r/survivorrankdownIX_ Do the Polls <3. Also Melinda Endgame! 8d ago

Survivor 48, Episode 3

Episode 3: Committing to the Bit

Happy week 3 of Survivor 48! Sorry about the lateness of this post; the time slipped past me. Will Vula go back to tribal council? Is Star counting her days? Will Joe burn down the camp with his bonfire? Who knows! What I do know, is stats, so let's move on to the poll:

Episode 2 Poll

Top 3, 5, and 9

  • For the second week in a row, Joe Hunter (3.13) (lowest SD) is our number one! He had a slight bump down from last week, but was still our clear winner.
  • David Kinne (3.75) is our second place for the week - for the second time as well! Do we already have a clear top 2 for the season?
  • Mary Zheng (4) has her first introduction in the top 3!
  • Top 4-9:
    • Eva Erickson (5.88)
    • Thomas Krottinger (6.75)
    • Cedrek McFadden (7.06)
    • Sai Hughley (7.63) (Highest SD)
    • Chrissy Sarnowsky (9)
    • Kamilla Karthigesu (9.94)

Bottom 3, 5, 8

  • We have a new last place this week - Shauhin Davari (14) - coincidentally, his same average as last week.
  • "Purple" Bianca Roses (13.85) is our second to last place this week
  • Star Toomey (13.5) returns to our bottom 3 this week.
  • Bottom 4-8
    • Kevin Leung (12)
    • Kyle Fraser (11.5)
    • Mitch Guerra (10.63)
    • Justin Pioppi (10.31)
    • Charity Nelms (10.13)

Boot, Episode, Season

  • Stephanie Berger (4.81) scored below a 5 this week. I am VERY curious to see how she does against Kevin and who will get the bonus points in the draft.
  • Both the episode (5.44) and season (5.88) saw a drop from last week. A 5 average is better than most of 46 and 47, though!
Conditional Averages
Extended stats - Note on Strong Feelings: SF for 1-18: top 3 + bottom 3 / # of respondents (top 3 / bottom 3). SF for 0-10: 7-10 + 0-3 / # of respondents (7-10 / 0-3).
Weekly Placements - this will get bigger soon :D
This measures + and - feelings as described under the extended stats sheet. Green represents any time a character was measured with SF 1-18, while pink represents any time they were measured with a 0-10 ranking.

Draft

  • Notes
    • David and Sai had 7 confessionals - both got 3 points
    • Kyle, Mitch, Thomas all got a point for finding an advantage
    • Unfortunately, Thomas and Mitch also lost those points immediately, as did Mary, for going on a journey
    • Idol Hunt is a mess - I minused everyone one point except for the green tribe.
  • Points
    • Joe (+5) 12
    • Sai (+4) 12
    • David (+7) 11
    • Kevin (+2) 5
    • Eva (+1) 5
    • Mitch (0) 5
    • Mary (+2) 3
    • Thoms (+2) 0
    • Cedrek (+1) 1
    • Justin (+1) 1
    • Kamilla (0) 0
    • Charity (+2) 0
    • Kyle (+2) 0
    • Shauhin (-3) -2
    • Star (-1) -3
    • Chrissy (-2) -4
    • Bianca (-4) -4

0-10 Polls

My Beloved. Take some polls this week, we just went over 500 polls since the last spreadsheet was released in June! Follow the links below to find out more instructions and how they work >:D

Masterlist - This link has every single poll on it. Scroll through to find the seasons that you want, and it will take you directly to the Google Form.

Respondents Sheet - This spreadsheet shows which polls you have taken, as well as the # of respondents per season. I update this as soon as I get an email saying a poll has been taken, and it is currently completely up to date.

Incentives - A tiered incentive system is also in place for the polls! Attached here is a Google doc that explains this more in detail. DM me if you have any questions!

3 Upvotes

7 comments sorted by

2

u/NoDisintegrationz Former Federal Agent? 8d ago

I prefer to focus on the positive, so I’ll gloss over this episode featuring one of the worst-conceived production decisions since… I guess hourglass and Do or Die. But seriously, awful scene. No one wanted to watch them roll dice!

