S35: Previews and Speculations

[KimberStormer]

Yes, the preview always lies, so I feel it's quite possible that Chrissy is actually targeting JP and playing him somehow, or who knows what.  I just have a visceral reaction to this particular form of tattle-tale, like with Kimmi and Monica in Cambodia (no let's not relitigate that one, kikaha).

[LadyChatts]

They might just be showing that because it sets something up down the road (or they need to show something from that so we don't forget about them).  They may not even lose.  But if they do, I'm going with misdirect at Roark, and someone else going.  JP seems the logical choice, because Ryan/Chrissy bonded over the super idol, and Ryan/Ali are former Hustlers that were allied.  So even if Ryan went behind Chrissy's back and sided with Ali/Roark, he might try to save Chrissy.  The argument about the showmance between Ashley/JP and breaking it up could be a good selling point, plus saying he'd be a threat at the merge.

I'm still holding out hope for a Joe boot, though.  I hope he doesn't find another idol.

[azshadowwalker]

3 hours ago, peachmangosteen said:

 

Anyway, I can easily see why Chrissy wouldn't be down for Roark's all-girl thing in this particular instance, but I still get a "I get along better with guys" vibe from her and I can't bring myself to like her at all.

I just have a problem going with vibes based on edited views of people playing a game that is based on deceit. I have seen too many people, especially women but also some men, turned into The Worst POS to Ever Draw a Breath based on no objective evidence at all. Or old standbys are trotted out--"entitled" being the most popular one--which can be found in any behavior. Sometimes a person is "entitled" for doing the exact opposite of what a previous "entitled" person did. 

In short? I have no problem with Chrissy. She should not have protected Katrina, and they weren't even close out there. It was only three days, anyway. No one was that close yet. I have been pulling for Roark since the interviews and profiles were released (see her thread for evidence), and I am a huge proponent of women's alliances, but there's no way that Chrissy should risk a known for an unknown. 

[simplyme]

9 hours ago, KimberStormer said:

All true but I'm rooting for Roark!

From her interviews and the tiny bits we've seen of her, I've really liked Roark. If we'd done the Survivor pool, I was thinking of picking her. (For the record, that would have been the kiss of death for the poor woman's chances. Yes, I know it's already taped.)

Chrissy seems very analytical to me, which makes sense given that she's an actuary. You (@KimberStormer) seem to prefer players with more emotion. You can step back and see the whys and hows of players' moves, but just like the rest of us, the heart wants what the heart wants. 

For some reason, I can't warm to Ashley. 

[cherrypj]

2 hours ago, azshadowwalker said:

I just have a problem going with vibes based on edited views of people playing a game that is based on deceit. I have seen too many people, especially women but also some men, turned into The Worst POS to Ever Draw a Breath based on no objective evidence at all.

Hear hear. 

[peachmangosteen]

3 hours ago, azshadowwalker said:

I just have a problem going with vibes based on edited views of people playing a game that is based on deceit.

I mean, the edit is all we have to go on. I feel like speculating about these people based on what we see and posting those speculations is pretty much the entire point of a message board.

Like I said, I don't see anything inherently wrong with Chrissy not wanting to be part of an all girls alliance in this case and I could maybe understand why she'd blab about Roark's plans to JP, but she still gives me some serious "I work better with men" vibes. And also just annoying vibes in general. She comes off to me as condescending and smug and those are two traits I find hard to handle.

Edited October 19, 2017 by peachmangosteen

[simplyme]

1 hour ago, peachmangosteen said:

I mean, the edit is all we have to go on. I feel like speculating about these people based on what we see and posting those speculations is pretty much the entire point of a message board.

Like I said, I don't see anything inherently wrong with Chrissy not wanting to be part of an all girls alliance in this case and I could maybe understand why she'd blab about Roark's plans to JP, but she still gives me some serious "I work better with men" vibes. And also just annoying vibes in general. She comes off to me as condescending and smug and those are two traits I find hard to handle.

