Jeff was the star of last week’s episode but this week was all about The Double AgentThe first image we had to start the show was a snake covering the season’s medallion; the symbolism was perfect since a snake was going to overrun the camp.
Jeremy was still alone in camp. In interview he told us he wasn’t about to leave the game with an advantage in his pocket. When he asked for details of the vote, no one really answered him.
In his interview, Ben told us that their original plan was to vote against Jeremy. He was confident in his group of five (even if it included Tony!) and that Jeremy was still public enemy number one.
After trying to convince Ben that he’d be seen as the biggest remaining threat, Jeremy told us that Tyson was his shield and he needs shields to win the game.
After talking about Kim of the chaotic situation, Michelle confessed that she was on the bottom because she had been left out of the vote. Her group, which included Jeremy, Denise and Kim, was left spinning like a top.
The sun wasn’t up yet but it was time for Tony to spring into action. His objective: Find an IDOL! He had been patient and hadn’t caused paranoia but now was the time to go to work. Even if he got interrupted by Nick, Tony managed to fix the situation by simply suggesting the water well as a good place for Nick to search. Of course, Tony had already searched that area! Jumping with joy, Tony found the idol that was tucked under a rock.
An Interlude
With Sarah creating new designs we had a fashion show with Michelle and Kim parading on the catwalk. Production even included house music to accompany the show and the camp fire provided the smoke and light show.
This scene reminded me of the good days of Survivor when we got to see more of the players’ personalities. This type of scene has become so rare that I found it refreshing.
Sarah used this scene to compare her game to Tony’s. He was all flash while she was a social player.
Could this interview be setting the stage for the Jury’s debate? Will they have to decide between Tony and Sarah’s game and determine which type of game deserves to be rewarded? With Michelle and Kim parading in front of potential future jurors during Sarah’s confessional, I’m thinking Kim, Michelle, Tony and Sarah could very well be our Final Four.
All this “non-sense” was irritating Tony who wanted to play the game. Jeremy was his target because he didn’t want to go to the end with him. That’s when he decided to go undercover, telling Jeremy partial truths and some lies about the last Tribal Council. Tony went as far to say he had been blindsided by the vote. He even told Michelle and Kim that he wasn’t going to vote against Jeremy. He wanted to have the fun of working both sides to blindside someone.
With the editors twice flashing Jeremy’s words that Tony was “extremely believable” we can say: Mission Accomplished, Tony!
In his interview, Jeremy even told us: “I think this group is solid: Michelle, Kim, Denise and Tony.” He thought he had five out of nine which was good for his game.
Notice that, at the time, Tony was shown on screen, walking alone to the ocean. The symbol was clear: Tony is a loner, not a group member.
Talking to Denise, Kim showed us that she knew what Tony was doing. She even used the words “Double Agent”.
In her interview, Kim called it a “psychotic double agent act” to repair his relationship with Jeremy. That made Tony her biggest enemy out there.
I just want to take a moment to look at the editing as it pertains to the scene between Parvati and Natalie. Natalie solved the clue but Parvati received the credit. We clearly heard Parvati fixating on the word “crown” so it had to be on top of the hill. Natalie concentrated on the word “rest” so she was thinking about the camp and their shelter. Only then did Parvati figure out that it was under the shelter. With Parvati narrating the whole scene it looked like she made a big contribution but, in actuality, Natalie found the bottle, deciphered the clue and discovered the note. Editors gave Parvati all the credit in the world during Micronesia even though it was Cirie who did all the work so I guess nothing new.
The Extortion Advantage
A jubilant Tony realized he had a scroll in his bag. Unable to contain himself, he raced to a secluded spot. As soon as he read the word extortion, he exclaimed with joy; for once he’d be allowed to be the mobster instead of the cop. His joy soon faded when he realized he was the one being extorted. Now that he wasn’t doing the extortion, he wanted someone to do prison time.
Double Agent/ Double Standards, I can see that going hand in hand!
Notice another throwback to the good old days: We heard Denise reading the TREE MAIL for the next challenge! When was the last time that happened? One thing I can say is that the author of the tree mail is just as bad as before. But hey! I prided myself in writing these cheesy tree mail messages in the games I managed so I loved it.
