Purple Pants Podcast | Split The Vote: Mighty Mouse

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[00:00:29] It's the Purple Pants, it's the Purple Pants, it's the Purple Pants Podcast. You better get your headphones and listen up quick. It's the Purple Pants Podcast. You better listen in public, might make your stomach hurt. Podcast, you trying to unwind, you better get that box wine. It's the Purple Pants Podcast, you trying to get your snack, you better hurry right back though. It's the Purple Pants, it's the Purple Pants.

[00:00:59] Split the Vote! All right, welcome back to Split the Vote, the ultimate Survivor superfan podcast. I am Tim, a Gen Z Survivor fan who is always joined by my other amazing co-host who is not from Boston, but he is Rob. Rob, how are you feeling today? What's going on? I'm good, Tim. I'm loving where we're at in the season.

[00:01:24] Survivor right now, it feels like we're in deep in the middle of a wild college course and the final exam is coming up. At the start of the season, you know, we're just showing up to class, meeting the players, learning and figuring out the basics. But now, now we know the cast. We see the alliances and the game is getting real. And this is my favorite part. When the strategy starts to click, moves really start to matter and we can finally start piecing together how the season's going to shake out.

[00:01:52] And I'm just ready to break it all down with you tonight. Yeah, I can't wait. Like, you know, I'm a professor. So your example feels right at home for me. It was like it's right after midterms, a little bit further from beyond it. And the finals are coming up and we're preparing for it, just like how the players are preparing for this last stretch of the game.

[00:02:16] So I can't wait to get into it. So, Rob, as you can see, some things look a little different today. You know, to describe for the audience members, I got my arms out. I'm not normally an arms out person, but to give a shout out to Chrissy, I am a mighty mouse. And today I'm ready to discuss all the drama, all the interesting takes around strength on Survivor.

[00:02:41] And I had to come to the table, Rob, to prove again that I am a mighty mouse. I'm a strong guy, too, in some ways. I played football in high school. But many years ago, show off the guns. Yeah, you know, they're there, kind of, sort of. Yeah. Yeah, they're there. They are. Oh, yeah. Man, just like with this podcast, Rob, we're a duo of sorts. Like, you're really one of my best friends.

[00:03:07] And it is to no one's surprise that this upcoming challenge is one of the challenges we saw before where players have to be paired together. They have to pick a duo as a partner to play this upcoming challenge for immunity. And ultimately, when it comes to the pairs, we see that the pairs end up being Joe and Eva. We see Star and Mitch, Shaheen and Camilla.

[00:03:35] And lastly, Kyle and Chrissy. And correct me if I'm wrong, if I'm missing anybody. And David and Mary, actually. Thank you, David and Mary also as well. Anything interesting that you think comes up around picking these pairs for tribal council or for the immunity challenge, I should say?

[00:03:58] It's always a spicy conversation when the players find out at the beach that you're forced to make that decision and pick everybody. I think there's always that odd tension that's just circulating the beach. And I'm always constantly thinking about, well, how is everyone going to pick their partner for the challenge? And I think there's a little bit of there's definitely some criteria that is definitely involved in that decision making process.

[00:04:24] I think you pick you could one option is picking someone you feel comfortable winning immunity. You can also pick someone you want to vote out and then throw the challenge. Also, you can pick someone you know is strong at challenges to help give you a shot at actually winning the challenge yourself. Or you could put the survivor gods all give them all the control and just go random. Draws, draws. Yeah, that's absolutely right.

[00:04:49] I think last season we saw just that in Survivor 47 when Gabe was tied up with Kyle in this challenge, who had won so many different previous challenges at this point in the game. And he beat them during this pair twist of sorts. So it's a lot of different ways to approach it. But the way that it was approached in this season does feel very fitting for how they're approaching the game through honesty and integrity from their standpoint.

[00:05:17] And so when we see this note be read and Joe immediately says, well, we're going to talk about it essentially. Let's just say out loud right now who we want to be paired with. And in the show we see Kyle, not Kyle, sorry, Camilla be picked by Shaheen first.

[00:05:41] But actually, according to Chrissy's exit interview, Joe and Eva picked each other first. And I think that really changes how I view the episode. And I wonder if it changes how others view the episode also. Does it change how you view it? I'm not surprised that Joe and Eva are picked together. So I'm really curious to see how that really changes the perspective for you, like of the episode.

[00:06:08] Yeah, for me, it really makes Chrissy's points that more that much more obvious to the other players. I think for viewers, it adds a little more.

[00:06:23] I think that's a little bit more gravity to understanding her perspective and understanding why she was so gung ho on getting the strong guys out, because literally right in front of everybody, they immediately pick each other from the start yet again. And this isn't a moment where it's like there are opposite tribes is like every person for themselves and they still pick each other and they are strong competitors in the previous challenge.

