Idol Speculation: “Survivor Winners at War” Episode 3: Sometimes the Guy in the Middle of the Road Gets Run Over

Sorry for the title, guys. I know it’s kind of long. I guess I just need the reminder of my all-time favorite player to cheer me up. MAN, this episode was rough!

Not that it starts out that way, of course. We actually get a charming wake-up at Sele, with Rob doing the old “tickle the nose of the sleeping Adam” routine. Little known fact, it only works on people named Adam. Our Adam doesn’t have a particularly big reaction to it, but everyone present giggles anyway. Adam takes it in stride, though. After all, he basically got his way at the last Tribal Council, so he should be happy, right? Well, while Adam is certainly pleased with the outcome, since it was a unity vote, he doesn’t see it as a victory, more Rob still controlling the narrative. He meets up with Denise, and discusses the need to get out one of the old school players, these being Rob, Ethan, and Parvati. It’s during this time we see that Danni willed her fire token to… MICHELE! No, it’s actually Denise, which I really should have mentioned last blog, and should have been a “Matt’s Mess-Up”, but this was an easy way to work it in, and saves time on the blog. We also learn that, rather than the split idol staying split, it works the way it did for the returnees on “Survivor Edge of Extinction”, and if returned, becomes a full idol that need not be split. Much less interesting, and I’m disappointed in you for it, show. Adam and Denise wisely agree that of the three old-schoolers, Parvati should be the one to go. She brings the least in challenges, and isn’t connected with anyone. Contrary to what we’ll see this episode, Boston Rob is not bad in challenges overall, and Adam has a bond with Ethan. That’s why Adam goes and tells Ethan the plan to vote out Parvati… Wait…

Yes, for all that Adam talks about wanting to get out the old schoolers, that doesn’t mean he wants to make enemies of those remaining. Thus, he pitches the idea of voting out Parvati to Ethan. To his credit, Ethan clearly has been coached on the proper response in these situations. While he gives no firm commitment, he does nod along and doesn’t outright deny the plan. Where Ethan falls apart in in HOW he does these things, as his body language clearly indicates that he doesn’t want to go along with this. Sure enough, he tells us that while he has a bond with Adam, Parvati is his ride-or-die, and so he’s sticking with her over Adam. Nothing seems to come of it, but it sets up the story thread for the episode.

Over at Dakal, we see Sandra do what all great players do when they return: Change up their game (take note, Russell Hantz). I do, however, have to slightly question Sandra’s emulation choice. She’s going the Rupert Boneham (“Survivor Pearl Islands”) route, and going to catch fish via a net. Understandable that she would emulate a close ally she had seen on multiple seasons, but is Rupert, really the guy you want to emulate? Not the best track record in terms of game performance, is all I’m saying. Nevertheless, Sandra does literally net the tribe a shark, and I have to say, I’m much happier that she gets the glory rather than Tony. Look, Tony running around with a live shark is funny, but Sandra is overall the better game player, so I’m happy she got the glory. Not so happy is Tyson, which is understandable given that he’s on the bottom of the tribe. As such, he decides to throw Sandra under the bus because, well, she’s won twice. Kind of makes her the biggest threat left, now that Boston Rob and Amber aren’t around to be a pair anymore. He pitches the idea to Yul, who admits that he doesn’t trust Tyson, but takes it under consideration. When Sandra catches wind, however, she’s back on the anti-Tyson train, and Yul is now fully on board with voting Tyson out.

Heading over to the Edge of Extinction, Danni comments on the need to find food, due to the lack of coconuts on the island. Plus, you know, her original season had food provided for them, but no need to bring that up! In any case, everyone gets a clue in a bamboo tube with some shells that’s a drawing of a distinctive tree. Everyone quickly finds said tree, only to find a chest with a combination lock, and a note saying that they have the numbers and not to just guess. Naturally, everyone starts guessing, but it’s Amber who has the bright idea of going back down to the beach and looking for numbers. She finds them on the flotsam clustered around the mast, and runs back up to try them out. This would have been a BRILLIANT way to hide the number clues that could have made for a fun hunt, so naturally that’s not where the answer comes from. Instead, after a flash on the tubes, Natalie figures out that the shells on the tube give away the numbers. Wisely smashing or hiding the other tubes, she takes her own back to the lock after Amber and Danni are too tired to continue, and manages to open it. To Natalie’s credit, I will say that Edge of Extinction is where she seems to flourish. She’s so far the only one who’s managed to find any advantages to sell back, and is three for three on picking good people to sell to. Based on this, and how her game really kicked into gear on her original season when Nadiya was voted out, I can only conclude that Natalie is secretly the Incredible Hulk: She gets REALLY powerful when you make her angry.

As to the specific advantage Natalie gets, it’s a “steal a vote” to sell to someone on one tribe, with the location being at the other tribe’s camp. Does this mean a swap is incoming? No, that would be a good bit of foreshadowing. Instead, as we see shortly, it’s another “sneak into the other tribe’s camp” advantage. Ok, show, it’s really time to retire that particular method of obtaining an advantage. It’s either comically easy (like Jeremy’s was on “Survivor Cambodia”) or it’s built up to be difficult, but then is still easy. You play it up, use your clever editing tricks, but in reality, we know these people are never going to wake up and catch someone. Spare us the time for bonding with these players, and just give it to them outright. Stop making them jump through hoops.

But who exactly did Natalie decide to sell to? MICHELE! No, no, she actually goes with Sarah. A fairly logical choice. The only person Natalie can suspect of having more than one fire token at this point is Rob, who she probably doesn’t want to have advantages, so there’s not game theory to be had there. Meanwhile, Sarah is someone whose game relied heavily on advantages, and so she’d be likely to bite. Sure enough, she does, despite the supposed “risk”. See my comments above for my thoughts on how risky this actually is. Really the better argument for not buying it would be in saving up a fire token, especially since an extra vote can backfire and piss people off. Or, if you’re Stephen Fishbach, end up inadvertently leading to your own exit. Sarah is not Stephen, however, and so goes for it. Deciding she needs “cop backup”, she of course gets Tony in on this business. Tony coats Sarah’s face in ash for “camouflage”, but really, this is just how Tony does Ash Wednesday. Nice bit of synergy there, “Survivor”. After our manufactured “tension”, Sarah gets the advantage, and we move on.

