This is NOT an edgic thread and you edgic people can FOAD and KMA. Seriously.
It's about that time. There really haven't been too many seasons where you couldn't at least make an educated guess as to the winner of Survivor. This season is a little different because of the twists and how they've influenced Fang going from surefire extinction to possible control of the game.
In my seasons here, we've been at least able to figure F3 or so. Guatemala, it seemed Rafe had the winner's edit. Panama, it was clearly Aras or Terry. Yul and Earl were painfully obvious winners by the time the merges happened. In China, most people figured Amanda was getting the winner's edit while some of us rightly guessed it was Todd. Last season, it felt like Cirie was getting the best edit ever but at 8, most of us had at least wrapped out heads around the possibility of a Parvati win.
Gabon?
Looking solely at the edits:
Bob - there has been nothing to indicate a winner's edit. Nice guy edit, sure. Hard worker edit, sure. 5th wheel strategically, decent in challenges, the only possibility his edit is a winner's edit is if suddenly, after being given "new life" because of the merge, he suddenly wins some Immunities, gets Fang to turn on eachother, grabs Suzie and Sugar or something. With a character like Bob, I would suspect that were he to be this season's winner, his edit would be a little bit more inspiring. He gets no face time in side interviews really either. In fact, despite the fact the thread was a joke, his edit does kind of remind me of Butch. Nice guy. Hard worker. No real strategies and certainly hard to fathom a winner's edit. Then again, I would never have guessed Danni would win Guatemala based on edits at F8, so this could be a season of "why the losers lost" the way Guatemala was about why Steph lost vs. why Danni won. This could be the only possible edit line where I see Bob winning, but would that not SUCK or what?
Corinne - Despite the comparisons to Jerri, her edit is closer to Guatemala Steph, even though there aren't that many similarities. When I told a friend that I couldn't see her winning with her "mean girl" edit, they countered with "what about Parvati?" Parvati didn't get a mean girl edit. Her edit showed her buttering people up, gaining their trust and in one telling scene, smiling away like it's the best day ever as she chews on raw clam. Meanwhile, Kathy is breaking down right next to her. Happy, fun girl who cut all their throats. Corinne has shown none of that. Most telling was her comment about Sugar, how she was only nice to her for one day and Sugar believed her, which was obviously not the case. So this is no edit whereby she is suckering people into trusting her. She made one alliance, will stick with it come hell or high water and is generally not a kind person (edit wise). All I can fathom is that somehow she makes an unbelievable Immunity run and gets close to the end but honestly, we've never had somebody with such a one sided edit manage to win.
Crystal - I'll throw out the animal imagery since the wildebeast (or whatever it is) isn't the most flattering. The thing is, of everybody left, she is the one who keeps taking the hits at tribal council and keeps staying in the game. Dunno if this is a winner's edit or a "feel good" edit though. She has never been shown masterminding anything. Besides that one moment with Marcus and the alliance based on him knowing her cousin, the strategic moves have mainly had to do with Kenny. Of course, being Survivor and her being an Olympic champ, it "could" be that her edit, should she win, is one of determination. Hers is the most ripe edit for this to happen in fact, because she seems so determined and has never let her emotions get in the way of her staying another week. I've seen a lot of Survivors crumble in the exact circumstances Crystal has had to face and yet, despite all those votes against her, here she sits.
Kenny - He is the only person left who has really been shown to be strong at strategy. Sugar and Suzie have been edited as swing votes, not people making decisions and calling the shots. Somewhere along the line, Kenny went from the underdog geek, "just happy to be here with cute chicks" edit to the "world class gamer is figuring out how to play the game of Survivor" edit. This reminds me of Todd in a way, how you feel like because they are talking about taking control, they MUST be getting blindsided soon. Of everybody left, his is, again, the only purely strategic edit right now. He's gotten a lot of snake imagery lately. I don't think they use animal imagery to determine winner but it's a sure sign that he's been doing the strategic "heavy lifting". Certainly hasn't been Crystal or Mattie
Matty - Here is how I describe Matty - great survivor, shitty Survivor. The man has worked his ASS off, he has tried his hardest in challenges and even shown some flashes of truly enjoying the experience. He is also a shitty strategist. Almost to the point of "if Matty wants it, the opposite will happen". I can't see how, strategically, he wins this game but based on edit, his chance is in the fact he really hasn't screwed anybody over. Sure he voted against Crystal but that was because he "swore on his girlfriend". In terms of the win, Matty is somebody I keep discounting till I envision him sitting in the F3 talking about how hard he played the game. I still think Kenny and/or Crystal is getting more of a winner's edit than any of the other 2 original Fang members, but there is an outside shot Matty wins simply because he played a very straight up game.
