S28.E06: Head of the Snake

[liqidclark]

As long as we're speculating bout the new idol, I'd love if it was some kind of power that was more negative than positive. It'd just be cool if there was a chance that finding an idol would be a burden more than a power, like drawing a Monopoly card with the knowledge that you could go straight to jail. It's too much of a no-brainer to look for an idol at this point. Why not complicate things?

Edited April 3, 2014 by Liqidclark

[Tara Ariano]

Here's Trip's post on the episode!

[Eggman]

The most common "special power" doled out at this point in the game is challenge advantage.  Another possibility could be "pre-vote" immunity, rather than "pre-reveal" immunity which we now have.  I sure would have to have a "post-reveal" idol in the game, but they might do that too. 

Plenty of men have done things just as stupid as what Kass did last night and been denounced.  Playing the gender card is unwarrented.

ETA:  one thing that would change my mind, as suggested, is if Kass somehow successfully pairs with Trisha and takes that pair deeper into the game.  I don't think that's a jury-winning strategy, but it could take her further.

Edited April 3, 2014 by Eggman

[nutty1]

Not sure if this belongs here (maybe we need a speculation thread?)

No clue what it means, but Spencer follows Kass, Tasha, J'tia, Trish, Jefra, Morgan & Alexis on Twitter.
Kass follows Jefra, Woo, Cliff, J'tia, Tasha & Spencer.

 

I am still scratching my head about Kass. She was in a solid 3, no where near the bottom of the pack. They had the numbers, and that gap would have even widened more had they voted out Jefra. Though she preached about looking into the future, she did anything but. And if by some miracle, she is in the F2, there are 5 votes she will not get!

[FineWashables]

I think that Kass figured she was making a big strategic move when actually she was justifying acting from wounded pride.  The thing with making a big strategic move is that you've got to time it right.  Flipping when it will put you sixth on a team of six doesn't make much sense. Flip when it's 3 vs 4 maybe, but this was way too premature.  See: Cochran's first season.

[threebluestars]

I think the idol power will be that you can present it after the vote is read. I think that would lend itself to some great tribals IF the person who had it kept quiet about having it. The blindside expressions would be awesome lol.

[FineWashables]

That's a great idea, threebluestars.  I wonder if the idol winner gets two votes once they present the idol at Tribal.  Or maybe the idol winner gets to share immunity with the person of their choice.  

Edited April 3, 2014 by FineWashables

[Way Wes Jr]

I’m actually angry after an episode of Survivor.  That doesn’t happen  (and I’ve only bailed on a couple of seasons (Hantz related,),) and it isn’t as if I am rooting for a particular player (or against one either.)  Sarah and Kass both played so poorly this episode it just is pissing me off.  I think I now understand why John Cochran’s flip in S23 garners (still, to this day,) such strong debate. 

When the show stopped giving local-lore challenges, and thus giving the contestants a chance to learn a smattering of local languages, we started getting these god-awful portmanteau names.  I am going to protest by refusing to use their tribal name.

Black Buff Tribe

1. Tony (1 Solana)  You played your HII, which was a mistake (just showing it would have been enough - but I can understand you thinking that their “other choice” would have been LJ.)  But you’re in the 3-2 majority of your core alliance, and you can get rid of Kass before her vote becomes important.  (Your comment to Sarah regarding how much she’ll be needed once it’s 6-4 shows you understand this.) Unless you want to keep Kass as a goat - in which case Trish and you probably offer her more (demographically) than Jefra and LJ.

2. Trish (4S)  I have to give the casting folk more credit than usual.  Almost everyone shows flashes of strategic thinking - even the mactors.  I thought you were an overly emotional player who was willing to sacrifice numerical advantage to “likability.”  But you were patient, observant, and when the time came you played Kass like a marionette.

3. Kass (1 Aparri)  Are your eyes green?  ‘Cause the jealousy monster completely derailed your game.  You’re ranked third because I think you’ll make the final three as the goat; I agree with Spencer that you have NO chance of winning.  When the final vote was revealed, there really wasn’t any discussion, they all knew it was you.  To keep this post reasonably short, I’ll talk about why I think you royally screwed up in your thread.

4. Woo (5S)  You may be in greater danger than this - I think you are capable of dominating the Individual Immunity challenges, putting a target on your back - but you’re the third member of the “Brawns” who will have the sub-majority within the (now) dominant alliance.

5. Jefra (3S)
6. LJ (2S)  Providing this is the final six, you’re the rogue immunity threat.  And, while much like Tony’s playing of his HII, your revealing and playing yours was understandable, it was a much bigger mistake for you to do so.  If there is any way for you and Jefra to reconcile with Jeremiah and Morgan, you could pull off a truly memorable blindside/game change.  Unfortunately I don’t think that’s in the cards.

