Did you ever see The Warriors? That Walter Hill classic from 1979 where a street gang from New York is accused of killing Cyrus, the “leader” of the top gang in the city (think Boston Rob in Redemption Island), and now the Warriors have to make their way from the Bronx back down to Coney Island, without getting arrested, shot, stabbed, clubbed to death, or run over. Not of all them make it (oops, Spoiler Alert!) but in the end everything works out. Not exactly sure why they didn’t just call someone else in their gang for a ride, but that’s Hollywood for you.
If you’re over the age of 30 you probably saw the movie, and if you’re under 30, you most likely associate it with the video games that came out in 2005 & 2009. BTW, if you’re in that category, you should really go check out the movie…
I bring it up because I’ve started to feel like this season of Survivor is kind of like The Warriors. Not that there are gangs of Nicaraguans trying to kill the “Mericans” – it’s a bit more complex than that – my theory is that the 8 players left in the game are just like the various street gangs in the film:
Rodney is the Riffs – the leader of all the gangs
Carolyn is the Turnbull ACs – a tough gang that made the first big move
Tyler is the Punks – a tough gang who won’t back down from anything
Sierra is the Lizzies – who use their feminine wiles but can also “hang with the boys”
Dan is the Orphans (in more ways than one!) – a small time crew who boasts of false victories
Mike is the Baseball Furies – big, tall, and ready to battle
Shirin is the Rogues – unpredictable outcasts, who just want to be respected
and POS is the Dingos – look it up…
So who are the Warriors, you say? I’ll tell you, it’s not Mark Burnett, it’s not Jeff, it’s not even Joe, Jenn or Hali or even “the jury” as a group. You want to know who it is? It’s us, the fans, WE are the Warriors! We’re the ones just trying to “get home,” and find out who wins this whole thing. And all these brash, sadistic, idiotic, self-aggrandizing boobs – not the good kind – still left in Season 30 are trying to stop us from getting home. Every episode, every challenge, every decision, these morons just leave me scratching my head and pulling my hair out…
I just want to watch my favorite show! Mix a drink, lock the door, grab the remote, and then rout for two or three players and see if they can get somewhere close to the end or maybe even win by playing respectably. Instead, we get a season of “Luthers” (the guy who shot Cyrus) who go about doing everything wrong.
I don’t need to discuss every plot point of the movie, but if there was at least one Cyrus (the supposed Messiah for the gangs) this season, then maybe S30 would have taken a much different course. If only Joe, Max, So, Joaquin and Vince wouldn’t have made such blunders – those can be discussed another time – then maybe we’d be looking forward to the next few episodes with a bit more anticipation. Instead, we’re just trying to get back to Coney Island, facing a new “gang” every few minutes. They’re trying their best to defeat us, by lying, hugging us creepily, chasing us naked, hurling coconuts, and throwing wart-infested boiling water at us from the trees above…
Frankly, I don’t know why the Warriors didn’t just Uber their asses home, but I guess there’s a logical reason for that… (BTW, Jeff is the DJ)
Okay, back to “reality”…
Since Mike Skupin’s schedule was too jammed to be able to answer your questions, I appealed to Coach, who was kind enough to free up some time to satisfy our “former Survivor player jones.” He’s also quite the busy man lately, as many of us have witnessed via Twitter. Raising a family, coaching a soccer team, helping players sign letters of intent, conducting symphonies… Needless to say, we should all applaud his dedication to his community, the student-athletes at Lake Tahoe CC, and all of us Survivor fans who still respect the way he played the game.
However, since I hit him with this request just a couple days ago, I want to give him time to fit it into his schedule, so I’m going to withhold his responses until next week. Tonight’s recap is turning out to be a long one already, and I know you’re anxious to get to the meat of the column.
Or, maybe I just want to start my DVR since, I assume, you’ve already seen the episode! I haven’t though, and I’m anxious to start watching! Enough time spent already, with a title like “Survivor Russian Roulette,” it looks like the s**t’s gonna hit the fan tonight, and from the limited previews I saw this week, it looks like we’re in for another bumpy ride. So buckle up, and let’s get to it…
In the recap, we’re reminded of Mike overhearing the “Secret 4” (S4) alliance plotting to take him out. We see Dan winning the “extra-vote advantage” – which, BTW, reminds us how creepy he looks when he overreacts. It’s like his facial expression is in response to the interviewer asking him the following:
“Big deal, you won the extra vote. You’ll probably screw it up and give it away or something stupid like that…”
Dan, scowling angrily, “Do you have ANY IDEA what this means to me…?!”
