Welcome to Bud meets Twirld, a podcast that once chronicled two guys who had never seen Dancing with the Stars, but watched a season and walked away experts. From there, we ventured into Traders, a show I'd never seen, but Will swore he could win, and now survivor season fifty, the Big One, and this time the roles of reverse. Will has seen exactly one season, the first one. Meanwhile,
I've watched for years. We are wilfrid L, who prefers his wilderness with room service, and Right or Strong, who will hike any mountain, but man, I hate the beach. Two best friends, one devoted to the comforts of civilization and one who would never leave the woods if he could. Both reality competition scholars join us as we dive into alliances, blindsides, fire making, sand related misery, and twenty five years of
television history culminating in a single massive season. This is Pod meets Twirled Seeking Immunity.
That's a lot, well, speaking of a lot, it's been quite a day in the reality world, hasn't it, my friend?
It's yeah, we should we should talk about the elephant.
In the room.
Yeah, it's the piece the room, the easiest way to just say it. We were all set. We had already announced on the uh, the twitters and the Instagrams that we were gonna fold actually double up our reality watching and go right into The Bachelorette, because the fans have demanded that we keep watching shows that we know nothing about, or at least one of us in this case, neither of us have ever seen a single episode of The bachelorret and and yet they canceled the entire season, thank god.
Yeah it was and not without you know, by the time ABC had canceled it, we had already decided to pull our show. Yeah, after much back and forth and handwringing and concern and not just don't have clarity in these things. Yeah, it's tricky, but it seems like in general she is not a very good person, and reality shows that celebrate not great people are not cool.
No, I agree, And it's yeah again, this is a world that you and I know very little about reality, and when you get into it, you forget that it's these There's a reason it's called reality. Whether it's quote unquote scripted reality or heavily produced reality. These are real people, So real people come with lots of baggage. Some of them it's a minimum amount of baggage, some of them
it's a kind of a disgusting amount of baggage. The thing that is starting to come out more and more though, is what the networks actually know about these people before they still put them on the.
Air, or don't know right or don't know.
But in this case, it seems like ABC knew quite a bit about this woman before they decided to pull the trigger on what I think is their biggest franchise by far. I think The Bachelor and the Bachelorette is like their flagship show.
Well, I think we've talked about the you know, the conversation I believe I had with an MTV executive years ago, this guy I used to I used to be friends with, telling me that like everything changed for the network when Snooky got punched. That was the turning moment for that was when MTV became a network that was no longer about music because they were suddenly going to be all about the reality and the drama. And it went like so viral back to watch to no. You know, I
knew that one backwards and forwards. Yeah. The thing the thing about this is like for me, this just and this is something I've wrestled with, you know, even doing
these shows. I avoided all reality because I generally thought it was a lot of garbage, you know, And and I, you know, we've had great interviews with Ben Mendelker and Chad Coltkan and they really did, you know, uh sort of champion reality and explain how it's you know, uh, not just trash television, but actually it has nuance and strategies. And I've I've come around to see a lot of
that I really have and get. But I think fundamentally, unfortunately, there's still a little bit of exploitation and exaggeration and uh shodden fuer mm hmm. Oh yeah, you know, one of those words that once you learn, you just want to use as many times as possible. But it means, you know, taking pleasure in other people's misery. And I think that there's an element of that that you know, a company. It's you know, watching a train wreck can
be fun. It's rubber necking, right, all the different ways to describe. It's the feeling bad about watching something good and not being able to turn away. And yeah, I I, you know, I think that the reality shows that I gravitate towards are the ones that are more game show based too, talent based for me, talent.
Based American Idol, that kind of stuff.
And then even like a Loan, which is about survival, you know, and it's with the stars. We had a great time watching Gets with the Stars.
Yeah, so yeah, now I get that too. But the Snookie thing. The thing that was really interesting about the Snooky situation was and and it showed kind of the direction they were going. The first time they aired it, they blacked out the punch, so you saw the guy turn to order, the screen went black, and then you saw her on the ground.
The next time they aired it they showed him punching in the face. Wow.
So it was it was really interesting the way they decided to go, like, no, let's just show it, and so they originally didn't, and then they made someone made the decision show the actual hit, and then they showed it over and over.
Well see, that's kind of my problem is that I feel like, you know, it's the frog boiling in the water thing. It's like these little degrees of like, well, what are we going to accept as okay to like just stand by and let people do live on television or not even live, but we're going to edit it and exploit it. And you know, I feel like, yeah, if you think back to the way the news used to be, or even these early reality shows, it was
nothing compared to these days, you know. Yeah, And I think, of course everything's been accelerated by the Internet, so videos.
So I was gonna say, look at social media now, I mean, so much silence and flat out watch murder. I mean, it's just it's really sad, and maybe we are getting to a point of yeah, let's just go back to audiators. You know, it's going back to people trying in the ring and it's running man, and they would be.
So that you have produced UFC is is kind of that, right, I mean that I remember when UFC. I know, I know you're a fan, but I remember when it first came out feeling a little I mean, I can't watch it like I can't, right, I can't even really watch regular boxing. I find violence really hard to watch, and I find it, you know, so aboring to experience. I've gotten more used to boxing, but I like it better in a fictional context. I like it in a movie
I like it. When I'm watching a real fight, I'm usually just like, oh, I look away, and UFC I can't watch because for that reason, it's like it's just throw.
The UFC especially was before there were any rules when I mean, I started watching at UFC one, and it was brutal because there were no rules, and it was just the whole idea was, let's see what happens if you put a boxer against the wrestler. What happens if you put a mix you know, somebody who does kung fu against somebody who does you know?
So it was that, but it was way too brutal.
Then the Fritigas bought it, and Dana White came in added actual rules, and then now it's to the point where the people train their whole lives in MMA, and it's two people that it becomes like a game of chess when you two people that are really good at it.
Right, because they're both doing Brazilian jiu jitsu correct and it's.
Both straight up MMA. It's striking, its grappling, it's all that kind of stuff.
