Survivor 20 Ep 14 "Anything Could Happen"

[lazarus]

In the words of Jerri, I'm swimming in yay. Sandra is the greatest of all time.

I figured Colby was going, but was surprised Jerri went. I figured Russell would want to go against Jerri in the end. Turned out it didn't matter.

Sandra ended up with 6 votes. I'm hoping CBS will post the voting comments later, I'm curious to hear the thinking. I think Parvati is right, and the stink of Russell rubbed off on her.

That F4 challenge, a repeat from Amazon, was great, and the closest finish we've had in a long time. Very exciting. It was nice to finally get an epic challenge. I wish they had brought back the Vertical Maze from Vanuatu, though. That one was great.

I'm too damned excited and happy to have much more to say. I'm sure I'll have more tomorrow.

Yay!

On edit: Hat burn for the win. Also, I think I figured out how awesome Sandra was at FTC. She had to separate herself from Parvati. She knew everyone hated Russell with the fire of a thousand suns, so she simply showed how she was opposed to Russell from day one, whilst Parvati was allied with him. Yes, Parv had the Russell stink on her, but Sandra made it much, much worse. Sandra got every Hero vote, plus Courtney, by making herself the anti-Russell. Brilliant.

[murielm99]

1. I loved it when Sandra burned his hat.

I needed the belly laugh that scene provided.

Sandra really was anti-Russell. She wasn't lying about that. She did try to get the heroes to listen to her and vote him off. The jury needed to be reminded of that. Sandra is good at reading people. That is why she wins.

I can't stand Parvati, but she is a good player. She made some good moves. She was smart to ally with Russell, but she should have found a way out of that alliance before the final four. She should have had a backup plan. One of the women commented that Parvati's alliance with Russell was like an abusive relationship. I think that was a very perceptive comment.

I loved the outcome. Yay Sandra!

[Phentex]

2. We LOL'd too. Belly laughs...

He burned socks and threw away water and other crap. It was nice to see the table turned for a moment.

Russell is fascinating to watch. But he showed his true colors even at the end by the way he put Sandra and Parvati down last night. P may have allied with him but she made plenty of moves without him and she didn't back down at his threats. I like when she called him his pet, lol. When Jeff kept asking him about playing for the jury, I LOVED it when Sandra said, "He don't understand you!"

Sandra was smart to remind the jury she tried to throw them a bone but Candice screwed it up. Has any other player said to Russell, "I'm against you" and survived? :)

[Arkansas Granny]

8. The fate of Russell's hat just proves the point "What goes around, comes around".

I laughed out loud.

[Vinca]

3. My favorite part of the final tribal council was when Parvati said

Russell was a dragon, but rather than slay him, she decided to keep him as a pet. Russell looked like he wanted to crawl under a rock and hide. Poor Russell must be the most delusional creature on earth. He actually thought he could get a vote. Good for Sandra on winning. It's a nice offset to her husband's military pay.

[lpbk2713]

4. Three cheers for Sandra.

And I strongly suspect that the vote to give Russell the $100K prize was rigged. They should check his family's phone bills for how many times they phoned in a vote. I recall hearing that Russell is a millionaire, so if it cost him several thousand dollars to win that prize just for the sake of his ego I would not put it past him to go that route. He is that much of a weasel. Rupert should have gotten the "Favorite Player" award IMO. And it's too bad JT didn't get that note thrown in the fire. Russell will probably make a lot of money on it on Ebay.

[dr.strangelove]

6. I doubt it

I called and voted for him, as did my wife.
HE is the most entertaining player and the best pure player, but Rob said it right, he does not play to win, just to play and dominate others. Anyway, I think he deserved that prize both times.

[dr.strangelove]

5. GREAT ENDING

Clearly, the best player won, that said, I think Russell should be commended again for his play. It is a shame that even the best players take being played so personally. I think if I was there, I would just be fine with getting my ass handed to me. It would piss me off, but not to the point of hating the one that did it.

Overall, I have to say, the best season ever. The maze was amazing. I think it was proof about how good this year really was. Jeri, who is really a very good player, was so very close to getting to the end. I would like to have seen her Russell and Sandra. I think she might have picked up a few hero votes and made it closer. Still Saundra was sure to win. Parv, I'm not sure it was the stink of Russell. She played her game, which is aggressive. She just did not do what Saundra, which was lock up hero votes. Had PArv done more to get their votes, she would have won. She just never talked to any of them by Amanda.

Saundra, the best I've ever seen. From the day Rob got ousted until the end, she could teach a class on how to win when you are down. Keep the heat off yourself and keep hitting the people you want to take to the end. Of course Courtrny in the jury house helped A LOT!!

Thanks to all on DU who joined me for convos this season. It made it so enjoyable. Also, thanks for no one spoiling it. In early January my wife and I were told by a close friend that they had gotten the boot order, the final 3 and that one person was almost sure to win. We both doubted it was true, but our friend was positive and said the online community thought the source was a player. Anyway, we agreed to get an email from our friend with the info, and my wife and I opened it for the first time last night.

Sure enough, the boot order was exactly right, as was the final three and the prediction that Russell got nothing and Saundra would win by at least 2 votes. It also said that RUSSELL was the source, due to his discontent with the way the and last season worked out. Frankly, I believe it. That said, I am so glad I watched the season unspoiled. I never would have predicted this finish. When I look back, I think Saundra played the perfect game. She is amazing. So thanks for everyone who did nto spoil this season and thanks to everyone for contributing to our talks. It makes the season SO much more fun. Big thanks to Laz for starting great conversations. Although we disagreed a lot, I think we both agree that the greatest survivor won.

See you all in the fall for the next season.

[lpbk2713]

7. Here's a link to Sandra getting her check this morning.

Link: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6491360n&tag=related;photovideo


Sandra was asked what the first thing she would do with her money ... "Pay my taxes." :rofl:
No doubt a reference to Richard Hatch's situation.

Weasel Russell says he wants to try out for American Idol. Don't know if he was serious or not.

[dr.strangelove]

9. Thanks

It is funny to think about how Russell played two games back to back. Frankly, I give him even more credit now. Thats intense. He had a two week vacation then went right back to playing. Did he even come home? Its exhausting.

[murielm99]

10. He had a two week vacation...

I don't understand the timeline for Russell.

Did he go home for two weeks after his season, and then go right into Heroes vs. Villains? Did they take him out of Heroes vs. Villains to appear on the final show, where Natalie wins the season? Did he know or not know if he won his season when he appeared on Heroes vs. Villains?

[dr.strangelove]

11. Timeline

Russell is in Samoa for the 19th season. It wraps and he is not sure if he won, but he knows it was close at the jury. HE gets two weeks off. (I heard it was actually ten days). I don;t know if he went home or if his wife came to him. Then they start to shoot the 20th season. that goes for 39 days. While it is being shot in Samoa, the 19th season is on TV. When the 20th season wraps, they have still not shown the finale to the 19th season yet on TV. So he was back from heroes v. villains when he was on that finale.

[murielm99]

12. Thank you! n/t