S38.E01: It Smells Like Success

[Bryce Lynch]

17 minutes ago, Lamima said:

Chandler should be his nickname.

Bing!  

[MVFrostsMyPie]

5 hours ago, cooksdelight said:

Ex-military, Bronze Star and in my book he’s earned the right to call himself whatever he wants. 

Well, that’s fine, but my opinion still stands. 🤷🏻‍♀️ 

[phlebas]

In my mind, Reem spend that first night huddled next to that ruined boat in the rain, chanting the names of her enemies over and over again like Arya Stark.

[Bucket]

13 hours ago, cooksdelight said:

The one thing I kept reminding myself about ... if I’m stuck on an island with no bed, no comforts of home ... and this woman is moving my clothes out to the beach, harping at me to do this and do that .... I don’t care if she’s 18 or 80, she would get on my nerves bigtime.

I totally agree.  The oldest woman is not always voted out first but they become a target due to the need to keep the strongest.  An obnoxious irritant trumps age and we had a double here. 

[Special K]

16 minutes ago, Bucket said:

I totally agree.  The oldest woman is not always voted out first but they become a target due to the need to keep the strongest.  An obnoxious irritant trumps age and we had a double here. 

I wonder how often the first person voted out is the one who annoys everyone the most?  I'd say like 80-90% of the time.

[Julia67]

10 hours ago, green said:

The last couple of years they have put The Amazing Race in between the two seasons of Survivor.  This year they are putting TAR's season on after Survivor. 

TAR is coming back???  I'll have to google those details.  I thought it was gone forever, and we LOVE it!

[Ms Blue Jay]

14 hours ago, mojoween said:

Ahh.  My first season was Australia so I missed that!

You have to watch the first one.

[Bryce Lynch]

29 minutes ago, Special K said:

I wonder how often the first person voted out is the one who annoys everyone the most?  I'd say like 80-90% of the time.

Victoria from this season, said in her pre-game interview that she watched a bunch of 1st episodes and focused on what got the first person voted out, to avoid making the same mistakes.  She said being annoying was the most common reason.  

[ghoulina]

Late watching. I didn't realize it started last night and I had a make-up martial arts test! 

As always, I'm excited for a new season. I tend to like the dynamic of returning players vs. newbies. And I like it in THIS format - where there's just a few sprinkled among the tribes, as opposed to an entire tribe or returnees. 

I LOVE Aubrey. So I'm thrilled to see her back; and I was happy her tribe didn't end up at TC. Because....not only was Eric smart to want to learn on his own in the game and not rely on returnees for everything; he's also smart to want to use Joe as a meat shield and get Aubrey out ASAP.  As much as I would hate that, I respect his astuteness. 

Over on the blue tribe, I instantly started tearing up when Wendy revealed her Tourettes. My 10-year-old son just developed some facial tics a few weeks ago; and, while I know most childhood tics are not permanent or severe, he's been very self conscious about it. It really made me happy for him to see someone he could SORT OF relate to on the game he loves so much. 

I also started to tear up when Wendy and Reem were teaching Keith to swim better. But that moment was soon ruined when everyone was like, "Well, those are our targets." I KNOW it's the nature of this game; but I just hate it - so much - when people are doing an activity together or chatting and it's instantly perceived as an alliance forming. They were doing a nice thing, and they got targeted because of it. 

That being said; while it made me sad, I don't necessarily blame Keith for jumping ship. There's personal and then there's game. Reem may have been a comforting presence to him, but he was smart to trust his gut. The vibe was bad, he read the room, he got out of there. Wendy, OTOH - it may be a SMIDGE too early to let loyalty drive your moves. 

I did feel for Reem at TC, though. She was being sort of stubborn and lacking in self awareness. You can't wait for people to TELL you stuff in Survivor. You need to anticipate. You need to watch people. You need to pick up on the subtleties. However, I think I would get defensive too if I was told, "We get along with everyone except one person. You." 

I'm not sure if I'm going to like this Edge of Extinction thing. I tend NOT to like chances to get back in the game (unless, and I'm being honest, it's someone I really really like). It's not just that it feels unfair to the spirit of the game. But I hate anything that takes more screen time away from camp life. I miss seeing more camp life!!! 

[Bucket]

2 hours ago, Special K said:

Ron Burgundy needs to cool it with the 'Oh YEAH!!' shit.  That's why I don't want morning shows.

LOL! 

