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Post by countlieberkuhn on Jan 15, 2012 4:58:20 GMT -8
That sounds pretty interesting! I definitely like the survival elements of the show, which is usually why I enjoy the first couple of episodes so much. Seeing how each camp approaches making a camp and how well it turns out in practice is always interesting. Might watch that one next!
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Post by Fleck on Jan 17, 2012 22:08:33 GMT -8
Thoughts on Survivor: Marquesas
Yeah, I'm totally plowing through these Survivor seasons. I am completely addicted, but I think now that SSH is essentially over, I'm going to start throttling back on my Survivor intake for now.
Anyway, after having each season progressively up the stakes in terms of survival, and coming closer and closer each season to actually creating a situation where someone was gonna die, it only makes sense that they would eventually have to ease up a bit and focus more on the game than on the survival. And that's where Marquesas stands.
They try to spice up the survival aspect of this season by starting the survivors off with no food, no water, and never giving them an easy way to start a fire (even in reward challenges). On the surface, that might make Marquesas seem like the most extreme season yet, but the Marquesas happens to be a pretty pleasant place to live, at least compared to the two prior seasons, Outback and Africa. The survivors are able to find quite a bounty of natural foods pretty much just lying around, and both tribes have a very clean and plentiful source of water. There's about five minutes spent in the first episode where the survivors are like "OMG we have no food/water" but they get that situation sorted out pretty quickly, and from then on the show goes into typical Survivor mode.
More so than any previous season, Marquesas is about the strategy. The early and often twists are helped along by this being Boston Rob's first season. Good ol' Boston Rob. Usually Jerri from Outback is given credit as being the game's original villain, but after her disappointing performance in Outback, I was kind of worried that Rob would be a watered-down villain as well.
Thankfully, Rob does not disappoint. He takes a little bit to get his bearings, but within a couple of episodes, he's quoting The Godfather and manipulating people, lying to people, and getting people to argue with each other. His methods are a bit crude and the strategy is basic, but this is early Survivor and the things he does work out pretty well, because no one is really expecting out-and-out villainy of Boston Rob's caliber. Truly, I believe that Rob is Survivor's first villain, as he was the first person actively engaged in the art of creating disturbances in the group to further his own position, lying deliberately for the sake of lying, and laughing about it all during his interviews. Boston Rob is a lot of fun to watch in the season. In fact, he's really the only reason to watch. As with most seasons where there's one stand-out personality dominating all the screen time, everyone else kind of falls by the wayside.
The relatively bland cast (with a few exceptions) combined with the fairly easy living conditions (they don't even endure a harsh storm. The worst that happens to them in 39 days is that a tree falls down near their camp and someone gets bitten by an eel) makes Marquesas probably the weakest of the first four seasons. However, I feel that this truly is the first season of Survivor that fits in with the more modern seasons of the game. The survival aspect is downplayed, like it is most of the time, and strategy is at the forefront of most discussions. Unlike the previous three seasons, you could probably squeeze in Marquesas between two of the more recent seasons and it'd be hard to tell the difference.
Anyway, even though it's not the best, it's still Survivor and therefore still awesome. Also, Boston Rob is awesome.
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Post by Fleck on Jan 20, 2012 18:15:36 GMT -8
Thoughts on Survivor: Thailand
Yeah, I know I said I was gonna cut back. I can quit any time I like! Don't judge me! You don't know me!
Skip this season. Really... skip it.
From the Wikipedia page for this season:
Jeff Probst stated that he was not fond of the season, going as far as calling it his least favorite. He described the season as mean-spirited and marred with hostility and ugliness, even calling (the final four) "the least likable final four ever."
I mean, even Jeff Probst doesn't like it. And it's true. From the beginning, this season is nothing but bickering, backstabbing, lying, more lying, arguing over bananas, making personal attacks against people, insulting the other tribes, racist remarks, and other delights. The nicest, most likeable people are kicked off early, and from the merge on, I was thinking... "I don't want any of these people to win." And normally I get a kick out of this stuff... but it's not even entertaining to me. I like strategy, and strategic bickering and lying. This season is just sixteen ugly people doing ugly things to each other until one of them wins a million dollars. Blech. This season is what people think of when they think of "reality TV." I think I might actually follow through on my promise to cut back on Survivor because... man... I'm not looking forward to slogging through another hatefest. Fortunately, I already know that there are some kickass seasons on the horizon and that this season didn't totally kill Survivor.
