Board 8 > Survivor: Island of the Idols Discussion Topic: 'Muricans Only!

(+) Yeah! (+)

MartinFF7 posted...

I'm more bothered by the fact the tribe intros at the immunity challenge didn't have the usual "so and so voted out at the last tribal council" blurb + reaction from those on the other tribe.

Like whoever got voted out in a 4-4 situation should've prompted some reactions. Is this another one of those cases where there was a reward challenge filmed but not shown?

That's my guess given how long Tribal Council was. Something had to get cut and it was probably the reward challenge.

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This isn't really a moment from the show, but the moment that made me cry more than any other in Survivor history is I remember back in like, 2009, I was up late...around either 11 or 1...something with a one digit in it. And then a thread got posted on Sucks. It was Coby, informing us that Jenn had lost her battle with cancer. And I broke down. I remember he was talking about how they'd gone to see Avatar shortly before she passed, and she talked about how the movie was like a metaphor, and it brought her peace, because it made her feel like there was something beyond this world, and she wasn't afraid of dying.
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I'm really surprised they have managed to keep a half-decent edit despite the airtime sink that are the Rob/Sandra segments. A few borderline invisible people per episode but they alternate which helps us follow their stories regardless. I don't think anybody has had a consistently visible edit except for Missy.
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GTM posted...

BlueCrystalTear posted...

It says in the "Oath of the Idols" that Rob and Sandra don't vote.

"We are no longer idols, we are now members of the Jury"

but most people interpreted whatever was written as they are not part of the regular tribals and wont vote people out

I'm just having a hard time explaining 11 unless it is prevents most ties. No 5-5, no 3-3-3. But the would be of course over looking 4-4-3 or 5-5-1.

But in all seriousness, I think GTM is right and that in some sense they'll find a loophole in their own rules if they want Sandra and Rob to vote.
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Do you guys really trust any oath Rob makes after what he did to Lex?

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11 on the jury makes perfect sense though? We know what they do in 4-4-3 and 5-5-1 type situations so it works. Which is really exactly why he made the jury now rather than keeping it merge-only (and even-numbered).

Inviso: your post made my eyes well up, no joking. Damn.

I still think Rob and Sandra will speak at FTC but not vote.
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They shouldn't start jury until Final 11, imo. That way, it's 8 jurors and a final 3 or 9 jurors and a final 2. Neither is likely to have a tie. And what they can vary is whether it's F2 or F3. I highly doubt that production would go out of its way to state "We do not vote" if they were going to let Rob and Sandra vote. That right there is a contract and I trust that the show wouldn't break its own contracts, even if they can undermine the game without them.

I think Rob and Sandra will be in their little box at Tribal for FTC like always and won't come out until after the voting is completed. This will be of course after the F4 all go to IOI one last time.

MartinFF7 posted...

Inviso: your post made my eyes well up, no joking. Damn.

Also this.
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BlueCrystalTear posted...

They shouldn't start jury until Final 11, imo. That way, it's 8 jurors and a final 3 or 9 jurors and a final 2. Neither is likely to have a tie. And what they can vary is whether it's F2 or F3.

My thoughts exactly. Delay the merge until 12. Start the jury at 11. 18 person seasons get a F2, and 20 person seasons get a F3.
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Quick question:

Seven pre-merge boots this season. Does anyone have strong emotions towards ANY of them? Vince is okay, but he pretty much stands alone for me.

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Espeon posted...

Does anyone have strong emotions towards ANY of them?

Chelsea is adorkable.
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They really did a bad job of developing the premerge boots except for Vince. I liked Jason, but he wasn't too complex of a character. For example, Jack lasted 7 episodes and all I know about him is that he said something racist once and it led to a learning moment. Stuff like that is why I'm confused that Reddit is calling this the best season since Kaoh Rong, especially with DvG only two seasons ago.
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Mewtwo59 posted...

They really did a bad job of developing the premerge boots except for Vince. I liked Jason, but he wasn't too complex of a character. For example, Jack lasted 7 episodes and all I know about him is that he said something racist once and it led to a learning moment. Stuff like that is why I'm confused that Reddit is calling this the best season since Kaoh Rong, especially with DvG only two seasons ago.

