Karma is a funny thing in the game of Survivor: no matter how much you think you can avoid it, it always finds its way back to deliver cold justice. This is exactly what we witnessed in the fourth episode. The events of last week’s EPIC Tribal Council, and the betrayals made by the castaways, came back around to send one player home in a jaw-dropping move. It’s not so much the decision to get out the player that was surprising – it’s simply the events leading up to their torch getting snuffed. I loved every minute of it…
J.T. is gone. Farewell. Goodbye. The Survivor: Tocantins winner got voted out in another dramatic Tribal Council. After his jaw-dropping (and equally head-scratching) elimination on Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains, I expected him to have learned something from his past mistakes. Suffice it to say, he trusted the wrong people and failed to make the right move when it was seriously needed. I’m not saying J.T. is a bad player; in fact, he has a good social game and he can charm people. He did win a Survivor season, after all. It takes a lot of manipulation, relationships and luck to pull that off. Though, after this experience and the previous one, he may not have the killer edge we once thought.
This elimination stems all the way back to the extra-large Tribal Council. Sure, J.T. being the sole new member on his tribe is one of the reasons he got the boot. I can’t deny this fact – it’s staring us all in the face. However, the moment he got up from his spot during that big Tribal Council to talk with Brad lit a match that slowly created a fire. He spilled secrets of Sierra being targeted and tried to lie, but it was too late. He created doubt within his tribe; they couldn’t fully trust him anymore. He’s lucky that Aubry sided with him and gave him a fighting chance to stick around – it’s more than most could’ve ever achieved in this crucial moment. And I’m impressed that his charm and reasoning was starting to work. He kept fighting to the end.
Though, this would be like any other Tribal if it had not been for the hidden immunity idol. J.T. found the idol and DIDN’T PLAY IT! As a diehard Survivor fan (and a competitive person), I can tell you this: ALWAYS PLAY YOUR HIDDEN IMMUNITY IDOL! I had to uppercase this because this is a standard Survivor rule. If there is even a slight chance that you think you could be going home at a specific point, you need to use the idol. J.T. KNEW that the vote was split between himself and Michaela – and yet he still chose not to play it. Blame his ego or trust (I heavily lean to the former), but he made a huge mistake by not seeing this dangerous move. And he didn’t even bring his idol to Tribal Council. I mean…really?!
Sandra is someone who continues to impress. I think after two victories of playing the “anyone by me” strategy, she’s taking a different approach this time in Survivor: Game Changers by being the one to make the strategic moves. She’s so far helped to get rid of Tony and J.T. I’m not sure how I feel about her instigating the sugar fight. While it did create tension between J.T. and Michaela, which led to his vote off, it put unnecessary attention on Sandra. She admitted to the drama at Tribal and let it be known that she caused it. Sandra’s ego could be her downfall. After two victories and a growing target, I wouldn’t be surprised to see her go pre-jury.
The same goes for Michaela. I loved her expression and attitude during Tribal Council! Every minute she had the cup in her hand and stared Jeff down made the scene extra perfect. And her flipping her hair in J.T.’s face is a GIF-worthy moment. We don’t need these theatrics for a Tribal Council to work – they’re dramatic and intense on their own. However, I appreciated the added laughs to a serious moment like this.
Debbie, on the other hand, is destroying her game. I haven’t seen someone in a while crumble under the pressure of their own paranoia. This is the moment that Debbie became, for all intents and purposes, a “goat” this season. No one will vote for her to win Survivor: Game Changers. She’s let her emotions rule her mind and attack the people around her. And let’s face it, she lost the challenge for her tribe – there’s nothing she could say that would hide the truth. I would be surprised if she made it to the end. I think she’ll make it to jury, but she’s a bit unpredictable and if the events of this week are an example, there’s no telling what she could do next.
We need a tribe merge or a tribe swap ASAP! Ever since the third tribe was created, they’ve been on a consistent roll by dominating the challenges. The last thing we want is for one tribe to have it easy all season long and Ozzy being a part of their group could be a reason why. Let’s shake things up and keep these players on their toes for another week. I wouldn’t mind seeing the groups brought back to two tribes or the groups merging into one whole group. We’re nearing the jury phase anyway. Hopefully the producers have something in mind to keep the momentum going…
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