7. Morgan (4A)
8. Tasha (2A)  Neither of you will be viewed as immediate challenge threats.

9. Spencer (3A)
10. Jeremiah (6A)  While I think Spencer is possibly a bigger immunity threat than Jeremiah, I’m guessing that Tony and company will react more stereotypically and target Jeremiah first.  And was Jeremiah floated Jefra as a target first, then Spencer made the argument on the grounds that the Solana’s wouldn’t predict her as a target, and that she wouldn’t be the recipient of a HII play?  So,so close.

GONE Sarah (5A)  In the interest of brevity, I’ll write more in your thread, but you were doomed once you told Tony you were a floater.  (Is this a Big Brother discussion?)  Much like Christy in the Amazon, if the swing vote doesn’t commit early, they really are in danger from both sides.  (Or at least one side plus a subset of the other.)

[Turtle]

 

Folks just don't like to see women of a certain age behaving in a certain fashion, and haters are gonna hate.

I am a "woman of a certain age" (well, almost), and my issue with Kass is that she acted emotionally; she was mad at Sarah and pissed that Tash seemingly sided with Sarah, and so she blew up her alliance and quite likely her chances in the game.  It has nothing to do with her gender or her age - she made a dumb decision.  Kass thinks she's a lot smarter than she is, and I think she'll pay for it.  

I listen to the Rob Has a Podcast recaps, and they've discussed the "special idol" pretty extensively.  

Apparently, Tyler Perry tweeted Jeff that it would be great if the HII could be used after the votes are read, and Jeff thought it was great, and so that's what it's going to be.

I think it's terrible and I am not looking forward to it.  

[EC Amber]

Given the endless stream of vitriol spewed in their direction, I am starting to wonder why any woman over 40 would want to be on this show. Kass and Trish seem to split the vote for most hated survivor still there, and I am baffled as to why. I am 100% behind both these women....This apparently earns them zero respect.

I can only speak for myself, but the many qualities you rightly listed for both women have nothing to do with why I have slid from liking Kass as a player to thinking she is a horrible player. Why she earned that has nothing to do with her gender or her age (and I'm a middle aged woman myself) and has everything to do with how poorly she read the Sarah, how poorly she handled Sarah and perhaps the most disappointing: how poorly she handled herself. I agree with many of the assessments of Kass here, none of which seem to list her age or gender as her flaws - she didn't think about the long game, about how easy it would be to take Sarah out one vote later. How her flipping ruined one of the tightest alliances in the game, certainly the tightest of this season. She just made horrible decisions. 

As to Trish, I mostly like her. But again, it's not about her age or gender, but I LOVED how stealthy she was at getting Kass to flip. She was instrumental in absolutely destroying the tightest alliance of the season, of regaining the power for her tribe and she did it by sitting and watching and then whispering just a few idea into Kass's (already receptive) ear. 

[Eggman]

I don't know how PTV feels about offsite interviews (forgive me if I sin) but here's one that suggests that Kass felt threatened by Sarah's social game, such as it may have been. 

http://xfinity.comcast.net/blogs/tv/2014/04/03/survivor-castaway-sarah-kass-was-wreaking-havoc-around-camp/

"Spencer, Jeremiah, and I were very close out there. And we said we’d take it to the final six as a group. Then as a threesome, we had discussed getting Kass out earlier because she was causing so many problems around camp. And not just with me, she was just wreaking havoc around camp. I knew it was not going to end up good the way it was going."

It's a double-edged sword.  You have to spend time with people and enjoy their company to bond with them to the point where they are part of your game.  It's hard to do what without other players getting a feeling for what is going on.   "I've been replaced" might have felt more real to Kass than we know.   That, and Kass might be the more difficult person to be with on the beach.  Of course, these interviews tend to be self-serving.  It's a data point though.

 

 

[truthaboutluv]

Kass is by no means dumb, as she is an undefeeated trial lawyer. I know lawyers get a bad wrap, but to be an undefeated trial lawyer is no small feat.

 

I don't care about Kass' age or how successful she is in her everyday life. My comments are directed solely at her actions within the game of Survivor and as such I found her vote last night to be incredibly stupid and will call it so. Just like I called Eric the dumbest Survivor player I had ever seen when he gave up his immunity necklace and then naturally, immediately got voted off. What's worse about Kass' action to me is that I saw it not as naivete, an inability to play the game, general cluelessness. No, in my opinion it was done out of nothing more than ego and so no, I have no respect for that and yes will continue to rank her along with other players throughout the years, that I consider to have made some of the dumbest Survivor moves ever. She showed herself last night to be egotistical and petty.

