Survivor Kaoh Rong Finale Thoughts!

How fitting that my last blog post was about the Season 32 premiere and now I am talking about the finale. 

Time flies when it comes to Survivor, and these castaways delivered a pretty solid season. Following up a pretty excellent season of Cambodia, it held it's own. Although not it's not better than Cagayan, this sequel to Brains, Brawn, Beauty was a pretty solid season. It had memorable characters, decent gameplay, and big new twists. 

First things first: Cydney. She joined the ranks of Rob Cesternino, Terry Deitz, Cirie Fields, Kelley Wentworth etc., to make it so close, to play an almost perfect game, and get yanked out last second. But that's the game. Hopefully, on her second chance, she falls in the Wentworth and Cirie category. Rob and Terry didn't have too much luck. (And on her third time, hopefully it's not a Cirie category.)

Anyway, back to the finale. 

Reasons for why each player deserved to win. 

Tai: He was a genuinely nice person. He made some very stupid moves in his game, but it got him to the finals. His work around camp would gain some respect in the jury, but I don't think his game was strong enough to win.

 Aubry: In my opinion, Aubry's game was a lot easier than she let on. She had not one, but two extra votes. Neal and Joe were her tight alliance and when Neal left, she had Joe. So while Tai had his extra vote once, she was carrying a person as an extra vote. That's pretty good to me. But she did manipulate and I give her kudos for that. Without her manipulation of Tai, the final three may have been Jason, Scot and Tai. (Not complaining there; sorry. I'm #TeamJason) Anyway, her social game is what screwed her in the end. She did not make bonds with anyone that wasn't in her original tribe, and that's the only two that voted for her. She alienated Jason and Scot, which is two jury votes. So ultimately, Neal's cancelled vote for Aubry wouldn't have even mattered. She still played a hell of a game.

Michele:

Poor Michele. She didn't get an edit until the editors realized she was the winner half way through the season. Her social game was insane. She was able to make alliances and keep them. She made genuine friendships with these people and it shows not only on the TV, but on social media as well. That game is so underrated. She not only kept tabs on the jury, but played a killer physical game as well, taking home multiple immunities and rewards. I think her game is underrated and as Nick said, "The jury loves and underdog."

Michele's Win:

I can compare Michele to a female Fabio Birza, Season 21, Nicaragua. Fabio played a quiet game, and played when he needed to play. I love Fabio and I love his win. Michele similarly stayed at the radar and played when she needed to. I think it is important to see past an edit and realize that there is more that meets the eye than some confessionals. Because Aubry had a story arc and everything. Michele got screentime at the end. 

The Finale

Not the best. The interruption of Sia was fun, until it got dragggggedddd onnnnnn. I wanted to hear Cydney talk! and Neal! and freaking Darnell! Come on Jeff! As much as an amazing person Tai is, I saw a lot of him, and I guarantee we'll see more so mind as well give the people who will probably never play again a chance to speak. Then the Price is Right plug in with the Dr. Joe... I saw maybe 3-4 commercials about the Survivor Price is Right show before Jeff addressed it at the finale so that was unnecessary. Also, Dr. Joe had plenty of screen time with the medivacs this season. OK rant done. 

Anyway, congrats to Michele. She DID deserve it. No one was robbed. Aubry just didn't have jury management. 

I cannot wait for Gen X vs. Millennials.Rooting for Zeke as an early favorite. 

Anyway, 

These are my opinions and I welcome you to express yours as well!

