Survivor

[a1mamacat]

Spoiler

Can anyone stop Tony from getting to the top 3? I think tomorrow is that last day he can use his idols. so he and Trish will probably be safe. He can give her the regular idol, and keep the superidol for himself. Hopefully Spencer wins immunity, and then it's a toss up between Woo and Kass.

I didn't like Tony at first, but he has grown on me. He is playing hard, but still providing us some real entertainment. I would love to see Tony and Spencer at final tribal. Spencer would probably win, due to his having to fight the whole time. I don't want Kass anywhere near the money. I dislike her immensely, with her air of superiority.

[jaybee]

Got to agree with most of what you are saying.

Spoiler

They are down to 5 so the next tribal is the last chance to play idols. Meaning that Tony is guaranteed to be in the final four. That gives the rest only one chance to vote him out - assuming he doesn't win immunity at the '4 are left' challenge. I don't believe that Tony has won an individual immunity yet.

I too would prefer Spencer to win - he's been playing hard with an uphill battle all the way. Tony deserves it just because he has been playing harder than anyone - but the fact that he has been playing an individual game for so long may come back to haunt him in the final vote. On one hand he played hard and made big moves, but those moves included stabbing a member of his alliance in the back twice.

Because of that, I can't decide if they would want to vote Tony off if they get the chance or if they would rather keep him around hoping that he has PO'd enough jury members in his alliance to counteract the 'big move' cred. If Tony makes it to the final three, his best bets would be to take Trish (who has done nothing except be Tonys puppy and seems to be disliked at some basic personality level. The other would be Kass who has managed to put herself in a position where nobody likes her at all.

Woo is kinda neutral but that doesn't ever help in the final vote. I would rank them as far as getting jury votes as: Spencer, Tony, Woo, Trish, Kass

[MarkBarrett]

This season has shown that it is not necessary to have returning players. As long as those in the casting department do a good job then the show works just fine with new faces.

This season has a quirk in the normal airing pattern. Tomorrow the 5 players go down to 4. The season finale will not be on Sunday the 18th. Wednesday the 21st will be the two hour finale and then reunion to cover programming 8-11. Because that is still May sweeps Fox will have the finale of American Idol.

ABC will counter with The Middle for an hour to conclude its season. Modern Family has the second part of the wedding. The 9:30 show is not worthy of a mention. At 10 the second season of Motive begins.

NBC has the series finale of Revolution, SVU, and Chicago P.D.

If that is not enough FX has the season finale of The Americans.

Thoughts on the final 5 of Survivor:

Spoiler

As has been pointed out Tony cannot be voted out and leave tomorrow night. He's in the final four. He has not been an individual challenge beast. It would seem Woo or Spencer can beat him at whatever comes up. Tony should be vulnerable at the 4-person TC.

Would Woo & Trish vote him out? Come on now, you've seen the season. Not going to happen. It seems likely that Kass or Spencer are gone tomorrow night. Spencer is going to need two more individual wins to make it to the jury TC.

Tony has to know getting Trish and Kass to the final vote is his best play. Could Kass talk herself into the million dollars? I would put nothing by her. She has done better than Cochrane (his first time playing) for hanging around after burning her original side in a first merge vote.

If Trish someone wins the million it would be the worst result I've seen in 28 seasons. Woo has had a very good & likeable edit this season to set up viewers being satisfied with his potential victory. Spencer has done almost (bad play with his idol) the best he could do with his difficult hand. He is going to need everything to go right to make the final 3.

[jaybee]

After the 5/14 Survivor - There has got to be a lot going on that escaped the final edit.

Spoiler

Tony is solid for this tribal - no way can he be voted off. In addition, he has that extra idol to give to Trish. In short, he can be in total control of the tribal so that either Kass or Woo have to go home. One of them could leave and it might not even cost Tony their final vote.

Instead he decides to join with Spencer and Kass and vote Trish off??? As JBillyGirl would say - WTF! Tony and Trish were so tight that this is sure to sour her and keep Tony from getting her final vote. Plus, it puts Tony's best chance at a final three with Kass and Woo. While Kass doesn't have a prayer of winning against anyone, Woo has been 'under the radar nice'. Woo may not have done many big moves (except for tonight's vote) but he seems to be well liked by everyone. That is enough to win - sometimes.

