S38.E08: I'm the Puppet Master

[Lamb18]

Curious to see who ends up being right - David or Rick.

Reem is probably picturing "steak" in her mind when reading her clue about the "stake."

Funny if Aubry gives her extra vote to Rick. Also I wonder how she makes it to the practice place without the others noticing the cameras following her around. Unless that scene was shot later and the others had to stay put.

I wouldn't mind if Aubry won. For all her blunders, she keeps working at the game.

I don't see how they could stay standing at the immunity challenge for so long. Just think, 25 minutes standing on tiptoe. David's legs look like a wishbone. 

Leslie is looking worse - like how Frodo does when he slips the ring on his folder. And that's scary when Lauren passes out like that and didn't wake up right away.

Aurora sure knows how to time her immunity pleas. One castaway lying senseless on the ground while Aurora tells Victoria to giver her the immunity win. Can't help wondering if Victoria dropped on purpose. 

I'm glad Leslie was OK but she is looking pale compared to the others.

And the end of the immunity challenge is when I had to turn this off so I'm curious to see how the rest of the episode goes.

[Bryce Lynch]

2 minutes ago, ByaNose said:

BTW! I'm amazed how badly David is doing in puzzle challenges. I'm also doubly amazed that he is still doing them. No wonder Kelley looked pissed. I'm assuming he's the only one volunteering to do them? What other explanation is there?

To make another reference to "The Office", I think maybe everyone assumes David is good at puzzles because he is scrawny and kind of nerdy, the way Michael assumed Stanley was good at basketball because he was black.  

He has been truly horrible at puzzles.  

[survivinmt]

I told Mr Survivinmt that Wardog would be the first out of that challenge - CALLED IT! What IS he good at? Besides being kind of a jackwagon? I thought Rick was wrong to turn his back on Lesu but his talk with Wardog was pure genius.

[Lamb18]

Oh oh, Kama plans on doing a split vote! 

Wardog Peacekitty is relying on his devastating charm and persuasiveness to change Kama minds. I can tell Julia is taking him seriously as she laughs throughout her talking head.

[Nashville]

Warthog, I’m surprised to say, has excellent Survivor strategy instincts; unfortunately (for him), he frequently sabotages them with a level of social ineptitude comparable to Jeffrey Dahmer at a YMCA potluck.

12 hours ago, Melina22 said:

Eric's face as the third "Eric" was read was brilliant. I could watch it over and over. It rivaled Edguardo's expression as the perfect visual for "Haha, I'm the best! Wait, what??" 

Actually, I think #4 was the real kicker - you could read Eric’s expression with each vote:

• Vote #1: “Okay, so that was Kelley’s vote.  No surprise there; the Lesu Losers had to target somebody on our side, and I guess they picked me.  No matter.”
• Vote #2: “And there’s Lauren’s vote, following a Kelley as usual like a little puppy.”
• Vote #3: “Ahhh... ok, must’ve been Dan.  Didn’t really think of that one - but that should be the end of the Loser vote.”
• Vote #4: “WAIT A MINUTE - WHAT THE FUUUCK...!?!?”

I rather enjoyed watching that.  😄 

10 hours ago, ByaNose said:

Joe and a random tear drop. 

https://youtu.be/2nEfuE8Pw4U

13 hours ago, mojoween said:

A bikini top and a winter cap is the most annoying of sartorial choices.

Depends; if this was a Phish concert on Venice Beach, Vic would be hailed as the resident fashionista. 😉 

12 hours ago, North of Eden said:

Poor Aurora who was for all practical purposes INVISIBLE until tonight

Not invisible - just obscured from view by a total Joe eclipse. It’s pretty Amazing; don’t look directly at it, though, or you may go blind....  ;>

[CountryGirl]

That was a very satisfying blindside, right up there with the Edgardo and Ozzy boots. Welcome to the game, Julie!

Hey Ron, if you have to call yourself "the puppetmaster," you're not the puppestmaster. Not to mention his ride-or-die getting blindsided.

Rick, to quote That 70s Show's Red Foreman, you are a dumbass. He's out for revenge and wants to stay Kama Strong (blech!) and be in the majority...but what's that? Now, Kama is in the minority, you say? Yeah, a dumbass. Loved that David refused to give the half of the super idol back. 

I'm already over Joe and his man pain. What did he honestly expect was gonna happen? Everyone just loses themselves in his pretty, pretty hair and let him coast to the finale? Quite honestly, his being sent to EOE might have been the best thing to happen to him.

Finally, as much as it pains me to admit this, WarDog was kind of the MVP this episode as he planted seeds with Julie and Gavin re David/Rick and the threat of them aligning Ron and Erik later on. Julie decides to test his theory and of course, Erik fails spectacularly. And later, at tribal, when WarDog shuts down the ridiculous playing for the loved ones' visit, asking the rhetorical question: "Are we playing for a million dollars or just to get to the loved ones visit?" I'd try to fist bump him but he'd likely miss. 

