‘Survivor: Blood vs. Water’ castaway spotlight: Rupert Boneham

Yesterday, we talked about the wife of one of the most-popular “Survivor” players of all time in our “Blood vs. Water” castaway spotlight series. Now, we’re shifting our focus over to who is the popular player in the flesh: Rupert Boneham. He has played the game four times now, has a big following around the world, and is still the only player to win a million bucks just because America willed it to be so. It was almost a make-good for the public since not everyone liked the end of “Survivor: All-Stars.” (To us, the most egregious thing about that season is losing Ethan Zohn and Rob Cesternino pre-jury.)

We still don’t deny that Rupert has his fans, though he is hardly the overwhelming favorite that he once was. What we are a little more curious about at this point is whether or not he has actually learned anything in the time that he has been away from the game. Our conclusion after watching his video and reading about him? He really hasn’t.

Basic details – Rupert Boneham, 49 years old from Indianapolis, Indiana; here with wife Laura

Occupation – Founder of Rupert’s Kids, former Governor candidate

Claim to fame – We’ve spelled it out, but in terms of the game, his biggest moment may be in his very first appearance on “Survivor: Pearl Islands,” when he stole the shoes of the opposing tribe. He also berated Johnny Fairplay, played with a hurt toe on “Heroes vs. Villains,” and got into a massive fan favorite battle with Russell Hantz.

Strengths – The big thing with Rupert is that what you see is what you get. He is a very straight-up player, and there are times in a game like this when you really want that. He’ll be loyal to you if you work with him, and he’s not afraid to take a leadership role and put a big target on his back while he tells everyone how to make camp. He’s a decent challenge competitor, and the biggest thing that makes Rupert valuable is just that he’s not someone who comes into the game thinking individually at first. That makes him useful … if you know how to use him.

Weaknesses – There are a few big holes in Rupert’s game, and they are the same as always. He is not entirely empathetic to other players, can be very pushy when it comes to orders around camp, and is not the physical player he once was. Also, he is just not willing to go to that cutthroat level that you have to be at sometimes to win the game. He’ll fall on his sword to have integrity, and while you can win with that, it’s a very special case.

Prediction – As a person we’ve always liked Rupert, but as a player, he’s not going to win this season. We actually think he could fare worse this year than he ever has before. He has some people on his tribe (see Tyson, Colton, or Kat) who do not handle orders particularly well, and they could be annoyed early and get rid of him. We don’t actually think that it is a great move, given that he is almost a good shield to keep for a while to draw attention away from you. Many get jealous of his popularity / screen time, and he remains a threat during most of the game.

If you want to read the rest of our “Survivor” spotlight series, just be sure to visit the link here.

Photo: CBS