Feeling the pressure, Tony went to work first on Michelle but she had no Fire Tokens to give. She had to come up with a lie in order to hide the fact that she had the 50/50 advantage.
Hearing that Michelle spent 4 Fire Tokens on a EoE advantage, Tony realized that prices were going up.
Michelle was so fooled by Tony that she did his dirty work and got Jeremy to give him 1 Token. Jeremy told us he wanted Tony to trust him.
Needing two more Tokens, Tony went to his “real” alliance and got one from both Ben and Nick.
Tony not only got to play in the immunity challenge but he got to win it after outlasting Jeremy, who was his target... at that time!
I noticed that Jeremy, who had been solid up to that point, dropped out as soon as Ben was eliminated. I’m thinking Jeremy was sure he already had a deal with Tony.
In his post-game interview, Tony said he’d pay back his debt and vote out Jeremy.
Did Tony pay back anyone? Hopefully we’ll learn next week. He should have paid back Ben to keep him in the dark about his true intentions but then the question becomes: When did Tony know what he was going to do?
Scrambling
The seas were rough while the Winners at War got down to business.
In interview, Kim told us she didn’t want Tony to win but she was now happy he did because it put a target on his back. She had to get back into the bigger group and she succeeded because we heard Sarah telling her that the two of them would vote against Michelle.
Denise also felt she had regain some control over the situation: She was convincing Jeremy that they could eliminate Ben and that Tony was with them while confiding that it was time to cut the bond she had with Jeremy. She was in cahoots with Kim to blindside Jeremy.
Jeremy confided that his feelings for Ben had changed; he had been his friend now he was annoying.
Realizing that the tempo of the game was slowing down, Tony told us it was time to flip flop. He didn’t like the fact that Sophie was too close to his partner Sarah so it should be Sophie. Since his original alliance was splitting their votes, it would be easy because he didn’t need a lot of votes. Jeremy and Michelle would jump at his idea so all he needed was Nick. Hitting them just before sunset, he got Nick on board and then revealed the whole dirty plan to Jeremy, making him realize that Kim and Denise aren’t with him.
Jeremy told us he didn’t know what to believe.
Tony couldn’t believe that he had to beg Jeremy to save Jeremy! Tony’s interview ended with a stern warning to Jeremy: If you still want to go with your plan to eliminate Ben then you are going home tonight.
The Characters
Ben: I guess he forgot to stay awake 24 hours for 39 days straight because he was sleeping when Tony found his idol. It was interesting to see Jeremy staring straight at him while the votes were read. That stare meant; you thought you had me but I got you.
Denise: As much as she tries, she’s never in the loop for very long. She thought it was time to cut Jeremy but where can she go without him?
Nick: He continues to play like a windmill, turning every way with the wind. That kind of game cannot win because he’s the enabler, not the creator.
Jeremy: While he was saved, the presentation made it clear that he was clueless for most of the 3 days. He was never told exactly what happened during the Tribal Council he missed, he believed Tony when Tony was targeting him and he almost didn’t believe Tony when Tony was trying to save him. Jeremy told us often enough that he needs control in this game but was clearly saw that he has none.
Michelle: Parading in front of the shelter looked like an indication of what will happen to Michelle at the end; she’ll parade in front of the jury and, once again, it will only be for show, not for dough.
Kim: Even if she thought Tony was targeting Jeremy, Kim is still the only one showing signs of understanding Tony and his game. So, in that sense, Kim may also parade in front of the jury alongside Michelle and Tony but she will receive some credit from the jurors.
Sarah: She was burned by her partner and will certainly seek revenge but I have a feeling she’ll have to move back in line. In Cagayan, Trish looked like she suffered from the Stockholm Syndrome, staying with Tony even after his repeated betrayals and while I don’t think Sarah is quite as gullible, she’ll realize she doesn’t have much of a shot.
Tony: Jeremy said during Tribal Council that it is all a question of timing and we have to wonder if Tony acted too early. Normally, you want to blindside your allies ONE move before they blindside you and this looked like 3 or 4 moves too early. It would be fairly easy for Jeremy, Kim, Denise, Nick and Michelle to patch things up, leaving Tony high and dry but this episode was “The Tony Show” so I have to think that, having revealed their star to the audience, the editors are going to continue the build up to his coronation. Could Tony be the Sole Survivor? It certainly looks possible now.