I'm still amazed that Kelly and Lauren have read the room correctly and have held onto their idols.

This season has been pretty darn good but really took flight last night.

[Bryce Lynch]

7 minutes ago, survivinmt said:

I told Mr Survivinmt that Wardog would be the first out of that challenge - CALLED IT! What IS he good at? Besides being kind of a jackwagon? I thought Rick was wrong to turn his back on Lesu but his talk with Wardog was pure genius.

The Warthog actually has some pretty good strategy ideas.  He was the winner of last night's episode, IMO, planting the seed with Julia and Gavin to save Lesu and get Eric voted out.   

I think his problems are that sometimes he overthinks (like with the Chris vote) and he also pushes his ideas too forcefully, instead of making other players think they are what they wanted.  Last night, while he was persistent, he was more persuasive, than bossy.  He planted the seed with Julia and then made that crack about if you need a solider, dial up The Wardog, or something to that effect.  

[jumper sage]

12 minutes ago, Nashville said:

Warthog, I’m surprised to say, has excellent Survivor strategy instincts; unfortunately (for him), he frequently sabotages them with a level of social ineptitude comparable to Jeffrey Dahmer at a YMCA potluck.

Nods in agreement.

Ok, I have looked all over this topic to find out what happened to Keith on EOE.  Anyone?

[mojoween]

2 minutes ago, jumper sage said:

Nods in agreement.

Ok, I have looked all over this topic to find out what happened to Keith on EOE.  Anyone?

He abruptly quit last week, no explanation was given on the show.

[Lamb18]

Curious to see the outcome of all the Kama scheming.

Joe looks an angry convict as he walks into his jury seat. Well, Rick is shoveling out the dirt from his own grave with his blabbing about not trusting Lesu.  And Wardog Peacekitty actually makes a good point about the goal of making it to the loved ones visit or winning the game.  David uses the hackneyed "resume" word.

Jeff obviously is cued into camp conversations as he asks Victoria about the timing of making a move. And Ron's students are all yelling "Go Mr. Clark! You tell them!" as he talks about the limited offer.

Oh oh, no idols played. Ha, Eric's eyes are getting bigger and bigger. So are Ron's.  Hashtag blindside!  Aubry and Joe smirk behind their hands.

[Gummo]

Oh, almost forgot:

Mrs. Gummo:  Kelly + flies = Dead Wife!*

[*for all the American Gods fans]

[Destiny74]

Votes for Eric #1, 2, and 3 we're obviously Kelly, Lauren, and WarDog.  I don't see why he was confused about #3.  Now #4 and his reaction was just priceless.  And I hope to see some pouting from the Puppetmaster next episode.

Aurora's dealmaking didn't bother me.  Jeff said keep going.  She was feeling the pain at that point.  Lauren was being taken care of and unless Jeff called a halt, you keep freaking playing.  However,  it bothered me because she wasn't making deals, she was being pathetic and whiny.  Julie is who annoyed me.  It's obvious that Lauren is not eating and feeling the effects of harsh environment.  She fainted.  She's ok.  She's for the doc looking after her.  No need for tears.  It's not like Julie is in an alliance with her.  She'd vote out Lauren in a second if told to do so.

Can someone explain to me why people think Lauren is a "bad ass?". She seems sick, frail and unhappy at camp for even though she seems to pull it out in challenges.  I don't get bad ass from her.  Not to mention I am sick of her eyeing Wentworth at tribal regarding whether or not to use her idol.  She seems more like Wentworth's lap dog than anything else.

Edited April 4, 2019 by Destiny74
Duh moment

[ProfCrash]

I can see Julie being concerned. You might not be in an alliance with someone but you don't want to see people passing out. And Julie might be getting a bit more food then Lauren has but that doesn't mean that she is not very hungry, sleep deprived, and emotionally out of whack due to the physical deprivation and the emotional roller coaster that is Survivor. I can understand her concern and worry. I think everyone was concerned but Julie was the only one actively bitching about the attempted negotiation.

[KimberStormer]

22 minutes ago, Destiny74 said:

Can someone explain to me why people think Lauren is a "bad ass?". She seems sick, frail and unhappy at camp for even though she seems to pull it out in challenges. 

Well, yeah.  She's sick, she hasn't eaten in 20 days (Wendy stole their one reward!), was moved to the crap beach, has been through the Survivor wringer and still holds her own in challenges to almost win.  And doesn't step down even when she feels herself about to faint.

Can you imagine if Lauren had been on Kama and won all the food rewards?  She'd be the female Joe.

Edited April 4, 2019 by KimberStormer

[ProfCrash]

5 minutes ago, KimberStormer said:

Well, yeah.  She's sick, she hasn't eaten in 20 days, has been through the Survivor wringer and still holds her own in challenges to almost win.  And doesn't step down even when she feels herself about to faint.