So I've always watching somebody like, punch somebody else in the face repeatedly is really hard. Agreed, I get it, but you know, at the same time, it's like, and I this is where the algorithm of the Internet is just so crazy. Like I definitely have gone through periods where I'm flipping through my Instagram and I realized, like I've gotten a lot of like drunk guy getting kicked
off a plane for being racist videos. I'm like, for whatever reason, I lingered too long on two of these, and now it's just he didn't be the same thing. You know. It's like I remember when when Reels first came out, you could click a button and see like you're recommended reels. Oh oh God. And and Indie and Alex and I were in New York. Actually, she was making her movie in New York and we discovered this
and and Alex was clicking on her. She's like, oh, my reels are like really nice hotel rooms, like beautiful hotel rooms like Zillow porn, and then people jumping off of high places. That's what I just kept recommend you like guys and girls. Just like you know, it was always the same song of like you know somebody, I forget what the song was, but I believe I can fly. Probably it'll come to me anyway, she gives me. We were Unfortunately Indy was there to see this. They're like,
what's your Instagram reels? Just women bouncing? I'm like, what have I done that? It's just literally women being like hey, and I'm like what what? I don't know.
I would probably be food and random people punch in the face, which is they've thrown on my They've thrown it now on my thing where it's just like, hey, I'm on the bus and somebody punches me in the face.
That's it.
So yeah, it's it's strange. I do have a bit of a bone to pick with you, though, if I'm honest. As we're talking about elephants in the room. Uh oh, I noticed she had a new partner last week.
Yeah, I'm hoping that she will come back to Yeah that's what I figured.
Maybey really make this a good show? Seem like seemed like you guys were pretty comforted.
What will she knew things about Survivor? So it was I know things about Survivor. I think you were magical rewinding somewhere. No, I was.
It was my mom's eighty fifth birthday. I was back in Connecticut, so yeah, I was travel that one past.
Yeah, you better.
There's something else I'd like to bring up, which I think is pretty important as well.
Are you ready? Yeah? Are you sure you're ready? Yeah? You got the pants. I got the pants. My friend, I've had so many messages from people who's not on social media. Get him the pants.
I got him. I am wearing my Survivor pants as wee.
Now, you just got to get Jonathan's body. Yeah, I'm good luck with steroids. Ye, he's a giant.
It's like, seriously, there's fables written stories, fables written about that, like a he Man figure.
Yes, like he looks exactly like the he Man figures. He does, he does. He's like he's man at arms, like his head. She's been around. And because they all had the same body back in the day the he Made figures and they weren't like body like bodybuilders have gotten even crazier. But he Man was just like those perfect alpha body That's exactly what he is. Every time. Well Jesus Christ, look at that guy.
Yes, seriously he is, and and all of his clothes look like they're made by fishermen in a small village. And so I was able to find the pants and this is the this is this is the new the new Trader's cloak I have got. I will say they're comfortable as hell. These things are amazing. So this and a pair of crocs. I'm a happy survivor guy.
All right. So I'm assuming you watched episode three.
I watched all of I'm completely caught up. Still don't get it completely, so I don't know if.
You listen to me and Sophie.
But we had a really it was it was painful and it hurt, and I don't want to. I don't want to know anything about it.
I know she said shouldn't eat for like eleven days, eleven days no eating. Funny because that I had some questions that we had brought up ahead of time, or that we'd already talked about that I was able to ask her. Uh, I can't remember any of them, so I want to. But then I have questions that came up to me, like while we were doing you should
listen to it, you should listen. I don't want to, but I would say I will say that the one thing I definitely want to talk to you about is finally we have seen a chink in Jeff Probe's armor, which is his rapping ability.
He doesn't, as the kids would say, necessarily have the flow, but it's.
The equivalent of me. Between last week's Jeff rapping and now a country singer who I've never heard of had of our episode there, I was like, I don't know what's I mean? No, the country music I never heard of? Sorry, everybody I had neither. I have like pop culturally disabled.
Me to knew who he was. You obviously knew exactly culturally disabled.
But I very specifically really don't know anything about hip hop or country music. They're just two. I know more about hip hop than I do country music. Yeah, but I know nothing. So yeah, so this week, yeah, so between the last two weeks musically, I feel very out of touch. But I feel like Jeff really shouldn't have should should have. Sophie was like, I think he might have reckoned.
You might have suggested, oh god, yeah no, so yeah what rhymes with don't wrap anymore?
Jeff, Bob? What I would? I would kick this aflow? Uh yeah, I'm gonna be totally honestly too. I still can't get into it. I just with the show, the show. I don't get it. Are you kidding me? No? I thought this was because I thought this was one of the best episodes.
It's it's this is literally just a bunch of people sitting around all episode talking about who they're going to vote off.
That's the whole show. And then occasionally they go out and well, yeah, then they could.
Then they go out and they do a weird physical challenge, and then they sit back in again in the woods and talk about who they're going to kick off.
That's it. It's a big brother just in It's just Big Brother just in the woods. That's how is it different than Traders?
Because Traders is like there's a pageantry to Traders, and it's there's the you know, this ridiculous kind of characters and the big costumes and all stuff. This is literally just people sitting around going.
Hey, should we vote out this person? No, we should vote out that person? Well what about this? Well I want I don't want to be with them.
I can't believe they said are going to vote me out and I'm just like they are spearfishing.
But that's okay.
Show me that the idea that she said, I haven't eaten in eleven days, Show me that you guys can't get food.
Show me all that we talked about this day one, Yeah, could not be more. I think these episodes should be more about like the surviving, right, or even this silliness like when they did the Talent Show. I was like, I want to see more of that, you know, like, yes, that's yes, Like I want the like what's it like to be bored? You know? Yehen days in and all
you have is yeah. But I agree, they get into the strategy, they get it, and partly, you know, I think maybe as the show goes on, because there'll be less characters, you might get a little more into it, like right, because you get more attached to people. Right now, it really is a little hard to be like, wait, Stephanie.
