Yet another Pirate Master post - even I'm getting kinda sick of these, I'm really gonna have to get better at posting more regularly.  That said, there will be another post today.  Shocking, ain't it?

Anyway, I was not surprised one bit that Azmyth and his officer remained in power last week - he's a tough competitor, and with a couple of weeks in a row as captain he's been able to cut out some competition (as well as some of the chaff - I can't believe it took that long for Joy to be cut adrift!).  He is in a really strong position now, so unless his officers decide to help in a mutiny - and I really, really can't see that happening anytime soon - he has got an excellent shot at the top prize right now.

Joe Don is still an irritating jerk, but these losses and the precariousness of his position lately have toned him down somewhat, so that he's almost tolerable.  Ah, what being on the bottom can do for one's humility.  It is really interesting to see how he and Louie have had to get past their differences and work together now that they are big targets for Azmyth and pals, I'm quite curious to see how that will develop in the next couple of weeks.  Well, unless Joe Don is gone this week like I suspect will happen.  On a side note, Joe Don and Nessa are getting much closer - ewwwww!!!!

Tags: pirate master, tv
Current Mood: good

just a quick update - we were away for a long weekend, and our vcr clock wasn't set properly so we only caught the end of Pirate Master.  I'm not at all surprised to see Azmyth as captain again, and I like the fact that he gave Louie the black spot, as Louie suggested the week before.  How Joe Don remains on board at all is a mystery, and I am SERIOUSLY GROSSED OUT that he and Nessa (or whoever it was) are apparently going to be getting romantic this week.  Also, Jupiter crying or whatever every time someone is cut adrift is really getting annoying.  It's a competition lady, you should be happy when your opponents are eliminated instead of you!!!

Anyway, it still remains interesting, and I wish I could've seen the whole episode (I'm especially interested in figuring out how/why Azmyth chose the officers that he did), so I'll be tuning in this week for sure.  On a side note, I'm playing the Pirate Master game on the ctv website, where you try and predict who will be captain, officers, black spotted, and cut adrift, but seeing as it all depends on how the challenges play out, which you can't predict at all, it's pretty much a crapshoot.

Oh yeah, one more side note.  It seems to me that all I post about is Pirate Master, which is starting to bug me and I'm sure it's bugging you too.  I'll fix that, and soon.  Some impressions from the weekend away will be coming, I promise...

Tags: pirate master, tv
Current Mood: chipper

Well I have to say that I was surprised when Azmyth lost his captaincy last episode of Pirate Master.  He is still one of the strongest competitors in the game, but it does go to show that speed is not the only thing you need to win challenges.  He just didn't take that extra 2 seconds to make sure he had the right spot for the treasure, and for that he paid the price.

The introduction of the Pardon is very interesting, as it makes cutting someone adrift that much more difficult, plus the money from winning challenges is much more important, just in case you need to buy that pardon.  And the fact that you can't keep the pardon more than the one week, meaning if it doesn't save you it was wasted cash (take that Joe Don you stupid idiot) lends some risk to the whole thing that might not be altogether comfortable.

I expect to see Azmyth in the captain's position again, he's just too good a competitor, but I'm going to enjoy Louie's tenure first.  He's playing the game pretty straight up, not hiding his reasoning or his complaints, not shirking duty or responsibility (unlike one former captain who's behaviour was unbelievably lazy, dirty, underhanded, and cheap).  Plus he's laughing all the time, and has a grudge against Joe Don, so really there's no reason not ot like him.

Tammy and I were discussing this before, and though the editing of the show makes it look as though the grudge is mainly about money, we think there is more to it than that, including Joe Don's lack of working while captain.  But we think the main reason Louie (and I'm sure others who are just being careful about what they say) is mad is the food issue.  When the ugly prick was captain, he had the cook make the most disgusting gruel for the crew, while he (and I think his officers) got to eat very well.  Now I know if I was on the crew, the money-grubbing and laziness would tick me off, but feeding me that garbage while you got served like a king?!?  That would kick in the vengeance drive big time, and I wouldn't stop working to get that captain gone 'til he was off the ship.

As for the actual cutting adrift last week, I knew Azmyth wasn't going and I figured (as I'm sure all playing/watching did as well) that Joe Don bought the pardon, so it wasn't much of a surprise that Cheryl was gone.  And Jupiter whining and crying about how she didn't like how someone could get cut just because 'of who they're friends with" - gimme a break, please!  This is a game after all, it's all about being the last one standing.  AND you're supposed to be pirates, for crying out loud!  You cut who you can, when you can, for whatever reason you can, until you are the winner.  If you're going to start caring about your OPPOSITION you deserve to lose, and fast.  No sympathies here.

The previews for tomorrow's episode make it look like there will be some interesting dealmaking and plotting going on - finally, people acting like pirates who are out to get the others while making their bid for their own survival!  Joe Don can't have the pardon this week, so let's keep our fingers crossed, shall we?

Tags: pirate master, tv
Current Mood: amused

Great episode of Pirate Master last night, mainly because Joe Don lost his captaincy, wooohoooo!!!!   It wasn't perfect, as he didn't get cut adrift, but still he's not in power anymore and that is definitely a good thing. 

There are some interesting things going on in terms of side deals, bribes, and maybe some future backstabbing opportunities.  And I really have to give Azmyth some praise here - a smart player, driven competitor, and all-around funky dude!  He made the right opening moves as the new captain, both to distance himself from the idiocy of the previous captain and to cement his support among the crew.  At first glance I thought it was a mistake not to give Joe Don a black spot (one of the officers has a deal with him and so was pushing for his not getting nominated), but now I'm thinking it was smart to a certain extent, as it may give him some support from the former captain as well.

