In the recap, Jeff said: “In a battle between two tribes, each with a legendary former player, Upolu, led by Coach, narrowly won the immunity challenge.
So Ozzy’s tribe, Savaii, blindsided their weakest player, Semhar, and sent her to Redemption Island.
Meanwhile, Ozzy strenghtened his position in the tribe by finding the Hidden Immunity idol…
(Ozzy: “This could be my ticket to the win.”)
…and joining an alliance of 5.
(Jim spelling it out: Me, Keith, Ozzy, Elyse and Whitney)

At Upolu, Coach built his own alliance of 5 and Brandon felt so close to Coach that he revealed his secret.
(Coach is shown telling us that Brandon’s uncle is his number one nemesis)
After Upolu lost the second immunity challenge, Coach wanted to get Christine out…
…But Brandon innately feared Mikayla…So he took a page from his uncle’s playbook to spread false rumors to get her out.
At Tribal Council, Brandon shocked everyone by confessing his sins.
In the end, Coach got what he wanted.
We then heard Jeff saying: “The biggest obstacle for this tribe is trust.”
With that, the camera went directly to Brandon, telling us who is the cause of the problem.

I noted that Ozzy is simply presented as a number in Savaii’s alliance while Coach was said to have built his own. That, again, tells me that Coach will outlast Ozzy. Note that Jim got the credit for the alliance, Keith’s point of view meant to be forgotten.

In the battle between Brandon and Mikayla, it was troubling for her story that we didn’t hear Coach coming to her defense. In this version of the story, she supposedly stayed only because Brandon came clean, sparing her. The adjective “innately” was also a bad sign for Mikayla when “irrationnally” would have been the better choice. We can take this as indications that Mikayla’s story is heading towards making her a Victim instead of someone on a journey.

Redemption Island

Christine: “I don’t know what happened. I think my tribe wasn’t ready for someone that wanted to play the game.”
Telling Semhar that Coach was a pain in the ass who saw himself as King Farouk, Christine continued: “Coach had it in for me from the beginning and he would do anything in his power to get me out and he succeeded.”

This is a warning sign for Coach’s story: Christine is also starting to take on the characteristics of a Victim and with her win at the duel, the audience may get to like her more and more over the weeks. Fortunately, Coach had a good reason for targeting her but editing doesn’t always care for reason. If, as viewers, we continue to connect with Christine, meaning if she continues to get these well presented interviews, we will start to resent Coach.

Upolu
Night 5

Mikayla: “Tribal council was nuts tonight. I didn’t expect to hear Brandon say “let’s vote for Mikayla. I kept thinking what did I do? I couldn’t pinpoint a thing. Brandon may seem like a country boy but he really stirs stuff up. I am not happy about it. Coach took the heat off of me and I hope it stays off.”

Unfortunately for her, we saw Coach hugging Brandon.

Brandon: “I was 150% sure that Mikayla was going home. Unfortunately, the plan back-fired. It was a blatant lie and I regret doing that. I came into this game not wanting to be like my uncle Russell who is a big villain on Survivor. I wanted to be a Hero, someone that you could look up to. I’m completely guilty of what I did and I reap what I sow.”

Note that the editors are using the same pattern with Brandon as they did with Russell: We see his despicable actions and then we repeatedly hear his explanations. It turned a potentially detestable player into a fan favorite once, are they trying to do it again?

Upolu – Tree mail

Hearing about the duel, Coach asked to go.

Coach: “I will go to the duel with Stacy. The best part of this day would be if Christine lost...”

This isn’t good for Coach’s character. It makes him look petty and vengeful. It would have been better if he had just shown up at the arena like Ozzy.

Nothing was said between spectators and duelers except that Christine voiced her disdain for Coach, adding: “I was just articulating what everybody else was saying.”
There was a funny moment when we heard Jeff’s sigh and saw the glance between Coach and Ozzy as Semhar recited a poem.
During the challenge, Jeff said: “Nothing would be sweeter than to get back in this game” the camera went from Christine to Coach. When Christine beat Semhar, those words sounded like a warning sign for Coach.

Christine: “Coach was at the duel only to see if I would lose. He’s just a dope. I’m hoping to pull a Matt here and get back in. I know I’ll win”

The only interesting nugget during the challenge happened when Semhar said “burn’ while throwing her red buff in the fire making me wonder if the red tribe will indeed go down in flames.

