'Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains': Why some players aren't crazy about Rupert | EW.com

Rupert Boneham

Survivor fans love Rupert. They love the way he’s massive and hairy, but cute and cuddly at the same time — the epitome of a gentle giant. They love the way he stole shoes and wore a skirt in Pearl Islands. They love his tie-dye t-shirt. They love that he is a youth counselor. Survivor fans love Rupert.

But here’s a little tip for you: Not all Survivors are as fond of the big guy. Jeff Probst chalks it up to jealousy on the part of other competitors who don’t get nearly the attention that the hippie Hagrid does. That could be it. But plenty of players have grumbled that Rupert has twice gotten a hero’s edit that he did not deserve, and that behind the cutesy cackle is a self-serving attention monger looking out solely for himself.

I’m not saying whether these accusations (coming, it should be noted, from a group of attention mongers themselves) have merit or not, but it definitely factors into how he will do coming back to play for a third time in Heroes vs. Villains. I don’t want to make it sound like Rupert is universally despised, because he is not. But for whatever reason, he, like Sugar, is nowhere near as popular with fellow contestants as he is with the viewing public.

And Rupert has another obstacle to deal with as well: his toe. He breaks it in the very first reward challenge. I can honestly say I have never heard screams of pain as loud as the ones I heard from Rupert when medical was working on it after the challenge. And for a tough guy like Rupert to be screaming like that, it must have been bad. Rupert is a person that prides himself on his toughness. How will such an injury impact him in the game? That will definitely be worth keeping an eye on.

Read the entire article at:
http://popwatch.ew.com/2010/02/05/survivor-heroes-vs-villains-rupert/