Vote for Survivor 31 Cast!

 

So you may all know by now that the cast of Survivor 31 will be selected by fan votes. Well, semi-selected at least, as it’s already been pre-selected and narrowed down to 32 potential players.

Before we get into what I think of each player, a few random thoughts:

– I like the idea of this vote, but I wish the selection had been a bit wider, while there are many contestants I want to see play again, there are also too many on that list that I never want to see again (and a few could possibly make it).

– The division by gender is a bit odd. What I mean is that while I’ll have a hard time narrowing down to 10 the number of men I want to see back among the 16 (I currently have 12), I’m having trouble finding 10 women among the 16 that I want to see back. There are so many women who were great and are absent from this list, when too many have nothing to do on it. I guess it depended on many factors: who wants to do it, who can do it, who the producers think will make good TV, and sadly, the eye candy factor (I can’t understand why Natalie and Mikayla are on this list otherwise).

– Interestingly, while it’ll be Season 31, it will be shooting in 32nd position. The 31st season (which will be Survivor 32) is currently shooting I believe, and it won’t be broadcast until February 2016. Crazy long wait for the contestants, and I hope not too many leaks will happen in between.

– Yes, I know, I said I don’t have time to blog these days, so why am I writing a long post about this instead of blogging about this week’s episode. Well, this has gotten me excited, and I really dislike the current season. Sure, it has very good game play overall, but as I’m typing these lines, there is no contestant left that I find likable, Tyler was the only left that I could find tolerable, even Mike, despite being edited as the hero of the season is getting on my nerves (at least he is not a nasty human being like many others, but he’s still pretty annoying). So, yeah, I will take the time to write about this next season, but I doubt I will bother writing about Season 30 again (maybe for the finale… maybe…)

OK, let’s get down to the possible future contestants of Season 31, which will be called Second Chance, right?

 

 

– Ciera Eastin: I’ve never been a very big fan of her, but I gotta to admit that I liked the way she played, and she possibly was the best player among the loved ones in her season, or at least, the one who grew the most in terms of gameplay. Production loves her, she has what it takes to make big moves, she should do a great job on her second season. She may get my vote.
Chances of returning: pretty high.

– Kass McQuillen: Even now, after all has been said and done, I still don’t know what to think of her. She didn’t play that well when you think about it, she was extremely unlikable, and yet, I think she can be hilarious and she makes for great TV (not mentioning her great twittering). In other words, I love to hate her and I definitely want to see her again on Survivor. She’ll get my vote.
Chances of returning: consider it a done deal.

– Monica Padilla: Hot? Check. Smart? Check. Likable? Mmm… No sorry. I could never like her, quite the opposite actually. Then, she seems to know how to play this game. I may vote for her, but don’t expect me to root for her anytime soon, unless she really has changed. (update: I have just watched the videos that the contestants made, and I really liked her in the video. A little bit like Ciera, while she learned how to play too late in her first season, she may be able to pull out some great game her second time around).
Chances of returning: Could go either way, she may be able to sneak in last or next to last, maybe.

– Natalie Tenerelli: Why on earth is she on that list? I had no interest whatsoever in her the first time around, possibly the most brainless and useless of the Boston Rob Zombies, there is no way I want to see her on Survivor ever again. No chance on earth she gets my vote. (update: and the video doesn’t serve her cause, she says she’s more mature, she doesn’t look more mature a bit).
Chances of returning: Slim to none.

– Peih-Gee Law: Sadly, I don’t have too many memories of her. I kinda remember rooting for her at the very beginning of the season, but then, kinda finding her annoying, but then again, I think had a lot of reason to be complaining and such (such as playing with Jean-Robert). I kinda want to see her again, maybe.
Chances of returning: I was tempted to say that she has very few, but she seems quite popular on the web right now.

– Sabrina Thompson: For the first few episodes of her season, she looked like she had what it takes to be a potential winner, but after that she kinda became Kim’s zombie. I don’t know if I want to see her play again. I guess she’ll get my vote if I can’t come up with 10 women at the end.
Chances of returning: Weak.

– Stephanie Valencia: I remember that I hated her almost as much as I hated Russell, but in retrospect, she seemed that she was one of the very few players who could actually play during her season, so maybe she does deserve another chance. I don’t think I can ever like her, but she will probably get my vote. (update: the video reminded me of something: her voice! I simply can’t stand her voice. I know that’s unfair, but I just can’t deal with that voice, I may not vote for her just because of that).
Chances of returning: Weak, I don’t think she has made a strong enough impression.

– Tasha Fox: Let’s put it simply: she rocked during her season, and I believe that if Tony hadn’t been there, she would have most likely won. She’s getting my vote.
Chances of returning: She’s quite popular, add to that the recency bias, I think she’s in.

– Teresa “T-Bird” Cooper: I remember kinda liking her (but rooting against her at the same time, cause I wanted Lex or Big Tom to win and if I remember correctly, she was in the other alliance) in Africa, but I don’t think she’s someone who I want to see as a returning player. I don’t think I’ll vote for her. (update: she kinda freaked me out a little in her video)
Chances of returning: Pretty slim I believe. Some hardcore fans may vote for her, but casuals have no idea who she is.