Right, and I'm learning them people's names. When they're kicked off, I'm like, oh that was cute. I know, that's like, that's that's how I And I'm thinking about you as I'm watching this because what you said about Traders, where you were like, I kind of wish I started with just regular people. I wish I started Survivor on a season where it's not already about interpersonal relationships that come from other seasons that I'm completely unaware of.
I agree.
I know people are watching this, people that are big. It seems like this season of Survivor is made for people who watch Survivor.
Absolutely absolutely, it's like a culmination of all the years. But yeah, I agree, like we kind of screwed ourselves with Trators and Survivor. They're both meta, you know, they're both like in these sort of meta season moments. And I agree, I don't. I don't love it. I mean, I like this one because I have my favorite people that I like watching, and you know, but that's that's
my thing. Like I agree, man, like that. I think the joy of Survivor has has just adjusted and it's interesting to think about how that's happening overall culturally, do you know what I mean? Like even our politicians are usually people we've already seen before, right, Yeah, it's like we're in this echo chamber of like, yeah, you know, we only nominate or want to see people that have already done other things before. It's a weird, like repetitive moment. Look at what we do for a living.
We're going back and watching our show from thirty years ago because there's a comfortability to yes, something we already know and as somebody deals with anxiety.
There's a reason I.
Watch mash every night when I'm going to better people who are anxious people watch the same things over and over because it's no surprises, you know what to expect go in with that.
So I was, yes, I was. I was interviewed about my other podcast, The Red Weather. Please go Red Wether to it now if anybody's interested, I'm I was being interviewed about it by this cultural critic who goes by pop smart media, doctor Shannon. She's amazing, and she she brought up the fact that during times of like extreme conflict, historically people go to fantasy or nostalgia. And it's so true. It's like fantasy or nostalgia, it's like scrapism or what
we already know and feel comfortable with. And I think that I think that we are definitely in that moment kind of overall for maybe the last like ten fifteen years, culturally, we're just seemed to be going further and further, Like you don't see much new stuff, you know. That's why I love to see like a movie like Sinners, which
you know, take or leave it. What's great is it's a regional yeah, you know, like, I just the chance that a studio will give a director an original movie, and especially a new director that isn't somebody from the nineties like Paul Thomas Anderson, right, I love, but like a new director, like what was the last time we saw it? All Right, we're goetting off on a tangent. Let's by the way.
You just you just but you just put a new word in my head because you know that I'm writing a book and it's it's nostalgia and fantasy.
I love.
It's got to be called Fanstalgiaanstalgia.
Fanstalgia's brilliant. I don't know. That really sounds like a disease that you get cured by Garbain saltwater.
If you have had nostalgia. But it's the baking powder on it. And first of all, baking powder does everything. I don't like that little that fake little product that does everything.
How about no, no antasy, No, see it doesn't work. We'll figure it out. I'll figure it out. Let's do Survivor. Let's do Survivor. Episode four Q has been voted out. Stephanie is very sad about it. Stephanie was like an e in the wrong place. For some reason without his ah really throws me like you should be Christian or something. I just don't want to say it. Agreed, are these are the important observation? So you can only get here people, This is what you come to pods world, no idea,
what the shoe's about. Let's go your news. So lamely said right or strong shut? Okay, riders strong and will not our hy d e r. He's gotta make it harder for everybody. I love it, all right. So what was interesting about this moment coming back to camp is how because you know, there's always like they have to face who they blindsided, because usually there's one person or two people who didn't know it the way the vote
was going to go. So there's always this moment. And I thought, it's so interesting that Ozzy like immediately becomes like coach, like I mean, like the character, but like a camp counselor like talking to everybody and like, okay, so we had to do that and he kind of made which is like such a bad move. He has that charisma, but like, dude, don't take credit for this, Like I agree, you know he does. He does this
kind of stuff all the time. You're like you're being a good guy, but you're actually putting yourself in a vulnerable position, like he should have just let somebody else take the fall for that, and you know anyway, but he immediately is like, I want to get Angelina out because I want to become Mike's number one.
So last week was the tribe swap, which, frankly, when I tuned in, I thought it was going to be a much more entertaining episode.
It was not what I thought it was going to be.
Yeah, I think there's just lots of sex in between the different tribes, and that's not what happened.
So that was not what a tribe swinging. That's okay, That's.
What I was like, Ooh, tribe swap, We're finally getting there on Survivor. And then nope, they just they just put on different color headbands, like oh man, that sucks, but you.
Saw how it kind of resets the show.
And that's a normal thing. Every year they do a tie, not every year, and.
In fact, they did it so early this year. It was just like, oh and yeah, unfortunately it's it's it's not boded well for Vatu because uh, keep losing, keep losing, which is that thing that happens. Man, it's just getting weaker, getting weaker. And you know, I think we saw this episode when you vote vote out your physical players. I didn't get that. I mean, I guess what they say exactly what Ozzie said, Yes, like like, why are.
We getting rid of the queue, the big dude that can help us push stuff?
What are you thinking? I know, and you saw it immediately in this challenge. It's just yeah. And I'm surprised they didn't say anything about it, like none of them brought it up. I guess they just know that's on them, right, But it would be And I told you so too. I told you so from Ozzie could have gone along because no, I agree. I agree.
It's like how you know you it's what the what what Ben told us about traders was a Ben or chat I told us where it's like keep keep the person you know who's a trader there the whole time until the end, and then vote himut where it's like, yeah, keep the people that are going to help you with the heavy ship, keep.
Them there for a while. Yes, But over at the other tribe, you also want to keep your talented talent show people. Wow, Okay, what's what's the number one rule about when you know your impression is horrible, don't do it when you have to say who you're doing exactly like you, I can't do it. You can do it? Oh yeah, no, there's Mickey's up here. So you got high. I'm Mickey Mouse.
If you have yes, I'm Mickey Mouse. Don't you get it? Hey, it's me. Look at Goofy and Pluto, they're and my dogs and stuff.
