Bret for basically torpedoing David’s shot at winning by telling the other three that they’d just guaranteed David the million.

I couldn’t stop laughing at the answer to the word puzzle being “Not a participation trophy.”  Loved it!!

My jaw dropped when Ken voted David out.  With all Ken’s talk about loyalty, and then the talk about having David and Adam fight it out by making fire, I thought for sure that it would be a showdown between the two of them—unless Hannah flipped again and voted out Adam.  I thought that was more likely than Ken voting out David.

I tell you, listening to Adam and Hannah squabbling so much convinced me that Ken was going to win.  But then I got to thinking that it didn’t seem like Ken was doing much to defend himself, so maybe he wasn’t going to win.

And then Adam revealed that his mother was dying, and that was all she wrote. I feel bad writing that.  I don’t think Adam revealed it to seal the deal as Jeremy did by revealing Val’s pregnancy in Cambodia.  All the same…could you honestly say that there was any other outcome from the moment he told them?  I’d be curious to know how many people were planning to vote for Adam before he told them about his mom.  Would it have been a clean sweep?

But damn.  His mom died an hour after he arrived at the hospital to see her?  *wibbles*  It’s kind of sad that his mother’s death is the reason Adam got the most airtime a winner’s gotten on a reunion show in years.  Was it me, or did this reunion seem a bit more balanced in terms of Jeff giving equal airtime to most of the players?

One last thing: I hate, hate, HATE that Jeff just hands over the check without ceremony right after the winner is announced.  Especially this time.  Adam was having a very emotional moment with his father and brother, and here comes Jeff with the check.  Why not wait until after the commercial break?  That would be more dramatic.

Edited December 15, 2016 by wallflower75

[riley702]

Blech. Not a winner I enjoyed. Hannah handled FTC better than either Ken or Adam. Hated that both guys had sob stories and that Hannah was completely overlooked.

[Ms Blue Jay]

What a great season. I might have to put it into my Top 10 seasons.  I loved the season with Tai, Cydney, and Aubrey but boy I did not like the winner.  So at least this season has a winner I'm good with.  I loved Michaela, Zeke, David, Jay even towards the end, unexpectedly, and Adam. A season full of players I really liked.  Beautiful Ken is technically a Millennial by the way. I know he doesn't act like it, but I'm going to argue that like Chris the Trial Lawyer.

Adam reallllllllllllly looks like a celebrity when he fills out.  I don't think it's Alan Cumming but I'm trying so hard to figure out who it is.  Anyway.  So excited for next season, with Tony, Ozzy, etc. it is basically my dream season.

Edited December 15, 2016 by Ms Blue Jay

[Paws]

I will laugh my ass off when Sandra wins again.

[LadyChatts]

Some other thoughts:

With so little time, it seemed like Jeff really wanted to get to so much for once.  I felt like he talked to more people tonight than he has in a long time.  I was actually surprised (but happy) he talked about the Bret/Zeke moment where Bret came out to him.  I thought we were going to avoid FigTayls, but glad it was quick.  Still, he made it awkward I thought by just casually mentioning Taylor has a baby now.  Super annoyed he didn't talk to Jay.  He talks to Sunday, who barely got airtime all season, but not Jay?  Also, the only thing he of course could show about Hannah was her crushing on Ken.  I mean, the girl has taste, but really Probst?  Oh wait, look who I'm talking about.

Everyone had every opportunity to get rid of David long before now.  These people calling the others idiots for not doing so are no different.

Way to pay Hannah a compliment by first talking about how much she sucked at the game in the beginning.

Have they ever had an idol at the merge?  And I mean a merge idol, not an idol that wasn't found previously at the camp.  Of course Adam found it.  Glad his arrogance got he better of him.  I knew then he was winning this thing.  Great, let's just cast 20 Jonny Fairplay's and have them make up a bunch of fake sob stories and see who wins.  On the flip side, yay Hannah!  Though if you really are a Survivor super fan, you should know what history has done to people who think they are in the driver's seat and calling the shots (just ask Will).  I really didn't think she would vote for Bret, but when I saw his name come up, I got hopeful she did let David in on the fact that Adam had the idol and to gun for Bret instead.