Upolu
Day 7

Brandon: “This morning, He was not pleased with me, I wasn’t pleased with me and I know my family wouldn’t be pleased with me. I lied blatantly. I knew they would believe me and I lied to them. They wanted Christine to go home but I wanted Mikayla to go home. There are certain things that I cannot allow to go on: I won’t lie anymore, I won’t play games anymore with these people.”

With everyone on the beach, Brandon removed his shirt, revealing his secret. When he said his full name, Stacy almost had a seizure!

Mikayla: “He comes out and says he’s Russell’s nephew. I’m like Wo! I knew there was something behind this kid. He says he doesn’t want to lie but he keeps doing it. I think it’s an easy out for him, like he does something bad, he says: “Guys, it’s not me…” Maybe he is covering his track before he makes ‘em but I don’t trust him. I think he’s just a sneak and I don’t know what’s his problem with me.”

Brandon then took a walk with Coach, apologizing for not preparing him for what he had done.

Coach: “Brandon told the tribe that he was Russell Hantz’s nephew. A mistake in my eyes but he needed to get it off his chest. That shows Brandon’s age a little bit. He lets personal things get to him and weigh him down. Brandon is a valuable asset in my alliance. I still trust Brandon, absolutely but maybe not in with both feet now.”

The scene ended with Brandon’s words captioned: “I had a relapse of what my uncle used to do and it sucked.”

Savaii

Mark had an interview while the camera showed him observing the tribe from the hammock: “We have a good camp life. We have food, we have shelter, we get along but the reality is that, in every tribe, there is a pecking order. I think the minority is me Cochran and Dawn. Me and Dawn, because of age, Cochran because he is the nerdy kid nobody hung out with in school, sorry John. I didn’t click with anyone here so every challenge is important for me. I am not safe at all.”

Ozzy was interviewed while we saw him showing the big fish he had caught: “The five in my alliance right now, Keith, Whitney, Elyse and Jim but Keith and I have a brother type thing going. There has to be a point where I have to trust somebody to tell him that I have the idol and who better than Keith. I just think he will be a strong ally and, as far as I know, he’s really trustworthy.”

Ozzy told Keith he had the idol.
Although he said it was cool, Keith immediately turned to Whitney to tell her that Ozzy had found the idol.
The censors blurred the mouth of the country singer as she let out an expletive telling us she wasn’t thrilled by the news.

Keith: “I’m mad that Ozzy has the idol because it gives him all the power or most of the power right now. It gives him a better hold on the alliance. So, I told Whitney because I want her to trust me just in case, down the line if something were to happen where I need the numbers because I thought Ozzy might be making a move.”

A full third of the episode had passed and this was the first scene in Savaii. It served to set up this week’s boot and to prepare the stage for a possible move against Ozzy. Both appear short term story so it should tell us that Upolu is the important tribe except the main story there revolves around Hantz as we would witness once more. I think it is noteworthy that the two scenes paralleled each other: Brandon and Ozzy revealing secrets that, just the episode before, they had vowed to keep to themselves. Both were edited for the audience to see them as snafus.

Upolu

Mikayla asked Brandon if he had a minute so they went for a walk in the jungle.
Mikayla: “I just want to know what you have against me.”
Brandon said he wanted her to go home because he didn’t like her, that she had an attitude and that people didn’t trust her.

Brandon : “Mikayla was coming at me like she was a bulldog like she was going to attack me… but, as a Christian, I am supposed to be meak, I’m supposed to turn the other cheek.”

The two went back to the beach where Brandon gathered everyone. In an accusatory tone, he said: “It sounds to me like you don’t have much of an alliance.”
He wanted no more of this, requesting to be left out of the drama.
Sophie and Albert exchanged a questioning glance.

Sophie: “Oh! My God! I was in so much shock. We didn’t say anything after that. He is such a loose canon. There is a lot of tension between Brandon and Mikayla. I think that, in Biblical terms, he would call her the whore of Babylone. I think Brandon, right now, is really torn between following whatever crazy religious beliefs that he has and yet, at the same time, inherentaly, in his blood lines, he is a devious jerk.”