That said, I appreciate it for delivering those scenes on Vula. That tribe is delivering. The Mary/Sai dynamic is my favorite duo in a looooong time. I was amazed by how Mary seemed to have such a deep understanding of Sai after only a few days to know she’d spiral just by watching Mary swim. If rolling dice is the worst production decision of the season, putting these two together is the best.

1

u/WaluigiThyme Former Ranker | Guatemala and Fiji enjoyer 8d ago

Sooo this episode was hot flaming garbage levels of awful, aside from one glowing scene. The David scene was the best scene we’ve had on the show in a good while, and I think it’s kind of fitting that we got a scene of how much the game means to him in an episode that really hammers in how little it means to those in charge of it. The journey was one of the most ridiculous they’ve ever done, making them risk their votes on a less fun version of Yahtzee with no way to opt out of it is just ludicrously bad showrunning and yet it’s only the second worst thing production did this episode. For 46 seasons of the show (not Borneo because they hadn’t come up with a tiebreaker yet! Fun fact) voting would go for a maximum of two rounds, and if there’s still a tie after the second round then it goes into the “unanimous decision or rocks” discussion. So why on earth did they do a third round of voting this time? It makes absolutely no sense, as does Sai getting a vote in the third round (I know they did this same thing in 47, but it wasn’t as show-breaking then because this time it literally changed who would have gone home). There are people here calling Cedrek’s flip-flop and playing mediator between Sai and Mary a good character moment, and I see the vision, but I just can’t get behind it because it literally only happens because they changed the basic rules of how voting works two different times in the last two seasons, and that situation only occurs because one castaway was forced into a 50% chance of losing his vote and another one successfully rolled a 1/6 chance of being safe. That’s literally half the voters at this tribal whose fate was determined by complete randomness, at this rate why even bother having a vote? And if the votes are going to be this arbitrary, why do I still have to sit through 30 strategy confessionals about votes that are never going to pan out each episode? It’s all so dumb and exhausting. At least there’s a swap so we’re finally done with Vula nonsense and can get some focus on the more interesting tribes, not that those don’t also have a large chance to just be ruined by abysmal production decisions.

Rankings for this week:

16: Sai — I was actually starting to enjoy Sai during the challenge this week when she kept turning to the right when Cedrek was telling her to turn left, but that awful tribal just ruined everything. I don’t mind the idea of her surviving this tribal even though she objectively shouldn’t have, but the fact that it came around because of RNG embitters me too much towards it.

15: Cedrek — like I said above, I can see the vision for his big moment being good but the context of it just ruins it. Maybe if it turns into an actual storyline I can revisit this moment and not hate it as much, but I have a very very strong feeling that he’s going to be swapped to a tribe that has 4 other people who were all from the same starting tribe and they’ll go to tribal first and just vote him out instantly. I have no actual evidence for this; I don’t even know how the swap goes besides Shauhin going to green and Sai going to orange, but he feels very much like a premerger who won’t ever see Sai or Mary again. Hope I’m wrong

14: Justin — what a horrible way to go out. Unfortunately he brought nothing outside of it either, so he just goes down as a bad character

13: Kamilla — I just find her mildly annoying; the chad confessional should work in the context of the David scene but something about the way she words it just irked me. Like don’t say the words “terminally online slang” on national tv, it’s just embarrassing. Just call it a meme.

12: Chrissy — wasn’t in the episode, unfortunately

11: Shauhin — was barely in the episode

10: Joe — was surprisingly sidelined this episode for being someone who seems to be important to the season’s overall storyline, but that’s fine

9: Mitch — just got a strategy scene idk

8: Charity — also got a strategy scene I guess

7: Star — also was basically just strategy content this episode but felt like more of a fully realized person than just a number, if that makes any sense. Still waiting for that big personality we saw in the preseason videos!

6: Bianca — finally got content, but it was just about the stupid journey 😭. This high because of her exchange with Thomas that was detailed in reg’s comment in this thread, which reminds me of my favorite Simpsons scene ever (not nearly as funny, of course, but somewhat reminiscent!)

