Lurker > Inviso

Eddv posted...

I just wanted to let you know i read this whole thread

I appreciate that. Idol plays are a subject big enough to rank, but not so big that they're overwhelming. And they've led to some solid story moments...even if that's not the case more often than not.

Updated my idol play rankings with 45.

http://clubsthatsuck.jcink.net/index.php?showtopic=3949

Yeah, with Cook Islands, the relevant characters are basically Jonathan, Yul (only because he won...it's not like he's a dynamic personality), Ozzy (mainly for challenge wins), Candice (for the Billy moment, and the mutiny), Cao Boi, and Billy. Despite being a returning player and current legend, Parvati's Cook Islands appearance is a whole lot of nothing, and the same could be said about 6th through 3rd place, not to mention most of the pre-merge.

As for Australia and Africa, while cultural impact is important, they really don't hold up well, and it's important to make that distinction, because a season like Borneo, or a season like Marquesas DOES hold up well.

And just since it's the end of the year, let's wrap up 2023 with a ranking of the CBS reality show contestants I actually watched.

1. Carolyn Wiger (Survivor 44, 3rd Place)
2. Michaela Bradshaw (The Challenge USA, 6th Place)
3. Bruce Perreault (Survivor 45, 8th Place)
4. Chris Underwood (The Challenge USA, 1st Place)
5. Steve & Anna Leigh (The Amazing Race 35, 4th Place)
6. Cirie Fields (Big Brother 25, 5th Place)
7. Emily Flippen (Survivor 45, 7th Place)
8. Jake OKane (Survivor 43, 3rd Place)
9. Jaime Lynn Ruiz (Survivor 44, 6th Place)
10. Yamil Yam Yam Arocho (Survivor 44, 1st Place)
11. Felicia Cannon (Big Brother 25, 4th Place)
12. Sabiyah Broderick (Survivor 45, 16th Place)
13. Akeela al-Hameed (Tough As Nails 5, 6th Place)
14. Cheryl Lieteau (Tough As Nails 5, 8th Place)
15. Hisam Goueli (Big Brother 25, 14th Place)
16. Morgan & Lena (The Amazing Race 35, 7th Place)
17. Andrea & Malaina (The Amazing Race 35, 8th Place)
18. Rob & Corey (The Amazing Race 35, 3rd Place)
19. Jessica Hayes (Tough As Nails 5, 4th Place)
20. Cassidy Clark (The Challenge USA 2, 10th Place)
21. Katurah Topps (Survivor 45, 4th Place)
22. Kaleb Gebrewold (Survivor 45, 11th Place)
23. Claire Rafson (Survivor 44, 15th Place)
24. Dee Valladares (Survivor 45, 1st Place)
25. Hannah Rose (Survivor 45, 18th Place)
26. Isabel Izzy Gleicher (Big Brother 25, 12th Place)
27. Desi Williams (The Challenge USA 2, Winner/3rd Place)
28. Tiffany Mitchell (The Challenge USA 2, 17th Place)
29. Beth Salva-Clifford (Tough As Nails 4, 8th Place)
30. Carly Steiman (Tough As Nails 5, 10th Place)
31. Carolina Paredes (Tough As Nails 5, 12th Place)
32. Blue Kim (Big Brother 25, 7th Place)
33. Frannie Marin (Survivor 44, 8th Place)
34. Danny Massa (Survivor 44, 7th Place)
35. Liam & Yeremi (The Amazing Race 35, 9th Place)
36. Julie Alley (Survivor 45, 5th Place)
37. Kendra McQuarrie (Survivor 45, 9th Place)
38. Todd & Ashlie (The Amazing Race 35, 5th Place)
39. Marcus Jones (Tough As Nails 5, 9th Place)
40. Cory Wharton (The Challenge USA 2, 2nd Place)
41. Maddy Pomilla (Survivor 44, 17th Place)
42. Kellie Nalbandian (Survivor 45, 10th Place)
43. Josh Wilder (Survivor 44, 12th Place)
44. Paulie Calafiore (The Challenge USA 2, 22nd Place)
45. Reilly Smedley (Big Brother 25, 15th Place)
46. Amanda Garcia (The Challenge USA 2, 20th Place)
