Okay – but why did the other tribe go along with it?
Because they thought it was the merge, and the the (former) Fang was going to be outnumbered by the (former) Kota. No matter who took it, other tribe or not, the vote was going to be decided by EVERYONE at the table.
I’m pretty sure that everyone in both tribes thought the merge buffs were going to be in the “don’t open till you’re done” box. They were all absolutely convinced that this dinner was a merge feast.
Oh. Okay.
This – and not the fact that I’m a fat middle-aged woman – is why I’d suck at this game.
And at least Randy appears to not believe that Sugar has it. In a confessional clip he said something like it was a “million to one”, or “a thousand to one” which, considering how many times they sent her to Exile Island, says something about Randy to me (too arrogant) and what he thinks about Sugar (that she’s dumb). It’ll be interesting to see if that comes back to bite him in the butt.
Kota made a good move I thought by eliminating the threat of the idol - they had the numbers so why add a new variable. They also got very lucky with the tribe divisions.
Unfortunately, they fell victim to a very common situation in this game, and one that Marcus should have seen coming and acted more strongly to counteract. Suzie clearly knew she was 6th in a 6-person alliance. Now she is 5th in a 5-person alliance. Marcus had to make an overt promise of something better than 6th (and make it in a way that was believable to Suzie - “I can’t stand Randy, can’t win a vote against Bob, and don’t trust Corrine”).
Now, I’m not sure that Suzie really has much of a better chance with her new group than her old one, but at least now if she does make the final she has a strong moment to point to and say “See, I did make a move to win instead of just riding Marcus and Charlie’s coattails”.
Oh, and props to the producers for realizing the likely incentives to throw the challenge this week and making it possible for Matty to save himself.
Valid points, maybe. At the next TC it would be absolutely the same as winning individual immunity. Beyond that…things change, alliances come & go. I might be willing to take that chance.
I still don’t understand why they never vote off the swing vote. It happens every season. The swing vote is always on the outskirts of an alliance or not in one at all, and now suddenly, she has all the power.
The four of them could of easily conspired to vote her off, while still leading her to believe that her lone vote would be ousting Kenny or Marcus. By voting Suzie off, the core of the alliance remains intact, and everyone returns from TC happy. It’s basically a “free” vote.
Sure, for Marcus & Bob, voting off Susie works out great. For Kenny and Crystal, voting out Marcus and possibly swinging Susie to their side was the much better option. Sure, they might not trust Susie, but they cut off the head off the Onion juggernaut and basically turned the Onion alliance of 6 into an alliance of 4 (-Marcus and -Susie). Now if they merge, they can possibly reconnect with Mattie and Sugar and it’s Mattie/Sugar/Kenny/Crystal vs. Bob/Charley/Corrinne/Randy with crazy Susie as the swing vote. If they worked their magic on Susie, instead of a straight Fang ouster like the game was gearing up for, we might see the onion get chopped up!
They also took their chance to get rid of a really strong competitor - well-liked, strong (possible immunity idol dominator), smart. Who’d want to sit next to Marcus at final Tribal Council?
They do – a rather good example was on Amazon, when Christy Smith (the deaf girl) was all giddy to be the swing vote (“I have the power, whee!”), wouldn’t commit to one of the factions (the Evil Stepsisters and the Robfather) before TC, so they voted her out.
I cheered when the final Marcus vote showed up - just because it will make the final episodes much more exciting. Susie greatly improved her position. Not only did she give herself some strategic credentials, she (in theory) is a part of a 5-member majority alliance that doesn’t have much against her.
Still, she has some serious maneuvering to do. She needs to stay with Fang and vote off a few Kotas (Randy and Charlie would be a good start) and then hope that she can shift the power again to put herself in an alliance that will actually get her to the Top 3. Status quo will kill her. She needs to shake things up as much as possible and try to make herself look good in the process. Uphill battle, for sure.
I find it odd how the original Fang and Kota tribes have completely disappeared. They all see themselves as members of their -second- tribes. Has that ever happened before? Initial tribal lines being completely forgotten?
The last three evictions significantly improved the path for the remaining “strong men”… this is shaping up to be a very interesting stretch run.
I realize I am late to this party, but it is not often I get to post some real Straight Dope on anything. The helicopter mount used to shoot that footage is found here. The same type was used to film some of the amazing, amazing footage for the BBC series Planet Earth. An absolutely incredible piece of technology.
OK, this may seem like an off the wall question, but does anyone know if the producers of “Survivor” supply basic human hygiene items to the contestants, such as toilet paper or tampons for the gals? Wow, I hope so.
Yes they do. There is an off-camera crapper, and they get basic hygiene supplies.
Ah, but remember the cardinal rule of Reality TV: What you see is probably not what actually happened, or at least not in that order. I don’t personally remember the details…was he wearing the Kota buff in that confessional? Because if he wasn’t (or if there wasn’t any visual cue to exactly when it happened) it’s entirely possible that the aired confessional was from back when Randy was in Fang, after Sugar came back from Exile “Island” the first time.
Cite for the off-camera crapper? I know they get basic hygiene supplies (and rumor has it, unlimited condoms!), but I’ve never heard of a Survivor bathroom. And a hole in the ground with a box over it (which was shown on-camera in one of the earlier seasons) doesn’t count.
For the crew, yes. For the survivors, hell to the no. This year they got more than they usually do, with the premade huts. Usually they get a map, a machete and some rice.
Well, then, no to the crapper. 
(That’s what I was thinking of.)
But they have said frequently that the females have access to basic hygiene supplies and, I believe, birth control supplies. I know they have basic medications available for those who must use them. I’ll dig up the cite when I have the time.
There was one season where a tribe won an outhouse at a reward challenge. They voted to use it only for dry storage (it rained a lot wherever it was), but one of the tribe members took a dump in it anyway. I seem to remember the line “I feel ten pounds lighter” afterwards.
And I’m convinced they give the contestants toothbrushes & toothpaste. Their teeth look way too white in the confessionals.
I don’t know. I’ve seen way too many shots of survivors brushing their teeth with a splayed stick to believe that.