Joy is really looking more and more like a weak competitor, and I won't be one bit surprised when she's finally eliminated - she just doesn't seem to have the physical fitness to compete.  Or perhaps she doesn't have the competitive drive to push herself through the physical challenges.  Either way, she drags her team down.  That being said, the right person was cut last night I think, as the other two nominees hadn't really done anything that bad to warrant leaving, and Alexis' walking outside of the longboat instead of helping paddle was a very significant factor in the black team losing the challenge.  Plus it didn't look like she was quite carrying her weight in on-deck duties. 

So, I'm a little disappointed that Joe Don wasn't eliminated, but then again part of me hopes he gets captain again just so I can see the smug bastard's face when the mutiny happens.  and of course it's always fun to have a villain to hate and root against, but some of the other people are starting to get on my nerves too so it wouldn't be too hard to find a replacement.  I mean, if Cheryl mentions being a district attorney one more time...

Tags: pirate master, tv
Current Mood: content

Okay, so the unofficial word (which means I did a 30 second google search and trolled some forums) suggests that because Mark Burnett is doing Pirate Master (3rd episode on tonight, impressions tomorrow) this summer, he will not be doing a third RockStar show this year.

If so, that makes me sad.  I really enjoy RockStar, as the contestants tend to have some history as performers and usually know how to play to the crowd and put on a good show.  Plus, the house band totally and completely rocks!

I'm enjoying Pirate Master of course, but if I'd had a choice between the two, it would've been tough to pass on a new season of RockStar.  Unless I wasn't the least interested in the band being auditioned for, of course, then the choice would be easy. 

But what do I know, I'm not a hard-core reality tv junkie like many viewers.  I think I'll hold out hope for a new RockStar season until I know for sure there won't be one, just in case.

On a completely unrelated note, new applicances and furniture have arrived at home, I can't wait to see how it all looks when I get off work!

Tags: home, pirate master, rockstar, tv
Current Location: work
Current Mood: excited

So, i'm a relative newcomer to the reality tv 'genre', and still don't watch most of the major players - I've not watched even one episode of Survivor, don't care for the Idol series' (except for the tryouts - it still blows my mind that these people that are sooo bad, and obviously so, think that they're actually good!), don't watch the Amazing Race except for the occasional episode.

Tammy did get me hooked on So You Think You Can Dance halfway through last season (hello, awesome dancing by hot people!), and we did enjoy the last season of Big Brother, because the players finally got into the game and were really strategizing and backstabbing instead of worrying about being friends with everyone.  Also, my all-time favourite Hell's Kitchen has started again - and wow, looks like it's going to be the best season ever, there was so much crying in the first episode, most of it without any prompting by Gordon Ramsay!

Now there is a new player on the scene, which looks like a lot of fun, and the second episode was on last night - Pirate Master.  People pretending to be pirates, questing for treasure, making secret deals, all while on a beautiful ship (the Picton Castle, sailing out of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia) or in tropical locales.  Recipe for success, if done right. 

So far, it's been pretty good.  There is a decent backstory to fuel the 'storyline', the props/sets/challenges have been interesting and well crafted (both aesthetically and as obstacles), and the crew is a mixed bunch of loonies, arrogant jerks, quirky types, annoying hyper-personalities, bland ones - y'know, the typical reality show cast.

Amazingly (at least to me), each episode the crew has 'cut adrift' (eliminated from the show - why they didn't go with the obvious and cool Walk the Plank is beyond me, and a major oversight by the creators IMO) the completely wrong person!  Now, the first guy to go made a great argument to defend himself, had in fact been the main reason the treasure was found by his team, and he had the ships only handheld compasses!  Still, he's gone.  He did seem a bit weird (occupation was listed as Scientist/Exotic Dancer, I think you'd kinda have to be a little odd to pull off that combo), and in the second episode they talked about how he had alienated/isolated himself from the rest of the crew, so the decision to cut him adrift now makes a little more sense.  Not a lot, but some.

Last night, they voted off a former NFL running back, for the supposed reason that his running was slow when they were slogging up a large hill for the challenge that evening.  The team member that prevented them from getting to the beach to start running had also received the Black Spot (nominated for eviction, in other words), and really was the main reason they lost that night, but she stays.  The girl who was sick the first episode and sprained her knee during this challenge, further slowing the charge up the hill, stays.  And this is her second Black Spot.  Neither of them I particulary care about, although of the three I think either of the women would have been a smarter choice.  They're going to regret not having that serious muscle around later on, mark my words.

Who should have really gone, you ask?  Hands down, by far, no doubt about it - The Captain.  This moron is easily the most arrogant, obnoxious, slimy, infuriating prick I've even seen on television, and yet he was spared from a mutiny - AGAIN!.  Even though he acts the way he does (see previous sentence), makes the crew eat nothing but small amounts of gruel and dry bread and work their butts off (while he eats like a king and does absolutely nothing), and doesn't give anyone any decent amount of money out of his share of the treasure!  The stupidity shown by the crew in not deposing this jackass is truly astounding.  In fact, their behaviour may warrant the use of my new word - yes, they are making me frustgusted by their shortsighted idiocy.

*Pant, pant* Okay, enough ranting for one day.  Cool premise, good supporting elements, beautiful scenery, and jerks - what more can you want in a TV show?

Tags: pirate master, tv
Current Mood: aggravated