Then we see Mike winning Immunity last week, and petitioning Dan and Sierra for their allegiance, since they’re essentially on the bottom of the S6. And then we’re reminded of the most uncomfortable 3 minutes in Survivor history by getting a snippet of POS’s (told ya!) tirade against Shirin. And finally, we see Shirin opening up at Tribal about her DV past – while POS denies that he verbally assaulted her – thus sending Jenn home. Wow, that was a big episode last week, Jeff! I mean, DJ Jazzy Jeff…
I have never seen Warriors, so that all went over my head. Did read Of Mice and Men, and actually saw the last 20 minutes of the movie this week (the 90’s version)
Unfortunately did season is making me hope someone treats me like Lennie and ends it all.
There could have been so many good moves this episode, but no.
I can see why Mike held on to the idol, but that is more of the live one more week strategy. I think he should have saved Shirin, telling her in advance and the two voting for Tyler.
As for Tyler and Mama C, I cannot figure out how close they are to Sierra and POS, but learning about the extra vote, Tyler perhaps the move would be to share that info with those two and gone for a Dan exit.
As for the barrel challenge, I am shocked blue did as well as they did with the stupid rolling the barrel strategy. I am not happy with the immunity challenge giving the women the advantage. Jeff’s answer in some website I read was just pathetic. He claimed everyone should be happy, since two idols in play. No, men still get screwed. Why is Jeff still bringing up the Shirin/POS crap? Too much talking from Jeff at tribal. At least the players seem to be ignoring Jeff’s advice.
I did not need to see the mama C crotch shot during the immunity challenge.
So losers get to kill a chicken, a new rule?
As for the extra vote box. I could not read the fine print. Does Dan need to produce the box? If not, why the heck did he not throw that in the ocean. If yes, why are players allowed to go through others players belongings? How did Tyler know Dan had something hidden in his bag? Did he figure Dan was too stupid to dispose of the evidence?
I have to say I just don’t get the Will vs. Shirin situation. How could no one there stand up for her? I am pretty sure he told her at one point that she was entirely “without worth” if he is a POS I get that, some people just suck. But for everyone else there to just sit back and let it roll is mind boggling. How shitty is this cast? And I have to say, I think Dan is a bigger ass than even Will. Basically everything that comes out of his mouth is either smarmy, ignorant, ridiculous, cruel or a toxic combination. I feel like he went and said “sorry you cried” or whatever out of some desire to be involved in the drama of her past and be the big hero he fancies himself to be, quickly realized he still didn’t like her and moved onto embracing the “I tell it like it is” side of himself. I would think someone with such a false sense of self like he has could really benefit from seeing themselves on TV, but most likely it will go well over his head.
I wish they would do a season of survivor composed solely of “threats” all the joes and Malcolms–strong, easy going, good looking, intelligent leaders who were voted out simply because everyone knew they were winners. The gay couple from last season (can’t remember their names) and the firefighter from last season, Joe, Malcolm, off the top of my head, John from last season, and I can think of several girls from previous seasons but they were too long ago for me to remember their names. Basically having no weak links, no “following” personalities. I think it would make for a crazy, exciting season where everyone would be rooting for someone different. And all of them would be in it to win it. There would be alliances but every one would be trying to be in charge and making independent decisions. I think it would be awesome.
It is a sad, sad day when the only big boobs to look at are on a man. I’m sorry. There isn’t any man candy either, le sigh. There are some things that annoy me about Shirin but I did notice that when she isn’t getting beat up she looks like she is having fun.
I think Mike accomplished exactly what he was trying to do. Create a fracture in the alliance that he may be able to break open. As he said at the end, “Dan got 2 votes”. I think, he can try to use that to his advantage to show both Sierra and Dan that they are at the bottom of the alliance. However, this plan will require Dan to show some brains, so who knows if it will work. If he can get Dan and Sierra to flip, with Dan’s extra vote, the game could get very interesting the next couple weeks….
