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Will Friedle
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Ryder Strong
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Will Friedle
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Ryder Strong
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Will Friedle
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Ryder Strong
Welcome to POD meets Twirl, the podcast from two guys who had never seen an episode of Dancing with the Stars but took it on and walked away. Experts so now we turn to Traitors, another show I've never seen. While Will is convinced that he could win it, we are Will Friedle and Ryder Strong. Two best friends, one a TV expert, one a TV skeptic. Both dance scholars join us as we step into a castle full of lies, alliances, and over the top wardrobe choices. This is Pod meets twirled Trading Places.
Guest or Additional Speaker
Yes.
Ryder Strong
Hi, Will.
Will Friedle
Hi, Ryder.
Ryder Strong
So by wearing a hood every episode, you're aligning yourself with the traitors?
Will Friedle
Well, I just.
Ryder Strong
You are a traitor.
Will Friedle
Frankly, it doesn't really matter either way what I am when I get there. Eventually I just, I, you know, I had the cloak. I very rarely get a chance to wear it, and when I do, people throw stuff at me. So it's fun to just be able to wear it in the comfort of my own home. What's funny is that I actually went into the hot tub last night and soaked for a little while and then put this on after and it's still a little damp. Oh. So it's fun to just have a gross kind of little damp little robe on me there. Love it. This is what we do for entertainment, my friend.
Ryder Strong
All right, episode five. This was, this is a dramatic one, man.
Will Friedle
Yikes. Yeah, yikes. Yeah, yeah. This is for a lot of reasons. For a lot of reasons.
Ryder Strong
But this is. Well, we talked about it last episode. This is getting personal, you know, like stuff and people, you know, it's one thing to role play and to like, call each other like, traitors and faithful, like as if those things actually mean something. But yeah, it gets, it gets a little personal in this one and starting. Yeah. You know, I'm really curious how this, how this show plays out when they're not celebrities or reality stars. Do you know what I mean? Like, because that's how it started, right, with regular people.
Will Friedle
I think it start. I think it was a combo. At least in the US Version, it was a combo. I think there were some celebrities, some. Some regular people or what we call Muggles. And then. Yeah, and then I think it went all celebrity. But in the uk, I'm not sure if they do only celebrity or they do a combination of the two. But I know that they're now casting for the ABC ver or NBC version. So straight network of. Of all regular people, no celebrities. Which again, will be an interesting thing to. To see.
Ryder Strong
Yeah, I mean, I just wonder how much of this is like heightened because they're, they're, they're going for drama. Do you know? Because they're reality or, you know, actory type people and. Yeah, I don't know.
Will Friedle
In the UK it started as a non celebrity, then went into celebrity. Gotcha. Okay.
Ryder Strong
Yeah, well, I guess even if it's non celebrity, there's probably casting people hoping for drama. Right? I mean, that's like the old reality show thing.
Will Friedle
Yeah, I think so. It's just. It's. Yeah, it's. This was tough, though. This. This episode really was a little. Watching some of it through my fingers, kind of cringy. Yeah.
Ryder Strong
Yeah.
Will Friedle
All right.
Ryder Strong
Well, it started at breakfast. Dorinda smearing Ron again.
Will Friedle
No salmon and a Ron smear. Normal breakfast.
Ryder Strong
He doesn't know anything about me and my family, and I'm just like, you know, it came up later in the episode when Ron actually, you know, said it to her face, but I, you know, a little less harshly, was already in my head saying, like, why does that matter? It's a game. Like, you know, but Dorinda's just clearly playing on a social game.
Will Friedle
Like a social media.
Ryder Strong
Yeah.
Will Friedle
Like, Donna's not trying to get to know any of us. Donna's not telling us about her family. It's like, okay, my kids are football players and my stepdaughter's famous. Super famous. So what do you need from me?
Ryder Strong
And the smoked salmon drama continues. Again, there were some looks.
Sponsor/Ad Voice
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Will Friedle
Smoked salmon drama. Telling ya, they don't have it.
Ryder Strong
I think we out of the smoked salmon. You bastards. Like, they're more worried about coming in late and losing the missing out of the smoked salmon than whether they get banished. Wait, who.
Will Friedle
Who was murdered?
Ryder Strong
All right, that's right.
Will Friedle
I got salmon.
Ryder Strong
I'm fine, I'm fine. We're good. Just hand it over. Yeah. So the last two people to walk in, Tara and Johnny, meaning Monet, was murdered.
Will Friedle
And that's. I called it. Because again, he's the only one. Yes. Who mentioned a traitor's name passed through his lips.
Ryder Strong
But here was my thinking, why that was a bad call. When I. When I. When I saw that he was murdered, I was like, oh, you idiots. Because if somebody mentions somebody and then they get murdered.
Will Friedle
But that's where they asked.
Ryder Strong
He mentioned he only said it to Candace.
Will Friedle
Exactly.
Ryder Strong
I was like, oh, my God. Exactly.
Will Friedle
That's.
Ryder Strong
It's a really good move. I know.
Will Friedle
But.
Ryder Strong
But in my mind, I was like, wait, who did he say it to? Because I thought he said it in a car with, like, a bunch of people.
Will Friedle
No, he said it in the woods. He just said it in the woods to her and he, like, whispered it.
Ryder Strong
And he's like, I have a bad feeling about bad vibes about Lisa.
