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Post by Fleck on Feb 7, 2012 21:48:09 GMT -8
Hey, Count (and anyone else who may be interested), I found a Youtube channel that has South Pacific on it. www.youtube.com/user/dcdice11#p/pDoesn't have Redemption Island, though. This account might not last long, as this person also has a lot of other, bigger shows on the account, which will inevitably draw attention. Speaking of which, what are you currently watching, Count? Are you done with Heroes versus Villains yet?
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Post by countlieberkuhn on Feb 8, 2012 0:04:55 GMT -8
Ah, good stuff! I finished HvV a little over a week ago, and have opted to take a short break from Survivor. Just because you can have too much of a good thing sometimes I'll probably get back to it once I've caught up with the Yogscast Minecraft series. Only around 25 15-min eps left!
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Post by Fleck on Feb 8, 2012 0:32:17 GMT -8
Ah, good stuff! I finished HvV a little over a week ago, and have opted to take a short break from Survivor. Just because you can have too much of a good thing sometimes NO... SUCH... THING... *continues watching a season of Survivor every couple of days*
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Post by Fleck on Feb 9, 2012 19:42:20 GMT -8
Thoughts on Survivor: Palau
Survivor almost always does well when they get away from the standard "tribal" themes. Pearl Islands was a great season, and it was pirate-themed instead of tribal. I'm not saying that Pearl Islands was great because it was a different theme, but it appears that having something different as a backdrop seems to coincide with stronger seasons.
This holds true in Palau, which is situated amidst the wreckage of World War 2 battle sites and is thus, appropriately, WW2-themed. While the theme in this season is more understated than it was in Pearl Islands, this season still manages to be one of the best I've seen.
It starts off a little iffy, by dumping the survivors on the island and then not telling them anything. The survivors have to slowly figure out what's going on, and when they do, they are quickly greeted by an unfair and somewhat mean-spirited twist in the game. Luckily, from there, things get much better.
It's hard for me to compare different seasons because there's a lot of different criteria involved. Some seasons are really awesome in the beginning, but start to drag after the merge. Some get off to slow starts, but become fascinating after the merge. Some seasons are great because they have one stand-out person who carries the whole show, while some are great because they have a huge diversity of characters.
Palau is a great season because it has just about everything. No matter what you like to see in Survivor, you'll see it in Palau. After the lame twist in the beginning, everything up to the merge is awesome, and several things happen that have never happened in the show before. It seems like things might slow down after the merge, but then it's completely crazy all the way to the final tribal council. If you like to watch people, this season has a great cast, with Tom and Stephanie from Heroes Versus Villains both proving how and why they ended up on the Heroes Tribe later on, plus an assortment of other people who were also tons of fun to watch, even if they didn't get the same recognition. There are some complicated strategies, tough decisions, bungled strategies, risky moves, and emotional scenes. This season has a LOT going for it.
Anyone who says that this isn't one of the best seasons ever is either a liar or an idiot. Palau is a damn good season. Even though it's the tenth season, it still has a lot of Survivor firsts, and many things happen in this season that have never happened since. Check this one out.
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Post by Fleck on Feb 14, 2012 22:32:16 GMT -8
Survivor: One World premieres on Wednesday. I'll see if I can find a Youtube account that's uploaded episodes, for any people named Count who might be interested.
Initial impressions... I'm skeptical. The show has been pretty mediocre all around since Heroes Versus Villains, and this season looks like it has one of the most gimmicky casts ever (they have a midget). But who knows? It might be awesome. Guess I'll know tomorrow.
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Post by countlieberkuhn on Feb 15, 2012 0:00:43 GMT -8
A midget? Surely that's just unfair for challenges. But then again I imagine that's the case for say, the person with one leg. Just lacking the physical capacity to keep up, regardless of how athletic they are. I may be wrong though!
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Post by Fleck on Feb 15, 2012 9:30:17 GMT -8
People with obvious disadvantages usually do okay until the merge. Because they're obvious targets in the beginning, they work extra hard around camp, give their all in challenges, and do their best to make a lot of friends in the tribe. But then, like clockwork, sometime around the merge someone will say, "they're a pity vote, so we can't let them make it to the final three, because everyone will vote for them." So then the person gets voted out, even though I think it's dumb to vote out a weaker person near the merge, no matter how big of an F3 threat they are.
So that's my prediction: the midget goes at the merge, unless he's physically inept, in which case he'll go sooner.
