Episode 2301
"Dead Man Walking"
The
Rai Tribe, although it isn’t as bopping as the others, is my favorite. I think it just has really genuine people on it. Most of them are new, but that’s okay, they are bringing a different flavor to the game. They went to council first, as predicted, but hopefully they can rally and win some of the non speed/skill based challenges as those cater towards vets. I really love them all for different reasons, so i’m hoping they don’t lose all the challenges.
I’ll start with
Ramona who was instantly my favorite on the tribe. She was such a sleeper contestant who we didn’t put much weight into going into the season. However, this is exactly why I take risks when in casting. Some people just get into the game and fucking deliver, Ramona is absolutely one of those people. She’s delivered the most of anyone on Rai and possibly in the game securing herself a position as the tribe’s ambassador and ingratiating herself into the tribe. I think going forward, Ramona is going to be an all-star. Sometimes you can just tell and she is a power player for sure. She’s understated but still in everyone’s ear and she’s the freakin ambassador. I expect great things. Let’s see if I’m right.
Next is someone who we all thought was going to be a huge character, aaaand they delivered!
Richard came into the season and immediately formed alliances, I mean within the first hour immediate. I thought for sure he was going to be the second coming of Papa Bear. What’s interesting is that he calmed down very quickly. I would put him on the same level as Ramona, but I think he will be a mover and a shaker. I see him going down in a blaze of glory in the merge. I hope he doesn’t fizzle and play the background, I don’t think he will.
Jenna is someone who I find both annoying and adorable. I can’t decide which will win out. That means that she will rub a lot of people the wrong way. I just hope for her that she will not be a background one-note character. I’d love to see her be the bubbly enthusiastic strategist that is in all the alliances and adds serious dimension to the season. My fear is that she will be a number in someone’s alliance and have a footnote that she’s also enthusiastic. I’m thinking the latter will happen but hoping for the former.
Hayden I think is playing it the best of all three returnees. He also has it the easiest on the Rai tribe. He’s in a solid alliance, he’s definitely not a vocal force, but he’s still getting to know everyone. He will do really well this season I predict and I could not be happier for him. i just hope he doesn’t rest in the background. I want to see him shine like I know he can and I’m afraid if he sits in the background for too long I think he’ll be targeted as a returning player and go out regardless. He needs to embrace it a bit more and be more assertive. But for now, he’s in the best spot.
Sean is someone I have huge hopes for. He was my pre-season sentimental favorite in that I really just like him as a person. Whether that translates is another thing. So far, so good! He’s in a solid alliance and he’s hooked up with some key players. He also had two days when he wasn’t here so I’m sure that hurt him a bit in this summary since there isn’t much to note. I still have faith he will be great now that he’s here.
Stacey, ugh, I’m worried. I know she can be amazing. The highlight for me was her calling out of Richard snatching BB bald during the Tribal Council. She had me rolling. I think she’ll be an early pre-merge boot, but I’m hoping she’s at least an entertaining one. She already has a formal warning for revealing her identity so she’s got a foot in the grave already, but she’s still hilarious and adds a little spice to the game and I like that. If everyone was a serious player the game would be boring as fuck. So yay for uniqueness!
And the first boot of Nepal:
BB. Well, he delivered everything we expected. He was a wildcard. Sometimes they work really well, sometimes they fall flat. BB was something we don’t normally experience in that he worked out well, but also fell flat… on his face. He was a train wreck that was so good to watch. So thank you for that BB, your racist schtick that you put on just enough to freak some people out and then fuck off permanently was worth the risk I think… kudos.
The
Madhesi Tribe is probably my least favorite. Don't get me wrong, they have their fair share of stand-outs, but right now nothing has been going on to write home about. The most interesting thing has been Papa Bear by far. I do think that they will lose eventually, and when they do I'm hoping they can dump some of their dead weight. Let's get on with the run down.