Our immunity challenge today is an obstacle-course hodge-podge, ending with the bonsai tree puzzle. Barely worth commenting on, so instead I’ll say that this is where the episode begins to fall apart, and now I’m not just talking about the lackluster reused challenge. No, the misdirection on this season has so far been pretty solid, and it would seem decent enough on the surface even in this episode. But really, it’s obvious that Sele is bound to lose again, missing out on both immunity and shish-kebabs. How do I know this? Well, while both tribes got strategy and fun, Sele had a dangling story thread (Ethan not being on board with eliminating Parvati), while Dakal did not. Plus, if you’re me, and follow the “Survivor” Facebook page, you’ll note that the preview for the episode talked about the vote coming down to an “Old School/New School” split. Gee, I wonder which tribe has been talking about old school/new school, and which one hasn’t.

Really, this episode’s best misdirection comes from the challenge itself, which is really down the wire. Dakal gets an early lead which the seem to keep for most of the challenge, but Sele makes a major comeback on the puzzle. They’re literally one piece shy of victory, but that’s not good enough, and so they must go to Tribal Council. At least they get a gorgeous aerial shot of the sun on the ocean before the strategizing begins.

After a standoff, Ben and Jeremy go off to confirm that the vote is Parvati. Everyone seems to be on board, so this should be a straightforward vote, right? Well, then there’s Adam, who I love, adore, and respect, but MAN can the guy make some questionable choices. And no, I’m not talking about his telling Ethan about Parvati earlier. That move was questionable, certainly. Ethan doesn’t seem like the type who would take that well. But at least Adam and Ethan had a BOND. There was a REASON to not want him blindsided. But no, Adam is not content with just keeping Ethan happy, he needs to keep Boston Rob happy. Why? Well, Adam says he wants him around as a shield, which I can understand. No one, with the exception of Sandra, is going to draw votes more readily than Boston Rob, and so keeping him around as a target who’s helpful around camp and in challenges makes sense. My question is WHY DOES HE NEED TO BE KEPT HAPPY? Even blindsided, Boston Rob is still a shield, and by telling other people, you risk being seen as untrustworthy, and your plan leaking out to the wrong people. Oh look! Boston Rob is spilling Adam’s move to Jeremy and Michele, and now they don’t trust him, considering voting him out along with the old school players! Even Denise says it’s a dumb move! How ever did this happen?

Michele and Jeremy, as our swing votes for the evening, discuss what to do. They briefly give me a heart attack by discussing voting out Ethan as a way to weaken Rob, but that gets quickly pushed aside, and I’m sure will have NO bearing on our episode whatsoever. Instead, they debate the need to get out Parvati, and weaken Rob, against Adam’s untrustworthiness. A reasonable debate, but for me, the clear winner the choice to get rid of Parvati. True, Adam’s behavior is concerning, and you don’t want to let it sit by the wayside, but at least he seems like a solid ally. The old schoolers may be willing to work with you for a vote or two, but they’re not going to be solid with you. Also, I would differentiate Adam’s spilling of the beans versus, say, Ben’s spilling of the beans in intent. Ben spilled the beans accidentally, while Adam had logical reasons for doing so. Flawed logic, to be sure, but he knows enough to keep the people who need to be kept in the dark in the dark, and is unlikely to accidentally let something slip. Really, the only reason to get rid of Adam is to break the streak of women getting voted out this season. We head off to Tribal Council with the debate still in the air, so that’s ONE bit of misdirection in the show’s favor.

This may be a controversial opinion, but I’m not a fan of this Tribal Council. It’s hardly the worst, but I think that standoff when Sele first got back to camp carried over, as everyone as a whole felt subdued. True, Denise’s bunker metaphor was fun, if a bit confusing, and the hypocrisy of Rob calling out Adam for stating the obvious (basically what he did last time) is good for a laugh, but really, what holds this Tribal Council together is the mystery. So, our tribe is choosing between one beneficial boot (Parvati), and one that’s not as beneficial, but still has some logic behind it (Adam). So, who will our swing votes go with?

THE WRONG FREAKING ONE, THAT’S WHAT! Yes, folks, as my flimsy foreshadowing has indicated, the boot tonight is my personal favorite of the season, Ethan. As mentioned, this means that, for all the good this episode did, it now has “Jeremy Collins Downside”, which is weird, given that this season actually HAS Jeremy Collins on it. Heck, I think I may rename this “Ethan Zohn Downside” in the future. Look I give Jeremy’s boot in “Survivor San Juan del Sur” crap for a lack of foreshadowing, but compared to this, Jeremy got an entire prequel novel’s worth of foreshadowing for his boot. There was at least an entire conversation about booting him before he left. Ethan got a LINE. Literally, one sentence, indicating that he could go. Nothing else. What. A. Load. Now, would I have been happy with either of the other boots? Not entirely, but a lot of that has to do with those I WOULD be happy to see go being over on Dakal at this point. But even amongst Sele, Adam and Parvati both would have been less painful than this. Parvati, while playing a respectable game overall, doesn’t bring as much in the character department, while Adam, while very enjoyable, has been playing patchily at best this season. Both better choices than Ethan.

So, why is Ethan’s departure so painful, apart from just being my favorite? It’s the fact that he wasn’t playing badly at all. True, he was no stellar strategic genius or anything, but he seemed to be making an effort to up his game from his last outing, and making bonds with multiple people. He was targeted, near as I can tell, basically because Rob makes a better shield, and the Parvati plan got screwed due to Adam being too talkative. In other words ETHAN DID NOTHING TO EARN BEING THE BOOT! Ok, ok, to be fair, Ethan did stick loyally to the minority alliance, which is a mark against his game, but even then, you feel like he shouldn’t be first out of that group. He held his own and was helpful in challenges. He was friendly with everyone. Unless you’re in an Edgardo (“Survivor Fiji”) situation, you don’t vote out the nice guy in the minority when there’s better boots around. And true, the alliance could have been voting out of fear of Parvati having and then playing an idol, since they didn’t have enough votes to do a split vote safely, but if so, we didn’t see it, so it comes off as them sending Adam a message by getting rid of a fan-favorite winner. Hardly the dumbest move ever, but still pretty dumb, and MAN is it painful.

Much as I hate Edge of Extinction, at least Ethan gets to hang around a bit longer. He also gets to give away his fire token, and of course wills it to… MICHELE! No, no, of course he gives it to Parvati. Was there ever any doubt, with how bonded he and Parvati were?

For all my complaints, this episode is a step up from the last episode. More time devoted to non-advantage-based strategy, and a couple of fun interludes at each camp. But my longtime readers will know that, on both a micro and macro level, for me, the ending of “Survivor” is more important than the beginning. I can handle a horrible beginning if it leads to a fantastic ending, but it’s much harder to handle a horrible ending with a fantastic beginning. Guess which category this episode falls into? And yes, I am aware that the beginning part of the episode included Edge of Extinction. That was a good puzzle for them, and it highlighted the awesomeness of Natalie, so my statement stands. Yeah, not as bad as before as there are SOME redeeming qualities, but not one of the greats. I would have hope that next episode can do better, but it’s clear from the preview that Ethan has medical look at him on the Edge of Extinction, and if he gets medevaced, well, that’s just a double-whammy I’m not sure I can take.