47. Ilima Shim (Tough As Nails 4, 6th Place)
48. Sergio Robles (Tough As Nails 4, 9th Place)
49. Synethia Bland (Tough As Nails 4, 12th Place)
50. Brandon Donlon (Survivor 45, 17th Place)
51. Alexandra & Sheridan (The Amazing Race 35, 13th Place)
52. Heidi Lagares-Greenblatt (Survivor 44, 2nd Place)
53. Chanelle Howell (The Challenge USA 2, 5th Place)
54. Alyssa Lopez (The Challenge USA 2, 19th Place)
55. Jocelyn & Victor (The Amazing Race 35, 11th Place)
56. Carson Garrett (Survivor 44, 4th Place)
57. Matt Blankinship (Survivor 44, 11th Place)
58. Renee Kolar (Tough As Nails 4, 11th Place)
59. Jorge Zavala (Tough As Nails 4, 1st Place)
60. Elizabeth & Iliana (The Amazing Race 35, 12th Place)
61. Kenji Ngo (Tough As Nails 5, 3rd Place)
62. Austin Li Coon (Survivor 45, 2nd Place)
63. Nicholas Sifu Alsup (Survivor 45, 12th Place)
64. Kane Fritzler (Survivor 44, 9th Place)
65. Bruce Perreault (Survivor 44, 18th Place)
66. Aly Bala (Tough As Nails 4, 10th Place)
67. Ellery Liburd (Tough As Nails 4, 5th Place)
68. Mister Frost (Tough As Nails 4, 2nd Place)
69. Todd Anderson (Tough As Nails 5, 2nd Place)
70. Mecole Hayes (Big Brother 25, 10th Place)
71. Kirsten Elwin (Big Brother 25, 16th Place)
72. Jonna Mannion (The Challenge USA 2, 23rd Place)
73. Janani J. Maya Krishnan-Jha (Survivor 45, 13th Place)
74. Lauren Harpe (Survivor 44, 5th Place)
75. Helen Li (Survivor 44, 16th Place)
76. Robbin & Chelsea (The Amazing Race 35, 6th Place)
77. Wes Bergmann (The Challenge USA 2, 13th Place)
78. Tori Deal (The Challenge USA 2, 7th Place)
79. Sarah Wade (Survivor 44, 14th Place)
80. Larren Ables (Tough As Nails 4, 4th Place)
81. Luis Colon (The Challenge USA 2, 21st Place)
82. Joe * Ian (The Amazing Race 35, 10th Place)
83. Michael Red Utley (Big Brother 25, 13th Place)
84. Monte Taylor (The Challenge USA 2, 16th Place)
85. Paul Hamilton (Tough As Nails 5, 7th Place)
86. America Lopez (Big Brother 25, 6th Place)
87. Joel & Garrett (The Amazing Race 35, 2nd Place)
88. Alyssa Snider (The Challenge USA 2, 14th Place)
89. Tyler Crispen (The Challenge USA 2, 12th Place)
90. Ameerah Jones (The Challenge USA 2, 24th Place)
91. Sean Edwards (Survivor 45, 15th Place)
92. Michele Fitzgerald (The Challenge USA 2, 11th Place)
93. Greg & John (The Amazing Race 35, 1st Place)
94. Brandon Brando Meyer (Survivor 45, 14th Place)
95. Dustin Bradford (Tough As Nails 5, 5th Place)
96. Yesi Reyes (Tough As Nails 5, 11th Place)
97. Laura Bernotas (Tough As Nails 4, 7th Place)
98. Sebastian Noel (The Challenge USA 2, 15th Place)
99. Ben Dempsey (Tough As Nails 5, 1st Place)
100. Brandon Cottom (Survivor 44, 10th Place)
101. Jake Cope (Tough As Nails 4, 3rd Place)
102. Josh Martinez (The Challenge USA 2, 9th Place)
103. Faysal Shafaat (The Challenge USA 2, 8th Place)
104. Drew Basile (Survivor 45, 6th Place)
105. Johnny Bananas Devenanzio (The Challenge USA 2, 4th Place)
106. Jared Fields (Big Brother 25, 11th Place)
107. Miranda Bowie Jane Ball (Big Brother 25, 3rd Place)
108. Matt Klotz (Big Brother 25, 2nd Place)
109. Dusty Harris (The Challenge USA 2, 18th Place)
110. Cory Wurtenberger (Big Brother 25, 8th Place)
111. Matthew Grinstead-Mayle (Survivor 44, 13th Place)
112. Jagateshwar Jag Bains (Big Brother 25, 1st Place)
113. Cameron Hardin (Big Brother 25, 9th Place)
114. Luke Valentine (Big Brother 25, 17th Place)

Realized I should update now that another season is in the books.