[00:06:52] And so they literally were some of the last episode. And for her to call this out to say, hey, y'all are allowing this to happen. And that's as if, you know, we're all animals in the jungle and you let the two lions be on the same team while you got a giraffe, a mouse and a hyena all paired up, mixed match together. And you let the two dominant players in challenges thus far.

[00:07:29] And that's a good point. I think for Chrissy is both. They literally are just like this bonded together.

[00:07:54] Even if we're discounting the moments that happened in the pre-merge, we're not holding that against them necessarily. But that is something that was made evident that even Joe, Jeff himself said that they have a bond. They are a pair. Chrissy called it out. Chrissy woke it up for me this episode. She was like, this is a strong pair who has a strong bond. Any other season they will be voted out.

[00:08:19] So I feel like it is both strength and this social strategic connection. All three. They get the best of all three worlds. I couldn't. I couldn't. It's like Hannah Montana, but three worlds this time. Right. I couldn't agree more because it's all about threat level. Right. And your threat level amongst a lot of considerations is really about your social threat, strategic threat and physical threat. And they have all three, which makes them so threatening in this game.

[00:08:48] So it really does beg the question. Why not take a shot at them now? Yeah. That's a question that I wish I knew the answer to, but I think a big part that plays in this is the risks and rewards for this immunity challenge, because we learned that the winners from the for the from the challenge, the top two pairs.

[00:09:12] Is it going to reward and enjoy food and stacks and all the other good things that come with going to a reward. And then we see that the losers have a chance to lose their vote, the bottom pairs from this first round. And then there's going to be a pair in the middle like Malcolm, the show to essentially just chill and be all right.

[00:09:38] And so we see these pairs go to the reward is Joe and Eva. And then there's David and Mary are the other pair that gets to go to the reward. We'll get back to them later. I want to talk about the players who lost or were the first pairs of people to not advance in this challenge. There's star and Mitch. And then there's also. Shaheen and Shaheen Shaheen and Camilla.

[00:10:07] My brain is. Forgetting me right now, but they are the pairs of folks who. Ultimately have a chance to lose their vote. So I feel like. The way that these pairs played out. It would have been like super great or could have been super bad. And as a viewer who enjoys things shaking up. You might think is really bad or as a viewer who. Who. Is rooting for the people who are at the top of the game right now. You might love it.

[00:10:38] Because ultimately. This ends up making it a situation where. The minority doesn't have the numbers to flip the vote. Because somebody in the minority. Except Shaheen. Could lose their vote. Three out of the four people. Could lose their vote. Is star. And I do give credit to Camilla. Mitch. And Shaheen for. Jumping on star in this moment. Because strategically for them. It just made sense.

[00:11:07] So I'm not a hater at it. But those are just like quick thoughts about. How that lose their vote moment went for me. Mm hmm. Yeah, I think you get a group of four people. Who are pretty unconnected. From each other. And I think the strongest bonds of the four people. Were Camilla and Mitch. And we obviously saw them work together. If that's something that maybe could happen in the future. Who knows. But you didn't really see the strength of. The Shaheen and Camilla pairing. That was talked at length.

[00:11:37] During this episode. Like you see Shaheen go out of his way. To pick Camilla. At the like when all the pairs were being chosen. And you didn't really see them work with each other. But you see Camilla work with Mitch. And I think that's really noteworthy. Yeah, star loses her vote. And that's tough. But it was she wasn't a player that had a lot of swing. It seemed like this round. If it was because of the lost vote or not. Who really knows. But that power really does belong to that big majority alliance. Yeah, it really does. Really does.

[00:12:07] And I think it's gonna continue to go in their favor. Because at this reward challenge. Eva gets an advantage. But there's some controversy Rob. The streets are talking. They're saying that. This is crazy. That Eva got this advantage. And let me explain why. So Eva. At this reward challenge. The players had name plates for where they had to sit.

[00:12:35] The advantage was in the chips that were right in front of Eva. And even in reading the note. The note said. Your efforts for. Essentially winning this immunity challenge. Will be rewarded. I don't know if survivor has ever. Specifically. Deliberately. Gave an advantage to. A specific player. And I'm not saying they're giving it directly to Eva.

[00:13:05] But a specific player. As in. The person who wins the immunity challenge. Or the tribe who. Goes to tribal council. I don't know if they've ever done it like that. But this is the first time. From my knowledge and memory. At this moment. That this is happening. What are your thoughts? Yeah. Well. I think. The reward for winning the immunity challenge. Should just be the fact that you win the immunity challenge. That you're safe going into tribal council. So. Just hearing that kind of controversy. That.

[00:13:35] Could the. Advantage just be planted for Eva. For the person that wins immunity this round. I mean. Kind of. That's a lot of power that a player is given at the final 10. So. Kind of makes me like waver in my boots a little bit. Just because. That. It's just so much power. And I don't want the game to be set up. And rigged in that kind of way. One of the immediate thoughts I had was going back to. Heroes versus villains. When they had the reward. And.