My first thought when Jay found the fake idol: nooooo!  I was hoping he'd allude to it at the reward, and maybe catch on it wasn't real.  I wonder if Probst and company knew how popular he was going to be in the end.  Hope comes back, he deserves it!  After he left, I really didn't care.  I didn't have to feel nervous anymore, but I realized the only one I wanted to see win was Ken, and David a distant second. 

So the WA cast got demoted from being Jeff's favorites of all time.

Do they still make the idols look different from each other?  I know they were going to do that for S31, so people wouldn't know if it was fake or not.  I didn't pay close enough attention to the idols this season, but I hope they still do.

I would have liked to have seen Hannah win that second IC.  I will say I'm really happy this season has been light on the endurance challenges, compared to the last few.  That last challenge was crazy.

S34-meh.  Not going in with high expectations, especially given the cast (just how many people said no for them to come up with this group?)  And Gamechangers is such a stupid thing, I cringe how Jeff is going to try and horn that into every little bit of the game.  Also, Probst needs to come up with something else to describe Ciera besides voting out her mom.  If that's all he can keep bringing up about her, that's not saying much.

[RockShrimp]

I know I'm a dick but Adam totally didn't deserve the win. I felt for him, but just the mansplaining and dismissiveness towards Hannah at Tribal was enough for me to root for her to beat Ken. And yet somehow Adam gets the sweep. Arrgh.

Especially seeing Adam get credit for David getting voted out when it was either Ken or Ken + Hannah. Adam had shit all to do with it.

I will say this was by far the most rational, adult, human jury in years. Such a breath of fresh air. 

 

 

And Ken's girl/boyfriend is so dumping him tonight. I wonder if it's hannah.

Edited December 15, 2016 by RockShrimp

[LadyChatts]

Quote

My jaw dropped when Ken voted David out.  With all Ken’s talk about loyalty, and then the talk about having David and Adam fight it out by making fire, I thought for sure that it would be a showdown between the two of them—unless Hannah flipped again and voted out Adam.  I thought that was more likely than Ken voting out David.

I'm thinking Ken might have been sorry that he didn't let it go to a tie, and have fire decide who went home.  I really don't know that I saw David winning.  

[PaperTree]

No Jeff, we are not curled up IN FRONT OF our couches.

Bret is annoying me.  Be strong Hannah

Phony Idol suckers J  lol  

Wow! big advantage secret immunity.  Jess is going to feel even worse.

Tough puzzle.  J totally screwed himself not covering up the combo.

Uses the reward steal the best way possible.  

Bret is annoying me again.  He's gotta go.  Sunday still looks like hell.

Tribal #1 was pretty mellow, then WHAM! phony idol,  legacy advantage.  Poor Jessica!

J went out classy.  Ken pulls immunity again.

Adam stumbles on an idol.  I smell a winner.

Bret is annoying me again.

Girl Power!  Go Hannah!  She's right about Bret's friends on the jury

Looks like J stayed out of Michelle's Barber Shop of Horrors.

YES!  Bye bye Bret!  He could have pulled out a win at FTC so booting him was not a bad move.  I don't see David as a lock on the win, but never good at predicting these things.

So now David and Adam will battle like two scorpions.  This could be fun.

Hannah is smart not back-stabbing Ken.  

Stop whining Adam, stop it!

Tough IC.  Since when is there a time limit on these things?  Boo!   Killer wind.  

Ken the immunity beast.  Oh my!  Tough call for FTC, I don't think Ken has a chance to win.  

My feeling is Adam beats David who beats Hannah.  She was tough in that challenge.  A little too slow.....

Loyalty is all well and good, but the objective is to WIN THE GAME.  Ken surprised me booting David.

Nice of TPTB to tell them a tie would be a fire making challenge.  So many seasons I can't remember,  

Are they always told what the tiebreaker is?