– Carolyn Rivera: That’s a tough one. Parts of me likes her (she rocked during this week’s episode) parts of me don’t really care about her. One problem is that she’s still in the game and we have no idea how she’ll lose (if she loses, I believe that Mike and her are more or less decoys, or at least one of them is), so it’s hard to tell whether I want her to get a second chance or not. I have no idea if I’ll vote for her, but probably not.
Chances of returning: no idea. As voting is open until the first hour of the season finale, what she does until then will probably be the deciding factor.

– Kelley Wentworth: I feel bad for Kelley. First, she got screwed by the reshuffling of the tribes, as well as by the fact that she was playing with her dad. She also got screwed by the edit, as she became pretty much invisible because not essential to the main storylines. However, everything I read about her during her season implied that she was playing well and playing hard, we just didn’t get to see lots of it. I think she really deserves a second chance, and I will definitely vote for her.
Chances of returning: Unfortunately, her edit will play against her, and her chances of returning are slim to none.

– Kelly Wiglesworth: Who doesn’t want to see contestants from Season One return? Gervase showed it could be done (he had no clue how to play back then, and he learned alright). My main caveat with Kelly is that apparently she hasn’t really been watching the show at all in 15 years. Is she really up to date about all the changes it went through? Is she relevant in 2015 era Survivor? Well, I really want to see and she’ll get my vote.
Chances of returning: Pretty high, everyone remembers her, both hardcore fans and casuals, and most will want to see her play again, at least out of curiosity.

– Kimmi Kappenberg: Fun fact: I rooted for her when Australia started, but I started to dislike her, very quickly afterwards. Oh and I will never forgive her to be the cause of Jeff Varner’s downfall. The only reason I’d want to see her play again would be to see Jeff voting her out, but he already did it 14 years ago, so what’s the point? I seriously doubt she’ll get my vote.
Chances of returning: slim to none. I don’t think that hardcore fans care for her, and casuals don’t remember her.

– Mikayla Wingle: I kinda sorta wanted to root for her at the beginning of South Pacific, but she quickly became invisible enough (except in Crazy Brandon’s crazy mind) that she didn’t really leave any impression at all (except of being invisible and not memorable). I don’t think I’ll vote for her. (update: I’ve found her video pretty good and it may change my mind about my vote).
Chances of returning: slim, not memorable enough.

– Shirin Oskooi: She started the season as being weird and annoying, and then, Will and Dan let out their ugliness and we were revealed her past, and of course we couldn’t help but feel bad for her and root for her. The question is: does she deserve a second chance though? Honestly, I don’t have an answer to that. The fact that she was abused on the island is not exactly related to her performance in the game. Had she made the right moves in the beginning, she wouldn’t have alienated Tyler and Carolyn, she could have formed a four strong with them and Max. Just one example. As I’m typing these lines, I’m still not sure whether I’ll vote for her or not.
Chances of returning: not sure. Recency factor and the late outburst in popularity make me think that she will though.

– Abi-Maria Gomes: Abi. Maria. Gomes. The Abi-Maria! I really hated her for most of her season, then she grew on me a little by the end. And after her season ended, I started to actually kinda like her (she much more likable on social media than on the island apparently). I kinda want to see her back, but I’m not too sure whether she’ll bring anything interesting to the table. I may or may not vote for her.
Chances of returning: no idea.

OK, that’s all for the women.

As I’m typing these lines, I guess my vote will be: Kass, Tasha, Kelley, Kelly, Ciera, Monica, Peih-Gee, Sabrina, Carolyn, Abi-Maria. Some of them, I’m not sure about. As mentioned earlier, I really have a hard time coming up with 10 names.

Now, the men:

 

– Jeremy Collins: He was my favorite in San Juan Del Sur. He was one of the few players who really could play. He got screwed. Of course, he’s getting my vote.
Chances of returning: If you add the recency bias factor, and the fact that he was one of the most popular contestants on his season, I’d say he’ll be back.

– Jim Rice: He had a lot of potential. Hadn’t he been screwed by Cochran’s fear of rocks, he could have gone very far, he definitely was the best player in his tribe (with Dawn). However, I don’t find him that likable, and I’m not sure I’ll vote for him. If there weren’t enough people I’d want to see play again, he’d make the cut, but I’m pretty sure I’ll have trouble to narrow it down to only 10, and there will be some victims, and I think he will be one of them.
Chances of returning: I don’t think he’s popular enough.

– Keith Nale: Of course, I want to see Keith play again, but not for the right reasons. Honestly, I hope Survivor Second Chance is full of very good players and that they deliver us a Heroes Vs Villains level of game play. That won’t happen with people like Keith. So, yeah, I want to see him play again because he’s funny, but I don’t think I want to see him play again in this coming season. Despite liking him a lot, I don’t think I’ll vote for him.
Chances of returning: Weak.

– Shane Powers: Of course, I’ll vote for him. If I need to explain why, you’re not a real Survivor Fan.
Chances of returning: I want to say that it’s a done deal, but those damn casual fans may not know him. Shame on them.

