Some random musings:

1) An interesting exploration of strength versus loyalty, as encapsulated in Jeff’s comments at Tribal Council: ”Do you keep the players who will get you to the merge or do you keep the players who will be loyal after the merge?”

The stronger player, Mikayla, is voted off instead of the weaker, supposedly more loyal Edna. However, some care has been taken in previous episodes to portray Edna as a possibly devious player who will betray the Upolu alliance.

Coach: ”(Edna’s) the one person out here that I think would lay her Survivor life down for me”

The seeds are sown to indicate that Edna will not be as loyal as Coach seems to think. It is interesting to note that Coach frames loyalty as an individual commitment to himself, as opposed to a tribe-based loyalty. This is very much a selfish, individualistic approach to the game, which if my take on the themes is correct, is not a game-winning one.

Given Jeff’s closing comment: ”Loyalty, as honorable as it may be, is not always the answer.”, Albert’s voting confessional seems prophetic: “I hope it’s you (Edna) tonight or else we’re in a world of pain”.

In combination with the “tribe divided” comments it seems very probable that Upolu will come to regret this decision.

2) Tribe unity is once again explored, with the Savaii and Upolu experience clearly juxtaposed in this episode. Upolu is presented as a conflicted, divided tribe. Brandon’s comments at Tribal Council about Upolu being ”a house divided” and that ”we cannot be divided and have loyalty” are ominous for the Upolu alliance. In contrast, despite being conflicted after the Elyse boot, Savaii reconciles at the reward challenge.

Savaii is clearly the tribe to beat. It seems almost certain that the winner hails from a unified Savaii and this is foreshadowed by Ozzie with the following unity-emphasizing quote:”Having a reward like this really brought us all back together and it really made me want somebody from this tribe to win the million dollars….if it’s not me I do hope it’s someone else from my tribe.”

3) The theme of ”It’s not how you start – it’s how you finish” appears increasingly as if it can be applied to Coach and Ozzie’s edit. We’ve seen Coach edited as a strong leader, building a strong, loyal alliance, while Ozzie has been presented as ”Bob Marley” and a ”middle-aged Mowgli”. It seemed apparent that Ozzie was destined for a short stint in the game and that Coach would outlast him and possibly claim the Sole Survivor title for himself. After Ozzie’s editing turnaround in this episode and Coach’s edit becoming increasingly mired in the swamps of hypocrisy and individualism I am wondering if the Survivor editors have been playing a little trick on us. I certainly would welcome it if this is the case. Too much predictability is not a good thing.

I hearken to both returning players’ introductory comments in the first episode:

Coach: ”This time I’ll try to control my sense of self-righteousness and judgment on the others. It’s one more shot for me to prove that I can own this game and that it can be done with honor and integrity.”

As I’ve stated above, Coach appears to be putting individual loyalty to himself above tribe unity and it has led to a divided weak Upolu. He has lied to Brandon (and ironically is called out by him at Tribal Council “There’s no grey….it’s black or white”). His sense of “self-righteousness and judgment on the others” is highlighted by his scathing attack on Mikayla after the challenge. His indignation at the fact that Mikayla cannot “follow orders” is the primary reason that she is sent packing. In contrast, Edna’s value is based on the fact that she will “follow him into battle” and perform distasteful tasks on his behalf. Coach 3.0 is in fact Coach 1.0.

Ozzie:” I've been the guy that's able to climb coconut trees and hunt fish and I've also been really strong in challenges. I don't think I have the best strategy. This time, I'm more mature and I've learned from my mistakes. I need redemption because I feel like I haven't been able to lock my hands on the million dollars. I've almost been there a few times, I haven't been able to finish...

Despite a poor start strategically, with his key allies either being booted or betraying him, can Ozzie learn from his mistakes and outlast Coach? He certainly seems to have recovered from his “hissy fit” and his reconciliation with his tribe and newfound focus on unity demonstrates a maturity not seen thusfar in his edit. While I do not see Ozzie winning, but rather “leading” a unified Savaii to victory, I cannot completely eliminate that possibility.

4) The contenders – Cochran versus Dawn. I must say that I have one leg on the Cochran bandwagon. Increasingly Cochran is shown to overcome obstacles in his experience of the game. His inadequacies are highlighted at the reward, with his discomfort at the waterfall emphasized. However, in a clear sign that he is learning and growing, he ”steps up” and takes the plunge, with the encouragement of others. ”The sweater vest is always this boundary between me and nature – I had to strip it off” Metaphorically Cochran could be considered to be stripping off the obstacles and barriers between him and the Survivor experience – perhaps the Sole Survivor experience?

However, my other leg is still in the Dawn camp (although it is itching) – I still am breathing the fumes of her first episode edit. Dawn however needs new obstacles/antagonists else her story is in danger of becoming the ”journey edit”, supporting the ultimate winner (Cochran). The next two episodes will be crucial in assessing her chances.