Can you imagine if Lauren had been on Kama and won all the food rewards?  She'd be the female Joe.

Unless the event required throwing and then she would still have been awful. No offense, but Lauren really has not set the world on fire in any of the challenges. This week she did well, impressive even because she knew she was going to pass out, but outside of that I have not seen much evidence that Lauren was a challenge beast.

[KimberStormer]

She did well with the throwing, didn't she?  It was Wardog who sucked?  Maybe swimming down to pull the chain thing is her weakness...though she did that in the end, as well.

[ByaNose]

I wonder if Aubry told anyone that she found the advantage. I'm guessing she's smart enough to hold on to that information when they get their 2nd (hopefully last) chance to get back in to the game. Of course, the jumping through rope has been used before I'm sure theres more to the challenge. I would guess a puzzle at the end where anyone could win. I still can't tell from the Extinction Island edit who is coming back. At least, it's something to look forward to, right?

[ljenkins782]

14 hours ago, Melina22 said:

When I was little, my sister and I would practice fainting elegantly like they do in the movies. Lauren would have been our role model. How she managed to fall off that platform in a dead faint, and land on the ground so gracefully, without breaking anything or landing on her face is beyond me. 

Mind you, it's not like she didn't give plenty of notice. "I'm dizzy. I'm really dizzy. I'm about to black out." I feel like there should have been less camerawork and more running to catch her before she fell. 

Right? That was a beautifully executed faint, she shouldn't even be embarrassed about that one. Agreed that it might have been nice if someone could have moved toward her to possibly catch her though, she could have smacked her head. 

Also, I hope they pumped her full of something resembling nourishment somehow, she's mentioned that the rice makes her sick and she's always on the losing side of the rewards, so she may be in actual physical danger if this keeps up.

Quote

I can’t necessarily blame Rick for shutting down Wardog.  On the other hand, Wardog did have a point. If you get too emotional on Survivor, you blind yourself to opportunities to get farther in the game, as it appears Rick has now done by his determination to ingratiate himself with Kama.  I mean, look at David and Kelley.  They’ve tried to vote each other out at various points in the game, but they’re working together for the moment.  And I can’t believe I’m typing this, but Wardog did a hell of a job working the younger Kamas to vote out Eric.  (Wish it had been Ron, but you can’t have everything.)

I have to admit that his "oh yeah, I'm dying to work with you guys...NOT" conversation entertained me. Especially since the outcome at TC worked out in favor of the people I like despite Rick bailing on them. 

I can't blame him for not wanting to throw his fate back in with the people who would have voted him out twice already if they could have pulled off the second one.

Quote

Devens...no, Rick (he no longer deserves a nickname unless it's "1/2 idol") wants David to return the half he gave him. David deadpans: no, I think I'll keep it. 

Don't ever change David!!!!

I love David. He's come so far from the emotional, paranoid wreck he was in the very beginning of MvGX. The way he handled his conversations with both Rick and Kelley was so grounded and unemotional, I hope this episode is a turning point for his game.

Quote

If someone named Rick, Ron, or Eric didn’t go home tonight my TV was going through the window.  I would have preferred Ron “not the puppet master or the pilot” Clark, but Eric will do.  They really made Ron look like an ass tonight.

Last week was the first time I realized there WAS a Ron, the editors sure made up for lost time in this episode! 

Did anyone else get a creepy cult leader vibe from Ron? And Eric was his right hand man, keeping the sheep in line. The way they were hitting the "family visit" line so hard reeked of indoctrination. I was so happy when Wardog (seriously, this episode felt like Bizarro World with Wardog being right multiple times AND actually being on a winning challenge team for once) cut through the family visit bullshit and David backed him up. 

I guess the editors were prioritizing suspense at the final vote over showing us how nearly the entire tribe flipped on Eric, which I'm okay with, I just sometimes wish there was an after-the-fact explanation of how they got people like Victoria to change their minds. 

[Bryce Lynch]

3 minutes ago, ProfCrash said:

Unless the event required throwing and then she would still have been awful. No offense, but Lauren really has not set the world on fire in any of the challenges. This week she did well, impressive even because she knew she was going to pass out, but outside of that I have not seen much evidence that Lauren was a challenge beast.

Lauren has done quite well in challenges.  In the team challenges, she was always one of the better ones, if not the best, on her tribe.  She was the only one who could make it up the slippery A frame, and then helped the others over.   I believe she came in second in last week's IC and she was 3rd this week, before passing out.  

Wasn't she also the key to Manu/Lesu's only challenge win, when she refused to give up, when everyone else seemed to, and dove back under the water to release the puzzle pieces?  

2 minutes ago, ljenkins782 said:

Right? That was a beautifully executed faint, she shouldn't even be embarrassed about that one. Agreed that it might have been nice if someone could have moved toward her to possibly catch her though, she could have smacked her head. 

The only thing that could have made her faint any more elegant would have been if her first words after regaining consciousness were, "Did I win?"  

