Next Time on…..Survivor!!
Brandon stops catching fish and starts catching heat. The Dragon Slayer now wants to be called Zeus.
Why do I have a feeling that the producers of Survivor, in their confessional interviews and upon viewing the dailies, determined that there was no way in Hell that anyone was actually going to turn on Coach at this point and ordered up a double elimination to hasten the end of the Savaii tribe and move on to some actual excitement? I know they say that things like double eliminations, Challenges and other pieces of the game are determined before the game starts, but methinks there was something at work here.
Regardless, we have moved out of the boring part of the game that I spoke about last week and that arises when one tribe has dominant Numbers over the other. I did, for a moment, think maybe Sophie would flip, or at least Cochran and Albert would vote with Dawn, but then I remembered that it didn’t really behoove then to do so. 98 times out of 100, it is better to eliminate the entire other tribe as soon as possible. It can be argues that Cochran should have tried to improve upon his seventh place position, but once he knew Albert and Sophie wouldn’t jump, he had to remain part of the pack. I expect that moving forward we should see some excellent episodes as Albert and Sophie move against Coach, Brandon’s head finally explodes, and Ozzy tries to get back into the game. Just try to ignore the fact that Rick is still playing.
Odds to Win
The complete elimination of all of my preseason favorites moves apace. This is the issue with making three of my Top Four from the same tribe, and then having that tribe make a dumb move in eliminating Ozzy instead of welcoming Christine into the fold. To maintain some prediction integrity, I really need Albert to pull out a win. This may be becoming more difficult as each episode passes and easy targets are eliminated. Now with Savaii gone, how do the former Upolu members now stack up?
Sophie: 5-1. It appears my newfound faith in Sophie was warranted as she stepped up and won consecutive Individual Immunities. I might argue that she is not necessarily in the best position as Coach’s side of the alliance (Coach, Brandon, Edna and Rick) is airtight, and with those Challenge wins she has shown herself as a force to be reckoned with, but she has deftly recognized herself as the swing vote, and was smart enough to pull Albert back from moving against Edna before Savaii was wholly eliminated. Now, can she persuade Brandon or one of the others to turn against Coach, or alternatively, stick around long enough for Ozzy to come back into the game? Maybe she has something else up her sleeve. Regardless, Sophie has the momentum right now, so she is the lead horse in this race.
Albert: 9-1. Albert, let’s talk. I’m worried about you. You seem like a great guy, and someone who should be dominating this game. Perhaps, in a non-veteran-returning season, you would be. Unfortunately, you have to deal with the Cult of Coach on your tribe. Yes, you recognize this and are trying to do something about it, but you have been unsuccessful twice now, and have only earned suspicion in return. Moreover, you have been, well, piss poor in Challenges. For an athlete and the most fit person in the game, you should be performing better. True, baseball doesn’t offer the skills necessary to balance a bowl of rice on your head, but come on, man. You better shape up soon or else you’ll find yourself over at RI.
Coach: 10-1. I’d like to think that as a student of the game, I would be able to suss out Coach and not fall for his charm and bring an offensive against him. More likely, however, is that I’d realize that he would always be a target and flying under his wing might not be the worst thing. Dude is dominating, and every time someone seems to stray, he throws out a well-timed threat, and everyone falls back in line. I still can’t make him the favorite as somebody out there has to realize that if he makes it to the end, Coach will win, but I’m running out of excuses.
Edna: 30-1. For some reason (likely the HII), folks are targeting Edna instead of Coach. This makes no sense to me. Edna is not a threat, neither in Challenges or to garner votes at the Final Tribal Council. The time to blindside Coach is quickly passing. Now may be time for Edna to jump off the S.S. Coach, and side with Albert and Sophie. Edna, be the swing vote from here on out and at least you’ll have made a move that might win you some votes in the end!
Ozzy: 45-1. Unsurprisingly, Ozzy won the three-way Duel. Now he must do the same against Dawn and Whitney. He has to hope that the Duel is not an endurance one, as he will likely then be eliminated — women always dominate endurance Challenges and Dawn and Whitney have already proven themselves in that area. Ozzy will likely make his way back into the game, and if he does, he will be formidable.
Rick: 59-1. Last week, my bit on Rick was: “……………………………….Hug……………………………………… And so ends Rick’s contribution to the show this week.” Oddly (or perhaps not), I can write the same for Rick this week. Seriously, biggest waste of casting ever? I can’t get on the show because of players like Rick?!?!
John: 62-1. I have to come to grips with the fact that Cochran will likely make it to the end of the game, and the fact that he might actually deserve it for actually making a move during the game. Tell me how he doesn’t at this point? Yes, everyone keeps saying Cochran is at the bottom of the totem pole, but is he really? Coach is suspicious of Albert, and therefore Sophie as well. I guess, maybe Cochran might win some votes for persevering and actually lasting all the way to the end, but he certainly won’t be winning any of Savaii’s votes on the Jury. So, it might behoove whomever makes it far to take Cochran to the end.
Dawn: 86-1. Poor Dawn, her ambivalence about flipping sides eventually did her in. Survivor rewards those who make bold moves, not those who dither and then regret. It’s a shame because I really like Dawn. Perhaps she will be granted a couple endurance Duels in a row that could see her back into the game. Likely, however, she will be throwing her buff into the fire next week and getting gussied up for the Jury. If so, it was a good run, Dawn. I wish you had made it farther.
Whitney: 87-1. See “Dawn” above (especially the gussying).
Brandon: 202-1. Was that a Brandon-free episode? I mean, no episode is wholly Brandon-free, but that one was pretty darn close. And you know what? I enjoyed the heck out of it. Evidently next week we won’t be so lucky, but I do expect that whatever happens in the next episode will define the rest of Brandon’s game, and whether I have to be sincere and actually give Brandon a shot at winning this game.
That, everyone, is this week’s Survivor. What did you think of the episode? If you were Albert or Sophie, would you have made the move against Coach this week? Does really anyone outside of Sophie, Albert, Coach and Ozzy have a chance of winning this game (and yes, I know I have Ozzy outside of the Top Four)? What did you think of the “rice on the head” Immunity Challenge? Do you miss Reward Challenges as much as I do? If you were Edna or Rick, would you make any attempt to upset the apple cart in the name of making a case to the Jury? Please leave your questions and comments below. I’ll be back next week with another recap. Until then, I’m off to pose atop a pretty damn tall palm tree.
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