That's all from me!
The Tribe has spoken,
-TropicalReviews

Contact:
Email: tropicalreviews123@gmail.com
Twitter: @Survivor_Outwit

Survivor Kaoh Rong: Episode 1 Reactions

Hey Survivor Fans! I apologize for not posting in forever. School has been getting rough and I am struggling to find time for everyday things. But with a new Survivor season starting up, I have somehow managed to get an extra hour of my Wednesday nights.
So without further ado, here is my analysis of Survivor: Kaoh Rong Episode 1.
*Contains Spoilers*

So we get the opening shot of the castaways getting the supplies off the boat, etc. Right off the bat we see the tribes interacting.
The Brawn tribe is my favorite tribe. I really like Kyle/Jason's attitude saying "I just want my paycheck, and you're my paycheck."
Scot is also a favorite. I was not expecting him to play as strong as he came out playing.
Cydney is alright. Not much strategy going on, but whatever works for her is good. She seems like the type that likes to keep the strong in and we've seen that attitude with Coach in Tocantins and we all know how that turned out.
Jennifer is good. She seems to be solid with Jason and Scot so she should be fine for a couple more days until the tribe switch.
Darnell was one of my favs. He seemed like he had a good shot at going far. I was mistaken
As for Alecia, oh geesh. I felt bad for her because they judged her hardcore for looking weak, but us Survivor fans know her background. But when Jason asks her, trying to save her, "Do you have an idol?" and she responds "Maybe I do maybe I don't." She has zero social game.

The brain tribe is frustrating to watch. They already have a boot list. Joe then Debbie. Seasons like Redemption Island, South Pacific, One World and Caramoan that have a boot list are boring to watch. It is an easy way to get to the million and I'm not bashing any players from that season, but watching a tribal council and knowing who is going home is never fun.
Seasons like the first Brain, Brawn, Beauty (S28), where the boot list is unpredictable, are excellent seasons. Hopefully the brain tribe doesn't play it safe and grows a pair.

The beauty tribe is strange. They begin divided boys vs. girls and as soon as Tai goes to look for that idol, it's all of them vs. Tai. I know Tai is a lot of people's favorite player this season because he is such a wonderful person, but as a Survivor player, I don't know. Based on what the edit showed,Tai had no way to look for that idol without being caught and he did it anyway. I was not very smart and I worry about his future in the game.

Fast forward to Tribal and Darnell gets sent home. I do think they voted out Darnell for strategic reasons. He did make a good point that Alecia didn't do anything during the challenge so it wasn't for physical reasons.
The positives of having Alecia around is she is predictable. She is like the Abi-Maria of this season. They keep her because if you can have her on your side, she is an extra vote. Darnell is going to be a threat in the future. He has a sob story and it is a strong one. He almost flipped Jennifer to be vote with him. So Darnell is not like every other first boot that is voted off for being weak. He was a threat and Jason and Scot took advantage of that. As much as I hate to see him go, if I was in the game with Darnell, I would want to have someone I know I can beat with me than someone who has a powerful story. Also the Tribes of three last for a short time, so getting rid of a strong person early can easily benefit you in the long run.

Thanks for reading! If you want to discuss your picks, feel free to contact me!

Contact:
Email: tropicalreviews123@gmail.com
Twitter: @Survivor_Outwit

That's all from me!
The Tribe has spoken,
-TropicalReviews

Player Profile: Russell Hantz

*Disclaimer: These are my opinions and I encourage you to contact me to discuss your views*
I promised a Player Profile for Russell Hantz and here it is.
I'll try not to sound too much like I'm praising the guy because I know a lot of people hate him.
As I said in my blog, My Survivor Story: A Fan is Born, that Russell Hantz is the reason I got hooked on Survivor so he does have a special place in my nostalgic heart. But that doesn't mean that I don't see any flaws in him. So without further ado, here is the Player Profile of Russell Hantz.

Samoa:
We first saw Russell hit the beach in Samoa. As a viewer, we've seen games evolve gradually throughout the game. Day 1 Russell Hantz said he was going to play a certain way and he did. He was the first person ever to look for an immunity idol without a clue. Everyone else planned on playing a classic game of Survivor and he ruined their plans by manipulating every single one of them.
He said whatever and didn't care what people thought, because he knew if people cared, they were out. And that strategy worked. However, he was sexist and that is something I don't agree with, but it worked.
Side Note: I appreciate the strategic side of the game and how people play the game rather then if they're nice to people or not. But in cases like J.T., Danni, or Fabio, with it being part of their strategy, I appreciate it more.
I think the highlight of that season was how Russell Hantz took his Foa Foa four all the way to the final 5 (with the help of Natalie). But he was the one making the daring moves. He found the idols that sent Kelly home and kept him safe. He was the one that got Shambo on his side to help with the numbers. Natalie played a major role in getting out Erik and kind of sat back for the rest of the merge.
At final tribal, his social game was trashed. He lost due to a bitter jury because they all got outplayed by the minority tribe. Clearly, he played a bit of a social game by receiving a vote from Shambo and John Fincher. Erik's reasoning for voting for Natalie was she grew as a person. She killed a rat. I thought that was a long shot to vote for her, but it worked, and she won. Admittedly, on the second watch of Samoa, her win was justified, but I think Russell deserved more credit.