[Rachel RSL]

15 hours ago, wallflower75 said:

Sometimes I feel like the only person on the planet who doesn’t find Joe appealing whatsoever

Count me in as part of that club.  I don't actively dislike Joe, he seems pleasant enough, but I don't find him particularly attractive and his personality has always seemed beyond bland to me.

11 hours ago, Wandering Snark said:

Exactly. Who died and made you Alice? I don't think we've ever seen anyone on self-appointed laundry-drying duty before and this is Season 38! "Oh let me move everyone's shoes into the sun" uhhh... no thanks. I'd like my things to stay where I left them.

I don't remember which season it was but there was a time when Lisa Welchel did basically the same thing, laid out everyone's clothing (without asking permission) so they could dry and, in doing so, she accidentally found Malcolm's immunity idol that was hidden in his pocket.  It really screwed up Malcolm's strategy because Lisa wasn't someone he was working with and he was sort of forced into an alliance with her.  You'd think Superfan Reem would have remembered that and left everybody's stuff alone. Man, I wish we could have had Malcolm back instead of Joe. 

I still don't know anybody's name except the few people they focused on. I didn't even know there was somebody named Wardog until I came here. I don't even know which one he is but I think I hate him based on that alone.  

[Bucket]

33 minutes ago, Bryce Lynch said:

Victoria from this season, said in her pre-game interview that she watched a bunch of 1st episodes and focused on what got the first person voted out, to avoid making the same mistakes.  She said being annoying was the most common reason.  

Very smart thing to do.  Kudos Victoria. 

[Lamb18]

8 minutes ago, Rachel RSL said:

I don't remember which season it was but there was a time when Lisa Welchel did basically the same thing, laid out everyone's clothing (without asking permission) so they could dry and, in doing so, she accidentally found Malcolm's immunity idol that was hidden in his pocket.  It really screwed up Malcolm's strategy because Lisa wasn't someone he was working with and he was sort of forced into an alliance with her.  You'd think Superfan Reem would have remembered that and left everybody's stuff alone.

This was season 24, Philippines. 

Maybe Reem was copying Lisa on purpose so she could find idols and advantages in people's pockets. Maybe she figured if she started doing this on Day 1, people would get used to it and wouldn't think not to put stuff in their pockets.

[Bryce Lynch]

3 minutes ago, Lamb18 said:

This was season 24, Philippines. 

Maybe Reem was copying Lisa on purpose so she could find idols and advantages in people's pockets. Maybe she figured if she started doing this on Day 1, people would get used to it and wouldn't think not to put stuff in their pockets.

Yeah, I don't see why we should expect other players, who just met Reem, to assume she didn't have any ulterior motives in messing with their clothes.  She might have just been trying to help, but it has become pretty common for players to rifle through other players' clothes and belongings looking for idols and advantages that they may have found.

[nutty1]

IT STARTED???  I did not even realize it! At least I will have something to watch tonight!!

[HurricaneVal]

Wow.  Joe is going full Captain Jack Sparrow with his "look." 

And lest anyone here think that's a good thing, let me disavow you of that notion: he looks ridiculous.  Apparently that's how he is choosing to live his life, as a perpetual Survivor castaway.  I hope it is a decent living, but I also hope he's got some other skills to fall back on since he's only a few years away from doing the BINGO circuit at various American Legion and Elks clubs.

[Nashville]

Quote

Is there really a tribe called Comma?

Specifically, it’s “Kama” - and I would’ve loved Production for days if their tribal banner had featured a large chameleon right in the middle of it.  ;>

14 hours ago, susannot said:

Oh Fuck Jeff Probst and Survivor.  Once again the oldest woman was voted off first.

Why?  Probst didn’t cast so much as a single vote against Reem, and neither did Production.  If you need to blame someone, blame the tribemates who voted Reem out - or better yet blame Reem, whose mouth went absolute steamshovel when it came to digging her game’s own grave.

Quote

  I don't care why.  She is ALWAYS designated as annoying for some reason. It doesn't matter why. This time it was because she tried to act as a Mom; in other words, tried to be nurturing.  Fuck this show.  Fuck, fuck, fuck it.

Hardly - in fact Reem went out of her way at TC to reject the “Mom” label, and chewed out DadBod’s ass for even mentioning it.

