April 22, 2010

Didn't See That One Coming!

There was a lot of very interesting play going on in tonight's Survivor.  Thoughts after the jump.

Props to Danielle for not falling for Parvati's coy "Do you want me to win?" overture.  Why yes, Parvati, I do.  I want you to win the entire game and take home another million, so I'll just climb down this pole for you and peel you some grapes at the bottom.  Danielle did the smart thing and insist that she win the challenge since Parvati had the hidden idol.

As Tribal drew closer, I grew more and more certain that Parvati was going to see through the Heroes' ruse, divine that they were voting for Jerri, and give her an idol.  But I never dreamed that she'd give both of them away!  That was possibly the boldest move yet at any Tribal Council.  She knew that the Heroes wouldn't vote for Russell.  That left two choices.  Covering both bets, and using up both idols in the process, was genius. If she plays no idol and lets the Heroes vote out Jerri, her idols only save her twice.  Playing both idols tonight puts the Villains up 5-4, giving her four more Tribals as they proceed to pick off the remaining Heroes-- assuming nothing dramatically changes.  Which, in Survivor, is a horrible assumption.

The crestfallen looks on the Heroes' faces as the second idol came out were priceless.  Really, guys, you had it coming.  And it was very fitting that J.T. was the idol's victim.

But now she's got no more protection, and the Heroes were gunning for her already.  If the tide changes-- and the previews certainly suggest that Sandra is eager to flip and oust Russell-- she's in trouble.  And so the game is now Sandra's to lose.  She's about to start playing the very same game that won her the million in the Pearl Islands.  There are 4 Heroes, 4 Villains, and Sandra.  She's the free radical, the swing vote who's only too happy to give her vote to either group as long as her name isn't written down.  If she's smart-- and she's certainly proven herself to be in this arena-- she'll keep swinging back and forth between the groups.  I'm not sure how she manages that once Russell's booted and it's 4 Heroes, 3 Villains, and her.  But there are no sharp tacks on the Heroes tribe anymore.  When Rupert's the one sniffing out the rat, you know that treemail isn't going to be delivering your tribe an invitation from MENSA.  So when it comes to Sandra's chances at this point, honestly, I wouldn't bet against her.

Posted by Peter at April 22, 2010 10:47 PM | TrackBack
Comments

I'm wondering what Russell's plan was (and how much he knew). Assuming he didn't know about Parvati's idol, did he really think the Heroes were voting for Parvati? Surely he realized that if he was wrong, it would be a 5-5 tie, and the jig would be up for him-- and likely in the revote Sandra would flip and he'd be immediately gone. He said he had no plan B, but I'm kind of skeptical. Or else he really has just been getting by on luck all this time.

I agree, Sandra's still the favorite. I'm not sure why she didn't call out Russell publicly, though. It would have been pretty easy to disprove his story, I think, but leaving Rupert to try to make the case clearly didn't work. Was she that afraid of Russell, or did she not think she would fare well with a dominant Heroes faction?

I think Colby's a dark horse, if he can snap out of his befuddlement and remember how to play, or at least how to win challenges. With JT gone, it's between him and Russell for any non-endurance physical challenge. On the other hand, I could totally see him getting played like a fiddle by Parvati.

Posted by: Doug Orleans on April 23, 2010 8:54 AM

First off, thank you very much for putting the content behind a jump; being in the UK, I watch the show online via http://www.realitytfan.org/ and your posts normally show up through my feed reader before I've had the chance to watch the show.

When I was watching the show, I wondered if the people on the bench would have been able to hear the comment during the challenge and then operate on the knowledge that at least one hidden idol existed. Seems not to have been a factor in practice, though.

Really enjoyed JT's play this series, even though it didn't work out for him; always fun when people try imaginitive things. I hope he's recognised, even if not necessarily rewarded, in the "player of the season" vote.

Russell needs to do something soon, as it's becoming more and more clear that he's not nearly as much in control as he thinks. Wonder if he's going to start looking for Hidden Immunity Idols without warning again?

Posted by: Chris D. on April 25, 2010 7:57 AM