[Special K]

The "family visit" strategy, if you can call it that, was really so stupid.  I mean, if I flip and vote you out, I can still see my family, right?  Duh! Also, it reeks of superiority -- don't the losers want to see their family members, too?  Those two puppetmaster geniuses really needed a better schtick.  So glad Wardog called it out at TC for the pathetic ploy it was.  It's like they're trying to build a cult or something.  Other than what I've read here, I really have no knowledge of Ron Clark outside of the game, but man he is nasty.  I cackled out loud over his face falling down all over his knotted tie and vest.

At TC, when Jeff was asking someone (Aurora?) about Kama strong vs. building a resume, I really wish she had said, "The only reason Kama is still here is that Joe won all those immunities for us."  Like seriously, Kama needs a reality check on their awesomeness.

Rick is dumb.  David rules.  That is all.

[himela]

Yeah, my winner pick Julia finally made a big move! I knew I picked that girl for a reason! I was screaming at my TV "you go girl!". 😛

I guess the thinking behind voting out Eric and not Ron was to send someone to extinction island to win over Joe.

Do we have any indication that what Wardog was saying was true? That Eric and Ron were planning to keep Rick and David in order to vote out the Kama people later in the game? Or was it based only on the fact that Eric did not want to vote out David?

Weren't Gavin and Eric really close?

[Haleth]

31 minutes ago, ljenkins782 said:

Also I hope they pumped her full of something resembling nourishment somehow, she's mentioned that the rice makes her sick and she's always on the losing side of the rewards, so she may be in actual physical danger if this keeps up

They can’t do that unless she quits the game or the doc pulls her out. It would be unfair to everyone else who is starving. 

You know, by now we’d be seeing the Ponderosa videos of everyone on the jury. I enjoy these almost as much as the game and am really missing them. 

Edited April 4, 2019 by Haleth

[HurricaneVal]

Way upthread someone (I forget who, sorry!) said that when he-who-shall-not-be-named-because-he-turned-into-an-asshole fell into the fire in the second season, the camera people and producers just let him do it and didn't rush to help.  That's not really what I understand happened.  They actually don't have any footage of he-who-shall-not-be-named-because-he-turned-into-an-asshole falling into the fire because they didn't have a camera on him at the time--they thought it was just all boring stuff going on at camp so they were following someone else as they were doing something nearby.  Just think, if they had the footage of he-who-shall-not-be-named-because-he-turned-into-an-asshole falling into the fire, they would have shown that over and over and over and over again instead of showing the footage they did get of this horrible scream off camera, and views of he-who-shall-not-be-named-because-he-turned-into-an-asshole out in the pond screaming some more with the skin dripping off his hands that they showed over and over and over and over again.  After that experience, production increased the number of cameras and they keep those cameras on the castaways all the time.

I don't think Jeff was aware that Lauren was in trouble, because it seemed to me that she was only kind of muttering "I'm getting dizzy.........I'm getting really dizzy..........I can't see anything........" mostly to herself and not really announcing it to everyone there.  Certainly the camera person and the sound person knew, and they did nothing.  But I guess you never know if it is a strategic ploy or not.  Lauren was absolutely rock solid up there on her perch until....she wasn't.   And she did fall so gracefully I can imagine at first there was a bit of disbelief, like "wow, that was cinematic!"  Jeff certainly sounded panicked when he called for the medics, and when he rushed up to Lauren, did you catch how his hand was trembling when he was reaching out to her? 

After all these episodes in, I only know one thing about Aurora:  She can't read a room to save her life.

[meep.meep]

2 hours ago, Gummo said:

Oh, almost forgot:

Mrs. Gummo:  Kelly + flies = Dead Wife!*

[*for all the American Gods fans]

She's a keeper!

Could people please use the correct names or nicknames of people they are commenting on?  I can get Wardog from Warthog, and remember that Rick is also Devins, but Leslie?  There's even a useful thread to check them.  I agree that it has been difficult to tell people apart, but it makes things totally unreadable.

Julie is delusional, probably because Kama never had to go to Tribal before the merge.  

[ljenkins782]

2 minutes ago, meep.meep said:

She's a keeper!

Could people please use the correct names or nicknames of people they are commenting on?  I can get Wardog from Warthog, and remember that Rick is also Devins, but Leslie?  There's even a useful thread to check them.  I agree that it has been difficult to tell people apart, but it makes things totally unreadable.

Leslie? Who is that (or who is that supposed to be)? 

Totally agreed that it would be so helpful if people could just call Wardog by his admittedly stupid nickname or if another stupid nickname must be used, Warthog is easy enough to extrapolate. But calling him "Dan" is just needlessly confusing since that's not the name he's using on the show and I'm not really sure what the point of changing it is. I doubt he's reading here so it's not sticking it to the man to not use his silly nickname, it's just confusing to those of us who ARE reading here. 

