I do hope that everyone's injuries have healed. Wasn't James adorable trundling into Tribal Council with his IV drip? What a trooper!
Other than the injury which forced James out of the game, another great episode! This has turned out to be a marvelous season after all. Aren't you glad you stuck with it?
vidcaps by Warrior
Amanda's marvelous coup with the Hidden Immunity Idol was wonderful to see, although now I fear my girl Parvati is in danger of losing the game. Amanda put on a marvelous display of acting, "Poor me, everyone is targeting me. Alas.' Parvati openly declared her loyalty to her, so when Amanda skipped over to Jeff happily swinging her HII, the only question was, whose ass was grass? The worried looks on the faces of Alexis and Natalie added to the joy and glee on the jury's faces. I'm quite looking forward to the scene at camp at the start of Episode 13.
So now ... several of our Final Five can be eliminated from contention.
CIRIE
Cirie is now eliminated in my view. Yes, she's been highly visible throughout the season, and yes, it's been hinted she is a mastermind. Her main problem now is that her facetime in Episode 12 made her appear petty & mean with her saying James' and Alexis' injuries represent "two fewer people" standing between her and the million. That is the kind of comment guaranteed to make viewers happy to see her on the Jury rather than facing it. Should it turn out that one of those injured players has to be hospitalized during the final Tribal Council timeframe, it could be that Cirie does end up on the Jury even if she makes Final 3. I mean, I expect her to be in the Final 3, but what if that threesome is told last-minute, "Oh, guess what? So&so is in hospital. You now have to have a Final 3 immunity challenge to determine which two of you will face the Jury." It would be ironic. There was Cirie, happy to see them eliminated due to injury, and then she herself is prevented from facing the jury as a result.
Perhaps even worse is the fact that we were not shown that she knew Amanda had the idol or at least knew it was at camp. Cirie's edit made it appear she was out of the loop and just as blindsided as Natalie, Alexis and Erik. It is true that to have revealed that Amanda was in possession of the HII would have ruined the moment at Tribal. However, we did see Parvat and Amanda discussing whom to target; meanwhile, all we saw occur between Cirie and Amanda was Cirie asking if she should force a tie, "what should I do?" It certainly didn't sound like the mastermind Cirie was previously hinted to be. Although it was implicit in Cirie's vote speech that this was "all part of the plan and means nothing" we actually do not know how much Cirie was told of the plan. Casual viewers who do not go in search of Insider clips will be surprised to learn Cirie was in on the plan to any extent.
However and in any event, Cirie's storyline feels complete thanks to her giving a confessional during the Reward in which she said something to the effect that being with the jellyfish made her realize she doesn't have to be afraid of every little thing. She went on to say something about what she was "taking from this experience," the kind of sentiment best expressed at the Reunion, sitting in the winner's chair. To be shown saying it now sounds like the end of her story is coming sooner rather than later.
In my view, Cirie's presentation in this episode reduced her chances virtually completely to be the winner. Even if I'm wrong and she does end up facing the jury, the essence of her gameplay as shown lately appears to be that of a follower who is a backstabber, rather than a leader. She was shown being willing to target Amanda, her supposed F3 ally, but without explanation from her via confessional about being included in the planning. Being shown asking what she should do makes her look weak. How can she show that she masterminded anything?
Cirie's fans would probably still maintain that her knowledge of Amanda being safe and her own vote to oust Amanda being "part of the plan" make no difference. She still wins.
But I think that hiding her instead of hiding Parvati is not good for Cirie's chances. The edit has been showing us a
lot of the cackling and backroom deal making, the "playing of the game," if you will. To me that signals the theme for the season is complicated
gameplay. Early in the season we saw the Fans try to run such plays, and fail. Eventually we saw successful attempts and the run with the HII, real and fake. I
think this editing decision is bad for Cirie's chances because the finalists ARE involved in a battle of who can truly take credit for masterminding the
best game. No matter who the finalists are, and whether there are 2 or 3, other than Erik, we've seen four of the five remaining players involved in some
kind of scheming. That brings me to the Fans.
