I was born in 1980, which was basically the hay-day for sitcoms. Sitcoms in the 80’s and 90’s that were worth their salt always had at least one, “very special episode”. These episodes usually focused on drug use, drinking and driving, eating disorders and in some amazing cases….um….creepy old men having unsafe relationships with kids. I picked this theme for this week of my Survivor blog, because this was a “very special episode” of Survivor. All the main stars of the show took a backseat to the rookies finally winning a competition and the vets finally spending an evening at Tribal Council. I’m shocked the Rookies, when they won the comp didn’t all react like Steve Martin in Parenthood: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XW-Nxfx5Nw
This was a “very special” episode that held the place; it looks like for the next episode where we will finally get the “merge”. Of all the random competitions that the producers come up with in Survivor, this episodes has to rank close to the top; I mean a twenty foot slide, followed up with throwing a ring around a post? Did they plagiarize that from the old classic Nickelodeon game show
Double Dare, when a team would choose the physical challange? Do the Rookies win a pair of British knight shoes and a trip to the Orlando Space Camp, like the winners from
Double Dare did back in the day? So basically how this is going to work is that I picked from the vast list of historically powerful “very special episodes”. Some of the shows were so powerful and emotional that they made more than one; “very special episode” and I have used examples from the same show here to. Listen, this was so much fun, it’s almost a crime that Rob is paying me 5 grand a blog(also with my horrible grammar). The groupie thing from this blog is getting out of control for me. I can’t let this go to my head or Robhasawebsite.com will have its on “very special episode” on its hands….whoops, too Late…Here’s Rob in a Jay Leno mask talking to me about a very serious issue:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoFuuSbWLLM
Now let’s get on to the real players. Once again, some of these work, some of these are going to be confusing, annoying and only funny to like four of you. Either way enjoy!
Let’s start with my favorite sitcom of the 80’s,
Family Ties. When I was a kid I truly wanted to jump ship from my family to the Keaton’s or the
Seavers from
Growing pains (sorry mom). On
Family Ties,
Tom Hanks plays loveable, looked up to, Drunky alcoholic
Uncle Ned. At the end of the episode he gets so drunk he tries to punch
Michael J Fox and misses very badly, but for some reason
Michael J Fox acts like he got hit by
Mike Tyson. I think this was the first recorded “flop” in the history of mankind and led to the NBA and every Soccer player stealing this technique. Aras needs to avoid this fate himself. Let me explain, Aras is playing the type of game where he is somewhat living a double life. He is saying he is loyal to someone like Laura, and then is a part of the movement advocating for her exile. He is also claiming he will put his current alliance ahead of his brother, even though it’s doubtful that anybody believes him.
Uncle Ned’s problem was transparent, Aras needs to avoid being transparent and make sure that when he is playing both sides of the fence, that he is not being sloppy or setting himself up for an awkward confrontation down the road. Vytas in the Fresh Prince:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmerFuzRNZ4
Will Smith is absolutely gunning for the Emmy in that clip. I mean for godsake, that acting was the type of thing that got Shakespeare excited about writing plays. It’s too bad that his career has somewhat gone off the rails because of
Scientologybad choices in film selection. Vytas, if we take Aras at his word(which we shouldn’t but will in this case) might be experiencing the same feelings that Will did in the clip above, feeling alone and un-wanted. Vytas still remains in a potentially solid position in the game. When the merge happens it will be interesting to see what the first move by the majority is. The brothers may try and put on an act, like there not playing together, but it would be hard to believe that anybody with half a brain would believe them. I think Vytas needs to continue to solidify his bond with the two the girls on the rookie tribe and with Hayden and then hope that each of their SO’s welcomes him into the fold and protect him.
Katie showed some skills in the completely random immunity challenge this week. Maybe like
Samantha in
Who’s the boss, she’s finally starting to grow up! We haven’t seen a lot of Katie this season, as far as her social game goes. She will look to join forces with mama bear come merge and from there we will get a better idea of what her Survivor destiny most likely will be. BTW, where the hell is
Tony Danza these days? I know at one point he had a reality TV show, where he became an English teacher at an inner-city high school. Does he still talk to
Mona? These are the questions I wrestle with at times.
