BURTON'S FINAL CHAT TRANSCRIPT


SURVIVOR Host: We're chatting live with Survivor Burton Roberts for the second time this season. Hey, Burton! Thanks for joining us again! Are you ready to take some questions?
Burton: I am; fire away!


slappy: Hey Burton. So tell me...was last night's vote truly a blindside? And did you think the girls would eventually get a brain in their heads and vote for you or Jon?
Burton: Last night was definitely not a blindside. I knew that Lill was voting for me because it was the first time since we'd gotten back into the game that she did not ask me who to vote for. I knew Darrah and Sandra could possibly vote for me, but I was not sure what they were going to end up doing. So overall, I was not blindsided, but was hoping that it would not be me that got voted out. For the last few episodes, I've been on thin ice, as I was by far the biggest threat left in the game. I knew it was a matter of time until they figured it out, but was hoping to continue to stay in the game.


mykona: It seems Darrah was flying under the radar. Did you ever think she was a threat?
Burton: Darrah had won a couple of Immunities in a row, and it was obvious she had the ability to win; however, she didn't seem like that much of a threat. So we were always targeting different people until very recently. She was definitely under the radar and did not even do that much around camp and was relatively quiet, but I think part of that was her strategy.


moosafa: Some of the other Survivors seemed a bit peeved when you and Lill were allowed back into the game. What are your thoughts on reentering the game, from your perspective and from theirs?
Burton: We had no idea there was even going to be a chance to get back into the game until Jeff told us at the Reward Challenge. When he told us, we naturally tried as hard as possible to take advantage of the situation. When we beat both the other tribes and were able to send two people back into the game, that was just the result of the opportunity we were given. The Drake tribe actually welcomed me back and even said the tribe was stronger with me there. None of the members of that tribe had a problem with me returning. It seems like only after contestants were negatively affected by the twist did they display anger towards the Outcasts who'd returned.


rascal913: Burton did you notice the reaction from Ryan O and Rupert? How did that make you feel?
Burton: I thought it was hilarious, and I actually rewound the tape to watch it several more times. They obviously were upset with Jon and me for having voted them out and were merely excited that my game was ended also. It was nothing different than Jon and me being excited when we voted them out. That's just all part of the game.


rink: After you were booted the first time, did the producers tell you not to shave? You came back with a beard.
Burton: We didn't have toiletries or anything to shave with. The producers were trying to create the same environment for us as the other people still in the game. Going as far as rationing our food to the extent that I lost more weight in the seven days out of the game than I had in the first twelve days in the game.


rattler: Burton, the Jury was happy when you got voted out. Did they welcome you warmly to the Jury?
Burton: Yes, once I caught up with everyone on the Jury, we talked unanswered questions and discussed how we all felt now that the game was over for us. For the most part, there was an understanding that what was in the game was in the game, and now that it was over, it was water under the bridge.


AyeMatey: Burton, why did you get mad at Lill for voting for you, when you voted for her? Isn't that rather hypocritical?
Burton: Lill, Jon and I had a three-way alliance that was very strong and enabled us to get as far as we did in the game, with Lill pretty much just going along for the ride. We had talked about the three of us making it to the Final Three, and were on track to do so and ensure that two of the Final Three of us would be in the Final Two. Before leaving to go on the Reward with Jon, Darrah approached us and informed us that Lill had talked about voting me and Jon out and having an all-women Final Three. Jon and I discussed strategy during the Reward and had to react to Lill breaking our three-way alliance. Upon returning from the Reward, our only option seemed to be to go after Lill, who had already backstabbed us. So my vote for Lill was just a reaction to her breaking our alliance and voting for me.


BlitZen: Burton, do you think this will teach you not to underestimate women, not to overestimate your own intelligence?
Burton: It was never a gender thing for me; it was all about alliances. I was not underestimating or overestimating anything, merely analyzing how well people were playing the game. From a strategic standpoint, Lill and Darrah followed others more than they led. Since the three of them had not had much strategy, I was basing my comments solely on that, and my attitude was the way it was because Jon and I had been very much in control of the game for quite a while.


justwhatever: Since having a strong outward strategy makes you a target, don't you think riding coattails is a legitimate strategy, albeit not as impressive?
Burton: At the end of the day, if your strategy gets you to the end, then it has worked. Since it is much less impressive, I have a lot less respect for players who choose that route. Ultimately, they never controlled the game.


seewater: Burt, How dare you say to Lill, "I hope you can Live with yourself"? Will you apologize to her at the finale?
Burton: If any aplogizing needs to be done, I would say it is Lill to me, since she initially broke the alliance and trust that we had with each other. We were friends in the game, and I'm sure we'll be friends afterwards, so I doubt there will be any hard feelings once the issue is addressed.