Will Friedle
Yeah. And that's only time, so perfect kill right there. And that they even say, like, I hope he didn't say, I hope he didn't say it to anybody else. Like, I hope he didn't say it to anybody else. Cause if he only said it to her, then it's a perfect murder. So it's like, okay, yeah, let me take care of that. And then you go, yeah, you're done.
Ryder Strong
Right?
Will Friedle
So. And if you can't Rollo Tomasium and get out a regular thing, then you're done. So wait, do you get that reference? You don't get Rolo Tomasi?
Ryder Strong
No.
Will Friedle
Jensen, did you get Rolo Tomasi? No. Rolo Tomasi. Rolo Tomasi was the name of the. Did you ever see La Confidential? Oh, yeah. Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. That's the name he gave to his father's killer, who they never caught. And so when Spacey goes and tells the main guy, hey, I think it's him, and he turns around and kills him in his kitchen. And then before he dies, he says, rollo Tomasi. So that it's at least one thing to get out there. It's the possibility of being caught. Yay. Classic. Will Friedel pull. Great movie. Great movie.
Ryder Strong
God.
Will Friedle
Yep. Go Google everybody. Go watch La Confidential.
Ryder Strong
It's funny because when you said the name, I was like, that sounds familiar. I love La Confidential. It's been a while, though.
Sponsor/Ad Voice
I should.
Ryder Strong
I'm gonna watch it again. Great movie. All right. After breakfast, the group split up to talk. Going for Ron.
Will Friedle
It almost just seems like, no, he. There's nothing he can do. He can't win. They're. They're not going to keep him around. It's like, guys, unless he gets a shield every week or finds some way to. To make it to where he can't be murdered every week, his time is obviously very limited. They don't like him. There's no reason not to like him. But now he's just there. I feel bad, right?
Ryder Strong
Ron is. You know, he starts throwing out Michael and Dorinda, which I just like. It's. It's so, like, okay, sure, you know, you. Again, you kind of don't like them or they don't like you.
Guest or Additional Speaker
Like.
Ryder Strong
But I'm just not sure what they. I know.
Will Friedle
I think it is. It comes down to, well, you don't like me. Well, I don't like you. And that's, you know, it's that kind of thing.
Ryder Strong
And then Kristen brings out Colton.
Will Friedle
Yeah. Still love Kristen. God, I love her. She's so cool.
Ryder Strong
Yeah, she's really cool. She also has this great Quote about being confused between like and trust, which I think gets at the heart of, like, this challenge of this game. You know, which other people don't seem to be able to make that distinction. Like, you can like somebody and also not trust them in this game because it's not really their choice to be a traitor or not. Right. Like, you get selected. It's not like. So once you're. Once you're playing the game from a position, it's not personal. It's, like, literally just your job to win the game is to either be a traitor and lie to everybody or to be a faithful and assume everybody's lying. Like, it's kind of like it's not. Anyway. It was a good quote.
Will Friedle
Yeah. Love her. I want her and mark ballas still my team that I'd want to be a part of.
Ryder Strong
Right. You know, I think that Kristen naming Colton kind of makes sense. It's wrong. We know it's wrong. But, you know, he has this mistake that he's not adjusting his aggressiveness at all.
Will Friedle
Yeah.
Ryder Strong
Like, he's just constantly coming full bear, like, and. And he was wrong about Tiffany and has been wrong. Like, I just feel like, you know, he also.
Will Friedle
It seems like they always. They break up in groups and they kind of almost whisper to each other, here's who I think it is. He, like, gathers a group together. He's like, here's. Here's voting for and why. And it's like, wow. Oh, wow. Okay. You're just throwing it out there. And he'll do that with multiple groups. Or it's like, he's like, all right, I gotta go. He's in the senate. He's like, I gotta go. Whip votes. See you guys. It's like, oh, my God. And he just goes off and does it. And because you're right, he has the natural charisma. He's a leader, obviously. And he got one right. He got the only one right so far. People gravitate towards him and listen to him. But I also think it's gonna backlash.
Ryder Strong
I honestly, I forgot that he was the one who, like, really called out Donna.
Will Friedle
Yeah.
Ryder Strong
And that does give him more cred.
Will Friedle
It does.
Ryder Strong
When I was watching this episode and the one before, I was like, why is everyone trust. He's not saying anything other than I have a feeling. But you're right. I guess he. He had the cred because he had called Donna. All right, we get to the mission. Gather at the fountain. Take the coins, but not the wrong coins with the shields that maybe will go into the statue underneath how many? I was like, what is going on? There's blood statue fixing statue. But you have to go get these other statues. On the map from the thing. I still don't know what happened, but I guess they ran around, something happened and. Okay, but the shield thing, please explain to me, because I was sitting there going, like, the shield thing doesn't make any sense. Like, there would be no benefit to grabbing a shield.
Will Friedle
Then you can't be killed.
Ryder Strong
Right, but if anybody knew that you had grabbed a shield and. But I. I thought it was going to be revealed who grabbed a shield before roundtable.
Will Friedle
So did I. So did I. But that maybe they're not going to tell. Maybe they don't tell you who it is. Or then they're just going to say, because we're on a cliffhanger, we don't know. Right. Maybe they're just going to say, sorry, somebody grabbed a shield. So now you're all up for murder and you don't know who it. But again, they'd have to tell you who it is because then you're not allowed to vote for that person.