On to Tina in Golden girls: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smeJzwF90pY
So apparently
Golden Girls “very special” episode decided to be different and tackled gambling, with
Bea Arthur as the protagonist. Tina, like Bea, needs to be careful and avoid possibly pitfalls that could lead to negative consequences like gambling. Specifically, she needs to not be too trusting. She is playing the game with some really savvy, cunning players and if she is going to take everybody at face value she is going to have problems soon. I could be reading Tina wrong, but doesn’t it seem like she is trusting people a little too much? Tina playing the game with her daughter on her own team soon will cloud her judgment I think and will lead to her ultimate downfall.
So
Boy meets world was a little past my time when I was teenager and besides, I’m more #TeamFredSavage then #TeamBenSavage. So this “very special” episode deals with cults. I will say that again, this episode deals with F*****g cults. Apparently the BFF of the main character gets sucked into a cult led by
Styles from
Teen Wolf. I chose this for Tyson, because Tyson has the ability to get people to follow him and do what he wants them to do. Tyson needs to be careful that he doesn’t push that too far though, or like in this episode it could lead to his demise. Tyson is my favorite to win this season so I’m confident that he can navigate being the leader at camp and survive to the finals. Once the merge happens, Tyson will become a target from that point on. I think if Tyson can keep his followers loyal (Gervase, Monica, Laura) and acquire some new members in the merge, then he will be safe for the next few weeks.
I wasn’t the biggest
Home Improvement fan ever, but anytime a sitcom can make Pot seem like PCP I’m in. Like the other
Brad from this sitcom, Brad of Survivor got caught being shady and got punished. Brad survived the first Redemption
never ending series of puzzle competitions please make the next competition Deer Hunter Russian roulette Island comp. I think even if by some luck and perseverance Brad made it back into the game he would be the first one voted off. It will be fun to watch him continue to fight though! Do you guys agree?
As for Monica, here she is in Growing pains: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gGasjWuJlM
So sad, the much maligned
Carol Seaver lost her boyfriend,
Matthew Perry to drinking and driving. This is similar to Monica losing Brad. Monica thought thing were going so good (like
Carol) and then out of nowhere she is close to becoming a Survivor widow. Monica needs to stay strong and not let Brad’s fate, whatever that may be, destroy her game. Brad losing at Redemption might actually benefit her game as it will make her less of a target. Monica needs to bring Tyson grapes, get his water, clean his clothes and do whatever else it takes to stay on his good side so he will keep her around. Quick
Growing Painsrant:
Growing pains was a great show, then
Kirk Cameron got all churchy, started refusing to show up on set if scripts weren’t “toned” down; like not wanting to do a scene where
Mike is alone in his loft above his parents garage with a girl. Pretty much he absolutely submarined the show. Now he is doing Bible movies and being pissed about science being taught in schools. None of this would have happened if
Boner was still around.
Laura got the big blindside this episode. Like Donna in one of the most horribly acted scenes in television history, she never saw it coming. Laura is really good at puzzles so one would think that she has a decent chance at getting through Redemption Island. Laura this season played exactly how she played her first season, which is to do well in the competitions, but have a sub-par social game. I don’t think she’s unlikeable; I just think she lacks a certain something that prevents her from succeeding in the social aspects of Survivor. Good luck Laura at Redemption!
Ciera in Punky Brewster: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AOjXSY1Ej_g
This was a puzzling, “very special” episode. I mean was there a time in the 80’s were people were hiding in refrigerators? I chose this for Ciera, because I think she can benefit from playing “Hide and Seek” from everybody else. Ciera needs to lay low, not make any sudden movements and she may just make it here. With the merge happening next episode most likely and her mom now exiled at Redemption Island, Ciera won’t have to worry about her performance in competitions anymore. If you’re a Ciera fan then you’re banking on the hope that she is going to be an attractive commodity for one of the powers in the game because of her vote. So Ciera needs to find the nearest refrigerator, get in a tight yoga pose inside of it and bunker down till the time is right.
Scott By The Bell ep 6 – No Hope With Dope from Nathan Guerra on Vimeo.
Our first, but maybe not our last “very special” Saved by the bell clip here (see what I did there, it’s called For-sha-doe-ing?)In this episode the immortal Johnny Dakota, the famous movie star is looking to shoot an anti-drug ad at Bayside High. NaturallyZach and the gang find themselves in the middle of it, because for some never explained reason they were a part of every sports team, cheer squad, year book club, chess club, the random TV high school audio/video club, auto shop club and the amateur porn club…ok I made that last one up. Anyways, Johnny Dakota it turns out is not the good, wholesome guy that we all thought he was, because he tries to get Kelly and Zach to smoke “the grass”. He then gets called-out and then gets exiled to the Bayside High redemption island never to be seen from again. Gervase needs to avoid this fate himself. Gervase has shown he does have a survivor evil side to him and if/when that comes out he will be in trouble. I think Gervase lacks the likeability that Tyson has with a potential hostile jury. I think he needs to play less dirty come the merge, capice? Does Gervase need to play a dirty Survivor game to succeed? That is the question to look for next week.