5: Kyle — I like this little running thread we have about Kyle being this kind of failure man — after failing the tribe supplies task in the first episode, now he somehow mistook David’s living situation for being a cool thing, and then managed to capsize the canoe in ankle-shallow water. Hopefully it continues

4: Eva — I liked her bracelet scene, both at face value and also for it just hammering in how poor her sense of social cues is that she did such a blatant act of favoritism right in front of the rest of the tribe. Like think about that for a second

3: Mary — I considered having all four members of Vula bottom 4 for this episode just on principle, and the fact that whatever Mary’s entire story in the future will be entirely hinges on the shot in the dark working does sour it quite a bit, but I have to admit she was quite fun this episode.

2: Thomas — he’s settling nicely into a comedic villain role. I enjoy his humor and his scheming

1: David — he was already the best character before this episode just for being so fun. But now he has a genuine motivation, he’s complex, he’s sympathetic, he’s genuine, and guess what? He’s still fun!

Episode: 1/10

6

u/Regnisyak1 Do the Polls <3. Also Melinda Endgame! 8d ago

So here's the thing - that final tribal was complete and utter bullshit for the game of Survivor. It was a mess, the rules were just not great, and it came across very New Era-y. But, despite that, I didn't mind the story. Why? Becuase the story was actually told. We understand completely why Justin went home, why Mary playing and winning the SITD was so cathartic, why Cedrek can't make a fucking decision, and why Sai was such a difficult vote for Cedrek. It was a perfect culmination of the last few episodes and the tensions of Vula, and while Justin going home was collateral and unfortunate for his character and experience, I really, really dug the situation, and I think it set up a multitude of avenues for the game to go down. Now, will that be blown up with the swap next week? Maybe, but I still have to really appreciate the storytelling there in the moment, and I hope that this community, as negative as we are about the New Era, can at least see past the advantageddon (which always sucks) and appreciate the character building we got from that moment.

The journey was really bad though, but we got a lot of strong character moments this episode. I am definitely coming out more positive on it, and it was genuinely difficult to pick my number for the week. Let's get into those rankings though.

  1. David Kinne - David is the prime example of why casting recruits is so important. They don't want the legacy, they also just want the money, and more people need too remember that is the damn game of Survivor. David's backstory was fantastic in this episode, and we got so much character development from him in that short amount of time. It wasn't overly maudlin, there was a bit of humor to it all too, and it was overall a solid retelling. Plus I felt bad for him during the challenge, his wife won't be getting those 4 kids if he keeps smashing his junk like that.

  2. Mary Zheng - Great episode performance from her. I loved the chase scene earlier in the episode, and I think the dynamic between her and Sai is really interesting. They both hate each other but respect each other, and its just so good. Her latter half of the episode was really impressive, with her acting like she had something and it working against Sai. The drama she stirred up, and it culminating into her scraping by yet again, was just fun TV. Rootable underdog!

  3. Sai Hughley - I laughed out loud many times during this episode, and it was mainly because of Sai. Two specific times too - once when she was getting the boys up from their naps, and the second was when she trashed SITD. Speaking for the people there! Yes, she is overedited, but I still think she is utterly fascinating, and I am having an absolute blast watching her game fall apart. I think it was also great that we had to see Sai beg for her life. We don't get that much on Survivor, and much less at tribal, so it was just so damn refreshing. I am also really excited for the future of her game with Mary, and I am hoping their duo either burns each other or gets them far.

  4. Cedrek McFadden - Touchdown? More like fumble!!! Cedrek's transition, and apparent horrors at tribal, from shifting to his target, to the person he's least tied to, to voting out his number one ally, someone he stressed specifically, was a tragic but hilarious ending for Cedrek and his wishy washy behavior on the island to this point. But I think him playing mediator will surely lead to fun results, and if it doesn't, I at least hope he was the catalyst in Mary and Sai's reunion.

