Survivor S38: Edge of Extinction

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It's the merge episode AND we the big EoE reveal! I'm excited for tonight's episode, and I'll be interested to see how they deal with EoE from here on out. It won't be as fun if the other contestants know about it, IMO.

Here is the order of who I want to return:

1. Aubry
2. Devens
3. Reem
4. Big Wendy
5. Chris
6. Keith

But really mostly Aubry and Devens.

 

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I'm having a hard time with some of the changes they're making. First, I would have been okay with Devens getting back in, and I was happy he did. But then they give him a free idol? No. You got voted out and had to earn your way back in. You shouldn't get an advantage. If anything, you should be at a disadvantage because you've already been voted out.

I also am really struggling with the "jury". Why does Reem, as player who you voted out first, get to be on the jury? That's ridiculous. You should not be on the jury unless you are part of the merged tribe. The jury will be massive.

I also have very mixed feelings about having someone else return to the game. If it's Aubry, I love it. If it's anybody else, I hate it. But ust the way they've been showcasing Aubry makes me feel like she'll get back in.

Now onto some thoughts...

- I don't feel like this season has many likable players. Everyone seems to be edited as evil. I don't like any Kama, and I'm only rooting for Kelley because of Second Chance. I'm also rooting for Lauren, with Wardog on the side just because he's aligned with Kelley and Lauren. I actually really don't like Wardog. David I really liked last week when he was aligned with Kelley and Lauren, but I'm not as much on board this week.

- Julie had a great night, but I wonder if she's coming on strong. She just established herself as a physical and strategic threat.

- If we were to have a twist, make it so there was no tribal immunity for one vote. That guarantees everyone has to go to Tribal before the merge. And it takes away the boringness of a Pagonging. Is Kama-strong really an entertaining story? And does anybody really like anybody from that tribe? No, because we don't know anything about them.

- This season feels like a mix between Redemption Island and Game Changers. RI because of the obvious. GC because of the style of gameplay. Those are not two seasons I'd want mixed together.

- Next week would be great if the Lesu five could get back together (which may be hard after the three voted for David and Devens) and pull a David vs Goliath and completely flip the game. They have three idols within them, and it would be amazing.

- David and Devens are either in a fantastic spot or a terrible spot. They are out of the loop with literally everyone else, but they are not the targets of the majority.

- I'm not surprised at all by Keith and Wendy leaving. Good. We don't need you. Although I felt for Wendy with her ticks during the challenge. And she really rocked at challenges! Keith was just dead weight the whole season.

- I hope they cut off the final returning player from EoE before the final 5. Final 6 at the latest. Maybe even final 8 would be a good time to bring the last person back.

- Overall, I'm a little low on this season. I don't feel connected to any of the new players. I feel like the editing is making it hard to root for the people who are constantly winning. And maybe there will be a flip, but I haven't seen it so far.

And with the merge, here is the return of my Survivor power rankings! These are for who I think is the safest going into next week and who I think will be on the chopping block. So 1 is the safest, working our way down to least safe.

1. Julia
2. Eric
3. Gavin
4. Julie
5. Victoria
6. Wardog
7. Aurora
8. Ron
9. Devens
10. David
11. Lauren
12. Kelley

 

[DinoInstitute]

The only thing holding this season back for me is the editing. I wish we could hear more from Gavin, Julia, and Aurora, as those three have been pretty much ignored by the edit. At least the first two are pretty boring when they are on screen, but still.

Otherwise I’m honestly really digging this season. The edge of extinction twist is a lot of fun (not something I’d ever want to see again, but great once). And that’s in huge part thanks to Reem, who is an absolute gem. I can’t get enough Reem!

Sad we lost Joe, but when he said that voting him off was the worst thing they could have done, I think he was right. Now he basically gets to befriend and cozy up to the entire jury, and only has to win one challenge to get back in the game at probably the final five or six.

 

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The only thing holding this season back for me is the editing. I wish we could hear more from Gavin, Julia, and Aurora, as those three have been pretty much ignored by the edit. At least the first two are pretty boring when they are on screen, but still.

Otherwise I’m honestly really digging this season. The edge of extinction twist is a lot of fun (not something I’d ever want to see again, but great once). And that’s in huge part thanks to Reem, who is an absolute gem. I can’t get enough Reem!

Sad we lost Joe, but when he said that voting him off was the worst thing they could have done, I think he was right. Now he basically gets to befriend and cozy up to the entire jury, and only has to win one challenge to get back in the game at probably the final five or six.