My vote is Hannah, Ken, Adam.  FTC Adam is annoying the hell out of me.  Screw you Chris!  Ken should be insulted.

Adam wins.....meh... I think they rigged the votes to make it unanimous.  It's good for the story.

Do Hannah and Ken each get $100K since they both finished in second place??

 One of the rare times Bret didn't annoy me.  I've really come to love Hannah.  I still think she played the best game, overall.

Mikayla was cool.  Jessica was right.  Right decision, wrong rock.  Will looks really good with his new haircut.  Figgy was cool.  Own it and move on.  Taylor is still an idiot, now with a kid - ugh.

NO TONY!  The rest of the retreads are OK.  I always loved Sandra!  A 3-peat would be amazing.

[NYGirl]

Well my pick from day 1 got to the end and my second half pick, Jay, was voted out first.  I tell you I thought for sure David was a finalist.  I never thought Adam got the edit of a winner and I'm really disappointed that he pulled the cancer card.  I'm sure it pulled in people that were on the fence about who to vote for.  I didn't like it when Jeremy pulled it about having the baby either.

Adam was not very nice during this episode.

The way Zeke spoke to Ken put me off too.  And now we find out why Ken is so serious.  I would never have figured him as having issues.

Taylor didn't look so cute at the Reunion.

Jay was such a good sport.  I really wanted him to win.

Hannah never realized that they took her along as the goat.

Edited December 15, 2016 by NYGirl

[Straycat80]

This was a great season. I was disappointed with the winner. Adam played the cancer card and got the sympathy vote. Yes, he played hard but he was arrogant and I just didn't like him. I hope his win will give him and his family comfort and I'm glad they are involved in raising funds for lung cancer. 

Ken's social game killed him, I really wanted him to win. Hannah had no chance. 

I'm not looking forward to the next season. I don't like returning player shows. Of course I'll watch though. 

[NYGirl]

4 minutes ago, mojoween said:

OMG Malcolm and Ozzy and Caleb yaaaaaasssss.

Sandra ugh no.  I feel like I'm the only person on earth who cannot stand her. Also fuck Tony.

 

I'm with you on both counts.  Please add Cirie to the second list.  I can't stand her either.

Malcom and Ozzy are 2 of my favorites.  

[Ms Blue Jay]

It was annoying when (Jeff?) talked about Ken being the only loyal person in the game because loyalty is extinct in this game.  Oh wait it was David.  LOL what about Woo the most loyal person in the game of all time!  (I'm a Woo fan, but I know he's not liked around these parts.)  Anyway.  Woo outloyals Ken any day!

[enlightenedbum]

A season of ineffectual doofs (and David) ends with the least effectual of all the doofs winning.   Adam probably had the least impressive game from a winner since Fabio, and maybe the third least impressive ever (Todd).  So many blunders because he was arrogant, including tonight.  You want F4 to not include David?  Just let the vote hit you, don't tell anybody about your idol, idiot.  He just was very, very stupid, so I was disappointed but not surprised the jury gave it to him.

As for the season as a whole, it definitely wasn't a bad one.  There were, remarkably, no true assholes.  There were a couple asshole moments like Zeke and Brett at the one tribal council, but nobody was genuinely hateful.  Way less outright misogyny than usual, though the quick pruning of all the women may have limited any display of that.  So that stuff automatically gets it in the top half to third.  But I feel like all of those people were very, very dumb (except David, and even he did some weird stuff) and were just kind of doing random stuff to "make a big move" without much strategic consideration.  So I don't think it was a really good season.

[Rachel RSL]

13 minutes ago, mojoween said:

I've said it every year since they stopped doing it, but I don't care - I miss The March of the Dead Survivors.

I do too! Mainly because there are always a few people I have no recollection of whatsoever and it amuses the hell out of me.

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Anyway.  Woo outloyals Ken any day!

Ah, dear sweet Woo. The epitome of dumb but pretty.

