Thread:Fedora Kid/@comment-2147650-20150521021020/@comment-1734566-20150521200104

Again, I think that just because the winner is "predictable" doesn't make it bad. I mean, sure in some seasons like RI or OW, but that same logic could be used to say that BvW or Cagayan were terrible, because those winners were "predictable" by and large as well. Just because a season LOOKS like a foregone conclusion on paper, in 20-20 hindsight, doesn't mean it seems that way in the PRESENT, as we're watching it. The fact that they were able to build up the drama and suspense SO well in episodes with "predictable boots," like Joe and Shirin, is a testament to how good this season was. And at the time, say, three episodes ago, did we KNOW Mike would win? For all we knew then, he could be another Ozzy or Malcolm - win a bunch of challenges but lose the crucial last one, and be another victim of the "Almost There" curse. And like Ozzy and Malcolm, just because someone gets a "winner's edit" doesn't mean they WILL win. With that in mind, I'll take a "predictable but good" winner over a "shocking but bad" winner any day.

But BOY OH BOY, Batman, do I agree with you 150,000% on that reunion show. I mean, FFS, if people hated Caramoan's reunion show just for not including the pre-merge people, their heads will EXPLODE after watching the WA reunion show. I mean, seriously - were Mike, Carolyn, Dan, Will, Shirin, and kinda Rodney literally the ONLY ONES who got focus? AT ALL? None of the other jurors? No Tyler, no Red Collars? And to say nothing of the pre-merge boots, who were gone completely. And even beyond that, the significant amount of focus on Dan, Will, and Shirin (and they admitted that they wanted to focus on Rodney more too, but ran out of time) basically committed the crime that I've been accusing all of this season's whiny detractors of committing: It COMPLETELY ignored all the GOOD things about this season (the blindsides, idol plays, some close challenge calls, great gameplay from Mike, Carolyn, Tyler, and maybe even Rodney, to say nothing of Mike's satisfying victory), and focused ENTIRELY on the bad things. Like, seriously: They act like Will and Dan DOMINATED this season with negativity, even though, again, Will had literally ONE bad episode and Dan had a handful of not-that-bad remarks. If we were to take out that SINGLE episode with Will and Shirin, you wouldn't be hearing any of this obnoxious b****ing, and best of all, Shirin would still be wildly unpopular with casuals and hardcore fans alike - and she CERTAINLY wouldn't have been voted back in for Second Chances purely out of pity. UGH. And that leads to the same problem with the reunion: They were SO QUICK to sweep this season under the rug and devote time to unveiling the Second Chance cast ONE. BY. ONE. Seriously? They couldn't give that its own show, like, the day after or something? Probst didn't necessarily talk bad about this season despite his focus in the reunion indicating that (the way he talked bad about last season), he just swept it under the rug like it was NOTHING, even though it was a GREAT season and their 30TH SEASON.

Sigh...BUT with all that out of the way, yeah, I'm excited for Second Chance. Literally the only two people I don't want to see win are Jeremy and Shirin, and considering that they're just 2 out of 20, and they're both decisively 2 of the WORST players in this overall cast, I'm convinced that they'd both ONLY go far as goats if nothing else, or otherwise if all the strong players get booted early, All-Stars style. Let's hope that doesn't happen.