I thought it looked like two kids on a playground.
Anti-props to me, for predicting that Stephen had a reasonable shot at winning :(. Ok, unanimous vote, I get it, I was way wrong. I really did want to see JT win, though, so I’m happy to be wrong. The guy really deserves the money, he played one of the best games ever.
I agree about the rule twists – sending one person from each tribe to exile was great – but the challenges? Ninety percent are “run an obstacle course to get the puzzle pieces, then assemble the puzzle.” Snooze. The final challenge this time, the ball dropping machine, was different, but pretty much every other challenge is just a variation on one basic theme. Ok, two basic themes, there’s also the “stand/hang on to something precarious” variations that they throw in a couple of times. But the run to get the puzzle pieces varietals really need to be retired.
[quote=“Jas09, post:39, topic:496772”]
I picked up many of the same vibes but I just want to point out that during the reunion Jeff asked JT if he was really crushed by that confession and JT admitted it was all an act. He pretended to be hurt to hopefully get more votes.
/QUOTE]
J.T. played the jury excellently. The whole time watching him talk, I kept hearing in my head “I’m just a simple caveman lawyer…”
I thought it was pretty crazy when he was talking to Erinn about how Stephen was such a better talker, when Stephen has shown that he has a tendency to talk himself into a corner. I bet that if he had couple himself out a few sentences early to each question, he would have gotten a couple votes.
I like them because they combine the physical and the mental – and I like that they have mental challenges. Any suggestions for ways of including thinking challenges that don’t involve puzzles (and that also make for good TV – sitting there watching someone do math isn’t that interesting – though the way they did it this time with the turning thing, the challenge that Stephen won, was good)?
I was genuinely surprised that they voted Taj off. Yes, it was the “right” thing to do strategically, but had they not blind-sided her, the result would have still been the same (I have no doubt JT would have still won the challenge) and they wouldn’t have hurt her feelings.
I was a big fan of Stephen but he was acting very desperate at the Final Council. He said that he knew that no one had a chance against JT and of course, he was right. So I think he should have graciously accepted 2nd place and shut up.
JT and Brendan both looked better dirty. Not sure what that says about me.
Once again, I wish they’d dispense with the stupid "Walk of Shame’ ritual and devote 1.5 hours to the Reunion.
When they were showing the clips from earlier in the season, I thought JT looked ridiculous with his bright blue and pink shirt. Thank god it got dirty.
I kinda wish they would have more physical man-on-man challenges. They started working more of them during the two tribes portion of the game, but once they merge there never seems to be any sort of challenge where the players actually contact each other. It’s always some sort of race or endurance challenge, with the obligatory auction and “what do you think about other people” one thrown in.
FWIW, on challenges repeats, there has been 18 season of survivor and an average of 25 challenges per season. That means approximately 450 challenges.
Only 450 challenges! I can’t believe TPTB can’t come up with two unique challenges for every episode.
During the reunion, I was wondering who wears a sportcoat over a different colored polo shirt. JT, apparently. It didn’t look entirely bad, but slightly odd. Maybe its just me.
I’d like it better if they did more mental chase to get to the physical portion than physical race to get to the mental portion. They should even it out so that sometimes the mental stuff comes first. I’m tired of seeing the smart but less physical people stand on the sidelines while mr and mrs athlete try to see who can finish the puzzle first.
That’s a really good idea – I never thought of that.
I don’t think that’ll work. Typically the physical stuff is a first start first finish task. Unless a later starter is more physically talented than the first starter. But the mental tasks can really stop you with one simple hitch no matter how smart you are.
Also doing mental first doesn’t impact your physical task later, but doing physical stuff first, makes you out of breath and your thinking gets a bit compromised.
Didn’t we see this season Stephen, the weaker athlete, beat everyone by coming from behind by outsmarting them? I don’t have any facts, but I don’t think it’s all that rare. Especially in the earlier team based challenges.
That’s a fair point, and the good puzzle solver comes back from a large deficit relatively frequently (it almost happened in the penultimate challenge this season - the edit made it seem Erinn almost had it). But for challenges of the “top two move on” variety it would be nice to seem them occasionally have to do the “mental” part of the challenge first.
