What would you guys think of this “twist” in Survivor rules: after the merge, maybe for a few immunity challenges, whoever wins the immunity challenge gets two more immunity necklaces that he/she can give to whomever they want.
It would be interesting to see how the dynamics would change. I think it might make alliances more strong, since if you have a strong three person alliance any one from that alliance winning means you are not going home.
It would also mean that it would be harder for the larger tribe going into the merge to just vote off the other tribe one by one.
Of course, Survivor has been on for 19 seasons so they must be doing something right, so no need to change the rules. The above was just a thought. Wonder what you guys think about it?
One question: Does anyone know in how many seasons they did a pre-merge tribal mixup?
This season they did not. I wonder what makes them decide to mix up the tribes or not. I assume the pre-merge mixup is done to break up solid alliances so that after the merge the bigger tribe doesn’t vote off the other tribe one by one. Maybe this season they saw that the larger tribe was not cohesive enough for them to worry about.
I thought the rules for when tribal shuffles and merges are planned ahead of time and not subject to meddling once the season starts.
As for playing the idol, I think Russell made the right move. We’ve seen again and again that anyone holding the idol ends up being blindsided.
Unless everyone is a brainwashed moron, the argument to get rid of an idol holder is extremely compelling. Even the implication that someone has an idol usually spells doom. The proper strategy is to play your idol the moment you feel unsafe so next week your threat level goes down.
Also, Russell knows he can’t pretend to be a bumbling idiot forever, so he came right out and told everyone at tribal council that he is playing to win. My prediction is this will also end up being a good strategy, because if people are paranoid and insecure, it is likely something will open up each week to allow him an opportunity to continue in the game. He just needs to charm simpletons like Shambo, deal strategically with smarter players like John, and make Laura believe she is using him while she is really cutting her own throat.
The fact that Erik could get completely blindsided is the reason Russell played the idol. In other words, he knows the “talk around camp,” could just be what they want him to hear so he assumes he’s safe. Yes, that’s paranoia, but if Erik had displayed a little more of it then he might still be playing.
I’ve never heard that, and I think its been apparent at times that the producers mix things up as needed to keep the show interesting. At the very least they can affect the timing of a merge or shuffle, and I’m sure they do so.
Regarding Shambo. I think that she needs to give back her lesbian credibility. How many lesbians do you know that look like her that haven’t played softball their entire life?
I’m not sure it was. Sure, the way it turned out, he didn’t need to use it. However, when weighing the two options, I think he’d much prefer using it and not needing to over not using it when he had the chance. He was a little paranoid but that also just shows that he’s paying attention - obviously Erik wasn’t. And, as CCYMan noted, if Erik had been more paranoid it would have turned out differently.
It’s to Galu’s credit that they pulled off such a smooth move. (and I do credit Galu, and not Foa Foa, with being in control of this particular tribal council.) Galu had to hustle to come up with plan B when Laura won immunity. They managed to do that while keeping Russell in the dark, and making him feel vulnerable. (FWIW I rather enjoyed seeing Russell in a confused state after watching him run circles around the other Foa Foa members.) Galu also managed to keep Erik unaware of what was really going on so that he felt safe and secure, when he really wasn’t. And Galu didn’t let Shambo in on the deal because she simply can’t keep her mouth shut. It would likely have blown up in their faces if Shambo had known the truth. That was a lot of maneuvering to do successfully in such a short time. The result was they were able to dispose of both secret immunities in one blow. And even if it hadn’t worked perfectly, i.e. if Erik had also played his immunity idol, they would have still gotten rid of both secret immunities at once, and Jaison (from the opposing tribe) would have gone home as the one receiving the next highest vote count. Absolutely brilliant. Even though Galu has cracks, they really displayed a great skill and power by pulling this off.
I just can’t figure out why Erik was targeted. Besides having the idol, was he deserving of getting voted out at that time? Had he made enemies?
And yeah, Erik’s facial expression really cracked me up when he got voted out. I guess I liked seeing a trash-talking arrogant jerk get a reality check. OTOH I have a soft spot for Shambo. Yes, she may be clueless, and bungles things, but she hasn’t intentionally tried to harm anyone.
remember the conversation involving clueless Shambo:
Shambo: Who’s Erik?
Shambo: Our Erik?
