Survivor loser: Let the audience vote
Losing Survivor bad boy Russell reckons the game is flawed and America should be voting for the winner.
- Published by David Knox
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In last night’s Survivor finale, bad boy Russell lost the reality show a second time -despite being it’s most conniving player, probably of all time.
Such is the genius of this social game. You have to play it so well that you don’t jeopardise the votes from the Jury, the people you have eliminated.
On two occasions he has now so offended his teammates so much they have punished him with the million-dollar loss.
In “Heroes v Villains” he landed zero votes. Immunity Idols only get you so far, it seems….
But in the Reunion, Russell had his say, insisting that the game was flawed.
Host Jeff Probst (who is also a producer) didn’t take too kindly to that idea.
Russell said America should vote for the winner. Probst basically told him that’s another show.
If he had his way he probably would have won. Viewers voted him the “Sprint Player of the Season” award and the US$100,000 prize that went with it.
Meanwhile for Nine the reality show’s future is looking a lot rosier. Recent seasons have struggled around Nine’s schedule for some time. Late last year Programmer Michael Healy told TV Tonight he wanted to give the show another shot.
With a series as strong as “Heroes v Villains” and one played mostly hot off the satellite, it has rated well. Last night’s two hour finale averaged just over 1m viewers, which together with Top Gear and GO! programming was enough for the Nine Network to beat Seven and TEN.
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48 Responses
To be fair – Sandra’s game plan was overwhelmed by Russell. The stuff she did on her first season (scheming, betraying, casting doubts) was all done to greater effect by Russell. This time she very quietly convinced people around her to make waves and kept to the shadows. If you can go to the final three versus Russell and Parvati then you’re assured of winning. Anyone else sitting next to Russell and Parvati would have won – his style ensures defeat and she was dragged down with him (though only barely).
Sandra’s luck is playing in seasons against people like Russell and Johnny Fairplay. She seems like an angel in comparison.
If any of the all-stars had seen what Russell was like on Samoa (it screened after they had filmed H vs V) then Russell would have been off in the first few weeks. He will never get to Jury stages in any future all-star game – not now everyone knows how he plays (oh, and without Tyson and JT to help him!!)
@Dave – He didn’t know he’d lost when he went out there. That was just some clever editing. Nobody else out there had seen his season, so he obviously couldn’t have either.
@faystar – The fact you don’t think Sandra played hard shows how good she is. You don’t win twice because you’re not good at Survivor.
Also Russell isn’t a ‘great strategist’ to get to the end, he’s a ‘massive jerk’ so Everybody wants to take him to the end and beat him. The only person out there Russell could possibly have beaten was Randy.
@sam – No strategic moves? I’m pretty sure Sandra was the one who convinced Russell to get rid of Coach instead of her and Courtney. I’m pretty sure Sandra was the one who helped convince Russell she was easy to beat at the end. “I’m happy with $100,000”. Russell got played.
Russell was Brilliant and I wish he had won. But that Is the game! Outlasting the others takes skill but you have to keep them on your side once eliminated to win!
When he was so visibly distressed at the Samoa reunion, I thought he was crushed at losing compounded with knowledge he hadn’t even come close to winning in HVsV.
Terrific season, though!
@faystar & @sam
It’s an interesting point you bring up about Sandra, she actually didn’t do much. But it can also be a strategic move to not do much or to lose challenges etc. to appear to be less of a threat.
Sandra won because she did actually play a game that was clever enough to ensure her making to the final 3 and she didn’t screw anyone over in the process. You don’t have to be able to grunt the loudest to win !
Agree with 2.5 men- I love survivor- i now makes sense why russell didnt learn his lesson at the final tribal council after what happens in samoa- if he had realised what and dumb ass he had been then and got no votes he mave have been a bit smater in heros v villans..although thats debatable- he seemed to have no idea on the reunion- but having said that he or parv should have won- or even jerri …anyone but sandra- i hated her and she did nothing – no challenge wins no startegic moves she rattled on about getting rid of Russ – but could’nt manage that- loud mouth and obnoxious she is ..horrid- rupert not much better… but yes bring on next season….
