Endurance High Sierras Confessional Counts

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Hey everybody!

I was inspired by chrisl123 and his E1 confessional count, along with another document out there. Strangely, High Sierras doesn't have one yet, which is weird because it's one of the most imbalanced seasons in terms of editing. Why did the editors choose these stories and leave important information out? And did that impact how High Sierras has aged well or not?

(Note: This is not a full-on rewatch, just me going over each episode to count confessionals. Let me know if I missed anything or got the count wrong!)

The first three episodes:

Balance is the Key:

In which everyone falls in love with the treehouses, tries to decide on who gets the free ride, and competes in the Right to Stay.

--Aeriel, Taylor: 3

(Aeriel mostly focuses on how the girls voted and how they tried to persuade the boys to do the same. Taylor had her intro in the beginning, along with the results of the vote)

--Cameron, Adrian, Dakota, Martina: 2
--Garret, Kelsey, Lilly, Stefanie, Connor, Cealey, Max, Anna, Alex, Rafael, Darci: 1
--Ike, Kristine, Aric: 0

(Kind of surprised Aric gets no confessionals during this episode, seeing that he 'wins' the free ride)


Hanging Around:


In which the boys compete in the RTS, people fight over who's getting partnered with whom, and the initial list blows up.

--Kelsey, Cealey, Taylor: 3

(I wavered between 2 and 4 for how many confessionals Taylor had. She mentions how messy the partner selection was, then it skips onto her talking about not wanting Garret for a partner. Then she mentions how it would be disadvantageous for her to have Garret as a partner, which could be another confessional on itself. I just joined it together because it was an extension on her previous comment)

--Garret, Anna, Dakota: 2
--Ike, Stefanie, Max, Adrian, Rafael, Martina: 1

(Ike gets his first confessional here. Though it's a bit strange because he was the only member of the "mystical square" that wasn't featured at any point this episode)

--Lilly, Connor, Aeriel, Cameron, Alex, Kristine, Darci, Aric: 0

(Interesting Connor doesn't have any confessionals here, seeing as he tried to add his input to the list.)


Unwind:

In which the teams are chosen, and they face an unexpected twist.

--Anna: 4

(There's a part where it switches between her trying to talk to Garret and failing, which at one point I merged two of them because they were talking about the same thing)

--Garret: 3
--Connor, Cealey: 2
--Taylor, Alex, Dakota, Darci, Aric: 1

(Aric gets his first confessional here)


--Kelsey, Ike, Lilly, Aeriel, Max, Cameron, Kristine: 0

That's all for now! Who do you think got the most confessionals this season? The least?
And who has had more speaking time than you expected?

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The next three episodes, all revolving around the team switch and its fallout.

Hot Potato:

In which Ike and Taylor squabble, and win that day's mission, only to face a big decision.

--Taylor: 4

(One thing I have hard time counting was her confessional while she was arguing with Ike. I wasn't sure if that was one confessional or two, but I split it up because it felt like she was fearing getting targeted by the rest of the group)

--Max: 3

(Surprised he was a primary storyteller in this episode, seeing that he's only an accomplice to the crime, rather than a direct participant.)

--Aeriel, Lilly, Cealey, Darci: 2

(Funny how this is Lilly's first confessional since the first episode. She seems to play the role of the outsider, rather than a direct participant. Cealey had a point this episode in which she talks about coping with anything, which leads to her volunteering to switch her team. I just merged them because I felt like they belonged together.)

--Cameron, Alex, Dakota, Kelsey, Connor: 1
--Kristine, Aric, Ike: 0

(Really surprised Ike didn't get any speaking time this episode. We never get his side on how he gets along with Taylor, along with how he would've approached the team switch. While talking to Alex, he feared that somebody else would use that power against him; what else could he have added to the whole thing? I feel like the editors were setting up Taylor as the main character of the season--which I think is the case--though that kind of erased another POV here as a result.)


Move It Along:

The fallout of the team switch. So naturally, the teams most affected would have the most screen time.

--Connor, Taylor: 4

(Nothing like a change of colors to give Connor more speaking time!)

--Ike, Darci: 3
--Cameron, Alex, Cealey, Dakota, Kelsey: 1

(Interesting Cameron doesn't speak that much to the audience in these two episodes, seeing he was the trigger to the whole thing. Also, we didn't get any footage of him and Taylor talking; was she lying to J.D. by chance?)


--Aeriel, Max, Kristine, Aric, Lilly: 0

Walk the Plank:

Hawaii shout outs and falls and Temple strategies, oh my!

--Lilly, Darci: 3

(Interesting to see the ones on top being close friends, haha. There's a lot of focus on Darci's Temple strategy this episode, though she only has one confessional dedicated to it.)