Hey Fishy, Yeah we are good. Making up is so much more fun right! Never saw the Warriers either, sounds familiar though. Maybe more of a boy movie. But it did make me think of The Outsiders which was around that same time too I bet? Mike is def. Johnny. My 6th grader had to do a big report on that and I forgot how many famous people were in that movie! Anyway, stop getting so upset about POS! One of the great things about this game is that it will fix itself. He won’t win, no matter who he’s up against. Shirin will have ample time to make the jury hate him even more, and he hasn’t done anything to warrant a win. Plus, I really think the verbal abuse is sort of part of the game. Yeah its yucky and I think if it was racial everyone would be freaking out more, but still, if that’s his game so be it. He’ll loose because of it. Case closed. Poor Mike. He has such great plans that all fail, and he’s a doofus but he’s one of the nicer people playing. So if you hate Will bc he’s mean, than you must love Mike because he’s nice. Logic 101! Dan is really smarmy. His stupid comments about being adopted were lame, I’m sure his adopted parents really appreciated being put on an equivalent level with domestic violence. Shirin has def. drank the Silicon Valley kool aid though with all her men are mean etc. But she actually did become more lovable if that’s possible. Did you see in the Ponderosa video that she said the only reason she was naked was bc she was boiling her undies. SO GROSS! Between Max’s feet in the pot and Shirin’s undies, I’m shocked anyone has survived past day 10! And I loved the commenter above saying the only big boobs we have now are on the men. Classic! Sierra has smaller boobs than Dan and POS, though that’s not saying much. Poor Fishy, only 2 A cups to watch and one’s on a 50 year old woman. I don’t think Sierra will get a clue, she’s pretty and probably has pretty girl disease where it never occurs to her that she won’t win. Dan may wise up but he’s such a weirdo, its hard to say. There is something odd and sort of serial killer like about Tyler. Thats all I got this week.
Wow! Really great comments… I am honored with your input.
doc – Thanks for “stopping by” every week. Love that… Truth be told, I’ve never even read Of Mice and Men (Don’t tell anyone!). I’ve read a lot of classics, but that’s just one I never got to. Yeah, I know what it’s about (kinda hard not to) so the analogy was just an easy pull…
-You really should watch The Warriors. It was a cult classic from that era, kinda like “Escape From New York” where you’re in an alternate reality. Walter Hill directed some other great movies too (Southern Comfort, 48 hrs., The Long Riders) and he produced a bunch of huge films.
-I agree about moves. This ep was set up where huge moves could have been made, but this crew is just so damn chickenshit to try ANYTHING. At least Mike, in his failed way at the auction, TRIED to do something. Adorable as it was, it was like a cat-burgler dressed in black, trying to sneak into a building…in the daytime.
-You’re spot on about him holding onto the idol. Like I’ve said before, I think players are aware of the escalating payouts, and the difference between 7th and 6th (or possibly higher) could be significant. This is never discussed on the show, but I’ve always wondered about it. KInda like Kass making some of the choices she made, just to finish higher in the game, but knowing she had no chance to win with that gameplan.
-Re: Tyler’s choice to not move on Dan. Same thing I said above, no one’s making any moves. This whole, “We’re 6 strong and then we’ll decide how to splinter,” is not the best strategy. Flip it up and create new alliances. That’s how the game is supposed to be played. He seems afraid to rock the boat too much.
-Blue had a bad combination of players. Mike is no genius, and when you let dumb people lead you, you’re gonna fail. Plus, guys like him seem to let their ego get in the way, so in that moment of possible failure, they try to overcompensate and “fight through” the failure, not wanting their pride to take a hit. Typically, they fail, and even worse off.
-Maybe there should have been 2 necklaces for men and one for women, based on the uneven gender balance (5-3)?
-I read somewhere Jeff’s rationalization for his lack of involvement on the Shirin/POS situation. He’s claiming he was in “host” mode while it was going on, but he’ll definitely be addressing it at the reunion show. Can’t wait for that!
-Maybe Dan thought he wanted to keep the box as a souvenir? Kinda stupid to not bury the clue somewhere. Seems a pretty easy thing to do considering other people have gone through bags in the past. Silly, silly Dan…
oyoung – Thanks for joining the conversation! Re: the Shirin/POS thing, I agree with you 100%. The only thing I’ll add is that I hope THAT’s the way it went down and it’s not some Production cockamamie “story line” that they had the contestants play out. Since they can’t reveal for 3 years any Production secrets (per their contract) it would be nice to know someday if it actually went down as it’s shown. Let’s all meet up somewhere in 3 years to discuss… How about Bergin’s Tavern on Fairfax on May 2nd, 2018? Say…6pm. See you there…
-I LOVE your idea for a “Demi-gods” and goddesses season. That’s kinda what I’ve been craving for years. Give us the superheroes season so the “game” takes precedence over the “drama.” Let’s give this some idea some legs people! But, I don’t Josh and Reed could play, unless it became a “B vs. W” season too. Just unfair to have them both play, lest they become targets on Day 1. You’d either have to “pair up” demigods (by season? race? finish order? tats?) or…just invite Reed because his jury “question” to Missy will go down as one of the best ever. He deserves another shot. Neither are in the running for the “Second Chance” season, which is a surprise, but I’d guess the show asked Reed and he said he couldn’t do it unless Josh is with him. (Because, yes, I know how everyone in the world would respond to anything…). So maybe they’re saving them for a future “Legends” season…?
