Friday, May 25, 2018

Survivor Ghost Island: Finale

It’s the finale & no one is more excited the Probst. It’s either because he’s completely in his element on live TV, or because he’s relieved this rather dull season is nearly over. The Ghost Island concept I think could’ve been a great one if it had been a cannier cast.

Wendell is probably the smartest person left on the island, and is coming into the finale as the favorite to win. But that also makes him the biggest target. Then Dom & Wendell start talking about how Sea Bass is the biggest threat left and I’m once again reminded of the inferiority of this season. Terrible judgment!!

The next immunity + reward challenge is a maze with what looks to be a tricky puzzle. Whoever wins this is getting themselves a hefty 10 points (or 20 points for a double stack), and it definitely feels like the Survivor Pool this season is closer than it's been in recent memory.

Wendell wins – woot! – and he takes the dregs with him to reward. Smart move, though I think it was craftier than how far Wendell thought it through. After all, keeping Donathan isolated from talking to the dregs is a pretty important decision.

Then we get to watch Angela be included in a strategic plan for the first time ever, and then we instantly get to see why folks never did so before now – because she can’t keep her mouth shut. Great editing, and a hilarious scene.

Tribal council is painful on a lot of levels… bro. The blitzkrieg of idols both real & fake was an obvious front to scare people away from voting out Dom. And sadly it totally worked. Such a n00b mistake, Sea Bass.

Next day & it’s a new challenge but with the same result – Wendell wins again. Then Dom makes one of the worst poker analogies in Survivor history by claiming that “a snap call is usually a bluff.” Yeah sure. Hopefully he’s at one of y’alls tables at the WSOP this year and he will snap call all his chips your way.

There was some grandstanding at tribal but nothing super interesting. Idols were played to no avail and Donathan was sent to the jury.

Dom ended up winning immunity & it was fun to see the respect between Dom & Wendell play out as they both knew long ago that they didn’t want to take the other one to final but had so much fun playing together that they just couldn’t help themselves.

Somehow looking at urns where past contestants messed up in the 11th hour inspired Dom to consider the unthinkable – give up his immunity idol to play for fire against Wendell. He claims it would make him a legend in a good way. I think it would have made him a legend more a la Eric.

Fortunately Dom’s not that stupid (though he was dumb enough to sacrifice Angela to a fire challenge). Even though the decisions were not well made, it feels like the 3 most deserving players (since Michael went home) have made it to the finals, so I can make my peace with that.

MVP of final tribal is far & away Michael. He would have CRUSHED IT arguing his own case if he hadn’t been voted out! Bring him back soon, Probst, I want to see that guy playing against the likes of Sarah, Parvati, Boston Rob, and Cochran. He could hold his own. I think Laurel did a good job of arguing her case and that Dom & Wendell both did a bad job of arguing their cases. And yet she got no votes!!

For the first time in Survivor history…. There’s a tie! Ultimately Wendell’s loyalty to Laurel pays off huge, and I feel a massive sense of vindication at picking the ultimate winner #1 overall. So many doubters out there, but it turns out I’m more than just a blogger. I actually know my stuff too. J


The Teams:

Michal & Ben: 203 points
  • Wendell (94 pts)
  • Jenna (19 pts)
  • Laurel (46pts)
  • Sebastian (32 pts)
  • Desiree (12 pts)
Bagginses: 193 points
  • Stephanie (-5 pts)
  • Wendell (94 pts)
  • Libby (26 pts)
  • Laurel (46 pts)
  • Donathan (32 pts)
Phil: 156 points
  • Brendan (-6 pts)
  • Dom (80 pts)
  • Dom (80 pts)
  • Bradley (1 pts)
  • Bradley (1 pts)
Eric: 150 points
  • Michael (32 pts)
  • Michael (32 pts)
  • Angela (37 pts)
  • Angela (37 pts)
  • Desiree (12 pts)
          SuperDreg: 118 points
          • Chelsea (33 pts)
          • Chris (26 pts)
          • Chelsea (33 pts)
          • Chris (26 pts)
          Doug & Bri: 87 points
          • Stephanie (-5 pts)
          • Sebastian (32 pts)
          • Donathan (32 pts)
          • Kellyn (22 pts)
          • James (6 pts)
          MoonBee: 67 points
          • Brendan (-6 pts)
          • Libby (26 pts)
          • Kellyn (22 pts)
          • Jenna (19 pts)
          • James (6 pts)

          Next Season:

          Next season’s theme of David v. Goliath looks almost as dumb as the new Kevin Hart show. The mixed metaphors of “all Goliaths have Achilles heels” is cringe-worthy as well. Fire that writer, Probst, s/he made you look like a fool!