True. And SO the reason that I'd never go on a reality show. You have to be able to not care how people interpret the bits of your personality that are shown during a stressful, fatiguing hunger strike of a competition. I'd be the witch with a migraine and humidity hair booted the third day for attempting to throttle Patrick. You'd never know that in my old job when fed and with enough sleep, I used to talk down the screaming crazies (I love 99% of people. That other 1%? omg.) with sympathy and a sense of humor. Well, some days I still had the humidity hair.

I don't know what Chrissy is like outside of Survivor. I might dislike her a lot. I certainly feel more of an instant kinship with other players than with her, but I do respect what I've seen of her ability to analyze and strategize. There's also a part of me that feels like women that Survivor shows being strategic tend to get a bit of a villain edit or at least that reaction from many viewers. I don't know that that's backed up by evidence, mind you, but somehow I formed that perception. So I find myself appreciating what Chrissy brings to the game, even if there are players I vibe to a lot more.

And, as always, one of the best things about Survivor in my opinion is that we're all free to like or dislike a player for whatever reasons we want. Wesley in BvW2 drove me bonkers because he was a mouth breather who kept doing weird stuff with his tongue. Petty, but true. :P

Anyways, I feel like Chrissy's going to be around for a while. (I try not to read spoilers, so this is just a guess based on editing and pre-game coverage.) Sorry, @peachmangosteen. I love you and would send you a stress doll with blonde locks to smack around if I could. :)

[Dena0033]

7 hours ago, simplyme said:

From her interviews and the tiny bits we've seen of her, I've really liked Roark. If we'd done the Survivor pool, I was thinking of picking her. (For the record, that would have been the kiss of death for the poor woman's chances. Yes, I know it's already taped.)

Chrissy seems very analytical to me, which makes sense given that she's an actuary. You (@KimberStormer) seem to prefer players with more emotion. You can step back and see the whys and hows of players' moves, but just like the rest of us, the heart wants what the heart wants. 

For some reason, I can't warm to Ashley. 

I DID do a Survivor pool with 5 family members, and I chose Roark. She just seemed like someone I'd be friends with in real life and I thought she might be kind of like a Sophie or Aubry. 

[KimberStormer]

I certainly don't mean to start/participate in an anti-Chrissy witch hunt.  I was sticking up for her confidence the other day, and not saving Katrina before that.  I think she's playing very well so far. 

I think to a large degree my feelings on this season are strongly colored by my reaction to the last newbie season and a certain news event that took place in the middle of it.  I would like a very different outcome for this season than that one, which was not the first time I've quit midway through a season but it was the first time I've ever actively hated the winner.  It has made me twitchy and over-sensitive, so apologies for that.

[simplyme]

1 hour ago, KimberStormer said:

I certainly don't mean to start/participate in an anti-Chrissy witch hunt.  I was sticking up for her confidence the other day, and not saving Katrina before that.  I think she's playing very well so far. 

Eep. I didn't mean to suggest that I thought there was an anti-Chrissy witch hunt. My apologies if anyone took it that way. It's more that I know I sometimes think differently than someone else, so I tend to give my view and explain excessively. Er, you've all probably noticed the excessive explanation bit. Sorry bout that.

[Guest]

15 hours ago, peachmangosteen said:

I mean, the edit is all we have to go on. I feel like speculating about these people based on what we see and posting those speculations is pretty much the entire point of a message board.

Like I said, I don't see anything inherently wrong with Chrissy not wanting to be part of an all girls alliance in this case and I could maybe understand why she'd blab about Roark's plans to JP, but she still gives me some serious "I work better with men" vibes. And also just annoying vibes in general. She comes off to me as condescending and smug and those are two traits I find hard to handle.

I like Chrissy.  I'm in her field, and also work better with men.  Finance is a men's world.  I don't get condescending and smug, I see enthusiastic and confident. 

It's great how they find people that are so polarizing.  

