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Past Seasons Talk: The Tribe Has Spoken


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The Mount Rushmore of Survivor Suck: Jon Dalton, Russell Hantz, Colton Cumbie, Kyle Jason and Scot Pollard. I know, the real thing has four faces, but Scot and Jason are in a class by themselves. Would that be an accurate gauge into how bad the casting department is running things in the past, or are there more loathsome pieces of garbage?

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I think you're giving them what they want when you put them with Russell and Jon. Scot and Jason are just boring and lame. All their attempts at being bad guys have been done by somebody else in more interesting and entertaining ways. Like the paper, rock, scissors thing tonight? You can tell they planned it out, expecting it to be a "classic," Survivor moment. They got zero originality or charisma. They're just a bunch of dorks.

 

Colton's a whole other matter, considering the race and class issues he brought into the game. 

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They are definitely in good company with that bunch, but at the bottom of the bottom of the barrel.  I agree with loki567 that they are trying way too hard for camera time that their attempts at being villainous are coming off as pathetic.  I can't remember if it was something he did/said on the show or on his twitter, but Jason copied a bunch of quotes out of Rodney Lavoie's handbook.  There's been other instances this season where they tried coming off as being original, but someone else had already done it.  They are even relishing being called 'the bash brothers' and now 'the 3 amigos' with Tai, but that's already been done, too.  Jason tonight said that this was possibly going to be the best episode of Survivor ever, which has fans whining about him spoiling things (actually, he does subtly give things away, which I'm surprised he gets away with it).  I thought for sure the idol was coming into play with that line.  But really, was this blindside that fantastic?  Would it go into the blindside hall of fame?  Haven't we had better?  Even this season, Liz getting booted was a better blindside than Debbie.  Last season, Monica's blindside, Wigles blindside, Jeremy blindsiding his own alliance to play an idol for Stephen.

 

The bright side, Jason and Scot aren't not possibly winning.  However, unless they betray Julia and Tai, I actually wonder if those two would vote for one of those buffons if they made it to the final 2.  Kind of a scary thought.  At this point, my money would be on Cydney, Michele, or Aubry to take it.

 

Also, if they played in a season of returnees, they'd get their asses handed to them so fast.  They are lucky they wound up with this incompetent cast.

Edited by LadyChatts
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Corinne Kaplan, Jon Dalton (though by today's standards he almost seems harmless), Russell Hantz, Colton Cumbie, Judd Sergeant, Dan Foley, Will Sims, James 'Rocky' Reid, Randy Bailey, Brian Heidek (more for his post show behavior than anything he did in the game, but he still sucked as a human being during Thailand).  Oh, and Dreamz.  And the creepy guy from Samoa, Ben I believe (aka the guy who should just book himself into jail because he has all the traits of a serial killer).

Edited by LadyChatts
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NaOnka Mixon from Nicaragua is definitely on my Mount Rushmore of Suck. Ben Browning from Samoa is a good choice (and Jaison will forever remain my favorite player from that season for calling him out at Tribal Council and for lobbying for his ouster), as well. Russell Hantz and Colton Crumbie are terrible and deserve to be on the list, but so were Alicia Rosa from One World and Will Sims from Worlds Apart. I find it very difficult to keep the list down to four.

 

Jon Dalton was/is obnoxious, but I'm not sure he made camp life miserable the way the people on my list did. Same goes for Dan Foley. They're both awful, but in common ways that are more socially accepted. So while I wouldn't want to spend any time with them one-on-one, I wouldn't worry about having to share a camp with them, since there would be other people around who are seeing and hearing the same things I am and with whom I could exchange eye rolls or complain when they're out of earshot.

