Now that I’ve had a couple weeks to think about it, I really hate the twist they’ve used this season. I really have to agree with Andrew - there’s no way Burton and Lill “outwitted, outplayed and outlasted” him. The challenge was a joke. These people were overwhelmingly favored to win, just by reason of their being so well-rested. Hell, Ryan S. culdn’t even honestly be called “Skinny Ryan” any more - he was practically glowing and looked more filled out and healthier than he did in the start of the show. And the biggest insult I see is the possibility that
BIG OL’ SPOILER COMING!!!1
According to the Spoiler sites, Lill drags that old sour puss into the Final Four or the Final Two, depending on which one you read.
BIG OL’ SPOILER OVER!!!
And this doesn’t come from any spoiler, it’s just my thoughts. I think Rupert has become a target, since he will be viewed as a threat. But I wouldn’t be surprised to see Burton go on a Colby-like immunity run, and he could beat Rupert in the physical challenges. That man is really trying to use his second chance. However, that’s all uncertain, as this is where they’ll probably back off on physical challenges and ease into the more cerebral challenges. We may be stuck with Jon for a while (not that he’s cerebral-he’s just the kind of idiot any good player wants to take into the final two with them, like Clay was).
If what is in the spoiler box (I haven’t read it) is just your thoughts, and not knowledge obtained from a source outside the show, then it isn’t really a spoiler. It’s just a guess.
I’m of two minds of the twist – it keeps the game interesting, for sure, and I love unexpected surprises. But I did kinda feel sorry for Andrew. Betraying someone to get them voted off shouldn’t carry the risk of that person coming back into the game to screw you. They were voted off! Not only that, but now they’ll be in the jury possibly voting on people who voted them out of the game.
That said, I’m glad to see the previews tonight about a possible conspiracy against Rupert. Because, of course, that means he’s totally safe. I’m sure Ryan O. will be the next to go (sadly), unless he manages to get immunity. Then it would be Tijuana.
Well, you’re right. I just re-read it, and I didn’t make it clear. I just didn’t want to get yelled at, so I was being overcautious.
The contents of the spoiler box did indeed come from a spoiler site. But I didn’t read the “who goes this week” spoilers, just an overall spoiler that came out at the beginning of the game. Everything that’s not in the box are simply my own thoughts.
I agree the twist did make the game interesting, and I had no problem with it when it happened. It’s just that I keep thinking about it, (who, me? A life? Nah…) and it just wasn’t fair. Legally, they were perfectly within their rights. It’s their game and they can do whatever they want to shake it up. But the fact that it puts two people voted out early on the jury and leaves a better player out of the jury just seems wrong.
Of course, it may simply be Karma coming to bite Andrew in the ass. He is, or was, on Jerry Springer’s legal team.
As pitifully as those folk in Morgan have done, it would be hard for me to drum up any sympathy for any of them.
Tho I think it most likely that D or R from Morgan will go tonight, I’ll go out on a limb and predict that Jon goes. I see R-C-S viewing him as a threat to stir up trouble and form an anti-R alliance, and figuring they can count on L-B to vote against Morgan later.
I still love the twist, for a couple of reasons. It stirs things up, as they had been getting pretty formulaic over the past coupla seasons. It gives you a second shot at some of the folk who leave really early. And it adds another element of strategy, in that players have to be careful how they treat people - even people being voted out early in the game.
Shouldn’t they be having the visit from home challenge soon? Or does that happen when they are down around 6? How about the food auction? And when is Burton gonna win that new Rendezvous?
The Drakes have no reason in the world not to continue Pagonging the Morgans. Don’t even think about booting one of your own until you’ve got at least a 2-person advantage. And you’d have to be crazy to count a free agent like Lil as being solidly on your side for purposes of Pagonging, especially since the person she jumped ship to boot last week was her most hated enemy.
So a Morgan goes tonight. Since you want to boot a potential challenge threat first, Rhino will be walking the plank tonight unless he gets lucky and wins immunity.