This is kinda the problem with modern Survivor (from a fan base perspective) in general. They care more about blindsides and big moves than anything else. To me, blindsides lose their appeal when the characterization isnt there. Yeah, this past episode was a shock, but who cares about JACK?

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I think there are worse problems to have than underdeveloped pre-merge characters, just simply because at the end of the day what they provide to the season as a whole is minuscule compared to anyone that makes the merge simply because they'll be on the jury. Would I be unhappy if I was one of them? Of course but at the end of the day they have to develop the season as a whole. I like how invested I feel in most of the characters that have survived.

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I feel invested in this bunch, but this season is no David vs. Goliath. That season was downright incredible, with zero duds in the cast, a great balance between personal content and gameplay, and some pretty surprising results. Also had Angelina and Christian, two iconic characters. This season has a pretty good cast, but I don't know if anyone's going to be THAT iconic, whereas it was obvious that those two would be by merge time.

I'm not seeing many people calling IOI "the best since KR" since it's objectively wrong. Because DvG exists. And honestly, I care more about developing merge characters while not wholly ignoring the pre-merge boots. With IOI in play, this season is doing a pretty good job of editing, and for that it's a top-half season for me so far. A lot can change though.
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Espeon posted...

Quick question:

Seven pre-merge boots this season. Does anyone have strong emotions towards ANY of them? Vince is okay, but he pretty much stands alone for me.

Jason was my winner pick because I was expected a Nick from DvG like redemption arc, lol

Liked:
Vince

Okay:
Chelsea
Jason
Jack

Meh:
Molly

Disliked:
Ronnie
Tom
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Actually liked and wish we saw a little more of:
Chelsea
Jason

Liked some, and the edit was fine:
Vince

Would probably have liked with a better edit:
Jack
Molly

Really meh:
Tom

Disliked:
Ronnie
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MartinFF7 posted...

11 on the jury makes perfect sense though? We know what they do in 4-4-3 and 5-5-1 type situations so it works. Which is really exactly why he made the jury now rather than keeping it merge-only (and even-numbered).

We do, in fact, know the rule for if an odd jury ties. But it might not be what the casual fans expect.
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bwburke94 posted...

MartinFF7 posted...

11 on the jury makes perfect sense though? We know what they do in 4-4-3 and 5-5-1 type situations so it works. Which is really exactly why he made the jury now rather than keeping it merge-only (and even-numbered).

We do, in fact, know the rule for if an odd jury ties. But it might not be what the casual fans expect.

We do?
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I'm not surprised you forgot, it's been seven years. But we do.

In an interview post-One World, Probst said that if an odd jury ties (X-X-1 or X-X-3), the tie is broken by the jury, not by the third-placer.
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well that interview is outdated because it actually happened in Ghost Island, when the tie was broken by the third placer?

That was an even jury

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And for that matter, we have no idea what happens if X-X-2, though that requires an even jury as well.
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Why wouldn't the Laurel in that situation just become a member of the jury? I wouldn't be surprised if that was the case today.
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GTM posted...

That was an even jury

Mmmm you got me there! I was definitely too eagre to jump in with the Ghost Island comparison, burke (and the Probst interview) would certainly be right, the odd-numbered jury sorts it out among themselves.

bwburke94 posted...

And for that matter, we have no idea what happens if X-X-2, though that requires an even jury as well.

Well in this case I won't be wrong... it seems clear that the "2" jury voters would revote for one of the Xs, as would the player who received the "2" (the Laurel in this situation) also becomes a jury member and votes for one of the X's. So we have an odd number jury and a guaranteed winner.

Now I remember when we had 9 person juries and I always dreamed about the nightmare 3-3-3. No getting out of that one.

I assume in a 3-3-3 split, the final three all vote for one of their two opponents. Then only a 1-1-1 split would cause problems.

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Know what fixes all of it? Final 2 with an odd numbered jury. Impossible to get a tie.
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Underleveled posted...

Know what fixes all of it? Final 2 with an odd numbered jury. Impossible to get a tie.

Yup.

