Survivor 44 Discussion Thread

[PUSH]

Three solid episodes in a row! And notice how the episodes focused on social dynamics and strategy, rather than twists and advantages. Hmm... makes you wonder.

But all sarcasm aside, I was happy to see a classic episode format come back. I know we felt burnt out as a fandom of the reward challenges, but I do think they bring so much intrigue. Especially ones like this. The people on the reward get a chance to strategize with people they wouldn't normally strategize with. And same for those back at camp. The decisions the winners make when picking others to join them are interesting, and they involve social strategy. Seeing the four women together at the sanctuary was so much fun. I just wish they could have stuck together.

Then we got a decent immunity challenge, followed by really fun strategy that was pretty easy to follow. Again... simple strategy that's not mucked up by twists... hmm... makes you think!

Jaime telling the truth was hilarious. She's being honest, and nobody believes her. It makes it funnier that the same thing actually happened last season, except with a real idol. But this cast doesn't know that. So when they saw Survivor 43, they probably were blown away that it actually happened previously.

Danny seems like he's falling out of favor with many players. He is rubbing them the wrong way. He's making the classic mistake of telling people what to do, rather than making it seem like it's their idea. He's not having conversations, and instead he's dictating them. I could not believe he told Heidi that he didn't even need her. And her reaction should have been a tip off to Danny that he needed to do some backtracking and rephrase what he said. He's looking like the villain of the season.

I am interested to see how Yam Yam and Carson try to make up for leaving Carolyn out of the plan again. They both were very aware they need to keep her in the loop, but decided not to anyway. Carolyn gets treated as the dummy, but she often has the right thoughts. You could tell she was upset after she realized Frannie was going home.

My only complaint from this episode was the name: "The Survivor Sanctuary". Please stop trying to make that a thing. Just tell them they're going to another island. The sanctuary is literally a set piece, and it's changed appearances multiple times throughout the new era. It just makes it obvious and glaring that you no longer give contestants exciting reward like trips to nearby landmarks, or cool helicopter rides, etc. It seems lazy and forced. But if that's the only complaint I have, it's been a pretty good day for Survivor.

Here are my updated rankings:

Tier 1 (Likely to Win if They Make the Final 3)
Yam Yam
Carson

Tier 2 (Winner Potential, but Need the Right Things to Fall in Place)
Danny
Heidi
Carolyn

Tier 3 (Unlikely to Win Based on Their Games So Far)
Lauren
Jaime

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

Was that tribal council basically Jeff saying "going big all the time is the only way to play Survivor" followed by everyone saying how playing Survivor is a complicated balancing act?

Which he heard absolutely none of.

These last few episodes support my personal theory that they use twists and gimmicks to make the pre-season exciting and then let the game play out mostly as normal, at the end.

Carolyn is in a good spot where she's underestimated, might just have the most allies on the jury, and is in a position where one big move (playing her idol) could seal a victory (as is common in modern Survivor).

 

[flynnibus]

So can someone explain why Kane didn't try to give the idol back before leaving?

Is there some contestant rule that they can't give people something after the vote is read?

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

So can someone explain why Kane didn't try to give the idol back before leaving?

Is there some contestant rule that they can't give people something after the vote is read?

I would assume so.

Australian Survivor had an episode a ways back where someone passed an idol on their way out, and the rules were subsequently clarified that once the votes start being read, no movement of items can take place.

I can't imagine the same doesn't apply here.

 

[PUSH]

So can someone explain why Kane didn't try to give the idol back before leaving?

Is there some contestant rule that they can't give people something after the vote is read?

Jeff said in this week's On Fire podcast that you can pretty much do whatever you want until Jeff starts reading the votes. After that, they are not allowed to reach in their bags and exchange anything.

 

[Jedijax719]

Heidi may be objectively playing the best game. Quiet, but solid. She knows what is going on.

What's interesting about Carolyn is that her personality leads her to be incredibly underestimated. Nobody probably thinks she is stable enough to solidify a strategy, which works to her advantage. She's not a Phillip kind of unstable and is very endearing.

Carson is playing smart too but is totally playing all sides. Danny's smart to be targeting him. It's about time someone does. Yam Yam, on the other hand, just seems to be lucky every time.

 

[PUSH]

Heidi may be objectively playing the best game. Quiet, but solid. She knows what is going on.

I was pretty high on Heidi's game, but she was one the wrong side of this last vote. She voted for Danny, I believe.

 

[JPPT1974]

Really think that Frannie was a huge threat. Wished she was in the game as she is smart but also likable.

 

[PUSH]

Even though the idol play had no effect on the outcome of the vote, this was still a fantastic episode of Survivor. The best of the season by far.

Starting with 17 minutes of camp life and strategy was phenomenal. It was so much fun to see the players as people and see who was aligned with whom. Heidi's lie was so fun. Yam Yam proves once again how when someone tells the truth this season, it's seen as a lie. That little storyline has been fun to watch.

I would have been okay without another Last Gasp challenge, since we just had it last season. I feel like that's one that shouldn't be overused. I'm fine with it for now, but if it comes back in Survivor 45, I will have a bigger issue.

The real life emotions that the Tika 3 have are so amazing. I don't think we get that too often. Yam Yam, Carolyn, and Carson are all so human, if that makes sense. They get in fights, but they make up. They show who they are and act like real people. That might just be the edit, but it's so refreshing to watch. The moment between Carson and Carolyn when she tells him she has the Tika idol was amazing. My heart melted in the moment that Carson said he's so proud of Carolyn. Their bond and friendship is everything.