 

There are many seasons I haven't seen yet, but the people who are on my Mount Rushmore of Suck are people I've seen with whom I don't think I could even share a camp. Will seemed fine until he had his blow-up at Shirin. Yes, she was being an asshole about the food he shared with her (that he was not at all obliged to share with anyone), but he took it so far beyond what any reasonable person could consider game play that I don't think I'd be able to relax at camp with him because I'd be worried about setting him off and having him verbally attack me where I'm most vulnerable. Alicia and NaOnka straight up bullied people on their seasons and I would find that difficult to be around even if I wasn't the target. NaOnka also stole food and was generally unpredictable. Colton, in addition to joining in the bullying of Christina, he admitted he was happy when the game was chaotic and everyone around him was confused. Russell Hantz for the sabotage and Ben because, as @LadyChatts alluded to, he seemed like a legitimate psychopath. The only good thing about his time on Survivor was that it was so short.

Dalton would be on mine like Heidek on LadyChatt's, more for postseason reasons than his behavior on the show (which, mind you, I did not enjoy either).  I watched an awful reality show about reality stars making a terrible horror movie, and Dalton not only crapped in the toilet tank which is disgusting and unsanitary, but he also crapped in the bed, near the pillow, of a woman (from the Bachelor I think) whom he didn't like.  That is just vile.

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 Last season, Monica's blindside, Wigles blindside, Jeremy blindsiding his own alliance to play an idol for Stephen.

 

You forgot the most delicious one last season - Savage blindside.

 

And there are still others better than whatever blindside Fatty thinks is so fantastic - Erik Reinbach blindside in FvF. Brenda Lowe blindside in FvF2.0, Sarah Lacina blindside in Cagayan. Heck, even Kimmi's ouster last season could be considered a blindside considering no one went out that way, at least not that I can remember.

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6 hours ago, BlueJayFan said:

I'd like to go back and watch previous seasons, which one is best? I know everyone will not agree, just looking for a consensus.

I personally think China is the best one to start with.  It's not the best season but it is sort of the classical ideal of Survivor IMO, and will give a sort of baseline expectation for how a game of Survivor goes.  I don't want to go into the details in case you care about spoilers, but essentially, everything that happens is like, How It Works.  China is the Theme and the other seasons are the Variations.

The other option of course is to start with season 1, which is a whole 'nother beast and probably most fun if you haven't seen later Survivor.  (At least that is my experience.)  In that case almost nobody even realized what they signed up for and it is a learning experience for everyone.

The final suggestion I might make for a first-time view is Philippines, which has a couple of returning characters but mostly is just a bunch of fantastic new people, and brought in the three-tribe system which has been fairly common since and IMO makes the game much more interesting.

Some of the best seasons are returnee seasons: Micronesia (my pick for best ever), Heroes VS Villains, and Cambodia.  To some extent these are better/more interesting if you've seen at least some of the people in their original seasons, but I think they stand alone pretty well.

Other solid seasons to try: Amazon, Pearl Islands, Panama, Palau, Tocantins. 

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Perhaps this is an idea best served with a new thread, but the previous post got me thinking.

What is the takeaway from each season?  Meaning, what is the biggest thing(s) to stick in the memory about each season, becoming a reason(s) for or against recommending that season?  It could be the theme, the location, a player or players, or an event that happened; just about anything.  And go with the elevator pitch.

For example, Australia: Fire, flooding, and Jerri and Colby.

Or for the current season: The triple medical situation, multiple med-evacs, and Mark the chicken.

Don't forget Doritos and Colby's Mom and Her Makeup. Or Fan Vs. Favorites, where you had Tracy and Tracy's Protruding Nipples. Also: Joel almost killing Chet in the worst thought-out challenge ever conceived (which knocked Jonathan Penner out of the game), the Black Widow alliance, Erik getting dumped on, and "It's a stick!"

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Amazon: the first ever gender divided tribes, the come from behind in the first IC, Jenna/Heidi and peanut butter, the location, Butch and his stockpile of fire wood that burned the camp down, Matt and his machete, Christy, Alex's blindside, and of course, Rob C.

Cook Islands: the location, the controversial racially divided tribes, the Aitu 4, the mutiny, Penner, Ozzy, Yul, Cao Boi, Parvati, the challenges (some of the best ever created, imo), Candice/Adam's showmance, and Billy's creepy infatuation for Candice.