ERIK and NATALIE
Erik has been a lightweight, narrating without strategizing and giving after-the-fact commentary rather than before-the-fact planning. Is there any chance he can make it to the very end? When he said at the outset that he wanted to 'beat Ozzy," did he mean outlast him in this game, or beat Ozzy's best score (i.e., coming 2nd in his first season)? If Erik were simply happy to have outlasted Ozzy this time around, he's accomplished that.
Natalie is at best a finalist only if she occupies a loser's seat. Her low-key presentation (apart from her Episode 11 explosion) makes Pearl Islands' Darrah look like a camera hog. Nat's negativity, whether put-on or a true character trait, was shown in a bid to make people happy that she loses. That's the main reason I think she might be a finalist. Why keep her hidden, unless it was to tell her story over the whole of the end game? I could be wrong and she leaves next. It just doesn't feel right to me that someone who lasts in the game as long as she did gets so little facetime.
However, I am most worried now about my girl Parvati and her chances to win the game thanks to what appears to be a minor change to Amanda's edit. It could be catastrophic to my chances to pocket $190 next Monday.
PARVATI v. AMANDA
Parvati has been looking good from the editing. She's been well-tended throughout the game, only going truly quiet when her tribe was winning ICs and staying at camp while the other tribe went to TC.
But we all know how much MB loves his animal imagery and seems to intend that we understand that certain key players are represented by key animals. Cirie may have been a crab or a shark. Wasn't Ami the snake, or was that Eliza? Parvati has called herself and her girlpower allies the Black Widow Brigade, with MB thoughtfully providing imagery of spiders weaving webs. In this episode we saw a sea turtle just before we joined Amanda on Exile Island. Uh oh. Is Amanda meant to be represented by the sea turtle? Even Johnny Fairplay knew the adage, "Slow and steady wins the race." Could it be that Parvati has chosen the wrong person to stay loyal to, and despite the conventional editing guidelines we've established in Edgic, she loses to someone who didn't have an important Episode 1 introduction? Ugh, I hope not. Think of the off-season arguing that will ensue in the Edgic thread!! (Inside joke for Edgickers. We always find something to argue about during the off-season.)
vidcap by Phoenix1269
So maybe I'm worrying about nothing. And yet, despite reassurances from fellow Edgicians, I'm worried. It's true that in episode 1 Amanda didn't have a "key quote." What if her edit was so slow to commence that the usual "key quote" was not even provided by her but by someone else? First boot Johnny Fairplay said, "Slow and steady wins the race." It may just be coincidence, and maybe the sound byte is meant to point to Cirie or Parvati. But Amanda's edit was very slow to get going. She was doing very little besides swapping spit with Ozzy. She was so non-contributory that Edgic eliminated her for being Invisible by episode 4. What if we were too hasty? What if Amanda's story IS the story of the tortoise, while Parvati's is that of the hare? Did Parvati perhaps rush into end-game alliances without thinking them through? She appears to be faced with tattered game-relationships that may be irreparable. On the other hand, Edgic tells me that it's better to have doubt cast rather than look like a "sure thing."
Trouble is, when has Amanda looked like a sure thing? It's only thanks to Amanda's fabulous performance in Episode 12 that makes her look like a deserving winner. Hers has been a tortoise kind of game, slow and steady, biding her time, keeping her unhappy thoughts to herself regarding Parvati's actions (like making an alliance in her absence). Now Amanda looks like The Best Playah Evah, even if she isn't really and she simply was in the right place at the right time.
Let's not forget, Parvati helped engineer the blindsiding of a key member of the tribe, Ozzy and in doing so made it possible for others to remain in the game longer. The question is, which of Parvati and Amanda can sell their game better? Will Parvati look objectively at the set-up and realize she should avoid ending up in the final 3 with Amanda? Or does Parvati in fact have the better game to sell, and it wouldn't matter whom she faced at the end? Her best ally seems so sweet now, much sweeter and more savvy than the loser we saw come 3rd to Courtney and Todd in China. Plus, Amanda just worked a blindside on Alexis and played it out for the Jury to see. She isn't keeping her moves all hidden. And yet, if Parvati were to work actively to boot Amanda, she could tarnish her game beyond repair. She cannot afford to alienate the jurors to the point where she cannot win enough votes even to make it respectable. What a conundrum.
