Survivor 29: The Draft

Survivor is back! With all new castaways & a kind of new format, I'm excited to see what happens. While the first episode didn't reveal any crazy good schemers or just plain crazy people, fear not! It's early & the hunger & paranoia haven't set in yet. I am very optimistic that we'll have a season chock full of blindsides, bad moves, and general shenanigans. After celebrating the Ben & Michal win from last season, and watching 1 episode, we made our draft picks. Several rule changes were implemented this year: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Aoh0Nvq7LdAEdDNUM3NqWDZhZWtwdzl4WGt1SXl1X3c&usp=sharing. I think it's extremely unlikely we'll get close to the record score Doug & Bri set with 208 points one season since we've added so many negative points this season, but we might see a new all-time low! (I would love to get de-throned from that honor.) I'm exciting to see what the consequences of these changes are as the reason rolls on.


The Teams:  

Bag & Andrea "The Buffoons"

1. Alec (#1 overall pick)
2. Drew (#8 overall pick)
3. Wes (#10 overall pick)
4. Val (#15 overall pick)

Ben & Michal "????"

1. Josh (#2 overall pick)
2. Jeremy (#7 overall pick)
3. Missy (#12 overall pick)
4. Keith (#13 overall pick)

Moon & Melissa "????"

1. Reed (#3 overall pick)
2. Natalie (#6 overall pick)
3. Rocker (#9 overall pick)
4. Julie (#16 overall pick)

Doug & Bri "????"

1. Baylor (#4 overall pick)
2. Jon (#5 overall pick)
3. Kelley (#11 overall pick)
4. Dale (#14 overall pick)

Power Rankings:

1. Moon & Melissa - While it's too early to call anything with confidence, I think this is a solid team. Reed & Natalie didn't get a lot of attention early, but they're on a good tribe & I can see them going far. Rocker will probably draw a lot of fire early but should be able to bring in some points before he gets voted out. And I think that Julie is a great dreg pick. She's in a similar position & has a similar attitude as Monica Culpepper, who seriously exceeded expectations in the last Blood v. Water season.

2. Michal & Ben - Josh & Jeremy got a lot of attention in the first episode, which means they could be "going the distance" players or they could be "gotta give them some air time before they're off the show" types. Obviously we're gambling that it's the former. Missy & Keith are among the elder statesmen of the season, but they aren't ancient & I'm guessing they have the grit to get them through challenges.

3. Doug & Bri - This is potentially a great team, but we need to see how the next couple episodes play out. Dale could still draw some fire, especially if the yellow tribe loses some physical challenges. Jon's ailing father could be a warning sign that this is the player who quits this season. But Baylor is my favorite pick of the season at this stage in the game & if my concerns turn out to be groundless there are a lot of players on this team that could go far.

4. The Buffoons - An aptly named team, as Bag & Andrea fall into the same trap they do almost every season. Bag's drawn to brawn like moth to a flame & as a result this team consistently overlooks the brains aspect of the show. Still, with a little luck, this team could be a contender. This is a team that could do well if they coattail-ride real strategists & pull in points on challenges. If they try to be their own masterminds, though, this team is in for an early exit.