Board 8 > Survivor: Winners at War Topic 3: Only One Five-Day Week Left

(+) Yeah! (+)

One of the more satisfying penultimate episodes we've had in a long time.

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I can't believe Tony made it to the finale with his name never being written down.

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A few weeks ago I was ready to toss this season down around the bottom third mark, but three of the past four episodes have been fantastic and have definitely bumped it way up. If the finale delivers, it could make top half and you all know that that's really generous of me for modern Survivor.

My ranking for the season, pending the finale:

1. Tony
2. Michele
3. Natalie
4. Sandra
5. Tyson
6. Ben
7. Parvati
8. Denise
9. Sarah
10. Sophie
11. Ethan
12. Kim
13. Jeremy
14. Amber
15. Nick
16. Danni
17. Yul
18. Adam
19. Rob
20. Wendell

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another great episode imo

i will rank the final 5 because why not imo

5. ben
4. michelle
3. denise
2. sarah
1. tony

really hoping for a tony win at this point but would be ok with sarah or denise to a lesser extent. i don't think ben gets any votes in any situation and think no one beats tony if he is in f3

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Post-show thoughts:

• I checked the topic before I started watching, and yes, that conversation was one of the best.
• How different is this game if Jeremy stuck around and voted instead of leaving without power? Or if Nick voted Ben? Or Sophie played her idol? It's insane how Nick's exit was... the easiest of the post-merge. Hell, after weeks and weeks of just the craziest, most frantic, whisper-filled Tribals, both of tonight's were... not. Maybe Denise does win. She says she's done with scrambling, and the Tribal scrambling stops.
• I think Tony has too much of chance to win, and I want to be against his winner edit... but I like a good story, and Sarah and Tony sold me. Tony won one, Sarah won one, let's have a tiebreaker. Tony and Sarah don't just set the bar, THEY ARR DA BARR
• FOURTEEN TOKENS. Natalie is the best. I want her back in this game, and I want her to win.
• And while Tony's edit is a huge factor in his favor, and I still would like to see him and Sarah at the end, I cannot say the same if Tyson comes back in again. I like Tyson, but if anyone on Edge has a winner's chance (besides maybe Natalie who had only one non-Edge episode with an Edgic), it's Tyson and I'd honestly be bored seeing him come back in because I kind of expect it. The only person coming back from Edge that would disappoint me would be Tyson.
• I mean, I don't want Adam or Wendell or Nick back in the game, but I would definitely be surprised by it. Almost added Rob to that pile, but he's felt backseat to Amber since he got voted out. Amber's been the driving force of their time on Edge, and it's the most I've enjoyed Amber on all her time in Survivor.

Who I expect from Edge:

Tyson, Natalie
Rob M, Jeremy, Nick, Parvati
Amber, Sophie
Yul, Danni, Ethan, Kim, Adam
Wendell

Who I want from Edge:

Natalie
Sophie, Yul, Parvati
Kim, Amber, Ethan
Rob, Tyson, Danni, Jeremy
Wendell, Adam, Nick

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I want a Michele win so bad

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Michele winning would be hilarious and great (and it would be so satisfying for the winner of all winners to be someone like Michele), but I would also be happy with a Tony win, because Tony is just an entertaining personality (when not being shoved down our throats like a few episodes ago). Also, if Natalie came back from the Edge and won, I would be fucking ECSTATIC. Sure, she'd be right down with Chris as a terrible winner, gameplay-wise, but I don't care. Gameplay doesn't matter to me.

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Inviso posted...

Michele winning would be hilarious and great (and it would be so satisfying for the winner of all winners to be someone like Michele), but I would also be happy with a Tony win, because Tony is just an entertaining personality (when not being shoved down our throats like a few episodes ago). Also, if Natalie came back from the Edge and won, I would be fucking ECSTATIC. Sure, she'd be right down with Chris as a terrible winner, gameplay-wise, but I don't care. Gameplay doesn't matter to me.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but wouldn't this make your top 2 and bottom 2 winners (gameplay-wise) a Natalie and a Chris?

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Yeah, I mean obviously Tony would be great too.

