Yahoo Movies The Survivor 42 jury speaks!
The jury. It's not where you want to be as a Survivor player. But it's also not the worst place to be. At least you're still on the show, and depending on how animated you want to be over on the losers' bench with your mouth agape, gesticulating wildly at all the activity across the Tribal Council set, you can actually score a fair amount of air time even though you are not allowed to talk. (Note: Whispering does seem to be permitted.)
Ah, but the jury will talk when they get a chance to grill the last three players standing during the final Tribal Council on the May 25 finale of Survivor 42. At that point, the jury can pretty much ask and say anything they want — throwing whatever questions they see fit at the folks that voted them out. But what if we turned the tables on the jury? What if we started asking them questions?
While asking their thoughts on the remaining players would be too spoilery and ruin the suspense of the big finale night decision, we certainly can ask them other questions. Questions like: Which person voted out pre-jury do you wish had been with you all at Ponderosa? Or: If you had to live at Ponderosa permanently with one of your fellow jurors, who would it be and why? And even: Who among the jury played the best game and why?
So those are precisely some of the questions we asked Chanelle Howell, Rocksroy Bailey, Tori Meehan, Hai Giang, Drea Wheeler, and Omar Zaheer as we look ahead to Wednesday night. Their (often quite surprising) answers await you below.
Robert Voets/CBS The 'Survivor 42' jury
What was the best thing about being at Ponderosa?
CHANELLE HOWELL: The best part of Ponderosa is really that time seems to be standing still. Life in the outside world isn't happening, you don't have your phone, and you're no longer in game mode. Having that time is really a blessing. I spent that 10 days self-reflecting, processing my experience and journey, and just existing with no priorities or distractions. Truly, I think the most personal growth one has isn't in the game, but at Ponderosa.
ROCKSROY BAILEY: Absolute best thing about being at Ponderosa was getting to meet and talk to some of the native Fijians. My experience with the local staff members snorkeling, playing volleyball, and just learning about the Fijian Islands was wonderful.
TORI MEEHAN: The best part was people FINALLY talking to me and getting to know me for who I am and not the lies that were being spread about me in the game. No one really gave me a chance in the game, so it was nice to form those bonds and relationships at Ponderosa. I said this in my pregame interviews: When people first meet me, they assume I'm going to be a mean girl/stuck up, but when they actually get to know me, they (hopefully) realize I'm empathetic, kind, and down to earth. In Survivor, if people have a negative first impression of you, they aren't going to give you a second chance (rightfully so, because it's a game). Ponderosa gave me that second chance.
HAI GIANG: The best thing about Ponderosa was being able to order all of the food and drink I wanted and had been craving for weeks, all prepared by the best Fijian chefs. I miss those folks so much, they were incredibly sweet and so friendly. I'll always remember them!
DREA WHEELER: Taking a shower for hours every day. No joke, I actually journaled about it as well. I missed being clean. I remember Jeff's fresh scent at competitions and tried to get that during Ponderosa, lol… I failed.
OMAR ZAHEER: The best part of Ponderosa was how amazing the hard-working staff treated us. They were away from their families and still made sure we were taken care of and well fed. Ponderosa was also so beautiful, and watching the fruit bats fly back to the island every night in enormous colonies is a memory I'll always cherish. I also loved the mischievous mynah birds that would hang around hoping for food and squabbling with each other. And, of course, you're on Survivor — the best game there is!
Robert Voets/CBS Chanelle and Jenny on 'Survivor 42'
Which person voted out pre-jury do you wish had been with you all at Ponderosa?
CHANELLE HOWELL: Ah, Queen Jenny or Queen Marya, easily, lol. They are both such dope people with great outlooks on life. I feel like we would have the BEST time and would laugh all day.
ROCKSROY BAILEY: I would have to say Jenny. I think we would have related very well with each other. She's around my age, and also is from New York. I'm sure would have found a lot of things to talk about and relate too.
TORI MEEHAN: Zach! I really enjoyed Zach's personality those first three days on Ika. He is HILARIOUS. I genuinely wanted to work with him and go far in the game together, so it sucked that our time together got cut short when it had to be me or him to be the first person voted out.