It's you're like, yeah, you're talking to me.
Yeah?
Are you talking to me? Robert? I'm funny? How I'm funny? How funny? How that's so true? Number one rule of impressions. If you got to say the name, it's not doing it good. Not good. So I would have given it to the wrestlers because I thought that was cool. Yeah, the fake punching and all that stuff was great. I meanwhile, over at Callo coaches getting his hair braided. It's a beautiful braid. She was like, I'm good.
I'm good at Whoever that person was was like, man, I'm really good at braid.
That's what happened?
Was it? Yet?
I don't even know who it was. I don't know I don't know. We'll get there, we'll get it and now.
And it's like, right when I start to learn somebody's name, they switched the tribes and it's like, okay.
I know, I'm gonna wait till the last three. They are really not re emphasizing their characters because they assume that you've seen them. Right. It's a hard season, dude, Yeah, yeah, you came in on a tough season. I get it. Aubrey is the one that's the outcast, the sort of nerdy girl who's worried so and she's looking for idols when Genevieve is suddenly calling out for her and she's like, my god, leave me alone. But she has a billy idol. Aubrey does that. Yeah, she's gifted.
Yes, and nobody's called it billy idle yet how is that possible? In four episodes nobody's called it billy idle?
Yet no one has your brain? No, I probably wouldn't have. So sad, so sad this generation. Genevieve then goes and finds another Billie Eilish idol, which I can't even keep track of these anymore? Is this now? I thought?
Okay, so question are there are all these idols gonna be billy idols or do you get different types of irregular idolhole?
I don't know, man, I thought maybe this would finally just be a regular idol, but it was Billy eilish idol. So I guess maybe that's just the way the season's gonna work.
On different seasons, though, Do different idols do different things?
Yes, Okay, they always have a type of idol, and I think it. The question for me is that I don't I can't answer, is are they only one type of idol for the whole season, right? I'm not sure. I feel like there have been different types of idols, But there's also just been times where they don't even find an idol, They only find a clue, and then that clue becomes an advantage, and then the advantage might lead them to an idol. That's cool.
I like that.
Oh there's tons of dude, they've had to like dig up, like they've had to like in your like there. Like some of the funnest is when it's like a treasure hunt. So it will be like if in your main camp something is hidden but you only can see it if you, you know, go here and then they were like in front of everybody having to like dig something up and taught stuff like that. I love that stuff. I love that in plain sight on traders, it's like that they
have to find the idol. I love it. And that's like super national treasure kind of stuff right underneath where everyone's getting their water, so you have to like come back for it later or you know, yeah, super cool, dude. I like that. And so this I was a little, honestly just disappointed to see the Billie Eilish idol comebacks maybe, but I will say the way she played it is super interesting. Did you did you capture her whole strategy
with this? What do you mean? Well, so she's gonna give it to Rizzo, right so that then when they can come back together, she can tell him I gave that to you. We're in an alliance together because I gave that to you. But then.
She gets her super smart it's actually the super smartest way to use the boomerang eye, which I had not thought that through until she said that.
I was like, oh, that's the smartest thing to do. It's it's but I thought you had to give it to somebody in a different tribe. Did but she knows that she's gonna then play him later.
Oh, that's right, because it's it says something like it. It doesn't it's not active until there's like five people left something like that.
There was something like five people left merged. At some point, they're going to merge the tribes. So if he makes it to the end, he could still have the idol with her. She already has an idol, right, because she has one that somebody. Oh, no, she found another one. You did it to Ozzie. She gave it to Ozzie. So she's gonna come together and be like, Ozzie, I gave you yours, Rizzo, I gave you yours, and she seems she can turn on Rizzo and get it for herself.
Mark And I think the other thing is because it looks like, uh, there's clearly a disconnect between Rizzo and the other dude, the other young guy.
Charlie Charlie.
And so I think one of the other things with the Billie idol is if you're voted out and it's still in your pocket, it reverts back to the person that found it, so you can do it again.
That's what I'm no.
She's going to be doing it, but she doesn't even have to vote him out like his his own tri right, and then if he doesn't play it, then then she gets it back at it.
So yeah, so it's weirdly you want to pick somebody who's targeted. That's why Aubrey was a good choice for the other you know other smart yeah, smart. All right. Then we go to this immunity challenge. And the second I saw this thing, because they have done this in the past, I was like, oh God, because this is one of the hardest immunity challenges. Like there's sunken boat. The boat is so heavy. I'm just like, and that's why I was immediately like, they're going to regret regret
boating not sucks mane. Every time they've had this, it's like or maybe they've only had it once, but I remember it for being just like the most grueling, horrible, uh horrible challenge.
To watch, but really this is something like this becomes more effective as a viewer if I know how hungry they are at this point, if I understand that they've been my god, I didn't eat today, We've had nothing. I had a handful of rice, and now I have to push a boat. Then I get it more because I'm sitting there as a viewer who doesn't know how hungry they are because they're not playing any of this stuff.
I'm just supposed to assume, and I'm like, well, why is that one team not able to push the boat at all? Why can that?
You know?
The other? Well, Jeff says that he keeps saying like after not eating you no during yeah, but during he was also like, but also like watching how happy they are to eat food when they get that's yes, that's what I mean.
It means so much more if you they play into the hunger and there no food in my cat.
I think there's just an assumption that you've seen enough survivor who knows. I know I didn't. So we get this whole guessing game of what the special guest who's coming to the island is. Is this normal? Do they normally bring people on the island? Okay? Nope, never seen this before? Okay, and uh, you know, I thought it was cool. But it went on a long time. I mean, this was like twenty five minutes of the episode was like this Zach Brown special, which sh okay, like, I
don't I have no reason to break around. But I did not need to see a commercial of free or like a music video of him spearfishing and then playing like three songs? Does he play three songs? I think I was just definitely like all right, and they're good songs. Like I was like, yeah, I should check out his music.
But those are also incredibly long fins. Did you notice how long his fins were when he got on the ocean spear he was spearfishing with a bazuka?
