Randall or William?

[Delaney35]

I agree that William should would have been the better choice for leadership on land. Randall antagonized people with his negativity and yelling and I think William made them feel more hopeful about their situation.

I definitely agree. Also, in that type of situation people don't care about who is higher ranked. They'll follow the one they trust the most, which would be William in their case

[Manang Muyang]

Randall was a big chicken. He should have volunteered to go with William, but he let a woman take the risk. Shame on him.

William was true to his nature to the end. I hope he survives.

[chelhack]

For the most part, I do believe that William took over when they became stranded on the island. He took lead in most aspects and was ultimately the reason that they were found and survived it all.

[Ekta Kumari]

William did end up taking most of the important decisions and he also kept the group engaged and motivated through his storytelling. I do not think Randall would have been a suitable choice for taking the lead in such situations considering his attitude.

[Lhisa]

I think in this case rank would be overrated as a means of determining who is more qualified to lead. The rank is based on when they were on the boat, once they came to land, the best option would be to allow the person with the most experience to lead. There is another aspect to consider, if the person with the most experience is not adept at leadership it can also be an issue as well.

[Azeline Arcenal]

William might have been better as a leader, but I feel like Randall was the one who really wanted to be the leader. William did sort of take over in the end though.

[BuzzingQuill]

William was definitely the more equipped individual to take the lead, he is a knowledgable in terms of outdoor survival, but I liked that the author didn't automatically make William the sole leader, as its very much in Randall's character to not want to give up control or his position (from what I inferred through Steve's narration about Randall)

[Shirayuki Hime]

I will surely be more relieved if my life was under the decision of a experience person. So if William have more experience than he better be in charge of the crew, for in survivor, ranking can't stand against experience.

[Samy Lax]

I think William would have been a better leader once they reached land, since he had more experience hiking in cold. He also had more experience in water, so he would have made a good overall leader.

[Kibet Hillary]

Regardless of rank I think William would be the better choice once they reached land. He not only had more experience hiking in the cold but he knew his way around! I don't thunk rank should matter when you're in a situation where survival is the ultimate goal. If I had been a part of the crew I would want experience over rank any day!

Very true, B Creech. I am also in total support of this. There is no way that you can continue to assume authority when it comes to matters of life and death when you are in a place where you have little or no experience. Common sense dictates the need to hand over the reins of power. Randall was more a manager than a leader.

[Kaylee Elmer]

Officially, it seemed like Randall was still in charge. When he told people what to do, they technically listened. Like when he said it was time to go get wood, people went. Unofficially, William was in charge. People responded to his leadership style better. I don't think Randall had to defer to him, it just happened naturally.

[Popcorn1]

In the story, even though Randall is called the leader of the group due to ranking, the word Leader of the group is just a title when associated with Randall. William, however, can be seen as the Leader of the group as he is the person that has the capability to lead the group and his sacrifice also makes him a good leader. He is the anchor that keeps the boat from sinking to the depths of despair.

[Galesphere]

The great thing about William, as a character, is that he's very humble and easy-going, unlike many of his mates. While he did take on a more leading role when his crew landed, I got the impression that he was always open to suggestions and differing view-points.

[ElizaBeth Adams]

I actually value William more as a leader in this situation because he didn't try to comandeer Randall's position of authority. A good leader knows when to lead by example, even if that example also means being a good follower. Also, while I wasn't always a fan of Randall's style, he did a good job of gathering input from William, and putting him on point, because he knew William had more expertise in this situation. They both played their role well.

[DC Brown]

William's experience could help them but I don't think his personality could take over such an authoritative role. In emergencies like this, I think Randall's "harshness" is a double-edged sword: one, he could keep the mood down with his yelling; but second, people will listen and there's no room for doubt somehow because of his rank.

You're right about Randall being authoritative. I thought that William brought balance to the situation, not leadership. It was interesting how the characters interacted.