Gotta hand it to the editors on this one… I really thought Reed was going home. Didn’t seem like the time for Jon/Jaclyn/Missy/Baylor to flip, since that would just put them at 4 against 4 (Reed/Alec/Keith/Wes) with Natalie as a wild card, but maybe they figure Reed will stick with them (which is a dumb assumption IMO). But I do like that these are clearly fans of the show who are making big moves.
Josh and Jeremy have to be sitting at Ponderosa thinking “dang man, weren’t we the leaders of the two alliances? What the hell happened?”[/spoiler]
I have to say, that was entirely unexpected. And I still can’t figure out any solid reason for the 4-some (plus Reed) to do what they did. Unless they got a very strong indication from Reed that he was with them (but why?), it makes no sense to make that move now. Jeremy and Natalie were as locked down and predictable a vote as you could hope for. Pick off a few more of the outsiders (ideally eliminating an idol if possible), and then make your move at 6 or 7.
Maybe somebody can convince me that this vote helped Jon or Jaclyn win, but I’m not seeing it right now. It could marginally help Missy/Baylor, since they would be much more likely to get votes over Jon/Jaclyn in a final TC now. But the only reaction they really showed was Natalie saying “WTF Missy”, and they made a point of how she was the initial bond with Jeremy and Natalie… so I’m not even convinced it helps her.
I just am really confused, and tempted to chalk it up to insecurity, paranoia, and general bad play.
I was confused when one of the Alliance of Six (Baylor, maybe?) wanted to split the votes 3-3 on Keith and his son. Er. The other side had FOUR votes. Didn’t it strike you at all that your idea was, well, less than bullet-proof?
Also, I missed the vote-reveal at the end. Can anyone tell me who voted for whom?
I didn’t like Jeremy ever since his tearful send off of his wife to exile island in episode one. Dude, you’re not sending her off to the front lines, she’s going to sleep outside for a night, grow up.
There’s no one I really like on this season. I’m kind of pulling for Keith because he seems to be pretty sharp with his use of the idol.
Note to Probst and the other producers - having a challenge be done with your feet isn’t “making history”. It’s just a new challenge. And there certainly was no need to say it twice.
I am puzzled why Reed thought the challenge was custom made for him - is he some kind of foot juggler? Or a monkey?
Jeremy - Missy, Baylor, Jon, Jaclyn, Reed
Reed - Wes, Keith, Alec
Keith - Jeremy, Natalie
Very strange voting patterns, to me at least. Somehow the other part of Reed’s alliance decided to vote for him. Jeremy and Natalie were led to believe Keith was the target (perhaps with Reed joining them to get enough votes for a 4-3 split vote or perhaps just a straight-up vote and hope he doesn’t play the idol). Then the 4-some switch it to Jeremy and get Reed to come along.
But now it’s 5-4, and I don’t see why Reed would stick with his vote from this week rather than go back to Wes, Keith, and Alec (other than the fact that they all voted for him…).
Reed definitely got the biggest boost here, since now the Missy/Baylor/Jon/Jaclyn group really needs his vote, and most of the folks that will be on the jury if he sticks with them would be much more likely to vote for him than anyone else left, it seems.
I actually thought it was made for him too. He’s a dancer, I think, and holding your feet steady up in the air like that seems like something right up that alley.
My thinking is that Alec/Wes/Keith voted for Reed because they figured that’s what the majority alliance was going to vote for… it was a pure “not me” decision. Wes/Keith might have been extra mad at Reed if they figured out that he was the one going through Keith’s stuff (though they didn’t show that, just that they knew someone had).
Reed did tell Missy/Baylor that Keith had an idol, and they might have well told the rest of their alliance, leading Jeremy and Natalie thinking the vote was for Keith to get him out before he played his Idol. Obviously, four of them instead decided to team up with Reed to blindside Jeremy instead.
I don’t think it’s the smartest long-term plan (I agree the best move would be continue to vote out Reed/Alex/Keith/Wes, then blindside Jeremy when possible) but I guess Jon got so spooked by having to lie about his Idol to Jeremy he wanted him out ASAP. Still, though the decision was poor, the execution has got to be one of the best blindsides I’ve seen.