Perhaps my favorite moment of the episode was when Yam Yam and Carolyn were talking, then Carson approaches. Yam Yam says they're talking final three plans. Then Carolyn cuts in and says Carson isn't part of them.

Heading to Tribal Council, ultimately Carolyn's idol didn't matter. However, I won't say it was a foolish play. You need to have insurance if you aren't certain Jamie and Lauren are with you. I just don't quite understand why she wrote Lauren's name down first. And what exactly was the math she was doing? The edit lead us to believe she was making a masterful play. But I wonder if she was just double checking all the math before voting. And showing you wrote Lauren's name first could really alienate her at the next vote.

That being said, I think Carolyn definitely has a move to her name now. I think it would be a tight race between the Tika 3 if they get to the end together.

Danny was a fun character, but ultimately not a great player. He played way too hard, and he often had poor reads. He did not approach others strategically with grace. He was very direct and not reassuring. But he was fun to watch on our TV screens.

Here are my updated winner rankings:

Tier 1 (Likely to win if they're in the final Tribal Council)
Carolyn
Yam Yam
Carson

Tier 2 (Could win if they make the right moves down the stretch)
Heidi

Tier 3 (Unlikely to win given what they've done to this point)
Lauren
Jamie

 

[Jedijax719]

Carolyn is outstanding TV. She needs her own show!

Yam Yam's quotes are pretty funny. Those two are golden casting.

Danny's DeNiro impression was hilarious!!!

I missed who voted for who. Did Jaime and Lauren vote for Heidi?
Nevermind-looked at Survivorwiki and yes they did. That will help Tika to reel in Heidi to get rid of Lauren and Jaime.

 

[PUSH]

Carolyn is outstanding TV. She needs her own show!

Yam Yam's quotes are pretty funny. Those two are golden casting.

Danny's DeNiro impression was hilarious!!!

I missed who voted for who. Did Jaime and Lauren vote for Heidi?

Carolyn, Carson, Yam Yam voted Danny

Lauren, Jamie voted Heidi

Heidi, Danny voted Carson

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

This was a great preview of what we're going to get with the 90 minute episodes next season.

40 minutes of Danny doing a DeNiro impression.

40 minutes of Carolyn in the voting booth.

3 minutes of camp strategy.

3 minutes of challenge.

4 minutes of tribal council.

 

[Jedijax719]

Danny's exit-gotta be the best of all time.

 

[wegotodisney]

Do jurors get to talk to each other outside of tribal council, or are they individually sequestered after being voted out until after the final vote?

 

[PUSH]

Do jurors get to talk to each other outside of tribal council, or are they individually sequestered after being voted out until after the final vote?

They all go to Ponderosa, and they are able to speak. I'm not sure if there are any rules, but they can talk about what their sides of the stories are. I don't think they're allowed to say who they're voting for at the final Tribal, though.

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

They all go to Ponderosa, and they are able to speak. I'm not sure if there are any rules, but they can talk about what their sides of the stories are. I don't think they're allowed to say who they're voting for at the final Tribal, though.

To add to this, in recent seasons they've basically opened things up with a spokesperson who outlines what the jury wants to hear about, so there's clearly, to some degree, a group consensus as to what the jury values as their win conditions.

 

[wegotodisney]

They all go to Ponderosa, and they are able to speak. I'm not sure if there are any rules, but they can talk about what their sides of the stories are. I don't think they're allowed to say who they're voting for at the final Tribal, though.

To add to this, in recent seasons they've basically opened things up with a spokesperson who outlines what the jury wants to hear about, so there's clearly, to some degree, a group consensus as to what the jury values as their win conditions.

Thank you. I was curious whether they were able to share what had occurred after a previously ousted juror had left. For example, clearing up a situation where a juror might have been lied to or misled by a still standing contestant. Also, information about who voted for them if they don't already know.

 

[PUSH]

Thank you. I was curious whether they were able to share what had occurred after a previously ousted juror had left. For example, clearing up a situation where a juror might have been lied to or misled by a still standing contestant. Also, information about who voted for them if they don't already know.

Yep, all that is fair game. And I think it's even more important to allow that in the new era, because Tribal Council has become so vague. In the older seasons, TC spilled the beans on everything happening in the game. These days nothing is ever really said, so if they were isolated the jurors would have no idea what happened after they were voted out.

 

[wegotodisney]

Yep, all that is fair game. And I think it's even more important to allow that in the new era, because Tribal Council has become so vague. In the older seasons, TC spilled the beans on everything happening in the game. These days nothing is ever really said, so if they were isolated the jurors would have no idea what happened after they were voted out.

Exactly! That's what made me wonder about it. I also feel like years ago, I had a really good idea of who was going to be voted out from the tribal conversation before the vote. Now, I'm really not sure until the vote is read a lot of the time. That's because the conversation at tribal currently often amounts to a lot of talking around each other with a hefty dose of eye rolling, and not much else.

 

[PUSH]

Exactly! That's what made me wonder about it. I also feel like years ago, I had a really good idea of who was going to be voted out from the tribal conversation before the vote. Now, I'm really not sure until the vote is read a lot of the time. That's because the conversation at tribal currently often amounts to a lot of talking around each other with a hefty dose of eye rolling, and not much else.

I think that's part of not knowing who will go home, but I think the edit in recent seasons has been intentionally confusing. They are giving us so many conversations that aren't really a factor in the game, just to throw us off. I feel like the past few episodes have been pretty good, but there have been some votes over the past few years that have left everyone extremely confused. The producers are leaving out the reasons why people are voted out.

I think it's good that they're not making it as predictable, since the diehards got really good at predicting the show, but we still have to know why someone was voted out. We need to know their thinking and logic.