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Post by Fleck on Feb 16, 2012 0:20:46 GMT -8
Survivor: One World premiere (no spoilers)
Iiiiiiii'mmmmm.... still skeptical. Because I've been knee-deep in old-school Survivor episodes, the subtle changes they've made to the format and the focus are glaringly obvious to me. It feels like, for this season, they brought together all the people who put in their applications "I'm gonna say what I wanna say and ain't nobody gonna tell me what not to say *fingersnap*" This cast seems to be tailor-made to be one of the most volatile ever, and by putting them all on the same beach and dividing them into tribes of men and women (*sigh*... again), it seems like this season wants nothing to do with strategy or survival, but arguments and catty fights. Which is what this first episode delivered. I'm still holding out hope that some of the more argumentative members of both tribes will kick out the whiners in their group and thus force a shift in focus for the show, but we'll see. Not really a terrible start, but it felt very reality-tv-y.
Can't find any Youtube videos yet, Count. I'll let you know if I see anything.
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Post by countlieberkuhn on Feb 16, 2012 9:01:30 GMT -8
Alrighty!
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Post by Fleck on Feb 18, 2012 13:38:46 GMT -8
Good news, everybody! Our default guy for Survivor and AR episodes (Stentilyzier) has begun posting the current season of Survivor! He's got the first episode online now. It's season 24. www.youtube.com/user/stentilyzierGo see the midget, Count! Go see the midget!
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Post by Fleck on Feb 21, 2012 18:17:48 GMT -8
Thoughts on Survivor: Guatemala
Hey, I made it quite a while since my last Survivor review! I'm getting better! The twelve-step program is working!
... Or maybe it's just because this season is kind of flat. Despite the fact that Guatemala introduces two new twists, not much else happens. The first twist is that this season brings back two fan favorite survivors from previous seasons and places them on different tribes. The second twist introduces the concept of the Hidden Immunity Idol. Although both of these twists were popular and used again (bringing back two survivors has been done on at least two more seasons, and the hidden immunity idol has been a staple of every season since, as far as I know), the game wasn't all that inspiring.
This season, like Africa, focuses heavily on the survival aspect of the game. It seems that every season that is not located near a river or the ocean ends up being harsh on the survivors, and this season is no exception, being one of the most physically demanding seasons in the show's history. The first episode features the show's longest and most grueling reward challenge: an eleven-mile footrace through the jungle. This brutal challenge nearly kills both tribes. A word of warning: if you don't like watching a whole bunch of people puking from dehydration, this season won't be your thing.
The physical torment stunts a lot of the strategy, however, as there is absolutely no argument to be made for keeping weaker people. Anyone who shows the slightest sign of weakness gets the boot and there are no real surprises until around the time of the merge. Everyone is too focused on survival to really consider anything else. Even the hidden immunity idol doesn't help much, because of the poor way it was implemented. It's only introduced after the merge, and whoever finds it has to play it before the vote, which isn't nearly as fun.
Some people really dislike this season, but it's not that bad. It is a lot less engaging than Palau was, for sure, and bringing back two survivors feels... forced, somehow. When they used this twist later on, they always brought back legends of the show, like Boston Rob and Russell. The two people chosen to come back for Guatemala weren't terrible, but they weren't Survivor legends either. And that kinda sums up this season: not terrible, but not that great either.
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Post by Fleck on Mar 8, 2012 22:49:59 GMT -8
Survivor: One World is... umm....
Huh.
Yeah.
In other news, it seems that CBS has finally found Stentylizer's channel and has shut down a large chunk of his videos, including the most recent season of Survivor. So...........yeah.
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Post by Fleck on Dec 17, 2012 19:49:14 GMT -8
Goin' on almost nine months since I said anything on this thread. I know that most of ya'll probably don't read this thread, since it's kinda spoilery for the earlier seasons of Survivor, but I still like keeping a public log of my thoughts and opinions of each season as I make my way through them.
Anyway, two new seasons of Survivor have aired in the time since my last post, plus I have found a more stable source to stream old episodes of Survivor, so I can continue to work my way through the old seasons.
Survivor: Panama -- Exile Island
While technically the Exile Island twist was used for one episode in Survivor Palau, this marks the first season where the concept of an Exile Island (which would run for several future seasons, die off a bit, then morph into the short-lived Redemption Island twist) was used for a whole season. In addition, this is the first season to break up the cast into four tribes, divided along both age and gender lines. So this was a season of a lot of firsts.
But as with a lot of seasons, the pre-planned twists don't really amount to a whole lot. Instead, this season is largely defined by the strength of its cast, led mostly by the appearance of Cirie. I've already seen her in Heroes Versus Villains and in Micronesia, but Exile Island is where she proves herself as not only one of the most intensely likeable survivors in history, but also one of the most strategic. After a short under-the-radar game, Cirie quickly transforms into one of the most powerful and influential people in the game. While a lot of other survivors have managed to seize control of the game, Cirie is probably one of the few genuine heroes of the game. She's just so damn lovable in this season. Also, she's supported by a pretty strong cast as well. There are a few unlikable people, but even they show their humanity at some point or another. Exile Island has one of the best all-around casts in the show's history, as is now among my favorite seasons.