Heroes vs. Villains:
I didn't realize when I first watched this that no other contestant had seen Russell's game and it takes away from his domination in the game.
There is a positive Russell and a negative Russell in this season.
Positive: If Russell played the game like he played the pre-merge, he may have had a better shot at winning. People say that Russell has NO social game. I beg to differ. One of the BEST social plays EVER in Survivor was Russell convincing Tyson to switch his vote for Parvati. That was a stroke of genius and I think this justifies his social game.
Negative: Come the merge, Russell's game collapsed. This is when Parvati's game took over and what should've given her the sole-survivor title. (That's another blog for another day).
He played idols he didn't need to, he made lies he didn't have to, and he voted out Danielle, which maybe cost him the game. So, for Heroes vs. Villains, I think his Pre-Merge game is a masterpiece, and his Post-Merge is the fall of Russell.

Redemption Island:
This is where I questioned Russell's game. Before, he was one of the greatest players to ever play the game. This, for me, was questioned when he came back and said, "I'm going to play the exact same as the first two times because it worked."
Well, Mr. Hantz, it worked the first time I'll give you that. The second time it worked because they've never seen you play before. This third time he played with people who knew his game and ultimately he was voted out so early, which led Redemption Island to being one of the worst seasons because of the lack of strategy Russell would've brought to the game (again, another blog for another day.)

Overview:
Russell's early game was legendary. Throughout the years however, the edits changed from  a confident asshole who knew he was an ass and was good at the game, to an overconfident asshole who was just an ass because he is caught up in his past games.

I think Russell needs to be appreciated because he changed Survivor. That's my argument. But I understand if readers disagree with me because of his attitude towards other contestants, women, and just the natural evilness he brings to the game of Survivor.
But in the words of Abi-Maria, "Villains have more fun."

If you have any suggestions on who to do a player profile on next, contact me.

Thanks for reading,
The tribe has spoken,
-TropicalReviews

Contact:
Email: tropicalreviews123@gmail.com
Twitter: @Survivor_Outwit

Top 10 PreJury Second Chance Picks (Male)

Hey Survivor Fans!
I've been working on two blogs recently, one is a Player Profile of a contestant and the other is this Top 10 list.

Since Second Chance, I've noticed the Survivor community likes to make lists of their opinion of players who need a second chance. I decided to do the same thing, but I narrowed it down to
The Top Ten Male Players with Pre-Jury Boots who deserve a second chance.
I started with a list of 23 and narrowed it down to 13. I gave three guys the honorable mention spots and the Top 10 list is ready to go. So without further ado, Here are the Top 10 Pre-Jury Boots Who Deserve a Second Chance (Male Edition).

Honorable Mention
Hunter Ellis: Season 4 Marquesas 14th/16

Hunter was one of the few people in the early seasons who not only went out for an adventure, but also wanted to play the game. He painted himself as the leader and his tribe respected him until an early Boston Rob Mariano turned a majority of the tribe against his alliance. If he was on a successful tribe to start with, Hunter could make it pretty deep into the game. He was too early of an exit in too early of a season to decide for sure if it would be worth putting in the top 10.

Brandon Bellinger: Season 11 Guatemala 10th/18
 
Brandon was unfortunate enough to be on a loosing tribe come the merge. When I watch I like to see contestants want to play and want to be there. I could see that in Brandon. There wasn't much strategy to his game but I would like to think with a second go, he would develop a better strategy.