While Parvati got blood all over herself and alienated at least two of her original allies, Amanda appears to have benefited in several ways from Ozzy being blindsided. A major threat to win was removed without her knowledge or complicity, and so she has no blood on her hands for that maneuver. If she's in front of the jury, Ozzy and James appear to be locks to vote for her. Another thing is that without Ozzy around, Amanda has looked happier. When he was there she seemed to spend her time worrying about where he was and whom he was with. Once he was out of the game, she began concentrating better. Lest anyone think she hasn't done anything to be deserving of the win, lo & behold, she has just had a major episode and a blindside coup of her own. Even someone like Eliza who professed dislike for the "pageant girl" could decide to vote "for Amanda" rather than simply "against Parvati."
The only things preventing an Amanda win at this point seem to be Amanda's inability to sell her game to a sufficient number of jurors and of course the possibility that she doesn't make it to the end. But let's assume she does face the Jury, since that's the main scenario I'm worried about. I think Parvati could win against anyone else. Amanda's edit may have been slow to get going but if enough jurors enjoyed seeing the HII used properly, that one move could be enough to win her 4 votes. While this jury doesn't know about Amanda's lousy performance last time, she is already showing she has learned from her mistakes. It's much better to have the jury witness a blindside in action than to simply tell them of all the moves you made to get where you are. On the other hand, when the hilarity fades, it's just one move and she needed Parvati's help in order to accomplish it. Will that be revealed through question and answer? Is Amanda's brilliant move just a way to cast doubt on Parvati's win, or is it the beginning of an arc that finishes with Amanda winning the million and Parvati being seated in a 2nd or 3rd placegetter's chair.
Parvati has had a typical good female winner's edit, and she may well earn some votes if she faces the jury (which seems likely. Too many people this season with "good edits" have already been eliminated.) But perhaps a good edit isn't good enough. As is often the case on seasons with returning players, part of the story this time could be How The Loser Lost. This season it may for once also be the story of How The Winner Won. The biggest question is, whose slow, steady development of the game will it be, Parvati's or Amanda's? Has Parvati made too many moves, or just enough?
Parvati's win feels to me to be in serious jeopardy, despite the high number of posters in Edgic proclaiming her victorious and pointing to numerous key points to back up that assertion. She was visible when she needed to be, complex and strategic at the right times, she made a good quality "opening statement in Episode 1." She has connections to lots of jurors (not all of them appear to be good but that could be misdirection.) Amanda was extremely quiet for the first 4 episodes, began to have a bit more presence and involvement in episodes 5-11 and now explodes onto the scene with a brilliant play, managing to look positive throughout. Maybe Amanda is the hare, rushing in with a fabulous bit of gameplay. The looks of shock from the rest of the active players! The laughing & exhilaration of the jurors! What if the jury dismisses it as one great move versus many great moves authored by Parvati?
Of course I worry that Parvati made too many alliances and in having to betray some, pissed off enough of the jurors to give away the win. Perhaps someone who was blindsided directly or indirectly by Amanda would nevertheless vote for Amanda at the end. What she did was just such a cool thing to have done, so kudos to the player who managed to use the Hidden Immunity Idol perfectly and all that.
As you can see, I am going round and round, finding elements to support first a Parvati win, then an Amanda win. All in all, it's really turned out to be a fabulous season and I'm very excited to see how it plays out. We will know soon enough.
Thanks for reading. See you soon!
* * *
Are you also watching American Idol? Check out the AI forum here.
Check out SirLinksalot: Survivor Micronesia for more recaps & articles on this show
Other than the injury which forced James out of the game, another great episode! This has turned out to be a marvelous season after all. Aren't you glad you stuck with it?
vidcaps by Warrior
Amanda's marvelous coup with the Hidden Immunity Idol was wonderful to see, although now I fear my girl Parvati is in danger of losing the game. Amanda put on a marvelous display of acting, "Poor me, everyone is targeting me. Alas.' Parvati openly declared her loyalty to her, so when Amanda skipped over to Jeff happily swinging her HII, the only question was, whose ass was grass? The worried looks on the faces of Alexis and Natalie added to the joy and glee on the jury's faces. I'm quite looking forward to the scene at camp at the start of Episode 13.
