Rob Mariano - Redemption Island

[holly71]

Love how he came up with the new name for the tribe. Murlonio.

I knew as soon as he said it, that it was a made up name, & sure enough, it was. Everytime they show the tribe name on the screen, I giggle.

[sweetpea]

I've developed quite the tough skin being a Boston Rob fan for so many years. He's so funny, and I just get a kick out of seeing his joy at playing this game. I think he relishes the role of the "Rahbfather" and I do not believe for a second he is manipulative or controlling in his real life, outside of this show. From all accounts, he's a great guy.

[ironcat]

Because whenever that happens, he gets voted out early (much to my delight). Notice how this season and in All-Stars, he was put in tribes with people who just got extremely dumb around him, letting him make every single decision, practically serving as stepping stones for him and they never do anything about it, though this season is not over yet so who knows if they eventually smart up.
Contrast that to both Marquesas and Heroes vs Villains, where people figured his gameplay and he got voted out before making the merge. It just makes me see much clearer just how overrated this guy is. Sure, he's good at building, decent at physical challenges, pretty good with puzzles (I hate how people call him the best puzzle solver ever in Survivor history), but unless he's put in with a bunch of idiots, he's just not as great as he's made out to seem. That and his smiug, condescending attitude stinks.

Well, we still don't know just how dumb his alliance mates are or if it is part of their plan to eliminate him down the road that causes them to act that way. But if his presence and gameplay is what is responsible for them "getting" dumb, then it is to Rob's credit, and can't be just blamed solely on the quality/lack of intelligence of the others. Particularly because in AllStars, he played against four winners, and several others who finished in the top 3 before. Were they all just "dumb players" who got lucky once, or did Rob make them look dumb? Big difference.

[mesachick]

Well, we still don't know just how dumb his alliance mates are or if it is part of their plan to eliminate him down the road that causes them to act that way. But if his presence and gameplay is what is responsible for them "getting" dumb, then it is to Rob's credit, and can't be just blamed solely on the quality/lack of intelligence of the others. Particularly because in AllStars, he played against four winners, and several others who finished in the top 3 before. Were they all just "dumb players" who got lucky once, or did Rob make them look dumb? Big difference.

Well said, ICAM.

The producers didn't say, let's pick the dumbest of the lot this season so that Rob would look good. Some may not like Rob, and that's fine, but I don't see how anyone could deny that the man can play this game, or that he doesn't bring a lot of entertainment to the show. I hope he lasts til the end.

[Fanny Mare]

I've developed quite the tough skin being a Boston Rob fan for so many years. He's so funny, and I just get a kick out of seeing his joy at playing this game. I think he relishes the role of the "Rahbfather" and I do not believe for a second he is manipulative or controlling in his real life, outside of this show. From all accounts, he's a great guy.

I want him to win, sadly I am not sure he will.He's becoming a little paranoid, once again.

[Brooks]

The producers didn't say, let's pick the dumbest of the lot this season so that Rob would look good.

Rob ended up on Ometepe by a draw of buff. I think we have quite a few very strategically-minded players this season, just not particularly on Ometepe.

[ironcat]

Rob ended up on Ometepe by a draw of buff. I think we have quite a few very strategically-minded players this season, just not particularly on Ometepe.

Again, yet to be proven. Nobody's shown much strategy on that tribe besides Rob, for sure, but it remains to be seen how the rest of the season plays out.

And regarding the strategic brainpower of the Zaps, as Dr. Phil says, how's that working for them so far? I still hold that if Russell and Rob had switched tribes, we would have had a similar result. In her exit interview, Sarita, who was supposedly Zaps' leader (yeah, real good strategy there) said the reason they decided to get rid of Russell first was partly because they couldn't stand his attitude around camp (he was obnoxious) and partly because they wanted to make a statement about booting him first, based on his reputation and persona. Neither of those reasons would apply to Rob, who is by all accounts an asset to have around camp, and had a much more likable public image and reputation as well. And also, the Zaps were not 100% decided to get rid of Russell from the get go, so he, as well as Rob, would have had a window of opportunity to ingratiate himself into the tribe, which he failed (more like refused) to do. I suspect Rob wouldn't have failed. Just as I also suspect Russell's obnoxiousness, arrogance and boasting would have gotten him a quick boot from the strategy-challenged Ometepes.

[luvlady345]

I don't understand how anyone can say the people on Rob's team are dumb, they are doing exactly what I would do if I was on Rob's team.....Why get rid of Rob now? They needs to get rid of all the Zap's in order for any of them to win in the end, because if one Zap is in the F3 they will win......They need to get down to the F6 and then take Rob down, which I feel is exactly what is going to happen, even thoug I am a HUGE Rob fan, he is not going anywhere near the F3 just wait and see.....

[JavaJo]

Rob ended up on Ometepe by a draw of buff. I think we have quite a few very strategically-minded players this season, just not particularly on Ometepe.

I don't know...I think Andrea is a 'sleeper' and is the one to watch. We got a glimpse of that when Matt was blindsided...the first time. Philip, for all his crazy, gets it too. He just doesn't have the support of the tribe to do anything at this point. The other two girls...meh. Grant might have it in him. Right now though, they are winning and dominating so why rock the boat yet?

Zap has the brain power but they don't seem to have the nerve. You can tell they want to do something, but nobody has really stepped up to lead them into it.

[ironcat]

Zap has the brain power but they don't seem to have the nerve. You can tell they want to do something, but nobody has really stepped up to lead them into it.

Ironically, Russell would have been able to do this, but his tragic flaw is that he wasn't willing (or capable IMO) to be a friendly team player initially on his tribe, and engender enough good will to be kept around a while. As Rob proved, that is the only way for characters like the two of them to survive the early rounds. The big difference between Rob and Russell is that Rob is accustomed to gaining respect/loyalty through his likability and contributions (before pulling out the iron fist with a velvet glove), while Russell only knows how to gain it through fear/intimidation, humiliation and acting like an ass. Perhaps he just doesn't have a nice/charming enough side to him to utilize anything but fear right from the start, but this approach will backfire every time, once people know who they're dealing with. In some sense, Rob's ability to survive the target on his back vs Russell's inability to do the same, probably doomed whichever tribe he was put on.