We then saw Mikayla crying alone at the beach but the camera quickly went to Brandon who had another confessional: “I was told by my dad to not lose my temper… Being a Christian, I shouldn’t have lost my temper. I should have been able to control myself but I didn’t; I failed…This is a constant battle with me: Good/Evil, Good/Evil and I want to do good.”

Showing us Brandon’s accusations in front of the whole tribe and especially letting us hear that he wants to be left out of the drama when he is the source of that drama should tell us that he will be voted out before Mikayla, For example, his venom is similar to the one Tyson spewed on Sierra. The problem here is that we have a Hantz and the editors proved once that gross behavior can be accepted by the audience, even relished by it, if there is enough repetition, explanation and justification. The tribe could sacrifice Mikayla in order to keep the alliance intact, making her a classic Victim.

We then saw Coach talking to Sophie, telling her that Brandon had spooked both his own alliance and Mikayla.

Coach: “This situation greatly concerns me. It is the epitome of snafu. I am worried that Brandon’s outburst causes uneasiness in the tribe, uneasiness in the alliance and we are all hoping and praying that Brandon has no further such outburts. It’s a different kind of aggression that Russell had but it’s an aggression nonetheless.”

The scene between Coach and Sophie ended with Coach saying: :I hate to say it but I do see a little Russell in him.”
Sophie added: “I just hope it doesn’t bite us in the butt.”

After Semhar’s “Burn”, we now have a clue that things could go bad for the Upolu tribe. The editing is telling us that things will go bad for the two main alliances. Note that Albert, Edna and Rick were shown during Coach’s interview so these three could be part of a tribal realignement with Sophie and Mikayla.

The Challenge

Out of the numerous flaws in the concept of Redemption island, one that is rarely noted is the fact that there is no more surprise when the two teams meet for the first challenge of the episode. From Corinne and Charlie’s realization that Marcus had been voted out to Eliza’s “Who?” after hearing that Mary was gone, the moment after Jeff calls “come on in guys” often delivered great scenes, ranging from the dramatic to the comical. It even served as clues once in a while.

Jeff: - “If you are not managing your rope, it’s going to cost you.”
- “Ozzy cannot run, he doesn’t have any rope.”
- Ozzy lost his floater, opening the door for Upolu.”
- “Coach and Edna working with Mikayla and Sophie trying to figure this puzzle out.”

We saw numerous times Ozzy being slowed down by his tribe. It was telling us that they don’t work well together. It seemed that Dawn was better for Savaii until she fell in the water just before she reached the platform. For Upolu, we had another clue that there could be a shift in alliances with Mikayla once more shown giving directions to Coach to figure the puzzle.

Jim: “Papa Bear is the weakest link, It’s not even that he is a zero: He slows us down. He should have been the first one out.”

Savaii
Day 8

Ozzy: “We lost the challenge and it does suck for moral. We are going to tribal council… and that means cutting people that aren’t good at challenges. Dawn did a great job today. She kicked ass. So, it’s basically between Papa Bear and Cochran.”

Papa Bear and John were having a talk, realizing they had been put on the Barbie doll and Ken team.
Note that when we heard that it would be easier to be in the group, the camera showed Jim, Keith, Elyse and Dawn!
Mark said: “It’s obvious: If I go tonight, you are going tomorrow. If you go tonight, I am going tomorrow.”

Keith, Whitney, Ozzy, Elyse and Jim decided on Papa Bear. Keith added that they should tell him it will be Cochran but, since he wasn’t on screen at the time, the captions made it look like it was Jim’s idea.

Cochran: “Ozzy approached me and said “we are going to tell Papa Bear that it’s you but it’s really going to be Papa Bear.” The fact that my name keeps coming up is very upsetting. I don’t want to be sent to Redemption Island. I know it can be viewed as a chance to get back in the game but I view it as a chance for extended failure and more depression. I might do some last minute scrambling but the problem is that I already have this reputation as the nervous, neurotic scrambler. If I resurrect that before another tribal council, I think it’s going to hurt me so…I just don’t want to go home.”

Jim and Ozzy told Papa Bear their lie but he didn’t buy it. He figured his best chance was to find the immunity idol. His sprint in the jungle surprised Elyse (and gave us a nice chuckle!)