Quote

 Beautiful Ken is technically a Millennial by the way. I know he doesn't act like it, but I'm going to argue that like Chris the Trial Lawyer.

No way! He was born in 83 I think? He's one of us old folk.

Edited December 15, 2016 by Rachel RSL

[LanceM]

In case anyone wants to see the full cast next season it was posted here. There are no gameplay spoilers here at all. None in the comments either though I would still avoid looking down there. Personally I am rooting for the players getting their second chance and not the ones getting their third or fourth.

https://www.realityblurred.com/realitytv/2016/12/survivor-game-changers-spoilers-cast-season-34/

Edited December 15, 2016 by LanceM

[Fake Jan Brady]

How did Adam sweep the votes with that Final Tribal performance? Jay must've been talking him up at Ponderosa. I was hoping Adam wouldn't bring up his mother's story but I guess Ken forced him after the "I'm doing this for my daughter" tears.

Oh Ken; if you think it's complicated now...

Edited December 15, 2016 by cousin oliver

[JaggedLilPill]

"Hannah went rogue" = "Hannah wouldn't let me make her decisions."

I really really really (can you tell who I wanted to win yet?) wanted David to win, but when he got voted out, I knew it would be Adam. But yikes, he sounded like a bumbling idiot at FTC. I actually thought Hannah did a better job.

As for Ken, you're pretty and I'm sure a cool dude to chill with IRL, but not made for this game.

Jay falling for the fake idol gave me a laugh; however, I think I got newfound respect for him and I'd be cool seeing him play again (which, let's be real, he probably will!)

Definitely an entertaining season for me. 

[LadyChatts]

5 minutes ago, cousin oliver said:

How did Adam sweep the votes with that Final Tribal performance? Jay must've been talking him up at Ponderosa.

Oh Ken; if you think it's complicated now...

That's what I'm wondering.  I haven't watched any of the Ponderosa's yet (I don't even know if Jay/Bret/David's are up).  Also, on the Survivor Facebook page, Joe is live with some of the Survivors on the red carpet (I think these videos will be posted later on).

[KaveDweller]

I felt bad Jeff kept grilling Adam when he was in tears about his mom. It felt uncomfortable to watch, and I'm sure Adam didn't want to be crying on live TV like that.

I was really annoyed that Chris gave Adam credit for Hannah convincing Ken to vote David out. Did Adam even talk to him that day? Hannah interrupted Adam to correct him, I'm surprised she didn't interrupt there. But maybe she could tell she wasn't getting his vote.

It's weird going into this episode I wanted Ken or Adam to win, but by the end of it I was pulling for Hannah. 

The legacy advantage ended up being kind of a non-event. That was disappointing.

Next season looks fun. But I really wish Tai wasn't on it, he annoyed me.  And I feel like they shouldn't bring back a person more than three times. It gets tiring. I guess it hasn't already been filmed?

[Artsda]

Ugh not Sandra again. 

Happy for Caleb & Michaela's return.

Happy for Adam, when he was first  talking about his mom in past tense I knew she didn't make it to finale night. I'm at least grateful Adam made it home in time to see her again before she passed.  That was the most sad Survivor reunion show ever.

Edited December 15, 2016 by Artsda

[LadyChatts]

7 minutes ago, KaveDweller said:

I felt bad Jeff kept grilling Adam when he was in tears about his mom. It felt uncomfortable to watch, and I'm sure Adam didn't want to be crying on live TV like that.

I was really annoyed that Chris gave Adam credit for Hannah convincing Ken to vote David out. Did Adam even talk to him that day? Hannah interrupted Adam to correct him, I'm surprised she didn't interrupt there. But maybe she could tell she wasn't getting his vote.

It's weird going into this episode I wanted Ken or Adam to win, but by the end of it I was pulling for Hannah. 

The legacy advantage ended up being kind of a non-event. That was disappointing.

Next season looks fun. But I really wish Tai wasn't on it, he annoyed me.  And I feel like they shouldn't bring back a person more than three times. It gets tiring. I guess it hasn't already been filmed?

