May 10, 2004Survivor All-Stars Notes - Ep #16[Complete set of my Survivor All Star Notes] Posted after Ep #16, May 9, 2004. This post, and its comments, may contain spoilers.... Notes written while watching the episode: Watching the "previously on Survivor", they recapped the whole season, and some of this stuff seemed like it happend SO LONG AGO. It's been a long season. Right at the start of the ep. R&A tell Jenna she HAS to vote with them and get rid of Rupert. >> The Final Four Feast. They gave them a Polaroid camera to play with. This didn't seem to be your usual, in-your-face, Survivor product placment, but I can't help thinking that this will boost Polaroid camera sales in the future. In fear of the "purple rock" >> Maze-Ladder Immunity Challenge... remember that Rob is very good at puzzles... it's much more even than I would have expected... Amber wins Immunity! Her first ever they say. This was unexpected. An aside: Are the commercials always this long? I usually watch the recording later, so I can FF through the ads. But tonite I'm watching it "live". They seem really long. Jenna agonizes over whether to be loyal to Rupert and risk the randomness of the tie-breaker, or to turn on him and guarantee herself into the final 3? In the end she choses to take her best shot at the money, and votes Rupert off. He's gone. We're all still waiting to see what is the "big surprise" they've been promising. They take the walk of the fallen survivors. Like most people I always dread this segment as a schmaltzy yawner. But it was OK tonite. I think the editors found just the right mix of reminding us of something endearing, or goofy, or touching, about the person who is gone. It wasn't too long this time too. >> 3-Some Endurance Immunity... this one is a Survivor classic... After two-plus hours, Jenna unconsiously lifts her foot, and she's out... I though that now R&A would give-in, 'cause they would each take the other to final two, but instead they get into a little pissing match over, "you go", "no, you go". Even though they both say out loud that they will take the other to the final two, they try to beat each other. In the end Amber makes a mistake and touches the pole with her free hand. Rob wins Immunity and controls the final two. But will Rob really take Amber? Is THIS the shocker they've promised? Will Rob turn on Amber and take Jenna to final TC? Jenna feels that she's obviously out, that Rob will pick Amber. Amber says she's nervous. Rob gives a great private speech to the camera talking about how he's torn between staying loyal to Amber, or making a move that will put him in the best place to win the million, and what he'd look like if he betrays the last friend he has, in order to win. >> Tribal Council Lex's eye-rolling disgust is so old. Enough! Amber campaigning for Rob to stay loyal. "That's what I would do." In the end I think Rob realizes that even if he was prepared to betray Amber -- which personally, I don't think he would do -- the best strategic move is to take Amber with him. He realizes that he probably loses to either one of them, and betraying his last friend, the woman he claims to have real feeling for, would be so low that it would kill what little chances he has. And he does pick Jenna to be the last voted off. >> I may be the only person in America who always likes watching the "final day with the final two". I think it's interesting to see how they interact when there's no more conniving to be done. There's that Polaroid camera again. Will lovers all over America be buying them now to make romantic scrapbooks? R&A have a comfortable last day together, and then it's an ugly night. I wonder did they get any sleep? They're acting like it's all over, and there's nothing left to do. But they should be thinking about their Final TC pleas and answers. >> Final Tribal Council Rob (paraphrased): I know you're pissed at me. I did some of you wrong. But consider that I played the game well. Amber (paraphrased): I don't really deserve to be here. I was lucky, and under the radar, and on Rob's coat-tails, that's how I got here. But whatever the vote I got enough out of this experience. I think this is exactly the right attitude for Amber to take. The Jury may vote for her if they realize she knows how lucky she is and that she's contrite about it. Many of the Jury are really angry at them. Mostly Rob, but not just him. Alicia asked them to describe "in one word" the playing strategy that got them this far. Rob: "competitively" Amber: "with luck" (sic!) Who's have thunk it! ShiiAnn is the voice of calm and common sense!!! "They both played well." She's not one of the ones I'd have expected to be unemotional about it. Kathy is VERY emotional and angry at Rob. It's a surprise to me. Where did that come from? Did Rob and Kathy have a closer relationship out in the world than we realize? She is very hurt. Over all, I think that Rob is really troubled to discover how much people were hurt by his "playing the game". He felt that it was a game, and there should be no hurt feelings if he played hard. He's regretting that he didn't realize. They vote. We see one vote for Rob, and one for Amber. >> Jeff heads off for NYC with the ballot box... He reprises his hanging-out-of-the-helicopter shot from the episode one intro. This time over NYC. If you've come this far, you know what happens next. I won't try to recap it all. Overall I'm surprised at the extent to which the reunion show was out of control. The marriage proposal was nice, and apparently not known by the producers in advance... revealing the final vote was actually anticlimactic. Amber wins the million, 4 votes to 3. The reunion show was interesting in that there was a lot more remaining anger than in any past Survivor season. Usually by this point they've all kissed and made up. In the past it wouldn't be unusual for the big "enemies" to have become friends by the time of the live reunion. But this time there was some very real remaining anger. Lex and Tom are still pretty pissed. Others too. All this emotion led to the show appearing to not follow the course planned by the producers. I think that during every commercial they must have scrambling to see what to cut to fit in the remaining good stuff. Jerri left during a commercial. I missed what happened that hurt her. Too bad, but we've all known, even from her first season, that Jerri is clueless about how she's perceived, and it was only a matter of time before her delusions had a collision with reality. Sorry she felt bad. Overall the big difference this season is that these people weren't strangers at the start. They had histories, and expectations. I guess it's easier to forgive a stranger for turning on you, than it is to forgive a friend. >> The BIG SURPRISE that they promoted all week turned out that we, the audience, get to give someone a million dollars. Vote online, next week's recap show will be live, and they'll announce who get's the second million. I'm voting for Rupert, and I gotta figure that he's a favorite. But I can't wait to see how they reveal our votes. Will Jeff one-by-one reveal a series of computer generated parchment ballots with a name on each? Jeff: "Let's see, so far that's 13 million 323 thousand 242 for Rupert, and..." We could be at that all night. Well, that's another one of these under out belts. Soon my post-Survivor depression will set in. We do get one more ep next week, but it's not the same. I guess I'll need to buy the Season One DVD and relive that one. Hodgson... OUT! # Remaining from the Meta-Tribes Pula Tiga 0 of 4 # Final tribe list Order Out: --- SOLE SURVIVOR --- |
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