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If I hadn't seen any prior seasons, I would be tempted to start at the beginning and see them int he order they were shown on TV.  

My suggestion for anyone doing this - Watch all the episodes, even if you find them boring or aggravating.  The forums for most seasons have many "This season sucks! I'm out!" comments, prior to the merge, but most season pick up considerably after the merge.  However, I contend that you need to watch the pre-merge episodes to make the post-merge ones more enjoyable.  

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Hi Ms. Blue Jay, I watched a few episodes here and there, but the first full season I seriously watched was the one in which Lisa Whelchel was a contestant and had three returning players - Penner, Skupin and Russell somebody. It was a three-tribe season and was Malcolm and Abi's first season. I can't remember the season number or location, so I'm providing all these details because somebody will know this off the top of their head. I was really engaged by that season and it hooked me into Survivor. Episodes I'd watched on prior seasons didn't reel me in, but that season did.

I think Mark should be a contestant on Big Brother. Or he and Tai can team up for The Amazing Race.

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2 hours ago, Lamb18 said:

Hi Ms. Blue Jay, I watched a few episodes here and there, but the first full season I seriously watched was the one in which Lisa Whelchel was a contestant and had three returning players - Penner, Skupin and Russell somebody. It was a three-tribe season and was Malcolm and Abi's first season. I can't remember the season number or location, so I'm providing all these details because somebody will know this off the top of their head. I was really engaged by that season and it hooked me into Survivor. Episodes I'd watched on prior seasons didn't reel me in, but that season did.

I think Mark should be a contestant on Big Brother. Or he and Tai can team up for The Amazing Race.

The season you are referring to is season 25, Survivor Philippines. 

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(edited)
18 hours ago, needschocolate said:

If I hadn't seen any prior seasons, I would be tempted to start at the beginning and see them int he order they were shown on TV.  

My suggestion for anyone doing this - Watch all the episodes, even if you find them boring or aggravating.  The forums for most seasons have many "This season sucks! I'm out!" comments, prior to the merge, but most season pick up considerably after the merge.  However, I contend that you need to watch the pre-merge episodes to make the post-merge ones more enjoyable.  

Interesting that you say that!  When I went through my Survivor Super Binge I always lost interest at some point after the merge and before Final Tribal Council.  My favourite contestants were usually kicked out of the show by then.   It was really rare that my favourites made it all the way to the end - that's why I prefer the seasons I do.  I will say that the first 7-8 episodes of any Survivor season are some of my favourite television period. I am voracious, and then when the person or people I'm following get kicked out, I can turn off the season and feel nothing.  I never feel the need to go back.  Also, I could never get into Guatemala or Palau.  I'd be interested to revisit 1-5 but I never did.  I tried to revisit 6 and the quality of the picture was so awful and Rob kind of grated.

Now that I'm watching seasons "in real time" I feel the need to watch every season to the end.  If I turned off SJDS and Collars season at some point I don't think I'd be missing anything really.  (Just based on what I personally enjoy).

Edited by Ms Blue Jay
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1 hour ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

Interesting that you say that!  When I went through my Survivor Super Binge I always lost interest at some point after the merge and before Final Tribal Council.  My favourite contestants were usually kicked out of the show by then.   It was really rare that my favourites made it all the way to the end - that's why I prefer the seasons I do.  I will say that the first 7-8 episodes of any Survivor season are some of my favourite television period. I am voracious, and then when the person or people I'm following get kicked out, I can turn off the season and feel nothing.  I never feel the need to go back.  Also, I could never get into Guatemala or Palau.  I'd be interested to revisit 1-5 but I never did.  I tried to revisit 6 and the quality of the picture was so awful and Rob kind of grated.

Now that I'm watching seasons "in real time" I feel the need to watch every season to the end.  If I turned off SJDS and Collars season at some point I don't think I'd be missing anything really.  (Just based on what I personally enjoy).