So now ... several of our Final Five can be eliminated from contention.
CIRIE
Cirie is now eliminated in my view. Yes, she's been highly visible throughout the season, and yes, it's been hinted she is a mastermind. Her main problem now is that her facetime in Episode 12 made her appear petty & mean with her saying James' and Alexis' injuries represent "two fewer people" standing between her and the million. That is the kind of comment guaranteed to make viewers happy to see her on the Jury rather than facing it. Should it turn out that one of those injured players has to be hospitalized during the final Tribal Council timeframe, it could be that Cirie does end up on the Jury even if she makes Final 3. I mean, I expect her to be in the Final 3, but what if that threesome is told last-minute, "Oh, guess what? So&so is in hospital. You now have to have a Final 3 immunity challenge to determine which two of you will face the Jury." It would be ironic. There was Cirie, happy to see them eliminated due to injury, and then she herself is prevented from facing the jury as a result.
Perhaps even worse is the fact that we were not shown that she knew Amanda had the idol or at least knew it was at camp. Cirie's edit made it appear she was out of the loop and just as blindsided as Natalie, Alexis and Erik. It is true that to have revealed that Amanda was in possession of the HII would have ruined the moment at Tribal. However, we did see Parvat and Amanda discussing whom to target; meanwhile, all we saw occur between Cirie and Amanda was Cirie asking if she should force a tie, "what should I do?" It certainly didn't sound like the mastermind Cirie was previously hinted to be. Although it was implicit in Cirie's vote speech that this was "all part of the plan and means nothing" we actually do not know how much Cirie was told of the plan. Casual viewers who do not go in search of Insider clips will be surprised to learn Cirie was in on the plan to any extent.
However and in any event, Cirie's storyline feels complete thanks to her giving a confessional during the Reward in which she said something to the effect that being with the jellyfish made her realize she doesn't have to be afraid of every little thing. She went on to say something about what she was "taking from this experience," the kind of sentiment best expressed at the Reunion, sitting in the winner's chair. To be shown saying it now sounds like the end of her story is coming sooner rather than later.
In my view, Cirie's presentation in this episode reduced her chances virtually completely to be the winner. Even if I'm wrong and she does end up facing the jury, the essence of her gameplay as shown lately appears to be that of a follower who is a backstabber, rather than a leader. She was shown being willing to target Amanda, her supposed F3 ally, but without explanation from her via confessional about being included in the planning. Being shown asking what she should do makes her look weak. How can she show that she masterminded anything?
Cirie's fans would probably still maintain that her knowledge of Amanda being safe and her own vote to oust Amanda being "part of the plan" make no difference. She still wins.
But I think that hiding her instead of hiding Parvati is not good for Cirie's chances. The edit has been showing us a
lot of the cackling and backroom deal making, the "playing of the game," if you will. To me that signals the theme for the season is complicated
gameplay. Early in the season we saw the Fans try to run such plays, and fail. Eventually we saw successful attempts and the run with the HII, real and fake. I
think this editing decision is bad for Cirie's chances because the finalists ARE involved in a battle of who can truly take credit for masterminding the
best game. No matter who the finalists are, and whether there are 2 or 3, other than Erik, we've seen four of the five remaining players involved in some
kind of scheming. That brings me to the Fans.
ERIK and NATALIE
Erik has been a lightweight, narrating without strategizing and giving after-the-fact commentary rather than before-the-fact planning. Is there any chance he can make it to the very end? When he said at the outset that he wanted to 'beat Ozzy," did he mean outlast him in this game, or beat Ozzy's best score (i.e., coming 2nd in his first season)? If Erik were simply happy to have outlasted Ozzy this time around, he's accomplished that.
Natalie is at best a finalist only if she occupies a loser's seat. Her low-key presentation (apart from her Episode 11 explosion) makes Pearl Islands' Darrah look like a camera hog. Nat's negativity, whether put-on or a true character trait, was shown in a bid to make people happy that she loses. That's the main reason I think she might be a finalist. Why keep her hidden, unless it was to tell her story over the whole of the end game? I could be wrong and she leaves next. It just doesn't feel right to me that someone who lasts in the game as long as she did gets so little facetime.
