‘Survivor Caramoan: Fans vs. Favorites’ preview: Can we solve Brandon Hantz?
Yes, we are well aware going into this “Survivor Caramoan: Fans vs. Favorites” article that we have asked a question that may be far too difficult to answer. Not only is Brandon Hantz one of the most emotional contestants in the history of the show, but he also seems to have little understanding as to the right way to play the game.
We’ve said before that it was a silly move to cast him again for another season based on just how much he seemed to struggle the first time around reconciling his last name with the person he wanted to be, and to be honest we wonder if the expulsion of Willie Hantz from “Big Brother” would have changed things, had this season not been cast prior to CBS’ other reality series airing (even if they are two different people, a Hantz is a Hantz is a Hantz, to throw a little Gertrude Stein in there).
Anyway, if you missed the promo for next week’s episode when it aired earlier this week, you can check it out here, and it features what has to be the closest thing we’ve ever seen to someone going Steven Slater all over the camp. Brandon throws out the rice, gets physical, and also more or less threatens people (seemingly Phillip, who is walking away at one moment) to vote him out. It’s a pretty scary scene, mostly because it’s already been well-documented that Brandon has wanting to do this for some time if things didn’t go his way.
What we are going to be curious about leading up this episode is what CBS chooses to do about this. While Russell Hantz pulled similar antics, he did it from a place of strategy rather than a place of anger. If we were on Brandon’s tribe, there’s simply no way we could live with him around after he pulls something like this. Can the Favorites pull a “One World” and send themselves to tribal, or is there a way that Brandon actually becomes the first person to ever be disqualified from the game?
The saddest part about watching this preview is that if you listen to many of Brandon’s former “Survivor: South Pacific” castmates, they will say that he is a good kid at heart that carries with him a great deal of emotional baggage. Whatever he went through here, let’s hope he learns from it to keep himself in check at home.
What do you think is going on with Brandon here to start this meltdown? If you want to check out our pair of “Survivor” interviews from this past week, you can do so here.
Photo: CBS