[00:14:04] It was like the food reward. And those advantages were slipped in places that anyone could have grabbed. So I. It should really just be up to. An. It should be a given equal chance to everyone to be able to get the advantage. Not just the person who wins immunity because you already have such a huge advantage. Yeah. And they ate food Rob. They ate food. That's the extra on top of the extra. This is like the icing on the cake. On the cake. Is like. Growing up like for example.

[00:14:32] We would always get like the Neapolitan ice cream. I would never eat the strawberry flavor at all whatsoever. So you don't like the strawberry flavor. That's my. No. That's my favorite one. That's the only time I'm like eating the strawberry flavor. Hot take. Okay. Continue. Absolutely not Rob. No, you're good. We're going to circle back to that because this. I have tapes. I might have to cross you off the best friend list for that one. But no, not really. But like this is like if you're one of those kids who's like, you know, I don't want

[00:15:02] just vanilla. I don't just strawberry. I don't want just chocolate. Like I want all of them. And it's like, do you already have vanilla? You already have strawberries. Like now you're getting chocolate too. Like. I don't know. It just seems like it's compounding upon something that already is so great. So I agree. I think that the implications for the game makes it to where you just have to get lucky

[00:15:24] and win a certain immunity challenge to then be projected into the future. And we don't know what this advantage is just yet. And we do know there is a risk that Eva does have to get up in the middle of the night, which is debatable if that's easy or not, according to some players. But it definitely puts her in a great spot after already winning immunity. Definitely. And going into the next round too.

[00:15:53] I mean, Loggi is looking really tight. She wins immunity. She gets an advantage. She's in a great position. Yeah. Speaking of great positions, two people who are seemingly being the targets for this round. And those two people are Chrissy and Camilla. Now, Chrissy, that's my girl. Shout out to Chrissy. Because again, she was clocking the T. She was waking it up. She was not letting people rest. But that's also the reason why she's a target in this moment.

[00:16:23] Camilla being a target on the other end comes from David and Mary pushing her name. Now, the reasoning behind, I don't necessarily think we got a super strong reason outside of Camilla's like somebody we can get out now because Chrissy is someone we could get out later. That is smart for Mary. I think it would have been smart for David too. It made sense.

[00:16:48] If I'm a player in their head, I'm thinking this is somebody who could be one of those players who sneaks off to the end like a Kenzie who won, you know, a couple of seasons ago. And I want to snip that in the bud because I don't think Chrissy is that big of a threat at this point for me. She's just an opposing force. But you could be running at somebody with a plastic fork.

[00:17:15] That's Chrissy in their heads in this situation versus somebody like Camilla who might have a knife behind her back. And so also Camilla, if I'm Mary, I'm thinking you're taking a spot for me at final tribal council and you could potentially sneak into this alliance that I myself snuck in. So you got to go. So that's why Camilla is out there, at least from my perspective. Yeah, definitely. I agree with everything you just said.

[00:17:43] I really think that this season's all about precision and control instead of flashy moves and big swings. Players are making calculated choices to preserve their power. Both sides know they'll have to turn on each other. But there's this like unspoken understanding that the longer they hold off on going after each other, the fewer tough decisions they have to make.

[00:18:08] They're prolonging that inevitable because every round that passes their tightness on their grip on the end game just sets them up for a cleaner shot to win. So it makes sense when you're looking at this big group that Chrissy and Camilla are on the outs and that their names are out there. Yeah, absolutely. And I want to give credit to Kyle for doing what he did.

[00:18:31] Kyle, when Kyle went up to Joe or even before that, when he went up to David and heard Camilla's name, he immediately he's like, walk me through, walk me through it. Like, OK, explain, like, I'm not going to accept this at a default. I need you to make it make sense for me. And that opens up the opportunity for counter ideas instead of saying, OK, it's Camilla. I don't want to do Camilla. It's like, OK, you're saying Camilla, but I don't understand it.

[00:18:59] You know, explain it to me. It worked so well. And I thought it was a really great, subtle move that he did that I think future players should definitely, you know, jot that down, jot that down for future seasons to come. And then also, again, when he went up to Joe, who he knew had so much influence and power and said, hey, you know, Chrissy threw out your name, you know, uses this as a last sort of resort to sway it away from Camilla.

[00:19:26] I don't know if Joe is going to pick up on that and say you save that. Maybe you're more schemey than I thought. But I know at least Joe was like, hey, why didn't you start off with that? Like, of course, now I'm going to do Chrissy. So I think that was a great move by Kyle to shift the ties to Chrissy.

[00:19:44] Make it make sense. That is such is great because that's the ploy that Kyle uses to really throw David in a very vulnerable position under a bus where he's trying to make that first big shift in this game to really to really change stuff up. Because what we're really witnessing is the two sides. I wouldn't say going at each other yet, but it's it's like a civil war there or the Cold War where there's all this tension.