I'll start off with the most interesting, as always, and that's
Papa Bear. I was told not to bring Papa Bear back because he out-right just disappeared at the end of Namibia not even leaving a jury vote or bothering to show up again. Many people thought he was gone never to be seen again. But a funny thing happened and I got in touch with him and found out he was more than enthusiastic about playing again. So I rolled the dice and decided to cast him again. This fool is crazier than ever and i'm loving every second of it. The fact that his entire tribe is suspicious of him, yet allowed him to be their ambassador is fabulous. I just think he's the sole pre-merge storyline that we're going to be focusing on. It's already a game of "can he get away with it?" pt. 2. He's up to his old tricks of forming final 2's and lying his teeth off. His sympathy garnering lie about being in a wheelchair has me rolling and I cannot believe it's somewhat working. It's kind of like... do you really want to be the asshole calling him out for lying? Well... you should because he's the scumbag lying about being handicapped
I mean what a fucking legend. I could not ask for more of him in these coming episodes. It's almost as if we casted Gary Hogeboom and Danni is Lisa in this situation. She knows what's up and shes targeting him hard spreading the truth about his ways to everyone. But is it enough to oust him? How long can he keep this up? I hope to the final 3, but my guess is until a swap. Still, he'll provide us with enough entertainment to carry us to the merge and for that I'm eternally grateful.
I think the person delivering the most aside from Papa Bear is probably
Mad Dog. She's formed a solid alliance and is really not buying what Papa Bear is selling. I think of all the players on Madhesi, she's really the only one actively working against Papa Bear. That said, I do think it's too early for them to consider taking him out. For one thing, he's their leader, and for another he's an active and seasoned challenge performer and I just think that's going to be too big of a carrot for them to risk ousting. Especially when there are others on the tribe less active.
Probably the most social, and thus the most secure, is
Kimmi. She's really playing a great social game. My fear is that she's really boring as of right now. I was afraid of that coming into the game and at least she's proven herself to be a big chellenge performer for Madhesi, but I'm still nervous that she will fall into the background. I'm hoping that this can be her one game to really shine and we will see big things from her. But right now she's just a supporting character for the Papa Bear's and Mad Dog's of the tribe.
Now moving on to the next two, I'll mention them in the same paragraph since the same things apply to both of them.
Keith and
Tina I thought had a lot of potential coming into this, but also I had some fears around them. I really thought they both got off to a great start, ingratiating themselves into the tribes while still being interesting and having their own point of view and say-so. However, it seems like after the first day they both tanked horribly. To the point where I had to actually replace Tina. I think new Tina will be a much more savvy player and I'm hoping she can wheel and deal like we were expecting the original Tina to. As for Keith, we all know he has it in him and I'm hoping he comes out of his shell a bit or he's going to be going home VERY soon, like... next boot or two soon.
The most interesting player who has the biggest potential to be the surprise break-out star of this season is
Jeff. He's super funny, really really good at the game and in the middle of everything. He hasn't neglected anyone on the tribe, yet has his hands in all the cookie jars as well as being a pretty great judge of character. I'm really looking forward to what Jeff can bring to the table even if we haven't quite seen it just yet. He's definitley getting his feet wet and learning quickly, which is a fantastic thing to see in a brand new player.
Debborah... She's been SUCH a disappointment so far. She missed the opening weekend after missing the opening day... gurl what a fucking hot mess. The good news is that we all know the potential she has. I'm really waiting for the big Debb come-back. The good thing is that she realizes she has sucked and feels bad about it. That has the potential of an amazing comeback story. She has the skill, the credentials, and the character to rival the Stranded all-time greats such as Scout, and Teresa. Will she be able to bring it though? That is the question. I know everyone watching is praying that the answer is yes. She needs a swap badly before she can really turn this around, but if anyone can do it, It's Debb.
And last but certainly not least is probably the most interesting of all three tribes, the
Kirati tribe. I knew that the hardcore serious strategic threats all seemed to end up on the same tribe and so far it's certainly lent itself to some of the most interesting dynamics in the entire game. I actually think that there are people on all three tribes that could easily compete with them, but for the most part every player on Kirati is a serious threat to win the game, and that's why I'm lumping them all together as "the strategic tribe."
