What an episode! Birthday, Blindside and Bedevilment!
NATALIE
vidcap by Warrior
The Invisible One finally emerged, and OMG best villain ever!
Given that she's a lesbian, and that we saw Parvati approach her pre-merge to make
the Gang of 4 alliance (with the absent Amanda & Alexis), I admit to wondering if there were also some flirting thrown into the mix to sweeten the deal.
Of course we weren't shown any of it, and probably won't be shown any of it, even though there are still a few more episodes to go! Maybe nothing of
the sort happened, but hope springs eternal.
Seriously, is "Catalie" (as she's called in certain circles) the only Fan deserving of the name? Survivor is a game of lying and backstabbing, and she excelled (at least compared with the other Fans.) Oh, alright, so it's not like she bamboozled a mental giant or anything. Most of us would agree that blindsiding Jason can't really have been that difficult to do. He was fooled by a fucking stick, for crying out loud! Perhaps the true achievement was in being able to control the venom that has clearly been brewing a long time, and bide her time, ensuring she vented spleen on the most deserving and at the most opportune moment. I can understand why they didn't want to dilute Natalie's presentation, purposely keeping her completely hidden so that her appearance this episode would come across that much more forceful and explosive. But why did they hide Jason's behavior that apparently gave rise to her antagonism?
Editing is an interesting thing. During his time on the island, Jason was portrayed by turns as an outsider, a bit of a meanie, an idiot, a buffoon and desperate. This week's Insider includes some James clips in which he describes Jason's nasty habit of chewing with his mouth open. Surely that's not enough to justify Natalie's near-sociopathic response. Either there is more to it or she over-reacted. It's not just me, is it? Her targeting of him did have a vindictive personal quality to it. However obnoxious Jason was during the first three episodes, we weren't given any reason to expect Natalie to be the one to seek revenge, or why. And that's why Natalie isn't a contender to win. Given her almost complete Invisibility status for the first NINE episodes of the show and the beginnings of life finally in Episode 10, this sudden explosion onto the scene in Episode 11 is in one sense too much and in another sense, too little but more than anything, it's too late. It's too much in that she is HIGHLY visible all of a sudden. It's too little in that she was kind of one-note with that high visibility.
In Episode 11, at first I thought Natalie was being edited complexly, because we saw her sharing her thoughts about her plan as well as the execution of the plan itself. But my fellow Edgicians pointed out that the repetition of the evil cackling and "bitch" comment were symptomatic of OTT, a one-dimensional edit. On reflection I had to agree. The flossing with jugular imagery was definitely Over The Top. Moreover, the cartoon caricature must have originated with an editing decision to NOT give us explanatory backstory as to why Jason deserved this fate. It's not enough to include a short scene in Episode 2 and expect that to explain the nature of his demise in Episode 11.
It's true that Jason did always seem to be in trouble but it was a fool's kind of problem, not a malicious person's. I know I hadn't been primed to want to see Jason eviscerated in such a nasty fashion. This created a problem for Natalie, I think, in that many of us who had scoffed at Jason's idiocy in recent episodes, or even berated him way back in Episode 2, now found ourselves saying "Poor Jason" even if we were laughing at Natalie's confessionals. And not everyone was laughing either. Even though there may well have been plenty of reason for Natalie to do this, editing left all that out and the majority of viewers simply called her a nasty bitch and expressed sympathy for the victim. No matter how much MB might dislike the winners, he has never treated them this poorly. Hence the elimination of Natalie from contention.
Her bold moves did have me wondering if she were really this quiet a player for the first 10 episodes. Given her comment to the effect that "at last I feel like I'm really playing," it seems likely that she wasn't in the thick of strategy and perhaps wasn't even giving very interesting confessionals. Therefore there wasn't gameplay to show us. But even if there were other tidbits worthy of telecast, by keeping them under wraps, the explosive quality of her actions here was that much more amplified for appearing to come from nowhere.
I have to say I did find it very interesting when she won the chocolate cake and the three tribemates whom she chose to share it with her were, in order, Parvati, Alexis and Cirie. This may well be reflective of the revised order of her allegiance. Even Alexis has been eclipsed by Parvati-love.