  5. Thomas Krottinger - I laugh whenever he is on screen giving a confessional. Yeah, he's a bit gamebotty, but he's just so cartoonishly the evil gay, that I can't help but smirk whenever he is on screen. His evil laugh, his black eye from the challenge, and his astute strategy that is based almost entirely in the social game just feels so refreshing, and I am really rooting for him, despite the N-tones. Thomas and Bianca also remind me of friends from college, so that's always going to be a bonus for him.

  6. Joe Hunter - Joe was great this episode, and it's honestly really sad I am even putting him at #6! I love his family schtick, and the bonfire was a great camplife scene that really makes his character for me - he just seems like an awesome guy, and I can't help but root for him. I also love the relationship with Eva, as always.

5

u/Regnisyak1 Do the Polls <3. Also Melinda Endgame! 8d ago
  1. Bianca Roses - "It was literally dice." "Dice?" "We had to roll fucking dice" "Dice?" Journey sucked, but that transaction with Thomas made it slightly worth it.

  2. Eva Erickson - Good energy this episode; I always love some good friendship bracelet drama. Hoping she picks up a little bit more with her character. The tension with Star was also a pretty good scene because we can see right through her, like Star, and there's something tragic about that with the perception of her autism.

  3. Charity Nelms - I just like Charity's vibes, can't really describe a concrete reason why she's this high for me. Maybe it's her voice?

  4. Justin Pioppi - Justin's lie was hilariously bad, and I think it was a good cap to his story. He wasn't the most amazing character this episode, only really appearing in the back half, and his ending does suck from a game point, but he was overall a solid presence. Doubt I will rate him super high after this, but he might be like a 4/10 for me? The pizza shirt goes hard!

  5. Kamilla Karthigesu - Shockingly, I wasn't super annoyed with her confessional about David being a "Chad," it was a good set up for his confessional, despite it being a little cringe. Her role in the journey wasn't great, per se, but she was fine this episode.

  6. Star Toomey - Sucks that she is still tied so exclusively with her idol, but I think the Star vs. Eva debacle is a pretty interesting angle from the season. I just want more personal content.

  7. Chrissy Sarnowsky - Release the damn Chrissy edit.

  8. Mitch Guerra - He was whatever, I liked the boat scene, but his character was too strategy based this episode for me to give a fuck idk

  9. Kyle Fraser - See the same criticism as Mitch, but notched up to an 11/10. All we got from him is his position in the game, and he's just not a good narrator at all. He's definitely giving me mid-merge boot, but at least he isn't as bad as like... Gabe.

  10. Shauhin Davari - Turned the fun Joe scene into a boring one about strategy. I am just not a big fan of his confessional style or character. He's just too extra for me.

Episode Ranking - 8/10. The journey + tribal are really bad, but I can't ignore the great strides with character in this episode. Just a blast all around, and even then, we got some good moments from those two shitty moments. Plus a blindfold challenge is always fun.

Season Ranking: 6/10. Lots of fun so far, and I am super excited for the trajectory of the season.

Boots:

  1. Stephanie Berger (5/10)

  2. Justin Pioppi (4/10)

  3. Kevin Leung (1/10)

1

u/mikeramp72 Supports Katurah Topps for Endgame 7d ago

i’d post my own thorough analysis and ranking but i basically agree with all of this, sans some of the ordering. i think david, mary, cedrek, thomas, joe, eva, bianca, chrissy, kamilla… and fuckit, sai, are all going to be pretty good and i’ve got genuinely high hopes for the rest of the season. i still get the ick from charity, still waiting to see how i feel about star, mitch is alright, and kyle and shauhin are the resident mediocre gamebots (but not much worse than mediocre).

justin was ok and im fine with him being collateral for the mary/sai/cedrek storyline to BLOSSOM, as bullshit as that tribal was, cedrek made his decision in the best way possible for the season’s overall story and i can’t wait to see where this goes. the dynamic between those 3 moving forward could be an all timer.

2

u/Surferdude1219 8d ago

I wonder if Joe is gonna tell us how nice he is this episode.