Also, you too often see a weaker physical player just give up on a challenge if they fall behind - I think they would push a bit harder if they had the lead no matter how tough it was physically. And finally, it just makes for more exciting TV to watch a physically strong player make up lost time swimming/running/climbing than watching a mentally stronger player do a puzzle faster (it’s often almost impossible to even tell who’s winning until Jeff announces the winner).
Another challenge question - have they officially retired the “eat nasty things” challenge or did I just miss it this season? Also, they need more challenges where JP tempts them to stop with brownies/pizza/beer. I like the ones that aren’t really “hard” per se - just long and draining. It makes it more likely the ones that are on the block will win.
I don’t think the “nasty eats” challenge has been officially retired. It was on as late as the China season when they had to eat the half developed eggs.
I don’t remember it in “Fans vs Favorites” or “Gabon”.
But I agree that the puzzle or mental part of a multi-round elimination challenge should occasionally go first.
I am sure contestants are sequestered in tents for one or two nights before the show starts. If I were TPTB I would have put a short book on Toncantins (or Brazilian) history in each of their rooms.
Then a mental challenge would have questions from that book. Those that took the time to read the book would have an advantage.
Yeah, I miss the really long endurance challenges. They seem to have replaced them with “hold yourself up on a really tiny platform.” It’s more physically tough, but not nearly as fun. Who can forget the naked Heidi/Jenna challenge? They we’re all standing on big platforms.
I had Stephen picked for the win from the very beginning. But I see now that he fell into the same trap that Becky from Cook Islands did. Like Becky and Yul, Stephen and J.T. stayed loyal to each other for the whole game, (in actions at least, if not always in thoughts and words) and as a team, seemed to make very good strategic plays that they both contributed to. So when it came down to the two of them, does the jury go with the brilliant strategist or the brilliant strategist who was ALSO a challenge monster? If they truly plotted every move together, that cancels out, and you’re left with what distinguishes them from each other. So Yul won and Becky got 0 votes. J.T. won and Stephen got 0 votes. History repeats.
I don’t think Stephen necessarily made a mistake in keeping the alliance with JT that far. If he had tried to blindside him earlier, it would have put him in a much more dangerous position, and I doubt he would have made it to the final two. His best chance was for JT not to win one of the last few immunities challenges, but JT went on a run at the worst possible moment.
He knew he was doomed the moment JT won those last few immunities, unless JT had made a huge mistake in the jury questioning. While Stephen was arguably the best strategist of the season, JT was both a good strategist, a challenge monster and a brilliant social player. In a confessional JT admitted that he had made relationships throughout the season for the purpose of winning the final vote, and that he was just acting heartbroken when Stephen said he probably wouldn’t have taken him to the end.
I have to admit I had underestimated him a bit before I saw some of his later comments. I don’t doubt that he’s a great guy in person too, but he purposefully set out to take advantage of that strength of being likeable, and that makes him a great player.
Yes, they certainly had big… platforms. 
You know, we’ve seen a LOT of buxom blondes come on this show swearing up and down that they were going to use their looks to make their competitors think they were dumb blondes and underestimate them, then smack everyone else out of the competition with their cutting wit and sneaky ways. And there has so far only been one who’s actually done it, reaching the Final Tribal Council and then basically deliberately giving the prize away to one of their allies, and that’s the last season’s Sugar. All the rest of these “stealth survivors” have foundered when they forgot to use that “wit” and “sneaky ways”, relying instead on fascinating the men with their looks.
Well, we have the first man to follow up Sugar. JT came into this game knowing exactly what he looked and sounded like, and knowing how that image would work in his competitors’ minds. And he rode that all the way to a million dollars.
Oh yeah, I don’t think it was a mistake. I don’t think he had a good way out of the trap that presented itself, but it was a trap nonetheless. Blindsiding JT too early would’ve cost him everything, and if JT had given him the opportunity by losing immunity in one of the last 3 times, I’m pretty sure Stephen would’ve made an attempt to oust him, friend or no friend. Note the hilarious “dotdotdot” conversation with Taj. But JT won when it counted most, so Stephen had no leg to stand on in front of the jury.