– Stephen Fishbach: Stephen is probably one of my favorite players ever, and I think it’s a shame that he hasn’t returned yet (in my opinion, he belonged to Heroes Vs Villains). He’s my number one choice out of the 32 people to return.
Chances of returning: The casual fans may not know who he is, but I believe that the RHAP nation is powerful enough in the Survivor fandom to make him return.

– Jeff Varner: You don’t know how stoked I am that Jeff Varner is in this list! Way back to Australia, Jeff almost instantly (or at least after a few amazing confessionals) became my favorite contestant ever, and you don’t know how bummed I was that he got screwed the way he was. I never thought I’d see him play again, and I’ll be pissed if people don’t vote for him.
Chances of returning: At first, I wasn’t too confident. Is he as well liked as I hope among hardcore fans? Casual fans and younger generations have probably never heard of him. However, at the moment, the consensus on the web is that he’s having an amazing campaign, and I read that many people who didn’t care for him originally decided to vote for him after seeing his video or his AMA on Reddit. So, now I’m confident I’ll see him back, even if it still feels unreal.

– Joe Anglim: He was my favorite on this current season, but mostly by default. Yet, I feel that I could have been a major force if things had stacked differently. I may vote for him.
Chances of returning: Recency bias, he was the most popular this season, I’d say it’s a done deal, he’s in.

– Max Dawson: Talk about a disappointment. Max was the very first contestant I knew before he was cast on Survivor. Oh, I didn’t know him personally, I just followed him on Twitter because of his student and teacher of the game status. And he totally flopped once he got there. Was he just blinded by the experience? Or is he just not that interesting? Hard to tell. I really would like to see him play again, but not in an All-Stars season. I don’t think he’d do anything though, he’d be too star struck. If there weren’t that many interesting people to vote for, I’d vote for him, but it will probably not happen.
Chances of returning: Slim. I don’t think he’s popular enough: casual fans don’t care for him, hardcore fan may have the same mixed feelings that I have.

– Mike Holloway: OK, I’m convinced that this is a decoy. I’m still sure he’ll win his season. Also, when you compare his video to the others, he seems to be having too much fun shooting it. While most other contestants are carefully choosing their words, are pretty passionate in their plea, he’s just kinda pretending. Sure, as I type these lines, Mike doesn’t know for a fact whether he won Worlds Apart, but I have the feeling that he has a pretty good idea. Now, there is the slim chance that he doesn’t win. In that case, even if I’m not a big fan, I was impressed by his game, and he deserves a spot in a Second Chance season. But let’s not fool ourselves, he’s a decoy.
Chances of returning: he’s a decoy. However, I wonder how many people will vote for him.

– Spencer Bledsoe: Probably my favorite player of Cagayan. While I’m glad Tony won and I think he totally deserved it, I think that Spencer deserved it almost as much (seeing how many times he got screwed, and yet, he managed to survive vote after vote until very far). He’s one of my top choices to return.
Chances of returning: He has the recency bias in his favor, he’s quite popular with hardcore fans, I’d say he’ll be back.

– Troyzan Robertson: I gotta admit, despite the fact that he can be pretty obnoxious, I like Troyzan, and I want to see him play again. He kinda got screwed by the fact that he was surrounded by morons. I think he could be a great player under the right circumstances. He’ll most likely get my vote.
Chances of returning: I don’t know if many people share my enthusiasm about Troyzan. He may be overlooked.

– Woo Hwang: I understand why kids love him. I have a hard time understanding why adults would. He seems like a pretty nice guy, but he’s also pretty clueless when it comes to play the game.
Chances of returning: I’m afraid that he’s very popular among casual fans, and they’ll vote him in.

– Terry Deitz: I always disliked him. The only circumstances I’d like to see him again would be if he played against Aras and if Aras voted him out again. He won’t get my vote.
Chances of returning: Not sure. I don’t really know how popular he is among fans.

– Andrew Savage: He was OK, his first time around, but I wasn’t a huge fan. I may vote for him… or not…
Chances of returning: Not sure. I don’t think that casuals remember him, how don’t know if hardcore fans want him back. Probst would give an arm to see him play again though, but apparently he won’t intervene in the voting process.

– Brad Culpepper: I kinda want to see him play again, but mostly for the lulz. Can he actually play well? Surrounded by experiences players? Not sure. I’d vote for him if there weren’t so many more interesting people.
Chances of returning: I think it could go either way.

– Vytas Baskauskas: Casual fans love him. Hardcore fans love him. Women love him. I love him. He’s getting my vote.
Chances of returning: Pretty high I believe.

Now, my selection: Jeremy, Shane, Stephen, Jeff, Spencer, Troyzan, Vytas, Joe, Jim and Max.

Ok, so that’s it for my impressions on every potential player of Survivor 31: Second Chance.

One last thing: apparently, it’s possible to vote once a day. So my lists may change a little bit from day to day, as I’m unsure about a few (for example, I may throw some votes to Mikayla, Stephanie, Keith and Brad from time to time).