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Post by mhynson27 on Feb 4, 2024 23:47:03 GMT
I really like this cast too, but holy fucking shit, imagine being stuck on an island with Kelli.
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Post by stephen on Feb 10, 2024 18:42:06 GMT
Hahahahaha, Kelli fucking up the Rebels’ split-vote plan was amazing. We get to keep Alex in the game as an agent of chaos, Feras burns his idol (love the guy but I do like that he got humbled a bit), Tobias gets blindsided in epic fashion despite being super-confident he wasn’t going home, and Aileen’s “genius” split vote blows up in her face because Kelli can’t keep it straight. The echo of “boys on Tobias, girls on Alex” playing over Kelli voting was gold.
“Eat your cupcakes!”
The saga of Kelli continues when she gets swapped over to the Titans—and fucks up the scheme to sabotage them. Honestly, as irritating as Kelli is, I love that there’s this clueless radioactive wildcard in the mix that is likely going to have to be properly navigated, as I don’t see her getting voted out any time soon.
Week 2 leaderboard:
1. Mark. The diplomat has his tentacles in many different pies, and he’s orchestrating moves in the shadows. He’s tight with the V-Vixens, and he’s got his Middle-Aged Mafia. I was wondering why he was risking blowing up his spot with the latter by talking about taking out Caroline, but I do think that was to placate Viola into thinking it’s something he’s open to down the line. Unless Mark bungles it in the short term, I think he’s sitting prettiest in the game right now.
2. Valeria. She’s tight with Mark/Viola, and she’s sussing out Caroline. Valeria is giving me Liz 2.0 vibes, and I feel that if the Diplomatic Trinity is going far, she’s the one who likely has longer equity in the game as she isn’t the overt schemer that Mark is, nor is she the obvious physical competitor that Viola is. I feel Valeria’s safe as houses right now.
3. Viola. Everything I said about Valeria, but she’s a bit overly physical and I feel like she’d be a bigger target than Valeria down the line off of that, but she’s also more charming and openly charismatic, and I can see her getting marked as a social threat as well. But I think she’s indispensable at this stage right now.
4. Garrick. Honestly, out of the Rebels I think he’s playing the best game. He’s got his pulse on everything in the tribe, he’s tight with Feras without getting any of the radioactive heat from him, he’s seemingly good with Kirby but knows she can’t be trusted, and I feel he’s capable enough that I get the sense he’ll navigate the merge very well. I could be wrong, but Garrick’s one to look out for.
HM to Eden and Kirby, the latter of whom would’ve been #1 off the first episode but the follow-up tanked her a bit. She’s now been marked as a major player too early.
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Post by stephen on Feb 18, 2024 18:46:59 GMT
Week 3 leaderboard, and oh boy, what a shuffle. Basically every major player bungled it hard this week.
1. Valeria. She lost Viola in the tribe swap and ultimate vote-out, but she's sitting extremely pretty now with her fellow Titans. Honestly, I feel like Valeria's probably in no real danger in this game and she feels very much like she can run to the end as the louder, showier players gun for each other.
2. Caroline. She won the war to take out Viola, she's survived an assassination attempt by Mark, and she's got a loyal soldier in Kitty and has Eden on-side as well. She's got Mark dead to rights now; the only thing is whether she pulls the trigger sooner or later, and I feel like we're supposed to be on her side as opposed to Mark's.
3. Aileen. The only one who sussed out that the OG Titans were siding against Feras/Garrick, and I think she's strategic enough without being a loud target. She saw a sinking ship with Feras's crew and now looks to be jumping to Kirby's, but I don't think she'll be loyal to anyone long-term. Watch out for Aileen if she makes the merge.
4. Rianna. She survived each vote by the skin of her teeth but now I think she's secure, and I think my winner pick's win equity rises as long as she doesn't shake the boat too much now.
HM to Scott, who seems to be benefiting the most out of Kirby's alliance but isn't seen as much of an overt threat. I just feel he might get targeted in a Feras revenge tour if Feras can get the upper hand.
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Post by mhynson27 on Feb 19, 2024 1:57:11 GMT
Ehhhh, the show might be doing a bad job then, because most people I talk to like Mark more than Caroline.
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Post by stephen on Feb 19, 2024 2:24:15 GMT
Ehhhh, the show might be doing a bad job then, because most people I talk to like Mark more than Caroline. No, I'm not saying that Mark is less likable, but that it's clear he made the wrong move and Caroline is making the right call that he should've made (i.e. waiting till later to orchestrate revenge). I still think Mark is excellent TV but man, he misplayed hard here and he even had an out when Kitty came to him to talk about Sarah/Rianna snitching, and he could've easily walked back the kill attempt with no blowback.