[ByaNose]

I will say that Wardog is doing something right. He hasn't had votes casted against him....yet. Right now, they are taking the big guys out and ignoring the (maybe) annoying ones alone. He sucks at challenges and is technically on the bottom but Wardog (I hate typing that) is sitll in the game.

[JoBeth70]

17 hours ago, wallflower75 said:

Reem’s line to Eric when he arrived at Extinction Island was pretty funny.  She may actually be growing on me.

My recording cut out early - what did she say?

[iMonrey]

Oh for God's sake, people faint all the time. Stop with all the hand-wringing already. It was a big nothing-burger after the week-long promo that implied somebody was seriously injured.

I can't force myself to root for Wardog or even acknowledge his game play because he's so damn obnoxious and his beady little dark eyes creep me out.

Quote

I think the reason it seems like there is a new player (or two) added every episode is that with EoE coverage they are unable to focus on the active players as much as in the past (although there have always been players who received very little time).  Therefore it is more difficult to follow the decisions and interactions amongst the active players.

I can't help but feel like "Edge of Extinction" is the show trying their best to hedge their bets. In case the "wrong" person is voted out, they get a second chance, or a third chance. Oh wait, the wrong person didn't win the comp to get back into the game? Then off you go, back to EoE, until Joe . . . er . . . someone else gets back in.

Quote

Joe is trying too hard with the hair. The side swept style at Tribal Council was too much. I don't like a man caring more about their hair then a woman does.

For the love of Pete, so much this. He is so damn posed. Try to imagine him if he shaved his head. He just wouldn't be anything special to look at. I just don't get why this show loves him so much. 

[ByaNose]

5 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

Oh for God's sake, people faint all the time. Stop with all the hand-wringing already. It was a big nothing-burger after the week-long promo that implied somebody was seriously injured.

I can't force myself to root for Wardog or even acknowledge his game play because he's so damn obnoxious and his beady little dark eyes creep me out.

I can't help but feel like "Edge of Extinction" is the show trying their best to hedge their bets. In case the "wrong" person is voted out, they get a second chance, or a third chance. Oh wait, the wrong person didn't win the comp to get back into the game? Then off you go, back to EoE, until Joe . . . er . . . someone else gets back in.

For the love of Pete, so much this. He is so damn posed. Try to imagine him if he shaved his head. He just wouldn't be anything special to look at. I just don't get why this show loves him so much. 

Um, because he's Joey Amazing. I know it's hard to say it with a straight face. LOL!!!! I don't get why the show loves him so much either since he's played the same game 3 TIMES. Unfortunately, one of his skills isn't be strategic. He really has NO game. He has game in challenges & hair but that's it.

[Rachel RSL]

39 minutes ago, meep.meep said:

Could people please use the correct names or nicknames of people they are commenting on?  I can get Wardog from Warthog, and remember that Rick is also Devins, but Leslie?  There's even a useful thread to check them.  I agree that it has been difficult to tell people apart, but it makes things totally unreadable.

I'm pretty sure the poster who wrote "Leslie" was just mistaken about Lauren's name.  I don't think they intentionally used the wrong name just to confuse people.  It was an honest mistake.  As for Wardog, he's on the official CBS cast page as Dan "The Wardog" DaSilva so I have no issue with people calling him Dan.  That's his name.

In terms of why I thought Lauren was kind of a bad ass last episode, the majority of the cast quickly dropped out of that challenge but, despite feeling dizzy and weak, she refused to quit until she literally passed out.  Then, when she woke up, her first thought was how pissed she was that she was out of the challenge.  To me, that's bad ass.

Edited April 4, 2019 by Rachel RSL

[fishcakes]

This season the family visit should only be for the people on EOE. Unless Ron is there, then it should only be for the people who are still in the game.

[Bryce Lynch]

14 minutes ago, Rachel RSL said:

I'm pretty sure the poster who wrote "Leslie" was just mistaken about Lauren's name. 

Or maybe they just misspelled Lorrine, Luaren, Lauren.  Leslie is that much more off than what some of Lauren's votes read. :)

Edited April 4, 2019 by Bryce Lynch

[amazingracefan]

Obviously those with idols were informed were the vote was going, but there was a chance of a double bluff there and someone with an idol could have gone home.  The kind of bluff that Victoria did in an earlier episode with Aubry, and she wasn't up for the Kama division here which hasn't helped them.

I thought with Lauren when she said she couldn't see they would have stepped in and helped her off in case she fell.

Edited April 4, 2019 by amazingracefan

[Rachel RSL]

I don't think anybody there heard Lauren, she was saying it very quietly, almost to herself.  It didn't look like anybody noticed anything was wrong until she actually passed out.  I mean, Probst loves drama, he would have been all up in her face with his idiot questions and comments:  "Tell me what's going on Lauren." "Lauren feeling like she's going to die but is digging deep. That's how ya DO it!"