Ryder Strong
No, but you're not voting. The traitors know who it is who's shielded. Right.
Will Friedle
So wait, if you get a shield, though, you can't be murdered.
Ryder Strong
Right. So it's only. So they could not ever know until the next morning. But that's what I mean. I want to know when it's revealed. I thought literally they were going to come back and have to say after.
Will Friedle
The challenge, me, too.
Ryder Strong
I took a shield or I didn't. So then they don't. And they don't reveal that. So then they have the round table without knowing if anybody took a shield or not. Which seems like, I don't know. I was just very confused by the rules. And I kind of wish they had spelled it out because it was hard to know, like, if anybody.
Will Friedle
I also wouldn't. The people you were there with watch you take a shield, right? Like, would you have to run back and be like, oh, God, I dropped my phone, and, like, go back and take a shield without anybody knowing?
Guest or Additional Speaker
Yes.
Ryder Strong
This is. This is what I don't understand.
Will Friedle
Again, this is. The joy of the challenges here are they're just so unbelievably convoluted, and then they just add heavy things on top of it. I know where it's so. But it is just kind of going like, wait, what? I get the premise is an interesting one where it's like, if one person takes a shield, you can all be murdered. Right. If nobody takes a shield, there's not going to be a murder tonight. Yes. And that's kind of great because then it's like. And the thing that they said when they walked away, I think they pointed it out and they did it in an interesting way, which is what I would have done as a player is I'd say, all right, look, nobody's taking a shield. Anybody who takes a shield is a traitor. Hundred percent.
Ryder Strong
Yes.
Will Friedle
And then walk away.
Guest or Additional Speaker
Yes.
Will Friedle
Because it's like, if you take a shield, you won't. Nobody will be, you know, we're all up for murder except you. That's fine. But the next time we're going to kill you because you're obviously a traitor.
Ryder Strong
Right.
Will Friedle
So you have to guarantee nobody's going to take a shield. I wonder if they're. They have to tell people, but maybe they only have to tell the traders. I don't know how. I don't know what.
Ryder Strong
See, that's what I mean. The reveal is really important to the game strategy. Like, yes, because I was thinking. Yeah, like, it kind of does make. I mean, especially for the traders, when they see four, like in a. In a pile together, it makes you. There is a good argument to grab to, like for four people to cover your butts and just be like, hey, like, let's just take a shield.
Will Friedle
Especially if you're Ron and you know, like, everybody's out to get you and all you have to do is reach down and take a shield. Hey, I'm taking a shield. Right, Sorry. That's what's gonna happen.
Ryder Strong
But it's all about assuming other people see this. This is why they're called faithful. Cause it's all about having faith. Right? You have to have faith in your fellow players, but you also know some of them are traders. It's so tough, man.
Will Friedle
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Will Friedle
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Ryder Strong
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Ryder Strong
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Will Friedle
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Ryder Strong
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Will Friedle
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Ryder Strong
I need to know what the shield how the shield rules work.
Will Friedle
Well they're different every time cuz sometimes it's like, it's like you know, if you do this thing, you know, if you stack all the skulls, you get a shield and you can't be, you know, you can't be murdered that night. So it's things like that too that that work well.
Ryder Strong
Colton was admitting that he had already come into the game saying if I get a chance to get a shield, I'm taking it. And this at this point I realize Colton is actually playing like the perfect traitor. Yeah, he's playing this Game like a traitor. He's aggressively picking who he wants to get banished, making sure everybody goes on board with him. Right. And then, like, he's gonna take a shield. Like, he's really. He's. He's. He's. He's a perfect. If. If he were a traitor, this is how he would play. Do you know what I mean?
Will Friedle
Yeah. Yeah. And that's why I think the traders love him, because they get to just sit back and let this guy do a lot of the heavy lifting.
Ryder Strong
Yeah.
Will Friedle
Both literally and figuratively.
Ryder Strong
Right.
Will Friedle
Where it's like, okay, he's going to do great in the challenges, and then he's aggressively going to go after somebody that we know is not a traitor.
Ryder Strong
Make a big scene.
Will Friedle
Great, let's do that, and we'll hop on board with him. Hey, Colton, I think you got a point about Tiffany there. And then you keep getting. Getting people out, and they don't have to do anything.
Ryder Strong
I love how ridiculously squeamish everybody was about getting in the water. It was like.
Will Friedle
It was great because they're all in their own clothes.
Ryder Strong
I know, but, like, if you watch Survivor and, like, the things that these people go through, put their bodies through, put their. You know, it's like, you guys, you're in a castle. You're not even sleeping in the castle. You get to go to a nice hotel every night, I'm sure. But, like, it was just hysterical the way, like, so many of them were like, oh, oh, I gotta stand in water and put my. Get over it.
Will Friedle
What did somebody say? Am I gonna get.
Ryder Strong
Candace was like, no, I'm gonna get a yeast infection. Yeast infection. Who's gonna take care of my coochie? What is wr. That's the weirdest thing to worry about.
Will Friedle
Hey, Easton, can I pull. What's gonna go wrong with my coogee? Can I pull that drop just from Ryder? I want it forever. Thank you. My new ringtone. What's gonna go wrong with my coochie? Yeah, but it was like, you're gonna get a yeast infect.
Guest or Additional Speaker
What?
Ryder Strong
Okay.