The cream of the crop:
1. Kaoh Rong
2. Vanuatu
3. Pearl Islands
4. San Juan Del Sur
5. China
6. Philippines

Very good seasons with a few minor flaws:
7. Marquesas
8. Borneo
9. Heroes vs. Villains
10. Nicaragua
11. Guatemala
12. Gabon
13. Survivor 42

Largely solid seasons, but with some major flaws that prevent them from being better:
14. David vs. Goliath
15. Cagayan
16. Exile Island
17. Survivor 45
18. Fiji
19. Amazon
20. Survivor 44
21. Survivor 41
22. Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers
23. Micronesia
24. Palau

Has some distinctly negative aspects, but has enough fun and enjoyable content to not hate outright:
25. Game Changers
26. Winners at War
27. Blood vs. Water
28. Edge of Extinction
29. Samoa
30. South Pacific

Mostly bland and forgettable:
31. Tocantins
32. Africa
33. One World
34. Australia
35. Ghost Island
36. Survivor 43

Extremely, extremely negative and unpleasant, but at least KINDA interesting in that negativity:
37. Thailand
38. Worlds Apart
39. Island of the Idols

Aggressively boring and soulless, and revolving around a twist that honestly makes the season worse through its existence:
40. Millennials vs. Gen X
41. Cook Islands
42. Caramoan
43. Cambodia
44. All-Stars
45. Redemption Island

I will say that 90 minute episodes did this season a LOT of favors, because without them, they cut back on character development instead of twists. Like, imagine the final 7 episode with just an hour. They had a journey in which Emily did not take a risk. Do you think production would cut THAT from the episode? Fuck no. They leave in that pointless scene instead of the character-building that made the endgame so compelling.

Ultimately, I think my ranking of the new era would go 42>45>>44>41>>>>>>>>>>>>>43

45 could've been number 1, but I think the editors really did Reba dirty, given that they were going to ultimately end up dominating the season and producing the final two. Maybe Belo and Lulu were that innately fascinating, but it still stands out when I, someone who likes the season and the cast, still find myself rankings 5/6 of Reba in the bottom half overall.

KateMarsh posted...

Tammy & Victor probably still beat them

Tammy & Victor (namely Victor) were at least actively annoying. The only winning team as generic and forgettable as these two, that I can think of, is Jason & Amy.

skullbone posted...

I feel like I missed something with Cody.

He was floundering in the mid card when he left WWE, then he was really hot in AEW for a little bit but then ultimately he started floundering in the mid card again in AEW. His dumb idea to never challenge for the belt probably didn't help but I remember Cody getting booed as a face in AEW toward the end of his run there.

But then he came back to WWE and now he's the top face in the company? Where did all of the excitement for Cody come from?

I'm assuming it's because he left, started a legitimate competitor to WWE, came back as the ultimate turncoat, and shortly after his return, had that major pec injury, but still managed to put on a five-star match against Seth Rollins.

Just sent my list.

Mewtwo59 posted...

Finally caught up. Can't say I was expecting Kellie to go there. That was screaming "Well, we need something as the decoy boot since Bruce is safe" to me. Shame, as she was one of the better Belos. Hopefully Austin or Emily can pull it off now (or Jake, but I doubt that's happening).

I can't believe Steve & Anna Leigh survived that after going for the Express Pass. That looked like it took Steve a long time, and the beehive detour looked to be the slower one. I guess Morgan & Lena got that lost looking for the parking garage.

Also, I'm shocked the 500 post in the last topic wasn't "Drew sucks". That's what I expected when I saw Inviso got it.

And yeah, 1/3 of the cast losing their vote at this point is just stupid. The auction twist was kind of lame too except for the fact that the victim was guy who had the least amount of money to start (though that was probably how this was going to end if everyone played intelligently).

