“Joel’s Probably Lucky He Voted Me Off” – An Interview with Survivor: Micronesia’s Mikey B

Mikey B had a plan. And it wasn’t a bad plan – get rid of the weakest links. But other Fans had their own plans, and then involved more worrying about the end-game. What does Mikey think of their play? And of them personally? Read on to find out that and more!

RealityNewsOnline: Hello, Mike, and thanks for taking the time to talk to RealityNewsOnline! Starting at the beginning, what was your strategy coming into the game?

Mikey: My strategy from the beginning was to work hard, get along with people and be a physical presence and not a disruption in the tribe.

RNO: How did your strategy change once you got into the game?

Mikey: It changed a bit because I didn’t think I was going to dislike people in the game the way I did. So by me really disliking Tracy and Chet, it surprised me that I couldn’t suck it up and pretend that I liked them.

RNO: What were your first thoughts upon seeing the Favorites?

Mikey: I thought, “Damn, this is not fair!” They had a lot of experience and knowledge that they had under their belts. I looked at it as a disadvantage. That was my first thought – then it was time to play regardless of what the circumstances were. Let’s go, let’s play.

RNO: Now that you’ve seen the episode, what do you think of the events leading up to you being voted off?

Mikey: I think it’s sad that Joel can be convinced to go one way or another as easily as he did. Tracy said, “I’m disappointed in you, you said you were gonna vote Mikey out a long time ago, he’s going to get you.” It disappointed me but it didn’t surprise me. I didn’t have game respect for Joel once he voted off Mary, so why should he change his tune?

RNO: Did you realize Tracy could be so strategic and devious?

Mikey: Absolutely. She was, for lack of a better word, a bitch. She was capable of anything, no doubt.

RNO: What do you think of Joel, in particular?

Mikey: I think he’s arrogant, selfish, self-centered, and I don’t think he has an open mind to anything but the way he was brought up.

RNO: What do you mean the way he was brought up?

Mikey: I think he has his set of morals in his life and he’s fixed to them. Regardless of right or wrong, he’s going to die with the same thoughts he was born with.

RNO: Do you have an example?

Mikey: I don’t know personally, I’m just basing it from what I saw in the game. I’m just saying that’s my perception of what I feel in the short time I got to know him.

RNO: Going to Tribal Council, did you expect Joel to stay with you?

Mikey: I expected him to stay with me – not even me, but staying with his tribe or his alliance in voting off the weak to continue to strengthen them as an alliance. I don’t think it had anything to do with me, but it would have been a better move for him to keep strength to win challenges. The more challenges you lose, the more people you lose and eventually it’s going to get to your alliance. At the same time, Joel’s probably lucky he voted me off because if I were involved with the mix, I sure would have gone after him. It was probably a good move.

RNO: Were you surprised at the way people on both tribes seemed to be worrying about the end-game so early?

Mikey: Absolutely. I didn’t understand it. Especially in a game with Favorites vs. Fans. If there were any game to stay loyal to your alliance and your tribe, it’s this one. The Fans don’t wan the Favorites to win – they want this one. The Favorites don’t want the fans to win. The Favorites will stick together ‘til death. So to break up the alliance that quickly and turn the whole game and create chaos that early was a tough thing for everybody in our tribe to handle.

RNO: What did you do on the show that we didn’t get to see on TV?

Mikey: I had fun. In the first couple episodes they showed me having fun but then they had me on my toes because of the potential of me going off, so they showed less of my smile, but I continued to smile the whole time.

RNO: What was the most eye-opening thing you saw on TV that you didn’t know about while you were there?

Mikey: I didn’t get to see Jonathan’s knee injury, so to see it [Thursday] night for the first time [in previews for next week] was eye-opening.

RNO: Do you have anything else you’d like to tell us about your time on Survivor?

Mikey: Just that I loved every minute of it, the good, the bad, and the ugly. I had a blast every step of the way. I have no regrets. Things didn’t go my way but so is life, you learn from them and you move on. That’s it.

RNO: Thanks again, Mike!

If you haven’t already, be sure to check out these other recent Survivor: Micronesia articles here on RealityNewsOnline:

David Bloomberg is the Editor of RealityNewsOnline and can be reached at RNO@pobox.com.

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