For someone who claims to have been following Survivor since S1Ep1, Reem demonstrated an appalling ignorance of basic tribal politics.  At TC Reem repeatedly framed her actions with the clothes as a “nice thing” she voluntarily did for everybody unasked, and implied her teammates should be thanking her instead of targeting her - and in a real world situation she might even be right - but this is Survivor, not the real world, and different considerations apply:

1. In an environment where ‘personal space’ has become a largely hypothetical construct (hell, you’re likely to be getting woke up by the feel of morning wood from somebody you didn’t know until last week), people cling to what little crumbs still exist - and in Survivor that pretty much begins and ends with one’s clothing and bag of personal possessions.  So unilaterally moving people’s personal stuff around without their permission is much more likely to be perceived as a great big fucking deal, whether you like it or not.
2. There’s a game-related aspect which appears to have TOTALLY gone over Reem’s head - namely, that another player may have strategic reasons why they don’t want Reem messing around with their stuff; an idol in their pants pocket they don’t want Reem finding, for example, or spilling out onto the beach for everybody else to see.  The converse is also possible as well - somebody strategically lying about having found an idol, but now having to worry about Reem blurting to someone else, “Well, there wasn’t anything in their pants pockets when I was drying their clothes on the beach....”
3. Reem’s “If my moving your stuff around was a problem for you then you should have said something about it” defense was no defense at all, for reasons both social and strategic.  First of all, social: nobody with any degree of respect for personal property OR personal boundaries thinks they work that way.  If you walk up and climb into the driver’s seat of my vehicle, for example, it is NOT incumbent upon me to tell you, “hey, that’s my car - you shouldn’t be driving it without my permission.”  Any person socialized beyond the level of a second-grader already knows and respects these boundaries - unless, of course, their intention was to steal the vehicle in the first place. 😉   Secondly, strategic: if someone were to voice displeasure with Reem over handling their personal stuff, what conclusions might their tribemates draw from the objection?  “Hmmmm... why doesn’t s/he want Reem messing with their stuff?  Something to hide, maybe...?”  Reem’s proposed “solution” paints a target on the back of anybody who dares to state they have a problem with her actions.

Not necessarily a bad plan on Reem’s part, if plan it actually was - but if so, her execution was for shit.  

So which was Reem - ignorant, or incompetent?  😆

12 hours ago, EllenB said:

Well, it's Warthog from now on for me.

I was thinking of going with Battlepup, but damn that is good.

5 hours ago, JudyObscure said:

Agreed, and I'll never forget how condescending [Kelly] was to her father.  She was just sure he was ruining her game. 

To be fair, he was/did. 😉

[himela]

Has there ever been a winner who had no confessional in the first episode? I guess not. There goes my winner pick 😞

Did I sense arrogance from Kelly? I didn't like her attitude at all.

There was no person who really stood out to me and became memorable but I guess it's only episode 1. Even Joe, who I used to adore, is really old news now, sick of him and his cute tricks. I want to see only new faces.

Do we know what kind of competition there will be to determine who gets back into the game from extinction island?

[Matty]

Still rooting for Joe. That is all. Back to the snark, folks.

[LadyChatts]

36 minutes ago, himela said:

Has there ever been a winner who had no confessional in the first episode? I guess not. There goes my winner pick 😞

Did I sense arrogance from Kelly? I didn't like her attitude at all.

There was no person who really stood out to me and became memorable but I guess it's only episode 1. Even Joe, who I used to adore, is really old news now, sick of him and his cute tricks. I want to see only new faces.

Do we know what kind of competition there will be to determine who gets back into the game from extinction island?

Maybe Natalie White from Samoa, but it's been so long since I've watched that season and all I remember is Russell.  The yellow tribe didn't seem to get much focus last night, besides Joe, Aubry, Eric, and Gavin.  I know we saw Ron with his advantage and Julie saying how she sucks at the outdoor experience.  Did anyone else get a confessional?  Oh, Aurora, but that was a quick one, too.  

Last night made me remember why I didn't like Kelley in the first place.  Also, it hasn't been revealed yet but I think it's just going to be a typical challenge they compete in to get back in.  Which might benefit someone whose recently booted; they might have had food rewards, had fire and better shelter than those on IOE will likely have.  If Reem actually made it to the part where they can re-enter the game, it'd be what, 18 days she would have been out there?  Assuming they don't merge earlier.

Edited February 21, 2019 by LadyChatts

[Nashville]

38 minutes ago, himela said:

Did I sense arrogance from Kelly? I didn't like her attitude at all.