Same.  All week long, I said I didn't want Hannah to win, and she had no chance in hell of taking the million and title.  But tonight, I was wrong on not wanting her to win, and I was hoping against hope I'd be wrong about her not winning.  Still, it wasn't a huge surprise.  I'd love to see Hannah come back.  I believe she'll have way more confidence, yet still somehow be underestimated and be able to float through for awhile.

And another advantage that ended up fizzling out.  They need to stop with these advantages, because they are typically duds.  Even the reward steal, David still got to go.  Not saying that would be the case all the time, but in this case, it didn't matter than Jay stole it from him.  Just stick to the idols, show, and leave the advantages out of it. 

Edited December 15, 2016 by LadyChatts

[dkb]

5 minutes ago, PaperTree said:

Bret is annoying me.  Be strong Hannah

Bret is annoying me again.  He's gotta go.  

Bret is annoying me again.

YES!  Bye bye Bret!  He could have pulled out a win at FTC so booting him was not a bad move.  I don't see David as a lock on the win, but never good at predicting these things.

One of the rare times Bret didn't annoy me.  I've really come to love Hannah.  I still think she played the best game, overall.

@PaperTree I liked your post already, but I wanted to like these parts 5000 times. These were exactly my thoughts on Bret.

[Ms Blue Jay]

12 minutes ago, Paws said:

I will laugh my ass off when Sandra wins again.

This has become a job that she's really good at.  It's like not even fair to have her there, LOL, but at least she's surrounded by some lesser one-time winners to play against.

Sandra, playing against Caleb, Michaela, Zeke?  Oh boy.  I'm very, very, very excited though.  The cast couldn't get much more perfect for my tastes.  I can't have everything, so this is close.

Edited December 15, 2016 by Ms Blue Jay

[ShadowSixx]

I knew the minute Dave was voted out that Adam was going to win the whole thing. I mean Hannah and Ken had no shot going against Adam and his story of his mother and him winning immunity challenges and making moves. I said that Ken had to have a good story and he didn't. You can't win with that loyalty shit, it's not going to happen. Hannah's attitude at final TC was off putting because she kept interrupting Adam and she just basically said the same thing over and over so she had no shot at winning. If Adam & Dave were in the f3 then it may have been a toss up on who won.

Oh Jay, what an idiot, he found HII and couldn't tell that the one Dave made was a fake. It looked absolutely fake. The idol that was worst was the one Jason found and girl was telling him that it's just a stick. People have made better looking idols that looked more real than the one Dave made.

Hannah, just a big no. Had a chance if she had taken Bret to the end. Such a dumbass move to keep Dave.

Fucking Ozzy, ugh can't stand him and don't wanna see his mug. Hopefully he's voted out first. There should be a limit on how many times you can come back.

[Straycat80]

3 minutes ago, cousin oliver said:

How did Adam sweep the votes with that Final Tribal performance? Jay must've been talking him up at Ponderosa.

Oh Ken; if you think it's complicated now...

I wonder if it was Chris who talked up Adam too. He came right out at the FTC and encouraged everyone to vote for Adam. 

[Nedsdag]

If there was ever an episode with a winner's edit, the season finale was it. As soon as Adam started to cry, game over! Oh, and by the way, Jay? BWAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!

Another All Star edition with people whom I do not want to see again (Tony) to people whose expiration date is far beyond extinct (Ozzy). What? No Russell Hantz? No "Fabio"? I guess Sandra can't live off her military husband's income, right? It's time to come up with better show ideas and better contestants, Mark Burnett and Peachy! 

As for the "reunion" show: No Michaela vs. Jay talk? Will looking like a kid who gets arrested and has to show up in court with a hair cut for a lighter sentence? The dead crow on Michelle's shoulder? Taylor getting off scott free without discussing his love triangle? Ken and Hannah's "romance"?  Heck, Peachy talked to Zeke more than Jay. Yipes! 

[Mumbles]

Adam looks a little like Tom Hiddleston. And Will looks a little like John Krasinski.

