CRICKETS AND KETTLE DRUMS

The bpisports.com column WHERE THE GLASS IS ALWAYS HALF-EMPTY

#2 - RUSSELL HUSTLED...AGAIN!

BY TREVOR W. RILEY

MAY 17, 2010

When I conceived this negatively slanted column for my sports website, NEVER did I think that my first, well second (we'll get to the First Blood/Rambo numbering system later), topic would be about a reality TV show screw job; alas, I present this pop culture present.

Russell Hantz made his second consecutive "Final Three" appearance last night on CBS' reality hit TV show, Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains, only to unjustly lose out on the million dollar prize, again! Sandra Diaz-Twine became the series' first two-time million dollar winner, defeating Parvati Shallow by a 6-3 jury vote. Russell Hantz received zero jury votes...ZERO.

The jury Yin-Yangers must have simply forgotten how to spell "Russell" since they hadn't written his name down since episode seven (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survivor_20). Heck, Russell was only voted against five times throughout the entire 14-episode season, that has to be the reason, right?

Nope. It seems that despite how good of a game Russell played, he didn't win the title of "Sole Survivor" because he wasn't a nice enough guy. Let's cast aside the fact that Russell brilliantly schemed to rid the tribes (Villains and Yin-Yang) of Boston Rob, Coach, Danielle, J.T., and Tyson, he lied and hurt peoples' feelings in the process. Let's forget that Russell showed supreme loyalty by bringing Parvati to the "Final Three" just as he had told her from the very early days of the competition, he's cruel, nasty, and selfish...it doesn't matter. Let's ignore the truth that Russell basically controlled the game from start to finish, he's MEAN...he's the devil incarnate!

Certainly, Russell Hantz was no choir boy in Samoa. He could have addressed the questions at the final tribal council in a less arrogant, more forgiving manner while still staying true to himself and how he played the game. Nonetheless, I challenge anyone to find a player in seasons 19 and 20, heck in the entire CBS Survivor series, that outwitted, outlasted, and/or outplayed Russell Hantz. Sandra because she won twice? Really? She was incredibly below average in Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains. Sandra laid low most of the time, underperformed in challenges, arguably rode Russell's coattails to the "Final Three", and her self-proclaimed main objective was to vote Russell out of the game, to which she failed miserably...and this is your "Sole Survivor"?...unreal. Parvati would have at least been a deserving victor, since she won some challenges and actively strategized throughout the game. She was virtually a perfect foil for Russell; she could more than hold her own against him.

Alas, Russell Hantz dominated Survivor seasons 19 and 20, America said so, and has nothing to show for it except two (out of 18; 11.1%) lousy jury votes, both coming from Samoa part one. It doesn't matter that Russell is arguably the best player in Survivor history (he's an easy #1 in my book), he wasn't nice, he wasn't everyone/anyone's friend, and he doesn't have any noted adversity to deal with at home (no disrespect to Sandra, my brother has served 3 tours of duty since the Iraq war broke out in 2003), therefore he loses despite playing ruthlessly harder and better than anyone in the game.

For the aforementioned reasons, Russell will NEVER win Survivor, thus if he decides to participate in a future season of the show, I would advise him to request $25,641.03 per day on the show so he could properly earn the million dollars that he rightfully deserves. If Survivor is nothing more than a course in etiquette and manners that it seems to have become, then I will not waste another minute of my time on what used to be a great series. And you know what, Russell is right. If the opinions of nine bitter, envious, in-game competitors trump a vote comprised of millions of people across America, you really need to question the merits of said system. If you're going to award $1.1 million, it should be $550,000 to the tribal council winner, and $550,000 to the American vote winner...its only fair, isn't it?

Well that's a wrap for column 1, episode 2 of CNKD, the first unwritten episode can be viewed on Youtube. If you have any comments, questions, suggestions, or other feedback, feel free to send them along via email to cnkd2010@aol.com. There's 2 down and 999,998 to go. Peace.