To give you an idea of how bad this season gets, early on one of the survivors molests another one, and then starts accusing her of making it up, and then all the guys in the tribe agree with the guy and all the girls agree with the girl. Yeah. That happens. Molestation and victim-blaming and sexism, all in the first couple episodes.
Ugh... I need a shower.
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Post by countlieberkuhn on Jan 21, 2012 1:35:45 GMT -8
Didn't the producers pull him out of the show immediately for doing that? I mean, I know Survivor tends to allow things that are sorta illegal in real life, like stealing, destruction of property, etc, but I think molesting someone should be beyond the boundaries of what the show tolerates.
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Post by Fleck on Jan 21, 2012 11:01:22 GMT -8
It was such a murky situation, it would have been hard for the producers to yank him out. Because the two were kind of getting somewhat intimate already, and the guy one night just took it a little too far and the woman put on the brakes and started freaking out. You'd have to watch it to fully understand, but the guy did have enough justification to not get immediately pulled from the game. And it's not as if he just walked up to her and started raping her or anything. It was a complicated situation that became more complicated and then became ugly, just like everything else in the season.
The guy's still a bastard though, but he managed to stay far enough away from any out-and-out illegal behavior to avoid being booted from the game. I do think it's rather funny that the very next season, Survivor Amazon, is a female tribe versus a male tribe. I can almost imagine Jeff Probst talking to the producers, "Hey guys, you know how we've been kicking around the idea of keeping the men and women separate? Maybe now's a good time to try that out."
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Post by countlieberkuhn on Jan 21, 2012 11:23:16 GMT -8
Ah, okay then. If she was flirting with him beforehand then he probably thought it was ok with her until she flipped out when he tried it. Murky though, as you say. I'm just finishing off HvV right now - I don't get through them nearly as quickly as you, Fleck I just wanted to comment on the fantastic move Rupert and Colby made, where Rupert used a stone to fake having an idol in his pocket, causing Russell and co. to switch the vote, then they both voted Candice in the hopes that she would be the other one they went for. It was a 50/50 gamble as the villains could have voted Colby, but it paid off excellently. I think this is the first time in the entire season that Rupert and Colby have actually done something strategic and clever.
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Post by Fleck on Jan 21, 2012 11:50:37 GMT -8
Yeah, that was a pretty awesome moment. I haven't yet gotten to any of Rupert's seasons, but supposedly he is pretty smart and strategic, it just doesn't show up much in HvV.
So if you're at the Rupert/Colby fake idol scene, then you've already gotten through the merge and through the Heroes giving the hidden immunity idol to Russell, a scene which routinely gets put at or near the top of "Dumbest Survivor Moves Ever" lists. For a while, I had no idea why they were so damn stupid. But now I know that nobody knew who Russell was or his ability to use idols, but they DID know about Parvati and her all-girl alliance. When you look at it from that perspective, it makes a little more sense. It's still dumb as hell, but it's understandable.
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Post by countlieberkuhn on Jan 21, 2012 12:04:47 GMT -8
Yeah, I don't think it was necessarily a bad move that JT did by handing Russell the idol, it was just extremely risky. Not knowing Russell is probably why it happened, as you say. But you can see where he's coming from - if it had worked, that would have been it for the villains. If he'd done that with someone who wasn't Russell or another notorious villainous player, they probably would have flipped to the heroes at the merge, making it 6-4 in favour of the heroes, and then they could dominate the game from there. If it had happened on any other season, where the person you're handing it to isn't on a tribe called 'villains', then it might well have been one of the greatest plays of all time.
Russell's just taken out Danielle now, after making her cry at the tribal. There's a definite logic to breaking them up, but once again you just know that Russell is never going to win this one. If he makes it to the final jury, which he may well do, I can't think of a single person who would vote for him.
Another great move this season is when Parvati played JT's idol and her own one, handing them to Jerri and Danielle which kinda guaranteed that even with Sandra voting with the heroes, one of the heroes was going out. I gotta give props to Parvati, she's been a very consistent player in both the seasons I've seen her in. Plus she's tough - 6 and a half hours holding her arm up in that challenge on FvF. While that Jason fella might have beaten her if he hadn't stepped down to get some popularity, that's still a damn long time to hold on like that for. She only had to do it for 90 minutes to win in HvV. Childs play!
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Post by Fleck on Jan 21, 2012 12:26:06 GMT -8
I told you! HvV got the moves, baby.