Sunday had one of the worst jury questions ever. You could tell she thought it was intelligent and insightful but it was boring.

When was this show taped? I'm trying to figure out if Taylor knew he was an expectant father when he was messing around with the annoying Figgy.

Hannah annoyed me all during the game and annoyed me especially at the reunion show, acting as if she was a playah and slapping people on the back. Girl, people had to tell you how to vote and you still had panic attacks over it.

Zeke was my favorite reunion comment, about underestimating himself all his life. I liked the kid since he was the oddball on the millenials. He and Adam were scrappers.

I don't know if this is the right forum but I have a lot of issues with the upcoming season.

[Eolivet]

This was a good end to a great season -- I liked Adam. I think he would've won regardless, because while I thought Hannah was making good arguments, when women stand up for themselves in front of a jury on this show, they often come off as unlikable and shrill to the jury members. You either have to be inoffensive Amber or uber-confident Parvati (or...just be Sandra) to get respect. But I really would've liked to have Jeff do one of those post-vote "quick polls" and see how many votes Adam had prior to his revelation and how many Hannah had (because face it -- Ken was never going to win).

I'm ultimately happy with how the season turned out -- I did find Adam a deserving winner, maybe more in a 6-4 win than a 10-0 win, but I thought he did enough to win. I think Hannah ultimately played the better game, but she had to overcome not only the woman factor, but the "not conventionally attractive" woman factor.

It's interesting, because I thought the editing was pointing to a Jay win, when I should've known there was a reason Adam got all that screentime about his personal story to begin with. But again, every reality show I learn something new -- this time, I learned that when a player is getting screentime for both his strategic and his personal life, don't assume it's just a "growth arc" story.

I'm meh on next season -- I feel like we just did a vets season, plus this season showed how great all newbies can be with the right casting. And why do we have to wait until MARCH?! Isn't it usually February? Oh well.

[mojoween]

Even though Bret had friends on the jury, I can't see that he would have pulled out a win.

"Bret, what moves did you make that would make me give you my vote?"

"....."

"....."

"Bret?"

"Hang on, I know I know I must have done something..."

"Uh Bret season 35 is going to start filming soon."

[Ms Blue Jay]

13 minutes ago, Rachel RSL said:

I do too! Mainly because there are always a few people I have no recollection of whatsoever and it amuses the hell out of me.

Ah, dear sweet Woo. The epitome of dumb but pretty.

No way! He was born in 83 I think? He's one of us old folk.

Just go read the Wikipedia definition.  1981 is usually the cutoff point.  Some even say 1980!  Whether you consider us old or not, I'm putting us in the Millennial camp and I won't be talked out of it.  (1982 + 18 = you graduate in the year 2000 or later, for example, that was one of the cutoff reasons.)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millennials

Edited December 15, 2016 by Ms Blue Jay

[Lantern7]

Well. Long-ass season, too many people . . . but damn, that was one helluva finale.

Jay has to be among in the top tier of dummies. Between falling for the fake idol and not covering up his answer, I laughed hard at his fall. The puzzles should've had different answers, but he's still a dope. Like I said when Jason got similarly tricked . . . the only thing missing was Carlos Mencia leaping out of a bush, shouting, "DEE DEE DEEEEEEE!!!!!"

Round of applause for David, who totally would've won the $100K sponsor prize. In a season full of metamorphoses, his was the most fun to watch. And he would've had a fire challenge had Ken not betrayed him. As far as Day 38 backstabbings go, that ranks with Dreamz reneging on Yau Man.

Adam winning is the definition of "bittersweet." He wound up spending an hour with his mother. An hour. I would not wish that on anybody. While I would've wanted a Hannah win to blow up Probst's brain, I'm okay with how things shook out.

Only six people got ignored. Gotta be a record low. And if Probst had three more minutes, he would've zeroed in on Paul and his hair. What the fuck?!?