Methinks Ms. Kelley has been reading her own press clippings too much; her “Silly n00b!” eyerolls seemed (to me, anyway) to communicate her impression of herself as ONE OF THE BEST EVAH!!! - despite her never having, yaknow, won.  At the very least, Kelley pretty obviously feels her previous experiences qualify her to judge what is/isn’t a waste of time at TC - and frankly, in terms of Reem’s dissertation defense on How To Augur In Your Game In Ten Minutes Or Less, I’d be hard-put to disagree - but IMHO Kelley’s ocular histrionics were unseemly.

One thing which does pop to mind, however, is recollection of how many returnees pretty much sabotaged themselves by thinking their season was the definitive template for every season, and playing accordingly - and at this particular moment in time, I suspect Kelley may be a prime candidate.

[Bryce Lynch]

12 minutes ago, LadyChatts said:

Maybe Natalie White from Samoa, but it's been so long since I've watched that season and all I remember is Russell.  The yellow tribe didn't seem to get much focus last night, besides Joe, Aubry, Eric, and Gavin.  I know we saw Ron with his advantage and Julie saying how she sucks at the outdoor experience.  Did anyone else get a confessional?  Oh, Aurora, but that was a quick one, too.  

Last night made me remember why I didn't like Kelley in the first place.  Also, it hasn't been revealed yet but I think it's just going to be a typical challenge they compete in to get back in.  Which might benefit someone whose recently booted; they might have had food rewards, had fire and better shelter than those on IOE will likely have.  If Reem actually made it to the part where they can re-enter the game, it'd be what, 18 days she would have been out there?  Assuming they don't merge earlier.

I wouldn't read too much into a lack of confessionals.  There are 18 players and they only had about 42 minutes to do the marooning, show camps being set up, introduce the players, do the immunity challenge, have people strategize before TC, do TC and then show EOE Island.   

[MissEwa]

40 minutes ago, LadyChatts said:

Maybe Natalie White from Samoa, but it's been so long since I've watched that season and all I remember is Russell.  The yellow tribe didn't seem to get much focus last night, besides Joe, Aubry, Eric, and Gavin.  I know we saw Ron with his advantage and Julie saying how she sucks at the outdoor experience.  Did anyone else get a confessional?  Oh, Aurora, but that was a quick one, too.  

Last night made me remember why I didn't like Kelley in the first place.  Also, it hasn't been revealed yet but I think it's just going to be a typical challenge they compete in to get back in.  Which might benefit someone whose recently booted; they might have had food rewards, had fire and better shelter than those on IOE will likely have.  If Reem actually made it to the part where they can re-enter the game, it'd be what, 18 days she would have been out there?  Assuming they don't merge earlier.

I can't be bothered going back to check but I think Natalie got a confessional in the first ep (or one very early on) basically outlining the strategy that got her the win.

ITA on Kelley. Something about her bugs me and she was giving off very strong Stephanie Lagrossa vibes last night. I can't help feeling like she's believing her own hype a little too much.

Not a huge fan of Joe either. Cut-rate Malcolm just makes me miss Full-Price Malcolm. 

I didn't take in much more from this episode. The Reem-Wendy-Keith thing felt quite inevitable and depressing and I get why Keith flipped but he's naive if he thinks that will save him. Why have most of the women gone straight to just wearing underwear? Is 'Etsy Store Owner' a real career? An Advantage Menu? Ugh. 

[Archery]

I love that Keith spent time learning how to swim better.  He clearly has the mechanics, but it'll be in the stress of a challenge that he needs confidence.  Keep practicing, bro.  And good on Wendy and Reem for helping.  Someone upthread implied he doesn't seem to have what it takes.  To that, I'd say, Go watch Cirie's first season.  

That said, bye, Reem.  

I love Jeff P's expressions during the first couple of TCs.  The Castaways always pontificate about theory and strategy, and Jeff always has a look like, "You people know I've heard this thirty-something times already, right?  It's not gonna go anywhere near what you're expecting.  But keep talking."   

[Whimsy]

9 hours ago, cooksdelight said:

Ex-military, Bronze Star and in my book he’s earned the right to call himself whatever he wants.

Agreed.  

9 hours ago, cooksdelight said:

Keith lives in Durham (probably goes to Duke) and won a scholarship to college. No excuses for not knowing how to swim unless he doesn’t care for the water.

I hate swimming and I was in the Coast Guard lol.  People always ask my why I joined the Coast Guard since I hate water.  Luckily, I was only stationed on land.  If I ever went on Survivor I would suck at swimming challenges. 