If we’re working under the assumption that the eventual winner has to get some screentime throughout the whole deal, it’s either going to be Jon, Missy, or Keith. Wes and Baylor haven’t gotten much (though Baylor’s had a bit), Jaclyn didn’t get much until the whole “they’re not talking to me” last episode, Reed didn’t get any until Josh got voted out, and Natalie’s barely gotten screentime (despite playing a much more impressive game than I was predicting from her time on TAR). And Alec has no chance.
I think Reed’s now with the couples, if only because the rest of his alliance just threw him under the bus with their votes. Either they voted for him because they know he stole the idol instructions from Keith, or they voted for him so that a split vote would send Reed home instead of forcing Keith to play his idol. Either way seems like a burned bridge between them and Reed.
I guess that leaves us with John & Jaclyn, Missy & Baylor, and Reed vs Keith & Wes, Alec and Nadia.
I agree that the majority alliance made a mistake blindsiding Jeremy too soon… But I’m glad they did; it makes for better television!
Jeremy kind of rubbed me the wrong way, and I’m not sorry to see him go. Natalie *really *rubs me the wrong way, and I laughed out loud at her “What the f**k” comment. Missy and Baylor are two of the most worthless players ever, and I’ve been annoyed watching them ride coattails, and Jon and Jaclyn barely have personalities. So I was not looking forward to what seemed to be a lock for the final six.
I think that’s probably right. I commented early on that not working together was going to doom the outsiders, but I didn’t even consider that Jon/Jaclyn/Missy/Baylor would flip on Jeremy so soon.
Absolutely. He seemed to have no idea he was going. What a crappy couple of days…
That’s probably right. And I guess I could find a rationale why everyone in that new majority would prefer that to the alternative one with Jeremy and Natalie. Missy and Baylor now have a plausible goat and a clearer path to final 4. Reed now has a chance to make the final TC with a jury full of his former alliance. Jon now doesn’t have to worry about lying to an alliance member about an idol, and he’s also the strongest physical player in his alliance.
Thank you for the vote recaps’! I hadn’t realized Misty/Balylor had flipped, too. I agree that the others on the minority alliance were just making sure it wasn’t them who went.
How it will play out I don’t know, but I’d love to see Jon/Jacklyn taken out soon, they’ve just been too smug about their votes deciding everything the past few TCs.
Damn, does giving away your reward ever not blow up in your face? If Jeremy keeps his spot he never goes to exile, never gets the chance to realize Jon is lying about the idol and lives another day, maybe goes all the way; I thought he was the smartest guy out there. Of course, if Boobs n Lips didn’t walk off the show he would have (prolly) been voted out that episode.
It probably does help the season because it looked like at least some Pagonging was in order (although it might just be different Pagonging now), but MoonFamily is bummin’ – we were rooting big time for Jeremy. Jon, dumb as a rock IMHO, may have stumbled unwittingly into a good situation. Jeremy is the guy you want gone and there wasn’t a better window for a blindside, even if it seemed too soon.
Perhaps you all have discussed this before. I keep puzzling over the apparent willingness to keep people in the game who will have a “loved one” on the jury. I would think all the singles would get together and work to get rid of all remaining pairs. Is it too early for this? I just can’t see how going to the final voting with someone who has a guaranteed vote can possibly be a good thing.
You are absolutely right, but there were only four singles before last episode: Alec, Reed, Jeremy, Natalie. Now there are only three. And also, Reed doesn’t even count because he already has a loved one on the jury.
I think now your best bet as a single is to get to a final 3 (are they doing final three again?) where the other two are a hated couple (see: Missy/Baylor or Jon/Jaclyn perhaps).
I truly have no idea which way the groups will break down next episode, which is a good thing for me but has to be nerve-wracking on the show (and didn’t have to happen…). I think a core of Jon/Jaclyn/Missy/Baylor/Reed probably makes the most sense for all of them, so that’s the way I’ll bet at this point. Which kinda stinks, because I don’t really want any of them to win…