-Matt

Title Credit to Jean Storrs.

Idol Speculation: “Survivor Winners at War” Episode 2: I Didn’t Consent

Yes, making the blog title a quote from a past season was TOTALLY something I had planned out ahead of time, and not something I noticed come up twice in a row and decided to just run with since it fit well with the season anyway. Why do you ask?

Welcome back to “Idol Speculation”, my knee-jerk opinion that everyone is entitled to. And hoo boy, do we have opinions tonight. Yeah, the love for this season died pretty quickly this time around, as aside from a few bright spots, this episode just kind of sucked. Not the worst I’ve ever seen from this show, but for a season this legendary, we can and should have far better. With that in mind, let’s take another moment to wrap ourselves in the cozy blanket of last episode, with another edition of…

MATT’S MESS-UP!

Yep, only one episode in, and already we have an error. In my defense, a minor point I wanted to comment on in an episode two hours long, but a missed point nonetheless. So focussed was I on littering in Fiji that I neglected to mention one of Adam’s best moments in the last episode. Ever suspicious of production just giving up something for free, even if it’s champagne, Adam hilariously looked at the bottom of his champagne flute just to make sure there was nothing hidden under there. I’d comment on how ridiculous this looks, but honestly, it’s the smart thing to do, and I most likely would have done the same were I in his position. We may mock you sometimes, but we love you, Adam. Never change.

Sadly, we must now return to the episode at hand, which starts off with Amber desperately trying to convince us she’s still relevant to this game, before more realistically saying she’s hoping to support an eventual Rob victory. After that unfortunate flashback to “Survivor Edge of Extinction” we get to see Rob’s side of things, as he correctly assumes that his being bequeathed a fire token means Amber is most likely no longer on Dakal. He commiserates with Parvati, and tries in vain to convince himself that Sandra might have gotten voted out instead. Gotta say, even without Rob knowing that Sandra thinks she did him dirty, that seems like a stretch. Sandra don’t play that way. What have you done for her lately? She’s much more likely to bequeath it to an ally on her current tribe than you.

Moving on to one of the few good scenes we get this episode, we get shown how Ben is changing up his game. Recognizing that his idol/immunity path to the end is A: Risky and B: Unlikely to work twice, Ben has decided to adapt his idol hunting skills in a clever new way: Build trust with others by teaching them the basics of idol finding. For all the flak I gave Ben last episode, and will continue to give Ben flak this episode, this is not a terrible idea. It builds a close bond with someone while giving you a powerful secret to share, and puts the emphasis on the social aspect, rather than the advantage aspect. Granted, it has the major drawback of helping people who aren’t you find idols, and as we saw on “Survivor Island of the Idols”, help with idols can mean jack squat, but the concept as a whole is not bad. Why he’s giving these tips to DENISE, when she comes from the era when idols abounded, somewhat escapes me, but I take it Ben is against the “Old School” players, and he does help Denise find that idol, so I can’t fault him too much.

Before we get into the catch of this idol, let me just say that I love the editing of this scene. While it doesn’t go the whole “Survivor David vs. Goliath” route of telling us about the idol find before showing us, it does surprise us with the find. No triumphant music, just the “goober” music until Ben’s tips are interrupted by an idol find. Now to the catch: Similar to how returning idols worked on “Survivor Edge of Extinction”, this idol must be split in half, with the other half given to someone else. Not a terrible concept, but I have to admit, it feels too “cute”. It just seems like a needless wrinkle complicating a game where there’s already far too many idols and advantages, to the point where chyrons need to be altered to keep track. That said, there’s potential there, since as Denise notes, it can be helpful in building social bonds. Ben isn’t pushy about getting half himself, even though he’d have every right to do so, so Denise thinks he’s on board. She talks with Adam, a solid ally, about what to do. Adam is upset about Ben knowing about the idol, correctly recognizing that Ben has not been so great at keeping a secret this season, and gets even more upset when Denise suggests trusting Parvati with the other half of the idol. Look, Denise, I’m not opposed to using the idol half as a social bond, but do it with someone YOUR ALLIANCE CAN TRUST, AND IS NOT TRYING TO TARGET! Give it to a swing vote you don’t think will screw you over. If you weren’t going to use it as insurance for Ben, then I’d say Ethan (he’s been seen talking with Adam, so he might be persuaded to your side) would be the safest bet, especially as he’s probably not cutthroat enough to screw you over, but Michele would not be a bad choice either. In the end, Denise chooses Adam, evidently abandoning the “bonding” strategy. Can’t fault it from the “Likely to get the idol half back” perspective, though.

So far, all of Sele’s content has been centered around idols and advantages. Well, can’t leave Dakal out of that discussion! After a brief interlude where Yul rigs up a piece of bamboo to get a breadfruit (a device so unwieldy that he himself admits he probably burns more calories getting the breadfruit than he would from the breadfruit), we cut over to Kim, who despite the reassurances at the end of the last Tribal Council, still feels on the outs. As such, she goes idol hunting, which she describes as a spiritual experience. Oh God, please don’t tell me we’re going back to “Survivor South Pacific” again! I can’t take it! No, the dramatic music proves that Kim finds an idol, and learns of the twist, same as Sele. Given that Yul gave Kim that reassuring pat at the end of the last Tribal Council, I’d have thought he’d be her top choice, but she goes with Sophie, his lieutenant, due to have a “connection” with her. On paper, not a bad second choice. Sophie, however, makes it clear that Kim made a terrible mistake, so her idol likely won’t help her much. Gee, so much fun to see the players I respect make moves that make them look like idiots!

Unfortunately, we now need to cut back to the Edge of Extinction, as it’s once again time to find an advantage to sell. Amber and Natalie get a nice cryptic note that does do a good job of hiding the location of the advantage, though I think something like that would have worked better if there was a way for viewers to play along. Do something similar to “Survivor Nicaragua” and release the clue online for others to try and figure out. Admittedly, since these advantages need to be found in the same episode, it would be hard to do, but you could release the clue early or something. Instead, we the audience are clued in that taken together, the first letters of each line spell “Water well”, meaning that even if Amber and Natalie can’t figure out the clue, one of them is likely to stumble across it in passing. Which, after scouring the entire island, is exactly what happens. Natalie finds “Safety without power”, meaning someone can be immune from the vote, but also not vote themselves. Not bad. At least it’s different from a regular old idol. Natalie tells us she needs to figure out who had fire tokens left, and who’s likely to buy, as there’s no restriction on which tribe she can sell to this time.

