Survivor Season 46 - Finale - Up Next: Survivor Forty Several (3 Viewers)

[Runkle]

I'm surprised Jeff hasn't beaten someone to death with a torch yet this season. Casting is crushing it.

I keep getting the feeling that the talent pool is very shallow now. Jeff and contestants keep asking people to consider being on the show for the past couple of seasons. I can’t do this because I consider camping as sleeping with the windows open.

God I wish the casting people from Survivor Australia could be hired to work the US version.

Also how awful for this to be a season of 90 minute episodes

 

[bcat01]

They should have kept the vote for Sifu. He would be gone and Sean would have left on his own. Two birds with one vote.

 

[Raging weasel]

I think Sean was sure he was going to get voted out and did his I'm so in love thing to try and save face. Is there a rule that you can't vote for yourself? If not he should have voted for himself just to make sure.

 

[NewlyRetired]

These titles are a bit spoilery for those that watch the episodes later...

 

[stbugs]

I think Sean was sure he was going to get voted out and did his I'm so in love thing to try and save face. Is there a rule that you can't vote for yourself? If not he should have voted for himself just to make sure.

I didn’t understand why Jeff allowed the vote this time and in week 1, he allowed the girl to quit. What’s the difference? In both cases they said everyone vote for me. Not a fan when it seems like they change the rules midstream. I think they knew that Sifu might go home so Jeff never asks him to quit. There was 0 difference in what Sean and therapy lady ask their tribe mates to do.

 

[Da Guru]

I'm surprised Jeff hasn't beaten someone to death with a torch yet this season. Casting is crushing it.

I keep getting the feeling that the talent pool is very shallow now. Jeff and contestants keep asking people to consider being on the show for the past couple of seasons. I can’t do this because I consider camping as sleeping with the windows open.

God I wish the casting people from Survivor Australia could be hired to work the US version.

Also how awful for this to be a season of 90 minute episodes

Whoever is casting needs to be fired. The casting has lost its way and been going downhill for a few seasons now.

I know they want to cast weak misfits who make it awhile then start crying about how they have never done anything. But it is to the point the show it hurting itself with the weak casts. Don`t even have good tough villains anymore like Russell.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

I think Sean was sure he was going to get voted out and did his I'm so in love thing to try and save face. Is there a rule that you can't vote for yourself? If not he should have voted for himself just to make sure.

I didn’t understand why Jeff allowed the vote this time and in week 1, he allowed the girl to quit. What’s the difference? In both cases they said everyone vote for me. Not a fan when it seems like they change the rules midstream. I think they knew that Sifu might go home so Jeff never asks him to quit. There was 0 difference in what Sean and therapy lady ask their tribe mates to do.

Hannah said she was leaving regardless of whether there was a vote. Sean didn’t.

On his podcast Probst said he and the other producers decide these things on a case by case basis, depending on the vibes they are getting from the cast.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

I think Sean was sure he was going to get voted out and did his I'm so in love thing to try and save face. Is there a rule that you can't vote for yourself? If not he should have voted for himself just to make sure.

There is a rule you can’t vote for yourself. Sean voted for Dee because he knew it would be a wasted vote because nobody was targeting her.

 

[TLEF316]

Picking contestants on a show that requires this much commitment and skill (of various types) based on who is most likely to cry is a losing strategy. But its getting more and more prevalent every season. Just really disappointing.

 

[stbugs]

I think Sean was sure he was going to get voted out and did his I'm so in love thing to try and save face. Is there a rule that you can't vote for yourself? If not he should have voted for himself just to make sure.

I didn’t understand why Jeff allowed the vote this time and in week 1, he allowed the girl to quit. What’s the difference? In both cases they said everyone vote for me. Not a fan when it seems like they change the rules midstream. I think they knew that Sifu might go home so Jeff never asks him to quit. There was 0 difference in what Sean and therapy lady ask their tribe mates to do.

Hannah said she was leaving regardless of whether there was a vote. Sean didn’t.

On his podcast Probst said he and the other producers decide these things on a case by case basis, depending on the vibes they are getting from the cast.