I'm hoping that Cirie forms a Black Widow Alliance with Sandra. I'm worried about the perfect record getting wrecked, though. Also, had Tai cleaned Scot's blood from his hands? Good times.

[LanceM]

5 minutes ago, Nedsdag said:

If there was ever an episode with a winner's edit, the season finale was it. As soon as Adam started to cry, game over! Oh, and by the way, Jay? BWAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!

Another All Star edition with people whom I do not want to see again (Tony) to people whose expiration date is far beyond extinct (Ozzy). What? No Russell Hantz? No "Fabio"? I guess Sandra can't live off her military husband's income, right? It's time to come up with better show ideas and better contestants, Mark Burnett and Peachy! 

As for the "reunion" show: No Michaela vs. Jay talk? Will looking like a kid who gets arrested and has to show up in court with a hair cut for a lighter sentence? The dead crow on Michelle's shoulder? Taylor getting off scott free without discussing his love triangle? Ken and Hannah's "romance"?  Heck, Peachy talked to Zeke more than Jay. Yipes! 

That wasn't a dead crow. It was a dead dragon. lol

Most iconic reunion outfit ever. 

[sally-can-wait]

16 minutes ago, PaperTree said:

No Jeff, we are not curled up IN FRONT OF our couches.

Ha! This cracked me up because I always watch the shows on the treadmill and so I'm right there with you. I was like "no Jeff, some of us multitask."

[ElleryAnne]

Over all, a meh ending to a very good season.   No offense to Adam, who I completely sympathize with, but there's something unsatisfying about a season of great gameplay being decided on a last-minute pity vote. 

Ken did what Survivor-wisdom dictates and tossed loyalty out the window in favor of sitting next to someone less likely to beat him in FTC.  Then that person beats him in a clean sweep.  I guess Ken can take comfort in knowing that karma got that out of the way quickly.

Kudos to Jay and David for being gracious and good-natured when they were voted out.  Other than Bret's little dose of bitterness, the post-merge season has been really enjoyable due to players who play and who don't resent other players playing their own game to win.  

(Returnees again. Sigh.)

[enlightenedbum]

I find Sandra hilarious, but there's no way a tribe is going to put up with her combination of challenge ineffectualness and end game mastery AGAIN.  If she's not booted by day 12, they should just cancel the game, give her a million bucks and tar and feather the other players.

[BigRedCheese]

Quote

That fake idol was totally unnecessary

I don't think it was unnecessary, Jay thought he found it, so he stopped looking. If David hadn't planted it, Jay might have found the real one.

[Ms Blue Jay]

Agreed, the fake idol move on David's part was fucking awesome and made Jay complacent.  I don't even know why he was trying so hard to win Immunity.  LOL?  He really sincerely believed in that idol.  At the IC I thought he had doubts.  I guess he just really wanted that reward.  It could have also made Jay stop campaigning to stay in the game.  I think he did still really campaign very hard, which was all so confusing to me.

Personally, I've been wanting to see Tony back since his season.  One of my favourite winners of one of my top 5 favourite seasons.  We've already had freaking Spencer back, why not a player who is far superior to him?  Also Woo, who people don't even like, and Tasha.... and Kass... Almost everyone from that fucking season has played twice LOL.  

Edited December 15, 2016 by Ms Blue Jay

[JaggedLilPill]

After such a good season, (even with an admittedly mediocre finale) honestly, my thoughts at the moment are...

...do we really need to see Tony again? Thanks for reminding me why I hated him. Yeah, dude, hiding in the bushes is so innovative. Nobody has ever thought about that before. 

Maybe someone will talk llama to him. 

There's also something about Cirie that bugs that shit out of me. Ugh.

[CraftyHazel]

Well, I'm disappointed. I thought I'd be okay with an Adam win, but I'm just not.  I really wanted David (nice job staying loyal there, Ken), but anytime someone keeps a big secret all game long (and I don't care that he told Jay) and then reveals it at FTC for the win, they automatically drop to the bottom of my list.  if Adam had won without mentioning his mom's cancer, I'd have been okay with his win.  As it is, I hate it.