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Post by Fleck on Jan 25, 2012 13:36:07 GMT -8
Thoughts on Survivor: Amazon
See? I am cutting back. There were only two days between my Marquesas and my Thailand posts, whereas there's five between my Thailand and my Amazon. I TOTALLY HAVE THIS THING UNDER CONTROL, GUYS.
Anyway. Amazon brings the show back up to speed after the dismal Thailand season, putting back the fun and the strategy of the game and getting rid of a large portion of the petty squabbling.
Up until this point, each season was largely dictated by its location. Amazon, however, is most notable for being the first Men versus Women season, with the girls and guys being separated into different tribes right off the bat. Given how sexist and mean Thailand was, this had the potential to backfire, but fortunately, everyone is pretty nice and likable. The guys make sexist comments, but they're all so lovably dopey that it's hard to dislike them. The girls make sexist comments as well, so it all evens out. Jeff seems to be the person most amused by this season, as he frequently teases the two tribes about various things they say and do.
This season is also notable for having its first disabled Survivor, Christie, who is deaf. This extra dynamic makes the show a bit more than just Men versus Women and adds a little more personality to the show.
In the end, separating the men and the women provides this extra tension and unique dynamic that really brings out everyone's personalities. As such, this is probably one of the more likable seasons, based on the personalities of the survivors. It's not the most strategic season, really, but it does have a lot of fun people to watch.
My biggest gripe is with the ending. Without spoiling anything, I just want to mention that I feel that the winner was the least deserving winner of any of the seasons I've seen thus far, and that includes the newer ones. And it's not even a situation like in Thailand where both of the final two were crap and they had to pick one. I think one of the final two was much more deserving, but that person didn't win, so oh well.
Anyway, good season. Only one more season between me and the All-Stars season. Next up: Pearl Islands and the introduction of the legendary Johnny Fairplay. Woo!
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Post by Fleck on Jan 28, 2012 14:40:58 GMT -8
Thoughts on Survivor: Pearl Islands
Best. Early season. Ever.
Pearl Islands has pretty much everything going for it. It has one of the best casts, (including the likes of Rupert, Fairplay, and Sandra). It has a lot of twists and turns built into the show. And instead of the repetitive "tribal" themes, Pearl Islands uses pirate themes, naming the tribes after Drake and Morgan (and the merged tribe is Balboa), using pirate-themed challenges, and all sorts of pirate-themed stuff which makes the season feel a lot fresher.
Rupert, Sandra, and Fairplay are loads of fun to watch, and they all end up on the same tribe in the beginning, and the way their personalities clash and mix is great to watch. Rupert starts off as a villain, actually, and slowly moves towards being one of the most honest players in the game. Sandra's "anyone but me" voting strategy and her temper make her fun to watch. And Fairplay just... doesn't play fair. The infamous "dead grandma" scene happens in this season, and while it's certainly his most notable and evil act of villainy, it's by far not his only villainous act.
The pirate-themes also inspire a lot of the twists, which includes "raids," where the tribe who wins a reward also earns the right to take one item from another tribe's camp. There's also a couple more interesting twists, but they happen later in the game, so I won't spoil them here.
This, along with Samoa, is probably my favorite season that does not include returning cast members (although Rupert, Sandra, and Fairplay would return later, they hadn't returned yet so they don't count). Unlike Samoa, the season doesn't revolve around a single survivor, allowing room for a lot of different and interesting personalities to mix.
Anyway, Pearl Islands is full of big challenges, big rewards, big twists, big personalities, and big fun. One of the best seasons of Survivor ever.
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Post by countlieberkuhn on Jan 28, 2012 17:00:42 GMT -8
I think I'll be watching that season next then!
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Post by Fleck on Jan 31, 2012 23:52:21 GMT -8
Thoughts on Survivor: All-Stars
When I wrote about the first season, Survivor: Borneo, I talked about how one of the more interesting aspects of the season was watching the loss of innocence, as the people on the island gradually came to the realization that there was more to the game than just being a good survivor, and that people who lied, formed alliances, and played dirty were more likely to win the game than those who played honestly.
I think All-Stars is a lot like the first season, in that there's yet another loss of innocence. Everyone who went into the game knew what Survivor was and what to expect, yet somehow many of them didn't really understand what they were getting into. A large number of the survivors had formed personal friendships with each other, either through survivor reunions or through the simple act of keeping in touch after the game was over. While every season prior to All-Stars brought together a group of strangers to live on an island, there are no strangers in All-Stars, and in fact many of them were friends.