[00:20:12] And is it going to implode now? And we really start seeing their different agendas coming to fruition right now. And Kyle is the one that's doing a great job managing those two sides of Joe and Chris, Joe wanting Chrissy and David wanting Camilla while being able to keep Camilla in the game. So it's make it make sense is the perfect, perfect line to use to get David just out there.

[00:20:39] Yeah, man, David, David, David, David was pissed. David had some thoughts at tribal council. I don't want to jump the gun and get into it. But is there anything else from like the pre-merge or reward or challenge that you feel like is super interesting that we might not have touched on? We're going to go forward again into the bigness of tribal council.

[00:21:05] We're going to go forward again into the bigness of tribal council. Endlich macht unser Nemo Boards Shop dadurch auch auf den Mobilgeräten eine gute Figur. Und die Illustrationen auf den Boards kommen jetzt viel, viel klarer rüber, was uns auch wichtig ist und was unsere Mark auch ausmacht. Starte dein Test noch heute für 1 Euro pro Monat auf shopify.de slash radio.

[00:21:35] All right. Yeah, I think we covered it pretty much at a great point, which brings me to discussing tribal council. Twitter was on fire, Rob. I don't know if you've seen it. Do not go there. Do not pass go. I don't even want to imagine what Reddit looks like because I know that place is somewhere I don't belong.

[00:21:58] But there's a big divide in the survivor community around what seems to have been super controversial in some ways, tribal council discussion. And I'll play a quick snippet of that just so folks can have a reference as we discuss it. Mouse has a chance to fight and not let these big, you know, Superman guys take over the game. That's all, you know, and this is just my perspective.

[00:22:26] This is nobody else's perspective but mine, you know. David, you're shaking your head. I think it's funny that it's such a taboo for Christy for the strong guys to get together. But we have people get together based off gender. People get together based off strategists and social players. Why now is she so upset that the one season the strong guys say enough is enough that she's all up in arms? I think that's bullpen. I'm not up in arms. I'm just saying it's hard to watch, you know, this takeover. As opposed to season after season when we get used as she is?

[00:22:55] I'm not on that season though, David. I'm on this season. And you got caught in the wrong season because we said enough is enough. Well, that's good. And, you know, I go for you, strong guys. It's like everyone else can form an alliance except for us. No, I'm just not going to sit back and watch it is what I'm saying. And I'm not going to sit back. I'm going to fight. That's all I'm doing is putting up my dukes and fighting. All right. All right. So that's a quick refresher of it. So Rob, I was pissed. I was shocked.

[00:23:24] I was confused. I was not understanding. It wasn't making sense to me. I watched this episode Wednesday live as it was happening. And, you know, we have our group chat with a bunch of our other friends and I had to give some hot takes. I'm not afraid to give my opinion when my opinion is different. That's what makes being friends with different people. Great. We can share perspectives. And there was one of our friends who was like, yeah, like this episode was great.

[00:23:54] And, you know, David said something that a lot of people agree with. I'm not one of those people. And so. I want to talk about a couple of different things. I want to really break it down. So. Yeah, let's hear it. Game. Let's hear it. Yeah. So first thing I want to talk about, like together, it's like David misunderstood what Chrissy was saying on a game level before getting into the other stuff. Chrissy wasn't saying that you can't do that.

[00:24:22] David, Chrissy is saying that you could do that if you want to, but not while I'm here because I'm also on this season and I don't want to sit there and watch y'all vote everybody out, including me. And that set him off because of what that sentiment reminded him of. And again, like we can't control how we perceive stuff. We can control how we react to it, but it definitely was something that he perceived,

[00:24:50] you know, as a character in this show is something that was not it at all. That really ticked him off, really upset him. Um, and so I wanted to just start off with saying that Chrissy again, just wasn't going to die down or roll over or walk right into the mousetrap because she's a mighty mouse again at the end of the day. Um, and so I want to just start there and yeah, here, if you agree with like he misunderstood

[00:25:19] that, I think that's a statement in itself. Yeah, I think it's, it's conflicting perspectives. And I think what it really boils down to is just the demonstration of like the in group out group phenomenon and like how we like tend to like view and judge and treat other people just based off of like who are more like us. Um, like we treat them more favorably versus those who are maybe different from us. And I think survivor alliances can come together in so many different ways.

[00:25:49] And this alliance itself came together through that label of being a challenge beast, being good at challenges. And that's a label that David belongs to. And it's one that Chrissy doesn't fit into. So David's part of that in group. Chrissy's part of that out group and Chrissy's just doing everything she can to try to demonstrate that like, Hey, well, this is what's going on in the season. And I'm on the outside of it. And there's other considerations that should really be put into play when considering who we should vote out this week.

[00:26:18] And just Chrissy bringing that up really sets off David, because I don't think I agree with you that like Chrissy isn't saying that like, Oh, like all that, all the nonsense about challenge threats and how good they are in the game and that they need to be voted off and stuff like that. It's just the criteria that this tribal council was boiling down to and just how that big alliance really came to fruition, how it came together. Yeah. Like I don't blame the alliance for existing, but I think there are problems, problems. Yeah.