[jsm1125]

I am beyond sick of Ozzy. And as much as I love Cirie, I think it's ridiculous that she is back for a fourth time as well.

[Bigwheels1971]

2 hours ago, KaveDweller said:

I felt bad Jeff kept grilling Adam when he was in tears about his mom. It felt uncomfortable to watch, and I'm sure Adam didn't want to be crying on live TV like that.

I found it horrifying.  Granted, I'm extremely close with my mom but still, I honestly wish JP had just said a the beginning of the Reunion that Adam's mom had passed and then offered Adam the chance to talk if he wanted to.  The way it played out just felt exploitative and gross because it felt like they were dragging it out of him and I had to turn the tv off when Adam broke down because I felt horrible for him.   

Edited December 15, 2016 by Bigwheels1971

[ShadowSixx]

Just now, Bigwheels1971 said:

I found it horrifying.  Granted, I'm extremely close with my mom but still, I honestly wish JP had just said a the beginning of the Reunion that Adam's mom had passed and then offered Adam the chance to talk if he wanted to.  The way it played out just felt exploitative and gross and I had to turn the tv off when Adam broke down because I felt horrible for him.   

Seeing Adam's family & friends cry as well, it was just too much. They should have just talked about the donation and that's about it.

[PaperTree]

21 minutes ago, Lantern7 said:

Round of applause for David ..... would've had a fire challenge had Ken not betrayed him. As far as Day 38 backstabbings go, that ranks with Dreamz reneging on Yau Man.

Only six people got ignored. Gotta be a record low. And if Pronst had three more minutes, he would've zeroed in on Paul and his hair. What the fuck?!?

I'm hoping for Cirie to form another Black Widow Alliance with Sandra. I'm worried about the perfect record getting wrecked, though. Also, had Tai cleaned Scot's blood from his hands? Good times.

Maybe Paul has a Santa Clause gig at the local strip mall.

[Sarahsmile416]

21 minutes ago, Lantern7 said:

Well. Long-ass season, too many people . . . but damn, that was one helluva finale.

Jay has to be among in the top tier of dummies. Between falling for the fake idol and not covering up his answer, I laughed hard at his fall. The puzzles should've had different answers, but he's still a dope. Like I said when Jason got similarly tricked . . . the only thing missing was Carlos Mencia leaping out of a bush, shouting, "DEE DEE DEEEEEEE!!!!!"

Round of applause for David, who totally would've won the $100K sponsor prize. In a season full of metamorphoses, his was the most fun to watch. And he would've had a fire challenge had Ken not betrayed him. As far as Day 38 backstabbings go, that ranks with Dreamz reneging on Yau Man.

Adam winning is the definition of "bittersweet." He wound up spending an hour with his mother. An hour. I would not wish that on anybody. While I would've wanted a Hannah win to blow up Probst's brain, I'm okay with how things shook out.

Only six people got ignored. Gotta be a record low. And if Probst had three more minutes, he would've zeroed in on Paul and his hair. What the fuck?!?

I'm hoping that Cirie forms a Black Widow Alliance with Sandra. I'm worried about the perfect record getting wrecked, though. Also, had Tai cleaned Scot's blood from his hands? Good times.

I can't see the Dreamz-Ken analogy in terms of backstabbing. Mostly because I really didn't see what Ken did as backstabbing. He merely did what he should have been doing the entire time - playing the game.

And here is an unpopular opinion - except that Ken barely got asked a damned question, I actually thought he had a good FTC. He rightly defended himself in some cases and was mature and didn't involve himself in the sniping back and forth between Adam and Hannah. Though even there, I thought Hannah outperformed him too - if he used the whole "Hannah went rogue" line one more time I was going to scream. Then, that last question happened and although I thought Ken had a beautiful answer, the dying mother card was played and I knew then no one else had a shot.

Speaking of similarities - honestly, Adam and Hannah sniping back and forth reminded me of JT and Stephen doing the same thing in Toncantins during FTC.