Alas, another season has come to an end. Fellow super fan, Julian Groneberg, joins me to reflect on the finale and the season as a whole. This is the first time I’ve felt a bit off about a season. It has been enjoyable, especially the latter half, but in the weirdest way. Hmm…
IDOLS, ADVANTAGES & TWISTS
Firstly, let’s have a look back at all the idols in the game: Chrissy was given a secret idol by Ryan (I was so surprised it took her that long to use it as a fake idol!). Joe played two idols. Mike played one idol. Ryan played one idol. Lauren found and gave half of her idol away (sacrilege!!). Ben played three idols. Then there were the advantages, which Jessica, Lauren, and Devon all found/played. I can’t remember if there were more, but that’s over 12 idols/advantages used in 14 episodes, so almost one per episode! It’s just becoming ridiculous (I’m still not over the Cirie boot in Game Changers!). And I haven’t even brought up the final four ‘advantage’ Chrissy was given either. Ever since MvGX, the introduction of ‘secret advantages’ has been the norm and it is fun to watch here and there, but when it’s every episode it starts to become tiresome. I understand producers want entertainment, but maybe they should be looking at casting over props. If this is what they are going for, then kudos to them; their antics have people talking which is what they want. The show will just keep looking more fabricated as seasons go by, and we will just have to get used to it, or stop watching (NEVER!!)
This also ties in with much talk about ‘production interference’, which has been a controversial topic since the finale aired. The F4 Fire Challenge has always been a winner, when not forced upon the contestants… Were these twists and ‘easy-to-find’ idols really a ploy to keep Ben around? Americans love their servicemen and praise them whenever they can, and it seems CBS were on this bandwagon thinking someone like Ben would be the perfect person to crown, so never mind the integrity of the game, right? Were they over young kids like Michele, Adam or police/firefighters like Sarah and Tony winning and needing a TRUE hero? #RIGGED It’s not like this would be the first time viewers have spoken up about ‘producer twists’ screwing over people’s games; Cook Islands’ Jenny, Michelle and Sylvia in Fiji, Cirie in Micronesia, but they were all kicked out, whereas Ben was given lifelines to stay in the game (and blatantly obvious ones). I mean, we could argue Rob Mariano was helped by putting him on a tribe of total noobs (bar Franny), but I won’t go into that in fear of being stoned by B-Rob fans. In light of all the above, I truly do believe whoever wins Survivor deserves it. Totally in the minority, but unfortunately this is what Survivor has become. They want to help those awesome players who go in 4th place? Go ahead. We can huff and puff about it, but reality is we’ll keep watching regardless and there are plenty of people who will air their opinions so I’m gonna stop contributing to the complaints and enjoy the Survivor roller-coaster while it lasts…
JURY/FINAL TRIBAL COUNCIL
Healers: Desi 11th, Cole 10th, Joe 8th, Mike 5th
Heroes: JP 9th, Ashley 6th
Hustlers: Lauren 7th, Devon 4th
Congrats to the Healers for contributing to the majority of the Jury and overall latter half the game. And the biggest congrats to DESI for looking HOT AF! (MARRY ME!)
They other tribes got it right that the Healers were the biggest threats! But I think the Hustlers who made it to the end should be given so much credit, especially Ryan and Devon who stuck together and worked their way to the top.
Looking at Dr Mike, he really lost his way after losing all his Healers and was banking on the ‘majority’ alliance to implode, which it did for the most part! Being a swing vote after Joe left, he really did struggle fitting in with the Chrissy/Ryan/Devon leadership and was seen as an easy vote out if it couldn’t be Ben. Dr Mike was likeable, had a good social game for the most part, but obviously couldn’t break the bonds of the Heroes and Hustlers. I do wonder if the Jury would’ve rewarded him in the end as he says he would have won. Could’ve been a close one!
Watch Mike’s Ponderosa HERE
To Devon!! Probably the most likeable guy amongst viewers and what’s not to love!? Handsome, intelligent and humble, Devon was the whole package, albeit being a little bit boring to watch (don’t hate me Annabel). He swung his hips for us, so I’ll give him that.
Devon was subtle and methodical in his thought process throughout the game and managed to maintain his alliance with Ryan and Chrissy, and sub-alliances with Lauren and Ashley so well without being too much of a threat. It was amazing to see so many ‘alpha’ type males make it so far in the game, showing it IS possible! Just don’t act like Alan Ball! Devon was willing to play with anyone, even Ben; he never closed his options, which is where I think Chrissy and Ryan’s downfall was. This to me made Devon the biggest threat in the game, and it was so devastating to see him being the one screwed over most in the Final 4 as I truly think he would have won this game (over Chrissy and Ryan). It sucks being taken out by a twist, but hey, Devon should’ve made that bloody fire!!!