Will Friedle
But again, it was also like, every fourth coin will be part of the third coin, where it's like, wait, what is actually happening? You have to find the right coin, and then you have.
Ryder Strong
Insert the coin into the statue.
Will Friedle
Yeah. What? Like a vending machine. Damn, my statue's broken.
Ryder Strong
It's a 16th century vending machine.
Will Friedle
This vending machine was carved by Michelangelo himself, so. Yeah. And then they have to carry the bag, place them around to then have the blood statue.
Ryder Strong
It's so ridiculous.
Will Friedle
Reinvigorate itself.
Ryder Strong
It looks cool.
Will Friedle
Brilliant. Brilliant.
Ryder Strong
And so during this, you know, Colton had already. He admitted to the camera that he was thinking about the shield and Candace. Traitor. Candace is on his team, and she says that she thinks Colton would take a shield if she suggested it, which she's right.
Will Friedle
And this is when I want them to.
Ryder Strong
Candace is a good player.
Guest or Additional Speaker
Yeah.
Will Friedle
She's gotten better.
Ryder Strong
She's gotten way better. Because at first I was like, she's playing too hard or talking too much, but now, like, she's. She's fallen, you know, she's. She's mellowed out. She's taking it back, and she's reading the room. Right. Like, she knows that Colton is, like, gonna be her front man, basically. Like, she can hide behind him. So I thought that was really, really insightful that she's. Yeah, she's figuring it out. And then the statues run with blood.
Will Friedle
Of course they do. Of course. You know why? No smoked salmon. They're all pissed. That's what it is.
Ryder Strong
Yeah. All right. After the mission, it really became Colton versus Michael running from room to room. Wow.
Will Friedle
Yeah.
Ryder Strong
And Ron and Dorinda, you know, it was like some real personality standoffs here that were not super fun.
Will Friedle
No. And real kind of gloves are off kind of situation. This was nothing. Was kind of subdued, and it wasn't an undercurrent of anything anymore. They brought all this stuff right to the surface, and it got bad. I mean, it got uncomfortable to watch. In several points, I thought Colton going.
Ryder Strong
After Michael by asking him what Alan was wearing in the turret last night.
Will Friedle
Now, that was funny. Like, brilliant. Yeah.
Ryder Strong
Right, Right. But then Michael gets flustered and just starts yelling, you know?
Will Friedle
Yeah, well, of course.
Ryder Strong
Can you imagine being married to Michael Rapoport or just being in a family with him? Like, if this is how he is.
Will Friedle
On tv, one of his girlfriends had to allegedly put a restraining order on him for stalking. So that.
Guest or Additional Speaker
That's.
Will Friedle
Wow.
Ryder Strong
Yeah.
Will Friedle
He's a member of the clean plate club. Oh. So there's that.
Ryder Strong
The guy is such an emotional wreck. It's like, it's. It's. I think it's kind of what makes him very compelling as. As an actor, too. You know, of course, this, like, rawness to him and this honesty about him. And, like, again, I kind of appreciate. I kind of like it. But I. Yeah, I was. I was looking at my. My wife, and I was just like, God, you think I'm an emotional wreck? Can you imagine what this guy is like at home? Like, his poor, like. Oh, my God. I know.
Will Friedle
Hey, I've eaten with you, too. You have much better table manners than Michael.
Ryder Strong
Let me unhook my jaw for the plate.
Will Friedle
Do you remember Slimer from the original Ghostbusters?
Ryder Strong
That's exactly where he looks. Looks like just like.
Will Friedle
That's what he looked like.
Ryder Strong
Just the whole plate goes down afterwards. The fork, Slimer. Oh, God, it was crazy. But you like watching him.
Will Friedle
This is reality. He's the quintessential example of reality tv. You just. You can't look away. You can't look away.
Ryder Strong
No, I hate it. All right, so Ron just flat out tells to Rinda that he thinks she's a traitor, and they get into it. Was it here that he said the thing about, I don't care about your family? No, it was.
Will Friedle
No, that was around the round table. Yeah. Yeah.
Ryder Strong
All right.
Guest or Additional Speaker
So.
Ryder Strong
But it started here, and then Michael, you know, came running back in when he heard Colton still talking about his name. Lots of, like, confrontation. Confrontation. And let's just get into the roundtable, because it was. It was a lot.
Will Friedle
Oi. Okay.
Ryder Strong
At this point, I was like, man, the traitors are just loving this.
Will Friedle
Loving it. And they don't have to do anything. They. It's the greatest. They just get to step back and let this show commence.
Ryder Strong
Yeah, it's great. And, yeah, come. Michael starts off super hot, immediately making it about him, even, of course, like, if people are putting your name out, it's just. They're putting your name out.
Will Friedle
Yeah.
Ryder Strong
Just defend yourself and just say, I'm not. But instead, it's like, how dare you? It's like, well, we have to call somebody. You know, somebody is a traitor.
Guest or Additional Speaker
Right.
Ryder Strong
So it's not.
Will Friedle
It's not exactly. You're like, you've been flying under the radar these last five episodes.
Ryder Strong
No, of course. Yeah. So it's. It's always so weird to me that these people take it so personally. It's like, you don't trust me. It's like, well, our job is to not trust one another right now, and.
Will Friedle
I've known you for six days.
Ryder Strong
Exactly.
Will Friedle
No, I don't trust you.
Ryder Strong
Right.
Will Friedle
Yeah.