He did, I mean, neither of fins? Okay, sorry, sorry, you're right. Your reward is that this guy's gonna catch you fish and play music. And at this point I was like, oh, they're going to catch the fish for him and say he caught it, which glad to see wasn't the case. I was impressed at the show didn't just manipulate us, actually showed him fishing, all right. So then Serie sits out, Genevieve sits out a little moment.
I don't know when Genevieve gets to be the one that sits out where I thought maybe Aubrey was a little pissed. She like turned in. It was like the quickest thing. I didn't go back, but if any of our listeners thought the same thing, because you know, obviously the Genevieve Aubrey. Uh, there's a rivalry. They're really really leaning into here. And then they start the thing. Ozzy, last one in the water, first one of the platform, because he is he's a superman's yeah, he's a dolphin. Yes, yeah.
Then they have to untie these buckets with the knots. I'm telling you, not the knots. Not climbing things to untie things. That's all I would do to study.
I would just climb thing and untie something, climb, swim, swim, swim, and then and climb something yep, exactly, yeah, yeah.
And then just pushing these these boats. Like it's just looks so hard, so miserable, unless you're Jonathan who flipped the thing over by himself, the thing over by himself. Have you dumping?
I mean, just now, what do you think the chances are that a good portion of his power and strength comes from his pants, which I now have.
We'll see you think next week you'll be like pushing ship recks out.
I'm wondering if like, is it become is there a superhuman power in the pastors? Yeah, I'm just wondering I might be very much stronger than you coming soon because of the pants is all on.
Wait, I can't wait. Let's have a challenge. My friends have a challenge. Flip over a boat, untie some ship. Do you remember the one time we tried to play basketball? No, I mean besides on Boyme's World, which we did with the Home Improvement kids. Yeah, you and our brothers, your brother Greg and my brother Shallow try to play basketball in West Hollywood. You don't remember this. God, When our brothers were living together in West Hollywood, we were like
we should, uh, we should play some basketball. We were like, yeah. We lasted fifteen minutes and that I just remember you red face sweated, me unable to breathe it. He could just be like, all right, we're done. I probably had to seeah, I probably had to stop to smoke a cigarette. We would not do well in Survivor by no, my god. And that was when we were like twenty eight, not even like I was even younger. Oh that's awesome.
I'm glad I blank that out. Oh my god, Hey, I'm in shape, rounds of shape.
Yeah all right, So Callo wins Sila's and second and Vatsu is just destroyed yet again, and they're so exhausted and defeated. Just watching them crawl out of the night was like the saddest thing in the world.
Well, that was the thing they finished. One team was done, already back at their camp listening to music. The other team was done, had built the sand castle, was all having fun. The third team was still in the net like you. They cut to it and it was like, oh my god, they're still in the net. I felt so bad, horrible, And Mike.
White just just he aged about fifteen years in the course of this episode. He did like Jess calls him out at a very tribal and it's like, yeah, you he gets this like far away look in his eyes where he's just like, you're out of it, dude, like looking a little rough there. Bro. Yeah it was, it was, Yeah, it was. They were all just white. I also love it.
It's really that I noticed it in this episode only once or twice they call him Mike.
They always call him Mike White. They always called him Mike White the whole time. Yeah, really weird. So at the Sanctuary, which is this is where they get to go for their rewards. If they get food and it's just heaven on earth for everybody because like you see them, they're just like tubs.
Yeah. Oh also though, one of the things too, when I were talking about was a you're in the sun a whole lot with no calories in you.
You start drinking, you're gonna get hammered. I know I would never do that. I would you never know and be wasted.
You're gonna eat too much and there's a good chance you're also gonna have some serious gastro intestinal problems.
And that's happened. I've seen, They've seen, They've shown people like throwing up. How could you not because you go from nothing to essentially gorging. You gotta take it easy, Yeah, you gotta take it easy. Yeah, it was. But this is why I would starve myself before ever going out there. Yes, I would be like I would be on I would be fasting and working out like for weeks just to build your your bodies, like get your body used to that,
because yeah, the survivor diet. All right. Uh. Then it becomes this commercial for Zach Brown's awesomeness watching him jump into the water with this like bazooka spear that I was just like, what have you ever been spearfishing? I have not, Okay, I've been spearfishing, but you do it like like OZI does it with like a sling, which is like a stretchy goes and like one little and you just like it almost like looks like an automatic rifle. It relad But then he catches a fish that is
bigger than anything. Yeah to Tuna, oh my god, that was insane.
And how he's talking about how he's like, you got to get it in because the sharks are coming.
He's like, oh my god, that's crazy. But it happened to me.
Did you notice though that it looked like every single one of his tattoos he had done yesterday. Oh, like they were all bright and fact like I have tattoos and there's some I forget I have. And I look at him like, oh my god, I can't believe he can even still see the ink his They looked like he was just yes, like every six months he go gets them redone.
Because they clearly wanted to make zact brown look awesome, so they might have just given him a little color correct. He looked pretty awesome. Though, he looked pretty awesome. Yeah, I was doing, dude, the one shark ing counter I've ever had with spearfishing, and that's exactly you it ate fish. Well, here's the thing. I was going with my buddy who's
like a big spear fisher. He got in the Bahamas and he you know, I did two trips with him, and I only ever got a lobster because I can't hit ship as you walk up and just knock it on the head. No, they're in the they're under it, like you have to find them under rocks, like in the core, like you have to find low under So I found him in a little thing, but he's not moving.
Ye.
So that was my big spear fishing moment catching. I think I got two lobster, but he got a you know. And it was so funny because like before we went, he's like, stay com if we see sharks, it's not that big of a deal, you whatever, And I was like, okay, okay, so you know, I'm terrified of sharks of course. And then we get in the water and he got a fish. So he's got a fish in the end of and nothing like the size of Zach Brown's like a regular
size little fish. It's like cool, we're gonna get sushi, like, you know, if we get four more of these, we have a meal. It's men. And and then I see a shark and it's you know, not huge, but it's a freaking shark. Yes, and it's dark swimming towards us. Oh God, and my buddy like pops up out of the water and where he's up about it, and I pop up and he's talking to me. I forget what he was saying, and I'm just like trying to stay calm.