[peachmangosteen]

14 hours ago, simplyme said:

Anyways, I feel like Chrissy's going to be around for a while. (I try not to read spoilers, so this is just a guess based on editing and pre-game coverage.) Sorry, @peachmangosteen. I love you and would send you a stress doll with blonde locks to smack around if I could. :)

Yes, I agree. She's getting almost as much airtime as Ryan, who I also hate, so I think she's going to be around for awhile. Unfortunately for me my two most hated players are likely making it deep. But I usually hate like 2/3rds of the F3 so it's par for the course.

[Bryce Lynch]

1 hour ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

I like Chrissy.  I'm in her field, and also work better with men.  Finance is a men's world.  I don't get condescending and smug, I see enthusiastic and confident. 

It's great how they find people that are so polarizing.  

I don't find her condescending and smug, but she does come across as a bit overconfident and not quite as smart as she thinks she is.

When she and Ben formed their top secret power couple  they seemed to be preparing their FTC speeches and figuring out how they were going to spend their money, based upon a lousy 2 person alliance, very early in the game.

Then when Ryan told he he bequeathed her the super idol she went on in the TH about how Ryan must have really seen something in her.  Um, he saw that you were the weakest person in your tribe and wanted to save you to weaken your tribe.

I don't hate her or anything, I just think she overrates herself.  

[NutMeg]

Me, I find it normal that someone is giddy at finding an alliance mate in this game that can only foster paranoia :)

The same behaviour in normal real life though would have me question the emotional sanity of that person.

It took me a while, but I now believe that exuberant talking heads are more often than not just relief - relief that you may have a way to stay in, relief that you can talk to a human being that is not in competition with you, relief that the challenge is over, relief that for a the next 5 min you can behave like you might at home rather than being your game self, etc. 

[piequinn35]

Jeff said Chrissy is one of his all time favorite players, so she might go far with an alliance with Ben and Ryan.

[LadyChatts]

Wow, Jeff actually likes an older female?!  Apocalypse coming?  And I do use the term "older" loosely.

I do find Chrissy on the arrogant side.  She comes across as being kind of untouchable and totally in control.  It's the way she talks and presents herself.  

[peachmangosteen]

40 minutes ago, piequinn35 said:

Jeff said Chrissy is one of his all time favorite players ...

I did not know this, but it somewhat explains my irrational Chrissy hate lol.

[Guest]

15 hours ago, NutMeg said:

Me, I find it normal that someone is giddy at finding an alliance mate in this game that can only foster paranoia :)

The same behaviour in normal real life though would have me question the emotional sanity of that person.

It took me a while, but I now believe that exuberant talking heads are more often than not just relief - relief that you may have a way to stay in, relief that you can talk to a human being that is not in competition with you, relief that the challenge is over, relief that for a the next 5 min you can behave like you might at home rather than being your game self, etc. 

I agree.  Also, season 1 of UnREAL really colored my vision of reality TV and how these confessionals must go.  I figure each Survivor has a producer they meet with for these THs and that producer is responsible for getting interesting sound bites out of these people.  And that for sure means telling them things like 'act like you got this in the bag, we need that footage because you really could win and it makes for a good story if you played like you felt that all along', 'what do you really think of that guy, be brutal', 'show me that angry/confident/sexy/whatever side we saw in auditions', 'maybe now would be a good time to mention the virginity, the audience will fall in love with you'... etc.   

It's almost akin to Stockholm syndrome.  The show has all the power.  I'm not saying they're victims, it's just an interesting dynamic.  I would never sign up for it.  But I'm glad they do.  

I can believe Chrissy is as smart as she thinks she is.  Those actuarial exams are tough.  And if she believes Ryan liked her on sight, I find it kind of sweet and who am I to say she's totally wrong.  Ryan didn't see her puke, and he's also one who can lie in THs or give partial truths.  And I'm not even sure it's that relevant if she is totally wrong about his original intent.  He seems sincere about wanting to work with her now.  Though I'm glad she's trusting him because I like them both, too.