Elyse: “I was on my way to the shelter and I see Papa Bear in a dead sprint from the water to the woods and Papa Bear doesn’t sprint…ever! Jim and I walked into the woods and peeked around and he’s just digging through the dirt like a gopher... Wouldn’t it be wild if he found that clue or the idol?”

Unable to find it, Mark put a rock in his underwear to make them think he had the idol.

Cochran: “Jim and Elyse saw Papa Bear digging for something near a tree. About five minutes later, Papa Bear comes waltzing in with a big smile on his face and a extra large bulge in his underpants. He clearly wants us to think he has the idol.”

Jim: “Papa Bear came up to me and said he had the idol. All of a sudden, we have a variable: Let’s say he does have the idol. Why not plan against that? The plan has to change and Cochran could be going home tonight.”

Cochran: “I hope my tribe sees through this charade but my fear is that, even if they don’t believe him, it wouldn’t be any sweat off their back to shift their vote… and I’d be screwed.”

Ozzy: “It’s quite funny seeing everybody scrambling around thinking Papa Bear might have the idol because I already have it. I can’t let anyone else know that I have the idol. I’m just hoping that nothing goes wrong.”

With the audience knowing that Whitney has learned his secret, the last part of Ozzy’s interview is a clear sign that something will go wrong for him.

Tribal Council

Cochran started off by saying he was trying to be more of an asset to the tribe.
Mark said that John’s biggest problem was that, physically, he would be a threat to himself.
Asked about the leader of the tribe, Cochran talked about multiple layers of leadership (the camera seized the hint and showed us Keith). John added that Ozzy was the most obvious leader.
Papa Bear countered: “Everybody wants to be the leader and this is a game for A type personallities…I like to be a leader but, for some reason, in this team I am not a leader. For some reason, the five have taken control and I don’t have anything in common with any of them.”
Dawn explained: “I think any group is based on siminlarites…I think Papa Bear, myself and Cochran might not have anything in common but I see it shifting throughout the day so I don’t know that I see it as locked.”
Papa Bear warned: “Dawn… we are not in the five, we are not in their group and we know that so it’s ok to say it because it is real.”
Jim disagreed: “I think that Dawn is right on and that Papa Bear knows that he is on the chopping block so a lot of his comments are meant to stir things up.”
Papa Bear, turning to Jim: “I don’t need to worry about it because I am in the three… You need to worry about it because you are going to be in the five.”
Jim told us about his concern for the idol, noting that playing the idol this early only gives you three more days but that is what the game is about.
Jeff turned to Ozzy, noting he had been voted out holding on to an idol (Actually Jeff, Ozzy hadn’t even brought it to TC that time!!). Jeff pointed out that what Jim said about 3 more days wasn’t entirely true.
Ozzy, seemingly feeling uncomfortable, agreed that it could change the game.
Cochran said he could possibly find the idol but that “you have to weigh the pros and cons of searching frantically for the idol. It makes you look very suspicious and it shows that you don’t trust anybody else in your tribe. It’s all about fostering a culture of trust in the tribe and searching for an individual immunity idol is not necessarily the best way to avoid the chopping block.”

After the vote, Jeff asked them: “Are you voting out the right people?”

The Story

Overall, the main theme of this episode was delivered by Dawn at TC. The first two episodes had established strong alliances of 5 but this episode prepared us to see some shifts in both of those alliances because I don’t know that I see it as locked either.

Upolu dominated the screen even if they didn’t go to Tribal council. That is usually a good indication that the winner is on the blue beach. It will be interesting to see if Savaii gets a lot of airtime when Upolu goes to TC.

That story on Upolu is about Brandon but I don’t believe it is Brandon’s story, if that makes sense. We saw three different approaches in dealing with this loose canon:
- Mikayla confronted him.
- Coach appeased him
- Sophie stayed back and analyzed.

In Savaii, the story is mostly about Cochran and how he will deal with the fractures that we have seen in the alliance.

The Characters

Papa Bear: His words about turning on Savaii gives him some connection to a story down the line but Christine has the stronger connection, being in direct conflict with Coach. It is unclear which one will win the next duel and it is even less clear if either will eventually return. At least, we are getting a better presentation than last season when it was obvious that Matt was returning.

The Background Players:

Elyse: All she has received so far is the chance to add a bit of flavor to the episodes. Her intervention during Papa Bear’s search for the idol was a funny moment but that seems to be the extent of Elyse’s contribution. She hasn’t given us an indication that she has doubts about the alliance so, if it is to break, she should be part of the collateral damage.

