XvM: Episode 6

Figgy blew it, resulting in purple team's earning no points and single-handedly evening the field in this pool. Except for Doug & Bri's team which is looking weaker & weaker by the episode.

It was overall a fun episode, including watching the yellow tribe come from behind to win the reward challenge, and the always-entertaining blindfold challenges with lots of nut shots. Adam & Zeke are both seriously contemplating "joining the dark side" with GenX which is exactly what we talked about last week. And Michaela showed more than just challenge prowess, but also hinted at a strategic side. I loved how she bossed Hannah around during the challenge. Her decision to give advice to the yellow tribe to the purple tribe's detriment was maybe too... blunt? Obvious? But I don't think anything will come of it. Taylor doesn't have the power or intelligence to wreak retribution.

Adam's switch to GenX's side was clearly the correct one. I get that there could potentially be a longer-term advantage to sticking with Millenials, even if you don't particularly like Figlor. But the game is waaaaay too fluid to assume that the initial tribe that you started on will stay loyal with each other til the end. Maybe if they'd had a super charismatic leader like a Boston Rob or a Parvati. But they were tearing each other apart from the beginning. No need to stay loyal to that.


The Teams:

MoonBee "Hannah & the Homeboys" - 47 points 

1. Chris (7 pts)
2. Adam (13 pts)
3. Will (13 pts)
4. Hannah (14 pts)

Baggadocious "DK Double Stacker" - 43 points

1. Ken (4 pts)
2. David (22 pts)
3. [Figgy (7 pts)]
4. Taylor (10 pts)

Michal & Ben "Sea Dogs" - 42 points

1. Zeke (13 pts)
2. Jay (20 pts)
3. Michaela (15 pts)
4. [Paul (-6 pts)]

Doug & Bri "The Real Housewives of Fiji (and Bret)" - 20 points

1. Michelle (12 pts)
2. Bret (8 pts)
3. Jessica (3 pts)
4. [Lucy (-3 pts)]

Dregs "Dreggy McBoatface" - 6 points

1. [CeCe (-2 pts)]
2. Sunday (8 pts)

The Top 5:

1. Ken - he's a provider, good at challenges, great at making alliances. He's always been in the minority & yet always keeps a level head & finds a way to turn the odds in his favor. 
2. Michaela - challenge beast, is always playing from the heart. Speaks her mind in a refreshing way, though potentially to her detriment.
3. Zeke - definitely thinks through all his options both short- & long-term. Seems like the kind of guy who can bring people together & inspire loyalty.
4. Adam - a sweetheart who may not be the most physical in challenges but always gives it his all
5. David - dark horse for sure, but a hard core schemer & strategist

Power Rankings:

1. DK Double Stacker: Figgy was a loss, but so long as this team has Ken and David I'm still considering them a juggernaut. Taylor could still make himself useful by bringing in some challenge points, but that's about all he's good for now.
   
2. Sea Dogs: Zeke & Michaela are awesome & hopefully Jay will continue to bring in big points.
   
3. Hannah & the Homeboys: They are the only team with 4 players remaining, which is of course a handy advantage. And Chris & Adam are both competitors, I'm just not sure they are quite the forces that Ken, Zeke & Michaela are.
   
4. Housewives: Michelle is coming off as lacking a personality and definitely untrustworthy. With Figgy gone I don't see her having any allies left. Bret & Jessica seem like they are both probably nice people in the real world, and are good foot soldiers in the Survivor world, but certainly aren't going to leave much of a lasting mark in this game.

Douche of the Week:
Taylor!


Dreg Rule:
1) If you could pick up a dreg now & drop one of your current players to dreg status, would you?
2) If you could buy a dreg & add them to your stable without losing anyone, how much would you bid for them?
3) If you are a team who just lost a player, would you be willing to spend 5 points or 10 points to pick up one of these dregs?

1. No
2. 5-7 points
3. 5 points

XvM: Episodes 4 & 5

Sorry for the delay on the blog – this post will cover the last 2 episodes, so feel free to vote DoW for both & voice an opinion on dreg rule as well.

Episode 4: GenXers aren’t doing so great and are even more fractured after Paul gets voted out. Ken & David are in charge though no one seems to realize it, least of all Lucy. The Millenials are kicking ass and taking names, and while they are hard-pressed to beat Chris 1-on-1, their teamwork & puzzle-solving prowess put them at a significant advantage in most challenges. When GenX goes back to tribal, David makes the puzzling decision to save Jessica, who back-stabbed him & his ally Ken, doesn’t seem too smart, and has those crazy alien eyes that haven’t gotten any less creepy even though that infection went away.