Mark "Papa Bear" Caruso: Season 23 South Pacific 17th/18

As said before in Brandon's explanation, I like the contestants with a drive to play the game. Being one of the oldest player on his tribe, Papa Bear knew his days were numbered when his tribe lost their second immunity challenge. So he made a fake idol. He played it off perfectly, and in a season without returning players like Ozzy Lusth, he may have gotten away with it. I'd like to see a second go, but he'd need a good winning tribe to make it to the merge to really do damage.

Now for the Top 10

10) Anthony Robinson: Season 14 Fiji 13th/19

Fiji was a difficult season for some contestants. Half the contestants were basically dying due to the Have/Have Not twist which led to a basic "who's the weakest" strategy on the "have not" tribe and basically no strategy on the "have" tribe because they never had to. This continued to the merge. If Anthony hadn't been picked to be on the "have not" team at the tribe switch, he may be in the finals instead of Dreamz or Cassandra. He had a game going with Earl, but once separated he had no chance in the "bro" tribe. I'd like to see him in a fair season, where both tribes were living equally and see how his game play evolves from the basic game play in Fiji.

9) John Cody: Season 27 Blood vs. Water 13th/20
  
John Cody played in the first season of Blood vs. Water and he did alright. He began the game in a good position. Candice, his wife, was on Redemption Island and gave him a clue. Like most Survivor games before, he kept it to himself and shared bits of information with his alliance. Without Brad Culpepper, he may have made it far in the game, being tough competition against the veterans. He proved his physical prowess on Redemption, falling just short of getting back into the game. If John got a second chance, I think he could make it far. Possibly final five or four and he'd have to win final immunity to get in front of the jury.

8) Aaron Reisberger: Season 15 China 12th/16

Aaron had the Silas Gaither curse of an unfair tribe swap. He was chosen to go to the opposite tribe with just James as an ally. He had a comfortable alliance with Todd and Amanda back on his original tribe. His vote out episode was heartbreaking, at least for he. I felt so bad for him. He is one of the players that want to play the game and he gets taken out because his tribe threw a challenge. Granted, throwing the challenge was brilliant if it worked the way it was intended, but it didn't and Aaron is left to think of what could've been.

7) Joel Anderson: Season 16 Micronesia 16th/20

Joel ran the fans side of the game. He noticed that there was a "showmance" going on between Mikey B and Mary and quickly split that up. His game was overshadowed by the favorites game play. He was playing with a bunch of people who, in my opinion, were scared to play with returning players. He got risky in making an alliance with the favorites and that was his downfall.

6) Brice Johnston: Season 28 Cagayan 16th/18

Brice's vote out was due to the fact that there was only six people on a tribe. He is one of those early vote outs that was booted for the fact that he was a threat. He got too close with the girls and this led to his downfall. I would like to see a second round of Brice. He was good TV and was a pretty strategic player that left too soon.

5) Ace Gordon: Season 17 Gabon 12th/18

Ace appears on a lot of second chance lists and I can see why. He was aggressive and got too confident. The underdogs took him down. I didn't put him as high as some people usually do because if he did get a second chance, I feel he would play to aggressive again. He wouldn't have that Sugar to manipulate because the majority of contestants know when they are being played. (No offense to Sugar, I will do a player profile on her later) Anyway, Ace would be fun to see again.

4) Cao Boi Bui: Season 13 Cook Islands 15th/20

Cao Boi! He is such an underrated player. If you're watching Survivor today and you hear the idea of flushing the idol, Cao Boi came up with that. His downfall was he told Yul, the person with the idol. Cao Boi deserves a second chance to be able to play the game! His personality is crazy. He was great TV. And he had game. I need to see him again.

3) Brad Culpepper: Season 27 Blood vs. Water 15th/20

Brad was in the running to be in Season 31 Cambodia. I voted for him a couple times. I rewatched his season and holy crap he ran that premerge. He came up with voting out the loved ones of the strong players on the veterans team, hoping they would switch with them at Redemption. If it was a regular season without veterans, Brad would have been in control 100%. His downfall was voting out John Cody because this made him look untrustworthy. I wish he was on Cambodia so I can see his personality and his strategy evolve.