Or, you know, she could sell it to her best buddy! I kid of course. While I’m certain a personal bond had something to do with it, she DOES know that Jeremy has two fire tokens, and is on the outs due to her ouster, so he’s not a bad choice at all. Jeremy takes the time to schill for the fire tokens as a twist. Yay. It doesn’t feel forced at all.

Meanwhile, at Dakal, we get the best scene of the night. Tony, so far, has been doing a great job of changing up his game, keeping himself under control, and not making himself seem unreliable. Of course, that manic energy has to go somewhere, and apparently that energy this time has gone into channeling the spirit of Angelina Keeley “Survivor David vs. Goliath”, in and of that he builds a ladder to gather, you guessed it, more food. The thing, at first, looks pretty well put-together, and it seems as though Sophie and Tyson snarking at it is just them being their usual snarky selves. Then, as we see it go up a tree with rungs swinging free, you really start to wonder about Tony’s sanity. Even Tyson is concerned, and if the man who played two seasons with COACH is questioning your sanity, you’ve got issues.

Tony is not without strategy, however, and we get a bit of him talking with Sarah on the beach. We see that Tony has not fully learned from his past, as he doesn’t do a good job managing his threat level, wanting to go public about his alliance with Sarah, on the grounds that everyone will think that anyway. Sarah, however, rightly points out that pairs are being targeted this season, as evidenced by the boots of Natalie and Amber, and so they need to keep on the down-low. Why either Sarah or Tony trusts the other, I’m not exactly sure, but I gather this is a case of “The Devil You Know” for both of them. Needless to say, Sarah has the right idea here.

Perhaps a bit early to talk about my overall thoughts on the episode, but as I said, this is the best scene in the episode, so let me talk about what’s so disappointing about this episode: The focus. We’ve only got two people on the Edge of Extinction, but with all the talk of fire tokens and idols and advantages, they dominate the conversation. While I would not want them eliminated entirely, neither of these things should be the FOCUS of the episode. But with the exception of one or two moments, it’s all focused on idols and strategy, when a good episode, like the last one, provides a balance of BOTH human moments and strategic moments. It doesn’t help that a lot of the talk, particularly around the fire tokens, feels forced, with everyone using the “economy” metaphor. Again, I don’t think it’s a bad twist in principle, but stop trying to force it down our throats, show. It’s like medicine: It doesn’t matter if it tastes delicious, the fact that we HAVE to take it makes us hate it. This season doesn’t need to be bad, but it damn well seems to be trying to be.

On to our immunity challenge, which is a pretty good one. “Dragging the Dragons” from “Survivor Cagayan”, specifically the first immunity challenge of that season. Hauling crates on a cart, disassembling and reassembling that cart, and a sweet puzzle at the end. A solid challenge if ever there was one. While I wouldn’t say the misdirection is a STRENGTH for this episode, it’s not too bad going into this challenge. We’ve gotten more strategy talk from Sele than Dakal, but we’ve gotten enough story from both sides that either is plausible. Fittingly, most of the challenge is fairly even. Dakal pulls ahead towards the end, but then Sele comes back on the first puzzle portion. In a nice twist, however, the tribe we see strategize despite Probst’s taunting actually doesn’t pull out a clutch victory. Rob tries to SORT the pieces before putting them in, which is a solid strategy, Probst. Quit your whining. Yes, I know it does lead to a Sele loss, but I’m not sure that was the problem. Sele, as I’ve hinted, does lose, but I don’t think it was the blowout that Probst makes it out to be. Rob had a solid strategy. It just didn’t work this time. Parvati leads us out saying that one of the new school players needs to go, thereby ensuring that the boot is an old-school player this time around.

We start off with some good-natured ribbing of Rob by Ethan, before we see that pair plus Parvati discuss who among the minority should go. Jeremy is the most on the outs, but Ben’s volatility makes him a possibility as well. I would go into how Ben is the clear superior choice to eliminate this episode, since volatility is to always be avoided on “Survivor”, and Jeremy has shown a previous willingness to work with his enemies, but it doesn’t matter, because it’s clear that neither of them will be the target tonight. The mechanism comes from Danni, who’s getting particularly paranoid after all her time out of the game. Thus, since she tells us she isn’t being talked to, she’s on the outs, and needs to flip the scrip. Specifically against Parvati, since she and Parvati were apparently close, and now Parvati won’t talk to her. The issue with this is that we haven’t SEEN this happen yet! We had ONE shot where Ethan, Rob, and Parvati talked without Danni. Otherwise, there’s no risk to her that we see. I don’t think Danni’s an idiot, so I doubt this is coming out of nowhere. I’d bet money that she really was excluded to some degree, whether intentionally or unintentionally, Danni was excluded. But we didn’t see that. Instead, we had to deal with Edge of Extinction, and idols, and fire tokens. You see where I’m going with this?

Danni’s downfall continues when she talks to Ethan about the old school alliance with Ben present. Ethan, ever the charmer, tries to play it off to Ben, but even Ben isn’t that foolish. He’s now on the warpath against the new schoolers, but he may not need to do much. Ethan spilled the beans to Rob, and now Danni is back to being the target. Understandable, and good news for Adam, who wanted to break up that group to begin with. He talks with Jeremy and Michele, both of whom are fully on board. Jeremy, who we now see won the season called “Survivor Safety Without Power” (thanks, chyron), is mostly happy that it isn’t him, but he wonders if now is the time to take out a big target. Adam latches on to this as well, noting that between himself, Danni, Denise, Jeremy, and Michele, they have the votes to get rid of Parvati. Good thinking on Adam’s part, and an interesting debate. On the whole, though, I would say not rocking the boat and going for Danni would be the correct move at this juncture for the group. Yes, Parvati is a bigger target, but since this group seems reluctant to target Rob (due to his strength, and though it’s not mentioned, probably due to his wife being voted out, thereby lowering his threat level somewhat), you need a standard to rally against. Danni is not that standard. Parvati is. It would be one thing if Danni and Parvati were still aligned, and the group was deciding who to target with no other influences. But they’re at odds, and you can vote out Danni as a relative consensus boot, while still keeping the numbers against the old school players. The debate rages as we head off to Tribal.

