Danni’s implosion on Survivor: Winners at War is the perfect example of self-sabotage. Her Survivor paranoia kicked into overdrive! She got inside her mind, created a narrative that wasn’t true, and then manifested her elimination by planting the target firmly on her back. Danni’s elimination is one of the fastest boots since it all crumbled within one round alone. The drama at the Sele tribe surrounded Danni – much of the plot of “It’s Like a Survivor Economy” focused on her demise.
Going into the third round, Danni had a perfectly comfy position. The Old School players (Parvati, Boston Rob, and Ethan) were going to protect her since they needed her vote, and the New School players didn’t see her as the biggest threat on their tribe. All Danni had to do was sit back and let the others pick each other off before she could emerge to claim the prize. However, she got inside her own head and tried to make a move out of desperation instead of strategy.
Don’t get me wrong, the trio of Parvati/Boston Rob/Ethan is a powerful force and Danni was at the bottom of that group, but to take out someone of the trio, you have to do it subtle and without notice. Danni openly went after Parvati and campaigned to her own alliance. What was she thinking?! She should have followed Ben and Adam’s approach of keeping the background conversations going to see if Parvati was the better choice. Danni needed the New School’s votes to make it happen, not Old School. If Danni had only taken a breath, assessed her situation, and then worked in the shadows if she wanted Parvati gone, she would’ve achieved her goal. This hiccup showcased that Danni had a great season on Survivor: Guatemala, but she’s not naturally a strong Survivor player.
Arguably, the New School players chose wrong in voting out Danni. The New School players should’ve made the move to get out Parvati or Boston Rob since they were already establishing a firm grip on the tribe. They had the chance, and waiting to another week might not work out in their favor; history has shown that those who keep waiting eventually get the boot themselves. These winners need to stop acting like newbies and go for blood!
Plus, they had the perfect opportunity to blame an elimination on getting Boston Rob out based on his performance during the immunity challenge. Let’s face it: Rob choked big time on the puzzle! It was a clean sweep victory for the other tribe as Rob and Denise slowed down to solve the puzzle. Who else was shocked to see his poor performance?
A perfect example of this was Rob’s antics at Tribal Council. He knew his alliance was in danger and he had to get the focus off of them, so that entire scene of everyone dumping out their bags was an orchestrated move. He wanted to flush out the idol and put the target on someone else. That scene alone should’ve convinced the New School players to band together to get out one of their biggest targets. Players like Boston Rob and Parvati will do whatever it takes to win; they won’t hesitate to get out someone like Adam or Denise to survive a week.
Over at the Dakal tribe, Sarah and Tony should be worried about associating so closely together. In addition to their time on Survivor: Second Chances, they also have history from their first season. If the players needed to break up a strong group, separating Tony and Sarah is a powerful move that would help them in the long-run. Survivor: Winners at War teased that fear of the others spotting their alliance – that is a foreshadowing if we’ve ever witnessed one. There could be a plot in the future that finds this duo in danger.
At the Edge of Extinction Island, Natalie made the right call to give Jeremy the secret advantage. This power is essentially a hidden immunity idol! He’ll buy himself another week if he gets scared, and that will provide more support if Natalie ends up finding more advantages while on the island. If Natalie does get the chance to return, she’s setting herself up well by finding powers for Jeremy and Sandra. They’ll know that she has their backs and that they can trust her.
Advertisement
“It’s Like a Survivor Economy” captured the sheer essence of Survivor paranoia. It starts out with a thought, then the fear, and then followed by the mind spiraling in circles as you get more desperate to stick around. Danni destroyed her chances to win as it brought her to the forefront of everyone’s targets. And with Survivor: Winners at War still so early, everyone is looking for any reason to vote someone off. Danni should’ve learned from the past to play in this new version of the game.
Advertisement