[Cricketoo]

Thanks, Eggman, for that link.  I thought from the first that Kass probably had some reason to think she was not as tight with the other brains as the editors would have had us think.  She might have been right that this was the time to get rid of Sarah, because it was Sarah, and not Kass, that was in with Spencer and Tasha.  I hope she finds an ally in Trish.

[picklesprite]

Judging by the interview that Eggman linked, Sarah still hasn't a clue about how she contributed to her own expulsion. And of course now I want to know about all the other ways Kass Kaused Kaos!

As for gender or age bias, I'm older than Kass, and similarly gendered, and let me just say that if I ever behave like that, ya'lll are welcome to call me an idiot.

[FineWashables]

Yeah, I agree that it's impressive to be an undefeated trial lawyer.  But that doesn't always seem to work on Survivor, and I think it's the emotional interplay that makes it different.  Brad Culpepper is a lawyer with an impressive record, but on his season of the show, he came across like an arrogant, somewhat stupid douchenozzle.  Kass's skills don't seem to be transferring very well either.

[JustAlison]

 

The "hater" label suggests knee-jerk non-thinking reactions.

I have always thought the phrase 'haters gonna hate' spoke more to coming to conclusions based around things like gender and age, and then finding evidence to support those conclusions, and refuting evidence that didn't, thereby allowing one to 'hate' on. MMV.

 

Last week, Trish was presented as screechy and vindictive.

based on what we were shown, she didn't seem to be a pleasant person

I didn't see any evidence of this from Trish. In fact, I think this more accurately describes Lindsey in their row after tribal.  I thought Trish was enjoying her moment in the sun, after being the crap on the bottom of Lindsey's shoes for days, and |I remember her saying 'we are one tribe now, and we need to work together'. She may have been gloating a little, but she wasn't screeching, to my recollection. I haven't found Trish to be remotely vindictive, and in fact find her quite matter of fact in who she votes out. She made a brilliant move in reaching out to Kass, and single-handedly did what Tony said he would, and couldn't. 

I also think it's quite possible Kass didn't feel quite so secure in top three with the brains as alot of folks outside the game seem to think she was. It wasn't only Sarah that Tash sided against Kass with, she had done the same thing with J'Tai, and Spencer didn't seem to be going top 3 with Kass. 

[Haleth]

Sarah may well have thought she had something going with Spencer and Jeremiah, but it could have been the guys' way of schmoozing her. Who knows at this point? What is true is that Kass panicked and didn't think through the consequences of flipping prematurely.

[Wandering Snark]

As for the tug-a-war of who gets to be the might swing vote between Sarah and Kass... both seemed to covet the position about "affecting the game and 5 people's future in the game!" But they did so w/o considering how it would affect them. This amazing power really comes down to who gets to throw themselves in the mud for the others to walk over mud-free. As mentioned it last exactly one vote, so that's why it was so foolish of Kass to go from a power position to a subservient position scrambling for the new people to take you in or the old people to take you back. After you get yourself out of the mud and look around realizing nobody else has any mud on them you quickly realize now you're on your own having made your "game changing move".

[Hera]

I completely agree that both Sarah and Kass played badly this episode. Sarah should have played both sides and let her vote at Tribal Council speak for itself and then tried to smooth things over afterwards—"Yes I voted against you because I saw you shouting 'TOP FIVE!' last week" or "Yes, I voted against you, because I promised to stay loyal to my original Aparri tribemates." She may not have been successful in the second part, but she would have at least still been in the game. Whoever said that swing vote = bottom of two alliances was right on the money. She was in a King-maker position and nothing more.

But as badly as Sarah played (at least she took her ousting well), I think Kass was the one who really botched it up this week. She was perfectly happy to accept Jeremiah's speculation that LJ had an idol, but wouldn't listen to Sarah about who she thought they should target from her original tribe. Sarah was right about who they should go after, even if she was dumb about hidden immunity idols (but if the alliance of six had been really clever, they could have used Sarah to spread false information about who the target was and tried to flush an idol on top of getting someone out). I'm also not sure why she decided to be so frank with Sarah about thinking of her as a risk to flip. Once again, Sarah was right: comments like that are what alienate people and make them want to flip.

As a result, Kass just went from top three (probably) to sixth. And Spencer is right that she has no chance of winning this game. It probably wasn't the smartest thing for him to say, but I understand his frustration and could see myself saying something similar in the heat of the moment. The people she just screwed over aren't going to vote for her if she makes it to the end, and the members of her new alliance who go out before the finale will probably prefer to vote for the people they played with longer. I'm not sure what she thinks she can do to turn this around, but I'm looking forward to watching her try.

