Survivor S38: Edge of Extinction

[Wendy Pleakley]

I wouldn't advocate voting against him due to the twist.. I advocate not voting for him based on what he achieved in the game.

Rick said it best... Gavin never had his name written down. Gavin wasn't a good orator and didn't present his case well... but I don't think Eric outplayed them. He won one challenge (barely) and won a fire challenge (only by a bit). He gets credit for taking the risk of going against Rick... but 1-2 feathers vs potentially a lot more.

Chris also secured an idol which Devens could have denied him. He also got Lauren to give away her idol, which she needed for herself, which is a huge move in Survivor.

His win was arguably unfair for all the reasons I listed, but I give him credit for pulling off what he did with the hand he was dealt.

 

[PUSH]

My more in-depth thoughts after a day to process...

I do not blame Chris at all for winning. He played the hand he was dealt, and he played it very well after he returned. He was helped by production, which is where the problem lies IMO. Also IMO, I do not believe Chris deserved to win, simply for the fact that I do not value getting voted out, missing most of the game, then getting back in at the final 6. But when you look at the jury, you have to be careful. Those people have lived on the EoE. When you bash a player for having been at the EoE, it's almost like an insult to the jury, especially ones who had been there a long time.

I think all the problems lead back to the format of the season. It was a disaster when they announced it, and it got even worse at the finale. In no situation should a third boot have a chance to win IMO. In no situation should the first boot get to vote for a winner when she doesn't even know two of the three people. In no situation should a player who was voted out be given an idol for coming back into the game; they've already been given a massive break by being allowed to come back into the game. It's ridiculous that they get a production-fed advantage. There is also no reason why somebody who has total inside information from EVERY juror should be able to come back and use that against everyone else. That is such a massive advantage! All of these things made it almost too easy for Chris when he returned. There really weren't many hard decisions to make. Even giving up immunity. He needed that to make a case in the end.

Again, all this being said, Chris played these cards perfectly. The cards should never have been dealt from producers, but they were, and he took full advantage of that.

I am happy that Survivor continues to take risks to keep the show going, but they need to make more sound risks. EoE was a bad idea when it was announced, and after living through it, it turned out worse than I think many people could have imagined. When there is already so little payoff at the end, other than getting a fan favorite to win, there is no reason they should have gone with this theme.

Another major flaw with the theme is that if someone like Chris did return and won, he would need a major triumph to be had. This took place after beating Rick at fire making (which is also a twist they need to never do again except in tie-breaking scenarios). And while it was a major triumph on the island, producers and editors must have felt they needed to over-edit Rick because otherwise the viewers would have no concept of why Chris won. It would be ridiculous. So I think that's why we saw SO much of Rick and SO little of everyone else. Because the edit had to show Chris beating this once-in-a-lifetime, massive character. Otherwise the narrative would be nonexistent. I'm not saying how the narrative played out is a good one, but it almost forced the edit to go in this direction.

 

[artvandelay]

In an exit interview it was revealed that Chris had a note from Ron instructing Julie to trust Chris! That is an unfair advantage and should not have been allowed.

 

[PUSH]

In an exit interview it was revealed that Chris had a note from Ron instructing Julie to trust Chris! That is an unfair advantage and should not have been allowed.

Even more reason why I don't like this season.

As much as I dislike Rick, it would have been a middle-of-the-pack season had he won. But now I probably have it in the bottom third of the seasons. The only interesting part was the early merge. Everything else was predictable and boring or outrageous and crossed the line of what Survivor is.

 

[artvandelay]

Even more reason why I don't like this season.

As much as I dislike Rick, it would have been a middle-of-the-pack season had he won. But now I probably have it in the bottom third of the seasons. The only interesting part was the early merge. Everything else was predictable and boring or outrageous and crossed the line of what Survivor is.

I liked Rick, but I agree that this season, whoever was the winner, is a bottom third season.