Right, case by case. I’m not a fan of not applying the same rules. Brandon may have gone home that first vote as well. Jeff let Hannah quit. He didn’t ask Sean to quit.

It’s OK, just my opinion. I don’t like when it feels like the producers are trying to craft results.

 

[Corporation]

These titles are a bit spoilery for those that watch the episodes later...

Fixed

 

[Corporation]

I think Sean was sure he was going to get voted out and did his I'm so in love thing to try and save face. Is there a rule that you can't vote for yourself? If not he should have voted for himself just to make sure.

I didn’t understand why Jeff allowed the vote this time and in week 1, he allowed the girl to quit. What’s the difference? In both cases they said everyone vote for me. Not a fan when it seems like they change the rules midstream. I think they knew that Sifu might go home so Jeff never asks him to quit. There was 0 difference in what Sean and therapy lady ask their tribe mates to do.

Hannah said she was leaving regardless of whether there was a vote. Sean didn’t.

On his podcast Probst said he and the other producers decide these things on a case by case basis, depending on the vibes they are getting from the cast.

Right, case by case. I’m not a fan of not applying the same rules. Brandon may have gone home that first vote as well. Jeff let Hannah quit. He didn’t ask Sean to quit.

It’s OK, just my opinion. I don’t like when it feels like the producers are trying to craft results.

If Probst said it was case by case, I agree with you, that's not the way it should be in my opinion. I would have thought the answer was there was more going on in the edits than what we saw, and what they aired allowed for more suspense/drama. I think Hannah essentially said "I'm out of here, regardless" so they let it play out like they did. I think Sean probably thinks "I didn't quit" because he was voted out, so he gets to be viewed as noble since he "let" people who really wanted it more to remain in the game. Of course if they voted Sifu, then he could claim it was part of his brilliant strategy to stay in the game by throwing people off. He was trying to set himself up as a win/win and save face, when he realized he had no chance of progressing. I haven't seen the social media response but I hope he is recognized as a quitter who won't be invited back to anything.

 

[krista4]

I haven't seen the social media response but I hope he is recognized as a quitter who won't be invited back to anything.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

Drew is a terrible player and the edit is having fun with it. The whole narrative of the blue-tribe scramble was "Drew makes a mess and then Austin fixes it when he comes back."

 

[Runkle]

These people stink

 

[Corporation]

Great episode tonight! Really great drama at the Tribal. Caleb read the room correctly and clearly knew it was a landslide against him. Cool to see the shot in the dark work. Terrible strategy by Emily in not casting her initial vote for J. I think everyone knew it was unanimous for Caleb, so she didn't want to ostracize herself and make J angry by casting a vote against her, but she really should have seen that possibly a split vote could have happened (and her vote may have killed Caleb), that he played an idol she didn't know about leaving it up for a revote, or the Shot in the Dark that she encouraged him to take. Apparently she felt there was enough momentum to take out J, but that's a risk I'm not sure I would take.

I will say J had a gracious exit. I felt bad for her as Caleb rightfully rejoiced in his luck, and she saw everyone clapping along with him.

• Unfortunately I think this is a short lived victory for Caleb. Outside of idol wins, I'm not sure he can hold off that tide long enough
• Emily is getting a good edit and may make it pretty far
• Napolean Dinomite (Drew) still annoys me at just about every turn
• I love Austin, and his strategy of revenge because he lost a sandwich was great
• I really like Kellie and hope she finds a way to stay
• Bruce is super annoying and not a good player
• Katturah has let her focus on Bruce take her out of the game and I'm not sure she recovers
• Mama J is under the radar, a good place to be
• Dee has elevated her risk level and I think she may burn out because of it
• Sifu has entered the "goofy enough to keep around" phase
• He lives there with Kendra "Drew Barrymore" mouth
• I don't want to look up the last person, so that probably means they are under the radar. It took me a minute but it is Jake. He probably is under the radar. He's a bigger guy but not really viewed as a physical threat. I don't think anyone seems him as a strategic mastermind either. I think he'll make it several more episodes

 

[bryhamm]

"Unfortunately I think this is a short lived victory for Caleb. Outside of idol wins, I'm not sure he can hold off that tide long enough"

Disagree. I think Bruce going home was a very viable option this week, up until his random team won immunity.