Tasha is probably the one I'm rooting for right now, though she's been pretty non-existent from an editing standpoint, so I don't have much hope for her. I've never cared much for Spencer (I read his bio at the start of the game and the whole thing put me off him) and while she didn't handle things especially well when people on Luzon refused to have "private conversations", she's managed to avoid being in any real danger, despite her choice in alliances. Furthermore, she—unlike Kass—understood how to play Sarah. I don't blame her for not realizing that she also needed to be reassuring Kass. Everyone thought that she, Spencer, and Kass were tight. Who knew that Kass would be so short-sighted and petty about letting someone else call the shots for one vote?

Edited April 3, 2014 by Hera

[leighdear]

K-Ass was definitely playing the short game of immediate gratification versus the long game of possible wins.  

I agree with others, it's strange to see that coming from a lawyer.  Her trial record notwithstanding, she's already damaged her career.  The excuse "I was editied to make me look bad" won't fly.  Those words came out of her mouth.  She obviously doesn't need the money or a good reputation in the future.  

[Eggman]

Oh my.  From http://robhasawebsite.com/survivor-cagayan-2014-exit-interview-sarah-lacina-voted-out-merge/

"The first day that I was with her [Kass], after the tribe swap, one of her comments to me was 'you better hope we win, because if you don't you're going home'."

"you just couldn't say anything right to her."

I'll be very interested in seeing Kass' edit going forward.

[marys1000]

I thought last nights flip was sort of weird.  I feel like I just don't trust the edit. 

How many times did they show Kass trying to get Sarah to tell her why they shouldn't vote out Trish or Tony and Sarah  not really giving a satisfactory answer?  She said Trish and Tony weren't threats when clearly they are.  And it was pretty freaking obvious that the subtext there is - "tell me why you refuse to consider Trish in a way that makes me feel like you don't have some sort of secret alliance with her or Tony?"  Because I felt like that's what Kass was expressing and Sarah didn't say the right things.  Everytime Sarah refused to consider them period dot fuck you I'm not going to vote for them - its like a huge red flag.  I totally got where Kass was coming from and I think that Sarah is the new person, she should be "sure, I know I'm an untested tribe member for 6, just tell me who to vote for".  I feel like Tasha should have backed Kass up on that. 

Again with the edit, why did they only show just Sarah and Kass to deciding who to vote out?  Clearly a lot more was going on.  The back up plan to vote out J what's her face was pretty good, I expected it to be the other guy with the idol. 

And for Sarah to be all "oh I gave my word to Kass why wouldn't she trust me" when in all the talks with Tony and everyone it seemed like at some point she might be willing to flip.  Again was it the edit?  Sure sure I know she was supposed to be just stringing Tony along blah blah but I think Sarah was just as likely to flip at some point as anyone. 

Not that I think flipping was smart or right but I don't get all the Kass is such a bitch.  Sarah seemed both a little  untrustworthy to me and she was just as hard headed and my way or the highway as Kass. 

I think Tony has played a pretty smart game but.....its all coming from kind of  a creepy place.   Trish's edit was less annoying, no more laughing and shimmying up to the guys.  Uh....did anyone notice the front of her bikini bottoms when she was talking strategy?  It sort of uncomfortably made me think of her "I'm a man" comment. 

I don't feel like we've gotten to see some of the players much.  Kass is getting a ton of screen time but so was Sarah.  To the point where I was really surprised to see her go. 

Edited April 3, 2014 by marys1000

[Hera]

I totally got where Kass was coming from and I think that Sarah is the new person, she should be "sure, I know I'm an untested tribe member for 6, just tell me who to vote for".  I feel like Tasha should have backed Kass up on that.

Except that Sarah was the swing vote. Until her squabbling with Kass began, she was the most attractive option for each side to try to get as their sixth. All they wanted at this point was numbers, so while there are strategic concerns about idols and immunity threats, the most important thing is to get someone—anyone—from the other alliance out. Once you've done that, you can (in theory) dispose of the person who swung to your alliance whenever is convenient. So it makes sense to let them choose the target to keep them comfortable with you. It's exactly what Trish did to Kass: "If you could vote anyone out, who would it be?" And it worked.

I get what you're saying about Sarah's intransigence when it came to voting out Trish (she was all for voting out Tony, as I recall) and how it can look suspicious, but on the other hand, after this vote, the rest of her alliance could have ditched her (or voted out Trish) if they were worried about it.

[dolphincorn]

 

I have always thought the phrase 'haters gonna hate' spoke more to coming to conclusions based around things like gender and age, and then finding evidence to support those conclusions, and refuting evidence that didn't, thereby allowing one to 'hate' on.

The phrase simply means that it is a futile endeavor to argue with someone who chooses to view everything from a negative standpoint.  As the adage implies, those people never change.

I suppose that many of us have an issue with your original post because we've all argued the lack of logic in Kass' decision to flip.  And for someone like me who was rooting for Monica last season (despite how much everyone hated her on the TWoP forums), it's kind of insulting to be told that I have a an age/gender bias toward Kass.  I hate her because she sucks at Survivor.