--Aeriel, Aric, Ike: 2

(I initially thought Aeriel had one confessional, but the "choosing Orange would be a bad idea..." felt like another thought. Hence I split those two apart)

--Cameron, Connor: 1
--Max, Kristine, Alex, Cealey, Taylor, Dakota, Kelsey: 0

(This is the first episode where Cealey, Taylor, and Dakota all have no confessionals. They seem to be the main storytellers of their season and guide the drama along. Conversely, it's been six episodes and Kristine has no confessionals at all. Was that a casting misfire, or did she genuinely have nothing to say?)

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The following two episodes focus a lot of the consolidation of PROG, along with how Blue and Yellow are further pushed onto the sidelines. Also Cealey and Dakota's relationship is quite focused here.

Fill & Spill:

In which Ike delivers a d**ning farewell, contestants tip over buckets for an advantage, and a popularity contest emerges.

--Dakota: 3
--Max, Aric, Connor: 2

(Interesting it's the boys who have the most confessionals this episode, as Endurance's major characters are mostly girls. Haha)

--Aeriel, Kristine, Alex, Cealey: 1

(This episode marks Kristine's first confessional all season. This has to be a record somehow--purple Kristine, anyone?)

--Cameron, Lilly, Taylor, Kelsey: 0

(Second straight episode Taylor has no confessionals--got tired from carrying the first five episodes? Haha. Also, Kelsey has a surprisingly low number of confessionals, seeing that she's one half of the strongest team that season. Is it like with Jon from season 1 in that she is a peripheral character in relation to her partner?)


Superboats:

In which one pair of shorts changes Endurance history forever.

--Max, Aric, Taylor: 2

(Max ends up trying to make a move, which fails. Meanwhile, Aric and Taylor lament on their status at the bottom of the pecking order, lose the mission, and get sent up.)

--Cameron, Kristine, Lilly, Connor: 1
--Aeriel, Alex, Cealey, Dakota, Kelsey: 0

(Considering how much Green and Purple were talked about this episode, it's weird that they've had no confessionals. Maybe the editors were trying to give the other contestants their perspective on the situation? That said, it's still really weird to see how Cealey went out of her way to sport a pair of purple shorts. Also, this seems like a confessional-light episode, for some reason)

Some observations before the recap:

--Anna, Garret, and Darci have had higher than average confessionals in relation to how much time they spent on the show. I also thought back to @acf12 and how they thought Darci got robbed on the Endurance Rankdown, and I could see why. She was a pretty notable storyteller when the teams were consolidated. 
--Kristine has only two confessionals her entire time here. That's as many as Rafael and Stefanie--and they got eliminated in the RTS! Was she really as quiet as they made her look or...what? Though to be fair, she didn't engage herself that much in the action.
--Surprised how much Max made himself a character after "Walk the Plank". He wanted to assert his team with the Superteams, and tried to save Yellow. Kind of interesting to see how PROG works, especially as a hierarchy forms in real time.
--Connor goes from having little screen time as part of the Gray Team, to being a major character as part of the Blue Team.
--Cameron and Aeriel had some of the most confessionals in the first episode, but that tapered off over time. Aeriel had her moments here and there, but Cameron was relegated to the background after a while.

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The next three episodes, in which the PROG pecking order is brought to light and Blue fights for survival.

It's a Drag:

In which Cealey summons Erika, Max summons Darci, and J.D. pulls out another history lesson.

--Alex, Connor, Taylor, Dakota, Kelsey: 2
--Max, Cealey: 1
--Cameron, Aeriel, Kristine: 0

(Kristine gets no speaking time despite it being her elimination episode. Also, they must have had cut out those confessionals before the contestants go up to Temple, which comes off as a bit strange)

Create Your Own Controversy Game:

Who knew tossing a ball would bring out so much drama?

--Connor, Taylor, Dakota, Kelsey: 3

(Dakota's confessionals mostly focused on creating the game, whereas Taylor and Kelsey talk about the drama afterwards. Connor seems to be the straight man of the situation)

--Cealey: 2

(Surprised that Cealey doesn't have more, considering she's the lynchpin of this episode)

--Cameron, Aeriel, Alex: 0


Fill'er Up:

In which Red is exposed, we're introduced to Mongo, and one team sets an Endurance record.

--Connor: 4

(Not surprising, seeing that Blue does set a record here)

--Cameron, Cealey, Taylor: 2
--Aeriel: 1

(This episode was the first time in a while we've heard from Cameron and Aeriel--and it was their elimination episode. Haha)

--Alex, Dakota, Kelsey: 0

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The endgame!

All Tied Up:

In which get the emotional climax of the season, Purple's self-awareness plummets to the negatives, and we get a heartbreaker.

--Connor, Taylor: 3
--Alex, Cealey, Dakota: 2
--Kelsey: 1

(Pretty even steven here--also the first episode on E5 where all the contestants left have something to stay. However, Connor and Taylor have the most confessionals here, seeing as it is their elimination episode)

Slingshot Alley:

In which Green turns the tables on Purple.

--Alex, Cealey, Dakota: 8

(Alex nearly doubled his confessional count from what it was up to that point)

--Kelsey: 6

Finale:

The end to a polarizing season, with a polarizing winner to boot.