[peachmangosteen]

I saw a new promo earlier. Shots of Ben looking distraught and the narrator saying (paraphrased), "What keeps this ex-marine up at night?" And then Ben talking about nightmares and a confessional with him saying something about Survivor not being all there is in life or something while tearing up.

Edited October 22, 2017 by peachmangosteen

[piequinn35]

[Nashville]

7 hours ago, piequinn35 said:

Oh damn.  I have that same shirt.

[Lamb18]

Maybe Nashville is really Jeff Probst and has been fooling us all these years!!

[Silver Raven]

Wow, I wonder what happens to Cole.

[azshadowwalker]

2 minutes ago, Silver Raven said:

Wow, I wonder what happens to Cole.

That looked bad, yet I burst out laughing. I am not a nice person. 

[TVFan1]

I may not be a big fan of Cole, but I hope he is okay. I wonder if he will be med-evacuated next week.

[LadyChatts]

Ordinarily I'd say "it's misdirect, no way Cole will be med-evac!"  But the way this season and its previews have been going, that may very well be the case.  Hopefully it's nothing serious, and maybe just a dehydration issue (which I realize is serious, but not as bad as some other medical issues).  Cole may be the dumbest player this season, but I do like him.  So I guess it would make sense if I lost another favorite next week, given how everything else has been going.  They didn't show much else in the previews for next week, besides the usual TC fall out.  

[KimberStormer]

On ‎10‎/‎19‎/‎2017 at 9:50 AM, KimberStormer said:

Yes, the preview always lies

Maybe they've heard me say this, and they've decided to lie by making the preview tell the truth.  With this Chrissy preview scene they completely spoiled the IC and also quite exactly told us what Chrissy was doing and who was getting voted off.  Devious.

If Cole got medevaced, I have to think they'd give him a nicer edit than he's getting.

[Star Aristille]

5 hours ago, KimberStormer said:

If Cole got medevaced, I have to think they'd give him a nicer edit than he's getting.

Not necessarily.  Colton got a terrible edit up to his medevac.

Also, Joe's edit in Kaoh Rong wasn't exactly the best (though not terrible, either) when he was evacuated.

[jay741982]

9 hours ago, TVFan1 said:

I may not be a big fan of Cole, but I hope he is okay. I wonder if he will be med-evacuated next week.

I wouldn't be surprised if he is, that way Jessica can further solidify working with Mike and she didn't Drop Loose lips Cole for him.

[Nashville]

Cole sure does fall pretty, though.  Any time *I* fall, it's uglier than shit.

[Nashville]

16 hours ago, Lamb18 said:

Maybe Nashville is really Jeff Probst and has been fooling us all these years!!

Naw... I like peaches, but I ain't Peachy.

[HurricaneVal]

That preview of Cole passing out in camp was kind of scary.  I mean, it was in camp, not at a challenge.  Maybe he has some sort of previously undiagnosed medical issue that is catching up to him now that he's living this strange life where food is scarce, sleep is difficult, the conditions are hot and humid, water is at a premium, short bursts of intense physical activity are required every couple of days...  The way they showed him snarfing down the food this week may be a precursor to his passing out.  Like maybe he's hypoglycemic which didn't show up in a medical assessment because in his normal life he eats when/what he wants so it never comes up.

[LadyChatts]

Quote

From this blog post on the first season.  They had goddamn rain coats and canned goods in the first season.  Just in the past couple of seasons we've had people almost dying in the heat, feet nearly rotting off from the rain, huge permanent scars from some kind of horrifying infection, Kelley Wentworth lost like 50% of her body weight, etc etc etc.  I'm so sick of hearing that they've got it so good now, they're weak and coddled blah blah blah blah.  False!  KimberStormer has spoken!