 

[GenerationX]

Terrible season with a deeply unsatisfying conclusion. I will never watch another season of Survivor with a loser's bracket.

They've never had coaches before, and I find both Rob and Sandra to be very entertaining to watch, so I have some hope that next season will be better.

 

[PUSH]

Spoiler: Rumored Season 40 Cast

Men​	Women​
Adam Klein	Amber Mariano
Ben Driebergen	Danni Boatwright
Ethan Zohn	Denise Stapley
Jeremy Collins	Kim Spradlin
Nick Wilson	Michele Fitzgerald
Rob Mariano	Natalie Anderson
Tony Vlachos	Parvati Shallow
Tyson Apostol	Sandra Diaz-Twine
Wendell Holland	Sarah Lacina
Yul Kwon	Sophie Clarke

Immediate thoughts:
- Rob AND Amber?! That seems like producers should have said either Rob OR Amber, but not both. Either way, it will be a big target on both of them, especially since Rob has such a big target anyway.

- No Richard Hatch.

- YAY for Kim and Parvati! I was worried they wouldn't be on.

- Boo for Adam and Ben.

- I'm excited for some old-school players to be on modern Survivor. And it will be fun to see some fresh faces that have played just once before.

- Immediate favorites for me: Parvati, Kim, Natalie

- I think some of these winners will be under the radar and will really shine bright, such as Sophie, Denise, Danni, Yul, and Ethan.

- I'm worried someone like Parvati will be an early target.

 

[PUSH]

Spoiler: Season 40 Cast Spoiler

Some more thoughts:
- Danni will be the first returnee from Guatemala.

- I totally forgot Yul and Parvati played together.

- The more I think about this, the more I'm on the Parvati train, but I'm fully expected she is an early boot.

 

[PUSH]

Spoiler: Season 40 cast spoilers

On Twitter, Richard Hatch says he was never invited to play. He said he would have come back if he was invited.

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

Spoiler: Season 40 cast spoilers

On Twitter, Richard Hatch says he was never invited to play. He said he would have come back if he was invited.

If true, that's mind blowingly ridiculous.

 

[DinoInstitute]

Spoiler: Rumored Season 40 Cast

Men​	Women​
Adam Klein	Amber Mariano
Ben Driebergen	Danni Boatwright
Ethan Zohn	Denise Stapley
Jeremy Collins	Kim Spradlin
Nick Wilson	Michele Fitzgerald
Rob Mariano	Natalie Anderson
Tony Vlachos	Parvati Shallow
Tyson Apostol	Sandra Diaz-Twine
Wendell Holland	Sarah Lacina
Yul Kwon	Sophie Clarke

Immediate thoughts:
- Rob AND Amber?! That seems like producers should have said either Rob OR Amber, but not both. Either way, it will be a big target on both of them, especially since Rob has such a big target anyway.

- No Richard Hatch.

- YAY for Kim and Parvati! I was worried they wouldn't be on.

- Boo for Adam and Ben.

- I'm excited for some old-school players to be on modern Survivor. And it will be fun to see some fresh faces that have played just once before.

- Immediate favorites for me: Parvati, Kim, Natalie

- I think some of these winners will be under the radar and will really shine bright, such as Sophie, Denise, Danni, Yul, and Ethan.

- I'm worried someone like Parvati will be an early target.

Spoiler: Season 40 cast spoilers

On Twitter, Richard Hatch says he was never invited to play. He said he would have come back if he was invited.

Spoiler

The guy who leaked the cast said elsewhere that Hatch wasn’t invited out of fear of backlash in the me too era after what happened in season 8. I wish he could be there but that’s a pretty understandable reason.

Overall I think the cast is pretty good. I would have liked to see a few more old schoolers but a lot of them make sense why they won’t be there (the aforementioned Hatch issues, Earl just had a baby a week or two ago, Todd/Jenna personal issues).

