When asked by CBS as to who I wanted to interview at season’s end, the real answer was: Everyone. In a “normal” season of Survivor, I would interview each and every contestant, week-by-week, as they were voted out of the game. But when CBS introduced the theme and twist of Survivor: Edge of Extinction, the format did not lend itself to those traditional weekly exit interviews. So needless to say, there is a lot to discuss now that we’ve reached the end.
Just in case you missed it or are not caught up, please take a read through my passionate (and sometimes angry) response to last night’s Season 38 Finale Recap.
CLICK THE CONTINUE READING BUTTON FOR MORE, AND THIS IS YOUR LAST *SPOILER* WARNING!
There are no words. No words to describe the – disgust? – that I’m feeling right now towards Survivor. But oh, words will come. Lots of them.
I will try to get through and formulate my thoughts on what looks on the surface to be a clear “jump the shark” moment for my favorite show. By all accounts, up until tonight, Survivor: Edge of Extinction was a good, if not great, edition of the best Reality TV Competition Show on the planet. But it wasn’t able to stick the landing. And in fact, not only was tonight’s ending shocking and controversial, but it may have caused permanent damage to the show’s legacy.
As I do at the beginning of every recap, please heed the following. Remember that this recap assumes that you have already seen this week’s Finale Episode of Survivor: Edge of Extinction. If you have not and don’t want to be spoiled, please come back later! It’s important to add that while we WILL hit on all of the important developments of the episode, this is not a linear “blow-by-blow” recap. It is more of a discussion and reaction of what we just witnessed together.
CLICK THE CONTINUE READING BUTTON FOR MORE, AND THIS IS YOUR LAST *SPOILER* WARNING!
Season 37 of Survivor is now officially in the books. It was a great finish to a great season. Heading into the night, the game was wide open. Davie, Nick, Mike, Angelina, Alison and Kara all vied for the million dollar prize and title of Sole Survivor. To say the finish was epic would be an understatement.
CLICK THE CONTINUE READING BUTTON FOR MORE, AND THIS IS YOUR LAST *SPOILER* WARNING!
Just like John “The Mayor of Slam-Town” Hennigan told us from the jury tonight: It’s not necessarily how well you fought, it’s sometimes about that big, memorable finish. As one of the most universally beloved seasons of one of the most popular reality competition shows draws to a close, people were asking: Will the finale episode of Survivor: David vs. Goliath live up to the rest of the season? In other words, will the finish be as good as the fight?
Anyone watching tonight’s Survivor Finale and Live Reunion Show that followed knows that we were treated with something special this season. The ending did not disappoint. 37 (!) seasons now in the books, and this show is still firing on all cylinders. This is based on the strength of its cast and on the producer’s willingness to evolve. Not every new twist works, but when you match a great cast with a great theme, sometimes sparks fly. Or in Kara‘s case tonight, sometimes they don’t.
Before we dive in, as I do at the beginning of every Recap, please heed the following: Remember that this recap assumes that you have already seen this week’s Survivor: David vs. Goliath Finale. So if you have not and don’t want to be spoiled, please come back later! It’s important to add too that while we WILL hit on all of the important developments of the episode. This is not a linear “blow-by-blow” recap, and is more of a discussion and reaction of what we just witnessed together.
CLICK THE CONTINUE READING BUTTON FOR MORE, AND THIS IS YOUR LAST *SPOILER* WARNING!
Season 36 of Survivor is now officially in the books, and it was an unprecedented finish. Heading into the night, the game was being dominated (no pun intended) by Dom and Wendell, with Laurel, Donathan, Angela and Sebastian all still vying for the million dollar prize and title of Sole Survivor. To say the finish was epic would be an understatement.
Caution, as spoilers from this week’s episode are to follow! Turn back now! If you want to get caught up, be sure to check out the Finale Episode Recap here.
CLICK THE CONTINUE READING BUTTON FOR MORE, AND THIS IS YOUR LAST *SPOILER* WARNING!