"Dee has elevated her risk level and I think she may burn out because of it"

Agree. Caleb put a target on her back at TC when he mentioned her group of 3, and she couldn't stay quiet about it.

 

[bryhamm]

We never see this, but I am curious if anyone figured out that there was a missing vote OTHER than Caleb's. With Caleb playing his shot-in-the-dark, there should have been 12 votes instead of 13. But, there were only 11 because of Austin sacrificing his vote to get his idol up to full power.

That was why J was eliminated when the 6th vote was read. 6 was enough with only 11 votes.

 

[stbugs]

Good episode, still some really obvious poor play by some but it was entertaining. Not sad to see Dobby go home but I will say that Caleb needed to tone it down a bit after being safe. He’s going home soon.

I didn’t get why Reba folks talked Caleb while Emily was right there. Again, just weird how good some of the play has been and yet still obvious mistakes.

Austin and the sandwich was funny but I think in some cases that was just the cover for wanting J gone to make his amulet stronger.

Not sure exactly where we go next but it does seem odd to me that the Reba 4 (Austin/Drew excluded from Sifu) seems too eager to sacrifice other Reba like J and Sifu when they have Belo and Lulu folks available.

 

[stbugs]

Jake is a weird one. His self confidence is so shook right now. The way he was bargaining even though he’s in Belo who has a lot of folks left just showed how weak a player he is. I don’t know if anyone else noticed but he struggled to get out of the water and was limping at the challenge. I was wondering if it was related to his passing out but he’s got no chance of winning.

 

[Raging weasel]

Jake is a weird one. His self confidence is so shook right now. The way he was bargaining even though he’s in Belo who has a lot of folks left just showed how weak a player he is. I don’t know if anyone else noticed but he struggled to get out of the water and was limping at the challenge. I was wondering if it was related to his passing out but he’s got no chance of winning.

Yeah, I thought for sure Jake was going down again coming out of the water.
Nice to see the shot in the dark work for Caleb but now he has an even bigger target on him.
Bruce got lucky finding the idol before leaving camp or he would have no vote for the rest of the game. I wonder if someone else found it first and didn't tell him if he would also have no vote?
In the beginning I liked Sifu but after seeing more of him it's clear he's not winner material. Not very strategic,just ok at challenges and his social game seems like it annoys more people than it endears.
Austin looks like the clear frontrunner. He's in the top alliance and has a couple advantages but rarely do players in his position manage to pull it off.

 

[Mile High]

Jake is a weird one. His self confidence is so shook right now. The way he was bargaining even though he’s in Belo who has a lot of folks left just showed how weak a player he is. I don’t know if anyone else noticed but he struggled to get out of the water and was limping at the challenge. I was wondering if it was related to his passing out but he’s got no chance of winning.

Yeah, I thought for sure Jake was going down again coming out of the water.
Nice to see the shot in the dark work for Caleb but now he has an even bigger target on him.
Bruce got lucky finding the idol before leaving camp or he would have no vote for the rest of the game. I wonder if someone else found it first and didn't tell him if he would also have no vote?
In the beginning I liked Sifu but after seeing more of him it's clear he's not winner material. Not very strategic,just ok at challenges and his social game seems like it annoys more people than it endears.
Austin looks like the clear frontrunner. He's in the top alliance and has a couple advantages but rarely do players in his position manage to pull it off.

Yeah I agree Austin appears to be the front runner that's probably not going to be our winner. I do think he and his alliance are part of the endgame. I'm looking at Dee and Julie. As was mentioned Dee's risk level is rising maybe as a distraction for Julie?

 

[Pip's Invitation]

Jake is a weird one. His self confidence is so shook right now. The way he was bargaining even though he’s in Belo who has a lot of folks left just showed how weak a player he is. I don’t know if anyone else noticed but he struggled to get out of the water and was limping at the challenge. I was wondering if it was related to his passing out but he’s got no chance of winning.