All I can think of to justify Tony's logic is that:

1. Trish went truly bat-shit crazy in her fight with Kass. Saying things that were bad/crazy enough so that all felt it would be poison to be associated with her in any way. Tony had to dump her or risk losing more jury votes. But, there was no hint of Tony having any issues with Trish heading into tribal. If that's the case then shame on Survivor for editing something so significant to the point that it presented as only a Kass vs Trish thing.

2. Tony is hoping to play up on his little lie that the "special powers" of the last idol are that it can be used at the next tribal. However, so far it seems that the only one he told that to was Trish, and she's now out of the picture to help make that lie effective. Maybe Tony plans to spread that story around to the remaining three, but I doubt that they will buy it.

3. Tony must have become convinced that Woo was going to vote Trish and decided to make it a 4-1 vote rather than 3-2. However, this would be the time to give Trish that extra idol. Even if he gained one jury vote by voting with the rest, it is at the cost of the sure-fire vote from Trish.

4. Trish was so darn skinny that Tony voted her off so they could hustle her bones to the Ponderosa and stuff some food in her. Or maybe Tony felt that Trish was so much in his camp that she would give him her jury vote even if he voted her off. As it was, Jeff did not reveal the final vote that would let Trish know that all 4 voted for her. But she should also know that they would have read the votes to a 2-2 tie and then read the final vote. Even Trish should know that Tony voted her off.

I'm leaning to #2. Tony knows that everyone would like to vote him off - definitely Spencer and Kass. He's paranoid enough to figure that Woo would vote him out if he gets the chance. As seen again tonight, Tony is not a challenge powerhouse, although he did win the mud contest due to his greater body surface area. I think if Tony does not win immunity next time that he will be the last to be voted off.

My pick now comes down to who wins the final immunity challenge. I think that whichever one of Spencer or Tony does not win immunity will be going home. If Spencer gets to the final 3, then he wins. If Tony makes it, then Tony wins. While Woo is liked, the bottom line is that he has been a non-presence and that is rarely rewarded by the jury. If Kass gets even one vote, I will be amazed. The most interesting last IC result will be if Woo or Kass wins. Spencer may be sent packing in that case.

[Vandal]

Kass's description of Trish was a classic:

Spoiler

"wild skeleton blue-eyed banshee."

[kusch]

After the 5/14 Survivor - There has got to be a lot going on that escaped the final edit.

Spoiler

Tony is solid for this tribal - no way can he be voted off. In addition, he has that extra idol to give to Trish. In short, he can be in total control of the tribal so that either Kass or Woo have to go home. One of them could leave and it might not even cost Tony their final vote.

Instead he decides to join with Spencer and Kass and vote Trish off??? As JBillyGirl would say - WTF! Tony and Trish were so tight that this is sure to sour her and keep Tony from getting her final vote. Plus, it puts Tony's best chance at a final three with Kass and Woo. While Kass doesn't have a prayer of winning against anyone, Woo has been 'under the radar nice'. Woo may not have done many big moves (except for tonight's vote) but he seems to be well liked by everyone. That is enough to win - sometimes.

All I can think of to justify Tony's logic is that:

1. Trish went truly bat-shit crazy in her fight with Kass. Saying things that were bad/crazy enough so that all felt it would be poison to be associated with her in any way. Tony had to dump her or risk losing more jury votes. But, there was no hint of Tony having any issues with Trish heading into tribal. If that's the case then shame on Survivor for editing something so significant to the point that it presented as only a Kass vs Trish thing.

2. Tony is hoping to play up on his little lie that the "special powers" of the last idol are that it can be used at the next tribal. However, so far it seems that the only one he told that to was Trish, and she's now out of the picture to help make that lie effective. Maybe Tony plans to spread that story around to the remaining three, but I doubt that they will buy it.

3. Tony must have become convinced that Woo was going to vote Trish and decided to make it a 4-1 vote rather than 3-2. However, this would be the time to give Trish that extra idol. Even if he gained one jury vote by voting with the rest, it is at the cost of the sure-fire vote from Trish.

4. Trish was so darn skinny that Tony voted her off so they could hustle her bones to the Ponderosa and stuff some food in her. Or maybe Tony felt that Trish was so much in his camp that she would give him her jury vote even if he voted her off. As it was, Jeff did not reveal the final vote that would let Trish know that all 4 voted for her. But she should also know that they would have read the votes to a 2-2 tie and then read the final vote. Even Trish should know that Tony voted her off.