Ryder Strong
Colton does have some ev. You know, his evidence is that everyone but one who has written Michael's name down has been banished.
Will Friedle
Or. Which is valid, by the way.
Ryder Strong
Yeah, yeah.
Will Friedle
That's because that's what you'd want to do if you were a traitor is get rid of everybody who thinks you're the traitor.
Ryder Strong
So.
Will Friedle
Okay.
Ryder Strong
All right.
Will Friedle
Understandable. You couple that with the fact that he's very brusque. People don't like him.
Ryder Strong
Well, that's what it really comes down to.
Will Friedle
That's what it comes down to. They just want. And then eventually, you know, as we will talk about, that's what it just becomes is they're like, we just don't want you here anymore.
Ryder Strong
Yeah. I love Dorinda calling Ron a housewife hunter.
Will Friedle
I want that shirt.
Ryder Strong
What? Housewife Hunter. That's what he's really, really into, getting rid of the housewives on the show. Yeah. It was a weird argument, like, okay.
Will Friedle
You came in to kill all the housewives. Gotcha.
Ryder Strong
Yeah, yeah. But, but yeah, this is when she said the thing about how he doesn't get to know her. Her family or doesn't want to know about her family. And, and he says, my family is none of your business. Which is a valid point. It was a little harshly said. Little harshly.
Will Friedle
So, yeah, again, at this point I think he's just walking around angry where it's like, everybody hates me. I'm apparently the nicest guy in comedy. Nobody likes me. I, no matter what I say, they're jumping down my throat. They're going to kick me off eventually. I'm at least going to go down swinging.
Ryder Strong
Yeah.
Will Friedle
So, yeah, it's, it's, it's terrible. I feel bad for Ron. Like I legit feel bad for Ron too.
Ryder Strong
Me too.
Will Friedle
And you wonder who the next Ron is going to be because when he does get kicked off, that hatred will go somewhere else.
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Ryder Strong
There's, there's always got to be a scapegoat. Right? Like, and it's so misdirected in this case. Ye. The traders are just getting away scot free.
Will Friedle
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Will Friedle
All right.
Ryder Strong
And then of course the probably the most dramatic moment is when Michael says, nobody in this room would be better at holding a secret than you, Colton. Which is pretty obviously a reference to him not coming out. I know. Like yes.
Will Friedle
And he tried to walk it back.
Ryder Strong
He tries to walk it back.
Will Friedle
You can't. That's out. Yeah, that's exactly what you meant, dude. Yeah, you meant this guy's been lying his whole life. Because of course, being a football player, the easiest thing to do is come out of the closet.
Ryder Strong
Right.
Will Friedle
So it's like, yeah, everybody knows how simple that is. So. Yeah, that was. You knew the. And here's the thing. I went back and watched it twice before he said that he was making valid points. And I think people around the table were starting to listen to him.
Ryder Strong
Mike, About. Yeah, about Colton.
Will Friedle
Yeah, they were. And then he said that. And everyone's like, I don't even want to have anything to do with you ever again. He was winning the argument.
Ryder Strong
Well, I mean, I feel like more than 50% of this room is queer. Right. Like, so you're really. You're in the worst position. Like, like why would you possibly think that that's a valid argument? Like, you're talking to a room of people, like half of whom are gay, you know, or if they're not, they're super gay friendly. My God.
Will Friedle
Exactly.
Ryder Strong
Like, this is just. Yeah, it's just. But you know, this is like, this is his mouth just going, you know, his.
Will Friedle
Like he does saying stuff before, you think?
Ryder Strong
I think if he had thought it through, he, you know, and, and I guess what really is disappointing to me is he probably should have just immediately been like, oh, shit, that was over the line.
Will Friedle
Yeah, I apologize. I apologize. That was wrong.
Ryder Strong
But instead he's trying to defend himself, saying, that's not what I meant. I didn't, I wasn't. But you're like, there's actually no. Nothing else I think you could have meant. Do you know what I mean?
Will Friedle
I also have to disagree a little bit with what you're saying. I think, I don't think he said this. Heat of the moment. I think he's been thinking this for days.
Ryder Strong
Yeah.
Will Friedle
That he's. That this guy's gay and he's been holding that down. If anybody could hold a secret, it's that guy. And then it came out of his mouth. And you know what?
Ryder Strong
But you know what I think if it came out and it was pointed out to you, which I think Johnny does, is like, you know, the, the, the not being able to come out of the closet is as much a self deception.
Will Friedle
Sure.
Ryder Strong
And, and a traumatic.
Guest or Additional Speaker
Sure.
Ryder Strong
Situation. Like, you know, it's, it's not like a conscious lie, you know, like, like just explaining that to rap.
Will Friedle
He said it.
Ryder Strong
I know.
Will Friedle
No, but Colton said that a couple episodes ago, remember, where he was like, they're like, wait, you were in the football, you played football and you're a bachelor? He's like, yeah. Yep. Trying to convince myself I was straight for Years like he, he says this episode, I think.
Ryder Strong
Yeah.
Will Friedle
Oh, was it. Okay, so I mean he says that.
Ryder Strong
Which I think that's why they had that moment is because they had to set up this, you know, confrontation because that was why they included it and. Yeah, no, because I mean I, you know, I, I, I could, I guess basically I'm saying I could see that. I think there are a lot of people who probably have Michael's opinion about gay people out there, you know, or people that are in the closet. Yes. And I, I think it's if, if he said it and then it's pointed out to him like that's not how this really works, dude. Like, you know, and Colton is saying like I, I was not lying. I was trying so hard to be something that I wasn't feeling.