It's because of this fact that All-Stars ends up being one of the most personal and emotional seasons I've watched. A betrayal means betraying a friend from outside the show. Voting someone off meant voting off someone you knew personally, or even someone who had inspired you to join the show in the first place. More so than in any other season, All-Stars blurs the line between personal relationships and the cutthroat nature of the game. This season brings into question the idea that people can be friends both in and out of the game, or if being friends outside the game means anything at all.
This season does get pretty ugly at times. Not quite as ugly as Thailand, but there are some moments for sure. All-Stars has some pretty intense fights, a lot of hurt feelings, and the first ever Ragequit, where someone actually was too infuriated to go on with the show.
Because of the ugliness, I find it hard to pick this season as my favorite. I think HvV and Micronesia are still the top two for me. But in terms of Survivor history, I think this season represents another major milestone. Here, at last, is where the show lost its last bit of innocence. Until this time, people never really had to wonder if they would sell out their friends for a million dollars. After all, everyone was strangers beforehand. But now, after All-Stars, people realized how dark the show can get, and how dangerous it can be to trust someone as a friend on the show Survivor.
But it's not all bleak. There's a lot of good to this show. It's not my favorite, but as of right now, I've got it in my top three (I've been keeping track of most-to-least-favorite seasons). I just love returning cast seasons, and this one is no exception. It's fun to watch all your favorites all over again, especially since I just went and watched all their seasons and I know who they are.
I think, to truly get the full experience, you have to be familiar with at least most of the prior seasons before watching this. Anything less would cheapen the experience. You are, after all, watching Survivor history being made. Best go into it with the ability to properly appreciate it.
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Post by Fleck on Feb 4, 2012 22:14:22 GMT -8
Thoughts on Survivor: VanuatuJeez... I don't feel like I'm watching this much Survivor. It's felt like a longer period of time since my last commentary, but I guess not. Anyway, it was pretty much inevitable that the season immediately after a returning-cast season would be a bit of a letdown, and Vanuatu, following immediately on the heels of All-Stars, unfortunately cannot escape this fact. Vanuatu starts of promisingly, with one of the more interesting opening sequences, plus a long and interesting tribal ritual that introduces the show to the contestants. Gonna take more than some sissy little "active volcano" to distract Jeff from introducing the show But from there it descends into a sea of rehashed ideas and mediocre casting. The tribes are, once again, split into Men Versus Women. This is kind of annoying, since they did this twist a mere three seasons prior. There are a couple of minor twists sprinkled here and there throughout the season, but for the most part, Vanuatu is played pretty straight, with no major shocks anywhere. The casting doesn't help much. Perhaps deterred by the offhand sexist remarks from the last time they pitted men against women in Survivor: Amazon, both tribes are respectful and wary of each other. Survivor again repeats itself by casting another handicapped person, only instead of Amazon's deaf Christie, they have Vanuatu's footless Chad, basically mirroring what happened in the Amazon. Even though the women in Vanuatu are given due respect by the men, most of them didn't earn it. Vanuatu is by far the most catty season I've seen. I have never seen so many women bicker so relentlessly as in this season. At first it was funny, but then as it went on and on and on it got tiresome. They bickered about food, about votes, about workloads, about Tribal Council, about alliances, about men, about bickering. It wasn't ugly, personal fighting like Thailand, it was just pointless and annoying and it got on my nerves. Really, only three things of note happened on this season: a fairly cool intro, endless bickering, and a pretty awesome earthquake. Other than that... this season was pretty bland. To give you an idea of how dull it was, the only two people from Vanuatu to ever return to the show were Eliza and Ami, who both returned for Fans Versus Favorites. I don't remember Ami much at all from FvF, and I only remember Eliza for the fake idol incident. Really, this cast isn't memorable. And the strategy is so frustratingly shallow. Alliances are formed based on appearances, gender, and age. It actually gets to the point where, towards the end, people start regretting picking the people they did, because everyone is so dissimilar, only sharing the most basic of features, but having nothing in common otherwise. Anyway, weak season. Bring on the next.
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Post by countlieberkuhn on Feb 5, 2012 3:56:24 GMT -8
I can barely remember Ami either from FvF. I think she was blonde? That's about all I can remember. As for Eliza, at least she had the distinction of being BATSHIT INSANE. Her outburst of sheer rage at the two remaining players in the final tribal was something to behold. And utterly pointless.
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