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Post by stephen on Feb 23, 2024 1:36:59 GMT
That Episode 10 tribal council vote split was *chef’s kiss*. I’m not usually much for twists on AU Survivor but I understand they are necessary, and they did give us the King George tribal last year, and this year they gave us what might be the play of the season. I was begging Feras and Aileen to split the vote 1-1-1, and then vote for the non-idoled OG Titan on the revote, and they fucking did it. Seeing Kirby’s “oh shit” face after laughing throughout the whole episode was the icing on the cake. I love Kirby but I much prefer her when she’s not on the top.
Really pleased that Aileen won that immunity challenge all on her own. I love how scrappy she is, and I hope she makes it to the end. She’s fast become a favourite. Also, the post-challenge confusion in regards to who the vote is for was maybe my favourite bit of the season thus far. Shame it resulted in another non-elimination tribal . . . but then we’re getting Alex sent back to the Titans (and his mortal nemesis Kelli).
Watching Kelli annoy the piss out of Alex to the delight of Feras was so much fun, and watching Kelli drop depth-charges in her alliance with Kirby has been even better. Watching her spill basically every bean to Kitty was perfect TV. And then just her digging her grave (tm Valeria) was agonizing.
Week 4 leaderboard:
1. Valeria. Really, this feels like it’s her game to lose at this point because she’s sitting the prettiest (wasn’t even a target when the OG Titans were gunned for), we get a lot of her perspective in the game, and she feels like Liz 2.0 where she’ll worm her way to the end and is cold-blooded enough to do so.
2. Rianna. I still stand by the fact that Ri is probably the OG Rebel with the most win equity, and it just keeps climbing. She’s got a(semi-public) idol, she’s not the immediate head of any alliances, and like Valeria, she feels like she’s not going to be the immediate target and will go far. Plus we got a fair amount of her perspective this week, so I feel like she’s not as front-and-center immediate as Valeria, but she’s not forgotten either.
3. Aileen. What a coming-out week for her. She proved herself as a strategic force, she’s shown as the reasonable and level-headed member of Feras’s alliance and the edit seems to want us to root for her. I feel like we’re going to see Aileen be a major player in the merge.
4. Mark. Survived by the skin of his teeth but now that he’s at the merge, he’s got Valeria on side and she’s gunning for Caroline/Kitty, and I feel like that war is going to define the post-merge.
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Post by mhynson27 on Feb 23, 2024 6:13:46 GMT
Yeah, Val stocks continue to rise. Coincidentally, so do my pants.
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Post by stephen on Feb 28, 2024 1:52:23 GMT
So Scott basically came into the merge, realized the game was too much of a strain on his mental health, but realized that he could either bow out without a blip or throw a grenade into the mix and then peace out. Mad props to Scott, who seems too pure for this world, for telling Kitty about the impending blindside and basically putting “the House of Valeria” on the back foot. I was afraid of a death march to the end for Valeria, and now at least people have clocked her.
That Winna vote was *chef’s kiss*. I love how they left Ri and Alex’s votes till the very end.
But then we get the brilliant Eden blindside, where fucking Jaden becomes Frankenstein’s monster and kills his creator in beautiful brutal fashion. Seriously, the way they edited that and left the final reveal of the vote was brilliant. Might be my second favourite tribal being the King George special last year.
Week 5 leaderboard:
1. Jaden. Who would’ve expected the big lug to shoot to the top of the leaderboard like this? He’s likeable, everyone wants to work with him, no one’s overtly targeting him, and he’s finally starting to show strategic chops. I don’t know, man — this was a hell of a coming-out week for Jaden and while this week might be a fluke, I’m putting him in the top spot because everyone else worsened from their previous week.
2. Rianna. She’s also getting pegged as a challenge beast now, and she burned her idol. I feel her biggest issue is having to shake free of Kirby’s influence so she isn’t seen as a lackey, but I feel like now no one will be gunning for her.
3. Valeria. She’s getting clocked, and while I feel she’s somewhat insulated at the moment, the war is about to break out and there are enough people ready to gun for her now. Now she’s in the minority against a side with multiple idols, and she’s stuck having to work with Caroline and Kitty. This was a pretty bad week for her all told, aside from winning that $60k (which should also be a huge point against her long-term).
4. Feras. My guy is fiercely loyal to his crew, and people keep taking potshots at his people rather than him . . . but he’s still seen as the figurehead and now there's open war. And Kirby's going to be gunning for him again because she can't put aside their rivalry. Plus he wasn’t able to keep Caroline and Kitty fully on side.