Will Friedle
You know, denial is not lying, denying. Exactly, exactly.
Ryder Strong
It's, it's self deception as much as, you know. And I think that the me, the, the second that that comes out, Michael Rapaport could have walked it back and just been like, you know what? I didn't think of it that way. You're right.
Will Friedle
I'm sorry.
Ryder Strong
I'm so sorry. That is unfair. Like being, being gay in closeted does not make you or a villainous person. Which is essentially what he was saying.
Will Friedle
Right.
Ryder Strong
So you know, he could have walked it back even, even off camp, even out of the round table when he was doing his follow up defense at the end. Instead he's just like, I'm, I wasn't insinuated. So it's a real bummer, man. Like that could have been a learning moment, you know.
Will Friedle
But he also does the typical thing that people always do where it's without taking accountability. The, the, the no accountability account. I'm sorry that you felt that way.
Ryder Strong
Exactly.
Will Friedle
It's like, no, no, no, no. Be sorry you said it. Don't be sorry that you felt that you made someone feel bad.
Ryder Strong
And he could have just, I think it would have been a service to a lot of people who, out there who might feel that way. Did you hear him say, you know what? I heard this and I'm adjusting my thinking because that is unfair. Like that is an unfair. Instead he's like, that's not what I meant.
Will Friedle
Yeah.
Ryder Strong
It's like, yes, it is, dude. I don't know what it could have possibly meant.
Will Friedle
Of course that's what you mean.
Ryder Strong
That pissed me off, man. That was like, yeah.
Will Friedle
And that's why he was gone. It didn't matter. They even said they're like, I Don't.
Ryder Strong
Care if you're a traitor.
Will Friedle
I don't care if you're a traitor or faithful anymore. I just don't want you here. I don't care.
Ryder Strong
Yeah.
Will Friedle
And so, yeah, you knew. You knew what it was gonna. He. He knew, too. The second it came out of his mouth and he got that response, he knew. And if you go back and you watch it again, he was winning the argument. He was making valid points about Colton, and then he came out with that, and it was like, get out. We're done with you. I don't care. Yeah.
Ryder Strong
It was very similar to a moment on Survivor where a trans character was outed for being trans. They had not, you know, yeah, Zeke, he was this great player, and. And another. Another player was getting heat, and he decided to try and get heat off of him by saying, like, why haven't you told everybody that you're trans? And it was like, dude, wow.
Will Friedle
So born female and transitioned to male.
Ryder Strong
Okay, gotcha, gotcha. But, you know, like, it was just. Yeah. It's like, so under the belt, like.
Will Friedle
Off, like, outing people, and you could just.
Ryder Strong
Immediately. Immediately, everybody was like, nope, you're just going to leave now? Chef Probst was like, we don't. I don't think they had a vote. It was just like, walk away, dude. Yeah. So it was a very. This was like an echo of that moment. In some ways, I mean, that was more extreme because it was actually an outing, you know, against somebody's will. But in this case. Yeah, you could just. Yeah. Such a bummer, dude.
Will Friedle
It is. And it took it to a whole different kind of level. And it was like, yeah, we. It did. It brought it back to the fact that it is a game. At the end of the day, we want to. We want to play the game, and we'd rather do it without somebody, like, saying shit like that here. So if you could go, that'd be awesome. Yeah. And then we're just going to write down your name. That's just. Let's just go.
Ryder Strong
But all of which, you know, is. Is. Is. It's not good playing. Like, the game is not going well for the faithful. It is. No one. I mean, the traders are. Are right now, so you could be right.
Will Friedle
Maybe. Maybe this is the year that. That the traders walk away with. With the money.
Ryder Strong
Well, at the end of this episode, though, Colton thinks it could be Lisa.
Will Friedle
That's where you go. And somebody also, now they're really starting to mention Colton.
Ryder Strong
Yep.
Will Friedle
So I do want to very quickly, because in our last Dancing with the Stars podcast, a wonderful one. I told you that I am. Was a master of knowing everything about history when it comes to dancing.
Ryder Strong
Yeah. Dance expert.
Will Friedle
I'm also a traitor's expert. I'm not sure if you're aware of that. A famous traitor as in the TV show? No, of actual famous traders throughout history. And I wanted to put it in and I realized Michael Rapper is arguably the most famous person around that table, which led me to believe it was like, you know, what I haven't told Ryder about is other famous traitors from history.
Ryder Strong
Okay.
Will Friedle
And so we're gonna start a new segment now that's called Will's Famous traitors from History or something that's not the history of dance. I'm still working on the song.
Ryder Strong
Yeah, the song could use a little.
Will Friedle
I'm working on it. I agree.
Ryder Strong
Maybe some notes. Not just like one note.
Will Friedle
The key I'm picking is wrong.
Ryder Strong
Okay.
