Friday, April 20, 2007

Dreamz!

Okay. I'm still watching Survivor. The first reality TV show I ever let myself get hooked on (after stubbornly refusing to watch most of the first season).

Last night was the best episode ever. The first one where I was actually clapping and laughing during the vote at tribal council.

Why? Because the guy who no one fully trusts. The guy who seems to sway with the wind. The guy who's treated as if he were a child. The guy who seemed like a pawn in several different people's games? He changed everything. Never has their been a better liar on this game. Particularly one I was rooting for. Who wasn't lying for his own personal gain, so much, or for the pure joy in manipulation many of the past notorious liars seem to derived, but to gain the trust of others and to send a message to the people he lied to that he was not to be underestimated or patronized.

And, to me, Dreamz helped "the good guys". Hence my clapping and laughing. The expressions on everyone's faces when Edguardo's name came up more than once was priceless!

Watching that show, I'm never cheering for the ones who are so bloody arrogant about their position in the game. It's usually the strong, good looking guys and as much as it's nice to keep those guys around to look at, arrogance is the human trait I dislike most. (Another reason why the business world was uncomfortable for me. Many of the people I had to deal with were dripping in it.)

The sensitive side of me hopes the group's last minute decision to switch from Mookie to Eguardo and not tell Dreamz doesn't hurt Dreamz too much. He's already been treated badly by the so called Four Horseman. I feel badly for him. I hope Earl or Yau-Man can convince Dreamz either that they didn't have time to tell him, or that it was a test and he passed it with flying colors and they now trust him 200%.

But the not-so-sensitive side is rubbing my hands together waiting for the shit to hit the fan and wondering if that mistake, of not trusting Dreamz, will change the game all over again. Next week should be interesting.

For me, Survivor is one of the best studies in human nature on TV. They tend to cast real people. (unlike Big Brother or those dating shows like The Bachelor, where they seem to cast the women by cup-size and the men by the lowest IQ). I just wanted to slap 90% of the cast the one and only time I watched BB) And the Survivor players are all in such close proximity for so long and are thrown so many curves, forced to make big decisions, when they are emotionally and physically taxed.

As writers we know that when under pressure is when people's true nature comes out.

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Arrogance is a defense mechanism. I tend to be my most arrogant when I'm my most insecure. While reminding others of my worth, I also remind myself.

Not always the best strategy but then, lord knows I'm far from perfect. LOL

The Girl You Used to Know said...

I LOVED last night's episode. I was squealing in delight.

but, I see things differently when it comes to Dreamz. He's fun to watch, but he's a bad liar. That's why both teams don't trust him. That's why he wasn't told the vote had switched to Edgardo (whom I really liked, but he had to go to break up the pairing with Alex)

It was bloody brilliant. The best part of last night being--the one person they all SHOULD vote out is Yao-man and he's still the one nobody would even consider getting rid of yet. I LOVED how they used Dreamz's dishonesty in their favor because they knew he'd run and tell them that Alex was the target. It was so smart because it made Mookie give up the idol...and totally waste it. It was the MOST awesome moment in Survivor world. It was brilliant.

Now the immunity idol is back in play. Wouldn't it be awesome if Yao found that idol and won immunity too!?

Maureen McGowan said...

Mel, I agree that Dreamz has proved himself untrustworthy... but I found it amazing how well he convinced those guys that it was still Alex even though he thought at the time it was Mookie. But those other guys (Earl, Cassandra, Yao) were smart not to tell him when they switched it up again. I wouldn't have, either. It would totally rock if Yao-Man won. He's a great player. One of the best they've ever had on that show. Remember when he made and hid a fake immunity idol? And everyone thinks he's this sweet old man -- which he is -- but he's a good player, too.

Maureen McGowan said...

Kimber, I completely agree. But it's having to deal with people (mostly men) for whom arrogance has become their default position, that I can't deal with anymore. I've met one or two writers like that, too. But they're in the minority. In business, particularly when I was living in the US, I found that kind of person to be all too common.

Anonymous said...

I don't watch Survivor, but I'm hooked on America's Next Top Model. I am not proud of this in any way- but I console myself with the idea that it is important for me to be up on popular culture.

Jing said...

And i thought i was one of the few people who still watch Survivor! We rewound and watched the four horseman tribal council reaction shots twice... priceless.

Love the Yao-Earl alliance (or is it syndicate?) I think Alex will realize next episode that he still has a chance (and the numbers) to swing people against YaoMan or Earl... let's see what happens!!

Mia King said...

Aloha Maureen!

Another Survivor junkie, I don't believe it! My husband was hooked from season 1, too - in fact, we moved to Hawaii on the day of the finale. We literally got off the plane, went straight to Costco, bought a TV and a mattress, then drove the hour like gangbusters to our new house (which I had never seen) so that Darrin could catch the finale. He even had the foresight to have the cable up and running ... and bear in mind he was dragging a 7 month pregnant lady around (that would be me) and it was still a long flight from CA!

Anonymous said...
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Anonymous said...

It was awesome, wasn't it? So clever!!

"Survivor" has been my touchstone - we first started watching it when we first started on this journey moving across the country - from CA to OR to OH to FL - and it's what ties us to the familiarity of the west.

It's a brilliant show and comforting, too. :)

Anonymous said...

Finally, someone who loves Survivor as much as I do! I've missed the last two episodes (dammit) and am woefully behind. I would have loved to see last night's tribal council. It's so delicious when someone quiet pulls off a brilliant tactical move. I prefer to see it as tactics rather than manipulation, although it really is another form of lying and cheating isn't it?

I think I love Survivor also for the gorgeous beaches and turquoise water. Love those water challenges. There's something so entertaining about watching people battle it out when they're exhausted, hungry and desperate. This is reality TV at it's best.

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