My heart's racing. I know the shark is coming towards us of the water, and I'm like, he's so okay, and I don't want to interrupt him, but you, uh, did you saw the shark right? And he's like what he looks down and the shark is like coming right because he's a bleeding fish. So then he the shark comes right out of me. He like dives away and has to give give the shark the fish because the
shark was like actually coming. Oh and god, you know that he was bleeding down his hand from the spear, so he just like turned it over and like pushed the fish off and let the let the shark get the fish. And then he was like, well, writer, you were a little too calm. He will do this dude who was fine with a freaking shark.
No, no, thank you, No, it'll be Nobu for me, Thank you very much.
Yeah, thank you. It was pretty cool though. We were literally came out sushi every night, like we would catch fish and then just have sushi. It was delicious. Oh so much fun. Uh anyway, not as good as Zach Brown. No, that guy's a monster. And then you know they have this incredible meal after he like carves it up for them, and then they get a private concert, which reminded me of Boy Meets World, where I was awkwardly staring at the Nobody's Angels performing this day with my face. They
had a much better concert that that. They were clearly actually I was like, oh, what would I have been like? I would have actually been I love his voice.
Oh he's not into country music, but I will certainly listen to him. He seems like he's a good guy. He seemed like he was a big fan. The man's got phenomenal fins. So yeah, this was Uh, I'm a fan.
I'll check it out all right Over at Cela Dee was crying she's a big Zach Brown fawn. Ok yeah, and then Rizzo gets his his idol that he's been gifted from the Billie idol and thinks he is best. Like I've told every.
Season, it's like if you played too, yeah, and somebody also gave this to you.
He didn't find anything. I'm one of the better players to ever play this game. And I'm like, you are so twenty five right now.
Man.
I do like him and and Sophie it was on with me last week, said she they're like best friends, and okay, she's she was so cool and she's like, he's a genuinely great guy. I believe her. I believe that he is a good guy.
I'd ask that you not mention her anymore. Okay, okay, let's not bring her up. Okay, my new co host, hey, f so pain.
She was actually probably really upset that you weren't here. We'll we'll just have her back on.
I wore new pants for you to try to get it to get.
Back, bring her back. I've got I've got something performance as we go on, and especially the fact that she brought he brought her up in the episode that we were or that she was on to recap with me. I have a feeling like Rizzo's gonna you know, there's gonna be some drama late later on that we would love to have her way in on.
Okay, question is is Survivor like it seems like in Traders when somebody mentions your name, your your moments up, like you're you're the countdown has started for you being kicked off? Is it kind of the same on Survivor because now his debt, Charlie or whatever his name is, now he's like, I'm getting this dude off. Is that usually the start of like we're gonna get somebody off.
Yes, but that's also editing, right, Like they could be bringing up people constantly and just yeah showing them. But they've clearly planted the seeds for a rivalry here because they reiterated that this episode and it has nothing to do with this episode. So when you see that kind of editing where they brought it back up, played it out, I bet you next episode that rivalry is gonna really come or four episodes down the line, right they are
They clearly plant these seeds for the whole season. Makes sense, makes sense, you know, it makes sense, But I would love to be you know, I'd love to experience what what how many times they do have these conversations that go nowhere? Yeah, and therefore don't get you know, like.
Wonder the amount of footage they're throwing out where it's just like.
Well, they're on the beach all day every day.
You could do fifteen episodes a week of the same day if you want.
To a cruise with them at night, because there have been episodes where in the middle of the night people sneak out to go do something like bury an idol, get a get a buried idol, or to meet rendezvous with another person in the middle of the night, and the camera crews are there, so they have there are people always on the beach filming them constantly ready.
To do they ever give any kind of logistics of how close you are to another camp?
I mean, are they like walking distance from each other? Or I would have loved to ask sof I mean no, because they always have to take boats, right, they always show up in boats, So you never see people like walk to another camp.
Okay, you wonder how I wonder how close they are to each other in actuality?
I do too. That's a good question. All right over at Vatu. I thought it was interesting how positive they were all being considering you know, we went from selah D's like crying, like you guys got immunity, and then we go to Vatu and they're like, all right, team we did. We didn't win, but we did, okay, you
we did all right? Like what really I guess they you know, they say it right away, is that they were already kind of planning to go for Angelina, which is Mike, Ozzy and Christian's plan, right, Which which one's Angelina, the one who stayed despite being the one that they said they were going to vote up for, big curly brown hair. So Angelina is like Mike's sidekick because they were on a season together. And then she's the one that I think was on White Lotus has like had
like a one line. I think that's Angelina. So that's what Mike when he the other one is the big curly hair. So that's why when Mike runs, he spends this entire you know, rest of this episode trying to save Angelina, and he even has to admit it's not because she's a good player. He's doing it because they're they're friends in real life, like they were on their free season, so he just kind of doesn't want her to get kicked off. Turns out to be a really
bad move. Yeah, so Mike decides to start targeting Emily to kind of get everybody off of Angelina, and he has this great line where I was like, Oh, this is this guy's clearly a writer, where he says, you know, she's a cougar in the shape of a ren Fair girl. Yeah awesome. Yeah, but then we'll come back later because he has some not so great lines coming up.
The second he said it's at this game, I'm Machiavelli, I knew who was gone.
I turned to Sue and I went, he's voted out tonight. You can't get too cocky man.
Nope. And the second they start to show it's like when you watch Top Chef when they start to weirdly focus on one chef, it's always like, that's when he's going to be kicked off tonight. And the second they started really focusing on Mike and some of those zingers he was pointing out, was.