Mommarabbit: Burton, are you proud of yourself and the way you carried yourself on the show?
Burton: This is a unique show because it forces you to act and do things you would typically not do in life. For example: lie to, backstab and deceive others. While none of those are traits I live by in life, they are necessary to excel in this game. I'm proud of the fact that I made it to the final five and I did what I had to do to get there.


BurtGone: Do you really think it's fair if an Outcast were to win the game?
Burton: We were not the ones to determine what was fair. We just played by the rules that were given to us for the show. If someone wins and they play by the rules, then yes, it is definitely fair.


moosafa: How funny was it watching the show when Sandra was talking about hiding all of the tribe's belongings one at a time? Or did it make you mad?
Burton: We actually knew that Sandra was sabotaging the tribe and had hidden the spear and both masks, so she could not get those from us. Since it ended up having no impact on the game, it was quite funny watching as she was running around talking about doing that. However, at the same time it was quite a demonstration of being a sore loser.


panama_joe: Burton, who would you rather be on an island ALONE with, Darrah or Christa?
Burton: [laughs] I'd rather be stuck on an island with Darrah because she eats less, talks less and doesn't have such an annoying laugh.


geener: Burton, what was the most suprising thing shown on TV that you didn't know about until you watched it?
Burton: Probably Sandra overhearing half of my conversations with Jon when she was sneaking around in the bushes. We had no idea that was happening, and it definitely almost cost us the game in more than one instance, yet it was pretty comical to watch on the show.


thepirate: Is there any truth to the rumor that you were on another reality show? How would you compare the two experiences?
Burton: If you're talking about the Eco Challenge, it is not a reality show. It is a seven to ten day adventure race that was just broadcast on TV. As far as difficulty goes, it was much, much harder physically and mentally than SURVIVOR, but it lacked the lying and deceiving and strategy.


jadzia: What was your reaction when you saw that Jon lied about his grandmother being dead and that it was planned from before he left?
Burton: I thought it was very funny and thought he did a great job and pulled it off well. It did not affect me in any way in the game, and as long as no one else won that Challenge, I thought it was a good thing. As for a preconceived lie before the game even started, I thought it was a brilliant strategy and took the game to a new level.


amwinter: Burton, in normal everyday life would you have ever hung out with someone like "Johnny Rotten"?
Burton: [laughs] I love it that people are now calling him Jonny Rotten instead of Jonny Fairplay! Jon wants to be the bad guy and wants to rub people the wrong way, and it seems like the more he does it, the more he enjoys it. When you get past all of that, however, he and I actually became pretty good friends in the game, and ultimately, since my return, he never lied to me, which is more than I could say for anyone out there.


Ms_CaptainJack: Hey Burton, how did you feel when your mom walked the plank as the result of Jon's lie?
Burton: [laughs] I knew my mom was going to have to walk the plank, and I thought that would be better and less painful than spending a night at our camp with all the bugs and the discomfort. So ultimately, Jon's lie did not affect the outcome of the Challenge for me and my mother, but I did feel bad when she finally jumped in the water and had to swim.


punchy: Burton, do you think that was dumb to take Jon on the Reward trip?
Burton: At the time when I chose Jon for the Reward trip, I had absolutely no reason to believe that Lill was going to destroy our alliance and talk the girls into voting against me. Therefore, since Lill had been on two Reward trips that I either took her on or helped her win, it did not make sense to take her again, and I thought Sandra and Darrah were the next to go. So, Jon was the logical choice. Looking back, however, it definitely would've been more beneficial to take anyone other than Jon to break up the female alliance.


izadsyah: Hey, Burty. Were you aware of the curse of the Car Reward winner? They never win! LOL Was that the best Challenge for you?
Burton: [laughs] I was unaware of the curse and actually did not even know that there was going to be a car for the Reward. As it turns out, Jon and I kept that a secret for the remainder of the game. As far as the Challenge goes, it was definitely a fun one for me and one of my better Challenges.


Crimson: Do you feel you have any faults? Related to the game of course. You seem to come off like you never did anything wrong, never hurt or betrayed anyone, and had total control (until the end).
Burton: Yes, I have faults, as everyone does, and definitely made some mistakes in this game. I feel like I did play the game pretty well, and given the circumstances made it to a very respectable position. As far as hurting or betraying people, I definitely betrayed people when I had to to stay in the game, but I tried not to hurt people or disrespect them as many other players did. While Jon and I maintained a lot of control, we lost it towards the end, and that ultimately caused me to get booted from the game.