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Underleveled posted...

Correct me if I'm wrong, but wouldn't this make your top 2 and bottom 2 winners (gameplay-wise) a Natalie and a Chris?

Two Natalies, yes. But it's more of a Chris and a Sarah.

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Meh, I don't even know if I'd have Sarah in my top 5. I'd say it's Chris D, Kim, Todd, Natalie A, and, I dunno, maybe Richard? In no particular order.

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Inviso posted...

Michele winning would be hilarious and great (and it would be so satisfying for the winner of all winners to be someone like Michele)

I mean, Michele specifically would be hilarious and satisfying, since the buzz is that, aside from Brian being an aggressively shit-tier human being IRL (to the point where I almost feel bad saying that because I think he may genuinely be a sociopath), Michele is the producers' least-favorite winner of all-time, yet they were forced to bring her back due to lack of female winners, caused largely by the format changes they put in place specifically to prevent someone like Michele from ever winning again.

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I feel like anyone but Ben can win at this point.

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i think michelle would beat ben but with the other people in the game i don't think she beats anyone else...we do have a returnee though and michelle would likely beat someone like natalie because natalie spent literally one full day in the game and this jury just isn't gonna reward that

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natalie definitely deserves to be the returnee though, she has completely dominated edge and it hasnt been remotely close

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XD XD I love my thoughts sometimes

Friends and I were talking about who we'd like to see come back from the Edge, and I brought up how Sophie beat Ozzy in RI and went on to win.

And then I just thought...

What if Sophie and Yul became best buddies early on because they were swapping stories about how they beat Ozzy.

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Mega Mana posted...

XD XD I love my thoughts sometimes

Friends and I were talking about who we'd like to see come back from the Edge, and I brought up how Sophie beat Ozzy in RI and went on to win.

And then I just thought...

What if Sophie and Yul became best buddies early on because they were swapping stories about how they beat Ozzy.

hah that is great and i never even considered that.

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Inviso: how was Jeremy a drain on the season? he's a pretty engaging and quotable guy, great commentary, love his reactions...?

I was hoping he'd at least make it to the finale but the threat was too strong I guess (even if he was playing from the bottom since the beginning...)

Nick was such an idiot gameplay-wise this episode, oof. Michele having her Shii Ann moment during that challenge was amazing.

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seen the episode but havent caught up

40% tony
30% sarah
20% natalie
10% tyson

imo

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MartinFF7 posted...

Inviso: how was Jeremy a drain on the season? he's a pretty engaging and quotable guy, great commentary, love his reactions...?

I was hoping he'd at least make it to the finale but the threat was too strong I guess (even if he was playing from the bottom since the beginning...)

Jeremy just felt like such a grump, but not the fun kind of grump. There was always an air of "why would these people dare target me?" But as Michele showed in the second half of the episode, there's a way to be fun about that sort of attitude, and Jeremy just didn't have it.

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Theoretically, 19 players are still in contention to win. 19!

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oh, I hate there was no real payoff for the tokens in the main game. it just sort of ended.

14 tokens. 14!

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Inviso posted...

Jeremy just felt like such a grump, but not the fun kind of grump. There was always an air of "why would these people dare target me?" But as Michele showed in the second half of the episode, there's a way to be fun about that sort of attitude, and Jeremy just didn't have it.

Mmm that's true, fair enough.

I could feel his frustration though, like he was nowhere near a power position all game! One glimmer of hope of the possible "big guy alliance" in the merge ep and back to nothing thereafter. Think it's a byproduct of nobody recognizing Sarah and Tony's power, hell even he didn't (or if he did that was left on the cutting room floor by the editors...)

Natalie is definitely looking pretty scary right now, all you have to do is survive 2 tribals to get to fire-making and she'd be guarantee to get through one. And I remember how happy I was when she was voted out in the first ep... that would be great karma if she came back to win in the end. With like, 6 days of being in the game, lol.

nick was an absolute doofus to not get rid of ben

he failed to recognize he was only important for tony when he was a number. as soon as that advantage was lost, he was toast

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I really hope that someone with an idol isn't the returnee, because then we're heading for the possibility of another advantagegeddon.