I'm leaning to #2. Tony knows that everyone would like to vote him off - definitely Spencer and Kass. He's paranoid enough to figure that Woo would vote him out if he gets the chance. As seen again tonight, Tony is not a challenge powerhouse, although he did win the mud contest due to his greater body surface area. I think if Tony does not win immunity next time that he will be the last to be voted off.

My pick now comes down to who wins the final immunity challenge. I think that whichever one of Spencer or Tony does not win immunity will be going home. If Spencer gets to the final 3, then he wins. If Tony makes it, then Tony wins. While Woo is liked, the bottom line is that he has been a non-presence and that is rarely rewarded by the jury. If Kass gets even one vote, I will be amazed. The most interesting last IC result will be if Woo or Kass wins. Spencer may be sent packing in that case.

I don't understand, which is usual for me. Is not Tony safe cause he hasan immunity idol--I don't know which one he turned in last night--reg or spec? I am cheering for Spencer (and think he will win for sure if he makes final 3), would not mind Tony or Woo but sure hope Kass does not win.

[jarnon]

I don't understand, which is usual for me. Is not Tony safe cause he hasan immunity idol--I don't know which one he turned in last night--reg or spec? I am cheering for Spencer (and think he will win for sure if he makes final 3), would not mind Tony or Woo but sure hope Kass does not win.

Tony told the camera that the special idol, like all hidden idols, is no good once there are four or fewer players left in the game. But he may bluff the other players and tell them the special idol is still good.

[tanstaafl2]

After the 5/14 Survivor - There has got to be a lot going on that escaped the final edit.

Spoiler

Tony is solid for this tribal - no way can he be voted off. In addition, he has that extra idol to give to Trish. In short, he can be in total control of the tribal so that either Kass or Woo have to go home. One of them could leave and it might not even cost Tony their final vote.

Instead he decides to join with Spencer and Kass and vote Trish off??? As JBillyGirl would say - WTF! Tony and Trish were so tight that this is sure to sour her and keep Tony from getting her final vote. Plus, it puts Tony's best chance at a final three with Kass and Woo. While Kass doesn't have a prayer of winning against anyone, Woo has been 'under the radar nice'. Woo may not have done many big moves (except for tonight's vote) but he seems to be well liked by everyone. That is enough to win - sometimes.

All I can think of to justify Tony's logic is that:

1. Trish went truly bat-shit crazy in her fight with Kass. Saying things that were bad/crazy enough so that all felt it would be poison to be associated with her in any way. Tony had to dump her or risk losing more jury votes. But, there was no hint of Tony having any issues with Trish heading into tribal. If that's the case then shame on Survivor for editing something so significant to the point that it presented as only a Kass vs Trish thing.

2. Tony is hoping to play up on his little lie that the "special powers" of the last idol are that it can be used at the next tribal. However, so far it seems that the only one he told that to was Trish, and she's now out of the picture to help make that lie effective. Maybe Tony plans to spread that story around to the remaining three, but I doubt that they will buy it.

3. Tony must have become convinced that Woo was going to vote Trish and decided to make it a 4-1 vote rather than 3-2. However, this would be the time to give Trish that extra idol. Even if he gained one jury vote by voting with the rest, it is at the cost of the sure-fire vote from Trish.

4. Trish was so darn skinny that Tony voted her off so they could hustle her bones to the Ponderosa and stuff some food in her. Or maybe Tony felt that Trish was so much in his camp that she would give him her jury vote even if he voted her off. As it was, Jeff did not reveal the final vote that would let Trish know that all 4 voted for her. But she should also know that they would have read the votes to a 2-2 tie and then read the final vote. Even Trish should know that Tony voted her off.

I'm leaning to #2. Tony knows that everyone would like to vote him off - definitely Spencer and Kass. He's paranoid enough to figure that Woo would vote him out if he gets the chance. As seen again tonight, Tony is not a challenge powerhouse, although he did win the mud contest due to his greater body surface area. I think if Tony does not win immunity next time that he will be the last to be voted off.

My pick now comes down to who wins the final immunity challenge. I think that whichever one of Spencer or Tony does not win immunity will be going home. If Spencer gets to the final 3, then he wins. If Tony makes it, then Tony wins. While Woo is liked, the bottom line is that he has been a non-presence and that is rarely rewarded by the jury. If Kass gets even one vote, I will be amazed. The most interesting last IC result will be if Woo or Kass wins. Spencer may be sent packing in that case.