5 hours ago, ProfCrash said:

I have to say, when a tribe is voting someone out because she moved their stuff without asking I roll my eyes. No one thought to say "Please don't touch my stuff?" That said, if that is the main reason you have for voting someone out, then the overall personalities on the tribe must not be that annoying. No one seemed to be a real problem for challenges, the idea that Reem was the "weakest" is flat out ridiculous, and everyone seemed to be pulling their weight.

I think that's marginalizing what she did, though.  I think it was partly that she moved their stuff but then also because she was just so damned argumentative.  Other tribe members were trying to answer Jeff's questions and she just wouldn't let them finish without butting in and telling them they were wrong.  Can you imagine living with that 24/7?  Ugh. 

5 hours ago, Gummo said:

One more thing that bugged me about Reem:

Her behavior was incredibly condescending. Everyone out there is an adult (well, technically, not Keith) and I doubt any of them wanted or needed Reem "teaching" them how to dry their clothes or drink water. But she just assumed she knew best and started dishing out unwanted advice and messing with people's stuff without even a by-your leave.

I just wish she was gone for good.

Or, this.  

[Bryce Lynch]

35 minutes ago, MissEwa said:

I can't be bothered going back to check but I think Natalie got a confessional in the first ep (or one very early on) basically outlining the strategy that got her the win.

ITA on Kelley. Something about her bugs me and she was giving off very strong Stephanie Lagrossa vibes last night. I can't help feeling like she's believing her own hype a little too much.

Not a huge fan of Joe either. Cut-rate Malcolm just makes me miss Full-Price Malcolm. 

I didn't take in much more from this episode. The Reem-Wendy-Keith thing felt quite inevitable and depressing and I get why Keith flipped but he's naive if he thinks that will save him. Why have most of the women gone straight to just wearing underwear? Is 'Etsy Store Owner' a real career? An Advantage Menu? Ugh. 

Keith flipping might save him.  If you can make it past that first TC things often change a lot.  Players might get perceived as threats, or become annoying or get into fights with other players, and suddenly they could forget they were ever targeting you.  Also, players get to know each other better and can form new bonds.  Wasn't Nick of the verge of being the first one voted out last season?

[Charlesman]

10 hours ago, cousin oliver said:

19 hours ago, cooksdelight said:

If they hadn’t gotten rid of Reem when they did, a machete would have wound up in her back. That woman is so freaking annoying, I don’t remember anyone like her ever being on the show before. 

Natalie was just last season!

Haha exactly! I'm glad Reem got voted out early because watching Natalie hang around for as long as she did was definitely exhausting! It was a better show once she was gone, and I'm hoping that Reem doesn't linger either.

[omophagia]

16 hours ago, EllenB said:

Well, it's Warthog from now on for me.

Thank you. I wasn’t looking at the TV during his confessionals and missed his chryons, apparently, because I spent the entire episode thinking he was calling himself Warthog and wondering why anyone else was on board with that.

I was thrilled that Kelley Wentworth was voted back on for the Second Chances season, and she fully lived up to the suspicions that she had all kinds of game she hadn’t had the opportunity to show during her first appearance. This time, it seems like she’s bought into her own hype, and that’s disappointing. I’m hoping that it was just because she was playing defense against the “Reemsplaining” (a hat-tip to the poster upthread for that!), and she settles in for another good showing.

I’d definitely over Sleazestache Joe altogether and Aubry and her ability to center herself in seemingly any strategy narrative, and David just seems like he’s over it already. I will be stunned if any of the four returnees win this, no matter how the various twists and advantages might inevitably skew in their favor.

Took a couple of seasons off from posting, but I’m looking forward to discussing this season with you delightful folks!

[OutOfTheQuestion]

7 hours ago, Bryce Lynch said:

The "educator" Ron Clark founded his own not for profit private school, in Atlanta called, "The Ron Clark Academy".  At first, I was skeptical, but now I think he seems like a good guy.  He seems to combine fun learning methods with strong discipline.  There was a 2006 movie about him called "The Ron Clark Story", (haven't seen it) starring Matthew Perry from "Friends".  Maybe Matthew Perry should his nickname. 

Could there BE any more options on that idol menu?

[violet and green]

4 hours ago, himela said:

Has there ever been a winner who had no confessional in the first episode? I guess not. There goes my winner pick

Who was your winner pick? Almost everyone got a confessional this ep - except for curly brown hair Chris and curly brown hair Julia from Kama.