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well, at least we shouldn't be able to have a cirie voted-out-by-default situation, since there would only be a max of 3 idols and 1 necklace in play

not that only having 2 targets is that much better

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btw whoever said michele is a jury goat at the end is forgetting just how many people who got voted out and immediately gave her their fire tokens are gonna be on that jury. michele has a lot of friends there, and i seem to remember that working out for sandra when russell thought she was similarly goat-ish...

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Naye745 posted...

well, at least we shouldn't be able to have a cirie voted-out-by-default situation, since there would only be a max of 3 idols and 1 necklace in play

not that only having 2 targets is that much better

Not if they all hold onto their idols for one tribal council, which I could see happening if the EoE returnee wins immunity and they all just vote Michele.

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Few thoughts:

I'm getting SERIOUS "We're splitting the 2mil once we get home vibes" from Sarah and Tony. They're great friends IRL, the only pair to play 3 times together, have the cop bond, and Tony literally said "I'd be willing to lose if you win, and no one else." This is of course against the rules, spirit, and integrity of the game so I hope it's not the case but damn the evidence sure is piling up. Sarah should be smart enough to know Tony will beat her, and Tony is definitely smart enough to know Sarah is his #1 competition and yet neither are targeting each other? Hmmm...

Jeremy I wouldn't say is a drain, but I gotta say watching him sit on the same bench, every single episode, every single scene he is in, is exhausting. He's always parked his ass in the same spot and makes people come to him. Occasionally he'll go for a walk, but I find he's always the one sitting and letting people approach him which is never great in Survivor.

Michelle winning would be absolutely fan-fucking-tastic and I hope for this universe. Everyone who goes out is aligned with Michelle it seems, so she has many jury friends. Natalie winning would be next level terrible and would literally ruin the game of Survivor as we know it. I jumped up and cheered when Michelle won that immunity too, what a great moment.

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wg64Z posted...

the only pair to play 3 times together

James and Amanda (they were even on the same starting tribe all three times)
Jerri and Colby

Unless you meant from this season.

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wg64Z posted...

Natalie winning would be next level terrible and would literally ruin the game of Survivor as we know it.

How would it be any worse than Chris U winning?

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wg64Z posted...

Natalie winning would be next level terrible and would literally ruin the game of Survivor as we know it.

So you're saying that, for the good of the franchise, we should be rooting for Natalie to win the season?

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I don't know how the first boot winning because they had the most chances at getting Probstbucks would be good for the franchise, but you do you.

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Mewtwo59 posted...

I don't know how the first boot winning because they had the most chances at getting Probstbucks would be good for the franchise, but you do you.

The more times production's bullshit backfires (Chris Underwood winning EoE) and results in a less-than-satisfying result for the casual fans, the more chance there is of them hopefully learning a lesson and toning down all the twists. It's like how Sophie's win in SoPa saved the franchise from becoming an endless stream of Redemption Island seasons.

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If Chris winning didn't cause them to shelve the edge forever, I don't think Natalie winning will make them tone down the twists. In fact, I think production would be happier with a Natalie win here than Chris U's win.
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https://twitter.com/goofygal1171/status/1258403426276380675?s=19

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Mewtwo59 posted...

If Chris winning didn't cause them to shelve the edge forever, I don't think Natalie winning will make them tone down the twists. In fact, I think production would be happier with a Natalie win here than Chris U's win.

Jeff has already said that Edge is going away for awhile.

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I have no doubt production would prefer a Natalie win to a Chris win. But that doesn't mean they're going to be happy about an Edge winner, particularly if the fans feel so negatively about it.

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The Edge would be more tolerable if (1) people get to keep their fire tokens when sent to the Edge, and (2) the person on the Edge with the most fire tokens at the end automatically gets back into the game.

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I think it will make them add even more twists if this backfires.

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Underleveled posted...

James and Amanda (they were even on the same starting tribe all three times)
Jerri and Colby

Unless you meant from this season.

Yes, I meant in the context of this season. A lot of 2 timers but none were 3 other than them.