[00:26:48] With how that discussion went, how it went about like to be real, because I think how it's framed is as if the big, strong guys are to quote someone else's opinion are underdogs. And to me, I just personally have a different understanding of what underdogs are. And I get this idea that big, strong players are sometimes used as shields.

[00:27:16] But I feel like if you're going into this game as a big guy, you have to consciously work against that at the best of your ability. I think it's less to do with the perceptions, more to do with the individual agency that you have as a player in the game. Like, for example, we've seen big, strong guys get to the end. Jonathan Young literally got to final tribal.

[00:27:44] No, he got fourth place, actually. Not final tribal council, but literally to the point where you couldn't vote anyone out. Again, Austin got second place. I consider him a big, strong guy. Sam got super far into the game as a big, strong guy. And to make this so evidently clear, Rob, I even made a Google sheet of looking at all

[00:28:11] the big, strong guys who have played in the new era at the very least to show that they're actually doing better than what we think it would be. You're not necessarily winning, but it's not like they're going home first. So like point the picture, I see it as this. It can be a blessing and a curse to be perceived in different ways or whatever the case may be.

[00:28:40] And in the game of Survivor, perception is reality. We know that. And if you're somebody who's a big, strong guy, you're being perceived as a big, strong guy. And people are going to be like tribe strength. We're going to want to keep you. So by default, if that's your perception, you have a more likely chance to be a player that at least makes the merge. And flip that on the other side when you're maybe somebody who's smaller, shorter.

[00:29:09] Maybe you're somebody who's perceived as less weak or less strong. Like a lot of the women in this game, it's like you have that as a disadvantage against you, but in the beginning half of the game. But it might be an advantage later on when people underestimate you. We can't control how we're perceived, but it's like we have to be real with how our perceptions

[00:29:34] and how others' perceptions and biases impact the game for all of us. And so while I do understand that there are examples of big, strong guys who were used as shields, that doesn't make them a victim.

[00:29:54] That doesn't make them, in my eyes, a group of players that are in dire need to have a winner because big, strong guys have won a lot. It might not have been in a new era, but they've won a lot. And really briefly, Rob, I'm going to share my screen and just show you this chart and talk about really briefly the average placement for the, quote, big, strong guys.

[00:30:27] So yeah, if you're a listener, I just pulled up an Excel sheet of the, quote, unquote, big, strong guys from, at the very least, the new era. Because I know David mentioned he hadn't seen all the Survivor seasons, but saw a couple of the new era before playing or as he's playing currently. And so I broke it down by season. It's subjective, of course. There could be players on this list who you feel like should be there or shouldn't be there.

[00:30:55] And if you're a listener, I will briefly just rapid fire run through the names. But I really recommend checking it out if you want to at a later time for a visual. But there's Danny from 41, Jonathan from 42, Ryan from 43, Brandon Cottom, Joshua Wilder, Danny Massa from 44, 45. It's a couple more. You have Bruce, Austin, Sifu, Caleb.

[00:31:22] Those are like the 45 big, strong guys, quote, unquote. Then from 46, there's Q, a former athlete. Hunter, who literally climbed a tree for fun. Then there's TK from 47, Saul from 47. And then lastly, Sam from 47. The criteria for this that I put together, your age under 50. And are you muscular? Yes or no.

[00:31:48] And then I provided a brief explanation for folks to check out as well. And also put if they made merch or not as well as their placement. But in short, because I am a scholar. Again, I am a professor. I like to research. I love facts. The average placement for the players that I listed in sum is eighth.

[00:32:10] I fear what that would look like if we were to flip those demographics to say, put another group of players on this chart. What could have been different? How many of them didn't make merch? Which I'm just saying. So that's at least my perspective on this point around perceptions and placements and advantages and disadvantages.

[00:32:37] Because again, it's not anyone's fault necessarily because all humans have biases. But sometimes some biases work in your favor. Sometimes they don't. And that's life. I also think it's interesting how like the big strong guys is just a list of like males also. And you don't really see how like females can kind of fit into that perception. Right. But like when you think of like a challenge threat, like it's males and females.

[00:33:07] So like one thing I've been thinking about a lot is. Well, right now, you know, like ice cream, it's a top tier dessert. But not all ice cream flavors are great flavors. Not all of them are good. Chocolate ice cream. That's fantastic. Strawberry ice cream. That's also fantastic. But then you got like black bean ice cream. Like that ain't good. You know, coffee. You know, what do you mean? Coffee is great. Coffee is disgusting. I used to work at Baskin-Robbins. That was my first job, Rob.

[00:33:36] I literally had to scoop the ice cream and I tasted all of them. Coffee, bottom tier. Bottom tier. Bottom tier, Rob. Really? Yeah. You know, maybe it was. I don't think you have big, strong taste buds. You know, you can't be in the big, strong taste buds alliance, Rob. I don't know. I think I didn't really like coffee ice cream growing up, but it was definitely something that I definitely molded to over time. But it ain't my go-to. I think mint chocolate chip ice cream is my go-to.