I've heard lots of complaints about the editing, and I think that's because we don't have enough time to fully explore what's happening because of EoE. Very similar to other twists with new locations (Redemption, Exile, etc.). I'm hoping the producers see how well received DvG was and realize twists and gimmicks are not what fans want. We want in-depth, dynamic characters. We want to feel invested in these players. And not just one or two, but ALL of them. I felt invested in almost every player on DvG. EoE I feel invested in one, and it's not even based on this season; it's based on a previous season.

And I love Reem. Terrible player, but her small comments of "lame" and "dude" are hilarious.

Joe really should be happy he's voted out. He gets to do the part of Survivor he's best at - surviving and winning challenges to stay in the game. He doesn't have to do what he's not great at - social and strategic gameplay.

 

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Watch this tweet from Kelley. I've felt like the editors are not telling the full story this time. It seems so choppy and like the logic is not there. Last week the Lesu 4 were inseparable and willing to go to rocks for each other. Now they're gunning for each other?

 

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Also, you can visibly see Kelley jump up in celebrating when Devens won that challenge. There's a lot of missing pieces to the story this season. As I keep saying, I am really struggling to get on board this season.

 

[GenerationX]

Now even the Loser's Bracket has a Loser's Bracket. How many chances do these losers get?

I am a fan of the Little Red-Haired Girl. She's got game.

 

[artvandelay]

Now even the Loser's Bracket has a Loser's Bracket. How many chances do these losers get?

I am a fan of the Little Red-Haired Girl. She's got game.

Reem got voted out on day 3, but she could come back into the game on day 36! That’s not right. And since it’s Reem, I’ll throw in a “dude” and a “lame!”

 

[artvandelay]

Watch this tweet from Kelley. I've felt like the editors are not telling the full story this time. It seems so choppy and like the logic is not there. Last week the Lesu 4 were inseparable and willing to go to rocks for each other. Now they're gunning for each other?

You’re right. Something does not make sense.

 

[NYwdwfan]

Watch this tweet from Kelley. I've felt like the editors are not telling the full story this time. It seems so choppy and like the logic is not there. Last week the Lesu 4 were inseparable and willing to go to rocks for each other. Now they're gunning for each other?

Wow. How do they get unedited footage?

 

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Wow. How do they get unedited footage?

A comment said theybusually post full confessionals on YouTube somewhere?? I'm not sure about that, but maybe they are on CBS All Access. I wouldn't think they'd want them out there, though.

 

[DinoInstitute]

Wow. How do they get unedited footage?

A comment said theybusually post full confessionals on YouTube somewhere?? I'm not sure about that, but maybe they are on CBS All Access. I wouldn't think they'd want them out there, though.

Yeah, they post full confessionals on CBS All Access, and then the YouTube channel Outwit Outplay Outlast uploads some of them (surprised they haven’t been removed yet!)

 

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Yeah, they post full confessionals on CBS All Access, and then the YouTube channel Outwit Outplay Outlast uploads some of them (surprised they haven’t been removed yet!)

There are a lot of Survivor videos on YouTube that take right from the show. Maybe they view those people as building their viewership, rather than taking money from them. I think Survivor fans are unique in that they're so passionate about the game and show, and it's not like the fans of other shows.

 

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Julia posted on Twitter some insight that wasn't shown last week. She, Victoria, and Julie talked to Ron saying voting Joe now is too early, and they need to use him for a number now, then get rid of him in a couple votes. It sounds like they all agreed, but then Ron got to everyone again shortly before Tribal Council to switch the votes back to Joe.

 

[artvandelay]

Julia posted on Twitter some insight that wasn't shown last week. She, Victoria, and Julie talked to Ron saying voting Joe now is too early, and they need to use him for a number now, then get rid of him in a couple votes. It sounds like they all agreed, but then Ron got to everyone again shortly before Tribal Council to switch the votes back to Joe.

I see both sides to the argument, but Ron knew Joe didn’t have an idol. He couldn’t be sure about Kelly, Lauren or David.

 

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I see both sides to the argument, but Ron knew Joe didn’t have an idol. He couldn’t be sure about Kelly, Lauren or David.

I think the only reason to vote out Joe would be to get him on EoE and make him stay there as long as possible to "weaken" him. They had Lesu voting exactly how they wanted, and they must have known that to vote Joe, so they should have known nobody would play an idol. Plus, Joe has nothing in his resume that shows he's likely to find an idol.