Bottom line: With the kind of edit she's gotten, Natalie has gone from "who?" to "WTF?" and as such is intended as an entertaining distraction. At best, she serves as a means to put Parvati's bitchiness into perspective.
AMANDA
vidcap by Warrior
Amanda was quite visible this episode, but I thought she had a sad-sack quality to her face-time. After all, she has been left out of a number of events lately, hasn't she? I thought Cirie was definitely very comforting and trying to cajole her into acceptance that of course she had to be left out of the Ozzy blindside. It was in her own best interests! Meanwhile, the apology Parvati served up wasn't too bad, as apologies go.
And yet, Amanda has now been shown on a couple of occasions saying she's mad at Parvati but isn't going to say something to her. I understand why Amanda would keep her own counsel on that score, but why tell us about it? Is Amanda thinking several steps ahead, or is she simply trying to be best friends with everybody? Perhaps the way she spins it at the end will provide the reason the editors told us.
What was all that about "Game On"? I suppose she means, "Eventually." She didn't seem to do all that much this episode, unless you count telling James that all avenues have been explored and there's no hope to save him.
I still think Amanda reaches the end game but at this juncture neither her edit nor her gameplay supports her winning. Perhaps that will change over the next few episodes. Of course, I hope not. I'm still rooting for Parvati and the small windfall due to come my way as a result.
JAMES
vidcap by Warrior
This was perhaps James' most important episode of the season. He had the most well-rounded presentation he's ever gotten. As per usual he made funny comments and as per usual bitched & moaned, but he also had a good scene confronting Pavarti and arguing with her, and a tender scene or two with Amanda. In addition, I thought we got into his head and learned his thoughts about "someone like Pavarti." It sounds like he won't be a vote for Parvati at the end, at any rate, and now we know why.
But the one thing we did not see was James doing some work to remain in the game. He certainly received plenty of information putting him on notice that he needed to do some work, and that now was the time. Parvati told him of her plans to have 3 girls in the final 3, so he knew for damn sure that he, Jason and Erik are definitely not included. He saw Jason sent to Exile Island and more importantly thanks to the bag-searching, he knew Jason had the HII. Amanda told James that while he, James, was being "targeted," he was actually not the true target. The plan was to boot Jason after fooling him into feeling safe and therefore not playing his HII. How much more information did James need? Did he figure that by telling Amanda his intention to "write Parvati's name down," that Amanda would run around drumming up support for Parvati's ouster? I guess.
Perhaps it was his finger hurting him so much that he couldn't think straight. After all, the Next Time Ons showed James being attended to by medical personnel and that may well spell the end of James' game.
PARVATI
vidcap by Warrior
I thought Parvati had a good episode all things considered. For one thing, the "blindside Ozzy" plan was recapped as being all her, with no mention of Cirie's part in the proceedings. That makes me wonder if what we were seeing last week was Cirie mulling over things she'd been told by Parvati, rather than cooking up plots and plans. Isn't editing interesting? For another thing, several players including James (see vidcap above) were shown
saying it was a good plan, even if they were unhappy to have been left out of the plotting. Erik acknowledged that had he been told, he might well have run to
his man Ozzy to spill the beans, so clearly it was smart not to have included him. I really am looking forward to finding out how the Blindsiding Ozzy Plan
will be dealt with at the final TC. Who will have questions to ask, and what will the finalists have to say? I haven't looked forward to the finals this
much since All-Stars featuring Rob Mariano. But back to our heroine.
Parvati's light-hearted giggly confessional in which she acknowledged the damage control that needed doing showed me that she has the ability to remain upbeat even in the face of problems, albeit largely self-made problems. Hmm, actually, it's often the self-made problems that give people such a hard time and cause them to start with plausible deniability and other defense mechanisms. You know, anything to avoid having to take responsibility for the mess they've made. It's that that made me decide she did a fairly good job with James, although she needs to be careful not to become petulant. She also did a fairly good job with Amanda, but I'm hoping that Parvati will have more ammo to use in front of the jury to justify the need to go outside of their little group and recruit Alexis and Natalie. I mean, it sure seems obvious to me why it was necessary, but it's all in the presentation, isn't it? One needs to be upbeat and matter-of-fact, not whiny and self-pitying.