Like, he's done and they're kicking him out tonight. I know. I loved this singer and I was like, he's a great writer. He got Sephanie on his side. Then he tells Christian and Angelina to go for Emily, and Christian is in this sort of he's stuck because he feels you know. But and then Mike and Christian have this scene which turns out to be a pretty big thing. And this is where Mike's writing linguistic ability was not so good. He says, she's a nerd bomb where the
nerd girl stabs the nerd guy on the back. Was mixing your metaphors, dude, I like you love her in the shape of a renfair girl a lot better. But what I really was thinking while I'm watching this, I was like, Mike, you're the nerd girl in this situation or the nerd guy. You're doing the same thing. You're going to turn around and stab Christian in the back.
And I was so glad that Christian saw that for what it was, because, you know, he seems to do a Christian Christians very smart and humble in a way that that that Mike is not right. Mike is I think, been directing a little too long, and and and and believes in his own persuasive powers a little too much.
Well, he said, he's like, all the only the only thing survivor is is just convincing other people to do what you want them to do.
And I wow, yeah, right, but it's still right, and he does have good skills at it. But you know, when you're directing your actors on White Lotus, they kind of have to do what you're going to say, right, So you think you're a great persuasive person, but the reality is they get paid to be there and do what you're You know, you're you're the boss.
Your your cast isn't going to turn around and vote you out of directing.
No no, yeah, your producers maybe, the network maybe, But even at this point, no, no. By the second season of White Lotus, they're gettingtting him do whatever he wants. He took that for granted, man, I think because really he should have been drawing Christian in, you know, and instead he really kind of pushed him away from it with this moment, and.
His ego got him kicked out. I think so, man, And I think.
So because actually you look at Mike and Christian and Emily, these are the sort of nerdier like they should have sticking together, and instead, by like characterizing her as a nerd. Christian is going to take that personally for him to you know, it's wearing a robot shirt. Yeah, not a cool way to go, man. No, no, it was a big misstep on my I agree. Was his ego got him kicked off the show? All right? I liked. I liked the way that he dealt with it though.
I like how he was like, oh, of course nice, yes, exactly, good job guys, Like I like that.
Is ultimately a good guy. Like, yeah, I think he just screwed up here, and and you know, and it all comes back actually to him wanting to support Angelina as a friend, knowing she wasn't that good of a player. So it all goes back to a strategic miss miss step. You know that he made half with you know, half with.
As President George Bush so eloquently said, strategery, strategery.
Yep. So Christian decides to make this big move to vote out Mike, which he only needs, you know, a couple votes, and I love that he's like, we don't tell Ozzie because Ozzie's gunning for a white lotus cameo. I love that was so good and it's kind of true. Because does know Mike. Mike said that they hung out in La as friends, and then and Ozzie said, I want my I want to be Mike's number one. So Christian is exactly right, which I then love that Emily who just cannot keep her mouth shut.
Oh my god, I couldn't believe that. It's like, just don't say anything. How hard is it to just not say something? It ultimately does work in their favor, though, I mean, knowing how the episode actually ended, I'm like, that's good because Ozzie can't be really pissed at Emily anymore, you know what I mean. No, but you can't ever tell her anything ever, I know, because it's like, that
is not a person you want on your side. Really, you're just gonna go to she first she told about the idol and then she told about this.
It's like, just keep your mouth shut. But luckily she doesn't say we're voting, Like Ozzie still thinks they're voting for Angelina, which I think if they had told I think if they had told him that they were voting for Mike, Ozzie would have run to tell Mike. And I think I think so too. So I think in her mouth. Yes, quiet, But it's interesting that you know it is. I can't wait to see what happens, because Christian trusting Emily at this point could be that nerd bomb.
Exactly what Mike said. So he's asking Emily to trust him, and he's trusting Emily who's already blurted out. But she does stick to the plan. But I think maybe, you know, even by next episode, Christian could be, you know, regretting his decision to stick with Emily over almost anybody else at the same Yes, and I'm hoping again, I think you're right.
As they get weeded down more, I'm gonna start getting attached to certain people like on Traders, and it's gonna be then. Yeah, I just want them to do a little more surviving. And I get what they mean. I get the metaphor of you're actually surviving the vote as opposed to surviving on the island.
I'd like to see a little bit of this. We get to tribal council and to your point, Ozzie talks about catching eight fish, which you never saw. No, we saw him like, oh, I'm gonna go get some food, but like, dude, caught them eight fish that is insane. After pulling that boat, pushing that boat, he was like the only one in the back for a little while too, Like, yeah.
I still don't get how you've said that. That's the guy who keeps getting voted off of every other season. It's like, how's that the dude you want to get rid of?
I guess I kind of get it. But he deserves the win. When it gets to the individual immunity, he just kicks everyone's That's.
What I mean.
He deserves to win. Keep him until. Yeah, it's really tricky, man, They blindside him like crazy. But yeah, he provides food for everybody.
But if you want him really to survive where he says, Okay, you lost, so him taking your your flint? Okay, well everybody has fired. What they should do is they should take their fire, like you don't get fire anymore. It's not that you don't get away to start your fire, because you've already started your fire. We're extinguishing your fire and you don't get a fire until you win again. That would be interesting.
Well, they do take their flint, what do you mean?
No, no, no, I'm saying instead of taking their flint, they take the flint. But they also extinguish whatever fire they have, and they're not allowed to have fire until they win again.
That to me would be interesting.
That's because it's like, I know, but when who cares taking your flint just keep the fire going? Taking their flint does nothing with the fire going. Yeah, put the fire out. You don't get fire, That's what I'm saying. But you don't get you don't get to do that. You're once the fire goes out, We're putting your fire out.
You've lost. You can't have a fire again until until you win again. That would be how I would do it.
Something I think they are of answer turning me into a different guy.
So so Micah's is weird. This interesting line during tribal Council where he says, you know, there's some people you'd rather lose with than win with, which it's like, okay, so you're gonna lose with Angelina. Yeah, And he also has this great spiel where he says he's so used to selling people on his artistic projects and until it comes out, you feel like a con artist, which I'm
really related to. Of course, that's any everybody in our industry, can everybody because you always have to say, like, just trust me, I have a vision, or the story's going to be there before it's written, or give me millions of dollars, or give me the part you know it's it was. It was really a well put like point.