Yeah, I thought for sure Jake was going down again coming out of the water.
Nice to see the shot in the dark work for Caleb but now he has an even bigger target on him.
Bruce got lucky finding the idol before leaving camp or he would have no vote for the rest of the game. I wonder if someone else found it first and didn't tell him if he would also have no vote?
In the beginning I liked Sifu but after seeing more of him it's clear he's not winner material. Not very strategic,just ok at challenges and his social game seems like it annoys more people than it endears.
Austin looks like the clear frontrunner. He's in the top alliance and has a couple advantages but rarely do players in his position manage to pull it off.

Re no vote for the rest of the game, Jeff on his podcast clarified that that’s not how it works. He would have no vote until “full merge”. (That is, next week.) Then it would be restored and the unfound idol would be dead.

Jeff also said that if someone else found the idol that Bruce was looking for, his vote would be restored and he would learn that when he went to the voting booth and found a ballot instead of a “you can’t vote” note.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

Loved the episode. Bad gameplay is entertaining if the cast is entertaining. And enough of them are. This was certainly the best tribal since the Cody boot in 43 and maybe even since the John (minority split vote) and Dan (idol nullifier) boots in David vs. Goliath.

 

[Corporation]

Jake is a weird one. His self confidence is so shook right now. The way he was bargaining even though he’s in Belo who has a lot of folks left just showed how weak a player he is. I don’t know if anyone else noticed but he struggled to get out of the water and was limping at the challenge. I was wondering if it was related to his passing out but he’s got no chance of winning.

Yeah, I thought for sure Jake was going down again coming out of the water.
Nice to see the shot in the dark work for Caleb but now he has an even bigger target on him.
Bruce got lucky finding the idol before leaving camp or he would have no vote for the rest of the game. I wonder if someone else found it first and didn't tell him if he would also have no vote?
In the beginning I liked Sifu but after seeing more of him it's clear he's not winner material. Not very strategic,just ok at challenges and his social game seems like it annoys more people than it endears.
Austin looks like the clear frontrunner. He's in the top alliance and has a couple advantages but rarely do players in his position manage to pull it off.

Re no vote for the rest of the game, Jeff on his podcast clarified that that’s not how it works. He would have no vote until “full merge”. (That is, next week.) Then it would be restored and the unfound idol would be dead.

This is how I figured it would work but thanks for clarifying!

 

[Corporation]

Good episode, still some really obvious poor play by some but it was entertaining. Not sad to see Dobby go home but I will say that Caleb needed to tone it down a bit after being safe. He’s going home soon.

I didn’t get why Reba folks talked Caleb while Emily was right there. Again, just weird how good some of the play has been and yet still obvious mistakes.

Austin and the sandwich was funny but I think in some cases that was just the cover for wanting J gone to make his amulet stronger.

Not sure exactly where we go next but it does seem odd to me that the Reba 4 (Austin/Drew excluded from Sifu) seems too eager to sacrifice other Reba like J and Sifu when they have Belo and Lulu folks available.

Dobby is a great nickname

 

[Corporation]

Another good twist. I love how they listened to a lot of the feedback people have provided over the years and added more "random" draw elements. I don't like it from the aspect that so much becomes luck of the draw, but it certainly adds to the drama.

I was 50/50 on the predictions last week. Caleb could not overcome the tide against him, happy he made the jury. Sifu I thought made the "goofy enough to keep around phase", but his lack of social game doomed him.

• Kellie is my rooting favorite. Smart, level headed and capable in challenges.
• Dee has really jacked up her threat level, and she is somewhat drunk with power.
• Mama J is a number for Dee to bring but it almost cost her. She will have to blindside Dee at some point if she wants any shot to win. Could go to end and get no votes.
• Poor Jake. He's tired of people telling him what to do, but he had to rely on Katturah. He's in a lot of trouble.
• Katturah is not a good player
• Neither is her nemesis Bruce. I'm surprised he didn't use his idol but he read the room correctly
• Kendra should do whatever Kellie tells her to. Another candidate to get drug to the end with no votes
• Still really like Austin
• This was Drew's least annoying episode
• Pretty low key episode for Emily, which is probably needed for her game

 

[stbugs]

Another good twist. I love how they listened to a lot of the feedback people have provided over the years and added more "random" draw elements. I don't like it from the aspect that so much becomes luck of the draw, but it certainly adds to the drama.