[00:34:06] But like what I'm saying, my point is, I guess, is like you can be a challenge threat, but that doesn't mean you're a threat. I think of a player like Brad Culpepper, who in the new school era, he won. I think he tied the record for immunity challenge wins, but he sat there at final two and lost to Sarah, the cop. So challenge threats are real threats, but that doesn't mean that you're going to win the game.

[00:34:32] And like you said, it doesn't mean that they're a demographic that is deserving of a title. All it is, is just, it's a group of players that are joining an alliance together based off of a singular characteristic. It could be original tri-mates. It could be, we're the underdogs in the season, the unconnected, untied ones. But right now, it's just, it's just challenge threats. I'm going to stop you there because I think we know it's not just about challenge threats because they even said to themselves, Mitch is a challenge threat, but Mitch isn't a part of that group.

[00:35:02] So I think it's more so about like the physical appearance, physicality that is bonding people together. And he brought up good points that, yeah, there've been groups of people who have bonded together in the game or formed alliances. But again, the reason why is because statistically backs up like how the game went for them.

[00:35:27] Like women, again, binding together in the game of Survivor over the fact of creating a women's alliance is because statistically women go home pre-merge and more women are, again, disproportionately kicked off of the show whose stories we didn't get to hear, whose games didn't get the chance to evolve because they were fighting.

[00:35:52] Again, biases that aren't anybody's fault necessarily, but things that we have to work individually to unlearn and rework. So I just wanted to just give a little clarification and just go point to the obvious of it's not challenge threat, it's more so the physicality. And I do want to give some credit to David in that this could have been a sentiment that

[00:36:18] reminds him of how others' biases are put upon him as somebody who might be big and strong, like, you know, who might have, as again, player in the game, as a character, perceptions or just like men in life are put in positions to be perceived in different ways. And again, it's not fair to the individual man, but that's the world that we live in. All we can do is work individually to change that.

[00:36:47] And in this instance where we see him get flustered, get upset, he's showing his human emotions, which we see in the game of Survivor, it's going to happen. And so there were some people who were maybe thinking people were just upset when a guy gets angry. Again, for me, it's just like more to it there. I think that could be a simplification of it when it's a very complex topic and idea that

[00:37:14] deserves the nuance of being discussed at length here. And I know I ramble, but I think it's important to especially, yeah, especially when nuance and thinking isn't as common as it used to be. And I think in the context of David, the perception of him being like a strong, like big man is something that he might just need to lean into in this game with the other, like just fit people

[00:37:43] that are in this game. Right. And I think a lot of players don't always have that luxury to sometimes be their true selves, because I think David talked about it where he was so comfortable being on that, like when the tribes like split and he was on the all women tribe, he's like, I feel at home here, you know, and we haven't really been able to see him play into maybe how he really interacts with other people like outside, like the island, like at home and everything. So I don't know.

[00:38:12] It's just this is just something he's had to lean into. And that's what he's maybe defending to Chrissy. But I think he knows, too. It's not all just about the appearance and the characteristics that all these players have that he's making his decisions on who he's aligning around. It's just like because that's I don't think that would be the case had he had his pick of the group, too. Yeah, I don't think it would have been the pick from the start, but I think that is the

[00:38:37] reality of the situation of sorts, because, again, there's other players on the season that have that physicality, that athleticism, that challenge prowess that aren't a part of that group. And again, we're human. It's nobody's fault, but it is a reality that I feel like I need to stick to. And again, I'm no psychologist and I'm not mad at the alliance because it's an alliance. Again, as Tiff stated, as a player, you want the path of least resistance.

[00:39:07] This makes sense for Joe. This makes sense for Eva. It makes sense for Shaheen. It makes sense for Kyle. It makes sense for David to stick with this group and alliance. But I think it's more than just a group and alliance. It has those social societal implications and factors. Again, they're humans playing a game of Survivor under extreme conditions. But, you know, just a little extreme conditions like, you know, starvation, you know, a little

[00:39:36] bit of starvation, a little bit of, you know, extreme physicality challenges and having to vote others off. You know, just a little. Well, I, you know, I'm no psychologist yet, but I think I, you know, I want you to take a look at Maslow's hierarchy of needs, Tim, because that really, I think, demonstrates like how players make decisions, especially in the game of Survivor. At the base level, you got your like physiological needs, just meaning like food, water, warmth,

[00:40:05] but they're given to you that like on the island. Then you have your safety needs, your sense of security and safety within the game. And then the layer above that is your belongingness. The fact that if you have intimate relationships or friends that you can rely on in the game of Survivor. And then above that is your esteem needs, that sense of being able to feel proud and of those accomplishments that you're making within the game with the icing on the cake of the pyramid at the top is the self-actualization of just being able to reach your full potential and win the game of Survivor.

