‘Survivor: Blood vs. Water’ interview: Aras Baskauskas on Vytas, strategy, Hayden (exclusive)

Throughout “Survivor: Blood vs. Water” this season, there were a pair of threats that were pretty apparent from the beginning: Aras and Vytas Baskauskas. One of them has already won before, and when you combine the powers of the two Captain Planet-style, you get a physical / mental force that could have dominated the entire game.

So were we shocked to see Aras booted from the game? We must be, given that we picked him to win the whole season thanks to the strength of his resume. But given the trajectory of the story, it was not a shock at all to see Tyson and Gervase blindside him, and for him to eventually leave the game as the first member of the jury. It was coming from the moment it was clear he was at the top of the totem pole.

We had a chance to talk with him about the game as a whole on Thursday, whether that meant getting called “King Aras” or what some of the currently-invisible players this season are up to.

CarterMatt – It seems best to start off the interview with this: In just a few sentences, what would you say is the real reason for your demise this season?

Aras – It was Gervase. I had spent some time with Gervase over the years, [felt like I could trust him]. Obviously I [couldn’t trust him].

Can you try to explain a little bit of how that works? I don’t think anyone who hasn’t played the game fully understands that you get to know some of these people over the years at various events, and then you go into the game thinking you can work with them.

It’s tough. I don’t blame Gervase for blindsiding me, and I don’t blame Aras for trusting Gervase. It was such a complicated season this time because Gervase loses his family member first, and that makes Gervase a free agent. And so Gervase right away questions why [Vytas] didn’t protect Marissa. And then Tyson’s girlfriend left immediately after, and then Tyson and Gervase bond. Had it not gone that way I think that Gervase probably would have stayed loyal. But that’s just the route of the game, man; it’s so dynamic. To pretend like you have really any conscious control of the game is a ridiculous thought in it of itself.

This is kind of a strange question, but how damaging in some ways was it to your game that Vytas ended up being so good?

I don’t think it was damaging to my game; I think it was great that Vytas was so good. I think that my downfall was just trusting Gervase, and that Vytas and I were just two strong players. That put a big target on our backs, and then the fact that I was a winner.

So I guess the nickname of King Aras hasn’t stuck.

(Laughs) No. Not at all.

What was going on with Tyson undercutting you at [camp] during the game? Did you have any sort of idea what was going on there?

We were giving each other a hard time, and that was a part of the narrative I wish they would have shown in how close Tyson, myself, and Gervase were. We were constantly throwing each other under the bus. Obviously I didn’t realize that Tyson was going to blindside me. I don’t think that was any [real factor] in how he won people over. I think that was just a convenient plot point.

In talking about narratives, the show really seemed to paint that you had something going with Tina, Vytas, and Katie before you left. Was that something that you thought about before the game in terms of people to work with, or was that something that organically evolved?

It’s something that I’d thought about. I’ve known Tina for many years, as well. I didn’t have any preemptive agreement with Tina, but I thought I would work with her and Gervase.

What was your endgame when it came to Tyson? I know that when you played the first time you did a great job of keeping people around who were targets, so did it make sense to keep him?

I wanted it to go down to me, Vytas, Gervase, Tyson, Tina, and Katie, knock out Tina and Katie, and then go down to four with those four guys. It’s hard for me to imagine there a scenario where Vytas and I don’t make the final three.

Do you think you could have beaten Tyson or Gervase easily?

I don’t know easily, but I think I would’ve won.

How much has the game changed do you think since the last time you played? Obviously it’s not as drastic as for someone like Gervase, but the last time you played we were seeing Exile Island for the first time, and now we have Redemption Island and this new twist.

I think [there are changes], but at the end of the day ti’s the same game. There’s just more dynamics now. The family thing was quite the twist. I think that’s going to have to happen again. It was so compelling.

Is it frustrating to go out on a maze challenge?

Not really. I mean, I went out on my own terms, do you know what I mean? I didn’t get voted out of the game. I think for me I was still reeling from the blindside, and I was ready to go and lick my wounds.

I wanted to ask you a few things about some of what we’re not seeing. Take, for example, Caleb and Hayden. What’s going on with these guys? Are they just not strategizing that much?

I think Hayden and Caleb think that they are with Tyson right now, and they’re playing the ‘as long as it’s not me’ game. New players on ‘Survivor’ are a lot less likely to make big moves than returning players. Tyson has done a really good job of making them feel safe.

So what about the immunity idol? Is that something that you really pursued, or heard much about out there?

No, I didn’t look for it. I know you needed a clue to look for it, and I didn’t have any clues. That was my take on it.

So is there any hope of either you or Vytas playing again?

I think Vytas could play again. He’s an interesting character. I’d love to see him on there without the baggage of his brother and see how he does.

Would you go back for an all-winners season?

Yeah, it would be awesome.

Finally, I wanted to ask about your music. Is there anything that you’re doing or have coming up?

Yeah. My website is OddUs.com. We opened for Edward Sharpe a few weeks ago, and we sold out the Troubadour. We’re doing well.

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Photo: CBS