Whitney: Being aware of Ozzy’s secret and being on Keith’s side gives more substance to Whitney’s game than Elyse but the country singer doesn’t get any confessionals. Either some huge development will come soon for her or we aren’t meant to root for Whitney. The latter is much more likely.

Rick, Edna, Albert and Stacy: All have lost their speaking roles. They could play integral parts in the alliance shift that we are expecting to see in Upolu but it does not appear that either will emerge as our eventual winner.

The Loose cannons

Keith: Despite receiving a very limited character, Keith is shown playing an interesting game. The camera showed him as the behind-the-scene leader of Savaii when Cochran talked about multiple layers of leadership. He knows where Ozzy stands and he controls the numbers over Jim so he appears to have all the cards in his hands. Since there is no substance to his character, he must not succeed with all that power.

Jim : His presentation reminds me a lot of Marty in Nicaragua. A smart businessman that is used to wheeling and dealing, he is poised to make big moves in this game but, as with his predecessor, arrogance is the dominating trait we see in him. Granted, arrogance didn’t prevent Hantz from reaching the end but that was an exception and all of Hantz’s arrogant confessionals were preceeded by some tactical moves. Jim, like Marty, as yet to deliver anything of interest.

Brandon : The very definition of a loose cannon the guy creates drama and then asks to be left out of it. A troubled teenager needs counseling, not an appearance on Survivor. If his character reminds Coach and Sophie of Russell, his edit reminds me of his uncle. Explanations, repeated often enough, become truths. The story is set-up for Upolu to shift the center of gravity in the power make-up of the tribe but we are dealing with the Hantz legacy so it could be that he gets his way and makes Mikayla his first victim.

Players on a Journey or Victims?

Dawn: Twice now, we have heard Ozzy, the challenge king, compliment Dawn on her own challenge skills. Add the numerous times we have heard that the group of five is solid and we are prepared to see Dawn survive a long time in the game. Her initial confessional about being a strong mom and her subsequent breakdown set the stage for a wonderful Journey of Perseverance. However, she could still fall Victim and have her Journey presented from Redemption Island instead. She has mostly disappeared from our screen so it doesn’t appear that this will be her story in the end.

Mikayla : Will she prove that she is a strong person or will she fall to Brandon’s attacks? The story of the first half of the season seems to revolve around that question. The picture will be much clearer when we know how this chapter will end but our job is to try to see through the fog of war. The themes of underdog and teamwork still plead in her favor so I think she will outlast Brandon.

Diminishing Returns

Ozzy : I was never impressed with Ozzy’s presentation this season and this episode really showed us why he will fail. Just like previously, his allies are scheming behind his back and he is completely unaware of the danger. Being a popular player, it will be interesting to see who gets blamed or credited for eliminating him.

Coach : After an impressive start, Coach’s edit regressed in this episode. We heard many negative comments from Christine, we saw his pettiness when he wanted to witness Chritine’s exit and we saw him hugging and appeasing Brandon when the nephew imitated his uncle’s vile behavior. The editors had turned around the poor impression Coach had left with the audience so the intent couldn’t be to have us see him as a Villain once more so where is his story heading? The question will be answered once we know if he is part of the shifting alliances or it the shift is done to his expense. I see him as the narrator of the tribe, his role leading him well into the merge but not as our winner.

The Players of Interest:

Sophie : The player I see taking over as a contender in place of Coach is Sophie. In fact, if Cochran didn’t have such a good story, I’d be inclined to declare her the winner. Where Rick, Albert and Edna have disappeared to leave room for the conflict in Upolu, Sophie has always commented on it and told us how it affected her directly. The story of Brandon versus Mikayla appears to be Sophie’s story; Sophie’s choice between an alliance formed on day 1 and the other strong woman of the tribe. I will watch closely to see what role she plays in that battle. It will tell us if she is indeed the winner.

Cochran : His intervention at Tribal Council about the Hidden Immunity Idol touched on many themes that we had unearthed up to now. He talked about Trust and Teamwork. With Papa Bear’s warning that John will be next, he has a great underdog story and, if Jeff said he was smart enough to find an idol, he is also smart enough to turn things around.

Thanks Agman!