 

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Finally! An exciting episode! I was worried this would become Ghost Island. They are not in order, but here are some thoughts:

- Lauren fainting was scary! Most people who faint on Survivor are out for a couple seconds. She was out for a LONG time! And she fell a good distance. That's a scary situation for Jeff. You don't want to end the challenge that's down to the final two, but you also have someone who looks dead. But once again, well played by Jeff and Dr. Joe and crew.

- Rick lost it tonight. I get he's mad, but he has no other option. Be at the (potential) bottom of 5, or for sure the bottom of 8 or 9. At least with the 5 he has a solid ally, plus an idol with him. I liked Devens until tonight. He lost me.

- I haven't liked Wardog, but he played well tonight. Julia seems like someone who can easily be influenced, but he was telling the truth. Eric and Ron were totally going to use David and Devens to get the other three Kama out.

- I hated how Ron and Eric used a scare tactic on everyone else with the loved ones. It was so obvious and way too overplayed. Maybe saying it once or twice would work, but it was so blatant and obvious when Eric brought it up at TC.

- I do feel like the edit left a lot to be desired. We saw David talk with Gavin and Julia, but the last we saw of Kelley and Lauren, they were going to play their idols. David and Devens were still at odds and figuring things out. We saw no connection between the votes and getting everyone on the same page, which left me feeling like the outcome was once again not told correctly. In fact the opposite story was told. There was barely even a slight chance of the three Kama flipping. It's like we're being blindsided by the edit.

- One thing I have to give producers and editors credit for is the beginning of the episode. I loved the cross-conversations and back-and-forth talks everyone was having at the start of the episode. The David/Devens talks were great. Devens/Wardog was awesome. David/Kelley were great.

- I loved David's analogy of pilots and passengers. That's such a great way to look at the game. You're either a pilot or a passenger. Pilots can win.

- I loved Aubry's advantage find. I love how she secretly found it, but I wonder... can anybody just wander upon this practice challenge? Or do producers keep them away from that location? And how could Aubry leave for a long time to practice without everyone else knowing?

- David was smart to keep his half of the idol. I hope next week he doesn't give it back, because they seem clearly on different paths strategically and emotionally.

- Aurora I thought had every right to bargain for her spot in the game. The people who wanted her to stop are the people who blindsided her and will eventually vote her out of the game, but are just trying to suck up and use her as a vote for a couple more votes. However, Aurora should read the room at that point and see that her bargaining is likely pushing her even farther away from Kama. But maybe she didn't want to stay with Kama at that point, anyway.

- Overall, best episode of the season! Anything to get the underdogs further along! I really hope David sticks with Lesu. He has such a great eye for the game, strategically and socially. He sees how others perceive him and how he'll be perceived in certain situations. I love him and Kelley as a strategic pair. And honestly, he may be wise to stick with Kelley to the end because it doesn't seem like many people like Kelley this season. But maybe she'd get votes at the end because of how she avoided her name being thrown around from literally day 1. If she can make it all the way, she'd pull a Parvati from HvV. Although we all know how that turned out...

My power rankings:

1. Julie
2. David
3. Wardog
4. Aurora
5. Victoria
6. Gavin
7. Julia
8. Lauren
9. Ron
10. Devens
11. Kelley

I'm normally pretty close on my rankings... usually one of the bottom people leave, but you saw what happened last week. I partially blame the lack of narrative of this season thus far.

 

[GenerationX]

I agree this episode was better, but I wish they would actually unload some people. Eight shows in, two people gone.

The only returning player that's tolerable is David. The other three have worn out their welcome.

Quite the display of power from the "Puppet Master".

 

[flynnibus]

This is what happens when the one tribe wins everything early... we see less of those people and we focus on the losing tribe all the time.

Been watching all season and it’s been a decent one so far... except I don’t like what we see of the “jury” so far.

And for someone like joe.... extinction is probably a safer place than just being in the game. He can’t be sent home for several votes... and he can provide for himself.

I don’t mind second chances... but too many chances ... ugh

 

[PUSH]

I agree this episode was better, but I wish they would actually unload some people. Eight shows in, two people gone.

The only returning player that's tolerable is David. The other three have worn out their welcome.

Quite the display of power from the "Puppet Master".

Yes, as much as I love the obligatory "Reemisms" this season, she should not still be there. And she should not get a say on the jury.

Eric and Ron got too cocky, and they got burnt because of it. I really dislike those two.

As for returning players, I feel like I'm the only one who likes Kelley still. I feel like they are half editing her to be a villain and half to be an underdog, but the narrative is not cohesive. But I still love Kelley and Aubry. And David is a very smart player, which I appreciate. Joe I actually liked this season more than his first two seasons.