susie – Hiya Toots! Definitely something’s wrong when the only candy is on a reward! And it’s like they conspired to get rid of every sexy body early: So, Vince, Lindsey, Max, Joaquin Dead, Hali, Joe. I’m not saying that all of these folks are sexy, but they’re all a hell of a lot in better shape than the bucket of rocks we’re left with. You get to fantasize about Rodney, but I’m sure you have to turn the volume down for that. I’m stuck with Sierra (who’s friggin hot in real life!) but right now she’s looking more like Andy Rooney with those eyebrows…!
-I look at Shirin and I can just know who she is. Just a dorky ugly duckling who grew up and made something of herself, but is still that dorky kid inside. Good for her. To have gone through as much shit as she has and still be able to smile, have fun, and remain dedicated to the game (at least to the outcome of it) is worthy of praise. I’m sure she gets a lot more respect in the real world, which is a sad commentary on how this game works. There’s a reason why the military works and that’s because there’s rank and order. In business, you have supervisors and subordinates, however, in Survivor, everything starts out equal and the “ranks” are established quickly. She immediately became a subordinate, but she probably didn’t see it going that way… Thankfully, she’s a big enough fan to realize that was happening…
sheila – Welcome! I appreciate your input.
– I’m not sure Mike is clever enough to have thought it through that much. We could ponder if he said,
“If i give my necklace to Shirin at the beginning, ____ will happen, so I need to do ____
And if I give my idol to Shirin, ____ will happen…
And if I keep everything secret, _____ will happen…”
I really don’t give him that much credit. I think a great player would run through all those scenarios, and then consider the outcome of each. And then consider what might happen for each outcome, and then commit to one. At least, that’s the way I think I would play. But Mike, I think he just thought, “If I pretend to give my idol to Shirin, chances are they won’t vote for her, and maybe one of them will go home.” But, look what happened, 4 people STILL voted for Shirin, and while they may have been possibly throwing their votes away, they accomplished what they wanted. So, Mike’s only saving grace is that he still has his idol. That’s great for one more week, but if he had given Shirin his idol, that may have made Dan play his second vote against (Tyler?) sending him home, and that would have reshuffled the Top Six into:
Mike/Shirin/Dan/Sierra
vs.
Rodney/Carolyn/POS
And then it’s just a walk in the park from there.
Hindsight is 20/20, but I just wonder if Mike put as much thought into it, as we just did in 6 minutes of typing… Meh, we’ll never know…
kinb! – Welcome Back! You know we can’t quit each other… :-*
– I dig what you’re saying about The Outsiders, but I’m now leaning more towards a film where you just hate everyone. The only film I can think of is Glengarry Glen Ross. There’s another movie (or TV show) that I saw within the last few years. It’s slips my mind. After seeing it, I just realized that no one was likable. I can’t friggin remember it and it’s bugging me. If anyone can remember it for me, please do…
-Let’s PRAY that POS doesn’t win. If he did, I’d be done with this show. Yes, Shirin will definitely have time to prepare the jury, but that shouldn’t be hard to do. Remember how a few weeks ago, one of the big comments was how little game he was playing? And now he can go to the finale? That is the one thing that needs to be fixed on this show. Not necessarily by Jeff, but by the players. Again, the farther you go, the more money you make, so just from the standpoint of who “deserves” to get paid, that kind of player should be eliminated. I know it’s a huge part of the game to drag losers along, but that’s why I think it should be: win and get a million, or come in 2nd-18th place and get $10,000 (or similar). It’s just the way it should be… I read that everyone gets $10,000 for being on the reunion show, so that’s $20,000 for losing out on 8 weeks(?) of work.
(Damn, I’m writing a novel here…)
-I know what you’re saying about Mike, but I have 4 criteria for liking someone:
1. Don’t be mean/don’t be a dick
2. Don’t be stupid
3. Be good at the game
4. Be hot
POS is obviously #1 and Mike is #2, and none of the other players are really doing any of the 4 for me. Like I said, Sierra (in her present state) is borderline #4, so I’m leaning towards her.
-Dan is disgusting. Period. I hate everything about him.
-Undies in the food pot! Fantastic. Should we put our toenail clippings and dead skin in the broth now to make soup…?