[Special K]

22 minutes ago, Bryce Lynch said:

Or maybe they just misspelled Lorrine, Luaren, Lauren.  Leslie is that much more off than what some of Lauren's votes read. 🙂

Because I can't help myself:

Krasta

Phile

😂😂

[OldWiseOne]

Just now, Rachel RSL said:

I don't think anybody there heard Lauren, she was saying it very quietly, almost to herself.  It didn't look like anybody noticed anything was wrong until she actually passed out.  I mean, Probst loves drama, he would have been all up in her face with his idiot questions and comments:  "Tell me what's going on Lauren." "Lauren feeling like she's going to die but is digging deep. That's how ya DO it!"

Agreed. I think they are wearing wireless mics at the challenges, so the sound picked it up clearly but Probst was quite far from Lauren and wouldn't have heard her unless she yelled it.

[Nashville]

2 hours ago, ProfCrash said:

I can see Julie being concerned. You might not be in an alliance with someone but you don't want to see people passing out. And Julie might be getting a bit more food then Lauren has but that doesn't mean that she is not very hungry, sleep deprived, and emotionally out of whack due to the physical deprivation and the emotional roller coaster that is Survivor. I can understand her concern and worry. I think everyone was concerned but Julie was the only one actively bitching about the attempted negotiation.

Not saying Julie wasn’t concerned about Lauren, mind you - but I read Julie’s constant jabs at Aurora as less about genuine concern for Lauren, and more about throwing shade at Aurora.  Maybe Julie’s concerned that should Aurora manage to elevate herself out of the Kama group’s internal hierarchy cellar, then Julie would be next on that damp downstairs cot...?  My personal impression was the majority of the comments we saw on broadcast were more Aurora-centric bitchiness than true Lauren-centric concern.  YMMV

In any case, Julie got on my last nerve with her “how can Aurora still be playing the game while Lauren is still sprawled out on the ground over there oh I can’t even...” kvetching.  Towards the end of it I was wanting to shout at Julie, “AURORA’S STILL PLAYING BECAUSE UNLIKE YOU SHE’S STILL *IN* THE COMP, JEFF *TOLD* THEM TO KEEP PLAYING, AND YOU DON’T EVEN HAVE A DOG IN THIS HUNT BECAUSE YOUR ASS IS PARKED OVER THERE ON THE GROUP W BENCH WITH THE OTHER LOSERS SO WHY DON’T YOU JUST SHUT THE FUCK UP!?!?”

Sometimes I’m a little short on patience, donchaknow.

40 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

Try to imagine [Joe] if he shaved his head. 

Then he’d look like Captain Flint out of Black Sails, and everybody would still be swooning over him.

[ByaNose]

4 minutes ago, OldWiseOne said:

Agreed. I think they are wearing wireless mics at the challenges, so the sound picked it up clearly but Probst was quite far from Lauren and wouldn't have heard her unless she yelled it.

Probst said he didn't hear her until he saw the video/audio. The camera's and mics pick up everything but not the players. Everyone (including Probst) were so far from her and didn't know anything until she hit the ground.

[meep.meep]

1 hour ago, ByaNose said:

Um, because he's Joey Amazing. I know it's hard to say it with a straight face. LOL!!!! I don't get why the show loves him so much either since he's played the same game 3 TIMES. Unfortunately, one of his skills isn't be strategic. He really has NO game. He has game in challenges & hair but that's it.

It's because he's Ozzy 2.0 - now with bigger hair and fishing skills.

[ByaNose]

1 minute ago, meep.meep said:

It's because he's Ozzy 2.0 - now with bigger hair and fishing skills.

2.0? Nah! He's more 5.0 or 6.0. LOL!! Shouldn't we squeeze Malcolm in there between them? That said, it will be interesting to see how the 3 bros do competing against each other. Joe does have experince on his side but Aubry has the advantage. It should be fun.

[iMonrey]

Quote

As for Wardog, he's on the official CBS cast page as Dan "The Wardog" DaSilva so I have no issue with people calling him Dan.  That's his name.

I had no idea his name was Dan until just now. I have never heard him called anything but Wardog on the show. And I was baffled by all the references to "Devin" a couple weeks ago too. There is way too much confusion this season because with two exceptions nobody has gone home yet and we're eight episodes in! Hard enough to keep track of all these people when you use one name for each person let alone two.

[Gummo]

Re Aubrey and the advantage:

If EoE is a small island (as the inhabitants have intimated), then the only thing I can figure is that once someone found the clue and the location of the advantage, Production must have physically barred the path or indicated in some other way that that part of the beach was off limits temporarily.

Though with Aubrey gone for however long, it would hardly be a secret advantage at that point.