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Natalie earned those tokens though. Yes, she was out there the longest, but Amber, Danni, Ethan, and the rest of the pre-20 returnees were out there for a majority of the game and barely had any tokens to share between them. Did she have the most opportunities? Sure. But she also hustled those tokens in the physical portion, the equivalent of winning at least five individual immunities for the solo tasks and all the rewards for group tasks. AND she bested the social portion by targetting players she knew had tokens, and extorting them for soooo much money.

Like, 8 tokens for a disadvantage at the challenge. That's INSANE. And she had to figure who had the tokens, who was on the bottom, whowould pay, and how much they would pay. If Nick doesn't pay for that EIGHT TOKEN, Natalie only has 6. Hell, anyone who found it first may have had eight, or much less because they could've targetted someone who wasn't going to pay or their asking price would be a lot lower.

It's not because Natalie was out there first (though that helped for getting lay of the land). Natalie out there first should actually have been a disadvantage with how little they eat every day: look at Danni, Ethan, and Amber. But Natalie is insane. She should theoretically be on the verge and lacking all energy, but she's a goddess. Like, it's insane how she's lapping EVERYONE no matter if they got there last night or a few days after her. Only Wendell compared in the last Edge challenge physically, but mentally Natalie edged him.

I'd argue Natalie's run on Edge of Extinction is as anomalous as Brock Lesnar's domination of this year's Royal Rumble. Not everyone who starts out first in these things ends up making it far, but it's unlikely anyone else would be so dominant from a starting position.

So I'm sick of Natalie's advantage was being first out arguments. No. Natalie's advantage was being Natalie.

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edge is dumb

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Edge is dumb but I appreciate the extra Natalie screentime because losing her first would've been even more devastating.

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Also, Chris winning was probably not too bad since I assume production hated Julie/Gavin and they got to bring back Rick whom they clearly loved. Worth it. But Natalie beating Tony would probably make them want to set the island on fire, lol.

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Mega Mana posted...

Natalie earned those tokens though. Yes, she was out there the longest, but Amber, Danni, Ethan, and the rest of the pre-20 returnees were out there for a majority of the game and barely had any tokens to share between them. Did she have the most opportunities? Sure. But she also hustled those tokens in the physical portion, the equivalent of winning at least five individual immunities for the solo tasks and all the rewards for group tasks. AND she bested the social portion by targetting players she knew had tokens, and extorting them for soooo much money.

Like, 8 tokens for a disadvantage at the challenge. That's INSANE. And she had to figure who had the tokens, who was on the bottom, whowould pay, and how much they would pay. If Nick doesn't pay for that EIGHT TOKEN, Natalie only has 6. Hell, anyone who found it first may have had eight, or much less because they could've targetted someone who wasn't going to pay or their asking price would be a lot lower.

It's not because Natalie was out there first (though that helped for getting lay of the land). Natalie out there first should actually have been a disadvantage with how little they eat every day: look at Danni, Ethan, and Amber. But Natalie is insane. She should theoretically be on the verge and lacking all energy, but she's a goddess. Like, it's insane how she's lapping EVERYONE no matter if they got there last night or a few days after her. Only Wendell compared in the last Edge challenge physically, but mentally Natalie edged him.

I'd argue Natalie's run on Edge of Extinction is as anomalous as Brock Lesnar's domination of this year's Royal Rumble. Not everyone who starts out first in these things ends up making it far, but it's unlikely anyone else would be so dominant from a starting position.

So I'm sick of Natalie's advantage was being first out arguments. No. Natalie's advantage was being Natalie.

natalie's main advantage is that she hasn't had to play survivor at all this season. i think she is likely to win her way back in the game and she has definitely been the best at the edge but has not had to deal with actually playing the game at all this season. i think on some other seasons she would have a legit chance to win which would be brutal but i don't see any way this jury would give her the win over someone like tony or sarah who have dominated every aspect of the game

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I can't believe it's only been a year and I can't even fucking remember Gavin. Or Victoria.

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victoria got such a shaft by the edit, it's unreal

if she miraculously came back again i could see her pulling a wentworth tbqh

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victoria was a great player and would have won had she made it to the end and that would have redeemed the season

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