Will Friedle
That's the key I picked. But we're gonna start today with Ephaeltes of Trachus. He's from the 5th century BC. Yes, Ephaeltes. And in 480 BC, Epheltes betrayed the Greek compatriots by revealing a little known goat trail in the mountains at Thermopylae in eastern Greece to the massive invading army of the Persian king Xerxes. They outflanked the small force, mostly by Spartan warriors who had held off the Persian army for three days, killing all of them and continuing their march southward. Epheltes hoped for a place in the new order in Greece if Persia won as well as a monetary reward. But instead, Greece prevailed and Epheltes wound up with a price in his head. He was eventually killed, believe it or not, for unrelated reasons, but ever since the backstabbing of the Greeks at Thermopylae, the Greek word for nightmare is still Epheltes. So he is a famous traitor.
Ryder Strong
Isn't that what 300 is based on?
Will Friedle
It is.
Guest or Additional Speaker
This is.
Ryder Strong
Yeah.
Will Friedle
Not wildly natural. I mean, he says he knows it, but it felt. Felt kind of. No, that's natural. I like to say it as if I'm reading it, but no.
Ryder Strong
Yeah, that's like you want to sound scholarly. Correct. A monotone. I'm reading off of Wikipedia right now while I'm talking to you, but you couldn't possibly be doing that because you're looking at me.
Will Friedle
I'm looking right at you.
Ryder Strong
I'm assuming so.
Will Friedle
And you know me in the computer. I don't know how to do two things at once. So I Wouldn't know how to look up something and have a separate, I think they're called window. So I'm just looking at you and I wanted to tell you a little bit about that. So there you go. We've a new little segment and I hope you enjoy it.
Ryder Strong
A fail teas. A fail. A fail teas. There you go. All right, well, sweet dreams. Don't have an A tonight.
Sponsor/Ad Voice
O.
Will Friedle
Nice. AIs was also known for just shoveling food into his mouth.
Ryder Strong
Little known fact, they cut that seal 300. They cut it out of 300 as.
Will Friedle
He'S shoveling smoked salmon into his mouth.
Ryder Strong
Yeah, the thing about Michael, I really did come into this season liking him, him. And like, I, I, there's something like, you know, like, naive about him, about his, like. And even when he's kind of an emotional, like, mess or a dick, I was always like, you're a good guy.
Will Friedle
Yeah, that's good. That's because you only know him for movies.
Ryder Strong
I know he stinks.
Will Friedle
Social media, he stinks so much. Ways.
Ryder Strong
Yeah.
Will Friedle
Oh, really? I don't know. I don't know anything about him. I know him.
Ryder Strong
I mean, that's, yeah, I'm only known for movies. Like, now I'm like, you're lucky because this was, this was a really, like I said, this was a chance, man. Like, you could, Yeah, I mean, you could be an idiot thinking that. And once it's corrected, like, it's, it's just the chance. Exactly.
Will Friedle
Yeah.
Ryder Strong
And like, you know, because what, I guess, I guess I don't, I don't like the expectation that everybody is supposed to be perfect about a lot of these things.
Will Friedle
You know what I mean?
Ryder Strong
Of course. Things like sexuality, gender, race, like, it's hard, you know, it's like they're not always just natural for everybody and especially how people are raised and, you know, the, whatever they're inheriting bigotry or just blindness or just lack of knowledge. Totally. Like, so if you say something dumb or offensive and you don't mean it or you don't understand how it works, like, learn from, learn from it. Learn from it.
Will Friedle
Yeah, we've all been there, dude. It's the way it works. And it's, it's the people that instantly, again, first try to backtrack what they said, then they try to justify what they said, then they apologize for making someone else feel bad with what they said as opposed to taking any accountability or learning from it, which is all we do. That's what life is, is learning. So maybe he goes home and has an epiphany. You never know. Maybe he watches himself back and doesn't like what he sees and becomes a better person for it. I will say today, even though I hate defending him. He's such a garbage can. But I will say today he. He said in an interview him and Colton are in contact and totally fine and friends and whatever. But, yeah, Michael rapport sucks.
Ryder Strong
Okay, well, that's good to hear, though, that at least they're like, you know, able to talk after this and not. Not hold a. Yeah, yeah. Okay.
Will Friedle
Okay.
Ryder Strong
All right. So, yeah, Now, Rob overheard this, that Colton thinks it's Lisa. And I do think Colton gives a good argument, which is. Wait, wait. Who is it that he asks? He asks somebody like, is she. Doesn't. Isn't she more, like usually a little more outgoing? Yeah.
Will Friedle
Have you ever not seen Lisa talk like that? Is it Dorinda?
Ryder Strong
It's Dorinda, right?
Will Friedle
It was Dorinda, I think. Yes. Dorinda's like, yeah, no, I've never. Another housewife.
Ryder Strong
Yes.
Will Friedle
So this is where. But again, I don't know. Colton might be the perfect person to keep around because again, he gets everybody to vote for other people and they've. But if he's getting everybody to vote for a traitor, I don't know. This is where you don't know what's gonna.
Guest or Additional Speaker
Right.
Ryder Strong
Oh, we blew right past my favorite moment, which is the commiserate thing. He just keeps saying, colton, what are the three C's Corrupt. Commiserate. And then who is it that just points out Rob. Oh, my God, Rob, by the way.
Will Friedle
Dressed in just overalls.
Ryder Strong
Oh, my God.
Will Friedle
No shirt underneath.
Ryder Strong
Feel sympathy. We have to stop this. It's like he's, like, more upset about the fact that he's misusing the word commiserate than anything he's saying. And I loved it. That's why, I swear to God, this.