[Nutjob]

 

As a result, Kass just went from top three (probably) to sixth.

This is really it, isn't it? She would have maintained her majority alliance without even breaking a sweat had she just voted Jefra. Now, she's either the outsider in an established alliance or will have to fight her way back into her old alliance and have even numbers. She let her personal feelings for Sarah get in the way of her gameplay, and I'll be surprised if she can better her position more than a spot or two.

[faceupandsing]

My gut reaction after watching this episode was that Kass made a horrible call that will cause her to be voted out in 2-3 votes but now I'm not sure. I still don't think she's in a good position to win, but she might be able to outlast some of the old Brawn heavy tribe.. Tony and LJ just flushed their idols, if someone else manages to find the Super Special Idol of Unknown Powers, I think they'll be big targets not only from the opposite alliance but from people like Jefra Trish and maybe even Woo who don't want to compete against the extra muscle. Plus if Tony is this annoying from one hour of footage a week I can't image living with him at camp would be very pleasant. Kass is still going to have a hard time getting jury votes, but I could see her forming a final three with Jefra and Trish to make it to the end. 

In other news I really enjoyed this immunity challenge, simple challenges are so much easier to follow than the obstacle course/challenge in 4 parts they seem to do often. I think Probst's twitter mentioned everyone having the option to wear shoes, Woo just happened to bring those super handy sock/shoe athletic hybrid which was very well suited for this particular situation. 

[HurricaneVal]

I'm still scratching my head over last night.

I've never seen anyone go from the top of the heap, catbird seat, to the dumpster so quickly.  Kass was sitting pretty as a very tight alliance of three inside a fairly good alliance of six.  That's a very strong position in the game.  But she blew it with her paranoia, and by doing so, screwed her other two alliance mates, Tasha and Spenser.  You could see it in Tasha's eyes as she was trying to get Sarah and Kass to kiss and make up.

Sarah, also, should have just kept her mouth shut and went with the majority six on her alliance.  Who the hell cares who's on the "other side" when the tribes merge and who goes?  Per the Sandra Credo ("anyone but me") it makes no difference if it is Tony or Trish or LJ or Woo.  To argue differently just shows your new alliance that you're really not in their alliance and are thinking of potential allies on the other side.  Sarah imploded herself.

I missed the initial steps of the Tony/LJ bonding, but now that they've exchanged HIIs in TC in front of witnesses, I think that makes them officially married in some cultures.  I have three questions.  Why did Tony give the HII to LJ?  Why did LJ give his HII to Tony?  Why did Tony use the HII when all the shouts of "the other one, the other one!" when he revealed his clearly told him that nobody was voting him that night?  I don't get it.  One thing that came out of this, is now there will be a pretty tight bros alliance between Tony and LJ--which is kind of dangerous considering they're probably the biggest, strongest guys out there now.

I was impressed with Tony at the IC.  They've done that challenge--or a very similar one--before.  I was convinced that a smaller woman would win, or Woo because of his surfing/martial arts background.  I was right, but I pegged Tony to go out first, not be Woo's main competition.  How crazy was that sudden burst of wind that came up and tossed everyone around.  At that point, I don't think Woo's fancy foot shoes helped him, unless he also wears them when surfing and is used to them.  They offered protection when on the tiny ledges, but may have been a liability on the top of the floaty thingy.

[susannot]

I'm not impressed that Kass was supposedly an undefeated trial lawyer.  Before my retirement, I was a trial lawyer.  My colleagues and I had a saying that a lawyer who bragged that he or she had never lost a case was a lawyer who had not tried very many of them.  I'd love to know how many cases Kass actually tried to a verdict.

 

Damn, girl, I was rooting for you but you just pulled one of the most bone-headed moves ever.

[nutty1]

Some interesting tweets….

Tasha Fox ‏@missfoxytasha 1h
Poor little tink tink.
@MacliteT: Kass dumb move..she now has 5 people who won't forgive her, and 5 who don't need her.

Kass McQuillen ‏@KassMcQ 1h
@missfoxytasha So much shade - I thought you, of all people, would rise above it? Why not just call my ugly and old like the other kids?