Next week may be interesting. Drake will have a little cushion to make a strategic kick, so there’s a chance that Burton or Rupert could had for the jury. If they decide to stick with the Pagonging, then Lil could be in trouble because she will have outlived her usefulness and nobody trusts a turncoat.
Jon, I’m afraid, has reached the stage where his hugely annoying personality is more valuable as the bad guy in the final jury vote than he would be on the jury. I don’t see him in trouble anytime real soon.
And of course there’s no precedent for Drake doing something stupid and self-defeating like, say, throwing an immunity challenge to vote out one of their own…
I’m sure you’re right about Jon, minty. Just tossing out alternatives. The one factor I can’t get away from is Rupert’s paranoia/magalomania. If he perceives Jon as conspiring against him, I don’t think we have to assume he will respond rationally and carefully.
Ah, but that assumes that Rupert is in control of the game. Since nobody will want to go up against Rupe in the finals, he’s going to have to go on a well-timed immunity run or he’ll be out before the F4.
The spoiler sites are saying that Ryan O goes next and then Rupert is voted off next Thursday but if that is true, I won’t be bothering to watch the rest of this season.
I have a horrible feeling for tonight. The outcast gimmick was a disaster, and I have the feeling only weak idiot players will be left soon. Burnett have have screwed the pooch for this season by trying one twist too many.
RikWriter, which spoiler sites are you using? A number of the more reliable ones have changed their picks within the last hour. Also, for those who are a little more adventurous, check out the very weird indication for what is going to happen tonight, found on the CBS website itself, in the tribal council voting chart.
You know, I just thought of something interesting that I had not thought of until I saw that chart.
When Lillian and Burton came back, they took the places of Shawn and Osten. The net number of players didn’t change. So, essentially they are behind by one when it comes to the number of players who should have left the game (since ordinarily one player would have been voted off in that time without replacement).
Either the show will have to be extended by one episode (meaning there will be one additional tribal council; admittedly likely) or they will have to come up with a way to eliminate more than one player in one episode.
If you look at the chart linked above; there are empty boxes for seven more players. There are nine left in the game. (To be fair, the chart was created before the twist was revealed so it was probably constructed in such a way as to give nothing away but it does raise the question of what will happen next. Does anyone know if the show is scheduled to run one episode longer than originally stated?
You know, I just thought of something interesting that I had not thought of until I saw that chart.
When Lillian and Burton came back, they took the places of Shawn and Osten. The net number of players didn’t change. So, essentially they are behind by one when it comes to the number of players who should have left the game (since ordinarily one player would have been voted off in that time without replacement).
Either the show will have to be extended by one episode (meaning there will be one additional tribal council; admittedly likely) or they will have to come up with a way to eliminate more than one player in one episode.
If you look at the chart linked above; there are empty boxes for seven more players. There are nine left in the game. (To be fair, the chart was created before the twist was revealed so it was probably constructed in such a way as to give nothing away but it does raise the question of what will happen next. Does anyone know if the show is scheduled to run one episode longer than originally stated?
Yes. “Episode 7” was divided into two shows (challenge with Outcasts/Shawn booted and Osten quits, then a second for Burton and Lil return/Andrew booted). The chart is screwed up because of the twist, as you note.
The twist is fun, but unfair, both to players and viewers.
Yes, it’s their show, and all that, but nonetheless, there are certain ground rules that are laid out at the beginning of the season which the players must observe (many of the rules are constants from season to season, as well). If the producers then change the rules half way through the game, it’s like telling the Cubs halfway through the season that you’re all going to be playing football for the rest of the season. It might still be fun, but it isn’t fair, and people will tune out because of it.
A twist should not be a twist caused by deceiving everyone involved; a twist should be caused by introducing to the show a new challenge or means of playing the game.
Burnett seems resigned to seeing Survivor run its course, giving viewers cheaper and cheaper thrills within the winning formula it came up with, when instead, it could do any number of things to re-invigorate the program (like giving it an Arctic locale (but then there’d be less flesh)), and give it many years additional life. I guess we’ll just have to see how it all plays out.