2) Silas Gaither: Season 3 Africa 12th/16

Silas was screwed. Plain and simple. He took part in the first tribe switch ever and he had no alliance members. He had a great position in his tribe and Survivor's twist messed him up. I know Silas makes almost all the Second Chance lists, and this one is no different. He is much older now and I think his game play will evolve from his already really good strategy.

1) Brian Corridan: Season 11 Guatemala 12th/18

I enjoy strategic games more than social games. But when there is a great social play, I think it's amazing. Brian manipulation of Blake is pure gold. Brian came into a tribe where he had no numbers and in order to stay, he made Blake seem so annoying that his teammates voted him out. It was great. Brian did nothing wrong in his game. It was an unfortunate swap and it didn't work in his favor.


Thanks for reading! If you want to discuss your picks, feel free to contact me!

Contact:
Email: tropicalreviews123@gmail.com
Twitter: @Survivor_Outwit

That's all from me!
The Tribe has spoken,
-TropicalReviews

My Survivor Story: A Fan is Born

In this blog post, I'll be sharing my introduction into the Survivor world, as suggested by a fellow Survivor fan.

It all started with Tocantins. I walked into the TV room of my house to catch my parents watching Season 18 of Tocantins and I joined them. I was intrigued by Stephen Fishbach being "the wizard" and Coach Wade being the "dragon slayer." And JT in all his awesomeness. I had no idea what was going on but I knew I liked it.

When Samoa came around, it was amazing and Russell Hantz was a big part of that. Love him or hate him, he drew me into Survivor and I owe him that. The way he played the idols and the way he, with the help of Natalie White, maneuvered the Foa Foa Four to the final five. I thought that was amazing and I was hooked. I can do a more in depth analysis of Russell Hantz, but I'll save that for a later blog. And Natalie White if that is requested.

With the end of Samoa came the start of Heroes vs Villains.
I had absolutely no idea who these people were except Russell, Tyson, Coach, and JT, and I could not wait to find out who they were.
Season 20 was my introduction to Tom, James, Boston Rob, Rupert, Courtney, Amanda, and Parvati.

Again, Russell with his manipulation and game play were the key points to keep me intrigued in the show, so again, I have to thank Mr. Hantz for making me a Survivor fan, but again, I will go into that in another blog.

After Heroes vs. Villains, I was determined to find out who these other contestants were and where they came from so I began my Survivor journey.

I had no access to anything except live TV so I was getting my Survivor from the live shows, and it was rough.
I watched Nicaragua all the way, but then I didn't watch a full season until Philippines. I was frustrated with the lack of gameplay in Redemption Island. I just got behind in South Pacific and didn't finish it. And One World was so frustrating and quit watching before Kim's game unraveled.

It was earlier this year I was able to watch past Survivor season on Amazon Prime. I have seen every single season at least once.
And here I am today. I am a super fan that can name every contestant in every season. I may not have started day 1 in Borneo, but I love the same game that all you wonderful fans love. I live and breath Survivor.
Thanks for reading and I can't wait for more blog posts.
The Tribe has spoken
     -TropicalReviews

Contact
Email: tropicalreviews123@gmail.com
Twitter: @Survivor_Outwit

The Classic Pilot Episode

Greetings Internet,
My user name is TropicalReviews and I run a Twitter page by the name of Survivor Tweets. My @ is @Survivor_Outwit.

Now that the introductions have been made I am here to share my thoughts and opinions on basically anything Survivor related. If anyone has any suggestions or wants me to write about anything, feel free to email me at tropicalreviews123@gmail.com or Direct Message me on Twitter under on my account @Survivor_Outwit.

Thanks for reading this first introduction post. I can't wait to share my thoughts and discuss with the greatest fanbase on the internet.

That's all for me,
The tribe has spoken,
   -TropicalReviews