I said this season could largely be redeemed if Amanda showed us some of that "game on" she threatened last episode.
Yes! And there it is!!
Who would believe that the episode where James is medi-vac'd off the show would also be one of the greatest Survivor episodes of all time? What an all-time performance by Amanda! She was so convincing during TC that I still wasn't sure she had found it. When she raised her hand that she had the HII, my wife and I did simultaneous fist pumps. We FINALLY see the idol used for its intended purpose. All it took was a perfect play by Amanda to work.

1) Amanda brilliantly dumps her bag back at the beach, showing everyone the plain fact that she had not found the idol and did not have it.
2) Needing a partner to pull it off without a hitch, she wisely recruits Parvati into the plan. This is the perfect choice on 3 levels- a. Parvati is wily, b. Parvati can not betray Amanda again without kissing away any chance at the million, c. this also hurts Parvati's game as she now has to betray Alexis and Batalie.
3) She uses the guilt trip on Erik to persuade him to let her know if the vote was going her way.
4) In probably the most brilliant move of all, as insightfully noted earlier in this thread, Amanda gets Cirie to swear that she would work with Amanda and Parvati to the end "if the situation were different." This means Cirie now must stick by Amanda or lose Amanda's vote and risk Amanda swaying other jury members by bringing it up at FTC. This helps protect Amanda beyond this one TC.
5) She attacks Erik's duplicity in front of the jury, already doing a better job with the jury than she did during the fateful FTC last season.
6) Amanda does such a convincing acting job during the TC that even I, who got to see Amanda digging for the HII, was not sure she had it.
7) She gets rid of her #1 threat in Alexis. Alexis was also playing the "sweet innocent girl" role, which made her Amanda's top rival. Amanda can hog that role all to herself now.

Wow. Bravo, girl!!!

>