          7 comments:

          courtney said...

          Douche of the week/season?

          Eric said...

          Why was it dumb for Dom to sacrifice Angela for the fire challenge?

          I was sure Dom was going to win.

          Dom taking on Wendell in fire would have been epic.

          I gave Laurel zero % chance to win. It seemed ridiculous for her not to go after Dom and Wendell. She took the safe route to the finals and the safe route to a guaranteed non-victory.

          Bachelorette in 3 days!

          I'm not a robot!

          Michal Greenberg said...

          I'll be honest, I didn't calculate DoW since the win wasn't within 5 pts of a single-stack team or 10 pts for a double-stack team....

          Margot said...

          I'm glad you and Wendell won, Michal. But it really was pretty boring. I so wish Laurel and SeaBass had followed through on the plan to vote Dom off. That would have led to a very interesting conclusion.

          We thought Ghost Island was a waste, and mostly the writers' fault.

          And when you talk to Probst, tell him that they need different challenges! What happened to learning something about the native culture? Or knowing something about the other contestants? Or demonstrating some actual survival skills?

          GnightMoon said...

          Compelling finale to a forgettable season. Wendell was a deserving champ and a deserving #1 pick and you were justified in grabbing him there. If I'm remembering right, he was never in much danger until the fire-making challenge at the end. He became the second straight fire-maker to win the game since the rules were changed (some believe to deliberately allow Ben to win last season). Like Ben, Wendell would have been eliminated 4th if not for the rule change. Dom would have won in a landslide, possibly a sweep.

          We were stunned Donathan didn't vote for Laurel. Was this a "my third-party candidate can't win, so I'm gonna vote for someone who can" vote? Was this a respect vote? Was this a backlash to Laurel never pulling the trigger on a big move? Whatever it was, it decided the champion. If Donathan had voted for Laurel, Dom wins.

          Disappointing effort from Laurel. To know you can't beat the big boys at Final Tribal, to know they have idols, and to never do anything about it was pathetic. There is no glory in sitting there for the final votes and receiving none - only shame. And no chance to ever redeem that shame on Survivor again.

          I would love to see Michael match wits with some of the greats, and I expect to. If Wendell was the Cam Newton of the draft (a maligned #1 overall pick who turned out to be worth it), Michael was the JJ Watt (the most talented player but stuck on a lousy tribe).

          DoW goes to the producer that made them waste valuable finale time promoting a Kevin Hartized Japanese game show.



          Melissa said...

          This is the first season I've actually been a little annoyed by the game play. I mean, why the heck didn't someone, ANYONE take out Dom or Wendell at ANY POINT in the game. They were all well aware all season long that they were running the show. Ugh. I suppose this is why they won, but I appreciate more subtle game play, I guess.

          Also, why the heck didn't Sea Bass use his extra vote anyway? It was the last night to play it. This earns him the DoW. Idiot.

          I'm also super bummed that we have to decorate the silly trophy. I forget, are we starting fresh this season?

          Phil said...

          As usual i’m last to chime in. What a good season, not great but good. It was interesting how many idols and advantages were not used to a benefit. It shows the complexity and evolution of the game. However, these players seemed hesitant to make big moves.

          I thought Dom was the better player but that tie was epic. I thought the jury was unfair to Laurel, what was she supposed to do? She got to the final three, likely the only way she could by working with Dom and Wendell. They wanted her to make a move but it would not have benefited her as much as the other tribe members.

          The dregs were surprisingly strong another indicator of how tough it can be to draft. Thanks to everyone who blogged, you all did a great job and I’m looking forward to another strong season!