Randy - the mouthpiece of the season, or at least the person who seems to be getting an ungodly amount of facetime this season. His edit reminds me of Judd, right down to the tribe switch from a tribe of people he hated to a tribe of people he liked a whole lot more. He has a big mouth and an inability to edit his thoughts. The main difference is Judd went into the merge with numbers while Randy no longer has any numbers. In fact it seems he's alienated everybody but maybe Bob and Corinne. Of course, this screams "take this person to FINAL TWO!!!" but then you'd be essentially handing him the Marcus and Charlie votes unless somehow the F3 is Corinne, Randy and Bob in which case Corinne wins. As this would take a catostrophic turn of events, I simply cannot see Randy winning Survivor. This is NOT a winner's edit.
Sugar - is this a confusing edit or WHAT?!?!?! So, first she is sent to Exile so much we really no nothing about her social interactions. She finds the idol and leaves it in her bag, tells Ace, tells all of Fang pretty much. We are thinking "she's hot but kind of stupid and why Ace of all people?" Then she blindsides Ace. Then she blindsides Charlie. Suddenly Sugar is in the F8 holding a hidden Immunity idol and having made some major plays in this game. I figure hers is the wildcard edit, kind of like Pearl Islands Sandra (winner) and Vanuatu Eliza (loser), the person you don't really expect to see towards the endgame and yet there they are. The person you would figure everybody would vote out simply because they could be a swing vote, and yet they don't. Sugar could get herself into trouble being that swing vote but as is, her edit seems to be guiding her someplace towards the F4. There are bigger fish to fry than her for the next couple rounds, she has the HII and there is the possibility somebody takes her to F3 just so they can say "Sugar didn't even play half this game, she spent it getting fat and tanning". I'm not sure what to make of her edit but I certainly would be shocked if she went next week.
Suzie - I did a 180 on ole Suze the last couple of weeks. Her first half of the season edit has been absolutely underwhelming. Okay, first she was with Crystal and Gillian. Then against Crystal and with Randy/Dan/Matty. Then the underdog but darn it she works hard. Then she was a surefire boot but...they voted Dan out. Suddenly we find out Suzie is "crazy", at least according to Randy. Then, switch happens and Suzie, despite some half hearted promises from Marcus, flips and votes out Marcus. I'm on the fence because that move seemed to be more out of necessity than actual strategic control, but we'll see. Generally, swing vote players don't win, which is also my problem with Sugar based on edit. I can see it, because Suzie could have a good arguement for where she came from in the game but also, I just cannot see the jury awarding her the money for the way she played over anybody else, unless there is some serious hurt feeling action going on in the jury. It feels like Suzie got sprung on us a little too late for it to feel like a winner's edit.
I'm not predicting anything, just been thinking about this all week, just based on the editing and not personal feelings on who I'd like to see win (Kenny and/or Sugar).
All that and not one Edgic term!
-SJ™
It's about that time. There really haven't been too many seasons where you couldn't at least make an educated guess as to the winner of Survivor. This season is a little different because of the twists and how they've influenced Fang going from surefire extinction to possible control of the game.
In my seasons here, we've been at least able to figure F3 or so. Guatemala, it seemed Rafe had the winner's edit. Panama, it was clearly Aras or Terry. Yul and Earl were painfully obvious winners by the time the merges happened. In China, most people figured Amanda was getting the winner's edit while some of us rightly guessed it was Todd. Last season, it felt like Cirie was getting the best edit ever but at 8, most of us had at least wrapped out heads around the possibility of a Parvati win.
Gabon?
Looking solely at the edits:
Bob - there has been nothing to indicate a winner's edit. Nice guy edit, sure. Hard worker edit, sure. 5th wheel strategically, decent in challenges, the only possibility his edit is a winner's edit is if suddenly, after being given "new life" because of the merge, he suddenly wins some Immunities, gets Fang to turn on eachother, grabs Suzie and Sugar or something. With a character like Bob, I would suspect that were he to be this season's winner, his edit would be a little bit more inspiring. He gets no face time in side interviews really either. In fact, despite the fact the thread was a joke, his edit does kind of remind me of Butch. Nice guy. Hard worker. No real strategies and certainly hard to fathom a winner's edit. Then again, I would never have guessed Danni would win Guatemala based on edits at F8, so this could be a season of "why the losers lost" the way Guatemala was about why Steph lost vs. why Danni won. This could be the only possible edit line where I see Bob winning, but would that not SUCK or what?
Corinne - Despite the comparisons to Jerri, her edit is closer to Guatemala Steph, even though there aren't that many similarities. When I told a friend that I couldn't see her winning with her "mean girl" edit, they countered with "what about Parvati?" Parvati didn't get a mean girl edit. Her edit showed her buttering people up, gaining their trust and in one telling scene, smiling away like it's the best day ever as she chews on raw clam. Meanwhile, Kathy is breaking down right next to her. Happy, fun girl who cut all their throats. Corinne has shown none of that. Most telling was her comment about Sugar, how she was only nice to her for one day and Sugar believed her, which was obviously not the case. So this is no edit whereby she is suckering people into trusting her. She made one alliance, will stick with it come hell or high water and is generally not a kind person (edit wise). All I can fathom is that somehow she makes an unbelievable Immunity run and gets close to the end but honestly, we've never had somebody with such a one sided edit manage to win.