And

Gordon Holmes ‏@gordonholmes 10h
Latest #Survivor castaway dishes on their real final 3 alliance, the backstabbing, and their secret BFF. http://xfin.tv/OfiJp8 #oddcouple

Kass McQuillen ‏@KassMcQ 10h
@gordonholmes Validation that I was on the bottom of Nuparri and made the right move! Made my morning! #chaoskass

Here is the interview from the above tweet.

http://xfinity.comcast.net/blogs/tv/2014/04/03/survivor-castaway-sarah-kass-was-wreaking-havoc-around-camp/

This is the part Kass referred to, not sure I believe the bolded:

Holmes: In hindsight, were you trying to take charge of the alliance or did you think these conversations were just spirited discussions? Because whatever it was managed to alienate Kass.
Lacina: I didn’t feel like we were alienating her at all. We were having conversations as a six-some. I felt strongly about it being time to get a power player out. I knew how dangerous LJ and Tony were. I wanted them out of the game. I was going to stand firm to that. This is my game, it’s an individual game for everyone. And I’m not going to let the fate of my game sit in someone else’s hands. If they think I’m going to take a backseat, then I have to look at my options and go somewhere else. I sound like a diva saying it has to go my way, but I felt the vote needed to go the way I wanted it to.
Holmes: From what I’m seeing on the show, I’d be assuming that Kass would be the last person to jump. You’ve got numbers with the six, then she’s in the smaller alliance with the Brains.
Lacina: No. Spencer, Jeremiah, and I were very close out there. And we said we’d take it to the final six as a group. Then as a threesome, we had discussed getting Kass out earlier because she was causing so many problems around camp. And not just with me, she was just wreaking havoc around camp. I knew it was not going to end up good the way it was going.

Edited April 4, 2014 by nutty1

[Alapaki]

I'm going to need to see some verification of Kass' "undefeated" trial record.  Because, I've been a trial attorney for 20 years now, and the only litigators I know who've never lost a case . . . are the ones who've never tried a case.  

And, we've now seen several qualities from Kass that tend to make her awful at Survivor, and would make her awful as an attorney (but I'd love to play poker against her).

She seems incapable of playing her hand close to her vest.  First the outright told J'Tia she was voting for her, which helped foment the move to get rid of the Marlins guy.  And last night she did basically the same thing with Sarah.  She just can't not say what she's thinking.  

And, at the same time, she apparently can't conceive that other might not be saying what they're thinking.  Specifically, Spencer and Tasha may not be "replacing" you with Sarah, they may be humoring Sarah to get her vote at this TC, so they'll preserve their numbers and be able to get rid of Sarah if necessary next week.  

Assuming a 3-player FTC, there will be an 8-person jury.  That means someone will need at least 4 votes to win outright (if the other 2 finalists split the remaining 4 votes).  Theoretically 3 votes would be enough for a 1st place tie.  But that's never happened, and I don't think Kass will be the first to make it happen.  And Kass just royally pissed off 5 people who have a very good chance of ending up on that jury.

At this point, I'd say Kass' best move is to play for 3rd place money.  Because If i were Tony or Trish, I'd love to have Kass up there at FTC with me.

[KimberStormer]

I've been trying to think of a stupider flip than this, and nothing is coming immediately to mind.  Maybe someone remembers something?  Cochran had no route to the finish, no allies in the game, his flip meant nothing for his own game, but spited the people who were mean to him, so why not.  (It was Ozzy who blew that one, by not giving him the idol, or better yet, the necklace.)  Candice also had no way to top 3 with the Heroes; her flip was bizarre, but I guess she thought Russell would take her as a goat?  But Kass had top 3.  A clear and obvious top 3.  She was going to the final, and even if she thought she couldn't beat Spencer and Tasha she would have ample opportunity to try to take Morgan or whatever.

The editing made it incredibly obvious who was going home, but it was still a fun episode for me.  Did Sarah overplay it?  Sure, I guess.  As long as she's the obvious swing vote (and everybody knew it, it's not like she could pretend otherwise) I don't know what else she can really do but go shopping for the best deal.  I don't think there's anything really wrong with asserting your opinion about who to vote out.  She decided she'd rather stick to the weaker tribe she thinks she can beat, and went along with voting Jefra in the end anyway. 

It seems my emotions got the better of me this episode and I'm having trouble being Objective Survivor Strategy Nerd.  (The fact is that every time Sarah refused to take Kass's condescension I was cheering her on.  Kass is like Terry Dietz to me: absolutely, positively has no idea how to play Survivor, and yet is arrogantly, smugly convinced she's the best player out there.  Oh I can't stand it.)  I am actually thrilled by today's results, because a) I thought Sarah was going to win and now I don't know b) my favorite little Jefra survives c) my least favorite Kass is now lying in a pile of her own making and d) I have no idea what's going to happen next.

My only regret is the coming of the Tyler Perry idol, which I'm pretty sure will destroy this otherwise great season.  (A lot of people don't seem to know what it is, but Jeff did talk about it before the season started, so it's easy to find out if you want.)  For tonight however I'm pleased.

[Wandering Snark]

First of all, you never give yourself a nickname, Chaos Kass. And secondly I'd love to have a lawyer who has that nickname, self-given or not. I'd want VeryNeatAndOrderly Kass for my defense...