[Bryce Lynch]

16 minutes ago, Nashville said:

Not saying Julie wasn’t concerned about Lauren, mind you - but I read Julie’s constant jabs at Aurora as less about genuine concern for Lauren, and more about throwing shade at Aurora.  Maybe Julie’s concerned that should Aurora manage to elevate herself out of the Kama group’s internal hierarchy cellar, then Julie would be next on that damp downstairs cot...?  My personal impression was the majority of the comments we saw on broadcast were more Aurora-centric bitchiness than true Lauren-centric concern.  YMMV

In any case, Julie got on my last nerve with her “how can Aurora still be playing the game while Lauren is still sprawled out on the ground over there oh I can’t even...” kvetching.  Towards the end of it I was wanting to shout at Julie, “AURORA’S STILL PLAYING BECAUSE UNLIKE YOU SHE’S STILL *IN* THE COMP, JEFF *TOLD* THEM TO KEEP PLAYING, AND YOU DON’T EVEN HAVE A DOG IN THIS HUNT BECAUSE YOUR ASS IS PARKED OVER THERE ON THE GROUP W BENCH WITH THE OTHER LOSERS SO WHY DON’T YOU JUST SHUT THE FUCK UP!?!?”

Sometimes I’m a little short on patience, donchaknow.

Then he’d look like Captain Flint out of Black Sails, and everybody would still be swooning over him.

I don't think Julie was upset with Aurora playing the game.  She was upset with Aurora acting like a jackass by trying to browbeat Victoria into handing her immunity, while Lauren was passed out.   IMO, the begging for immunity is pretty bush league under any circumstances.  But, during a medical emergency is was very crass, to me.  

Putting aside how crass it was, having her yelling during the emergency could have interfered with the medical team's ability to communicate with Lauren and with each other.  A normal human being would STFU, but Aurora is a selfish ass.   

[Nashville]

2 minutes ago, Bryce Lynch said:

A normal human being would STFU, but Aurora is a selfish ass.   

A selfish ass, or a desperate ass?  Sure, the “polite” thing to do would be to pipe down until the medical situation is resolved; “polite” may not be the immediate priority for someone who’s been standing tippytoe with a damn block on their head for a half hour, however, especially when they have absolutely no idea how long the medical situation may take to resolve vs. how much longer they can hold out.  

If Aurora felt she was on the edge of giving out and negotiating a deal with Vic might be her only hope - a feeling which would no doubt be reinforced by the Kama shouts of encouragement for Vic, but none for her - can Aurora still be faulted?

[Bryce Lynch]

1 minute ago, Nashville said:

A selfish ass, or a desperate ass?  Sure, the “polite” thing to do would be to pipe down until the medical situation is resolved; “polite” may not be the immediate priority for someone who’s been standing tippytoe with a damn block on their head for a half hour, however, especially when they have absolutely no idea how long the medical situation may take to resolve vs. how much longer they can hold out.  

If Aurora felt she was on the edge of giving out and negotiating a deal with Vic might be her only hope - a feeling which would no doubt be reinforced by the Kama shouts of encouragement for Vic, but none for her - can Aurora still be faulted?

The "negotiating" was not having any impact on Victoria, it was only embarrassing Aurora.  Under normal circumstances, I would just think she was an annoying idiot.  But, with the medical team dealing with an emergency a few feet away, it was callous and shows a lack of normal, human empathy. 

I'd use the analogy of a football game, where a player get carried off the field on a board, with a possible spinal injury.  They resume the game and the players continue to play to win.  But, the players and fans are not going into engage in the same sort of trash talk, that they normally would, for the remainder of the game. and they are especially not going to do that while the player is still lying motionless on the field, being attended to by the doctors.  

[ByaNose]

5 minutes ago, Nashville said:

A selfish ass, or a desperate ass?  Sure, the “polite” thing to do would be to pipe down until the medical situation is resolved; “polite” may not be the immediate priority for someone who’s been standing tippytoe with a damn block on their head for a half hour, however, especially when they have absolutely no idea how long the medical situation may take to resolve vs. how much longer they can hold out.  

If Aurora felt she was on the edge of giving out and negotiating a deal with Vic might be her only hope - a feeling which would no doubt be reinforced by the Kama shouts of encouragement for Vic, but none for her - can Aurora still be faulted?

I'm more in the desperate camp. She was on the bottom and was the last two standing. Jeff said Lauren was okay and Dr. Joe was right there. If it had been more serious they would have called off the challenge. Game on!

[mikewho]

I read about how someone said Joe pronounced Ad-van-tage before I watched the episode. I never would've noticed it.

I come from a long line of family members who pronounced ev-ery word of in-struc-tion they read in an even more ex-ag-ger-ated way. As if they didn't overly pronounce everything, they wouldn't understand it.

Especially drove me crazy when they were driving on the highway, reading exit signs.

Joe better keep that hair. It's his claim to fame.