Watch Devon’s Ponderosa HERE
RYAN 3rd Place, 1 Vote – Hustler
Ryan, oh Ryan. He started the game off SO WELL. Then post-merge, WHAT HAPPENED?! Yes, he secured a magnificent alliance with the two best people he could have chosen. His social game was really top notch to begin with, but then he became almost non-existent. He did find an idol, and played it incorrectly. That aside, I feel that he felt a little TOO safe in Chrissy’s arms. So yes, Ryan started the whole alliance, but it’s what you do with it which gets you the votes and I feel his lack of explanations at Final Tribal sealed the deal on why he received one vote. You could almost argue Chrissy dragged him to the end after taking him to F3 because he was a non-threat. You could see Ryan was devo in how he finished the game, but making it to the F3 is fucking amazing and as a super fan he should be proud. He definitely wasn’t a goat, he just couldn’t execute the game the way he planned.
CHRISSY 2nd Place, 2 Votes – Hero
Best. Tribal. Council. Speech. Ever. Well, it has to be up in my Top 5! Well executed, well explained and she sold the fuck out of herself! But did the Jury buy it? Two did. The woman won FOUR immunity challenges to get herself to the end, and this is no mean feat! And I LOVE that she was a 40+ year old kicking ass against the 20-somethings. I know that audience mum Probst interviewed during the finale was hell annoying, but she was right, Chrissy is an inspiration to all the ‘older’ women who’ve played or dare to play Survivor! Chrissy chose well to stick with Ryan all the way to the end. Game-wise, she made all the right decisions and she was amazingly sassy to watch. But how she spoke to other tribe-mates was maybe less-desirable. I mean, I bet she really is a cool mum at home. She’s not a stupid lady at all, she knew she could receive more votes over Ryan than Devon and he was her sacrificial lamb against Ben. Unfortunately for her, the Jury had already made up their minds about her. She could say anything she wanted about their families at FTC, but I do think it was a done deal. Even Joe (Mena) tweeted that Chrissy pulled out his family/marriage story out of thin air! There were some scenes during the season that made me think she seemed fake whilst talking to others. It’s a game, but don’t make it obvious! Overall, by the end of FTC, I actually switched wanting Ben to win, to Chrissy. She just killed it with her speeches. Alas, it wasn’t enough. But hey, at least it was a close vote!
BEN 1st Place, 5 Votes – Hero
Ah Ben; my pre-season winner pick (even though I eye-rolled at them casting a Marine); my Bigfoot Boo. SO HAPPY FOR YOU!!! Not many people gave a toss about Ben prior to the season, but he was my fuzzy wuzzy bear I was rooting for and the further along he made it, the more I fell for the Hero-turned-Villain! Say what you will, but this guy had so much determination and when his back was against the wall, he found those producer-planted idols and he produced some fantastic moments at Tribal Council. Ben knew when to keep his mouth shut, unlike all his other tribe mates who told every single person about their hidden idols or secret advantages, and this is where Ben soared. He used people’s information against them and their alliances and mastered putting targets on others backs when he was the next to go. IF the rumours are true that producers helped him along, well yeah, obviously that sucks, but hello, it’s not like (Russel) Hantz didn’t find multiple idols in Samoa/HvV, you think producers would’ve wanted him gone early!? I’m not saying I agree with outside forces messing with the game (let’s be honest, if I were in the game I’d be pissed as hell), but let’s not take away the great things Ben did to get to the end. He made that fire fair and square and showed the Jury, who found idol plays more impressive than immunity wins (poor Chrissy), that he should be Sole Survivor. So all the congrats to Ben!!