I was 50/50 on the predictions last week. Caleb could not overcome the tide against him, happy he made the jury. Sifu I thought made the "goofy enough to keep around phase", but his lack of social game doomed him.

• Kellie is my rooting favorite. Smart, level headed and capable in challenges.
• Dee has really jacked up her threat level, and she is somewhat drunk with power.
• Mama J is a number for Dee to bring but it almost cost her. She will have to blindside Dee at some point if she wants any shot to win. Could go to end and get no votes.
• Poor Jake. He's tired of people telling him what to do, but he had to rely on Katturah. He's in a lot of trouble.
• Katturah is not a good player
• Neither is her nemesis Bruce. I'm surprised he didn't use his idol but he read the room correctly
• Kendra should do whatever Kellie tells her to. Another candidate to get drug to the end with no votes
• Still really like Austin
• This was Drew's least annoying episode
• Pretty low key episode for Emily, which is probably needed for her game

I actually thought a couple things differently. First time all season I actually thought Katurah played smart. She had been so hung up on Bruce she made herself a target. I’m glad she flopped because she realized where she was on Belo. Jake and Caleb missed the fact that telling her about the idol meant telling her that all Belo and Caleb knew/assisted Bruce to make sure she didn’t know. I know Caleb was well liked (fan wise) for all the scrambling he had to do but flopping gives Katurah a chance to work her way into Reba. She’s got a great excuse too so she doesn’t look disloyal.

I feel bad for Sifu more because his own tribe never even tried to bring him in and even last week he was still loyal. Unfortunately, Drew had no real balls to try and bring him in as a revote could have easily gotten Kendra to flop so she wasn’t having to draw rocks. Bruce didn’t play the idol, so Drew could have solidified Reba and maybe even picked up Kendra as an ally with Emily when they have to go up against Dee post crushing Belo.

 

[stbugs]

Dee won the challenge but I don’t think she’s a good player. She completely missed that J Maya was getting close to Sean when she wanted Sifu gone and that if she got rid of Sifu, it was her and Julie against J Maya and Sean. Sifu was far more loyal and wasn’t reaching out to befriend someone with other connections. I think she’ll go quickly because unlike some of the other non-Bruce players actually understand the game and other people better than her.

 

[stbugs]

Also, this might be the most entertaining Survivor in a while. We got past the quitting and we lost one of the goofy 3 (still have Kendra and Bruce), but it’s shaping up to be an interesting final. Katurah voting out Caleb really set it back even. Reba losing Sifu and Julie would have ended Dee and made Austin/Drew big targets but with numbers that would allow for splitting votes. Katurah may have replaced Sifu and now Caleb isn’t a number for Belo, so 6-4 now and Kendra would likely join to flush out Bruce’s idol.

 

[UncleZen]

Tonight was one of the best blindsides in a loooooong time! I was pulling for Kelli but just had to lol at her going home.

 

[Corporation]

GREAT episode tonight! I thought there was a chance she might go but thought they'd take the easy money on Jake. Pretty smart decision by them because they've taken out 2 of the most strategic players in the game. They have done an excellent job with introducing random elements to keep players on their toes. Not knowing how many rounds the auction last, plus losing your vote if you have the most money was brilliant. I yelped when Jeff gutted that bag of rice and said "Let me help motivate you". He felt like a Die Hard villain. Really good stuff this season.

• I am legitimately concerned about Jake. It seems like he is concussed or had a small stroke with his episodes earlier and now again at tribal. You have to think this performance will hurt his law practice because he is not coming off eloquently. I really do hope he is ok.
• Mama J is a player. I thought she might win the rope challenge because she had her hand underneath the knot every time. Had she realized her hand could be over the knot, she may have conserved enough strength to win. She was not bitter and determined to force a vote on Jake, knowing she can take him out whenever. She has a meat shield in the form of Dee in front of her, and a good relationship with Austin, Drew, and Emily.
• Dee is a good player, but this group has shown they will cut the good players.
• Austin is also a good player but has somehow managed to keep the target off his back. Austin wanted his sandwich, but now has a full fledge idol after J. Maya and Kellie are gone.
• 2 weeks in a row Drew hasn't annoyed me, but I did enjoy seeing him get shutdown by Jeff at the auction.
• Emily has really found her footing after such a disastrous start.
• Katturah has played somewhat better, but it appears she has not built a strong relationship with anyone, instead wasting her energy on getting the Energizer Bunny Bruce out.
• Kendra Barrymore being left out of the vote doesn't speak well for her. She was genuinely hurt by Kellie going home.
• Bruce just keeps going and no one knows how. I think he plays his idol the first time he is vulnerable. Survive and advance.