On another night a HUGE TANKYOU to the writer from the Melbourne Herald Sun who when writting a review of the episode wrote this
” Hopefully all the survivor fans have managed to avoid the internet to know the outcome of the finale which aired on the weekend. We are now down to a final three with Parvati, Russel and Sandra fighting it out for the million!”
Uhh….we were down to the FINAL 5 idiot so thanks so much for spoiling the majority of the episode and revealing Colby and Jerri get the axe!
So frustrating when you spend over a week avoiding all USA sites to avoid spoilers only to have a melbourne Newspaper ruin it for you!!
Geez people, the social aspect and the final jury vote is part of the game. We get it. But does that really mean that a player like Sandra “deserves” to win Survivor?
It makes the first 13 episodes of the show seem redundant if we reward a “non-player” like that. All those challenges won, all those ingenious blindsides and sneaky hidden immunity idol plays…all for nothing. Let’s reward the quiet, weak one that didn’t stand up the whole game.
I’m a massive Survivor fan who has watched every season and it’s just getting a little frustrating seeing the least deserving person win. It has happened alot in recent seasons.
I’m with Russell. There’s a flaw that could kill the show down the line.
As for the REAL winner of Heroes Vs Villians – that title should have gone to Parvati.
@ Matthew–
Russell knew that he lost Survivor Samoa when he was back out there for Heroes V Villians, he openly said during the final episode in the lead up to the final tribal council. “Last season I took the two most useless players and I lost, so this time I’m taking the two least likeable”
No no no, I don’t want the public involved in the voting because then it becomes a beauty pageant or who has the best PR. Leave it to the people who are playing to judge the final 3.
I loved this season, I think Sandra was the best choice of the 3 but i was hoping Geri would win but in true Survivor style she got shafted.
Russel is just to deranged, i’d rather play with a rattle snake !
If he wants America to vote, try going on Big Brother. Survivor has lasted 20 seasons and has done just fine with this system and it is usually spot on.
And no way did Russell deserve to win, he didn’t outwit, outlast, outplay the other two. How many times did Parvati outwit Russell making him look like a fool at tribal council. There were a few plays she made he had no idea about which is why he got so narky at her in the end. He thought he was runnign the game but found out he wasn’t. He had a go at Sandra for not telling him she had an idol, again he thought he was running it, but had no idea.
Sandra and Parvati are both pretty ruthless like Russell, but at the same time they have the other aspects of the game you need to win.
Sandra throwing his hat in the fire = best moment of the season. I laughed.
Great series. Great concept. I found it interesting I was barracking for the ‘Villians’ (Boston Rob, Russell and Sandra) from the get go and how my views of former favorites Rupert, Colby, James – swung the other way and I couldn’t stand them.
Surely Russell gets another chance with some of the others in another fans vs favorites series. He has to be one of the best tactical players but unfortunately has the social conscious of a rock.
Russell played both series of Survivor really well. In Samoa he was robbed. Natalie just rode his coat tails.
A Interesting fact, during heroes vs villains, he still did not know whether he had won Samoa or not. And he had 3 weeks off between the seasons! (Including travel time)
Samoa
Filming dates June 11, 2009 – July 19, 2009
TV run September 17, 2009 – December 20, 2009
Heroes Vs Villains
Filming dates August 9, 2009 – September 16, 2009
TV run February 11, 2010 – May 16, 2010
As an outsider only having watched a few episodes of Survivor, I have to say it was a little weak the Sandra won having doing not much Surviving at all! Plus I never saw her smile or laugh, just boring…
Russell didn’t deserve it with his attidude, but the show was called Heroes vs Villians, and with that premise, Russell was the best villian out of the remaining 3, and deserved a bit more credit.