I'll start with the most polarizing and domineering player so far and that's
Lisa. There seems to be a storyline growing that will make up the pre-merge with Papa Bear that I mentioned earlier and the antagonist to his storyline or protagonist to the viewers is Lisa. She quickly established herself in the first episode as THE person to watch on Kirati. She orchestrated an alliance between herself, Angie and Denise and quickly got to know everyone on the tribe, for better or worse. That's not to say she's playing a flawless game, far from it, but she's certainly playing the most aggressive and strongest game right out of the gate. For that reason, she is the the center of all the storylines on Kirati and a good portion of the rest of the game. She's so entertaining here, she's really great at the game, and I think this might be a case of too strong out the gate, but I can't see her not making the merge outside of a surprise swap fuck or something to that effect. She's setting herself up as a controlling force in the game. That will mean she probably won't win, but it will guarantee her all-star status and for sure will impact the season in a huge and entertaining way.
That brings us to the next most entertaining player on Kirati,
Carter. I think Carter is fascinating because he's knew and he's super eager. He's really been a standout because he's already put himself in the middle of two strong alliances, and has blended into the tribe perfectly while still remaining everyone's favorite ally. He's playing a fantastic game, and the fact that he can do this without being boring at all is amazing. I think he will for sure make some moves in this game and he's definitely not stupid. As proven with the way he handled Papa Bear. I could see him stabbing Lisa in the back when the time is right and really benefiting from that play. I expect great things for Carter... we'll be seeing him at the merge. Definitely over-delivered from what we were expecting going into this so far.
One of Carter's friends and someone who Lisa absolutely despises for reasons unknown is
Artis. I actually really like Artis and I love him as a foil to Lisa. Early on we thought he was going to be a power player and a domineering force in the game. I still think that's a strong possibility but I love him more in this role. The underdog strategist that Lisa has a hard on for hating. I don't know why these two hate one another, but it's awefully entertaining, and really absurd of Lisa to be so forthright with her hatred of him. I thought they were going to be in an alliance together but that quickly evaporated as they grew to become frienemies. Now they're just outright enemies. Can't wait to see where that goes, but I'd hate it if it got cut short. Hopefully it drags out and plays on throughout the season.
Angie has been everyone's favorite going into the game and she certainly delivered on that whilst in the game. Of the new players, she's adapted to gaming the best. Even more so than Carter. She isn't playing a better game than him, but she is certainly walking the walk. She has been buddy buddy wtih Lisa and Denise and i'm loving that alliance. It's such an obvious cliquey group that I really want to know hwat happens with it. The problem with Angie is that I could see her being the scapegoat and easy target by associating herself with Denise and Lisa. I'm hoping that if it comes down to it, she can break free of them and play her own game. If not, she will be a casualty of war, and I think she deserves better than that.
Denise is a great player. I think there's no chance she is a casualty of war. She will declare war and actively fight for it and might go down fighting, but.. there's no way she's an innocent bystander. She's too smart for that. i love her relationship with Angie and Lisa and I cannot wait to see what happens when she is separated from them. She's a smart cookie and I really think she's one of the better players this season. She could easily fit in with the Ramona/Richards/Jeffs/Mad Dogs of the game so I think she will be okay no matter where she lands.
Zane started out so strong and I had such huge hopes for him. I still do, but he's kinda been slipping into the background as of late. Maybe that's a good thing for him because he was alienated right off the bat and targeted as an easy first boot. I kind of think that's a shame because i could see him being highly entertaining. I think maybe given enough time and some help with possibly forming an anti-Lisa alliance he could make a real name for himself here. He's going to have to get off of Kirati to do it though or he will soon become booted.
Chris is someone who I had high hopes for but low expectations. He's already delivering in his anti-Lisa stance, but I don't think he's reached full potential quite yet. Lisa's really got a hard-on for all things returning players. The good thing is that I think Chris knows he's on the outs here and is trying to form some kind of counter-alliance with Artis and Zane and Carter. I love it. Men vs. Women. The thing is I really love all of them so I'm hoping Kirati continues their winning streak allowing all of them to continue the feud into the merge.
by Jeff Probst » Sun Nov 16, 2014 2:23:25 am 
1. Jeff
2. Carter
3. Stacey