 

[simey]

I am legitimately concerned about Jake. It seems like he is concussed or had a small stroke with his episodes earlier and now again at tribal. You have to think this performance will hurt his law practice because he is not coming off eloquently. I really do hope he is ok.

Does anyone with a Boston accent sound eloquent? I'm kidding and from the south, where some people think southern/country accents sound just plumb dumb. I do hope Jake is ok. I would think they would pull him out if they felt he seemed cognitively not right since his episode(s). Some of his facial expressions remind me a lot of my oldest nephew.

 

[Da Guru]

Tonight was one of the best blindsides in a loooooong time! I was pulling for Kelli but just had to lol at her going home.

My wife watches every show. Last night I only watched the Tribal Council so I had no idea what was going on.

Thought Jake was gone for sure. It was a great blindside..to see Kelli looking around and keep asking 'Who did this?" and to see her friend in the back row crying with her eyeballs popping out was good action.

 

[Raging weasel]

Another great episode. After a sputtering start this season is turning into a very good one.
I liked Kellie and sad to see her go but was probably the better move. I wonder if she'd still be around if she agreed to send Bruce home in the last tribal.
What kind of fish were those eyes from!!? I almost lost my dinner watching him bite into it.
Pretty crappy that it seemed they weren't even allowed to finish the food they bought, especially the last person who only got it minutes before.

 

[Runkle]

Loved all the changes to the auction. Nice to see the producers finding stuff that actually works instead of random advantages.

Stabbing the rice was great too.

More stuff like that, and some better casting choices, would re-energize the show.

Also the longer episodes continue to be a plus.

 

[DA RAIDERS]

I am legitimately concerned about Jake. It seems like he is concussed or had a small stroke with his episodes earlier and now again at tribal. You have to think this performance will hurt his law practice because he is not coming off eloquently. I really do hope he is ok.

Does anyone with a Boston accent sound eloquent? I'm kidding and from the south, where some people think southern/country accents sound just plumb dumb. I do hope Jake is ok. I would think they would pull him out if they felt he seemed cognitively not right since his episode(s). Some of his facial expressions remind me a lot of my oldest nephew.

I mentioned earlier when he was passing out that medics must hVe checked him out and it just want shown.

 

[UncleZen]

This has easily been my favorite season of the new era of Survivor.

 

[stbugs]

Great episode. I’m glad that the ex-Reba folks finally took a chance. With Emily they have their 5-4 advantage now. Drew and Austin are looking solid. IIRC, that’s basically 3 immunities among the two of them. The walk out of tribal is basically an immunity. Outside of Bruce, those two have all of the advantages. I’m rooting for a Drew, Austin and Emily final 3. I’m sure it won’t happen but damn they deserve it. I didn’t like the preview.

 

[bryhamm]

Austin now has 2 idols, right? He had the one that he had to give up his vote recently in order for it to have full power. And now with Kelli gone, the tri-advantage is down to just him, so it’s a full idol as well.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

Another great episode. After a sputtering start this season is turning into a very good one.
I liked Kellie and sad to see her go but was probably the better move. I wonder if she'd still be around if she agreed to send Bruce home in the last tribal.
What kind of fish were those eyes from!!? I almost lost my dinner watching him bite into it.
Pretty crappy that it seemed they weren't even allowed to finish the food they bought, especially the last person who only got it minutes before.

Kellie’s best move at the split tribal would have been to send Drew home, but apparently Emily and Kendra were against that so they settled for Sifu.