Totally confused me. And I agree it sucks that they edited it to show no inkling for this move. But that is pretty common. Maybe we get it in the next episode but it is still hard to figure. Not that Tony is a genius. Indeed he is pretty paranoid atthe moment, admittedly for good reason. I do think he knows he is vulnerable and that he plans to try to make the lie work that the "special" idol is special because it can be used in the next tribal. Nobody but Tony knows what the special power really is. But I still have no idea why he allowed Trish to get voted off, much less why he voted for her.

I suppose he is not a gambler. He could have given her the regular idol and as long as his name didn't come up, which it didn't, he would still have the special idol with which to try to pull off his lie about its power at the next Tribal.

[ghostjmf]

This deal about "surround yourself with people even less liked than you at final tribal" annoys me, though its perfectly logical. That has to be the only explanation for Tony's vote in the last show, as well as him not giving a protective idol to Trish, the friend & ally he'd told & shown he'd had both idols. I find Tony to be the most cheerful weasel they've maybe ever had on the show. Certainly less grating than Boston Rob, for instance, but no less a puppeteer. "I swear on my child, my badge, my etcetera" doesn't mean squat to him, & they all know this by now.


On the other hand, I've found Spencer unlikeable from early on. Acting too noble, kind of like the Elven Lord parachuted in or something. He certainly knows how to win challenges, both physically & intellectually, & that should keep him in the game with hardly any allies.


Woo is the person left I'd most like to hang out with, if I had to, knowing he probably wouldn't run me over. So likely he won't win. I'm surprised someone hasn't squashed Kass with a rock (metaphorically, of course!) long before now. She's got the same kind of "I'm the kingpin" mentality as Tony, often her reasoning, & voting behavior, is the same as Tony's, but she comes across as pure evil.


Why do I watch this show? I do not generally like to watch sleazes at work, especially not real-life sleazes. That woman from one of the last Survivors who kept saying "Jesus wants me to stab my friends in the back to further myself" really got to me too. Yet I keep on watching. Sigh.

[T_Bone0806]

I am rooting for Tony for one reason and one reason only...he is my horse in the office pool.


Hey, 90 bucks is 90 bucks, even if it does mean rooting for a wingnut.


I feel so cheap.

[tlynn78]

I am rooting for Tony for one reason and one reason only...he is my horse in the office pool.


Hey, 90 bucks is 90 bucks, even if it does mean rooting for a wingnut.


I feel so cheap.

You tramp.

[thguy65]

Jeff Probst Reddit AMA.

http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/2 ... vivor_ama/

[jaybee]

Got to admit - another good one. The Survivor people know their casting. I can see several of these players coming back if and when they get back into that format.

[a1mamacat]

Got to admit - another good one. The Survivor people know their casting. I can see several of these players coming back if and when they get back into that format.

Agreed. It was really nice to have a whole new group, and to be extremely surprised from week to week.

I do want to smack Woo upside his head though. Then again, I am also glad that Kass got axed before the final tribal, after how snotty and arrogant she has been throughout the whole game.

[Bob78164]

I didn't watch this season -- it was on opposite Arrow and Revolution. Did they return to a two-person final? --Bob

[jaybee]

Yup. Two people in the final. Spencer figured it out when there were still 4 left and tried to pitch a save to Tony, but Tony didn't go with it. For the others, it wasn't obvious until Jeff told them.

[thguy65]

Yup. Two people in the final. Spencer figured it out when there were still 4 left and tried to pitch a save to Tony, but Tony didn't go with it. For the others, it wasn't obvious until Jeff told them.

The change back to a Final 2 Tribal was a mid-game adjustment by TPTB because one player exited the game voluntarily.
http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/05/22/survi ... e-reunion/

EW: Okay…FINAL TWO! You know how much I love that and have been lobbying for it to come back. So, two part question: First off, was the initial plan to always do a final 2 for this season, or was this something that you adjusted along the way because Lindsey quit and maybe threw off your numbers? Secondly, and most important of all, after seeing it play out, did this change your feelings about final 2 vs. final 3 at all? (And yes, I realize a Woo vs. Kass final 2 would have been something of a disaster considering you would have lost both Spencer and Tony.)

PROBST: Yes, Lindsey quitting changed our numbers and so instead of a final three we only had enough players for a final two. Fortunately we knew early enough that we could adapt without any interruption. Yes, I loved having the final two and yes had it been Kass vs Woo I would not have been as happy. I absolutely see the simplicity of a season with no Redemption Island and a final 2. I get it. But the truth of the matter is that when we start with twenty people it’s very hard to get the numbers down to a final two. It’s honestly just math.