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Post by mhynson27 on Feb 28, 2024 11:39:42 GMT
"This one's for Winna lad"
Instantly iconic
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Post by stephen on Mar 1, 2024 12:42:30 GMT
US Survivor's back with 46, and what a fucking crash-and-burn premiere for one David Jelinsky. That was a beautiful self-immolation of epic proportions.
As for my Week 1 (US) leaderboard:
1. Hunter. I feel like he's got all of the upside of Tevin, without being so out-in-front and potentially targetable. He seems well-insulated in his tribe and we got a fair amount of his perspective.
2. Tevin. This guy is casting gold. He's a social dynamo, he's hilarious and witty in front of the camera, he's got an advantage and he seems to be the hub of his tribe at the moment. I do fear he could potentially get targeted for that if there's a swap and other players see him as a Kaleb-esque social beast, but as long as he doesn't overwhelm, he should be fine.
3. Soda. My winner pick this season, I love Soda's vibes and personality. I feel like she could potentially chafe people with how boisterous she is but so far, I'm not seeing it. (Hunter seemed more annoyed at the singing, but not that it was Soda.) She clearly has a good social game and has people coming to her, and she's got options. The only thing I'm holding against her is how fast she threw Randen under the bus to Venus; I probably would've kept that to myself until a challenge loss.
4. Tiffany. It was a toss-up between her and Kenzie for the last spot, but I ultimately opted for Tiffany because she has the idol and while I normally think knowledge of the idol is often stronger than the trinket itself, Tiffany's showing herself to be the real brains of the operation on this tribe. Kenzie feels more overt to me, and I feel like Tiffany could potentially flip on Kenzie if she wanted to maintain the idol's secrecy, so I have her here.
Early favourites for me: Soda, Tevin, Ben, Charlie, Jess, Tiffany and Jem. I do like pretty much everyone here (although Maria and Randen are still ciphers at this stage), so it's shaping to be a good cast with some great dynamics.
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Post by stephen on Mar 7, 2024 23:10:40 GMT
Raymond, you beautiful bastard. You would deserve Best Actor at the Oscars this weekend for that performance (and yes, Feras, you can have Supporting Actor with your Bradley Cooper-esque self-campaigning).
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Post by stephen on Mar 8, 2024 1:39:23 GMT
Week 6 AU leaderboard, now that the biggest winner threat has been sniped by Raymond:
1. Kirby. Kinda sitting prettiest now. Feras is always going to have people side-eyeing him and thinking he's an overt schemer (even though Kirbs is much more manipulative and deceptive). She's got Rianna as a strong duo as well.
2. Feras. Funnily enough, Feras's stock has skyrocketed and our top two might be the Hayley/George of the season. I don't see a way that we get both of them in the final two/three, and I think Kirby has a stronger win equity at the moment, but if she's not there and Feras is, I think the Smiling Assassin 2.0 (never forget Pia Miranda) takes this one.
3. Raymond. Our li'l court jester came in with the biggest move of the season and pulled off the Survivor equivalent of Dan's Funeral from Big Brother. No matter what happens, Ray will be a legend of the game and is a dead cert for a future HvV 2.0 season. And I think that if he eases off the throttle now and lets Feras draw some heat, it's possible Ray can avoid immediate blowback and worm his way to the end. He's got a story now.
4. Rianna. Her story is on a low simmer but it's still there, and I think if someone Feras and Kirby knock each other out, Rianna is enough of an immunity beast that she can make it to the end. Her vote record is abysmal but there's still a bit of game left.
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Post by stephen on Mar 8, 2024 1:41:07 GMT
Week 2 US leaderboard... uh, I'll get back to you. I feel like no one came out of the week ahead.
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Post by mhynson27 on Mar 8, 2024 6:30:03 GMT
Week 2 US leaderboard... uh, I'll get back to you. I feel like no one came out of the week ahead. Soda sunk like crazyyy.
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Post by stephen on Mar 8, 2024 13:40:17 GMT
Week 2 US leaderboard... uh, I'll get back to you. I feel like no one came out of the week ahead. Soda sunk like crazyyy. Yeah, but I think she's still absolutely gold on TV and I feel like pretty much everyone else tanked in equal measure (Kenzie especially was absolutely fucking buried to the point I thought she was going to get blindsided until the Bhanu meltdown, and then I thought it might be him but then Jess played her fake idol and I remembered that Q would never have given her that to play if he expected her to come back to camp). Soda does feel like she's getting set up for a villain arc which I am excited to see play out.