Chris at least got to say his name, and was featured during the tribal.

[Destiny74]

12 hours ago, Bryce Lynch said:

I also thought Ron Burgundy was smart to point out the group of 3 to the others. It took the target completely off himself and made him part of the inner circle, without looking like the leader or a big threat.

Ron Burgundy ...love it!  I was just going to call him Kool-Aid.  Oh, and he's a jerk, btw.

God forbid someone help someone on their tribe be physically better so that person doesn't a) drown or b) screw up a challenge by flailing in the water instead of actually swimming.  Ron Burgundy is an ass and is so desperately trying to throw anyone under the bus to save people from eyeing him.  I guess that's a strategy.

I had to have hummed Karma Chameleon about 10 times during that hour. 

I like Wendy.  She's upbeat and I hope she stays for a while but I don't envision her being around long...the cool kids already have their slaughter lambs ready to go.

[meep.meep]

16 hours ago, HeShallBMySquishy said:

Also, seriously, Keith? No idea how to swim? I get that sometimes people may get the call and have only days to prepare, or you may apply and get the call years later (like what happened to my husband), but why in the everloving fuck would anyone apply to be on Survivor and not learn how to swim? If you're even contemplating applying for this show, learn and practice how to make fire, and learn to fucking swim!! It's not that difficult to comprehend!

Swimming in the ocean is really different than swimming in a lake or a pool.  So says Sandra, two time Survivor winner.  Keith may have taken lessons to prepare, but it's hard to apply them in the actual sloshing around ocean.

Ron Burgundy has the wierdest pants ever!

[eel2178]

11 hours ago, Gummo said:

My only regret is that Reem has a chance to come back. If I was on that beach and she was touching my stuff without my permission, I'd go ballistic. The woman has serious boundary issues.

I could do without any returnees, they always distort the game. I'm with the guy who said having returnees there kind of ruins the wonder of Survivor for the first-timers.

My opinion is, once you are voted off, you're done. I don't care whether it's an opportunity to rejoin the same game or play again a second, third or fourth time. I don't want to see some people get additional chances. None of them are worth watching more than once.

Edited February 22, 2019 by eel2178

[princelina]

3 hours ago, Bryce Lynch said:

Keith flipping might save him.  If you can make it past that first TC things often change a lot.  Players might get perceived as threats, or become annoying or get into fights with other players, and suddenly they could forget they were ever targeting you.  Also, players get to know each other better and can form new bonds.  Wasn't Nick of the verge of being the first one voted out last season?

He was - Pat's emergency evacuation saved him then!

[eel2178]

22 hours ago, Lamb18 said:

Is there really a tribe called Comma? 

I kept thinking he was saying "Karma."

[LanceM]

6 hours ago, himela said:

Has there ever been a winner who had no confessional in the first episode? I guess not. There goes my winner pick 😞

Yes there have been 2 actually. Tina Wesson all the way back in season 2 and the above mentioned Natalie White in season 19 who actually didn't get her first confessional until episode 4.

[nlkm9]

I would think the earlier in the game you get sent to extinction island, the easier (in relative terms) it would be to get through because youre not all starved and emaciated yet. wasnt there another time where they allowed people back in the game? thi seems familiar 🙂

[Bryce Lynch]

1 hour ago, Destiny74 said:

Ron Burgundy ...love it!  I was just going to call him Kool-Aid.  Oh, and he's a jerk, btw.

God forbid someone help someone on their tribe be physically better so that person doesn't a) drown or b) screw up a challenge by flailing in the water instead of actually swimming.  Ron Burgundy is an ass and is so desperately trying to throw anyone under the bus to save people from eyeing him.  I guess that's a strategy.

I had to have hummed Karma Chameleon about 10 times during that hour. 

I like Wendy.  She's upbeat and I hope she stays for a while but I don't envision her being around long...the cool kids already have their slaughter lambs ready to go.

I thought Ron Burgundy simply made a good Survivor move.  The first vote can be rather arbitrary and you don't really know where you stand.  Making sure the target is on someone else is smart.

Besides that, he didn't know it was only a swimming lesson and not an alliance forming.  And, in reality, it was an alliance.  Reem, Wendy and Keith were talking strategy as if they were going to vote as a unit, until Keith saw the handwriting on the wall and bailed in the middle of the strategy session.

Reem was determined to break up the twosome of Kelley and Lauren.  Why shouldn't  Ron Burgundy be concerned about a tight threesome?