[FineWashables]

Does anybody know why Tyler Perry's name has come to be associated with this idol?  Is it because he's the one who suggested the twist to Jeff?

[KimberStormer]

Yeah, apparently he tweeted the idea to Jeff Probst, who instead of saying "you know what that's how we did the idols in Panama and Cook Islands and it sucked", said "great idea!" and put it in.

[Padma]

I missed the beginning. Did I miss how they chose Jefra? It didn't seem that they thought Tony had an idol (or maybe didn't believe Sarah). But why not LJ?

That was pretty cool for Tony to show it, then give it to LJ, anticipating the vote. Would have been very gratifying had he been right....but was even more enjoyable to see them confused by the unanimous decision for Jefra. ("Jefra"? I'm with you, guys. Why?)  But it flushed out the idols so in that sense, it was one of the better tribal councils imo in terms of strategy and results.

Still..Jefra? Switching to the bottom of another tribe when you had a good shot at F3 just staying put? Strange!

[Snaporaz]

 

I missed the beginning. Did I miss how they chose Jefra? It didn't seem that they thought Tony had an idol (or maybe didn't believe Sarah). But why not LJ?

Tony was the original target until he showed his idol.  Jeremiah was fairly certain that LJ had an idol.  Sarah refused to vote for Trish.  Woo won immunity (he would have been the other target if he hadn't). Jefra was the only other option.

[Joystickenvy]

Stupid Cass. Why couldn't she get it through her head that Sarah was right about getting rid of strong threats? It wasn't a personal attack. Idiot. On the other hand, she probably handed the win to LJ, so there's that.

Speaking of dumb moves, why would LJ hand over an idol to someone the others were obviously NOT going to vote for?

Except Sarah was wrong. Tony did have a HII as Kass feared, so if Sarah hadn't insisted on getting her way and gone with the original plan to vote Jefra, Sarah would still be in the game and both idols would be flushed. Sarah played a terrible game.

However, so did Kass. She was right about Tony having an idol and Sarah's stubbornness could very well have cost her alliance a member. However, once Tony decided to reveal the idol & it became clear the vote was switched to Jefra, Kass should have put aside her butthurt and voted Jefra, maintaining a top 3 spot with brainy instead of #6 on brawny.

Kass made a lot of mistakes. She told the #6 person they were #6 essentially. She got all offended because people didn't agree with her and failed to recognize that their deference to Sarah was to win her vote, not some personal vendetta against Kass.

Sarah just plain overplayed her hand and her judgement was poor in insisting Tony did not have an idol.

Trish and Tasha played a surprisingly good game. Trish in perfectly reading Kass and Tasha in playing Sarah just right, however her failure to recognize how insecure Kass was, was her downfall.

Even though I think Kass made a bad move, I was thrilled she did it. It keeps the game more interesting and both Sarah & Kass end up paying for their poor gameplay (probably.)

Plus, I get a vaguely douchey vibe from Spencer, leaving no one I really want to see win in that alliance, except maybe Tasha if she continues her upward trajectory. I hate people who sulk when they don't get their way like Spencer did.

Un an unrelated note, I laughed out loud at the Morgan/Tasha boob squash shot during the yoga routine.

Edited April 5, 2014 by Joystickenvy

[Kazootie]

So both Sarah and KAss had blind spots.  Sarah, cause she's not the sharpest tool in the shed, she doesn't really understand the game, and she has a big ego and needed to exert herself and faux control.

KAss because she needed to be right.  she was trying to prove how poorly Sarah's thinking/logic/loyalty was, and she needed to prove her fence sitting.  She needed just to nod at Sarah and tell her whatever she want to hear.  Sarah could not understand KAss's principled argument and the fact that she did not Diss her just because she did not agree with her. 

Then they both got personal about it.  KAss's problem is not being able to get back to the  30.000 ft level to see the big picture.

Also, Tasha, should have hustled Kass away and done some #KAassCounseling and talk her off her ledge.  Tash loves this little sneaky conversations - right??

[Hera]

Kass McQuillen ‏@KassMcQ 10h

@gordonholmes Validation that I was on the bottom of Nuparri and made the right move! Made my morning! #chaoskass

What this implies to me is that Kass never gets any in-game confirmation about her place in her original alliance or whether or not her move was "right". My speculation is that she's out at final five or final six.

I've been trying to think of a stupider flip than this, and nothing is coming immediately to mind.  Maybe someone remembers something?

I think Tyson changing his vote in Heroes vs. Villains was on a similar level of stupid (the result was worse because he effectively voted himself out of the game by doing so).* Both Tyson and Kass switched from a plan that would have ensured their safety for the next few votes (and in Kass' case, probably all the way to the final four) for no clear gain except a vague desire for attention and the "honor" of getting to decide who would go home. In Tyson's case, he wasn't even trying to switch alliances; he just wanted to get rid of Parvati.