[tanstaafl2]

Yup. Two people in the final. Spencer figured it out when there were still 4 left and tried to pitch a save to Tony, but Tony didn't go with it. For the others, it wasn't obvious until Jeff told them.

The change back to a Final 2 Tribal was a mid-game adjustment by TPTB because one player exited the game voluntarily.
http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/05/22/survi ... e-reunion/

EW: Okay…FINAL TWO! You know how much I love that and have been lobbying for it to come back. So, two part question: First off, was the initial plan to always do a final 2 for this season, or was this something that you adjusted along the way because Lindsey quit and maybe threw off your numbers? Secondly, and most important of all, after seeing it play out, did this change your feelings about final 2 vs. final 3 at all? (And yes, I realize a Woo vs. Kass final 2 would have been something of a disaster considering you would have lost both Spencer and Tony.)

PROBST: Yes, Lindsey quitting changed our numbers and so instead of a final three we only had enough players for a final two. Fortunately we knew early enough that we could adapt without any interruption. Yes, I loved having the final two and yes had it been Kass vs Woo I would not have been as happy. I absolutely see the simplicity of a season with no Redemption Island and a final 2. I get it. But the truth of the matter is that when we start with twenty people it’s very hard to get the numbers down to a final two. It’s honestly just math.

Except they didn't have 20, they started with 18. And it is a simple matter to get to whatever number you want. You can have back to back tribals well before the end to adjust or even a day with a double tribal (both have been done before. It's honestly just math...

So that smells like bovine excrement to me.

I didn't count but it looked like everyone claimed they would have voted Woo if it had been a Woo/Kass final. We will never know for sure but i wonder if that is true. The jury has a different state of mind at the tribal than it does 9 months later having watched the entire show play out.

I also wonder what impact, if any, the big speech by Spencer had on the Jury. I thought we might see one or two more votes for Woo beside the vote from whackadoo Tasha.

[ghostjmf]

OK, I remain alone on earth, I guess, except for Woo himself, in being happy Woo stuck to his guns (his moral code) & brought "someone who deserved to be here" to the final. Of course, Woo then lost to him, too. But I bet Woo can sleep easily at night, & he's still getting a bunch of money for 2nd, & he's young, & they'll probably bring him back if he really wants to go.

[a1mamacat]

Yup. Two people in the final. Spencer figured it out when there were still 4 left and tried to pitch a save to Tony, but Tony didn't go with it. For the others, it wasn't obvious until Jeff told them.

The change back to a Final 2 Tribal was a mid-game adjustment by TPTB because one player exited the game voluntarily.
http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/05/22/survi ... e-reunion/

EW: Okay…FINAL TWO! You know how much I love that and have been lobbying for it to come back. So, two part question: First off, was the initial plan to always do a final 2 for this season, or was this something that you adjusted along the way because Lindsey quit and maybe threw off your numbers? Secondly, and most important of all, after seeing it play out, did this change your feelings about final 2 vs. final 3 at all? (And yes, I realize a Woo vs. Kass final 2 would have been something of a disaster considering you would have lost both Spencer and Tony.)

PROBST: Yes, Lindsey quitting changed our numbers and so instead of a final three we only had enough players for a final two. Fortunately we knew early enough that we could adapt without any interruption. Yes, I loved having the final two and yes had it been Kass vs Woo I would not have been as happy. I absolutely see the simplicity of a season with no Redemption Island and a final 2. I get it. But the truth of the matter is that when we start with twenty people it’s very hard to get the numbers down to a final two. It’s honestly just math.

Except they didn't have 20, they started with 18. And it is a simple matter to get to whatever number you want. You can have back to back tribals well before the end to adjust or even a day with a double tribal (both have been done before. It's honestly just math...

So that smells like bovine excrement to me.

I didn't count but it looked like everyone claimed they would have voted Woo if it had been a Woo/Kass final. We will never know for sure but i wonder if that is true. The jury has a different state of mind at the tribal than it does 9 months later having watched the entire show play out.

I also wonder what impact, if any, the big speech by Spencer had on the Jury. I thought we might see one or two more votes for Woo beside the vote from whackadoo Tasha.

I have to say, I was glad that she voted for him, as a clean sweep would have been too hard to take. I think that Tony played hard, and constantly. He deserved to win based on the outwit, outlast concept for sure. He played Russell's game, but without Russell's nastiness.