The most notable part of the cast to me is that both Rob and Amber are there, that will be an interesting dynamic I’ll look forward to. Though I’m surprised they even wanted to do that since it will likely just give each one a bigger target, not to mention the fact that Amber has repeatedly said she never wanted to play again. Besides, who’s going to watch the kids?!

The big disappointment to me is no Mike. I’m not surprised they chose Ben over him but I really wish they didn’t. Still have plenty of people to root for though. My favorites going in are probably Yul, Wendell, Sandra, and Michele.

 

[PUSH]

Spoiler

The guy who leaked the cast said elsewhere that Hatch wasn’t invited out of fear of backlash in the me too era after what happened in season 8. I wish he could be there but that’s a pretty understandable reason.

Overall I think the cast is pretty good. I would have liked to see a few more old schoolers but a lot of them make sense why they won’t be there (the aforementioned Hatch issues, Earl just had a baby a week or two ago, Todd/Jenna personal issues).

The most notable part of the cast to me is that both Rob and Amber are there, that will be an interesting dynamic I’ll look forward to. Though I’m surprised they even wanted to do that since it will likely just give each one a bigger target, not to mention the fact that Amber has repeatedly said she never wanted to play again. Besides, who’s going to watch the kids?!

The big disappointment to me is no Mike. I’m not surprised they chose Ben over him but I really wish they didn’t. Still have plenty of people to root for though. My favorites going in are probably Yul, Wendell, Sandra, and Michele.

Spoiler

I had figured that's why he wasn't invited back. I would love to see Todd again, but I understand why the show would never even want to attempt to do it, even if Todd was willing. I'd like to see Earl again. I had heard he was in contention for Game Changers.

Mike would have been so much better than Ben, and I'm not a huge Mike fan. I hope Ben is the first boot.

My favorites are Parvati, Kim and Natalie. I'd love to see Yul and Parvati work together. It will be interesting to see how past seasons affect this season.

I just hope this hype doesn't lead to a let down like Game Changers.

Also, I'm so glad JT is not back.

 

[Outbound]

I am a casual survivor fan, although I have heard the rumors so I"ll chime in on those later. First, every season now Survivor is trying to do something exciting and different. Which is fair considering how many seasons there are now. BUT this season really bit them in the back. I think the Edge of Extinction is a cool idea, but they should have done the following:

1. Find some way to tempt them off the edge so that their decision to stay in the game or leave is always up in the air. In a perfect world, 50% would leave and 50% would go to the edge.
2. Have the second (and final) edge return be before the loved ones visit. I've read above and won't be a broken record. But this season the twist really bit them in the back.

Season 39 (from what we have seen in trailers) looks laughable, although I feel that way about most of the next season previews. Something about how serious Jeff speaks only for them to be showing something goofy (like Sandra's own Mount Rushmore).

Spoiler: Season 40

On the other hand I'm super hyped for a winner's season. The theory makes sense for a 40th, and that lineup looks great. Have not seen all seasons, so I do not recognize everyone. A concern with some of the new player seasons is will the cast be exciting. 40th season looks to be the most exciting yet.

With that said... what is with the Ben hate? He was a skilled player who had to go up against his entire tribe. Was it the sudden change from the final three vote to fire? That wasn't in his control- the show had made that switch in that season and have been using it ever since.

 

[PUSH]

I am a casual survivor fan, although I have heard the rumors so I"ll chime in on those later. First, every season now Survivor is trying to do something exciting and different. Which is fair considering how many seasons there are now. BUT this season really bit them in the back. I think the Edge of Extinction is a cool idea, but they should have done the following:

1. Find some way to tempt them off the edge so that their decision to stay in the game or leave is always up in the air. In a perfect world, 50% would leave and 50% would go to the edge.
2. Have the second (and final) edge return be before the loved ones visit. I've read above and won't be a broken record. But this season the twist really bit them in the back.

Season 39 (from what we have seen in trailers) looks laughable, although I feel that way about most of the next season previews. Something about how serious Jeff speaks only for them to be showing something goofy (like Sandra's own Mount Rushmore).