Russell is a fantastic player. But Russ it is part of the game that the jury votes at the end, not the american public…so nice try, but the game should never turn into becoming a public voting one. Anyways, what a great season of Survivor! Here’s hoping the next few are at the same level!
Russell was great to watch, he played the game so well. This was a very entertaining season of Survivor.
like i said in the other post the current trend is that to win the game you can’t lie to anyone, be nice to everyone and let other people do all the dirty work for you. Gotta ride the coat tails!
In that sense, it is flawed that players that actively do everything they can to get to the finals which involves big plays and lies, only for a bitter jury – that were outwitted and outplayed by said person – to vote against them
the current jury system is fine, the problem is the players that are weak minded and have soft feelings ruining the votes – voting who they like personally, and not voting who outwitted and outplayed the best
if anything, Parvati or Russel probably deserved to win. Oh well, great season anyways!
As I said yesterday in the spoiler post, the result was a foregone conclusion for anyone who was actually watching. Sandra was always going to win.
Evil Russ and Parvati ticked off most of the other contestants and got what they deserved.
Isn’t part of the game play as such, that you don’t get on the bad side of other contestants. Russell still didn’t outwit & outplay the jury that voted him out & the way he treated others came back to haunt him, despite making it through near the end. It was like watching him go up the longest wrong way in a maze, only to reach a dead end. Sandra had virtue from the beginning and won in her own right, she outplayed everyone & they didn’t even realise it.
Nine seemed to love Russell all the ads were centered on It got really annoying. I found out the winner last week, but still watched. It’s a pity Nine didn’t show it earlier.
I missed quite a few seasons of Survivor as after a while it felt the same to me. I wouldn’t mind watching some of the seasons again All Stars or Fans v Favourites. It would be good if GO! could put it on on the weekend.
Aww did the money hungry famewhore lose did he? I believe the Big Brother house is thataway ———->
I loved Survivor H vs V. Russell should have got a few jury votes. Didn’t want Sandra to win. Promo guys at Nine would have been in heaven having “Evil Russell” last all 39 days. Unless there is a good promo aspect to it, I can’t see next season being on Nine at a good time… but it should be!
Russel should have won. He outplayed, outwitted and outlasted all of the other contestants. Sandra did nothing but fly under the radar. Whenever she tried to pull off a strategic move such as voting out Russel – it failed. The producers were struggling to put together a highlights reel for her. Everyone knows Russel made this season what it was. At least he got the $100 grand.
Brilliant finale and I’m more than pleased with Sandra winning, but the Reunion show was very eye-opening when it came to Russell. He’s completley blind when it comes to playing a million dollar game as he’s made the final twice and lost twice, and it seems he can’t admit he’s in the wrong either.
Get the public to vote? C’mon thats the most stupid idea ever. Probst couldn’t have said it better (and man is it obvious that he can’t stand Russell). How easy would it be to rig the votes and get family members to vote over and over, etc. The idea simply wouldn’t work and would frustrate Survivor fans like myself.
I’ve really enjoyed this season but best season ever? I don’t think so, maybe Top 5, but I think Micronesia was the best in my opinion. I’m looking forward to Nicaragau though for 2 reasons: New contestants and NO RUSSELL!
Russell in the finale was either trying to save face, or being contemptuous of the game when he said America should vote.
He did not play one part of the game (the social) and that is why he lost. Because of the way the season was filmed when he was on Survivor Heroes V Villains he did not know he had not won his Survivor Samoa season – therefore he must have thought his style of play may have won him the $1 million.
Russell did not deserve to win Heroes V Villains, he may have deserved to win Samoa.
But hopefully Nine will fasttrack Survivor Nicaragua. Also it would be great if Nine could negotiate with CBS to get all the extra bits that are on their website, like unseen footage, and what happens at Ponderosa (where the jury live after they have been eliminated.)