Survivor: Gabon - Season 17 (1 Viewer)

[Mike Frezon]

Robert: I specifically made the point that it was just the interview portion of the promos that were MAR'd non-SD...because the rest of the spot (specifically the final graphics page--with the Gabon & HD logos superimposed over a lush green location shot) looked gorgeous. I had already noted up in Post #1 that all of the promos i had seen up to this point (all trumpeting the addition of HD) had been SD up to this point.

On the one hand, they must think "no one will notice." But, then, on the other hand, they want to promote the HD perspective.

So, the promo was indeed in HD...but some of its key video of the contestants was very SD.

I think we need a few more of these:

And, one of these:

 

[AnthonyC]

For those interested, CNet.com has an exclusive--the first three minutes of the premiere (including the theme song)...plus some insight from Jeff Probst on all the contestants as well as a brief behind-the-scenes look into the transition to HD.

 

[Mike Frezon]

Excellent, Anthony! Thanks!

36 HD Cameras!

Some of those wildlife/scenery shots are breathtaking!

 

[Greg Krewet]

Almost all of the ads that I have seen for Hi def Survivor have been pixilated and freeze up. Anybody else having this problem.
Best
Greg

 

[Patrick Sun]

2-hour premiere is on tonight in high-def.

 

[Radioman970]

I wonder how quickly these will be available streaming at CBS.com? A Friday afternoon viewing is what I'm shooting for!

 

[todd s]

I cannot believe this is the 17th season of Survivor.

 

[RAF]

A "season" in Survivor doesn't equate to a year in real time. As I recall, Survivor #1 debuted in the Summer of 2000. It looks like these "seasons" happen at a rate of approximately 2 per year (this being the start of the ninth year of Survivor.)

Reminder: If you are interested in our HTF Survivor:Gabon Top Ten Challenge (DVD prize package to the winner) check it out and indicate your interest in this thread.

 

[todd s]

I know. I am just shocked that its still the 17th "season".

 

[Mike Frezon]

I wonder how old I am in "Survivor years?!"

 

[Patrick Sun]

I hate the Fang tribe, and not all that entertained by the Kota tribe. Not a good start to the season so far. All of this "no one wants to be the leader" stuff is uninteresting television.

 

[Brent M]

I thought it was a good premiere and kudos to CBS for FINALLY putting this show in HD, even though they're about 5 years too late.

 

[RAF]

High Definition saved the show for me as a lot of the tribe members are less than interesting. I've always felt that the real star of the show is the environment and HD really shows it off at its best. I feel that this season will be a success because everything is shown a lot more clearly in HD and this alone ups the ante for viewers.

Incidentally, because of the double elimination it appears that those of us entering the Top Ten Challenge will have a pool of 14, not 15 remaining contestants to choose from. Still a "challenging" exercise....

 

[Mike Frezon]

Michelle sure didn't have the right temperament to succeed at the game. But she sure would have been easy to have around a while longer...



Heck...she was everyone's Diane Lane fantasy lookalike!

 

[Brent M]

Very cute, but that acne was brutal in HD.

 

[Hanson]

Her skankiness was brutal in HD as well. That SD pic looks 1000X better than the HD version. The first areola and cameltoe blurring of the season. Did I miss something or did she not get to address the camera after her vote off?

Mrs. Claus was crazy annoying. Was very glad that they voted her off.

Was there any explanation as to why they were wearing dresses and suits? And why did that one guy insist on wearnig his tie to TC?

Orville Reddenbacker is going to get crazy skinny when the food gets scarce. He's in his fifties, but he looks like he much older. I guess living in Maine does that to you.

I was impressed with the HD visuals as well. It looked composed for widescreen instead of shot protected (I guess it would be difficult to shoot protected the way they film the show). My only disppointment was that it had a film-like look and not the razor sharp, ultra-colorful quality that makes some HD material eye-popping and almost 3-D in perception. It could have been my cable provider, but Survivor had the highest bitrate of the night (the file size at the hour mark was almost twice as big as the Ugly Betty file), and I have seen this look on other shows on CBS through Comcast.

I think, as it is with all seasons of Survivor, that judging the cast/entertainment value at this point of the competition is simply too early. It takes 5 or 6 shows to really see if the season is going anywhere.

If you want to get wasted, drink every time they show elephants. Man, MB must love elephants.

 

[Mike Frezon]

 

[Steve_Tk]

I enjoyed it. I have to sometimes remember that there are not any fan favorites on the show this time so it will take several episodes to get used to the new people.

 

[ThomasC]

There was text during the episode mentioning that you can see the votes and final words at the website.

Watch Full Episodes, Video Clips, and Behind the Scenes footage of Survivor on CBS.

 

[Martino]

Things that stood out (good and bad)…

I kept asking myself, haven’t any of you watched this show before? This is a physical show at the beginning – so if you have to pick someone out of a lineup, pick someone who might be good at a challenge. Two of the first 3 picked for the Fang tribe were the last ones up the hill on the first challenge.

After you have had a challenge so you can see where people stand, you don’t vote off your top performing woman in both challenges you performed because she is a little negative – get rid of the equally annoying older woman who is holding everyone back, and then the next worse performing person.

I thought she was kind of funny when the first girl to be voted off was saying how these folks on her tribe were morons – I had to agree with her. She called out “Mr. Leader” for just quitting on digging for the pieces – which is what half of them did…

Her parting shots were also good:

http://www.cbs.com/primetime/survivo...lay=true&cc=85

Mrs. “I’ve won a gold medal so I’m going to rule the challenges” was second to last going up the hill…it seems like her running days are way behind her. Either she had an injury that ended her track carrier or she just let herself get way out of shape.

It’s going to be one of those seasons where one side just rules and wins everything until a merge happens. They now have more food, the fishing gear, and are able to sit out two players per challenge. The science guy seems like this seasons Yao man..but he needs to ditch the bow tie.

The casting is also starting to look like an MTV show – having to have at least one overtly gay person in the cast for each season. His flamboyant man crush was just way over the top and kind of creaped me out.

http://www.cbs.com/primetime/survivo...lay=true&cc=85