Words really can’t do this episode justice. I mean if you actually watch this episode it is so, so creepy. Why did they have a laugh track on when the child molester was making jokes? I think that actor who played that part was permanently black balled from every doing anything in Hollywood again. John and Candice in a matter of speaking, got taking advantage of by the game of Survivor. In Candice’s case she never really had a chance to play this season. John just got chewed up and spit out; trusting in people, being naïve and being taking advantage of was his downfall. John still has some life left in him and he’s a doctor, so maybe the next competition will be a game of Operation, but in reality it will probably be another goddamn puzzle. John just needs to continue to fight hard and see what happens.
Full House…oh Full House…6
th and 7
th graders in a group of five casually smoking in the school bathroom? Stephanie Tanner ultimately getting the upper hand and check- mating the “bad”girl with her quick wit and zingers? Kat in her first season rolled with and ultimately got blindsided by a dominating force in Kim Spradlin. Kim although an indestructible force, also ruled her kingdom with kindness. When the game really starts next week with the potential merge, Kat is going to have to play the game with some powers that aren’t as noble and kind as Kim Spradlin. Will Kat be in over her head with the likes of Aras, Tyson and Gervase or can she keep a cool head and navigate herself deep into the game? At this point I’m still not sure about Kat. With her man reinforcement coming soon in Hayden, will this help her game or make her a bigger target? Looking how her game changes with Hayden close by is going to be the question for Kat to answer.
Hayden in very special Punky Brewster part deux: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RcqgHmBXwUk
Ok, where to begin with this clip? I mean really, please go watch that clip again. First off, who wrote this script, Nancy Reagan? Were upper class 6
th graders in the 80’s really carrying around huge handfuls of every type of drug out there? Would 6
th and 7
th grade girls really want 7 seven year olds to join their club? How did it go from
Punky saying “no” to the bad girls, to her organizing the biggest Anti-drug rally in the history of this country? Why during the anti-drug march was there a guy in a red karate gi? Is he a member of the
Cobra Kai sister club from wherever
Punky Brewster takes place? Anyways, I chose that for Hayden, because he is about to be approached by people to join their “club”. Hayden needs to be careful with who he will align with. I’m pulling for Hayden, but Tyson is the ruler in this game and he’s to smart not to see that Hayden is a huge threat in this game. Hayden needs to join forces and get numbers with the bottom of the food chain players in this game. He is going to be a huge target and needs numbers on his side. He needs to stick with Caleb, Ciera and hope that Vytas can get Aras with them.
Yep,
Steve Urkel was really a thing at one time. Like
Urkel, Laura is a nice ,friendly person, but she is just never going to be in the “in crowd” in this game. Laura just needs to avoid getting drunk and falling off the roof, meaning Laura needs to lay low, get wood for the fire and go with the flow. I don’t think she is going to last much longer ,but hey I could be wrong.
Really the watershed moment in, “very special” episode history.
Jessie Spano gets hooked on diet pills over the stress of school and her emerging singing group with
Kelly and
Lisa. Thank god for friends like
Zach Morris there to help her, or this could have led to her getting hooked on drugs for life and then led her to becoming a
Showgirl. Caleb needs to be careful and not fall into the same fate as Jessie Spano. Caleb has done well keeping things together in the face of adversity. For Caleb not to have a meltdown moving forward he needs to continue to be aggressive and proactive like he was with the Brad vote two episodes ago. I wonder if he will be a marked man by Monica and be an easy first vote for the vets. Or will he not be seen as a target? I don’t have a good read for what Caleb’s destiny will be in the game moving forward. What do you guys think?
We have come to the end of our “very special” blog episode. If the merge does happen next episode, then the game will really begin. Having the loved ones playing side by side 24/7 will be something that really has never been seen on Survivor before. My guess would be that no major player gets voted off next week as the tribe settles in. I would guess Laura is the one to go. If a big move is made then I would guess it would be against the two brothers. It is so hard to predict because we don’t know how having everybody at one tribe will affect the game. The dynamics this season are about to completely change. I think this continues to be a very strong season in Survivor history. Let me know if there are “very special” episodes that I missed or could have used. Thanks for reading!
