Taako From Teevhii shares the best bonus scenes from the previous episode of Survivor: Game Changers.
This Week In Secret Scenes
“We’ve Been Through A Lot”
Zeke and Andrea are the Sam and Diane of this season, or the Ross and Rachel if you prefer. But like, strategic, not romantic or sexual. In this week’s episode, we saw Andrea call Zeke out in front of the entire tribe. The morning after, she seems to try to make up with him, but in the moment, it comes across as very angry and salty. Zeke doesn’t seem be helping mend this fence (though if someone came at me with that passive-aggressive, shading on aggressive-aggressive approach, I’d probably have the same demeanor). But the next day, Zeke is talking to Cirie about working with Andrea, and Andrea tells Sarah that all she wants is to be able to work with her and Zeke. It’s mixed signals all around. As the course for the rest of the season may or may not be determined by Zeke and Andrea’s ability to work together, that’s not a comforting thought. Just give me a Survivor: Brooklyn reference and I’ll be fine.
This Week In Confessionals
“I Couldn’t Give Up”
Watch this clip; watch all of it. Honestly, I thought the Cirie sequence at the challenge was overdone after I first watched it. I know others felt the same way, and some were worried that Probst was making her finish the course like a bullying gym teacher. I don’t know if I got that impression, but I know that feeling. To the gym teacher who wouldn’t let me bunt because “this is a boy’s gym class,” I say, “Coach Powers, your gender paradigm is fucked up, and bunting is actually a very good strategy when the defense is out of position.” Anyway, it doesn’t sound like the perception that Probst was forcing Cirie to finish is correct (then again, maybe not. Sorry non-Americans, no International Linque available). Nevertheless, the edit didn’t do a great job of driving home its point. This clip does that, and I think the editors messed up here by not including more from this confessional.
“I Wanna Always Be On This Island Starving”
Everyone’s hungry, and food is fuel, yeah, yeah, skip to about the two-minute mark. What Culpepper says is not a groundbreaking revelation, and if a player is willing to trade their spot in the game for a burger, I don’t want to watch them play Survivor. But the way that Culpepper expresses that thought in this confessional; it’s not inspiring or endearing or particularly likable, but I feel like I understand when players say they’re drawn to Brad. Am I crazy in thinking that? If he won by being a strong social presence and a decent strategic player, I guess I wouldn’t be mad. Then again…
“Monica Would Be Very Happy”
First, “I guess I didn’t get a hand in Sandra;” phrasing! Outside of that, we get Classic Culpepper as he counts on his fingers and mixes up five and six. But he also brags about things he probably shouldn’t be bragging about. He didn’t have a hand in voting out J.T., and even from his vantage point, not knowing about The Sugarbowl (two players enter; one player leaves), how can he possibly think he can take credit for booting J.T.? And talking to your five other alliance members every day? Don’t strain yourself too hard, Bradley.
Should I mention that the good Survivor players talk to everyone and make sure everyone is at ease?
“You Better Kiss Our Butts”
Talk about making sure everyone is at ease. Debbie sure seems like a delight, doesn’t she? She comes across as genuinely incapable of taking on another person’s perspective. The unbridled arrogance she displays is something else, and it’s no wonder Aubry has the reaction she does when Debbie carries this same tone into their conversation. I only wish this had been included in the episode so that we could’ve watched Debra’s comeuppance (even though that would’ve spoiled the ending).
“What Is An Investigation?”
My god, this metaphor is forced, and as a result, this confessional is either entirely laughable or mildly disturbing. This is the horse y’all wanna back for a Winner Pick? (Insert “John joking that Troy is the only horse on that island” here) If the last vote hadn’t occurred, I would’ve been entirely convinced that Sarah could’ve only gotten to Final Tribal by everyone else not bothering to vote her out. My read of her does not scream “Genius Strategist.”
“Debbie Is A Mastermind”
For all you young Survivor fans out there trying to figure out why Debbie was the target instead of Sierra or Brad, you might find your answer here. Yes, Debbie was an agitator, and yes, Sarah may have been hoping to work with Sierra or Brad again. But as we say around these parts, it can be two three things.
Do I think Debbie was the mastermind up to that point? Maybe for the Ozzy vote, but I doubt for anything else. Do I think she’s a Keyser Söze-level manipulator and Grade-A bullshit salesman? Eh. She’s maybe more delusional than deceptive. However, it would be dumb for a viewer like me to say that my perceptions are more accurate than those of a person who was actually in Fiji playing the game. At the very least, as Cirie said last week, perception is reality, and if even a few people share Aubry’s perception of Debbie, her sendoff makes a lot more sense.
This Week In Ponderosa
“She’s A Little Off Her Rocker But In A Great Way”
As Debbie heads off to Ponderosa, she says, “I get along well with everybody, so it’s gonna work out well for me.” Show me the receipts. She says later that “In Pennsylvania, all the state police have this model [of helicopter].” Show me. The. Receipts. After Dr. Joe treats her foot and tells her she’s gotten an infection like she did in Kaoh Rong, Debbie happily claims that she’d get a third infection for the sheer excitement of it all. There’s really nothing more to say about Debbie that hasn’t already been said, and this Ponderosa doesn’t give us a new perspective on our favorite water felon. If there’s something to be excited about, Debbie’s comments at the end make it sound like she won’t be returning for a third season. I at least hope production has the sense not to ask her a third time.
One thing that’s worth mentioning is that Debbie is dead set on not giving the flipper her vote at Final tribal but also does not seem to know who in her alliance flipped. As a result, she has determined not to vote for anyone in her alliance as she simply will not tolerate the idea of rewarding the person who betrayed her. Like I said, same old Deb. I am curious though if she’ll figure out that Sarah flipped, whether at future tribals or just by remembering that she had major trust issues with her a few days before.
It’s also worth sharing the Olympian Training Regimen with y’all.
25 pull ups
100 sit ups
50 push ups
50 squats with little weights
Some yoga
Jogging
Receipts. Please.
This Week In Gifable Moments
When someone insists that Survivor is scripted
When someone still wants to argue that Sandra is overrated
When Jeff says Cirie on the balance beam was the most powerful moment this season
Brad (formerly known as Taako from Teevhii) has watched every season live but was too young to remember the first ten seasons (and is only saying that to make you all feel bad). He treats Wednesday nights like a religious observance and wonders if he can finagle that into a tax benefit.
Favorite Seasons: Winners At War, Heroes vs. Villains, Cagayan, Cambodia, Micronesia
Favorite Players: Kelley Wentworth, Sandra Diaz-Twine, Kim Spradlin, Denise Stapley, Todd Herzog, Courtney Yates, Yul Kwon, Charlie Herschel