Survivor: One World
One World attempts to shake up the Survivor concept by placing both tribes on the same beach, which puts them in direct competition for food, shelter, and supplies. It also provides a chance for clandestine relationships between tribes and secret pre-merge alliances. But like so many times, the producers' attempts to artificially forge drama really doesn't pay off at all. The two tribes generally ignore each other, and aside from a few snotty comments about gender equality (the tribes are divided by gender), this season really just plays out like any other. Not helping the fact is that all the interesting people get voted out or injured early on, leaving a pretty flat cast of uninspiring oafs to carry the show to its conclusion. One World is a massive missed opportunity for the show, and one of the overall weakest seasons.
Survivor: Philippines
Philippines' big twist is that in this season, three returning players are brought back, all who were removed from their previous season due to injury. They are each placed in one of three tribes and sent on their way. Other than that, the season is largely lacking in twists, which is mostly a good thing. As mentioned in my two reviews above, manufactured twists don't often play out as well as the producers would like, so having a season that is, for the most part, played straight is a welcome change from the gimmicky past couple of seasons.
While the overall cast is strong (I am always a big advocate for returning cast members) and there's a lot of great drama and interpersonal relationships at play, this season becomes much less compelling once it hits around the 3/4 mark. By that time, the best players of the game pretty much secure themselves a guaranteed win, and the last three or four tribal councils are disappointingly predictable.
Philippines has a kinda meh start, a compelling middle, and a predicable end, but is overall one of the better post-HvV seasons.
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Post by Fleck on Dec 27, 2012 0:27:49 GMT -8
Yeah, I'm on a Survivor bender again. I can't help it; I really love this freaking show.
Season 13: Survivor: Cook Islands
Cook Islands took enormous risks and very well could have ruined Survivor's reputation forever. How, you ask? Well, Cook Islands starts by diving the survivors into four tribes, as in Exile Island, but this time, they're divided by race, with a tribe of whites, blacks, Asians, and Hispanics. Yeah, this could have gone VERY badly for the show.
Fortunately they were helped out of this potential mess by four major factors. One, they cast people who were strong examples of their race without being hokey stereotypes. Everyone is pretty normal, they just come from different backgrounds and have different skin tones. Two, the survivors themselves were determined not to be viewed as stereotypes. Once all the survivors realized this season's twist, they worked extra hard to be shining examples of their race and avoid being typecast. Three, once the tribes start merging, racial lines completely dissolve and the season turns into any regular season of Survivor. So what could have been the biggest flop in the show's history ends up being a pretty strong anti-racism season.
The fourth reason is the fact that this is the first season to feature THREE three-peat returning cast players, with Parvati, Jonathan Penner, and Ozzy all making their first appearances on this show. Like all good seasons of Survivor, it's great players who make the season, and these three do the same thing that Rupert, Sandra, and Fairplay did for Survivor: Pearl Islands by taking the show to the next level.
So like usual, the main twist that the producers come up with falls to the wayside as the some of the strongest players in the show's history vie for control of the game. What's left is one of my all-time favorite seasons and one of my definite recommendations for anyone looking for a good season to check out.
Also, the next season of Survivor is going to be Fans Versus Favorites part 2. I've made no secret that I love returning cast, so I'm way uber pumped about this.
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Post by Fleck on Dec 31, 2012 19:35:15 GMT -8
Hell, it's only been 4 days since my last Survivor review? Grarg. Well, in any case, I don't have many seasons left to watch, so I'll be done eventually.
Season 14: Survivor: Fiji
The big twist this season is "haves" versus "have nots." From the very beginning, one tribe is given a camp with food, shelter, comforts, and probably the easiest living conditions in Survivor history. They even get furniture and beds. It's really more of a vacation than anything. The other tribe is given a machete and a pot.
And yet again, like all twist-heavy seasons, the twist is ultimately not the best part of the show. I'm not 100% sure what the producers were hoping would happen this season. Maybe they thought that the "haves" team would get complacent and lazy and lose all their challenges, but I mean how could they? When you put a team of happy, well-fed people against a tribe who is literally sucking morning dew off of leaves and passing out from dehydration, do you really expect a fair match?
So yeah, as per usual, the twist is mostly a flop. We're left with the cast, which is less than stellar. Survivor once again cast a ton of minorities, in an effort to dispel the idea that they were being racist in Cook Islands, but that does nothing really to diversify the show. The people are pretty bland, with a couple of exceptions. Yau Man makes his first appearance and with this season becomes one of my all-time favorite survivors. He's just so small and unassuming, yet one of the most capable individuals to ever play the game. Everyone else is just kinda... eh. There are a few stand-out personalities, but there's something lacking from this season. I think having one tribe be outrageously over-equipped kills a lot of the drama and the tension of the game, which in turn made people kinda flat and boring.
Although I must say that the season really starts to pick up at the end. I don't want to spoil anything, but the remaining few tribe members start to make the game interesting again at the end. Other than that, this is largely a skippable season.
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