At first, this Tribal Council seems like it will be fairly quiet compared to the previous ones. Then, of course, Ben gets involved. ben comments on the paranoia of the old school players, but makes the mistake of saying that he himself was not paranoid. Ethan jumps on this, followed by Rob and Parvati. All point out the conversations he’s had with other players, leading Ben to backtrack and say that he is paranoid. This initially seems like it will just lead to the usual whispering, but Boston Rob calls for a Hali Ford (“Survivor Worlds Apart”) strip search, asking everyone to turn out their bags. Denise, fortunate enough to be sitting on the end, is able to hide her idol behind the flap of her bag. In his one gaffe of the night, Adam weighs in on the idol debate when he didn’t need to. Drawing attending he did not need on himself, and by his actions, hinting he has an idol. He doesn’t take a lot of flak for it, but it seems to me a narrow miss.

With Ben now a target, we head to vote in our lazy urn. While this episode has many flaws, I will say the outcome is still a mystery as we vote. Heck, even Ben now returns as a viable target after his performance, but on the whole, given his strength, I’d say Danni is still the smart move. And that’s what the tribe goes with, getting rid of a consensus vote while maintaining the majority alliance. That said, Danni is the first boot I’m really sad to see go. Like with Kim so far, I’m just disappointed that a player I so respect flopped around and gave a poor performance, plus, as the first returnee from “Survivor Guatemala”, I really wanted her to do well. Hopefully this does not impact the future returnee prospects of the season.

Like I said earlier, this episode just fails on so many levels. Apart from the occasional bright spot, it was mostly forced talk about idols and advantages, leading to a depressing exit. While there are far worse sins an episode can have (this one had decent mystery at least), for a season that should be legendary, it leaves a lot to be desired. Still, I need to cheer myself up, so I say it’s time for another:

TOP 5 AND BOTTOM 5!

Ok, so I wanted to talk about this last episode, but the blog was running long. Still, the lameness of that urn cannot be denied, and must be discussed. I don’t usually talk about the urns on the show because, well, they’re usually not the focus at the point in the episode when they show up. They are an integral part of the show, though, so now we’re going to discuss the best and worst of all time, starting at the top.

TOP 5

5. “Survivor Cagayan”: With rare exception, most urns are round or cylindrical. This one, however, was basically an ominous black cube with a lot of pointy bits. Dark, foreboding, and memorable, this one was always going to be on the list. It loses points, though, for those pointy bits. While they do help distinguish the urn, it also has a lot of little details on it. Normally not such a bad thing, but it makes the urn feel “busy” and tough to look at in the brief glimpses we get on the show, which loses it some points.

4. “Survivor China”: Sort of a blend between cylinder and cube, this was an urn that was just on point, plain and simple. A faded gold look and Chinese characters on the sides helped it fit with the season, and it brought the grandeur needed from an urn. Just a solid, memorable job.

3. “Survivor Micronesia”: We’re into cylinder territory now, and frankly, the urn of this season could easily have slipped into obscurity. Seashells, carvings on the side? We’ve seen this before. The strength of this urn, however, comes when the lid comes off. While having the carvings extend up over the edge with the lid off is a bit off-putting at first, but it makes for an impactful silhouette, and helps the idea that lid and urn are meant to fit together, the carvings acting almost as latches. Clever way to distinguish it, show.

2. “Survivor Gabon”: Above all else, authenticity, or at least the appearance of authenticity, is key in an urn. With the exception of our number one slot, no season does that better than “Survivor Gabon”. The faces on the urn match those seen at the challenges and Tribal Council, unifying the season, and feel like an authentic Gabonese art piece (which it very well could be, I don’t know). That, alone, is a feather in the cap of this urn.

1. “Survivor Borneo”: Now, “Survivor Borneo” is not known for having a strong aesthetic theme. I mean, they used literal Pier One tiki torches at Tribal Council, for crying out loud! But that urn, man, that urn. Unlike most every other urn, this one really feels like it was made by some guy out on a deserved island. I think it’s the lid, coiled like a snake, that sells it. That was an art project we had in elementary school, making clay snakes, and so it adds to the idea that this could have been made by someone with materials on the island. That, alone, is enough to earn it the top spot on this list.

Honorable Mention: “Survivor Palau”: To be fair the urn from “Survivor Palau” is on theme. Using a WWII ammo box on the season centered around WWII? Can’t think of anything more appropriate. The trouble is, army surplus tends to favor form over function, and at the end of the day, it’s just a box. The attached lid is nice, but not enough to earn it a spot proper.

BOTTOM 5

5. “Survivor Winners at War”: For all my complaints, this urn really isn’t that bad. It gets the job done, fits with the “theme” of flotsam. It just feels lazy. I’m sorry.

4. “Survivor Game Changers”: I’m coming to realize I don’t like “flotsam” urns. They just feel like a way for the production department to not try to hard. Still, at least this season’s urn is functional AS an urn. It keeps the votes secret. But a lamp is, wait for it, translucent! You may not be able to read the votes, but you can definitely see them. That just feels wrong.

3. “Survivor Millennials vs. Gen-X”: Not flotsam, but just as lazy. Yeah, stick a bunch of tiki heads together, and call it an urn. See how memorable that is.

2. “Survivor Vanuatu”: This one takes the concept of the “Survivor Gabon” urn, but does it so much worse. Maybe I’m insulting a culture’s art style, but the faces on these urns just feel weak, like a kindergartener did it. And while I acknowledge the pig tusks are appropriate, they just don’t work well with the concept of the urn.

1. “Survivor Cook Islands”: Perhaps an odd choice, as this urn is nothing if not unique, which I usually like. I mean, the thing’s an envelope. How many other urns have THAT distinction? But the problem with envelopes is… THEY’RE FLAT! It’s hard enough to remember an urn when they’re 3-D. If we can’t even see the darn thing when it’s on the table with Probst, it really stands no chance at being remembered.

Honorable Mention: “Survivor Pearl Islands”: This one’s really not that bad. Nice and shiny. But this was a pirate themed season. Why was the urn not a treasure chest? FAIL!

Hoo boy, that was a rough episode. Hopefully the next one will be better.

-Matt

Title Credit to Jean Storrs.

Idol Speculation: “Survivor Winners at War” Episode 1: It Grew Legs and Walked Away

It’s only fitting, as we enter an anniversary season, that we start things off with a call back to the PREVIOUS anniversary season. It seems not just machetes, but now hatchets, are walking away from camp, explaining the utter lack of conflicts that were at all foreshadowed ahead of this episode.

But I’m getting ahead of myself. Welcome back to “Idol Speculation”, my knee-jerk opinion that everyone’s entitled to! And hoo boy, are we going to have some opinions tonight! And the rest of the season, most likely. Returnees tend to engender strong feelings, so even if this season turns out to be garbage, the blogging should be good. Let us dive in, and see whether we’re headed in the direction of heaven, or the titular garbage pile.