[North of Eden]

9 hours ago, Julia67 said:

TAR is coming back???  I'll have to google those details.  I thought it was gone forever, and we LOVE it!

It was a dumb play not putting it between the seasons. When it was sandwiched their last year it had the best ratings it had in  YEARS (Cody and Jess being on it probably helped too-sorry but I love 'em) but instead they'll fritter it away in June when all the "gone fishin' " signs are hung up and  few are watching.

[deirdra]

20 hours ago, Wandering Snark said:

I don't think we've ever seen anyone on self-appointed laundry-drying duty before and this is Season 38! "Oh let me move everyone's shoes into the sun" uhhh... no thanks. I'd like my things to stay where I left them.

It seemed like an obvious ploy to search pockets and shoes for idols an clues.

[Brookside]

11 hours ago, Special K said:

Finally, dear god, what unholy garment was Joe wearing, those boxer briefs with the alternating stripe pattern over his package area?!?

Dear god indeed.  Welcome back to another season of impractical, unattractive underwear featuring crotches and cleavage.

Maybe I'm just too old.

[fishcakes]

It was a decent enough first episode, though to be honest my expectations haven't been all that high for the last decade or so.

Edge of Extinction looks like it's just the outcast twist from Pearl Islands except the viewers know about it. I'm not spoiled at all, but I'm guessing one or more of them will come back into the game in the same way as the outcasts, at an immunity challenge between the two tribes and one made up of the almost extinct. If one of them doesn't wear a bandanna with "DIE JERKS" written on it, I will be disappointed.

Wendy is adorable but probably not long for the game, so I'm not going to get attached.

When it comes to who was more obnoxious, I'd say Reem and Wentworth were pretty even, but newbies are usually starstruck so I'm not surprised Reem got the boot. I also thought her thing about, "if you didn't want me to move your clothes, you should have said so" was dumb because why would anyone want to help her be less irritating to the others? If it's the first three days and everyone is scrambling for an alliance and you see there's one person who's annoying the shit out of everyone else, that's good news for you. Well, unless you're Wendy.

I LOVE the big claw that Jeff is using to snuff the torches. It's just so menacing and ridiculous.

[himela]

6 hours ago, violet and green said:

Who was your winner pick? Almost everyone got a confessional this ep - except for curly brown hair Chris and curly brown hair Julia from Kama.

Chris at least got to say his name, and was featured during the tribal.

Julia is my winner pick but I have already lost hope. I had high expectations because she is likeable, smart and sociable. 

[HurricaneVal]

I am so tired of the "cool kid" cliques on shows like Survivor and Big Brother always targeting people from the Freaks & Geeks coalition.  What are they so threatened about?  And, why, when given the opportunity, are the nerds always slobbering over throwing their own kind under the bus for the possibility to hang with the cool kids for the hot minute of a Tribal Council vote?

And Mr. Ron Burgundy?  Yeah, you.  There but for the grace of God went you.  If you hadn't been in the right place at the right time to point out the suspiciously heartwarming actions of Reem, Wendy, and Keith hanging together to work on personal skills for the betterment of the tribe, you, too, with your nerdy self, might have been placed squarely in the Freaks & Geeks group by the cool kids.

That said, holy cow, Reem...are you really that new?  You ticked off a lot of  boxes in the "Survivor Don'ts" checklist, and then you doubled down.  As the old lady in the tribe, you should already have known you were starting out at a deficit and tread carefully.  

[green]

13 hours ago, Julia67 said:

TAR is coming back???  I'll have to google those details.  I thought it was gone forever, and we LOVE it!

OT:  No need to google.  Just go to TAR on this forum.  I'm not spoiled except by knowing the TAR v Survivor v Big Brother cast since they were all returnees.  If "cast knowing" is cool for you but you want to avoid all other spoilers like I do then check out the TAR 31 Anticipation Thread in that forum where the cast is revealed.

Also TAR 32 is in the can having been filmed this fall I think.  God knows when it will air.

5 hours ago, eel2178 said:

I kept thinking he was saying "Karma."

Well both words also come from India but mean entirely different things.  "Kama" literally means "lust" as in the Kama Sutra.