[00:40:35] So all of those needs are embedded in those decisions that players make in the game of Survivor. And the one that really fluctuates and changes throughout the game is that sense of belongingness. And that's why Survivor alliances are all cultivated just based off of bonds. It's just who you connect with. That's what it always boils down to. Who can connect with who and make moves and counter new moves based off of those relationships that exist in the game. Absolutely. Absolutely.

[00:41:04] We've been seeing it all season and it continues to ring true. And I love to see when people connect who might not have thought they would have connected otherwise. I think it really speaks to the character of human beings and the bonds that can be made, especially when you embrace the uncertain, embrace thinking differently of how you might have thought before about people in real life.

[00:41:33] And when you're put on the island with people from different parts of life, it is, again, like you mentioned, those bonds that make the alliances form and make alliances shift and brings that conflict of, do I want to vote them out because it's good for my game? Do I want to keep them because I feel close to them? That's the moral dilemma. That's Survivor for you. And that's the game Chrissy's playing. That's the game they're all playing, of course. But yeah. Whoa.

[00:42:02] That was my little rant. So, Rob, I feel like it's a great time to give out an award for this episode. Would you agree? Definitely. It sounds great. All right. Well, Rob, I think it's time for the Torchew Awards. So, if you're listening for the first time, the Torchew Awards are a ceremony that we have

[00:42:26] every episode where Rob and I give out our respective nominations and picks for the Torchew Award. Now, the Torchew Award could go for a player who had the best strategic move, a player who had the best social move. Maybe it's just a player that we like a lot and a player that we vibe with. So, those are the rules for the Torchew Award. Rob, drum roll. I'm going to start off with you. Who are your nominees? And ultimately, who gets your Torchew Award this episode?

[00:42:56] All right. I think the original Loggie members get a huge boost this week. I like how they were able to enhance their spot within the tribe and they got a hold onto a lot of power at a moment with a lot of potential moving forward for the next few rounds if everyone decides to not go after them. So, for this round, my pick, I'm deciding between Eva and Joe. Joe had a lot of strategy and decision making for this round.

[00:43:23] It was him that really pushed it at the end to go for Chrissy while Eva gained an advantage and won individual immunity, really solidifying that original Loggie connection. And I think if we're going off of bling, I got to give it to Eva. But for my Torchew Award, I'm sticking with the big guns and I'm going with Joe. Yeah. Shout out Joe. Shout out Joe. I think Joe is a great pick. Joe had a really great episode.

[00:43:50] And that award makes a whole bunch of sense, Rob. I feel like for me. There's two players that I think really stood out in their gameplay, either from a place of control or from a place of influence. That's a little more subtle. So there's control and there's influence.

[00:44:16] Some people can think that they're the same, which they are, but they don't necessarily have to be all the time. That's why they're two different words on the influence side. My nomination is Kyle. Kyle didn't necessarily have control of making others change their minds just from him alone. But he did have the right influence when it came to swaying Joe to shift to vote to Chrissy instead of Camilla,

[00:44:44] because he knew that Joe had the power to convince others to follow suit. And then there's the actual control. As I mentioned, Joe, who ultimately, from what we're seeing, has the biggest say in shifting the minds of other players at this point in the game.

[00:45:05] And being able to get out somebody who threw out your name in a very obvious way, while also still obviously in front of everybody, maintaining the control of the tribe as a merge tribe at this point, for me, definitely makes Joe my torture award winner for this episode.

[00:45:28] Now, I don't know if it's going to continue being like that where no one from the meeting alliance stays in the game. But for this episode, it definitely, definitely rings true, especially because of the lost vote that we saw this round. Yeah. So. Wow. Let's talk about Chrissy. Any words for Chrissy's game?

[00:45:55] I feel bad. I really do. And that's a soft statement to say. But Chrissy, she was a gamer. It was difficult because this this move was decided, I would say, a couple of rounds before where that meeting alliance had made that decision to stick together at the final 12 votes when say and Cedric went home.

[00:46:23] And that big alliance was going to stick together for at least one more round until you really saw those agendas at play with everyone just having a different perspective. And it's difficult just because Chrissy, she had the friendships. She had the alliances, all the strategic knowledge, but just came up a little too short around too early.

[00:46:46] And maybe the whole game for Chrissy could have changed had say stayed in the game for her to get those underdogs all together, those unconnected players to create an alliance and target those on top. But it's a little bit too short. Yeah, I couldn't agree more.

[00:47:02] I think circumstances definitely put Chrissy in a position to not be able to make a shake in the game because of the tribe swap and or the tribe split tribal in the previous episode with Say and Cedric going home. As you mentioned, there were less numbers from the non quote unquote non strong players to get out someone that was a part of that group.

[00:47:29] And with someone losing a vote at this tribal council as well, didn't help Chrissy's ability to make a move in that way. But I do feel super proud of how she kept swinging.