--Alex, Cealey: 6
--Dakota: 3
--Kelsey: 2

Conclusions:


1. Cealey: 31 confessionals/2.21 per episode
2. Dakota: 28 confessionals/2 per episode
3. Taylor: 27 confessionals/2.25 per episode
4. Connor: 24 confessionals/2 per episode
5. Alex: 23 confessionals/1.64 per episode
6. Kelsey: 20 confessionals/1.42 per episode
=7. Darci: 10 confessionals/1.67 per episode
=7. Max: 10 confessionals/1.11 per episode
9. Aeriel: 9 confessionals/0.82 per episode
=10. Anna: 7 confessionals/2.33 per episode
=10. Lilly: 7 confessionals/0.88 per episode
=10. Aric: 7 confessionals/0.88 per episode
=10. Cameron: 7 confessionals/0.64 per episode
=14. Garret: 6 confessionals/2 per episode
=14. Ike: 6 confessionals/1 per episode
16. Kristine: 2 confessionals/0.22 per episode

--tiebreaks are determined by the average confessional count.

Cealey ends up winning the confessional war, with Dakota and Taylor not far behind. I'm not totally surprised because Cealey had something to say all season, but somewhat because she only ends up being the star in It's a Drag, when it comes to gameplay. Dakota's not surprising, in that he was the mastermind all season, nor is Taylor because she was frequently in the center of the maelstrom and always had to figure something out.

Connor is in fourth, which is a happy surprise, actually! He seems to explain things pretty maturely (though he was a 15 year old with a 37 year old's voice--thanks Drew!), and he tries to makes his way through the whole situation. The team switch made him into a major character after being in the relative periphery for a while.

Surprisingly, Kelsey has less confessionals than I thought. The difference is not as egregious as with Jon and Sabrina from E1, but it's still quite noticeable. We got to know her quite well, and she seems to be the moral center of the Purple Team. At the same time, she comes off as a bit entitled at times, especially as we get near the end of the season. 

Unsurprisingly, the confessional count is really skewed to the top--Darci and Max have only half Kelsey's confessionals. Speaking of which, they're both good storytellers, though for different parts of the season. The former really has a good head on her shoulders (and discusses about everything related to the team switch and its fallout), whereas the latter is a bit more light-hearted, and focuses on the machinations of PROG. So it seems like the editors focused on the players of the story who contributed the most.

(Which makes it even more surprising that Lilly became a fan favorite! A challenge beast for sure, but we rarely got to see her point of view on things.)

Also, is it just me, or were there fewer confessionals overall this season?

[carsonvega]

Thanks for doing all of these counts! I think there are counts now for every season except E2? I know you linked to a Reddit thread about E2 but I have never actually seen the counts for that season. The spreadsheet has E3, E4, and E6, and chrisl123's thread that you linked to above has E1.

I did feel like there were fewer confessionals overall this season and the numbers from the other seasons support that assertion. Nicole had 60 and Monroe had 49 in E3. Sabrina had 52 in E1. Franke had 36 in E4 - pretty similar to Cealey (and he was overall better as a narrator than her in my judgment), but a total of 11 players had 10 or more confessionals in E4 versus only 8 this season. In E6, even with its fewer number of episodes, 9 players had 10 or more confessionals.

In general, I would expect the number of confessionals to become slightly lower over time. In the first season or two, everything is new to all of the players, so there's lots of incentive for the editors to get their reactions about everything. In later seasons, yes there are always new twists, but things need less explaining. This phenomenon happened in Survivor (if you've ever looked at confessional counts or Edgic) - early seasons had a ton of confessionals and then later seasons had fewer, though it should be noted that in some of the early seasons the editors did things like ask every member of a tribe for one sentence about how they felt about an upcoming challenge and then put all of them back-to-back, effectively giving every member of a tribe a confessional in rapid succession (but without a lot of substance).

[Cruise meerkat Youssy]

The declining number of confessional counts contributes to the feeling of some of the later seasons having lots of “filler” characters. We don’t get to know them!

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May 31, 2023 18:30:27 GMT -5 Cruise meerkat Youssy said:

The declining number of confessional counts contributes to the feeling of some of the later seasons having lots of “filler” characters. We don’t get to know them!

Hmm...from what I've noted, it seemed like the editors focused more on the big stories coming along, and the confessional count reflected that. This is in contrast to the first two seasons, in which they try to get everyone's opinions and then fashioning a story from there. As a result, it's more top-heavy than normal (one contestant from E2--who didn't make it to the final three--would be in the top five in terms of total confessional count this season).

It also probably reflected on their focus on Purple vs. Blue (at least from what someone commented on the subreddit), which makes Green winning a bit more jarring than expected. Still don't think they deserved to win, though.

I wonder what the casting crew wanted to aim for when it came to season 5. Were they really riled up by Isaac and Jeszie's fight on E4, and wanted more moments like that? Or wanted a Hawaii redux in terms of storylines?