I still have high hopes for my girl. The doubt is being created nicely, while the edit all season has been niftily crafted to show how she weaved a web of alliances through this game, working with almost everyone at some point in order to achieve a goal of the moment.
CIRIE
Cirie didn't have a whole lot of strategy related moments, although there were a couple of quick scenes.
First, the little scene with Amanda and Parvati, in which Cirie tried to cheer Amanda up with a hug and a smile and a loving tone in her voice. If I were Parvati, I'd be a tad concerned about standing at the end beside Cirie, if she's behaved that way with many of the players. She could easily come from "nowhere" to take the prize at the end. I wonder how much Parvati has evaluated her best allies and their gameplay.
Secondly, a number of people noticed Cirie leading the assault on Jason's bag in the sense of directing Natalie and Alexis towards it. She definitely got a little muck on her hands this episode, and I'm not just talking chocolate cake. Incidentally and speaking of cake, the Food Auction has been beautifully recapped with a pictorial by Phoenix1269 entitled "Fruit Bat Soup." Link here.
Cirie still has a great shot at winning. At the moment, the biggest strike against her in my view is that the Nu-Malakal tribe received mail from loved ones during that spa reward a while back, and we weren't shown any of it on the show. Instead, as you may recall, we saw footage of Ozzy, Amanda and Ami frolicking in the water. That's not a good sign, since we have in the past always seen when the winner participates in a reward involving loved ones.
BITS & BYTES
THE FOOD AUCTION
Funniest auction ever! Maybe even one of the funniest scenes ever. The chocolate cake scene was great. My favorite moment was probably Cirie mumbling with her mouth full, "How much were you going to pay (to lick my fingers)?" I laughed as much the second time I watched it as the first. For a great pictorial see Phoenix1269's thread here!
THE JASON BLINDSIDE
Phoenix1269 also pictorially recapped the Black Widow Brigade's plot to target Jason, along with some choice photos from Tribal Council. Link here. Thanks Phoenix!
Of particular interest to me is the set of images depicting James' revelation, in front of the whole TC and Jury, of Parvati as the key person responsible for Ozzy's blindside. Funny how Cirie looked displeased. Perhaps she was hoping to take credit? Like I said, I cannot wait to see how the Final plays out.
END GAME - WHAT IF THERE WERE A TIE?
Indulging my flight of fancy that Natalie reaches the final 3, and being cognizant of how a Fan might win by accident, I started thinking about the mechanics of resolving a tie in the final vote. There's never been a tie, but then again, it was only with the institution of the Final 3 that a tie became possible. A single vote to one player with the other two splitting the rest evenly. This season more than most seems to me to have been edited as if it would end in a tie, with Cirie and Parvati each receiving three votes and the other finalist receiving only one. Everyone other than these two seems to have been given supporting roles. Alexis and Natalie are supporting the main characters, Amanda's role has also felt subservient to the Big Two. James' role has largely been that of comic relief and very occasional commentator. Erik is this season's sweetheart. Yes, with all the women participating in the Black Widow Brigade, the role of sweetheart had to be filled by one of the guys.
To return to my initial point (about a Fan winning by surprise), what if there were two Fans in the final 3? Natalie and Alexis with Parvati. Natalie receives one vote (from Ozzy the bitter betty) and the other two receive three votes apiece. What if the tie-break mechanism called for all of the final three to have already placed a vote? Or perhaps the one-vote getter would become a newly anointed juror and cast a vote at the finale? If the final vote were from either Fan, it's possible they would vote for the other Fan. Of course, maybe they'd have a fire-making challenge right there onstage.
NEXT TIME ON...
It's the Loved Ones visit! And James has to go see Medical to have his finger looked at. Hmmm... interesting. The last time we saw a preview of a medical situation was with Jonathan and he was forced to leave the game. Will James face the same fate? And what will that mean for the game and the players? I must say this has turned out to be a very exciting season!
Thanks for reading! See you next time.
* * *
Are you also watching American Idol? Check out the AI forum here.