I had a meeting with somebody the other day who's at a position in his career where he literally said to me, I'm in a place now where I can say whatever I want and everybody just.
Says yes to me. And I was like, Oh, what a magical place. Industry. Yeah, Oh, you got to tell me who this was. It was, I don't know it was.
It was just like he's like my my, my agents, my managers, other producers, they're just there to say yes to me when I come with anyone. Oh.
It's just like, wouldn't that be nice? Magical? Nice? Absolutely mad.
Yeah, well that's Mike White. I mean, Mike White. Whatever, he's gonna go pitch, they're gonna do so. I mean, it's that's the idea that he's doing Survivor for fun is kind of cool, crazy, weird.
Yeah, it's not pretty cool.
He seems like a person I would really love having nothing to do with the industry, like not trying to pitch him anything, not trying to sell him anything. I would love to just sit down and have a meal and just talk to that guy, because he seems like it would be a super interesting convers.
Super entertaining, super funny. Yeah, have you.
Seen so Apparently he did a movie in two thousand that I was I was looking at that Jeff Bridges came out and said it was the best movie and the best performance in a decade.
Yeah. I know that he started with like, you know, much smaller comedies, and then you know the fact that he's ended up doing White Lotus is just bonkers. Maybe it's Chuck and Buck. Yes, I've heard about this.
So he plays he plays like a guy, plays a crazy guy who's like stalking his best friend.
And I was reading all about it and that.
It ended with a quote of Jeff Bridges saying like this is the best performance I've seen in a decade, Like, oh my god. So yeah, apparently, you know, he was great in School of Rock, which I think is the only thing I've ever seen him in as an actor. But I mean, this guy's legit talented. So it's I would love to sit down and have a conversation with.
Well, he's kicked off Survivor season fifty, Bye Bye Mike and was shot. I was like, this plan works perfectly, it does it? You know, way to pull it off. I feel like I feel like the tribe is going to be able to come together. I mean, Angeline is clearly on the outs, right, so she's got some scrambling to do. But the fact that everybody else came together for this vote in some form or another, and I think that Ozzie's gonna be able to forgive everybody.
I hope in the seasons you've seen, have you ever seen a tribe that keeps losing, keeps losing and then eventually turns it around and gets stronger or do you just is this like a slow death by a thousand paper cuts and.
This is death. It's usually just death until they get down to like two people and then they just merge into the other tribe. Think. I mean, I yeah, it's really hard to turn it around once once you've gotten this week, you know, because now you can see that they're going to have to take two people out for each challenge on the other teams in order to match this team, right, So two people get to sit out every time, and they can't sit out more than I think once in a row, maybe twice in a row.
So it's gonna get interesting, man. I mean, that's the only that's the only way to equalize it, is that, Like because that you saw Seri sit out, so like if she sits out again, they can't do that. So eventually you end up having to like sit out Jonathan or somebody that you really rely on. Hopefully that equalizes it. But honestly, like every season, I feel like it's just the there's demoralized, they fall apart until it gets to
the individual game. But sometimes these people end up being the winners, like from the demoralize, Like Sophie was on a tribe that lost everything and got down to two people last season, and she ended up being in the final three. Oh she was okay, wow, okay. So you know that's like I think that it actually toughens you up and forces you like when you come in on the bottom of whatever tribe, you come in on whatever.
A lot of times there's factions of people like that surprisingly surprisingly turn against each other, and if you're on the bottom, you get to be the deciding vote, do you know what I mean? So you powering into an established alliance and being the one to be like it's four against four, everyone wants my vote, and then you say give me what I want, like let me and trust me, you never vote me out, and then you
make it to the end because of that. So sometimes it's good to be, you know, the last person standing on a tribe.
That's Yeah, there's one more thing I would add to what we'd have to train for for Survivor.
We'd also need to train with giant.
Puzzles, because that seems to be a very big important part of the show exactly, giant puzzle.
And word puzzles, you know, like figuring out. And they've repeated a lot of like I think celebration has been before, Like they pick words that are like you know, yeah, it's uh, I can't spell, So I would I'd be losing all of these, right, what's calibration? What's everybody's problem? All right, Well, you've been listening to pod meats tworld. No excuse me.
I know that you started with another host last week, but that does not give you the right to skip over my segment, sir, which, as everybody knows, is called Where's.
History of People? That's invested up in things, and it doesn't include Sophie. I'm looking at you, Sophie.
Uh So, this week we are talking about Fraine Selk, who is a crue You.
Made that up?
That is Star Wars character, isn't it the coolestrain Tom Selleck exactly of the Council of He's Frain Selik. He's a Croatian music teacher and he became famous for sviving and astonishing seven deadly accidents. These included train and plane crashes, car explosions, and even being hit by a bus just randomly.
Yes, he wasn't like ever intentionally putting himself into these minds. No, despite repeatedly flirting with disaster, Selek always emerged alive, earning in the nickname of the world's luckiest unlucky man. So this is Unbreakable. This is the plot of essentially Unbreakable, m Night Giamalan's movie essentially except better.
His remarkable run of escapes had sparked both and disbelief worldwide. That is Frayne Selk. And I was going to do another, a different one, but it was another woman. And there's been a bunch of women and now so I wanted to give Frayne his due.
Yeah, give Frayan his due. There you go. Like the I like the new take on surviving too that it's like multiple events. It's not just surviving in the elderness one.
There's some crazy ones. There is some crazy ones. I'm glad I don't have to do the best love stories that ever happened if we did the Bachelorette, So thank god, that's not a thing. I wouldn't even know what that theme song was going to.
God, what would the best love stories? That's what I was gonna do, is like the big best loves Again. I have all the knowledge of the world in my head, so I can just filter through whatever I want. Even listening to Podmets twirled. The torches may be snuffed, but our questionable analysis burns on. We'll see you next time. A tribal