Crystal - I'll throw out the animal imagery since the wildebeast (or whatever it is) isn't the most flattering. The thing is, of everybody left, she is the one who keeps taking the hits at tribal council and keeps staying in the game. Dunno if this is a winner's edit or a "feel good" edit though. She has never been shown masterminding anything. Besides that one moment with Marcus and the alliance based on him knowing her cousin, the strategic moves have mainly had to do with Kenny. Of course, being Survivor and her being an Olympic champ, it "could" be that her edit, should she win, is one of determination. Hers is the most ripe edit for this to happen in fact, because she seems so determined and has never let her emotions get in the way of her staying another week. I've seen a lot of Survivors crumble in the exact circumstances Crystal has had to face and yet, despite all those votes against her, here she sits.
Kenny - He is the only person left who has really been shown to be strong at strategy. Sugar and Suzie have been edited as swing votes, not people making decisions and calling the shots. Somewhere along the line, Kenny went from the underdog geek, "just happy to be here with cute chicks" edit to the "world class gamer is figuring out how to play the game of Survivor" edit. This reminds me of Todd in a way, how you feel like because they are talking about taking control, they MUST be getting blindsided soon. Of everybody left, his is, again, the only purely strategic edit right now. He's gotten a lot of snake imagery lately. I don't think they use animal imagery to determine winner but it's a sure sign that he's been doing the strategic "heavy lifting". Certainly hasn't been Crystal or Mattie
Matty - Here is how I describe Matty - great survivor, shitty Survivor. The man has worked his ASS off, he has tried his hardest in challenges and even shown some flashes of truly enjoying the experience. He is also a shitty strategist. Almost to the point of "if Matty wants it, the opposite will happen". I can't see how, strategically, he wins this game but based on edit, his chance is in the fact he really hasn't screwed anybody over. Sure he voted against Crystal but that was because he "swore on his girlfriend". In terms of the win, Matty is somebody I keep discounting till I envision him sitting in the F3 talking about how hard he played the game. I still think Kenny and/or Crystal is getting more of a winner's edit than any of the other 2 original Fang members, but there is an outside shot Matty wins simply because he played a very straight up game.
Randy - the mouthpiece of the season, or at least the person who seems to be getting an ungodly amount of facetime this season. His edit reminds me of Judd, right down to the tribe switch from a tribe of people he hated to a tribe of people he liked a whole lot more. He has a big mouth and an inability to edit his thoughts. The main difference is Judd went into the merge with numbers while Randy no longer has any numbers. In fact it seems he's alienated everybody but maybe Bob and Corinne. Of course, this screams "take this person to FINAL TWO!!!" but then you'd be essentially handing him the Marcus and Charlie votes unless somehow the F3 is Corinne, Randy and Bob in which case Corinne wins. As this would take a catostrophic turn of events, I simply cannot see Randy winning Survivor. This is NOT a winner's edit.
Sugar - is this a confusing edit or WHAT?!?!?! So, first she is sent to Exile so much we really no nothing about her social interactions. She finds the idol and leaves it in her bag, tells Ace, tells all of Fang pretty much. We are thinking "she's hot but kind of stupid and why Ace of all people?" Then she blindsides Ace. Then she blindsides Charlie. Suddenly Sugar is in the F8 holding a hidden Immunity idol and having made some major plays in this game. I figure hers is the wildcard edit, kind of like Pearl Islands Sandra (winner) and Vanuatu Eliza (loser), the person you don't really expect to see towards the endgame and yet there they are. The person you would figure everybody would vote out simply because they could be a swing vote, and yet they don't. Sugar could get herself into trouble being that swing vote but as is, her edit seems to be guiding her someplace towards the F4. There are bigger fish to fry than her for the next couple rounds, she has the HII and there is the possibility somebody takes her to F3 just so they can say "Sugar didn't even play half this game, she spent it getting fat and tanning". I'm not sure what to make of her edit but I certainly would be shocked if she went next week.
Suzie - I did a 180 on ole Suze the last couple of weeks. Her first half of the season edit has been absolutely underwhelming. Okay, first she was with Crystal and Gillian. Then against Crystal and with Randy/Dan/Matty. Then the underdog but darn it she works hard. Then she was a surefire boot but...they voted Dan out. Suddenly we find out Suzie is "crazy", at least according to Randy. Then, switch happens and Suzie, despite some half hearted promises from Marcus, flips and votes out Marcus. I'm on the fence because that move seemed to be more out of necessity than actual strategic control, but we'll see. Generally, swing vote players don't win, which is also my problem with Sugar based on edit. I can see it, because Suzie could have a good arguement for where she came from in the game but also, I just cannot see the jury awarding her the money for the way she played over anybody else, unless there is some serious hurt feeling action going on in the jury. It feels like Suzie got sprung on us a little too late for it to feel like a winner's edit.
I'm not predicting anything, just been thinking about this all week, just based on the editing and not personal feelings on who I'd like to see win (Kenny and/or Sugar).
All that and not one Edgic term!
-SJ™