[00:47:48] And I feel super, super happy about the gameplay that she had that we were able to see around calling out the obvious around trying her hardest to make something happen. And it takes a lot of realness to do that. And Chrissy, for me, that was real. She was real for that. She stood on business and I applaud her for it. Mm hmm.

[00:48:18] Yeah. So, Rob, as always, as we end off this torture award ceremony, there is audience question this week. This question comes from one of my good friends, the winner of Survivor Philadelphia season three. That person is Sunshine. Sunshine asked the question.

[00:48:44] Mitch was on a boat in episode two with Kyle telling him that he wanted to work together with them. Mitch has also been telling Joe exactly what he was going to do at tribal council to build trust. Cam and Mitch worked on the journey challenge together to prevent Star from having a vote. Do we think that Mitch will replace David in that alliance coming up soon? What do you think, Rob? All right.

[00:49:14] Well, like I said at the beginning of this episode, this is my favorite part when the strategy clicks and we can really see how the season could end and how everything really starts piecing together in the end game. So I'm going to take a step back and really try to. I mean, this is how I see the game going on right now. You have a three of Shaheen, Eva and Joe working with a Kyle and working with David. That's a five.

[00:49:40] And then extend Mary out to David's side because we see them two working together and that's a six. But we also have Kyle and Camilla as a two, a little bit branched off of that six, of course. So then you can include Star with the Shaheen, Eva and Joe group of the original logging members and softly attached Mitch to Camilla and Kyle as a little bit of a three.

[00:50:06] So that's how my Venn diagram kind of goes about for this season right now. And like I said, last this tribal council with Chrissy going home, you really saw different agendas at play. And David was the one that stuck out like a sore thumb.

[00:50:22] So you have the four person group of Joe, Eva, Shaheen and Star, which is kind of outnumbering the Kyle and Camilla group with David and David and Mary a little bit on the outside. So if Kyle and Camilla really want to keep people who could be on their side moving forward, Mitch is an easy person to grab because that's an original SIVA member that has shown interest in staying strong, working together.

[00:50:50] So I definitely think it's a possibility. And then maybe those seven players of Star, Shaheen, Eva, Joe, Kyle, Camilla, Mitch end up working together against a David, against a Mary just because of how push comes to shove. But there's a lot of moving pieces, a lot at play. You can still see that six person alliance come back together to go for a Mitch, to go for a Star, maybe take a shot at Camilla. But don't really see the Camilla vote happening.

[00:51:18] But I definitely see a place where Mitch lasts longer in this game than David for sure. Yeah, I don't necessarily know if Mitch will be a replacement for David, but I do think that Mitch will play a key role in shaking up this dominant alliance. If there is a shakeup that we see in the future, I do think that Mitch will play a vital role in that shakeup.

[00:51:47] I also think Shaheen will be a big component of that, of course, alongside Kyle and Camilla, who might be the initiators of that. And I think it might come down to Star to pick which side she's going to align with. That's my prediction, at least if it goes that way. So yeah, for sure, I think that Mitch is important in this season. I just don't know how soon we will see that.

[00:52:16] I think it might be sooner than later because I think we're getting to the point where that big group is potent. Like this could really be the next round where they go after each other. It's this round or the next round in my mind. Because that five person, the meeting alliance, they're not getting to final five. If they are, I think that's a pretty bad decision between Kyle, David, and then Camilla on the side. Because that gives you all the favor for Shaheen, Eva, and Joe.

[00:52:43] So Kyle and Camilla are going to realize earlier than later that there is going to be a chance to make a move against the Joe, Eva, Shaheen alliance. And I think Mitch will have to be a part of it if they get to that phase of the game where they realize now has to be the opportunity for them to make that move. I guess that's what I think. Yeah, absolutely.

[00:53:05] Well, Rob, anything else from this episode you feel we might not have touched on before we say adios to our Purple Pants Howard Podcast Posse group and listeners? I think I aired out everything that's on my mind right now. Yeah. I'll get a chance to show off my big guns next time maybe. We'll see. Hey, nice, nice.

[00:53:33] As long as you don't show off the strawberry ice cream, we don't want to scare our listeners. I think the only person I'm scaring is you, Tim. Maybe so. Listen, you will be surprised how many other strawberry flavored item dislikers there are. They're going to make some noise. I'm not going to be alone in this. Watch and see you out. Whoa. This has been a Purple Pants podcast powered production.

[00:54:01] Try to say that fast. I have been one of your hosts, Tim, joined by Rob. So it's been Tim. It's been Rob. It's been Split the Vote. Peace, people. It's the Purple Pants. It's the Purple Pants. It's the Purple Pants podcast. You better get your headphones and listen up quick. It's the Purple Pants podcast. You better listen in public. Might make your stomach hurt. It's the Purple Pants podcast. You're trying to unwind. You better get that box wine.

[00:54:32] It's the Purple Pants podcast. You're trying to get your snack. You better hurry right back, though. It's the Purple Pants. It's the Purple Pants. It's the Purple Pants. Peace.