Drew does suck, but I had to end the topic criticizing the true evil of the past month.

Underleveled posted...

So after sleeping in it, I think they really edited Kellie's blindside very well. A lot of the time you see a young woman get booted at this point in the season for being a "big threat" seemingly out of nowhere. But Kellie was edited to be a subtle-but-present threat all season, and Drew, the person who lead the charge to get rid of her, did a good job explaining why he perceived her as a threat and why this was the most opportune time to blindside her, and his reasons lined up with what we saw of her all season. Then they further blindsided us by editing TC to make us think Jake was STILL going home because his pitch to stay was legendarily bad. Good job, editors.

Plus, more than anyone else, Kellie kept getting the "oh shit, I'm gonna get screwed out of my vote" shots at the auction. Building her up for a bad outcome.

Four movies left. I'm on pace to make the original deadline at this point.

Kefka

I've always thought Fang is black.

Auron

Cloud

Currently at 23/30.

BlueCrystalTear posted...

Maybe she's just a character who they really need to show losing her sanity.... if she had any to begin with.

There may only be one person leaving. Could be that they vote two people out and those two compete to stay, similar to the BB zombie twist. But I kinda doubt that.

I'm more thinking both will be on the jury and they'll either have nine jurors or a juror removal advantage (maybe at F5?).

How did BB do with cramming so much into last night's show? I didn't watch and don't really care to. Ever since America was evicted, I've hardly been following, since Bowie not taking a shot made a Matt or Jag win so obvious. Just another season that proves that BB is lame at endgame.

I mean, they're never going to show the trio of two young, fit guys and an Australian DJ bullying a 63-year-old woman (whose brother apparently died the week she and Mecole were on the block together, and she never told anyone else in the house), so they rushed through everyone to get through a pretty obvious and boring elimination.

I swear, it's like Bowie, Jag and Matt keep taking turns making terrible game moves, but none of it matters since one of them now HAS to win.

Lightning
Cloud

My issue with Cecil is usually that he has the potential to be really interesting: guy working for the villain who realizes he's a villain himself and tries to change. Except the game basically handles this by flipping a switch and turning Cecil into the most generic good guy protagonist imaginable.

Auron
Edgar

Tifa
Rikku

Here's my take on things: if the Democrats vote in lock-step to boot Santos, they still lose, because the Republicans won't give the numbers to do it. And the end result is the Republicans being able to say "Look at the Dems making things political. This whole Santos thing is political. The people elected him and Democrats want to subvert the Democratic process for political gains." AND "We voted to expel one of our people over something stupid and minor, so therefore it's okay to do the same to literally ANY Democrat for ANY reason."

The ultimate problem Democrats face is that they catch flak for WHATEVER choice they make in almost every situation, and they're held to a much higher standard than the Republicans will EVER be. And it all comes back to what I've tried to point out in the past: our country is EXTREMELY conservative. I think for all the polling of "x progressive policy is super popular", at the end of the day, a majority of this country's electorate wants lower taxes (regardless of how that negatively impacts us), high policing and military, and lower prices on goods (and will only blame whoever happens to be in power at the time they experience prices they consider too high).

So Democrats, being in opposition to a lot of this, are constantly forced to walk a tightrope where they have to make the argument of "We know you don't like or want a lot of our progressive policies, but at least we're not violent lunatics. We're the mature party that is at least trying our best to govern, even if you hate our entire platform". And any time the Democrats try to play hardball and play politics the way the GOP does, that allows the idiot fence sitters to say "Oh shit, I guess the Democrats are just as bad as the GOP at playing politics, and at least the GOP want to cut my taxes".

Our electorate is fucking stupid and is either incapable of understanding nuance (see the Israel/Palestine debate, where yes, Biden may be taking a hit with Arabic voters for his stance...but if he came out in favor of Palestine in ANY way, he would be immediately attacked by the Democratic base of white suburbanites who think he's "supporting terrorists")...OR they just lack pragmatism and are unwilling to accept incremental change as any sort of positive.