Will Friedle
Guy sitting there with a snake tattoo that takes up his whole body that is just wearing overalls is actually a secret genius is what I think is going on, which is what is amazing.
Ryder Strong
It was funny because, I mean, I, like, I. I didn't think about it until he pointed it out. I was like, it doesn't sound right. I was like, is that the right word? But I didn't. I didn't. I couldn't remember what the actual definition was. When he said it, I was like, good job, dude. That's what it is, not what it is.
Will Friedle
God, I love it.
Ryder Strong
I love it.
Will Friedle
I love it.
Ryder Strong
I love it. Anyway, so Rob overhears Colton suspecting Lisa. Lisa, which is bad news because then he can go right back to Lisa and say, ham it up a little bit because they're on another one.
Will Friedle
Yep.
Ryder Strong
But. But it does. Yeah. I think of the traitors, Lisa's probably the most exposed right now.
Will Friedle
I would agree. This is twice now people have said her name.
Ryder Strong
Well, her horrible lying too, you know, like it was bad lying. And I think even if people didn't realize it in the. At the time, it can get, you know, it's. It's subconscious. It's in the back of your brain. Like, that was a little weird, you know, like she acted a little strange that morning and you don't even quite know why. Exactly. But, yeah, I agree.
Will Friedle
This was very. God, just an interesting episode for so many reasons. We still don't know know if any. Forget. Forget all the craziness with Rap Abort. We still don't know if somebody took a shield.
Guest or Additional Speaker
Oh, right.
Will Friedle
So we still have no idea if there's going to be a murder or.
Ryder Strong
What the hell's going on. Right. So they just. They're going to tell the traders right now in the turret, like. Yeah. I'm so curious.
Will Friedle
I'm so curious how they're going to do it. So nobody knows if a shield was taken, if a murder is even going to occur. I mean. Yeah. Crazy. Just absolutely crazy.
Ryder Strong
All right, that's it for this episode of Pod Meets twirled. Alliances were tested, trust misplaced. And once again, we're left with a cliffhanger. Join us next time as we continue our journey through season four of Traitors, a show in which, as Shakespeare said in his Scottish play, fair is foul and foul is fair. And who's gonna take care of my coochie?
Date: January 23, 2026
Hosts: Will Friedle & Ryder Strong
Podcast: Pod Meets World (iHeartPodcasts)
Episode Theme: The hosts break down Episode 5 of "The Traitors" Season 4, exploring its most dramatic moments, questionable gameplay, and emotional confrontations. The conversation blends their signature wit, behind-the-scenes TV knowledge, and pop culture references, moving from game theory to personal reflections on reality TV conflict.
This episode of Pod Meets Twirl’d dives deep into the drama and personal tension of “The Traitors” Season 4, Episode 5. Will and Ryder, both new to the show but longtime pop culture commentators, discuss shifting alliances, crumbling social strategy, and a controversial confrontation that threatens the integrity of the game. The recap is equal parts spirited banter, pointed analysis, and reflective commentary on real-world issues as they manifest in reality TV.
“I had the cloak. I very rarely get a chance to wear it … It’s fun to just be able to wear it in the comfort of my own home.”
“Do you know what I mean? That’s like the old reality show thing.”
“They’re more worried about coming in late and missing out on the salmon than whether they get banished.” (06:40)
Will: “I called it … because he’s the only one who mentioned a traitor's name passed through his lips.”
“She also has this great quote about being confused between like and trust, which … gets at the heart of, like, this challenge of this game.”
“Anybody who takes a shield is a traitor, 100%.” (Will, 14:13)
“You couple that with the fact that he’s very brusque. People don’t like him.” (Will, 26:11)
Michael: “Nobody in this room would be better at holding a secret than you, Colton.” (31:14)
“He could have just immediately been like, ‘Oh, shit, that was over the line.’” (Ryder, 32:21)
“The typical thing that people always do … ‘I’m sorry that you felt that way.’” (Will, 34:50)
Will: “That’s what life is, is learning.”
“… a show in which, as Shakespeare said in his Scottish play, fair is foul and foul is fair. And who’s gonna take care of my coochie?” (45:04)
“This episode really was a little … watching some of it through my fingers, kind of cringy.”
“She also has this great quote about being confused between like and trust, which I think gets at the heart of, like, this challenge of this game.”
“No. And real kind of gloves off kind of situation. This was nothing … they brought all this stuff right to the surface and it got bad.”
“Which is pretty obviously a reference to him not coming out.”
“Be sorry you said it. Don’t be sorry that you felt that you made someone feel bad.”
“Learn from it. Learn from it.”
“We’re gonna start today with Ephialtes of Trachis … so ever since the backstabbing of the Greeks at Thermopylae, the Greek word for nightmare is still ‘Ephialtes.’”
The hosts maintain their signature blend of humor, critical analysis, and TV-insider perspective throughout. Their approach balances irreverence (“Who’s going to take care of my coochie?”) with earnest reflection (on learning and accountability). They’re unafraid to dig into uncomfortable moments, but close out with banter and pop culture deep cuts for long-time listeners.
This episode of Pod Meets Twirl’d moves far beyond a simple game recap, surfacing the emotional complexity and messy humanity at the heart of reality TV. If you’re new to the show, expect equal parts laughs, pop-culture riffs, inside baseball on game mechanics, and, when drama dictates, genuine talk about empathy, ignorance, and learning in public.