Kellie (and the other Belos) made the assumption that the remaining Rebas were as fractured as the remaining Belos, but they were wrong.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

Another great episode. After a sputtering start this season is turning into a very good one.
I liked Kellie and sad to see her go but was probably the better move. I wonder if she'd still be around if she agreed to send Bruce home in the last tribal.
What kind of fish were those eyes from!!? I almost lost my dinner watching him bite into it.
Pretty crappy that it seemed they weren't even allowed to finish the food they bought, especially the last person who only got it minutes before.

The fish eyes were from a ruby snapper that someone on the crew caught, per Jeff’s podcast. Their eyes are that big because they swim very deep down where it is really dark.

Kellie in her exit interviews said she was given a chance to finish after the auction ended. She drank the margarita but could only take a few bites of the sandwich before feeling full. She had eaten fries earlier and didn’t have room for more because her stomach had shrunk from the starvation.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

This has easily been my favorite season of the new era of Survivor.

The 90-minute episodes make a huge difference. They’re also casting more people with unusual/acerbic personalities vs 41 to 44. We probably have Carolyn and Yam Yam to thank for that.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

Great episode. I’m glad that the ex-Reba folks finally took a chance. With Emily they have their 5-4 advantage now. Drew and Austin are looking solid. IIRC, that’s basically 3 immunities among the two of them. The walk out of tribal is basically an immunity. Outside of Bruce, those two have all of the advantages. I’m rooting for a Drew, Austin and Emily final 3. I’m sure it won’t happen but damn they deserve it. I didn’t like the preview.

Drew’s safety without power advantage expired at F10.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

Austin now has 2 idols, right? He had the one that he had to give up his vote recently in order for it to have full power. And now with Kelli gone, the tri-advantage is down to just him, so it’s a full idol as well.

Correct.

 

[Corporation]

The way they have changed up gameplay this season has just been outstanding. Well done Survivor!

With 8 left, you have the Core 4 (Dee, Mama J, Austin, and Drew) and the outcasts (Emily, Bruce, Katturah, and Jake). Emily believes she's in with the Core 4 due to her alliance with Austin and Drew. It's actually a pretty good place to be. They could pick off the rest of the outcasts, then Emily could be the swing vote for the boys. That is, if Mama J doesn't flip to the boys first. She didn't like the Jake override by Dee.

• I feel bad for Jake. He's been portrayed as a total buffoon this season. I see no path for him winning (probably famous last words on my part). I can see him being drug to the final (at least possible) I just don't think he's garnered enough respect to get any votes.
• Katturah is the other person I believe cannot win, although she too could be drug to the final. The other 6 have a shot at winning.
• Bruce continues to perform well in challenges, and he has an idol. He will have to burn it the first time he doesn't win, but against that crew he could go on a win streak. Although not beloved, I could see people voting for him out of respect if he goes on a challenge run.
• Austin is my favorite player (well I really liked Caleb overall). I don't think they showed (but I could be mistaken) if he got his idol back from Mama J. If she keeps it, that could cause a big rift in the Core 4.
• Mama J is my second favorite. She's strong physically and strategically, and she is able to control her emotions and the info she gives out. Unlike...
• Dee, who has the biggest target in the game mainly due to her social strength. She hasn't been a challenge hero. I don't think she will win because of the friction she has with so many.
• Drew has played better the last few weeks, but I feel like he is a time bomb waiting to go off with a show of arrogance that dooms him.
• It wouldn't shock me at all if Emily is the winner. From her initial missteps to scratching to find a way to stay in, Survivor loves a redemption story. If it gets down to her and the Core 4, she would be the coveted middle vote and could make her way to the end. All the other non Reba jurors could be bitter and vote the non Reba as winner.

 

[Runkle]

Only thing I'm not much a fan of is post-"merge", all the challenges are still team-based. By now it feels like they should be more individual.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

The way they have changed up gameplay this season has just been outstanding. Well done Survivor!

With 8 left, you have the Core 4 (Dee, Mama J, Austin, and Drew) and the outcasts (Emily, Bruce, Katturah, and Jake). Emily believes she's in with the Core 4 due to her alliance with Austin and Drew. It's actually a pretty good place to be. They could pick off the rest of the outcasts, then Emily could be the swing vote for the boys. That is, if Mama J doesn't flip to the boys first. She didn't like the Jake override by Dee.

