Brilliant and Boneheaded 'Survivor' Plays of the Week: Advantage, Tai
Warning: This recap of the “I’m Not Here to Make Good Friends” episode of Survivor contains spoilers.
Beware the wolf in cute, cuddly Tai clothing.
Throughout this season of Survivor, we’ve seen two sides of Tai. There’s happy-go-lucky, sunny, friendly, kind Tai, who wouldn’t harm a flea (and definitely not a chicken). But there’s also the crafty, competitive Tai, who went looking for a hidden immunity idol on Day 1, scraped his chest raw climbing a mango tree to seek it, and aligned himself with the biggest, baddest guys around to get ahead.
And that Tai is the one who shakes his head at his staunchest ally, Scot, and refuses to use his idol to save him.
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Tai might seem like the person that all the other players love, but he busts out the age-old reality adage: He’s not here to make friends. And given the chance to save Scot, or keep his safety net of an idol, he chooses himself.
He’s here to win.
Boneheaded Play of the Week: Scot
This really should be Scot and Jason, because they’re so fused at the hip, that they’re barely two individuals. What should be their portmanteau — Scason? Jascot?
They’ve been in lockstep since the moment they hit the Brawn beach, and their bromance survived the swap. Scot brought along Tai, whom they treated almost as a pet, and their arrogance knew no bounds once the tribes merged. They’ve been condescending, rude, and disruptive. Their sabotage last week demonstrates what kind of people they are.
Their continued overconfidence is what dooms them now. When Tai brings Aubry’s plea to work together to the pair, Scot immediately declares they need to vote her out. This upsets Tai, who genuinely likes her. Also, it makes him feel like he’s a lower-class citizen in their alliance. Scot and Jason never consult Tai about his strategic ideas; they just make them for him.
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Their complete faith in the use of the Super Idol blinds them to all the ifs, maybes, and wherefores of Survivor scramble-time politics. Scot and Jason can’t see that Tai is uncertain about the vote, and more important, uncertain about using his idol.
In the end, it’s their hubris that dooms them. Jason, having won the immunity challenge, is safe. Scot, however, is not.
Brilliant Play of the Week: Aubry
Leave it to the one remaining Brain, Aubry — oh wait, Joe is still around, but LOL — to scheme and think her way into remaining one more week.
Julia and Michele devise a strategy to flush out Tai’s idol, then vote him out, but Aubry knows better. It’s a dangerous move, consider the whole Super Idol thing. Moreover, she still doesn’t trust Julia, who continues to play to the middle. When the women decide to split the vote between Tai and whichever of Jason/Scot doesn’t win immunity, Aubry decides to strike out on her own and approach Tai.
It shouldn’t work — she’s in a weak position, while he’s in a seemingly unshakeable alliance. And yet, she plants the seed. Scot deciding for everyone to vote for her nurtures it. After the immunity challenge, she continues to press Tai. He starts to think about how to get to the end. He considers whether he wants to give up his idol just yet.
In the end, she gets what she wants, again. Aubry sticks around for another week; Scot goes home, with Jason’s idol in his pocket. She lives to fight another day.
Power rankings:
1. Tai - He has the only remaining idol (for now), and has the advantage of an extra vote.
2. Aubry - She continues to out-strategize everyone.
3. Jason - As the strongest player left, he could make a run on challenges.
Survivor airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on CBS.