Kuja
Auron
Balthier
Cid P

Tifa
Fang
Cloud
Celes

Lightning
Ardyn
Faris
Terra

Edgar
Balthier
Cid P
Wiegraf

Jeff/Jordan
Brendon/Rachel
Dani/Domenic
Cody/Jessica
Victor/Nicole
Swaggy/Bayleigh
Christmas/Memphis

Underleveled posted...

She was for the first five weeks or so and then she tanked it. I think the only plausible winners left are Matt and Cirie. I just don't see a path to the end against a beatable opponent for anyone else.

I wish I were more into this season of TAR. There are some really good teams and crazy results but they just aren't utilizing the extra half hour well. They're just using it to show more footage of teams struggling at tasks. Like, show us more of the culture. Linger at the airport a little longer. Give us more scenes like in episode 2 where there was a brief scene of the people who weren't doing the roadblock screwing around. Instead I find myself frequently zoning out, especially given the late hour.

I feel like the scheduling has been the worst thing about this current season. Big Brother has been changing its schedule a lot (and the Sunday episodes are on WAY too damn late to make way for Yellowstone), and Amazing Race is on far too late for its own good.

Also, I think that disgustingly, if Jag comps out to the end, he's got a good chance at winning and being one of the most disappointing winners ever.

Estinien
Edward
Vincent
Vanille

YES! Thank God! I don't hate them, but they've been so dull. Especially compared to two of my favorite teams in the bottom 3.

Good. We don't need multiple nerds on the show, and eliminating two of the three pre-merge is great.

Watching Jake pass out and start twitching TWICE now is really terrifying, just because of how matter-of-fact both moments have been.

Felicia has been so bad this week.

Vivi
Tifa
Fang
Gilgamesh

Rydia
Faris
Terra
Beatrix

9/30

Sheep007 posted...

Monotypes are cool! I think they should put a lil more effort into differentiating some of the more plain ones gameplay-wise though. Like, there's enough mono-grasses with decent utility and barely any offensive coverage, or enough fighting types with high attack, decent bulk but meh speed, and rock/ground/dark coverage but not much else. Give us a crazy slow fighting-type wall, or a fast hazard setter or something!

Not a huge point against Falinks. They are very cute

This is exactly it. Espeon is my favorite Pokemon, but obviously Espeon is a Psychic mono-type. However, Espeon stands out among Psychic-types because, up until I'd say Meowstic in Gen VI, your standard Psychic-type was either some form of weird-looking humanoid, or just looked extremely bizarre and twisted in general. Meanwhile, Espeon is a Psychic-type that just looks like a standard animal, with the gem on the forehead.

mnk posted...

I never got that. The little guys don't look like bugs at all. If you need to make them a dual type, it'd have to be Steel (or you could say they're little fairy dudes I guess).

It also learns multiple strong Bug-type moves.

1, 4, 6, 9
21

Let's get rid of "Should've been Bug/Fighting" Falinks next!

Yeah, my biggest issue with Dreepy is the rarity. It only shows up in one location, and even that is via shaking grass with intense rarity. Meanwhile, by the time you have access to that location, you're super high level, and you can find wild Drakloak. I'm always annoyed when you have a Pokemon where its evolved form is more readily-available than the unevolved form, because I like being able to raise my Pokemon up from its lowest, to its highest.

1, 4, 6, 9
21, 23
(45), 46
76
(86)

Flapple is EASILY the better of the two.

Mewtwo59 posted...

Applin was a Pokmon I wanted to like and use in game, but they made it so bad and made it's evolution item so hard to get. Add onto that the fact that Flapple wasn't even that great soured me on the entire line.

Flapple is supposed to be sour.

BOO. Jesus CHRIST, guys.

If the design was just a LITTLE better (either more white or more red, instead of the weird 50/50 design), the speed and strength could've made this my top fave of the generation (despite the mono-typing).

andylt posted...

'Metal elephant' is the best reason for something to be slow this side of a slothmon.

Yeah, and it's decently bulky enough (and strong enough) to not let its slowness be a detriment. Still kind of annoying though.

MoogleKupo141 posted...

they should do an alternate evo for clobbopus that follows up on the boxing element. Big octopus with a bunch of boxing glove arms.

This is true and I didn't even think about it. If they evolved Clobbopus and made it a puncher or something (gave it the elemental punches and whatnot), I might think more fondly of it. Grapploct's movepool is dire in Sw/Sh.