• I feel bad for Jake. He's been portrayed as a total buffoon this season. I see no path for him winning (probably famous last words on my part). I can see him being drug to the final (at least possible) I just don't think he's garnered enough respect to get any votes.
• Katturah is the other person I believe cannot win, although she too could be drug to the final. The other 6 have a shot at winning.
• Bruce continues to perform well in challenges, and he has an idol. He will have to burn it the first time he doesn't win, but against that crew he could go on a win streak. Although not beloved, I could see people voting for him out of respect if he goes on a challenge run.
• Austin is my favorite player (well I really liked Caleb overall). I don't think they showed (but I could be mistaken) if he got his idol back from Mama J. If she keeps it, that could cause a big rift in the Core 4.
• Mama J is my second favorite. She's strong physically and strategically, and she is able to control her emotions and the info she gives out. Unlike...
• Dee, who has the biggest target in the game mainly due to her social strength. She hasn't been a challenge hero. I don't think she will win because of the friction she has with so many.
• Drew has played better the last few weeks, but I feel like he is a time bomb waiting to go off with a show of arrogance that dooms him.
• It wouldn't shock me at all if Emily is the winner. From her initial missteps to scratching to find a way to stay in, Survivor loves a redemption story. If it gets down to her and the Core 4, she would be the coveted middle vote and could make her way to the end. All the other non Reba jurors could be bitter and vote the non Reba as winner.

I agree with most of this.

Katurah is the only one I see with no shot of winning. She has shown to be completely clueless as to gameplay beyond having an obsession about booting Bruce. Reinforced in this week's episode when she said "I guess I'm #5 in the Reba alliance" when she's actually #6.
Jake has been given an underdog story by the edit. We are being told to root for him or at least to like him. A lot needs to go right for him to have a shot at winning, because he's now perceived as the player the majority can just eliminate whenever, and if the jury feels the same way, it's hard to turn that perception into votes.
Bruce has a chance to Mike Holloway himself to the end with immunity wins and idols. If he does that, it's actually possible he could win depending on who he is sitting with. The confessionals he got at the beginning of this episode could be a turning point for his story. If the editors were going to portray him strictly as an overbearing villain, they would not have included him saying he needs to reevaluate how he acts and how he plays the game.
If the Reba 4 turns on itself, I suspect Dee will be the victim. She is coming off as dictatorial and Emily and Mama J are both questioning whether they still want to play with her. But if the Reba 4 dominates to the end, she will win.
Drew appears to be driving the strategy. But he's also been shown to be arrogant -- until this episode it was only in confessionals, but him and Dee depriving Jake of the rice was not a good look for them. The edit appears to be hinting at a downfall for him. However, in the new era, production has subverted what a "winner's edit" looks like (see Maryanne and Gabler), so it's possible they are doing it again with Drew.
Mama J has gotten a pretty good edit for her archetype. She's been shown to be a shrewder player than most "older women" players are. But her archetype will work against her and she probably can't win if she sits with any of Dee, Drew or Austin. She needs a signature move like Maryanne got when she drove the Omar vote.
Emily has an incredible story if she gets to the end. Would have been the first boot if not for Hannah's quit because she had an atrocious social game, but adjusted her personality and gameplay and got into the majority alliance. And may be responsible for the downfall of the majority alliance if she makes a move next week. Plus the first juror ("the mayor of Ponderosa") often has an outsized influence on how the jury votes, and this year that is Kaleb, who was her closest ally when he was in the game.
Austin has to be considered the favorite to win at the moment. He has two idols (assuming Mama J returns the one he lent to her), is a threat to win individual immunities and has been shown to be a shrewd player with how he shares and hides information, but he has not been shown to be arrogant, nor has his name come up when people talk about targeting the Reba 4 -- Dee and Drew seem to be bigger targets than him.

 

[bryhamm]

Agree with most of what you wrote Pip. Especially the last vote. Austin is really in a good spot and it is odd how his name has not come up yet.

Will be interesting to see if Emily can rally the troops next week before it's too late and switch things up.

 

[snogger]

If you can be played that easily you deserve to go home.. idiot
Bruce