Episode 5: David questions his decision to save Jessica. It was stupid but now looks genius since he finds another idol within a day. Plus Jessica & Ken end up on the same tribe when the tribe swap happens & now Ken has a hugely loyal ally with him. Michaela is pissed about being on the green tribe, but then has a series of heroic moments starting fire and then winning the immunity challenge for her team. Will she end up being the leader of their tribe? Or will she just be their MVP in challenges?

Zeke wonders if David is throwing the challenge & while he probably didn’t, it’s hard to imagine someone playing so badly not on purpose. CeCe is the WORST though. She’s ridiculously bad in challenges & doesn’t seem to even realize it! It was also interesting to see Michelle try & game-play with CeCe who turns out to be incompetent at that too. Good riddance to CeCe, but Chris should definitely not trust David – that was a vote of necessity, not a proof of loyalty.

Random Poll: Who is the cutest couple?

1.     David & Ken

2.     Figgy & Taylor

3.     Chris & Zeke

The Teams:

Baggadocious "DK Double Stacker" - 41 points

1.     Ken (4 pts)

2.     David (17 pts)

3.     Figgy (10 pts)

4.     Taylor (10 pts)

MoonBee "Hannah & the Homeboys" - 37 points

1.     Chris (4 pts)

2.     Adam (14 pts)

3.     Will (10 pts)

4.     Hannah (11 pts)

Michal & Ben "Sea Dogs" - 24 points

1.     Zeke (8 pts)

2.     Jay (11 pts)

3.     Michaela (11 pts)

4.     [Paul (-5 pts)]

Doug & Bri "The Real Housewives of Fiji (and Bret)" - 13 points

1.     Michelle (7 pts)

2.     Bret (5 pts)

3.     Jessica (4 pts)

4.     [Lucy (-3 pts)]

Dregs "Dreggy McBoatface" - 3 points

1.     [CeCe (-2 pts)]

2.     Sunday (5 pts)

Power Rankings:

1. DK Double Stacker: 3 of these 4 ponies are on the same tribe that is going to a huge threat in challenges with both Ken & Taylor on the same tribe. David is their lone wolf right now, but it seems like he thrives as the underdog. While I’d love to see that idiot Taylor sent home, even if he did this would still be a tough team to beat.

2. Sea Dogs: Zeke is pairing up with Chris, which makes me like Chris a lot more. I think it’s clear that this Okie bond will trump any previous alliances they may have had. I’d love to see Adam & Ken dismantle the nightmare that is the self-proclaimed Figlor (is that right?) & then team up with Zeke & Chris. That would be an alliance to cheer for! I think Jay should be better now that he’s away from Taylor, and Michaela is in full on beast mode. Go Sea Dogs!

3. Hannah & the Homeboys: This team clearly benefitted the most from the tribal switcheroo. Chris & Adam were both on the chopping block, but now have new alliances & positions of power. Will is hanging out in ghost world with Bret, and I still think Hannah sucks, but this team could do really well even if those two don’t go much farther. Still keeping them in 3^rd place in the power rankings though because I think Michaela > Will + Hannah, and I think Jay has a higher ceiling for bringing in challenge points over Adam.

4. Housewives: Lucy reinforced a lot of Asian mom stereotypes before getting voted out. Thanks for nothing, Lucy, except a fun team name for Doug & Bri. This team is starting to look like they might be in trouble. Michelle is good at strategy but bad at earning trust. And she seems to be one of those people who can’t stop scheming, which usually paints a target on their back. Bret is getting little airtime, which usually means they just barely make it onto the jury & don’t do anything remarkable otherwise. My opinion on Jessica can be found above. Unless something drastic happens, I don’t think this team can win.

Douche of the Week:

For episode 4: Jessica

For episode 5: Taylor

Dreg Rule:

1) If you could pick up a dreg now & drop one of your current players to dreg status, would you?

2) If you could buy a dreg & add them to your stable without losing anyone, how much would you bid for them?

3) If you are a team who just lost a player, would you be willing to spend 5 points or 10 points to pick up one of these dregs?

After episode 4:

1) No

2) 5 points

3) 5 points

After episode 5:

1) No

2) 5 points

3) 5 points

XvM: Draft & Episode 3

Season 33 is well on its way and so is the pool! With a theme of GenX v. Millenials (which is already getting tired) it might be overall the youngest cast in Survivor history, including a kid in high school. So far the Millenials seem to be the generation that's a better fit for the game play of Survivor, though it was nice to see the women of GenX proving to be quite adaptable in this last episode.