Except Sarah was wrong. Tony did have a HII as Kass feared, so if Sarah hadn't insisted on getting her way and gone with the original plan to vote Jefra, Sarah would still be in the game and both idols would be flushed. Sarah played a terrible game.

I don't think it's a given that both idols (or even one of them) would have been flushed if Jefra had been the target all along. Once Tony pulled out his idol, everyone in the other alliance looked at each other and agreed to vote for "the other one", which is what made Tony play his idol for LJ (and LJ then reciprocated). If the plan had been Jefra all along, the other alliance would have played it cool, and then Tony would have had to guess whether they were trying to get him to waste his idol, whether they didn't think he'd play it, or which of his three vulnerable alliance-mates was their target. LJ, also, would have had to make a call about how likely it was that he was the target. Maybe the both idols would have been flushed anyway, but what ended up happening was a direct result of the fact that Tony was the original target.

*For the record, I think that Tyson's vote change is probably the dumbest move in Survivor history. Erik giving up the immunity necklace was dumb because he believed people who were clearly lying to him, but at least he stood to gain something in return (favor with the jury). In Tyson's case, no one had lied to him, he had no reason to think anyone was playing him (and in fact, no one was), and his gain would have been nonexistent-to-marginal even if it hadn't backfired.

[ratgirlagogo]

To quote myself from TWOP,  in general my memory of Survivor is that ditching your initial alliance does not work out well.  Thinking Penner and Dreamz.  Even if you are clearly the bottom of three, the bottom of three is better than the bottom of six.  Plus as noted by many above Kass has a remarkably shitty social game and apparently this is deliberate on her part.  She is determined to be 'honest" with everyone which really is down there with Doctor Whathisname from season one who voted people out alphabetically.

Even if you have good reason to believe you ARE the bottom of your original alliance, it's still better to stick with it until you can make a move that puts you in a better power position.  This vote didn't do that for Kass.  Plus the main evidence for "everybody wanting to get rid of Kass" comes from Sarah, who seems to think this because Spencer and Jeremiah told her this - in other words two people who were trying to butter her up, knew she didn't like Kass, and needed to secure her vote for this ONE tribal council.    

At this point I think she'll need to have the social game of Denise Stapley (from Phillippines) to get anywhere - and so far NOTHING I have seen from her indicates that she's going to have those kinds of skills.  

Edited April 6, 2014 by ratgirlagogo

[NutMeg]

Outstanding episode - this is proving to be a great season. I'm just not sure how to feel about the #KaosKass move: she might prove to be a right Siegfried with that decision. She is smart in a bunch of different ways and I think her read on Sarah, and her nervousness about her, was absolutely justified. I don't think her read on Tasha was on the money, though - that seemed like mere pique. My hope is she'll flip back to the originals, or at the very least organise a solid five from a combination of the two.

Who cares if her move was justified or not -  she's been the originator of many blindsides, so far all of people I'm happy to see out, and for that I'm grateful to her. 

 

Given the endless stream of vitriol spewed in their direction, I am starting to wonder why any woman over 40 would want to be on this show. Kass and Trish seem to split the vote for most hated survivor still there, and I am baffled as to why. I am 100% behind both these women. Kass is by no means dumb, as she is an undefeeated trial lawyer. I know lawyers get a bad wrap, but to be an undefeated trial lawyer is no small feat. Trish is a Pilates instructor, and is in fantastic shape for a woman of any age, let alone over 40. Both women have managed to survive to top 10, one with limited physical strengths, and one with a limited ability to read social situations. Trish has been in a precarious position from day one, as has Kass. Yet both have managed to play the game successfully. This apparently earns them zero respect. Were they men, I suspect the forums would be lit up with their fans, defending their stellar gameplay.

Folks just don't like to see women of a certain age behaving in a certain fashion, and haters are gonna hate. For this viewer, a final two of Kass and Trish would be very satisfying. Certainly more deserving than say, Jeremiah and Jefra.

Most satisfying moment for me was Spencer sulking after tribal and announcing that Kass just blew her game. In fact, Kass blew his game. That's what I call projection.

Agree with the above post. In addition, notwithstanding what I wrote above, I'm still not sure Kass has ruined her game (non challenge threat, potential goat if disliked by her previous alliance, biggest fish to fry - she might be in it for a while). Who knows where she really stood within her tribe? Conflicting info has surfaced in that regard. She probably has ruined Spencer's game but hey she's not Spencer's keeper. Weird thing is, why was Tasha's smile so big when the votes were read? We're missing something here...

There is a disconnect between Kass' talking heads, where I find her very convincing, and her play, and me think the disconnect stems from footage left on the cutting room floor. Obviously, everyone's mileage may vary etc.