-Maybe you hit the nail on the head. I don’t “not like” Sierra because of her eyebrows, it’s her boobs… Probably.
-and finally, I know what you’re saying about Tyler. It’s like his earlier attitude toward Shirin when she was naked. Like, he couldn’t even look at her. Really? I’d like to see that guy at a strip club, he’d be looking at the DJ or the pole, or the other customers. Weird…
3 weeks to go! Can’t wait to see us all eat our words and LOVE the final episode…
Carpal tunnelingly,
Fish
At the heart of it all, it’s a GAME. Play to have fun, with a general game plan, knowing that at any moment it can’t be turned around. That’s why you have to be pliable in your game plan. The only super serious decisions to be made are at the top 5? 4? THAT’s when the end is in sight and only then should the possibility of winning the game be considered. People spend WAY too much time thinking about end game when they need to think about other things. That’s why Woo’s decision to take Tony to the end will never sit well with me. You play to win, not play for “honor.”
Hey Fish, sorry I didn’t leave any comments earlier. Friday was a PTO day. Avengers and all that which pretty much left me spent the entire weekend.
Now that I’m back at work, plenty of excuses to goof around.
The final seven… One step closer towards my nightmare final three now that Shirin is gone. I hear you on why you don’t like Mike, but he’s honestly the only hope I have for someone winning that I can stomach unless Tyler gets a LOT of positive editing these last few episodes.
Mike may be the proud owner of a couple of stupid moves, but Dan is so ignorant… so clueless that he’s being played…. I just can’t even. I finally understand the meaning of that phrase. Still think it’s a stupid phrase, but with Dan, I just can’t even.
POS is POS. No need to go on about why he’s a part of the nightmare scenario crew. I’m with you, if he somehow wins… I’m for sure out season 31, potentially out of Survivor for good.
Carolyn… I liked her so much at the White Collar camp. Felt like she was making moves, hunting down hidden idols without clues, I loved it…. Then she got it and pretty much decided to just sit there and do nothing. She’s not given me any reason to hate her, but man, she’s just not exciting.
Tyler… I liked him a little more after last week’s episode, but I’m not a fan of suddenly appearing to be in control in the last few episodes. I won’t cry if he wins, but like Carolyn, it’s not exciting for me. Plus anyone who really thinks they “share” a Hidden Immunity Idol with someone else is a fool, and I loathe people sneaking around in other people’s bags, even idiots like Dan.
Boston Rod… I’d love to hear Boston Rob’s opinion on him. Rob being an amazing player in my book, would surely have a lot of things to say about Rod and his game play thus far. Thinks he’s in charge, but maybe he’d be a disappointment in the eyes of Ultron. Rod may have strings attached and the real puppet master here is Tyler… Maybe…
Sierra… is boring. She’s done NOTHING. No big moves, no big flips, no game changers… Would be a disappointing wrap up to the season if she were to win.
Mike’s move at tribal, I think is the right one. If he played it for Shirin, Dan and his advantage would go home. By keeping it, he lost an ally, but has hopefully caused the shots that will start the fracturing and the start of the civil war within the Axis of Evil. Dan got two votes. If nothing else will make him realize that he’s CLEARLY at the bottom of the “six strong” totem pole, nothing will.
As for Boston Rod announcing that he’s ready to go home in next week’s sneak peek… I can only hope that it really happens.
I agree with thatguy…Mike did an interesting thing by seeming to offer his idol to Shirin. Sussing out those two votes for Dan. But I can’t bring myself to credit Mike with such clever tactics…I think for him it was a happy accident. If Dan doesn’t really get a clue as to where he stands with his precious alliance…he is an even bigger fool than I thought. (and that’s saying something)
I’m torn on my opinion of this season. Without doubt this is one of the worst casts as a whole…and we are now left with the least likable folks as potential winners. (I’d most rather see Mike win of those left though). On the other hand…I have had a bit of entertainment with some of the antics of this group. When Shirin raised her hand thus denying POS his letters…I literally cheered! That was hilarious. And Jenn was pretty entertaining as well….wish she had stuck around longer…droopy drawers and all. But mostly I spend the hour rolling my eyes at the screen when Dan, Rodney or just about anyone else opens their mouth. This is Nothing like Chochran’s season. He was fun to cheer on. This is not a rooting for your favorite kind of a season…more like a cringing and hoping the lesser of the remaining losers can somehow come out the winner sort of season.
I’m not one to say that “If so and so wins I’m not watching Survivor again”…I enjoy the show too much really. But…my gosh….if Dan or Rodney win…I can’t even… 😉
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