For being a milestone season, I’ll say that our opening five minutes are fairly subdued. Just your usual shots of vehicle porn for the show, and interviews from some of the more famous players. Mostly not worth commenting on, since they tend to be generic quotes about their journeys, but I must comment briefly on Parvati’s first confessional, specifically her “Phoenix rising from the ashes” bit. Not that I think Parvati would ever go for this, but in the vein of Davie Rickenbacker (“Survivor David vs. Goliath”), I have to say: Parvati could pull off an excellent Dark Phoenix cosplay. Come on, universe, make it happen!

Once everyone hits the sand bar, Probst briefs us on the history of “Survivor”, or at least the time scale. Yes, to bring back an “Idol Speculation” tradition, Probst is once again stealing my ideas. I wrote an article on my definitions of the different eras of “Survivor” for “Inside Survivor” recently, and used the various world milestones to have come and gone to demonstrate the passage of time. Probst steals my idea nearly verbatim, even using some of the same comparisons I have. We check in with Ethan, who reminds us of his surviving cancer; Amber mostly for the length of time since she played; and Yul, who reaffirms his nerd cred by referencing time travel. Good to know some things never change. Sandra informs us that she’s pissed at Boston Rob, since he said during their stay on Island of the Idols that he wouldn’t play again, yet is back. Could be a lie, but I don’t know. With the timing of when people were asked, it’s not impossible that Rob just changed his mind beforehand. Still, he has incurred the wrath of Sandra, and that doesn’t go away easily, but we’ll get back to that. Probst uncovers, not a reward, but champagne for the group, in celebration of the 20th anniversary milestone for the show. Everyone partakes in what is ultimately a subdued, but respectful moment, marred only by littering the sandbar when everyone tosses their champagne flutes behind them.

Probst then divides the group into tribes, red Dakal and blue Sele. Really, CBS? Those names were too complex to send out with the cast reveal? Just seems like kind of a pointless hold back, is what I’m saying. Probst goes on to explain a few new features of the season: The $2,000,000 prize (appropriate), fire tokens (a good idea that should have been saved for its own season), and the Edge of Extinction. Yes, my thoughts on this twist are well-documented, though there are a couple of points I feel compelled to comment on. One is that my stance on Edge of Extinction has softened VERY slightly, and I now mind it less on an all-returnee season, such as this, rather than a mixed or all-newbie season, like its previous iteration. You see, with returnees, we theoretically don’t need time to bond with them. We remember who they are. We already have strong feelings about them. Granted this doesn’t do much to attract new viewers, but that’s not really the point of a returnee season in the first place. Thus, unlike Edge of Extinction on any other season, we don’t lose time better spent bonding with the cast on the Edge of Extinction instead. All the other problems of Edge of Extinction still exist, so I still hate it, just slightly less than I previously expressed. The other point comes from Probst, whose phrasing implies that one no longer has a choice, and MUST go to the Edge of Extinction if voted out. This is later proven true by our two first boots, and I must admit, when I heard this, I was pissed off. One of the few intriguing bits for me about Edge of Extinction was seeing what forces, if any, would force someone to not even try for a return, particularly on a season of winners, who theoretically have nothing to prove. Then it occurred to me that no one gave up without at least going last time, and someone could just raise the sail anyway, so I got over it.

We then start off a way fewer and fewer seasons have been starting off: a challenge! And moreover, one NOT combined with the looting of a ship (or other location). Don’t get me wrong, ship looting is exciting, but it’s been overdone by this point. True, these were combined with group challenges on both “Survivor Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers” and “Survivor Cambodia”, but the effect wasn’t quite the same. The last time we had such a raw opening was on “Survivor Caramoan”, seven years ago. Overdue for a return, I must say. The challenge itself sees pairs go out and fight for a buoy in the water, trying to drag it back to a tribe-colored flagpole, with the first team to three winning. First seen on “Survivor Palau”, this iteration most closely resembles its “Survivor Caramoan” incarnation. I would complain about the reused challenge, but to do so on a season paying tribute to the show’s history would be wrong. Reusing challenges is not only expected, it’s a nice touch. I could complain about none of the winners from those seasons being present, but that’s neither here nor there.

The stakes are high in this one. Fire, as you’d expect, is the main reward, but it’s also an immunity challenge. Plus, the losers don’t even get rice until after their first Tribal Council. This gives us our first look at this season’s immunity idol, which I am not a fan of. It’s basically a skull and crossbones with some gold coins for eyes. Don’t get me wrong, we’ve definitely had WORSE idols, and unlike last season, this one seems to have had effort put into it, but there’s nothing about it that screams “Winners at War”. I think it’s the gold coins, though, that do it in for me. They just make it look tacky, and while I don’t mind a certain amount of cheese on “Survivor”, I would hope a season like this would command more respect.

There’s not that many good matches in this set up, with most of them being blowouts for Dakal. Rob and Ben do work together to score one point for Sele, but Dakal still wins 3-1, with oddly Natalie of all people losing twice. She seemed to me at the outset like the type who would dominate this challenge, yet she didn’t seem able to do much, even against Amber of all people. Weird. Just to rub salt in the wound, Probst then tells Sele that their first Tribal Council won’t be until night two. It gives them some time to strategize, but leaves them without rice for the time being.

We check in with Dakal at first, who are naturally very happy about winning the first challenge, recap us on the fire tokens, and get to building the shelter. We get our first bit of hypocrisy with Wendell, who ends up taking the lead role in shelter-building despite saying pre-season that he would not be doing so. I’m being a bit harsh, since he was forced into the role by Sandra somewhat, but still, you think he would have held out a bit more. We also get some character development, with three players who weren’t parents when they last played (Sarah, Amber, and Tyson) bonding over the ways they left for their children to remember them while they were gone. It’s a touching little scene that shows a side of these players we haven’t necessarily seen before. Less so Sarah, since she WAS a mom when she last played, but it wasn’t as big a part of her story then as it is now. Not everything is sunshine and rainbows, though, as Sandra remarks on her feud with Tony from “Survivor Game Changers”, which we are unfortunately reminded of in one of many flashbacks when players reference previous events. Ok, so this has happened a couple of times in previous seasons, but I swear it happens every five minutes here, and it drives me over the edge. With one exception I’ll get to shortly, this is retelling us information we know, and it just wastes time. I get that this is a tribute season, but since it’s a tribute season, it’s made for SUPERFANS, you know, people who already KNOW this stuff! With so many things, like Edge of Extinction, taking up time this season, it baffles me that production continues to throw in more unnecessary time-wasters than they need. Oh, and that Sandra/Tony feud? Doesn’t go anywhere. Moving on.