Edited February 22, 2019 by green

[GenerationX]

Random thoughts on episode 1 "Edge of (twist) Exhaustion"

• I see we're playing this season with trick birthday torches that just relight themselves (even after they've been extinguished by Peachy's new Talons-o'-Death Torch-Snuffer 3000!)
• After getting voted out, you are faced with two choices (paraphrasing): "Are you a total wuss?" and "Want a chance to not only exact revenge on the pinheads who voted you out but also potentially win the game from the loser's bracket?"  Hmmm, that's a tough one.
• A Secret Advantage menu?  Mark my words, the next one is going to feature a "Build Your Own Advantage". 

[Charlesman]

4 hours ago, North of Eden said:

It was a dumb play not putting it between the seasons. When it was sandwiched their last year it had the best ratings it had in  YEARS (Cody and Jess being on it probably helped too-sorry but I love 'em) but instead they'll fritter it away in June when all the "gone fishin' " signs are hung up and  few are watching.

I wish they would too, but CBS can't anymore because of how Sweeps fall in the calendar. Unless they doubled up TAR and did 2 hours a week for a bunch. But I'm glad we get at least one season of TAR a year. 

[KimberStormer]

I barely realized the season was starting and I had to go see my friend play noise music last night so I've just watched.  It was....fine.  I guess we'll see.  I don't have a problem with Reem drying people's clothes or whatever, and I agree with her "she must be weak becuz old woman" is laaaaame af, but wow did she not have any idea how to play this game.  Sorry Reem, but you're not the sort of legend who can miraculously survive such a disastrous tribal performance, we only get those once a decade or so, and she played last season. 

Didn't notice any arrogance from Kelley but then I didn't in Second Chances either when zomg she was rolling her eyes how terrible.  If she wasn't a returning player I would say she was way too up-front in tribal (where David was trying as hard as he could to blend in with the scenery) but I doubt she can really hide anyway so whatever.  To admit my bias, she's the only one of these returning players I have any interest in seeing again, and even that is a very small amount of interest -- it is extremely doubtful she will match her Second Chances game.  Tbh I can't even imagine why she, Aubry, or frickin' Joe would even want to come back -- like, Aubry's most recent game was a total shitshow where she played the same role as Christina Cha in One World: the powerless bump on a log that lasts til the finale just because there's no reason to even bother voting them out before that.  And Joe is going to be the same kind of terrible he always is -- immune through the merge, then voted out as soon as he fails an immunity challenge.  Why bother?  Dave at least has a reason to be there, though he is sooooo boooooring to me.

Boring is kind of the watchword for this episode though.  The speculation that the cast sucks this time is seeming like a strong possibility, though it's a little unfair since last season was a hard act to follow in that regard.  I did like the editing of the post-vote ending, though, so hopefully that fun editing style is still with us.

On ‎2‎/‎20‎/‎2019 at 6:21 PM, susannot said:

Oh Fuck Jeff Probst and Survivor.  Once again the oldest woman was voted off first. 

It is frustrating, but I'm not sure Jeff is to blame.  Although he did sort of egg her on at tribal, he also seemed sincerely sympathetic with his "someone has to be the first voted out", (which is a little strange because he knew she wasn't actually getting voted out at all!) and I got the impression he didn't think she was weak either. 

On ‎2‎/‎20‎/‎2019 at 7:28 PM, Maya said:

Who wouldn’t take the opportunity to return to the game? Seems like it’s barely even a choice. 

Barely, but I think it's worth giving them the out if they're done.  If you're super-miserable out there and have no chance at all to win the tribe over, it would be cruel to force them to go out and be even more miserable with people who hate them on the EDGE OF EXTINCTION.  Even if everyone chooses to try, giving the choice is not meaningless, and if even one person does decide not to go for it, then they really do have to put it on TV that the choice was given...

[Wandering Snark]

13 minutes ago, KimberStormer said:

Barely, but I think it's worth giving them the out if they're done.  If you're super-miserable out there and have no chance at all to win the tribe over, it would be cruel to force them to go out and be even more miserable with people who hate them on the EDGE OF EXTINCTION.  Even if everyone chooses to try, giving the choice is not meaningless, and if even one person does decide not to go for it, then they really do have to put it on TV that the choice was given...

I'm sure it won't happen early on but as things wear on I can imagine a person getting voted out thinking "Yeah, my 'adventure' is done, I hate this shit..." and choosing to just go home with their time on Survivor behind them. We've seen some people get pretty beaten down out there I wouldn't blame anyone for saying they've had enough.

[mertensia]

Any show that has the nerve to put Edge of Extinction in its title better have dinosaurs, I can tell you that.

All those seasons and Reem never learned "just shut up and be inconspicuous th first few weeks" .