THE REUNION
Well that was a bit of a piss poor effort, eh? At least all the contestants got to dress up and sit on stage right? :/ With characters like Joe, Ali, and even Patrick it would’ve been nice to hear from a few more; Lauren spoke for them all! A lot of people have said it ranks below Caramoan, but remember they sat in the audience AND didn’t get to say a word. At least this cast got to sit on stage without saying a word… HA! And what was with the ‘fans of XXX’ in the audience? That was weird AF. So now they are casting for audience members. Overall it was very lack lustre and probably a ploy to avoid any questions about ‘production interference’ with Ben winning, and also to heavily promote S36 Ghost Island, which looks very intriguing! I’ll happily watch Eliza and Jason’s “It’s a fucking stick” scene over and over…
HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE!! Thanks to anyone who has checked out a blog in 2017, you guys are my favorites 😉 Special thanks to all my guests: Phoebe Timmins, Craig I’Anson, Willow MacDonald, Jessica Lewis, Dale Wentworth, Andrew Torrens, Matt Bischoff, Eliza Orlins, Barb Raos, Kylie Evans, Billy Garcia and Ami Cusack! And an even bigger thanks to my contributors, Brissy boy Julian Groneberg, Kiwi bruh Simon Knyvett, and my Spicy Melbournian, Annabel Fidler! You’re all amazing <3
SURVIVOR JULIAN’S THOUGHTS
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One thing you definitely can’t say about Survivor’s 35th season finale was that it was boring. With idols, advantages and a new final four twist, it was anything but a conventional run to the end. But no matter how action packed, the whole season doesn’t sit right with me because of a twist that changed the fundamental game that the players thought they were playing.
Chrissy winning the final immunity and having the ‘advantage’ of being able to choose one person to take to the end with her really wasn’t an advantage at all, as it meant that she, and her alliance lost the ability to vote and thus control who they would sit next to at the end. There’s no doubt that Ben would have gone home at the final four, leaving Chrissy and Devon, in my opinion with an equal chance against one another to win the season.
But because of this twist, in the dying days of the game, that they were never made aware of, they lost their ability to take out a threat. Had the players of Survivor HHH known about the twist from the beginning of the game, they most certainly would have voted out Ben earlier, and that is my main problem with this twist. It gave one player who was going to be voted out a massive advantage and new life in the game, while being inherently unfair for the others.
As much as Ben should be applauded for his dogged determination to find idols, there are just too many idols to find in the first place. In my opinion, Survivor is primarily a game that belies your ability to make it to the end based on your social connections and your alliances, not your ability to find idols and save yourself. If that is where the producers want to take the show, why not just call it “THE GREAT IDOL HUNT”.
I have no problems with hidden immunity idols in the game, but when it gets to the point of idols being found and played almost every episode to change the natural course of how it would play out otherwise, it becomes a little much. To be clear, I’d be saying the same thing about anyone who found so many idols, not just Ben, while also congratulating them for their determination in keeping themselves in the game.
Ben no doubt played a really great game, from building solid alliances with the Healers, and the Heroes and going undercover as a double agent. He was likeable, hardworking and had strong instincts about who to trust and who not to trust, but unfortunately for him, this new twist puts a massive question mark over his win, and makes me question Ben as a winner in a way I’ve never questioned any of the other sole survivors. It’s not his fault, but it really end up making the season leave a sour taste on the whole season.
Even thought the season had an exciting finish, and enjoyable episodes towards the end, with a fun cast of individuals, the whole show’s pacing felt off to me this year. The whole HHH theme didn’t work particularly well and the advantages were just too many. Ghost Island can only improve upon the 35th outing of the show, and I’m so excited for the theme of Ghost Island in a way the pre-season of a season called Heroes, vs Healers vs Hustlers never could.
JULIAN’S TOP 3 MOMENTS OF THE SURVIVOR HHH FINALE
- Chrissy’s final tribal council performance. I was off Chrissy for much of the season, but she really slayed the FTC with her narrative about mums being the everyday heroes. She concisely tied in how the was also a healer and a hustler as a mum, and won my respect through being an older woman and dominating in challenges. The fact she could demonstrate her listening skills and how she got to know her cast mates was also impressive AF.
- The Final Immunity Challenge. Suspensful. Heartwrenching. When the stakes are so high, these kind of challenges that can go any way are always a joy to watch. The upside down U and the glory of Chrissy winning juxtaposed with the heartbreak of Ben realising he’s lost his shot at the final tribal council.. Or so they all thought. Whichever way you look at it, it was great drama.
- Ben Bombs. Knowing Ben has ANOTHER idol the players didn’t know about, while Chrissy thinking she has fooled Ben with her fake idol made for great TV as he pulled out the idol and their faces dropped. As much as I think there were too many idols to be found, I’ll never deny they often make good TV moments.
Blog by Lynda Olson. Guest writers; Julian Groneberg.
ALL IMAGES USED IN THIS ARTICLE ARE COPYRIGHT CBS. THIS IS A PERSONAL BLOG AND ALL GIFS AND VIEWS ARE MY OWN.