Liaison: Hey Burton! First of all, I loved you! My questions is which two people did you vote for in the Outcast Tribal Council?
Burton: Thank you for the support. I voted for Nicole and Michelle to get back into the game and represent the Outcast tribe. Michelle was a great friend of mine in the game, and I got to know Nicole in the Outcast tribe.


Skinny_Canadian: Burton, why did you say Sandra would vote out her best friend? I NEVER saw her vote out Rupert or Christa.
Burton: Sandra's attitude and strategy was always if it's someone else going home, and it's not Sandra, that's fine with her. I believe in a situation where she could advance in the game at the expense of a friend, she would do it, based on her actions that I saw in the game.


WindyCityJo: Burton, knowing in advance about the car might have changed things, but since you didn't, did you ever consider trying NOT to win the Reward?
Burton: At this point in the game, I knew I was on thin ice, so I was going to compete in each Challenge as if it might be my last. There was no doubt in anyone's mind that I was one of the stronger competitors out there, so there was no reason to try and hide it. Thank goodness I tried my best. Otherwise, I wouldn't have had the car, and I would've been out of the game!


blhstock: Did you throw the slingshot Challenge a few weeks ago?
Burton: [laughs] No, I didn't throw it. I was apparently having a pretty bad day with my aim. I seemed to make up for it in the final Challenge.


smurfette: Hello Burton. What do you think about being dubbed the HOT Survivor? Do the ladies stalk you now?
Burton: [laughs] Well, I take it as quite an honor and have luckily not been the victim of any stalkers yet.


Lizard: Burton, did it occur to you at some point maybe Sandra and Jon had a secret alliance?
Burton: There's a possibility of anything going on in the game, but based on Jon's and my conversations, his actions, and having Lill question him about our alliance, I truly believe Jon was a strong ally of mine. Even if he and Sandra had a secret alliance, I do not think it would've been greater than his and my alliance.


Trudy: Do you have respect for Sandra as a player?
Burton: Since watching the show on TV and seeing more behind the scenes than I realized in the game, my respect for Sandra has definitely gone up. While she may not be the most strategic player out there, she is very sneaky and was mostly honest with her feelings and who she was going to vote for in Tribal Council. So yes, between the sneakiness and the fact that she showed her emotions and feelings, I have respect for her.


Rupertstheman: Burton, did you honestly think that you would win against Jon? He may be hated, but you were an outcast.
Burton: That would have been up to the Jury to decide, and I was just hoping that he would've pissed them off so much more than I did that it would've given me a chance to win the entire game.


Chris: Burton, had Rupert calmed down since being voted off, or did you need to hide from him for a few days?
Burton: [laughs] Even though Rupert was irritated about getting voted out, I never would've felt that I needed to hide from him or be scared of him.


Amaretto: Do you think the way Jon lied and Sandra sabotaged will make the new contestants more devious?
Burton: Absolutely! Each season, the limits of the game are pushed greater and greater, making it more difficult to play the game and know what is going on. While lying and deceiving are one thing, I do not agree with sabotaging your tribe and your tribemates, since others get food and do things that everyone takes advantage of.


Bluebonnet: Who are you most looking forward to seeing at the reunion show?
Burton: I am honestly excited to see and get to know each and every contestant, from Osten, who I never spoke a word to, to Lill, who stabbed me in the back, to Jon, who was my closest ally and best friend on the show. It was a great group of 16 people, and we all shared an amazing experience together. I look forward to reminiscing about old times.


SURVIVOR Host: I am sorry to say that our hour with Burton is up. Burton, thanks so much for being here to chat with us today. Do you have any final comments for the SURVIVOR fans regarding the upcoming finale?
Burton: Based on the twists and turns and excitement of the game up until this point, I think the finale should be an amazing one and not to be missed!


SURVIVOR Host: Thanks for joining us, everyone. Tune in to the exciting 2-hour season finale of SURVIVOR: PEARL ISLANDS PANAMA Sunday at 8PM ET/PT, followed by the live reunion show. And check CBS.com for the days and times for the final four Chats! See ya soon!


chattycathy: Russia loves you, Burton!


DarrahFan: C-ya, Burton.


Batman: Burton, thank you for the chat!


stargazer401: Africa loves Burton!


BlitZen: Bye-bye Burty!


liason: We love you Burton in Canada


threepupz: Bye from Maryland. We love you!


Ms_CaptainJack: Bye Burton!


jonnyq: Thanks; enjoy the Envoy!


Ms_CaptainJack: Bye Burton from Sacramento CA!


reelkmcn: Bye from California!


tonim: Florida loves Burton


BurtGone: Merry Christmas!


CHRISTAmas: Bye from Los Angeles!

View Burton's First Chat Transcript