Nice episode. Loved the twists, made it really enjoyable to watch.
For the short run. The inherent flaw of the best players getting squeezed out is still crippling the show, though. More and more annoying with every passing season.
Luckily, in the early rounds, "best" just means strongest on the male side, and with the females it was strictly an age split, with Ami masterminding a coup last week which will keep the older women in control. So at least there, the better players are staying.
But as the weeks roll on, better will also include smarter, so their days will be numbered, too.
John made a wise choice with the immunity necklace in one sense--more on that in a minute--but it could be the death knell to Ami. She was already likely to stand out as the person to beat, and John just christened her. The one person least likely to get any votes. Because she's got everyone in love with her. Dangerous position. She did not need the publicity.
Now John. I was rolling when Dimples asked who would have figured John would be so sharp. Not me, that's for sure. And I still think he's pretty simple, though he clearly sees his way through some situations.
He was completely blindsighted the first week, though, and his remark that he "could care less" (sic) which woman won the immunity was revealing. He couldn't figure out that the same age cleave was underway in both tribes, and if he wanted to come out on top after the merge or the resort, he needed a few young ones left among the women if he was losing them all among the men? Did that require a rocket scientest?
Still, he was pretty impressive being so bold and direct to sort the women among voting lines--not so smart, I would say, it was pretty obvious, just ballsy to step right up and demand it. (And how stupid was Mia not to get it even as it was underway?)
But then what did he do with it? All that just to stay neutral? What a waste.
Not that neutral wasn't completely unwise. In one sense, it was brilliant--nice way to weasel out of a sticky situation. But there's not going to be much point in staying neutral with the younguns endangered species in both tribes?
Meanwhil,e, I adore Ami.
She was brilliant last week, and last night . . . one of the gutsiest moves ever at tribal, taking on a member of her own rickety alliance like that. Could have easily blown right up in her face, but she ended up melting stoneface Twili like a stick of butter.
This woman can read people. And appreciate them.
Regardless of the game, I just love what she had to say. I love how she saw two people boxed into a deathmatch and saw a third way.
She's really something.
(I didn't see last week's episode till Tuesday, so I didn't comment, but I was stunned by her performance, then as well. She single-handedly appeared to save the older crowd. They were dead in the water, about to get beaten 5-4 and picked off one by one until the teams are resorted, and she figured out the one way to turn it around, to lure the key player into switching sides, at least temporarily. Few people could have masterminded that, I think, and she did it without even looking like the svengali.)
And it was certainly fun to watch Eliza stupified at the council vote. Good God, Lisa made exactly the same move she did the week before, for exactly the same reason. The possibility had not occurred to her?
She got played so badly last week by Ami, and it sure didn't take long to come around and bite her in the ass.
Poor Brady. I have two characters I'm in love with this season, one of each gender, and the one I enjoy looking at will be lucky to survive more than one more hour of airtime.
And now he's going to least effective approach ever, fishing his way out? No one has ever succeeded with that.
If he's lucky, he might buy himself a little time, though. Maybe he can convince them that their are two young bucks left, so why sacrifice the food provider first?
Except John isn't much of a buck. Just a peabrained prettyboy. In spite of digging the best and lucking out when Chad screwed up his puzzle, he appears physically weaker than many of the old farts, and I have yet to notice any athletic prowess. And then theirs that brain of his, or whatever it is keeping his skull balanced.
Maybe Brady can convince them that by voting off two strong guys, they've neutralized the threat, so they might as well keep one strong person to win challenges. I would buy that, I think. Especially while John K is available for booting. If they dump John, Brady is all alone as a young one, how much threat is he really? So they can afford to keep him around to win challenges, and maybe fish, too.
I'd buy it.
But these people don't like to take chances. They'll probably ax him next. He has got to work really hard to win immunity challenges and pray a team shuffle comes quick. Maybe he'll be smart enough to ally with the older crowd this time. Over there, it's not strictly an age thing--more a maturity thing--and I think he would fit in better with the older women than the young ones anyway. Plus he will charm their butts off.
Maybe he could ally himself somehow with Ami. What's the chances of a Brady/Ami final?
About zero. But it would be the best Survivor ending ever.
Which is why it will never happen. This show is designed to destroy them both quickly. But Ami has cheated death (to her alliance) already. She may still surprise us. Brady--not a chance. We'll miss you, bud. Even if you are engaged.
Update:
I just watched both castoffs on The Early Show and they were gracious and self-deprecating. I like them both a lot better. (I always kind of liked John P, even if he was incredibly dense in his conversation last week with the chubby guy who said he was too strong. That "So if I had kids . . ." question was a total Doh! moment.)
And John informed us that Sarge had come to the four young guys day one--literally--suggesting an alliance, but they snubbed him. What was their plan? An alliance of four, in a group of nine? Surprises me that Brady could have been that dumb. At least he wasn't go that route, but trying to stay neutral, apparently. Has he seen the show before?
(Brady was also completely unconvincing in his appeal to Sarge this week. I saw no merit to his "argument" whatsoever. Still, he consistently seems like the sharpest mind out there other than Ami. And I'm getting over his scrawniness in the eye-candy competition.)
And the group comment thread ended up here this week.
Dutton (Penguin) in early 2009. 