Sele is oddly optimistic for such a crushing first blow, with more bonding over new family members, this time between Jeremy and Parvati. It’s not as interesting (since there’s not really specifics talked about like at Dakal), so we skip right over that and shelter-building to strategizing. Or at least, people doing a dumb. Adam and Denise volunteer to go look for the water well, and on the way, Adam asks to be Malcolm 2.0. Not a bad strategy for either of them, since the pair seem to be on the same wavelength, and Denise accepts, leading Adam to appropriately freak out at being compared to Malcolm. Apart from Adam having won already, that can pretty much only be an upward comparison. However, their split from the group has not gone unnoticed, and the pair are the only named targets as we go to commercial.

Back at Dakal, we see that hell has frozen over, as Tony Vlachos ACTUALLY CHANGED UP HIS GAME! Never thought I’d live to see the day you guys, but it’s here! Tony is somehow able to control his need to do all of the things at once, and is hanging around camp rather than going idol-hunting! Both a smart move, and learning from the mistakes of the past! I never! The person who is idol-hunting, funnily enough, is Amber. She rightly figures that she’ll have a target on her back due to being, you know, married to another player. She points out that being such an obvious target should make her not a threat, but that’s the catch-22 of a couple on “Survivor”. Yes, they’re an obvious target, thereby making them not a threat, but if you don’t target them, they become a threat. Better just to vote them out to simplify things. Amber comes up empty-handed, though not for want of trying. She rooted around in suspicious-looking trees, so she’s on the right track.

It’s time to further clarify our targets and Sele. Boston Rob and Parvati are the first to put aside old grudges this time around, and agree to work together as huge threats to protect each other. This alone may not be enough, though, as Danni is the first person to float the idea of getting rid of the pairs to other people, specifically throwing out Boston Rob as an option. Again, not a bad plan, though perhaps a bit early, given that he’s been shown as your main challenge competitor so far, and you know the Edge of Extinction is coming up. Better not to piss off Boston Rob this early. I can’t fault the logic, though. However, Danni should probably have chose who she spoke with better. Ben, not doing a good job of proving that his win was not purely based on idols and immunity wins, spills everything to Boston Rob under only light questioning. Boston Rob, in turn, confronts Danni, who while saying she talked about everybody, does admit to throwing out his name. In an odd twist, Boston Rob does not swear revenge, but instead sets up an “old-school” alliance, plus Ben, with her. Seems a bit bizarre to me, but all right, I applaud outside-the-box thinking, like with allying with Parvati when no one would likely suspect it. Thus, our core now seems to be Boston Rob, Parvati, Danni, Ethan, and Ben, with whoever else they can pull in to solidify against Adam and Denise. Way to clarify those targets, show.

Of course, Dakal is not going to be left out of this action, as Yul and Sophie agree to form an alliance. Understandable, since it’s mutually beneficial. Yul needs someone who’s played more recently to help him adjust to the new twists in the game, and Yul serves as a “social shield” for Sophie, as she puts it. Not bad for either of them, and they pull in Wendell and Nick as the other singles. Plus, with the possible exception of Nick, all of them are varying degrees of nerd. As a fellow nerd, I am all in favor of the “Revenge of the Nerds” alliance. Yes, it seems Nick’s not the only one who can give his alliance dumb nicknames.

We cut back to Sele with a snake and crab engaged in battle, no doubt referencing Sue Hawk’s infamous “Crabs and Snakes” speech from “Survivor Borneo”. So, NOW we’re going to find out who’s being targeted, right? Well, we at least find out WHY we haven’t found out who’s being targeted: These people can’t make up their minds. They waffle back and forth between Adam and Denise, but non one wants to definitively say “ok, it’s this person” for fear of that making them a target. Things do seem to settle on Adam, which I do feel is the better choice. As one of the youngest people on this season, the dude isn’t going to fit in as well, and doesn’t bring much in the challenge department apart from puzzles. Not a terrible skill, but not worth keeping around over Denise, who has shown her challenge chops. Sure enough, they seem to settle on Adam, but this doesn’t sit well with Ben. Realizing that he’s going to be slaughtered unless he allies with a smart person, Ben wants to keep Adam around, and lets him know his name’s been brought up. Fortunately, the indecisiveness of the majority earlier leaves an opening, and Adam quite aggressively targets Natalie, correctly noting that she and Jeremy are a more under-the-radar pair, but still dangerous as a result. Good on him for noticing that. I thought that might slip under the radar, due to their individually memorable moments happening on different seasons. Count on the superfan to remember the trivia. Adam pitches the idea to Ethan, who doesn’t get a straight answer shown, but does pass on the idea to Rob and Parvati, showing that it’s being entertained. Boston Rob and Parvati marvel at their lack of being targeted as we head off to Tribal, with a good bit of uncertainty as to who will go. Adam and Natalie seem like the two targets, but who among them is a mystery. Adam’s had more confessionals, but Natalie did get a lot of shots in the opening challenge, and there’s good evidence as to why either of them could go. As to who should go? Well, that largely depends on who you are. Adam doesn’t fit in as well, but Natalie is part of a pair. If you’re someone who doesn’t have a pair in this game, like most of the majority alliance, Natalie is therefore the correct boot. If you’re someone like, say, Boston Rob, who DOES have a pair in this game, then you want Adam gone, as setting the precedent of breaking up pairs only hurts you and your other half. I’d say Natalie is probably the more correct decision, since the majority of the majority benefits from her exit, but there’s good logic behind both.

Our Tribal Council set this time is… a castle. Yes, an honest-to-goodness castle, complete with crenelated ramparts. You know, to honor all those humongous castles Fiji is known for. I kid, I kid. Thematic appropriateness to the location is less important on a returnee season, and the overall design is quite cool, and on a season that’s been aesthetically lackluster so far, I’ll take it. Our Tribal Council passes by pretty quickly, with a few explosive moments thrown in. Ethan talks about his culture shock at the game, but in a way that makes him seem like a naive, but learning, newcomer as opposed to a know-it-all old-timer. This is the personality Ethan needs to cultivate, and he does so with his trademark charm, so kudos on a good start. Adam once again aggressively points out the couples threat of Jeremy and Natalie, which Boston Rob deflects by pointing out that everyone’s a target on a season like this. Way to minimize your own target, Rob old buddy. And, of course, no modern Tribal Council would be complete without whispering, as Jeremy speculates with Ben about whether Rob’s pulling a fast one or not. After hearing Ethan exclaim how happy he is to be back in voting confessional, we head to commercial while the votes are tallied. While we’re waiting, fun fact: In all five seasons he’s been a player on, this is the first time I’m rooting for a tribe with Boston Rob on it from the start.