Spoiler: Season 40

On the other hand I'm super hyped for a winner's season. The theory makes sense for a 40th, and that lineup looks great. Have not seen all seasons, so I do not recognize everyone. A concern with some of the new player seasons is will the cast be exciting. 40th season looks to be the most exciting yet.

With that said... what is with the Ben hate? He was a skilled player who had to go up against his entire tribe. Was it the sudden change from the final three vote to fire? That wasn't in his control- the show had made that switch in that season and have been using it ever since.

Spoiler

My Ben hate comes from a couple things. First, he should not have won that season because of the unknown fire twist. Second, he idoled his way to the end, without having to have any regard for the social or strategic game. Then when he wasn't immune, the fire twist was thrown at them, making it feel as if production gave him the win. Third, I fully believe Chrissy was a better player than Ben. She played a social game. Fourth, I am not a big theatrics guy. He put on a huge show at Tribal every time. It rubbed me the wrong way.

 

[artvandelay]

Spoiler

My Ben hate comes from a couple things. First, he should not have won that season because of the unknown fire twist. Second, he idoled his way to the end, without having to have any regard for the social or strategic game. Then when he wasn't immune, the fire twist was thrown at them, making it feel as if production gave him the win. Third, I fully believe Chrissy was a better player than Ben. She played a social game. Fourth, I am not a big theatrics guy. He put on a huge show at Tribal every time. It rubbed me the wrong way.

I concur.

 

[artvandelay]

Josh Wiggler is very high on the season 39 cast and thinks it’ll be a strong season. Josh did his pre interviews in Fiji and usually is on set for the first few days.

 

[PUSH]

Josh Wiggler is very high on the season 39 cast and thinks it’ll be a strong season. Josh did his pre interviews in Fiji and usually is on set for the first few days.

Dalton Ross said he loved the RI cast and thought that would be a very good season. Although I hope Wigler is right.

 

[PUSH]

I just saw Brenda Lowe from Nicaragua and Caramoan on a White Claw commercial. According to further research, she was also in Baywatch.

 

[PUSH]

On a side note, I have started to rewatch old seasons of Survivor, starting with Borneo and working my way on. I'm now four episodes into Africa. I'm ranking the seasons as I go, and I'm being a total nerd and ranking all the Survivor players as I go. So far I am only doing the seasons/players that I have either recently rewatched or remember well enough (they aired in the past 3 or 4 years). The rest I'll wait until I finish rewatching. So far I have 15 seasons and 240 players ranked. We'll see how far I get in this process before season 39 starts. I won't continue into the new season.

PS - I am aware I am crazy. But this is how I'm enjoying my summer break (I'm a teacher).

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

On a side note, I have started to rewatch old seasons of Survivor, starting with Borneo and working my way on. I'm now four episodes into Africa. I'm ranking the seasons as I go, and I'm being a total nerd and ranking all the Survivor players as I go. So far I am only doing the seasons/players that I have either recently rewatched or remember well enough (they aired in the past 3 or 4 years). The rest I'll wait until I finish rewatching. So far I have 15 seasons and 240 players ranked. We'll see how far I get in this process before season 39 starts. I won't continue into the new season.

PS - I am aware I am crazy. But this is how I'm enjoying my summer break (I'm a teacher).

The only one I've gone back and re-watched so far is the first season.

It's interesting to see how different it is from (some) of the players perspective, and the show's perspective.

Jeff is describing it as more of a social and survival experiment, where people could be voted off because they don't contribute.

The players, several episodes post merge are quaintly realizing that only Pagong members are being voted off.

They should release a version of the show that edits out challenge footage, and just states who won. It would be easier to find the time to re-watch as the episodes could be cut down to the twenty minute range I imagine.

On another note, Survivor South Africa: Island of Secrets is six or seven episodes into their latest season and is worth watching.