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Post by mhynson27 on Mar 9, 2024 3:38:14 GMT
Yeah, but I think she's still absolutely gold on TV and I feel like pretty much everyone else tanked in equal measure (Kenzie especially was absolutely fucking buried to the point I thought she was going to get blindsided until the Bhanu meltdown, and then I thought it might be him but then Jess played her fake idol and I remembered that Q would never have given her that to play if he expected her to come back to camp). Soda does feel like she's getting set up for a villain arc which I am excited to see play out. I can't stand her tbh, and the crazy thing is, she's not even the most annoying out there. Fucking Liz
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Post by stephen on Mar 13, 2024 0:38:22 GMT
Caroline, what the fuck was that move? You know Feras has an idol!
The optimal move here (if you insist on using the idol) is to rope in Mark and Kitty earlier, tell Mark the vote's on him, have Mark and Kitty vote for Feras and then Caroline throws a vote on Ray. At that point, either Mark clues in Caroline that the vote's actually on Kitty and she plays the idol on Kitty instead, or Caroline still burns the idol but at least she tried to account for a known idol her target has.
Seriously, one of the dumbest moves I've seen on this show, and I actually like Caroline as a character, but she's nuked her win equity.
Kirby's the favourite to win, then Feras, then Mark, then Ray, then the ghost of King George, then Caroline. I don't believe Feras for a second that he wants to sit next to Kirby, and I think he's going to get her out as soon as she doesn't win immunity, and then Mark rallies the troops to flip on Feras right after, and then it's Mark sitting at the end with Raymond and Caroline.
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Post by mhynson27 on Mar 13, 2024 4:49:20 GMT
Yeah, unless Kirby can pull a Mike Holloway, it's gotta be Feras or Mark.
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Post by stephen on Mar 13, 2024 12:08:15 GMT
Yeah, unless Kirby can pull a Mike Holloway, it's gotta be Feras or Mark. I would love to see Kirby pull it off (that domino challenge was such a nailbiter, especially when she tried it and the last one failed to tip), but that is a tall ask of anyone, especially considering how brutally grueling the last immunity usually is.
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Post by stephen on Mar 14, 2024 22:03:08 GMT
Hahahahahaha, this episode.
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Post by stephen on Mar 14, 2024 22:24:18 GMT
Week 3 US leaderboard:
1. God. He blindsided Randen with an idol in his pocket, and now has Bhanu as a devoted follower.
2. Ben. Guy's just a bundle of positive vibes and I think he's just so likable and motivating that I feel that anyone who makes a move against him is going to be seen as a real villain. I dunno, something about how Ben presented himself this episode makes me feel like he's the one we're really supposed to root for.
3. Jem. She's got the advantage and the way she read it makes me think there's longevity to her game (does Siga go to tribal pre-merge?), and while she's playing a quieter game now, she's visible just enough to where I know who she is.
4. Hunter. On paper it's a perfect edit. But he got clocked by Venus, and his name's being thrown around. Either this is the early trouble that makes us think our future winner is in danger (re: Erika, Gabler) or he's actually marked for an ouster. I'll lean to the former for right now but it's almost too perfect right now.
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Post by mhynson27 on Mar 15, 2024 5:51:05 GMT
They need to get rid of the 3 tribes format ASAPPPPP.
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Post by stephen on Mar 19, 2024 22:22:14 GMT
A fantastic winner indeed, even though I wasn't crazy about the Final Two's answers at the FTC. I was hoping that Caroline would put up more of a fight at the end, but man, Feras really did pull it off.
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Post by mhynson27 on Mar 20, 2024 22:14:56 GMT
Let's fucking gooooooo. A fantastic winner in a goddamn top-tier season. Probst, take notes.
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Post by stephen on Mar 20, 2024 22:36:18 GMT
Let's fucking gooooooo. A fantastic winner in a goddamn top-tier season. Probst, take notes. My only criticism on the season is that I wish the show had made it look like Caroline was going to put up more of a fight in the end, and maybe give Mark more of an edit in the postmerge to make him seem like a reasonable threat to Feras. I felt like Kirby and Feras were going out back-to-back, and that Mark would sweep the leavings, but when he had such a low-key edit for a final boss character for Feras, I was wondering after the firemaking challenge if maybe, just maybe, Feras had it in the bag. And lo and behold, he did. Overall, though, it was an excellent season and a great cast. I'd love to see Kirby, Feras, Mark, Valeria, Aileen and Caroline back, as well as some premerge favourites like Garrick and Eden. I feel like Caroline could well be Sharn 2.0 in a return season, but I feel like she's a bit more willing to shake things up than Sharn was, and I would love to see if she could apply that lesson to a returnee season. Also, that last challenge was a . . . Feras wheel.
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