Our votes are tallied and despite Denise and Adam receiving three votes between them, Natalie goes home. As I say, it was the smart decision, and personally, I think it was the best outcome for this tribe. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t dislike Natalie, but I always felt her win was overhyped, and I think Denise and Adam are overall more interesting. I’d rather someone from Dakal went home, but if it had to be from Sele, Natalie is not a bad choice. Plus, this means I CALLED IT! I CALLED IT! I TOLD YOU NATALIE WOULD BE THE FIRST BOOT! Granted, I said she would be the first boot on “Survivor San Juan del Sur”, and for entirely different reasons than why she was booted, but still, I CALLED IT!

We also learn that our voting urn this time around is just a barrel. How exciting. Yet more laziness from the production team.

Natalie, of course, wills her fire token to Jeremy, but nothing much comes of it. Instead, we check back with Dakal, and get more clarification on the alliance divisions. Yul clarifies that his foursome is between two threesomes. There’s the “Game Changers” group of Sarah, Tony, and Sandra, proving once again that the scene of Sandra being mad at Tony was pointless. Yul, however, is more worried about the “Poker Alliance” of Amber, Kim, and Tyson. THIS is the one flashback that actually makes sense to include, as not everyone may have seen the titular poker game. Basically, Tyson joked in a game with Rob, Kim, and Jeremy about allying if they ever played again, thus getting Amber in by proxy. Yul is most threatened by this alliance, and he and his group tentatively agree to target Amber, but we cut away with no firm decision made.

We can infer that two of the three Denise votes were from Jeremy and Natalie, but who was the third? Turns out it’s Michele, who is not happy, both wanting to prove herself after her controversial win, and not wanting to go out early. I have to say, this is the one real misstep in the story of this episode. For the most part, the show has made everyone’s reasoning and strategy clear, while still keeping us in the dark about the outcome. A tough balancing act, and they do it well, with no real plot points coming out of nowhere. Michele being left out is the exception, as there’s no reasoning ever given as to how or why she was left out, and it’s a plotline I hope gets touched on next episode. Luckily for Michele, Ben, who she’s talking to, says not to worry, as he now wants an old-schooler gone, worried about their power. Not much about the mechanism for doing so is discussed, but it’s not a bad bit of strategy foreshadowing for later episodes. Also, Jeremy finds his fire token. Yay.

Oh goodie! Edge of Extinction! When we could be learning about other things! Well, we do still learn stuff. Natalie finds out that she can use fire tokens to buy advantages for later in the game, or food for her time on the Edge of Extinction. She’s unsure how to do so, but gets told to go for a walk. She eventually finds an idol good for three Tribal Councils she can sell to someone who loses the next challenge, and desperately tries to convince us she’s still in the game. Oh, Natalie. Of course you’re still in the game. In the interests of screen time, however, we wish you weren’t.

On to our immunity challenge, a tribute to obstacle courses from time immemorial, though most notably taking elements from the second immunity challenge of “Survivor Game Changers”. Not as big a fan, but fine. At least the mystery is good, as both tribes have had decent strategy talk and clear alliances formed prior to the challenge. Despite several advantages, including sitting out Sandra on a challenge that doesn’t involve a puzzle (always a smart move), and Sele losing time both in rowing and getting over a log, Dakal loses, making things much more intriguing for us. Also, props to Sele for that comeback. They were WAY behind on the challenge at the log portion. It rivals Kass’ comeback on “Survivor Cagayan”. Not surpass, mind you, but rival. Still, I have to call Probst on giving Boston Rob ALL the credit for getting people over the log. It was a team effort, and pretty much every launch was aided by Ben as well. On a more positive note, this means Denise avoids her FIRST TRIBAL COUNCIL EVER! YAY!

Dakal is a bit of a different beast than Sele in terms of strategy. There’s not much of a shift in who’s in power and who’s not, but rather who of the poker alliance will be targeted. Amber seems like the likely one, but after Sandra (purely for shits and giggles) puts it into Tony’s head that Tyson dropped his name, Tyson is now Tony’s number one target. Never change, Sandra. Tyson gets wind of this, and starts pleading for his life, switching the target back to Amber. Then Kim gets a vibe that it’s her, and has a mini-breakdown about now being in power. Yeah, this is sad to see. Kim played one of the most dominant games ever seen on the show, and while this made her a threat, I also thought it gave her the skills to survive any situation. Yet she does not handle being on the bottom well, as we see at Tribal Council.

We also find out that Natalie offered Sandra the chance to buy the idol from Edge of Extinction. I personally would have gone with Amber, theorizing that pairs would be an early target, meaning she would need said idol, and thus throw the opposing tribe (I take it Natalie still wants Jeremy to do well) into chaos. Still, Sandra is also a likely target, and a challenge sink when puzzles aren’t involved, so not a bad choice. Sandra does buy it, and again, at the price of one fire token, I can’t really fault her, given the size of her target.

But back to what I was saying about Kim. You see, unlike the Sele Tribal Council, there’s really one one standout moment at this Tribal Council, unless you count Probst throwing in more “Wow, it’s been so long since you’ve played” commentary in regards to Amber, which I don’t. No, the “Poker alliance” is brought up, and again, Kim does not handle it well, her composure cracking, and her protests that there is no such alliance falling on deaf ears. As we go to vote, of the three, I would say Amber is still the smartest bet. With the possible exception of Sarah and Tony (and despite his improvement this season so far, I would say that Tony is still considered erratic enough to not be a solid pair with Sarah), there’s no pairs on this tribe, so getting rid of them is the obvious move. Thus, Amber brings nothing to the table challenge-wise, unlike Kim and Tyson.

Once again, the smart move is made, and Amber goes home. Again, I am not sorry, and not at all surprised. Kim’s preformance does net her a couple of votes (along with one extra vote for Nick), but in the end, the tribe does the smart thing. Amber brought little of value to the game, and getting rid of her breaks up a major pregame alliance. Amber, in a shocking twist, wills her fire token to… MICHELE! No, of course she gives it to Boston Rob, what did you expect?

For all my worrying, this season is off to a fantastic start! Admittedly, there are still a couple of issues. Aesthetically, this season is just a mess, with more misses than hits, and the Edge of Extinction is still a worrying factor. That said, this season had the grandeur that an all-winners season deserves, the challenges were epic, the misdirection well-done, and the storyline mostly clear, with a few threads to be cleaned up next episode, hopefully. There’s still plenty of time to ruin it, but right now, I’d say this season is on the right path.

-Matt

Title Credit to Jean Storrs.