Bringing this over from Past Seasons thread.  I was thinking last night, when Cole fainted in the preview, that we've had more med-evacs, or at least medical on site, more than I can remember in previous seasons.  Now, that could be because they just didn't show medical coming into camp in the earlier seasons (unless you happened to be Mike Skupin, which in that case it couldn't be avoided showing them there).  I do remember reading once way back, that a couple of contestants from Africa were taken off site to deal with non-threatening medical issues and returned back to camp.  But aside from that, since S30-we had Joe faint in S31, Stephen and his gross feet in S31, 3 med-evacs in KR (and a gross bug crawling in someone's ear), an almost med-evac in S33.  And now potentially Cole being removed from the game, or at least having an episode.  Sometimes I don't know if it's just plain stupidity on the part of the contestants to stay out of the sun, keep better hydrated, and eat more when it's available.

On the other hand, I do think there are elements to later seasons that are easier.  So I guess I'll say it balances itself out.

[TVFan1]

If Cole is med-evacuated, I'm assuming there will still be a tribal council. Unless it happens near the end of the episode.

[marys1000]

The title makes me think there is some sort of big blind side, lots of strategy, maybe a new type of idol or game play........

[Wings]

On 10/27/2017 at 9:19 PM, TVFan1 said:

If Cole is med-evacuated, I'm assuming there will still be a tribal council. Unless it happens near the end of the episode.

I doubt he is evacuated due to the absence of medic, helicopter or Jeff hovering over him.  They love to show that.  And preview mentions lack of food for someone.  Hmmmm, not a bad way to get a snack when you think about it. 

Edited November 1, 2017 by wings707

[peachmangosteen]

Just FYI, ep titles and descriptions are considered spoilers and should be spoiler tagged in this thread.

[LadyChatts]

With the merge happening next week, I hope something happens to shake this season up (Chrissy getting voted off would be a big plus for starters).  I'll also take JP going on an immunity run and blindsiding his former allies. 

[KimberStormer]

I was so hoping Probst's "you guys are clearly hoping for a merge" was hinting at an Ulonging.  Oh how I would have loved it.  Seeing Ryan and Chrissy's faces at the realization that they were going to have to make fire...a beautiful dream.

[simplyme]

So I started thinking about numbers. There are 5 former healers (Joe, Desi, Cole, Jessica, and Mike), 3 former hustlers (Lauren, Devon, and Ryan), and 4 former heroes (Ashley, JP, Ben, and Chrissy). The interesting thing to me is that the heroes and hustlers have seemingly formed new bonds with other people--mostly heroes/hustlers. The healers, aside from maybe Mike, haven't really seemed to have formed new alliances.

So the healers are the largest single group, but the other two groups now seem to have a lot of cross-ties. It's hard for me not to see the heroes/hustlers teaming up at first to take out the healers they see as the biggest threats. I'd guess that would be Cole, Joe, and Desi, as I think they're all seen as physical threats and Joe and Desi possibly as strategic. Also, Cole and Joe have annoyed the bejesus out of people. They may not take out all three before cannibalizing a hero/hustler, but it feels like one or two will be the focus of a healer-paranoid majority after the merge.

I still feel like this may be a big reason Ryan took out Roark. Everyone is anticipating a merge soon, and going to a merge with six healers (potentially half the numbers) and feeling that Ali was really close to Roark probably worried him that he would be on the wrong side of the numbers.

Edited November 2, 2017 by simplyme

[LadyChatts]

8 minutes ago, simplyme said:

So I started thinking about numbers. There are 5 former healers (Joe, Desi, Cole, Jessica, and Mike), 3 former hustlers (Lauren, Devon, and Ryan), and 4 former heroes (Ashley, JP, Ben, and Chrissy). The interesting thing to me is that the heroes and hustlers have seemingly formed new bonds with other people--mostly heroes/hustlers. The healers, aside from maybe Mike, haven't really seemed to have formed new alliances.

So the healers are the largest single group, but the other two groups now seem to have a lot of cross-ties. It's hard for me not to see the heroes/hustlers teaming up at first to take out the healers they see as the biggest threats. I'd guess that would be Cole, Joe, and Desi, as I think they're all seen as physical threats and Joe and Desi possibly as strategic. Also, Cole and Joe have annoyed the bejesus out of people. They may not take out all three before cannibalizing a hero/hustler, but it feels like one or two will be the focus of a healer-paranoid majority after the merge.