Check out SirLinksalot: Survivor Micronesia for more recaps & articles on this show
NATALIE
vidcap by Warrior
The Invisible One finally emerged, and OMG best villain ever!
Given that she's a lesbian, and that we saw Parvati approach her pre-merge to make
the Gang of 4 alliance (with the absent Amanda & Alexis), I admit to wondering if there were also some flirting thrown into the mix to sweeten the deal.
Of course we weren't shown any of it, and probably won't be shown any of it, even though there are still a few more episodes to go! Maybe nothing of
the sort happened, but hope springs eternal.
Seriously, is "Catalie" (as she's called in certain circles) the only Fan deserving of the name? Survivor is a game of lying and backstabbing, and she excelled (at least compared with the other Fans.) Oh, alright, so it's not like she bamboozled a mental giant or anything. Most of us would agree that blindsiding Jason can't really have been that difficult to do. He was fooled by a fucking stick, for crying out loud! Perhaps the true achievement was in being able to control the venom that has clearly been brewing a long time, and bide her time, ensuring she vented spleen on the most deserving and at the most opportune moment. I can understand why they didn't want to dilute Natalie's presentation, purposely keeping her completely hidden so that her appearance this episode would come across that much more forceful and explosive. But why did they hide Jason's behavior that apparently gave rise to her antagonism?
Editing is an interesting thing. During his time on the island, Jason was portrayed by turns as an outsider, a bit of a meanie, an idiot, a buffoon and desperate. This week's Insider includes some James clips in which he describes Jason's nasty habit of chewing with his mouth open. Surely that's not enough to justify Natalie's near-sociopathic response. Either there is more to it or she over-reacted. It's not just me, is it? Her targeting of him did have a vindictive personal quality to it. However obnoxious Jason was during the first three episodes, we weren't given any reason to expect Natalie to be the one to seek revenge, or why. And that's why Natalie isn't a contender to win. Given her almost complete Invisibility status for the first NINE episodes of the show and the beginnings of life finally in Episode 10, this sudden explosion onto the scene in Episode 11 is in one sense too much and in another sense, too little but more than anything, it's too late. It's too much in that she is HIGHLY visible all of a sudden. It's too little in that she was kind of one-note with that high visibility.
In Episode 11, at first I thought Natalie was being edited complexly, because we saw her sharing her thoughts about her plan as well as the execution of the plan itself. But my fellow Edgicians pointed out that the repetition of the evil cackling and "bitch" comment were symptomatic of OTT, a one-dimensional edit. On reflection I had to agree. The flossing with jugular imagery was definitely Over The Top. Moreover, the cartoon caricature must have originated with an editing decision to NOT give us explanatory backstory as to why Jason deserved this fate. It's not enough to include a short scene in Episode 2 and expect that to explain the nature of his demise in Episode 11.
It's true that Jason did always seem to be in trouble but it was a fool's kind of problem, not a malicious person's. I know I hadn't been primed to want to see Jason eviscerated in such a nasty fashion. This created a problem for Natalie, I think, in that many of us who had scoffed at Jason's idiocy in recent episodes, or even berated him way back in Episode 2, now found ourselves saying "Poor Jason" even if we were laughing at Natalie's confessionals. And not everyone was laughing either. Even though there may well have been plenty of reason for Natalie to do this, editing left all that out and the majority of viewers simply called her a nasty bitch and expressed sympathy for the victim. No matter how much MB might dislike the winners, he has never treated them this poorly. Hence the elimination of Natalie from contention.
Her bold moves did have me wondering if she were really this quiet a player for the first 10 episodes. Given her comment to the effect that "at last I feel like I'm really playing," it seems likely that she wasn't in the thick of strategy and perhaps wasn't even giving very interesting confessionals. Therefore there wasn't gameplay to show us. But even if there were other tidbits worthy of telecast, by keeping them under wraps, the explosive quality of her actions here was that much more amplified for appearing to come from nowhere.
I have to say I did find it very interesting when she won the chocolate cake and the three tribemates whom she chose to share it with her were, in order, Parvati, Alexis and Cirie. This may well be reflective of the revised order of her allegiance. Even Alexis has been eclipsed by Parvati-love.