She WAS told about the plan, yet she is SO FUCKING DENSE to not vote with the bloc. She voted against the bloc. HOW FUCKING RETARDED CAN A PERSON BE? after being told Erik is going and then voting Jaison. Does she want a bigger target for not voting with the majority? Seriously my fucking hate for all Shambo is beyond intense. It’s like the raging burning of the fucking sun when i see her on the television. most clueless Survivor ever. and I mean ever. No one will beat her in future versions because no one is that stupid and clueless, no one.
I’m sure she knew who Erik was, but was so astonished that Galu was going to start eating their own that she momentarily thought that there was another guy on Foa Foa she hadn’t been introduced to. I don’t think she’s that dumb.
how can you not think she isn’t dumb? I know the Erik reaction was a wtf? on her part.
The total dumb part is SHE WENT AGAINST the majority. Not the Erik, who’s Erik comment. how fucking dumb do you have to be when you go against the plan of the majority? YOU ISOLATE YOURSELF and will get picked off. the MOST clueless Survivor contestant ever, just by that one Jaison vote. She was told Erik will be going out. She voted Jaison. She’s on the chopping block in a few weeks just for not voting with the majority. Am I the only one seeing her as a clueless douche that can’t do anything right?
broke scuba/fishing gear, lost a fucking chicken… T ball goes 3feet and to the side… like wtf you guys secretly love morons? OH OH and the comment after she broke the scuba gear.
all paraphrased from memory
“there’s good news and bad news guys”
“bad news I broke the scuba gear”
“good news is there are a ton of fish”
WTF??? it’s the fucking ocean, of fucking course there’s a ton of fish in the ocean… did you catch any? NO… TOTAL DOUCHE…
Wasn’t it Jaison’s idea to target Erik? It went something like this, IIRC: Erik was being a dick to Jaison, Mick and Natalie as a group, telling them they’re worthless, they’re gone. Just after, Jaison tells Mick and Natalie, “hey, let’s target Erik”. After some discussion, they sell the idea to Russell. Next, Natalie goes to the girl-power Galus and offers the votes of the four Foa Foas to blindside Erik. She tells them Erik wanted to get rid of one of them, which pisses off that clique toward Erik, so they agree. After some internal discussion, the girl-power group runs with that idea, and the rest (and Erik) is history. You have to give some props to the Foa Foas for twice coming up with the ouster plan then selling it to one of the Galu groups. Classic.
it was Jaison. He knew that the stupid threat Erik gave them to vote for their choice was redundant. Jaison said to the camera that they’re already screwed they dont have to listen to this guy’s threats. They should just vote him out. He got the ball rolling and everyone soon caught the fever everyone but my favorite retard of a contestant, Shambo.
I didn’t record it so my memory of it might not be so good. But wasn’t there a specific comment by someone in Galu to NOT tell Shambo what was going on, to keep her out of the loop so she wouldn’t ruin the plan?
I think it must be the “clique toward Erik” part that I’ve missed. I could see why Foa Foa didn’t like Erik, but what was it about Erik that made the Galu members side with the Foa Foa members? And why would Foa Foa have that much power that they could convince Galu to get rid of Erik? In the case of Laura we were shown how the vote against Laura had evolved and developed. But Erik? Granted, I didn’t catch every show, but I couldn’t see where Erik had that many Galu enemies that they would plan such a sneak attack on him. Not that I’m complaining, because it really was the best laugh I’ve had in a long time.
As for Shambo, I thought the jaw-dropping shocked look on her face was a clear indication that she had been explicitly told by all the others (Galu) to vote for Jaison. Of course I could have misread it, but after Laura’s immunity victory, then the confusing scramble to hatch plan B, Shambo’s surprised look seemed to me as if they had all told her (and Erik) to vote for Jaison while they all secretly planned to vote another way.
And yes, I do give Foa Foa some credit too. I agree they played it well for being down so many members. It’s just that I was even more impressed with Galu this time.
The Boys Clique (BC) railroaded Shambo into (their puppet) leader, which made the Girl Clique (GC) irked and suspicious, so there was already some history there. When Foa Foa approached GC with news that Laura had been the designated chump until she’d gotten immunity, and that the boys were planning to pick them off, that got their attention. Then the Foas (in the form of Natalie) offered up a plan to put a stake through Boy Power that night by nuking Erik with Foas help. That’s it. I don’t see that much more is required. There was already some suspicion, then Natalie tells them the truth about the failed Laura ouster, and offers to collaborate. GC liked the idea of a first strike against BC, so that did it.