It's going to be hard to put together solid power rankings this season as folks are moving from the bottom to the top of alliances (and vice versa) in a matter of minutes! First Mari, then Paul... and Figgy is on a roller coaster of positioning within her tribe. The alliance blocks for now seem to be:

• Ken, David & CeCe
• Bret & Chris
• Zeke & Adam
• Jessica, Sunday & Lucy
• Taylor, Figgy, Jay & Michelle

Which leaves Michaela, Will & Hannah as free agents. If these stick it's a matter of which blocks ally themselves with each other at any moment as far as who will be voted out. Not sure how anyone can be considered safe in these kind of scenarios. But the way things stand in challenges, I think Millenials are favored, so I think we'll see more GenXers exit early rather than Millenials. 

Draft Order:

1. Ken (Baggadocious)
2. Michelle (Doug & Bri)
3. Zeke (Michal & Ben)
4. Chris (Moon & Melissa)
5. Adam (Moon & Melissa)
6. Jay (Michal & Ben)
7. Bret (Doug & Bri)
8. David (Baggadocious)
9. Jessica (Doug & Bri)
10. Michaela (Michal & Ben)
11. Figgy (Baggadocious)
12. Will (Moon & Melissa)
13. Hannah (Moon & Melissa)
14. Taylor (Baggadocious)
15. Paul (Michal & Ben)
16. Lucy (Doug & Bri)
17. CeCe - not drafted
18. Sunday - not drafted

The Teams:
Some team names are in, but please send me more. Working titles are good, but let me know if/when they are final. You have the next two blog postings... or you will be docked points.

MoonBee "Hannah & the Homeboys" - 15 points

1. Chris (0 pts)
2. Adam (5 pts)
3. Will (5 pts)
4. Hannah (5 pts)

Baggadocious "DK Double Stacker" - 10 points

1. Ken (0 pts)
2. David (0 pts)
3. Figgy (5 pts)
4. Taylor (5 pts)

Michal & Ben "Sea Dogs" - 10 points

1. Zeke (5 pts)
2. Jay (5 pts)
3. Michaela (5 pts)
4. [Paul (-5 pts)]

Doug & Bri "???" - 5 points

1. Michelle (5 pts)
2. Bret (0 pts)
3. Jessica (0 pts)
4. Lucy (0 pts)

Dregs "Dreggy McBoatface" - 0 points

1. CeCe (0 pts)
2. Sunday (0 pts)

Power Rankings:

1. DK Double Stacker: Ben said that this was the best draft Baggadocious has ever had, and I think he's right. Taylor & Figgy are both idiots, but they should be point-rich idiots. Getting Taylor in the last round was probably the deal of the draft. Ken & David are getting the air-time of players who will be around for a while. Yes, both David & Figgy's names have been in the mix for getting voted out... but that could mean a lot or it could come to nothing.

2. Sea Dogs: We trimmed the fat & now this team is lean & crafty. As mentioned above I think the Millenials are a stronger overall group, so hopefully this team will bring in solid points pre-merge & then Michaela & Jay can win a few challenges post-merge. This is the smartest overall team imo, and I think they all have the potential for a deep run.

3.Doug & Bri: Bret's in trouble... maybe... but Michelle is a beast. I wonder how well the Bible missionary will do when it comes time to back-stab a friend, but she was quite crafty in that 2nd episode and I imagine she'll be in the scheming mix for a while. After all, she has Figgy as a human shield protecting her from getting votes at least for now. Jessica & Lucy are solid dregs. I don't think either will do anything amazing, but they'll probably stick around long enough to earn decent points for where they were picked in the draft.

4. Hannah & the Homeboys: I like Will & Adam, but I really dislike Hannah & I'm just not sold on Chris. If GenX loses next time I think he'll be the one to go. Hannah is just a huge spaz and will probably be her own downfall. The real question is if she will take her whole alliance down with her or not.



Douche of the Week:
Paul, for the reason that he was voted out. And for his terrible fishing skills/big talk about his fishing skills.


Dreg Rule:
There isn't a dreg rule this season, but we might add one next season. The deciding factor on what that rule might be will be determined based on how we think we'd act this season. So, 1) if you had the option to pick up a dreg now & drop one of your current players t dreg status at this point, would you? Or, 2) if you had the option to buy a dreg & add them to your stable without losing anyone, how much would you bid for them? Or, 3) if you are a team who just lost a player, would you be willing to spend 5 points or 10 points to pick up one of these dregs? Here are my answers:

1) No
2) Maybe 3 points
3) I definitely wouldn't spend 10, I might spend 5

XvM: Draft & Episode 3

Season 33 is well on its way and so is the pool! With a theme of GenX v. Millenials (which is already getting tired) it might be overall the youngest cast in Survivor history, including a kid in high school. So far the Millenials seem to be the generation that's a better fit for the game play of Survivor, though it was nice to see the women of GenX proving to be quite adaptable in this last episode.

