Board Thread:Survivor 43: San Andrés/@comment-26034146-20200523214823/@comment-26156957-20200524033529

Chieko!!! I've been looking forward to hearing from you again. Your speech definitely asked for a lot but I thought it was manageable. Anyway, here are my answers!

- A few jurors felt you rubbed the wrong way since they got voted out, so that's kinda questionable and it's up to you if you want to explain it from here

From what I've seen, the only jurors I upset were Aaron and Izzy, which I think is perfectly fair considering how I treated them prior to their vote-offs. So I’m just gonna offer my take on their animosity towards me.

Aaron: I already explained why I kept the idol secret initially, but I also figured it would have been safer for both of us if he didn’t know moving forward into the merge. Because if he were convinced we didn’t have it, then the tribe might also feel convinced we didn’t. It never really panned out that way until Aaron left, but there probably was a point where I should’ve just come forward with it. After looking at some of y’alls past jury speeches to prepare, I noticed that a close ally of Aaron also kept their idol secret from him in his original season. Since that happened again, I understand why it would sting and I’m sorry to Aaron that I chose to not be open with him about it, nor was I willing to use it to save him.

Izzy: I was gonna go in-depth with this in my response to Izzy’s speech, but it looks like I’m doing it here since you asked. I already knew Izzy wasn’t gonna be very happy with me when she would get voted off. Multiple times throughout this game, she asked me to simply tell her if she was getting voted off as a personal request. I couldn’t bring myself to be honest with her about the one thing she requested from me. I figured she at least deserved to know how she positively impacted my experience this game. I’m assuming this is what she was referring to in her speech (I’m simple-minded and didn’t fully understand the slang rip).

Looking back, I should’ve cut back on the talk that basically screamed “I knew I was going home”. Paranoia and guilt is not a great combo and I let that overwhelm me by fearing an idol play or a sudden shift to vote Abi. Furthermore, I worried that ghosting her would come across as standoffish, like it wasn’t worth acknowledging her presence anymore. I know this isn’t how I would want to be treated, so I thought this was a better approach to still share some genuine honesty. I knew her reaction was inevitable, but I never wanted to worsen it. I didn’t expect this to hurt Izzy more, so I’m truly sorry to her that I upset her more than I intended.

If you could Chieko, let Aaron and Izzy know about this response for them.

- If this was a Final Two and you were picked as the last juror, who would you vote for and why? Be honest, this might be a hard question for the other two but think wisely.

If I had to vote for a winner between Jim and Mackie, I’d easily pick Mackie. He has been the greatest rival I’ve ever competed with in my ORG career and only he would be capable of finally voting me off. I think Mackie’s game is a stronger representation of this season’s winner over Jim and I’d be satisfied with seeing him come out on top in that scenario.

- If you weren't sitting in the Final Tribal Council along with the other two finalists next to you as of this day, pick three jurors you want to see in your respective spots and explain why you decided to choose them.

Zeebem - I considered Zee a major underdog since a multitude of the merge votes didn’t turn out in his favor. If Zee was able to navigate himself to FTC, he would’ve had a compelling story to share and I know I wouldn’t be able to help but root for him.

Izzy - She played a phenomenal game this season and it seems she would’ve won had she made it here to FTC. Her game triumphs everyone else’s on the jury and I consider it worthy if me and Mackie couldn’t win. I know she put her heart and soul into this season and that's testimony of a winner.

Abi - I consider her not being here at FTC a robbery. She played this game with integrity and always maintained lasting relationships. Her style of play deserves more credit since she always stood firm for what she believed in.

- What are the pros and cons of each finalist?

Mackie - Pros: Basically a badass at this game, so much so that I think he could definitely win on the real show. He’s skilled in almost every way imaginable and put together a strong Survivor resume.

Cons: Relied on a cutthroat style of play, back-stabbing a handful of his allies which could cause him to receive the ire of the jury. Jim - Pros: Truly comes across as a one-of-a-kind character which naturally draws people to him. He also has plenty of life experience which allowed him to offer a more sage outlook.

Cons: Just out his own accord, his jury management appears to be lacking along with convincing the jury how he distinguished himself from Mackie.

- What moves do you think it benefited for you game to get a spot at FTC? No claiming other's moves as your own.

I already went into full-depth with this question in Alex’s speech, so I’ll just provide a brief recap without repeating all the details again.

I utilized the perception of me as a high-profile player to my advantage knowing I was an easy target when we merged. Despite being at greater risk, I owned this perception which benefited other people for the sake of mine firsthand. After Final 8, I worked with a near-optimal setup that allowed me to navigate to the end.

- List the pros and cons of each juror's games. This doesn't need to be necessarily long, so free feel to make it short as possible.

Alex - Pros: Well-spoken and entered a tight threesome with Jim and Mackie. Cons: Overplayed after the swap despite being in a majority.

Jack - Pros: I heard he had an astute strategic mind and had plenty of allies who had his back. Cons: He voted too early which was unnecessary and rubbed his allies the wrong way because of it.

Jay - Pros: Overcame a numbers disadvantage after the swap integrated himself as crucial member. Cons: Unable to leverage his position as the middle-man between tribal lines in his favor.

Matthew - Pros: Clearly a well-rounded player who had fortified himself in nuSoacha’s stronghold. Cons: Came off as too threatening and not in most people’s best interest.

Chieko - Pros: Skilled in challenges and truly likeable combined with a great personality. Cons: Unable to recover from falling into the minority both post-swap and during the merge.

Aaron - Pros: Always looked out for his allies and utilized a good systematic approach to find idols. Cons: Came across as an easy target due to not being social and was even perceived as a goat.

Jacob - Pros: Knew how to spearhead specific eliminations to further his game, such as targeting A/A/A. Cons: Also came across as an easy target due to not being social with people who weren’t his allies.

Zeebem - Pros: His social skills are actually superb which prevented him from receiving votes for so long. Cons: Struggled to collaborate with people outside his dying initial alliance until it was too late.

Izzy - Pros: A natural social butterfly and can become close with anyone. Cons: She makes it pretty obvious when she’s being disingenuous.

Abi - Pros: Valued integrity and an honest and loyal play style. Cons: Struggled in most challenges, such as losing the tiebreaker.

- Why Chieko, one of the Queens of this season, was robbed? What would you have done differently if she wasn't in a rough spot during the rest of the swap instead of being left out?

Now you’re asking the REAL questions here! You were robbed because you fell victim to lackluster rationale and an ulterior motive by the people in true control. People feared your challenge prowess and felt turned off by your actions when they shouldn’t have. Jacob should’ve gone home instead of you, since it allowed for the fans to unite and create a power shift when Aaron and Abi should’ve realized it sooner.

I’m not sure how to answer that second question since I would’ve been voted off in that scenario lmao. But I wouldn’t change much as to how I talked and treated you. People would normally tell me I’m being too nice and I shouldn’t display so much empathy towards someone who wrote my name down (twice later). But I still valued our friendship and acknowledged that we had potential to be great allies, even when you never had my back.

- Last but not least, impress me with a drawing of myself. If you are unable, free feel to skip this question.

I’m not sure if I already told you this, but I literally have zero artistic skills whatsoever. I never took any real drawing classes in grade school, so my drawings look shitty at best. I know you were interested in my sister’s drawings, so I could ask her to draw you if that suffices, but if not I understand.

I hope you enjoyed my response and I also hope to hear from you again real soon!