Interesting...perhaps it has something to do with watching in real time.  I have watched all the seasons in real time, and stick with each until the end (and never regretted that decision).  I don't know if I would have given up on a Hantz (any Hantz) season if I was watching it months or years after it aired.  Maybe it is easier to stop when you know there are as many as 30 other seasons you could watch instead.   

Guest

This show is must-see-tv in my house.  We buy it on Amazon Prime even.  I drop shows all the time, though.  I've never made it past a season or two of a Shonda show, e.g.  Or a CSI/NCIS show.

I didn't love Phillippines, though.  Too many Lisa confessionals about her big moral dilemma about being a Christian AND misleading people in the game.  Snore.  At least it had Malcolm.  

(edited)

My first season was Marquesas, but I didn’t watch every episode as aired. The first time I did that was Pearl Islands, which is what hooked me. I loved Sandra. I loved Rupert. I hated Andrew from day one (or three) with his he-man attitude against  Skinny Ryan. 

Later, I went back and watched the earlier seasons in their entirety. I won't say how or where, because I am sure they weren't legal. At the time, there was no other way to see those seasons, though, so I didn't feel guilty about it. Then, I re-watched when the TV Guide channel ran them. After doing so, I would recommend that you start with the beginning. The first season has a very different feel that I miss very much in later seasons. I know strategies were going to change, but I hate the twists and idols and redemptions and....and...and..... Although, I guess you could say twists started as early as Pearl Islands and Thailand. They just weren't as pervasive. 

I don't know if I would tell someone to watch seasons that they find ponderous, though. I have checked out multiple times. San Juan del Sur. The one with Tony and Woo. Just couldn't do it. 

Edited by azshadowwalker

01 - Borneo
Biggest Moment: Sue's "snakes and rats" speech
Biggest Characters: Richard the nudist, Rudy the retiring homophobe, Greg the "over it" psycho
Dumbest Move: Sean's alphabet strategy.
The Good: America was surprised by the less obvious aspects- that survival was also a mental and political game.
The Bad: This season had too many people who didn't realize the gravity of the game they were playing.
Lesson Learned: Alliances exist, so don't expose your plans to others you shouldn't trust.

02 - Australia
Biggest Moment: The fire, which shocked America with production's non-interference
Biggest Characters: Colby the Cowboy and the original man-crush of Probst, Lisabeth the Hasselbeck, Amber the Boston-bound, Jerri the black widow
Dumbest Move: Kel giving into the group's thoughts that he secretly had beef jerky.
The Good: This season was played with a lot of heart and emotion, and the winner reflects that.
The Bad: It's often implied that this was one of the more creatively edited seasons and we missed a lot.
Lesson Learned: Don't go to the end with people you can't beat.  Don't go close to the end with people you can't betray.

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Amber was only a 'big character' in hindsight.  She was a total non-entity in her first season, to the point that people were wondering why the hell she was even cast for All-Stars.  Tina, Rodger, Alicia, Kimmi, Varner, Skupin....hell, even early boots like Kel and Debb were far more memorable than Amber from S2.

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Something I saw or heard or read today made me think about the expressions "big fish in a small pond" and "small fish in a big pond". And it got me thinking about returnees and whether they came back as previous big fish in small ponds or previous small fish in big ponds, and at first glance I think the latter fared better. The worst situation is to have been a big fish in a big (rich) pond - everyone has you in their sight. (I would classify Ozzy's first return in that category, the guy was very memorable in a season with plenty of memorable players. Parvati, on the other hand, initially came back with the - IMO unjustified - image of a small fish in a big pond, which gave her some protection, after her fellow players stopped wanting to vote her out "because she was weak in challenges" - that amuses me to no end!).