HAI GIANG: Lydia, 100 percent! She literally made the merge but wasn't allowed on the jury — that is so unfortunate. She's also fun and a breath of fresh air. I wish I could have spent more time getting to know her outside of the game.
DREA WHEELER: Marya. I have only heard amazing things about her and would have loved to get to know her and talked about her journey in life.
OMAR ZAHEER: It's hard to choose between this iconic cast, but Ponderosa could have used Marya's wisdom, light, heart, fun, and contagious smile. She is a truly inspirational person who would have been a tremendous benefit to keep everyone grounded, smiling, and laughing. She is the energy that was needed. Lydia would also keep things fun and wild though, no doubt.
Robert Voets/CBS Rocksroy Bailey and Tori Meehan on 'Survivor 42'
If you had to live at Ponderosa permanently with one of your fellow jurors, who would it be and why?
CHANELLE HOWELL: Tori!!! Tori was always down to play volleyball, cards, and cheer me on while I paddle boarded! She's a therapist so also a great listener, obviously. At night on our way to Tribals, we would sit in silence and stare at the stars in awe. So I would have to live with someone I could have fun with, but also appreciates the quiet moments like me!
ROCKSROY BAILEY: Oh, that's easy. It would be Tori. I would not want to be on an island with someone that agrees with everything I say. It's always insightful to have someone that gives you pushback.
TORI MEEHAN: Chanelle! Fun fact: Her and I found out that we both attend the same church! She watches the church online in New Jersey, and I attend the church in person in Oklahoma. What a crazy coincidence. We even found out that we had watched the same sermon series called "Crazy Faith" where we were encouraged to pray bold prayers and believe God for miracles, and both her and I were praying for a chance to play Survivor. WOW.
HAI GIANG: Chanelle. She was so much fun at Ponderosa and was truly the best Mayor/Queen that you could ask for. So kind and gracious and always had activities planned for the group.
DREA WHEELER: Oooooooooh, that's a good one. I would probably pick Hai. I could talk to him for houuurrss.
OMAR ZAHEER: I would either choose Tori or Chanelle. Tori is one of the funniest people I've ever met and can always keep you laughing. She also has a very kind, sensitive, and empathetic side that is her predominant aura, which didn't really come across on television this season. Chanelle is someone that is so resilient and has so much to offer everyone around her, and I often learn a lot just chatting with her. Including how to not risk your vote.
Robert Voets/CBS Hai Giang and Omar Zaheer on 'Survivor 42'
Who among the jury played the best game and why?
CHANELLE HOWELL: I'm always going to say myself.
ROCKSROY BAILEY: Drea played a wonderful game. She was able get an arsenal of advantages. In addition, her social game was on point. She was able to adapt to other people's feelings and emotions. I appreciated her raw opinions and loved her laugh.
TORI MEEHAN: ALL HAIL KING OMAR. I didn't know that Omar was in the majority alliance until I watched the live episodes. He had all of us on the bottom fooled into thinking he was on the bottom with us. Not only was he IN the majority alliance, but he was in the driver's seat of that alliance. Everyone was feeding him information, so he was able to decide what direction the game went. Omar played the strategic/social game I was hoping to play, LOL.
HAI GIANG: Drea was playing the best game, I feel. She played a solid social game, was strategically savvy, didn't pull off short-sighted "big moves" and found more advantages than anyone I can recall, but similar to me, she ended up getting blindsided by her closest remaining ally (Omar) because she was too trusting of them.
DREA WHEELER: Hai. He was a social, athletic, strategic game player and I would've voted for him at the end. He is a triple threat and I love that in a Survivor game player.
OMAR ZAHEER: The amazing thing about the Survivor 42 cast is that everyone came to play and everyone delivered in their own way. That being said, of the jurors, I think Hai played the best game. He saw an opportunity to take control of Vati at their first Tribal Council, and had a strangle hold on his tribe thereafter. He made good relationships after the merge, and we bonded a lot on Kula Kula beach. Unfortunately, I think everyone realized the game he was playing at the same time and voted him out. A tale as old as time.
This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.
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