The only word that came to mind after tonight’s two-hour Survivor: Ghost Island Finale was “wow.” Just “wow.” Yes, Survivor has been on the air for 36 seasons now, which is 18 (!!!) years for those keeping track. Not only did the Finale produce yet another “Survivor First,” but for the first time in the show’s history the final winning vote came down to a tie, unveiling a little-known tie-breaker rule and sending shock-waves throughout Tribal Council and into living rooms across America. That, and it was exciting throughout, also giving us what will be known as maybe one of the best Tribal Council maneuvers of all-time.
I tell people this all the time: Survivor is THE best Reality TV Competition Show…still. Even it’s “average” seasons are better than most other shows, and I’m so happy that the fans that stuck with this season – which was not universally loved and thought of by many as just “OK” – were rewarded with one tremendous finish.
But before we dive in, as I do at the beginning of every Recap, please heed the following: Remember that this recap assumes that you have already seen this week’s Survivor: Ghost Island Finale, so if you have not and don’t want to be spoiled, please come back later! It’s important to add too that while we WILL hit on all of the important developments of the episode, this is not a linear “blow-by-blow” recap, and is more of a discussion and reaction of what we just witnessed together.
CLICK THE CONTINUE READING BUTTON FOR MORE, AND THIS IS YOUR LAST *SPOILER* WARNING!
I’m not ashamed to admit that I still get the tingles watching the Survivor Finale each and every season. Watching the Finale is an event in my home, in that it is the rare occasion that my wife and I watch live TV that isn’t news or sports, and isn’t a show that has been DVR’ed or downloaded. It’s a ritual that all of us share, feeling that excitement of not knowing what outcome we’re about to see play out before our very eyes. There is no need to avoid spoilers or to stay off of Twitter, because whatever is about to happen hasn’t happened yet. There is a weird feeling of impatience that washes over me when I’m not able to fast-forward through a commercial break.
Yes even at its worst, Survivor is better than most shows on TV. I’ll take a mediocre season of Survivor over any other season of any other Reality Competition Show out there. As this season drew to a close, I had to give myself a small pat on the back though, because my predictions rarely – if ever – come true. Just after the merge, when this season looked like it was just going to be one of those average, ho-hum seasons of Survivor, and people started to leave the show, I pleaded with my followers to stick this season out. I had a feeling that there were some strong players left in the game, and that once we had whittled it down, that this season could still have potential to be great. My eyes and ears began to perk up over the last few weeks when Survivor: HHH gave us several strong, dramatic episodes in a row, and this two-hour Finale did not disappoint (even if the Live Reunion Show that followed did). Not in the least. In fact, not only did I get the tingles, I felt myself on an emotional roller coaster that carried all the way through the final vote reading. By my measure, this was not a good end to to a mediocre season…this was a GREAT end to what became a pretty strong season.
The Finale was not without controversy (Twitter was all up in arms about a few specifics, which we’ll get to). But before we get ahead of ourselves, the normal disclaimer: Please remember that this recap assumes that you have already seen this week’s Finale Episode of Survivor: HHH, so if you have not and don’t want to be spoiled, please come back later! It’s important to add too that while we WILL hit on all of the important developments of the episode, this is not a linear “blow-by-blow” recap, and is more of a discussion and reaction of what we just witnessed together.
CLICK THE CONTINUE READING BUTTON FOR MORE, AND THIS IS YOUR LAST *SPOILER* WARNING!
Well that just happened! The 34th Season of Survivor just came to a close, living up to its “Game Changers” title right up until the end. We entered the night with six players remaining in the game and ended with just one…the Sole Survivor…which was announced live in front of a studio audience in Los Angeles. But wow was it an explosive (or implosive, for some) Finale Episode!
I’m here to discuss and process what we just saw, so sit back and get ready to take a deep dive into the Finale and the pretty well-ran (for a change) Live Reunion Show that followed. Spoilers aplenty after the break, so proceed with caution!
CLICK THE CONTINUE READING BUTTON FOR MORE, AND THIS IS YOUR LAST *SPOILER* WARNING!
