User blog comment:Tanglefrost/Survivor: Con Dao- Character Applications/@comment-30509159-20200103055655

Name (Age): James Ryan (57)

Current Residence: Sterling Heights, MI

Occupation: Car Mechanic

Claim to Fame: This may sound cheesy but being able to provide for my family. We’ve never had to worry too much about expenses and my wife and I were able to raise our children with enough to provide for them, but not enough to spoil them. Seeing how they have turned out puts a smile on my face every day.

Hobbies: Reading, woodwork, enjoying time with my wife, and volunteering at the local elementary school.

Pet Peeves: People who think it’s okay to treat people in lower paying jobs like trash. They’re trying to make a living and provide for themselves and maybe even their family. It’s rude and disrespectful in my opinion because even though they may not be making the flashy big bucks that society seems to value, they’re still doing something that contributes to society and is more important than people realize

If You Could Have Three Things on the Island, What Would They Be and Why: I’d take a couple of tools so that way my tribe’s shelter would be sturdy and habitable, a picture of my wife and kids so that I can constantly see their faces even when I’m not with them, and a couple of books to read to pass the time when I’m not strategizing or working

SURVIVOR Contestant You Are Most Like (can be my fanon or canon): I’m a lot like Oswald Carter as we’re both older males who deeply care not only about our family, but the people around us.

Reason for Being on SURVIVOR: To be honest, this is mainly for my wife. We both love watching Survivor and she suggested I apply. She also seems to think it’ll be a sort of vacation for me since I hardly take any time off from work (laughs). So, I figured, hey, being in a country I’ve never been to before with a chance at a million dollars sounds swell to me.

Why You Will "Survive" SURVIVOR: I am a hard worker by nature, and the words “quit” and “surrender” are not in my vocabulary. I will perform my best both around camp and in challenges and show my tribe I’m valuable to them.

Why You Will Be the Sole SURVIVOR: I like to think that I’m a nice guy to get along with. I’m hoping that I’ll gravitate towards people and vice versa so that I can create the necessary alliances and bonds to help me make the moves I need to so I can get ahead. It’ll be a bit hard to leave my heart out of it, but my wife has told me to do what I need, so if I need to I’ll cut those that are a threat to my game.

Manga:

'''Rate you castway's strategic, physical and social game out of 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best. Provide a reason why you chose the numbers.'''

Physical Game (6): Thanks to working his whole life and a decently healthy diet, James has managed to stay in decent shape, however, he is still an older man and therefore does not have the same strength he used to back in the day. He has a strong grip and will perform better in endurance challenges than in physical since his job often has him in uncomfortable positions for long periods of time.

Social Game (8): James is someone who approaches people and makes them feel comfortable. His greatest asset is his ability to listen to people and ask them about themselves. Once he gets to know a person a bit, he knows how to thread a conversation so that both himself and who he's talking to will leave satisfied.

Strategic Game (4): His strategic side is the weakest of his three traits. He knows that he needs to make moves to get to the end but he worries he'll have a hard time separating his heart from his head even with his wife's consent to do what he wants. He's hoping that as the game progresses, he'll have a better understanding of what he needs to do.

What could cause your castaway to win?

James is a very likeable guy. He knows just what to say and how to say it to people. He's always willing to be the guy who listens to everyone's problems and he values friendship highly. If he makes it to the Final Tribal Council, he has a good shot of being able to convince the jury that any moves he makes were not personal and that he still values them as people rather than simply seeing them as obstacles in his way to the million.

What could cause your castaway to lose?

James struggles with keeping his head and heart separate, though he knows his intentions are never malicious, he worries that blindsiding allies will cause them to hate him and this may cause him to forgo making a move that benefits him to preserve a relationship with an ally. Also, while James is always ready to hear other people's problems, he is reluctant to share any of his own. He worries that his problems would seem small compared to the others and he doesn't want them feeling burdened. This could result in him making a decision without consulting an ally because he doesn't want to freak them out.

What kind of castaways would your castaways align with?

James is willing to align with any castaway if they wish to, but he's more willing to align and stick with castaways who show compassion and kindness.

What kind of characters would your castaways avoid or be enemies with?

James would try and avoid anyone who tries to start conflict as he believes they would be too much of a loose cannon to align with and he also plans to keep clear of anyone who is either disrespectful to others or who tries to play the victim when they aren't.

Please provide a small paragraph of backstory.

James grew up where he currently lives. When he was 8, his father passed away and his mother was forced to take multiple jobs to support her family. The stress of working for most of the day and the grief from losing her husband caused her to break down in tears whenever James would ask her for help with something. When he turned 15, his mother told him he needed to start worrying about other people's problems and not his own and to get a job to help her out. He was able to find a job as a mechanic in a car shop near his house. He worked there until it closed seven years later and then got another job in a larger car repair shop where he has been working for the past 34 years. During his time there, he met his future wife Helen when she came to have her car looked at and together, they had four children: Matt (32), Jane (30), Taylor (26), and Emily (22).

Do you consent to having your manga altered (such as natural hair shades, eye colours, custom clothing/face details) if your castaway is cast?

Aside from his hair and jacket, yes.

(I may edit this a bit later but here's what I have now)