It's going to be hard to put together solid power rankings this season as folks are moving from the bottom to the top of alliances (and vice versa) in a matter of minutes! First Mari, then Paul... and Figgy is on a roller coaster of positioning within her tribe. The alliance blocks for now seem to be:

• Ken, David & CeCe
• Bret & Chris
• Zeke & Adam
• Jessica, Sunday & Lucy
• Taylor, Figgy, Jay & Michelle

Which leaves Michaela, Will & Hannah as free agents. If these stick it's a matter of which blocks ally themselves with each other at any moment as far as who will be voted out. Not sure how anyone can be considered safe in these kind of scenarios. But the way things stand in challenges, I think Millenials are favored, so I think we'll see more GenXers exit early rather than Millenials. 

Draft Order:

1. Ken (Baggadocious)
2. Michelle (Doug & Bri)
3. Zeke (Michal & Ben)
4. Chris (Moon & Melissa)
5. Adam (Moon & Melissa)
6. Jay (Michal & Ben)
7. Bret (Doug & Bri)
8. David (Baggadocious)
9. Jessica (Doug & Bri)
10. Michaela (Michal & Ben)
11. Figgy (Baggadocious)
12. Will (Moon & Melissa)
13. Hannah (Moon & Melissa)
14. Taylor (Baggadocious)
15. Paul (Michal & Ben)
16. Lucy (Doug & Bri)
17. CeCe - not drafted
18. Sunday - not drafted

The Teams:
Some team names are in, but please send me more. Working titles are good, but let me know if/when they are final. You have the next two blog postings... or you will be docked points.

MoonBee "Hannah & the Homeboys" - 15 points

1. Chris (0 pts)
2. Adam (5 pts)
3. Will (5 pts)
4. Hannah (5 pts)

Baggadocious "DK Double Stacker" - 10 points

1. Ken (0 pts)
2. David (0 pts)
3. Figgy (5 pts)
4. Taylor (5 pts)

Michal & Ben "Sea Dogs" - 10 points

1. Zeke (5 pts)
2. Jay (5 pts)
3. Michaela (5 pts)
4. [Paul (-5 pts)]

Doug & Bri "???" - 5 points

1. Michelle (5 pts)
2. Bret (0 pts)
3. Jessica (0 pts)
4. Lucy (0 pts)

Dregs "Dreggy McBoatface" - 0 points

1. CeCe (0 pts)
2. Sunday (0 pts)

Power Rankings:

1. DK Double Stacker: Ben said that this was the best draft Baggadocious has ever had, and I think he's right. Taylor & Figgy are both idiots, but they should be point-rich idiots. Getting Taylor in the last round was probably the deal of the draft. Ken & David are getting the air-time of players who will be around for a while. Yes, both David & Figgy's names have been in the mix for getting voted out... but that could mean a lot or it could come to nothing.

2. Sea Dogs: We trimmed the fat & now this team is lean & crafty. As mentioned above I think the Millenials are a stronger overall group, so hopefully this team will bring in solid points pre-merge & then Michaela & Jay can win a few challenges post-merge. This is the smartest overall team imo, and I think they all have the potential for a deep run.

3.Doug & Bri: Bret's in trouble... maybe... but Michelle is a beast. I wonder how well the Bible missionary will do when it comes time to back-stab a friend, but she was quite crafty in that 2nd episode and I imagine she'll be in the scheming mix for a while. After all, she has Figgy as a human shield protecting her from getting votes at least for now. Jessica & Lucy are a solid dreg team to have. I don't think either will do anything amazing, but they'll probably stick around long enough to earn solid points for where they were picked in the draft.

4. Hannah & the Homeboys: I like Will & Adam, but I'm starting to really dislike Hannah & I'm just not sold on Chris. If GenX loses next time I think he'll be the one to go. Hannah is just a huge spaz and will probably be her own downfall. The real question is if she will take her whole alliance down with her or not.



Douche of the Week:
Paul, for the reason that he was voted out. And for his terrible fishing skills/big talk about his fishing skills.


Dreg Rule:
There isn't a dreg rule this season, but we might add one next season. The deciding factor on what that rule might be will be determined based on how we think we'd act this season. So, 1) if you had the option to pick up a dreg now & drop one of your current players t dreg status at this point, would you? Or, 2) if you had the option to buy a dreg & add them to your stable without losing anyone, how much would you bid for them? Or, 3) if you are a team who just lost a player, would you be willing to spend 5 points or 10 points to pick up one of these dregs? Here are my answers:

1) No
2) Maybe 3 points
3) I definitely wouldn't spend 10, I might spend 5