"Big fish", here, I would say, means big character/player in their season, not necessarily good player. For instance, I thought China's Amanda was a big fish, who went on to still hold her own in FvF, and petered out in HvV, a season where everyone had been some kind of big fish at one time or another. Ditto Stephenie, big fish in Palau, diluted in the HvV pond. Or Coach, big fish his first season, relegated to backup vocals in HvV. Same with Candice, Sugar, Tom, to a lesser extent Randy: previous soloists now part of the supporting cast. Brenda in her second season (former big fish in small pond, although in her case as I mentioned in some thread I thought her father issues influenced her game). OTOH, Sandra on paper looked like she was likely to disappear in the background, and in a way she did, but never disappeared from the game. Courtney Yates, while making F3 in China, never appeared threatening as a big fish (she was more of a Dory, if you will), so was left well alone to continue the game for a while in HvV. Or if we look at another returnee season, Rob and Amber were safe at first because they were seen as small fish, small pond or not (haven't seen their initial season but know they were out relatively early compared to some other players perceived as big fish that season). Last returnee season, Kelly Wigglesworth could have been seen as a big fish initially, but she made herself as invisible and as unthreatening as possible. Jeremy played as small fish as possible, at least that's what the edit want us to believe. Kimmi was small fish, so not threatening, ditto a few others. Whereas Jeff, Shirin, and probably a few others were acting as big fish and paid the price for it.

I'm sure there are plenty of holes in my theory, but I thought I would throw it here nonetheless :)        

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I know I am bumping some of the older topics in here but I have not been in this thread for some time so...

On ‎5‎/‎2‎/‎2016 at 1:52 PM, ForeverAlone said:

There is something to be said for watching old seasons of Survivor when you know the boot order. Sure, it removes the "suspense", but it is fascinating to see just how the winners get to the end and why they win (or the other players don't win). 

That's why I love reading the spoilers before every season, though the spoiler lists for the past few seasons have not been on point as much.  I love to see the people who end up in the finals and how they got to that point.  Though I do admit it is fun being spoiler free as well, but I tend to only be spoiler free when it comes to The Amazing Race for the most part.  I love reading the spoilers for Survivor, The Challenge, and Big Brother (The way they edit BB you sort of have to read the spoilers because if not then you are watching an entirely different show.).

On ‎4‎/‎14‎/‎2016 at 9:57 PM, Lantern7 said:

What would be your Rushmores of Suck? Pre-32, I'm thinking Richard, Jon Dalton, Russell Hantz and Colton Cumbie. I'm willing to hear arguments for other candidates.

I never really had a problem with Russell.  I might be the only fan of the show that did not.  As for Jon well I always felt Jon was more of a play it up for television type of villain and a lame one at that.

I could not make a list of my Rushmore of Suck because there would be far too many people on it.  Also, I tend to despise people who others love (For instance I hate Parvati and I think she might be one of the most overrated players).  I am thinking Colton, Alicia Rosa, Rocky (Mostly because as I have said Anthony reminded me of myself and Rocky bullied him), and Skupin (For what he did in real life).

 

On ‎4‎/‎15‎/‎2016 at 9:57 PM, Jobiska said:

Dalton would be on mine like Heidek on LadyChatt's, more for postseason reasons than his behavior on the show (which, mind you, I did not enjoy either).  I watched an awful reality show about reality stars making a terrible horror movie, and Dalton not only crapped in the toilet tank which is disgusting and unsanitary, but he also crapped in the bed, near the pillow, of a woman (from the Bachelor I think) whom he didn't like.  That is just vile.

I remember that show.  Did they ever air the "movie" that they made?  I mean if they did I probably did watch it but it was so long ago that I cannot recall if they did end up showing it and if I did end up watching it.

I'm about halfway through the Guatemala season right now for the first time and I have to say it's one of my least favorites so far.  It's practically all rednecks or otherwise obnoxious personalities.  The lack of HD and the poor sound quality (or maybe it's all the southern accents) aren't helping.  People are already painfully thin and covered in gross abrasions.  There are no water challenges or swimming, outside their weird little gator-cage pool.  And being spoiled isn't my favorite condition for watching.  After this, the only one I haven't seen is Thailand, and I think I'll leave it that way.  