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I gotta wonder what would've happened if Amanda and Parvati had tied in Micronesia. I presume the "white envelope" Amanda mentioned in her exit press was blank... and that they're never doing an even-numbered jury with an F2 again because they couldn't come up with anything fair.
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The merge tribe name is Lumuwaku - "Fijian" for "Luv U Miss U WAnna Kiss U" - apparently it was Jack's idea and they did it in his honor

That's something else right there.
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So according to this the "all S40 episodes will be 90 minutes" thing is a lie.

https://deadline.com/2019/11/cbs-winter-schedule-midseason-criminal-minds-final-season-15-premiere-ncis-new-orleans-new-time-slot-survivor -season-40-undercover-boss-tommy-fbi-most-wanted-macgyver-premiere-date-1202782646/amp/

(Remove the space after "survivor")
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Damn. Hell, considering the ratings Survivor is still pulling after all these years - literally top 18-49 ratings on CBS in their 39th season - doing 90 minute episodes would've been a smart move for the network. Supersized season for a, well, supersized season.

redmond would never lie to me
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Maybe it's just the second episode that is normal length due to Criminal Minds? But that would still seem awkward to have a two hour premier followed by an hour long episode followed by 11 90 minute episodes followed by a 2 hour finale.
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although it does sound like the premier is just two episodes back-to-back which sucks

this season really deserves a full two hour premier like HvV
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Nah I looked ahead on thefutoncritic and after the Criminal Minds finale, Seal Team comes back & settles into the 9-10 pm slot.

Unless there's some kind of curveball where CBS put out a fake schedule and reveal a real one between now and then but I'd doubt that.

who even watches seal team
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Apparently 3.841 million Americans, and 0.5% of the 18 to 49 year old population last Wednesday.

(Survivor had 6.802 million and 1.3% respectively so that's a brutal dropoff)

Worse news - with this mid-season schedule, CBB3 seems to be a no-go (at least for now), and TAR32, which was filmed over a year ago, is delayed even further.
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Nah what you gotta believe is the cancellation factor. Something will get pulled at some point, and TAR will slide right in there... isn't that how the past season or two got slotted in?

MartinFF7 posted...

Nah what you gotta believe is the cancellation factor. Something will get pulled at some point, and TAR will slide right in there... isn't that how the past season or two got slotted in?

That happened with 31, yeah. 30 was the "rushed" season where they doubled up like half the episodes to fit in between Survivors, and 29 was the Thursday graveyard season.
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Yeah I clearly remember that doubling season, that was a bit ridiculous... but I'll take any TAR I can get, I guess.

Same, especially since it was a great season regardless.
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The Mana Sword posted...

redmond would never lie to me

Redmond never said anything about the episode length. It was a different source reporting that to Sucks.

I fear for the watchability of S40. It's 100% gonna be a Quantum of Solace...
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BlueCrystalTear posted...

I fear for the watchability of S40. It's 100% gonna be a Quantum of Solace...

While I'm not exactly overly optimistic considering everything they plan to condense into it, you deemed EoE the "worst-edited season of all time" before it even aired and aside from the under-edited winner it wasn't really that bad of an edit.
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Underleveled posted...

While I'm not exactly overly optimistic considering everything they plan to condense into it, you deemed EoE the "worst-edited season of all time" before it even aired and aside from the under-edited winner it wasn't really that bad of an edit.

Pretty sure what I said was that it was "going to be the worst edited-season ever." And it was better than I expected, and certainly superior in edit to the likes of Cook Islands, Samoa, and Ghost Island.

The thing is, with S40, it's 20 castaways who are always in the game AND a bunch of nonsense gimmicks like Probst Funbucks AND the loved ones being out there AND a lot of next-level gameplay to show. This time, I feel I can be comfortable saying it's going to be the worst-edited season ever. I don't think there's anything that can save it. It's going to be very choppy with a lot of fast-moving parts.
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Why don't you let the damn show come on before you call it the worst ever? God damn defeatist all the damn time.
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eaedwards6400 posted...

Why don't you let the damn show come on before you call it the worst ever? God damn defeatist all the damn time.

Can't you tell that I'm pretty jaded at what Probst is doing to the show?
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another passive pitch here for stop watching the show if you're jaded about it

I'm like over a year since ive stopped watching wwe stuff after watching non-stop for like 16 years. i was just overly pessimistic about it and it's been a pretty good decision

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