[Calamity Jane]

Oh, jeez, I just caught on that Ron is THAT Ron "Essential 55" Clark, one of the relentless self-promoters always being held up to us teachers as what we should aspire to be, even though most of them teach only a few years and then make a living selling their "wisdom" at teacher workshops.  This guy may have taught  a bit longer, and he did in fact take on inner-city education, so I give him that, but over the years I came to see that many if not most of the people we were supposed to emulate were big, fat phonies.  Knee-jerk rejection of whatever they say is my response until I see evidence of authenticity, not ego/bankroll building.  This guy is not making me think any different of him, sad to say.  

Meanwhile, I always lose track of contestants because I spend a good deal of my time at my kids' houses, where I can't watch, but this season I'm more bewildered than usual.  After this week, though, I think I know who they all are, but I would not place any bets on it.  That blindside was one of the most satisfying I can remember, just pure Survivor gold.

[blackwing]

So many unlikeable people on the show this time.  I can't stand Ron and wish they had picked him off instead.  Don't know why all the others thought Eric was calling the shots... because he is much better looking and the stereotypical alpha male?  Ron seems way more manipulative than Eric, and as Ron admits, he thinks of himself as the puppet master.  I don't think Eric thought he was the master of anything, he seems way humbler and was just trying to do well for himself in the game.

An aside re Eric... I always think it is funny, these men who shave their chests just prior to starting on the show (not sure why, presumably so their muscles look bigger or more defined?) and then watching it starting to grow back in the longer they are on the show.  Why don't they just wax if that's the look they want?

I don't like Lauren either and I'm not sure why.  I don't think she's a badass for fainting and then getting up.  I think she thinks she is way more awesome than she actually is, and she's sitting there whining about how hungry she is.  Go look for some food!  It's out there!  Why not track down those chickens?  I didn't get why they were hoping the chickens would magically come to their camp offering themselves up so she can have some food.  Go find them yourself.

Don't like Rick.  So pissy.  I guess he has a right to be upset.  But still, in the end, he has to look at his options and figure out what is best.

Can't stand Dan.  He thinks he is playing the game masterfully, when all I see is a bully.  Loved that he had the exact same interspliced conversation with Julia and Gavin.  Kudos to whoever upthread mentioned his small beady black eyes.  His eyes always look so intense, I called them Serial Killer Eyes in the first ep.

Can't stand Jeffy.  "Wow, four of the fittest people went out first."  Uh no, Jeffy, you included Dan in those four.  Have you been watching the same show?  Dan is clearly one of the least physically fit people out there.  As David Wright said, "he kind of sucks at physical challenges".

5 hours ago, peachmangosteen said:

I didn't have a problem with Aurora talking to Victoria after Lauren passed out. Jeff told them to keep playing. He didn't stop the challenge. There was nothing evil about her negotiating with Victoria. 

I hated Rick, but then I forgot why I hated him, but this ep reminded me. Awful. I think it was more fun watching his face fall than it was watching Eric/Ron/Julie's.

I still can't like Victoria. There is just something so annoying about her manner to me. 

The "Joe talks wistfully about being voted out while dropping a single tear" was the single most annoying confessional ever I think. 

Agree with all of this.  I don't understand why Julie thought it was so disgusting that Aurora was negotiating.  Because it was Aurora or just in general?  I agreed with everything Aurora said, this isn't the first time we have heard contestants pleading with others to drop out.  As far as Lauren passed out, so what?  Jeff said to keep playing and that the game wasn't stopping.  What were Aurora and Victoria supposed to do?  They couldn't afford to look at her lest they lose their concentration or balance.  She was tiring and wanted to come to an agreement with Victoria.  I don't understand why it was so bad to still be playing the game.

Don't like Victoria.  There's just something about her manner that I just don't like.  It's like "I'm so earnest and twee and adorable in my knit hat".

So much time devoted to producer's favourite Joe.  Last week it was his endless confessional about how he's all alone and misses his family.  This week the multiple cut scenes of him crying and being in pain.  Please stop.

10 hours ago, sigmaforce86 said:

Sort of like Margie and Luke arriving at the mat on Amazing Race - Margie said multiple times "I think I need water", she was wobbling and she said her fingers were frozen.  They got it on camera but didn't do anything or rush the "You are team number" greeting until she went down.  

Ugh.  You said the "L" word.  Don't remind me.  Now all I can picture is him bleating out "Maaaaaahhhhmmm" over and over like a hurt Chewbacca.  I couldn't stand him, he was so entitled and whiny.

[Bryce Lynch]

Just now, ByaNose said:

I'm more in the desperate camp. She was on the bottom and was the last two standing. Jeff said Lauren was okay and Dr. Joe was right there. If it had been more serious they would have called off the challenge. Game on!

I have to rewatch, but I don't think they knew how serious it was or wasn't, while Aurora was doing much of her badgering of Victoria.   At first, Lauren seemed totally unresponsive.  It was very odd.  She seemed like she was in a deep, peaceful sleep.  I didn't know whether to take comfort or to fear or her more, based upon how peaceful and motionless she seemed.  

Of course, we've seen tweets from her, post game, so I guess we knew she didn't die. :)