Bottom line: With the kind of edit she's gotten, Natalie has gone from "who?" to "WTF?" and as such is intended as an entertaining distraction. At best, she serves as a means to put Parvati's bitchiness into perspective.
AMANDA
vidcap by Warrior
Amanda was quite visible this episode, but I thought she had a sad-sack quality to her face-time. After all, she has been left out of a number of events lately, hasn't she? I thought Cirie was definitely very comforting and trying to cajole her into acceptance that of course she had to be left out of the Ozzy blindside. It was in her own best interests! Meanwhile, the apology Parvati served up wasn't too bad, as apologies go.
And yet, Amanda has now been shown on a couple of occasions saying she's mad at Parvati but isn't going to say something to her. I understand why Amanda would keep her own counsel on that score, but why tell us about it? Is Amanda thinking several steps ahead, or is she simply trying to be best friends with everybody? Perhaps the way she spins it at the end will provide the reason the editors told us.
What was all that about "Game On"? I suppose she means, "Eventually." She didn't seem to do all that much this episode, unless you count telling James that all avenues have been explored and there's no hope to save him.
I still think Amanda reaches the end game but at this juncture neither her edit nor her gameplay supports her winning. Perhaps that will change over the next few episodes. Of course, I hope not. I'm still rooting for Parvati and the small windfall due to come my way as a result.
JAMES
vidcap by Warrior
This was perhaps James' most important episode of the season. He had the most well-rounded presentation he's ever gotten. As per usual he made funny comments and as per usual bitched & moaned, but he also had a good scene confronting Pavarti and arguing with her, and a tender scene or two with Amanda. In addition, I thought we got into his head and learned his thoughts about "someone like Pavarti." It sounds like he won't be a vote for Parvati at the end, at any rate, and now we know why.
But the one thing we did not see was James doing some work to remain in the game. He certainly received plenty of information putting him on notice that he needed to do some work, and that now was the time. Parvati told him of her plans to have 3 girls in the final 3, so he knew for damn sure that he, Jason and Erik are definitely not included. He saw Jason sent to Exile Island and more importantly thanks to the bag-searching, he knew Jason had the HII. Amanda told James that while he, James, was being "targeted," he was actually not the true target. The plan was to boot Jason after fooling him into feeling safe and therefore not playing his HII. How much more information did James need? Did he figure that by telling Amanda his intention to "write Parvati's name down," that Amanda would run around drumming up support for Parvati's ouster? I guess.
Perhaps it was his finger hurting him so much that he couldn't think straight. After all, the Next Time Ons showed James being attended to by medical personnel and that may well spell the end of James' game.
PARVATI
vidcap by Warrior
I thought Parvati had a good episode all things considered. For one thing, the "blindside Ozzy" plan was recapped as being all her, with no mention of Cirie's part in the proceedings. That makes me wonder if what we were seeing last week was Cirie mulling over things she'd been told by Parvati, rather than cooking up plots and plans. Isn't editing interesting?
For another thing, several players including James (see vidcap above) were shown
saying it was a good plan, even if they were unhappy to have been left out of the plotting. Erik acknowledged that had he been told, he might well have run to
his man Ozzy to spill the beans, so clearly it was smart not to have included him. I really am looking forward to finding out how the Blindsiding Ozzy Plan
will be dealt with at the final TC. Who will have questions to ask, and what will the finalists have to say? I haven't looked forward to the finals this
much since All-Stars featuring Rob Mariano. But back to our heroine.
Parvati's light-hearted giggly confessional in which she acknowledged the damage control that needed doing showed me that she has the ability to remain upbeat even in the face of problems, albeit largely self-made problems. Hmm, actually, it's often the self-made problems that give people such a hard time and cause them to start with plausible deniability and other defense mechanisms. You know, anything to avoid having to take responsibility for the mess they've made. It's that that made me decide she did a fairly good job with James, although she needs to be careful not to become petulant. She also did a fairly good job with Amanda, but I'm hoping that Parvati will have more ammo to use in front of the jury to justify the need to go outside of their little group and recruit Alexis and Natalie. I mean, it sure seems obvious to me why it was necessary, but it's all in the presentation, isn't it? One needs to be upbeat and matter-of-fact, not whiny and self-pitying.