I did laugh at goofy cop Amy telling Gary Hogeboom she'd easily hunt down Gary Hawkins in whatever his hometown is and make him pay if he betrayed her.  Heh.  

59 minutes ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

I'm about halfway through the Guatemala season right now for the first time and I have to say it's one of my least favorites so far.  It's practically all rednecks or otherwise obnoxious personalities.  The lack of HD and the poor sound quality (or maybe it's all the southern accents) aren't helping.  People are already painfully thin and covered in gross abrasions.  There are no water challenges or swimming, outside their weird little gator-cage pool.  And being spoiled isn't my favorite condition for watching.  After this, the only one I haven't seen is Thailand, and I think I'll leave it that way.  

I did laugh at goofy cop Amy telling Gary Hogeboom she'd easily hunt down Gary Hawkins in whatever his hometown is and make him pay if he betrayed her.  Heh.  

I'm re-watching Thailand now-trust me, you aren't missing much.  I actually liked Guatemala more than most, though I remember it being of the tougher locations they filmed at.  

"Gary Hawkins" is a very underrated Survivor moment.

1 hour ago, omophagia said:

Guatemala is probably a middle-tier season for me, as well. I liked several of the early boots (Brian, Brandon, Margaret) pretty well and wouldn't mind seeing them in the mix for a second chances season, and I'm bummed Danni isn't on s34. I do think she's an underrated winner.

I think that's the issue with Guatemala, is the early boots seem to be the ones worth bringing back-and since they were early boots, not many people are going to remember them.  Especially from a season that was so long ago, and doesn't appear to be memorable.  Since Stephenie got a third chance, I'd love to see Bobby Jon return.  Danni is the only one post merge I'd want to see, but my other favorites (Brian, Amy, and especially Brandon) were all pre-jury.  

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19 minutes ago, KimberStormer said:

I'm probably alone on this, man, but I would love to see that damn Judd again, man.

After thinking about it, I'm kinda there with you.  He would be an interesting person to watch playing again, simply to see if he learned anything from his first time around. 

Guatemala is about when Survivor started morphing into its current form.  This was the season that introduced the HII, with the aforementioned Jud being the first person to ever get a clue to the location of the HII.  Plus it was the first season that brought back a small number of returning players; players more memorable for their "characters" than their gameplay.

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3 hours ago, phlebas said:

Solidarity.  We need more players who are good sportsmanships.

Bwahahaha!  Judd's annoying me but everyone on the tribe seems to like him (post-merge) so I'm guessing he's not that bad.  

I  also liked Brandon, the farmer who looked like a young Clint Eastwood, and Brian.  

We just watched the one where Gary plays the HII.  We don't recall if they've ever not shown us someone finding an idol since, but just surprised us with the person playing it at tribal instead.  

14 hours ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

We just watched the one where Gary plays the HII.  We don't recall if they've ever not shown us someone finding an idol since, but just surprised us with the person playing it at tribal instead.  

Why, Amanda in Micronesia, of course.  We saw Parvati distracting people, we saw Amanda digging maybe? but we didn't see the idol till she started swinging it around prancing towards Probst.

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I was thinking about Kelley Wentworth, and how she's a fantastic example of how "anyone but me" is not a good strategy even at the beginning.  Kelley played "anyone but me" with the Shirin vote instead of fighting for her alliance, and was literally on the outs and the underdog for the entire rest of Cambodia.  She played amazingly at that role, but she was out of power ever afterwards.  It goes against received Survivor wisdom to stick your neck out early, but by going along to get along Kelley really screwed her whole game for an entire month of gameplay.

I was also thinking about Eddie.  If you hate the Triforce/Cool Kids, Eddie might be an example of 'be careful what you wish for'.  Because the Misfit Toys got the better of the Pretty People Can't Count Alliance in Caramoan, and by the strange workings of Survivor fate this brought Eddie, the worst Survivor player of all time IMO, to fourth place.  Had he been in any kind of power at the merge, he would certainly have been gone much sooner.

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