Early in the episode they said something like “who the hell cares what Shambo does” and something along the lines of “let her vote for Probst…”
I think the usual and ideal vote out when teams merge is strongest threat in immunity challenges. Hence, the gang up on Erik at an opportune time. Plus, in this episode he was edited to look like doing too much scheming, although it was Evil Russell who chose Laura and her gal pal to be up for the chopping block, the way people changed it to make it look like Erik was gunning for Laura’s pal who I think is Monica (?). So the girls were kinda on edge hearing that revelation. I didn’t think it would be a romp vote, almost everyone voted for Erik, only erik and shambo voted jaison. The guys on Galu prolly thought it was best to get rid of a competitor, Galu girls did it cuz they thought Erik was gunning for them and Foa Foa was more like threaten us and we’ll do whatever it takes to get you out sort of deal.
The jaw-dropping shock on Shambo’s face is evidence of her utmost cluelessness to what the majority wanted. Even after the fact that someone told her Erik was to be voted.
I actually think Foa Foa are the stronger ones in the game right now, since they’re the ones that have done most of the scheming and voting. They’re used to this game more than the comfortable Galu. Erik was way too comfortable and got totally blindsided. Evil Russell used his HI to stay alive even tho it wasn’t necessary. But had votes gone his way he would have stayed in the game. He was right to be paranoid and playing the tribal council game for so long had got him prepared. Old Galu tribe needs to pick up their scheming game up a couple of notches to compete with the remaining Foa Foa.
This is why you can’t really judge a season until the merge. That’s when the real game starts.
And I wanna join the Dave Ball fan club. He’s my favorite, and my favorite to win. He’s weaker than the other men, so he’s not a threat, he’s likable, and he’s a pretty good schemer without acting like a schemer. Although everyone Jeff says Dave Ball I want him to raise his fists in the air and yell "Dave Ball!’ (ala Steve Holt!)
Okay, that makes sense. So, the 3 of Foa Foa (not counting Russell*) teamed up with Galu’s GC (not counting Shambo). That’s six votes to knock out the BC’s solid block of 4. But I just didn’t see it being presented onscreen as clearly as you described it here. For instance, the scheme against Laura was clearly spelled out for the viewers. But the plan to send Erik home was not so obvious to me. The rumblings against Erik were just rumblings IMO, nothing so clear-cut. It could just as easily have been Dave Ball who got voted out, because he’s also a jerk. (Or is he just better at flying under the radar?) Ah well, I’ve probably gotten so used to the editors throwing viewers a curve ball that I didn’t pay much attention to the relatively mild rumblings about Erik. Even Russell heard so many different scenarios he wasn’t clear about what was really going on. I do know there was some dislike of Erik, but that total slam dunk was something I didn’t expect.
And how did Erik decide to vote for Jaison? I can’t imagine he came to that decision on his own without discussing it and getting agreement with others. That’s why I think they at least told Erik they would all be voting for Jaison, which is also why Erik directed so much of his trash-talking towards Jaison at tribal council. Erik was gloating, very sure that Jaison was going home in a few minutes, and was giving him the royal goodbye speech.
Anyways, I didn’t like how the guys just decided to exclude and manipulate the women, so it’s fine with me that the guys’ alliance fell apart so quickly.
I really thought I heard more than that. But maybe I just imagined it, (something not unheard of, unfortunately :().
Yes, I do agree with this. It was Russell, along with the agreement of the other Foa Foa’s, who first planted the idea in Galu that Laura should be the next one to go. Then the BC went along with it because it worked so well with their own plan to get rid of the GC. When Foa Foa first hatched that idea I thought, “oh man, no way is Galu going to ever fall for that one.” I was very surprised when it worked.
You also make other good points about Foa Foa’s skill and strength. I’ll admit they did good, which is especially impressive considering their relatively weak position. But in the end I probably credit Galu with putting on the final touches. Those 6 Galu members (not counting Erik or Shambo) scrambled like mad, pulling together into one very solid block, kept Erik clueless about it, (and Shambo just kept herself clueless [snicker]) and Galu also kept the usually wily Russell off balance until the end. And in the process they got rid of both HI’s. Ha. Nice.
(BTW and FWIW, you don’t seem to be posting drunk now. :D)
*I wrote “not counting Russell” because he didn’t really know what was going on. I imagined for this vote, instead of Russell telling others who to vote for, the others were telling Russell who to vote for. He just went along with it, but still(perhaps?) wasn’t sure his own head wasn’t on the chopping block.
:D)