I still feel like this may be a big reason Ryan took out Roark. Everyone is anticipating a merge soon, and going to a merge with six healers (potentially half the numbers) and feeling that Ali was really close to Roark probably worried him that he would be on the wrong side of the numbers.

Completely agree with this.  This is where it goes from MvsGX and turns into WA for me.  I can totally see a mega cross alliance forming between the Hustlers/Heroes, with either Joe or Mike being the Will of the group and ditching the other Healers.    I can't see any situation where Joe and Mike work together, so basically they are free agents and would probably gladly join any alliance that either brings up the other person's name, or doesn't include that person.  Joe more so than Mike, but I also think Joe is going to be way more cocky and confident that he's running things.  Especially since he has an idol.  I think Jessica/Cole could possibly run into trouble for being an obvious duo.  I'd say Cole being the target in the preview probably means he's not going, but I won't be surprised if he is a serious consideration for various reasons (and the show hasn't exactly made it super suspenseful this season, either).  Especially if Ryan wanted to save Devon, and the Heroes want to save JP, who might seem like targets for being alpha males. 

I worry about Desi the most, if she isn't on the right side of numbers.  I think Lauren will float, or end up on the wrong side of numbers, and Ryan may want to try and save Devon. 

[peachmangosteen]

I'm assuming that Ryan/Chrissy/JP will join up with Devon/Ashley and Ben/Lauren now. And Mike will probably go along with them for now. I think the initial target will be Cole. I could see Cole actually going, since they don't appear to be doing completely misleading promos anymore, but I could also see Desi ending up going. I could see the target changing from Cole to Joe and then Joe plays his idol and Desi ends up going somehow. I just figure everyone I like will continue to go one right after the other.

Edited November 2, 2017 by peachmangosteen

[TVFan1]

I hope the Healers don't get pagonged. That is what is probably going to happen when this merge happens next week. 

I wouldn't mind seeing the Healers getting partnered up with some allies and get the Hustler tribe taken out. Ryan should be the first. 

[LadyChatts]

I think Desi/Cole/Jessica will be in the most trouble.  Joe possibly, but they could just split the vote if he had an Idol and still get rid of one of the others.  Since I’ve been losing favorites, my votes for Desi because that’s the theme of the season for me.  If Cole is a food hog that might seal his fate.  

[piequinn35]

I am guessing that the original Heroes and Hustlers will work together to wipe out the original Healers, but 1 or 2 episodes, Joe and/or Mike will use their HII.

Next ep, Cole is just a front, they could be targeting another Healer-Joe.

[LadyChatts]

With my luck Chrissy or one of her stupid minions will get the idol next week.  I'll be even more annoyed if Cole or someone in the minority got to it first and she wrestled it away from them.  

[Nashville]

If Joe finds the next idol AGAIN next week, I’m going to need very badly for someone to shoot him in the face with a bazooka.

[KimberStormer]

So I'd guess Cole finds the clue in the nails, and is digging for the idol, and Chrissy tries to stop him physically?  I just can't see it being the other way around -- Cole might be that clueless, but I sort of think they'd kick him off the show for it. 

[Nashville]

5 minutes ago, KimberStormer said:

So I'd guess Cole finds the clue in the nails, and is digging for the idol, and Chrissy tries to stop him physically?  I just can't see it being the other way around -- Cole might be that clueless, but I sort of think they'd kick him off the show for it. 

Please GOD let Cole be that clueless.

 

One possible benefit to such a tussle; if Cole goes head-to-head with Chrissy and doesn’t come up with the idol, then his ass is outta here on the next seat in Smoking....

[jay741982]

4 hours ago, KimberStormer said:

So I'd guess Cole finds the clue in the nails, and is digging for the idol, and Chrissy tries to stop him physically?  I just can't see it being the other way around -- Cole might be that clueless, but I sort of think they'd kick him off the show for it. 

If Chrissy goes after Physically they should boot her. I hope Cole doesn't let her or one of her bitches have it