I still have high hopes for my girl. The doubt is being created nicely, while the edit all season has been niftily crafted to show how she weaved a web of alliances through this game, working with almost everyone at some point in order to achieve a goal of the moment.
CIRIE
Cirie didn't have a whole lot of strategy related moments, although there were a couple of quick scenes.
First, the little scene with Amanda and Parvati, in which Cirie tried to cheer Amanda up with a hug and a smile and a loving tone in her voice. If I were Parvati, I'd be a tad concerned about standing at the end beside Cirie, if she's behaved that way with many of the players. She could easily come from "nowhere" to take the prize at the end. I wonder how much Parvati has evaluated her best allies and their gameplay.
Secondly, a number of people noticed Cirie leading the assault on Jason's bag in the sense of directing Natalie and Alexis towards it. She definitely got a little muck on her hands this episode, and I'm not just talking chocolate cake. Incidentally and speaking of cake, the Food Auction has been beautifully recapped with a pictorial by Phoenix1269 entitled "Fruit Bat Soup." Link here.
Cirie still has a great shot at winning. At the moment, the biggest strike against her in my view is that the Nu-Malakal tribe received mail from loved ones during that spa reward a while back, and we weren't shown any of it on the show. Instead, as you may recall, we saw footage of Ozzy, Amanda and Ami frolicking in the water. That's not a good sign, since we have in the past always seen when the winner participates in a reward involving loved ones.
BITS & BYTES
THE FOOD AUCTION
Funniest auction ever! Maybe even one of the funniest scenes ever. The chocolate cake scene was great. My favorite moment was probably Cirie mumbling with her mouth full, "How much were you going to pay (to lick my fingers)?" I laughed as much the second time I watched it as the first. For a great pictorial see Phoenix1269's thread here!
THE JASON BLINDSIDE
Phoenix1269 also pictorially recapped the Black Widow Brigade's plot to target Jason, along with some choice photos from Tribal Council. Link here. Thanks Phoenix!
Of particular interest to me is the set of images depicting James' revelation, in front of the whole TC and Jury, of Parvati as the key person responsible for Ozzy's blindside. Funny how Cirie looked displeased. Perhaps she was hoping to take credit? Like I said, I cannot wait to see how the Final plays out.
END GAME - WHAT IF THERE WERE A TIE?
Indulging my flight of fancy that Natalie reaches the final 3, and being cognizant of how a Fan might win by accident, I started thinking about the mechanics of resolving a tie in the final vote. There's never been a tie, but then again, it was only with the institution of the Final 3 that a tie became possible. A single vote to one player with the other two splitting the rest evenly. This season more than most seems to me to have been edited as if it would end in a tie, with Cirie and Parvati each receiving three votes and the other finalist receiving only one. Everyone other than these two seems to have been given supporting roles. Alexis and Natalie are supporting the main characters, Amanda's role has also felt subservient to the Big Two. James' role has largely been that of comic relief and very occasional commentator. Erik is this season's sweetheart. Yes, with all the women participating in the Black Widow Brigade, the role of sweetheart had to be filled by one of the guys.
To return to my initial point (about a Fan winning by surprise), what if there were two Fans in the final 3? Natalie and Alexis with Parvati. Natalie receives one vote (from Ozzy the bitter betty) and the other two receive three votes apiece. What if the tie-break mechanism called for all of the final three to have already placed a vote? Or perhaps the one-vote getter would become a newly anointed juror and cast a vote at the finale? If the final vote were from either Fan, it's possible they would vote for the other Fan. Of course, maybe they'd have a fire-making challenge right there onstage.
NEXT TIME ON...
It's the Loved Ones visit! And James has to go see Medical to have his finger looked at. Hmmm... interesting. The last time we saw a preview of a medical situation was with Jonathan and he was forced to leave the game. Will James face the same fate? And what will that mean for the game and the players? I must say this has turned out to be a very exciting season!
Thanks for reading! See you next time.
* * *
Are you also watching American Idol? Check out the AI forum here.
Check out SirLinksalot: Survivor Micronesia for more recaps & articles on this show