However, I am most worried now about my girl Parvati and her chances to win the game thanks to what appears to be a minor change to Amanda's edit. It could be catastrophic to my chances to pocket $190 next Monday.
PARVATI v. AMANDA
Parvati has been looking good from the editing. She's been well-tended throughout the game, only going truly quiet when her tribe was winning ICs and staying at camp while the other tribe went to TC.
But we all know how much MB loves his animal imagery and seems to intend that we understand that certain key players are represented by key animals. Cirie may have been a crab or a shark. Wasn't Ami the snake, or was that Eliza? Parvati has called herself and her girlpower allies the Black Widow Brigade, with MB thoughtfully providing imagery of spiders weaving webs. In this episode we saw a sea turtle just before we joined Amanda on Exile Island. Uh oh. Is Amanda meant to be represented by the sea turtle? Even Johnny Fairplay knew the adage, "Slow and steady wins the race." Could it be that Parvati has chosen the wrong person to stay loyal to, and despite the conventional editing guidelines we've established in Edgic, she loses to someone who didn't have an important Episode 1 introduction? Ugh, I hope not. Think of the off-season arguing that will ensue in the Edgic thread!! (Inside joke for Edgickers. We always find something to argue about during the off-season.)
vidcap by Phoenix1269
So maybe I'm worrying about nothing. And yet, despite reassurances from fellow Edgicians, I'm worried. It's true that in episode 1 Amanda didn't have a "key quote." What if her edit was so slow to commence that the usual "key quote" was not even provided by her but by someone else? First boot Johnny Fairplay said, "Slow and steady wins the race." It may just be coincidence, and maybe the sound byte is meant to point to Cirie or Parvati. But Amanda's edit was very slow to get going. She was doing very little besides swapping spit with Ozzy. She was so non-contributory that Edgic eliminated her for being Invisible by episode 4. What if we were too hasty? What if Amanda's story IS the story of the tortoise, while Parvati's is that of the hare? Did Parvati perhaps rush into end-game alliances without thinking them through? She appears to be faced with tattered game-relationships that may be irreparable. On the other hand, Edgic tells me that it's better to have doubt cast rather than look like a "sure thing."
Trouble is, when has Amanda looked like a sure thing? It's only thanks to Amanda's fabulous performance in Episode 12 that makes her look like a deserving winner. Hers has been a tortoise kind of game, slow and steady, biding her time, keeping her unhappy thoughts to herself regarding Parvati's actions (like making an alliance in her absence). Now Amanda looks like The Best Playah Evah, even if she isn't really and she simply was in the right place at the right time.
Let's not forget, Parvati helped engineer the blindsiding of a key member of the tribe, Ozzy and in doing so made it possible for others to remain in the game longer. The question is, which of Parvati and Amanda can sell their game better? Will Parvati look objectively at the set-up and realize she should avoid ending up in the final 3 with Amanda? Or does Parvati in fact have the better game to sell, and it wouldn't matter whom she faced at the end? Her best ally seems so sweet now, much sweeter and more savvy than the loser we saw come 3rd to Courtney and Todd in China. Plus, Amanda just worked a blindside on Alexis and played it out for the Jury to see. She isn't keeping her moves all hidden. And yet, if Parvati were to work actively to boot Amanda, she could tarnish her game beyond repair. She cannot afford to alienate the jurors to the point where she cannot win enough votes even to make it respectable. What a conundrum.
While Parvati got blood all over herself and alienated at least two of her original allies, Amanda appears to have benefited in several ways from Ozzy being blindsided. A major threat to win was removed without her knowledge or complicity, and so she has no blood on her hands for that maneuver. If she's in front of the jury, Ozzy and James appear to be locks to vote for her. Another thing is that without Ozzy around, Amanda has looked happier. When he was there she seemed to spend her time worrying about where he was and whom he was with. Once he was out of the game, she began concentrating better. Lest anyone think she hasn't done anything to be deserving of the win, lo & behold, she has just had a major episode and a blindside coup of her own. Even someone like Eliza who professed dislike for the "pageant girl" could decide to vote "for Amanda" rather than simply "against Parvati."
The only things preventing an Amanda win at this point seem to be Amanda's inability to sell her game to a sufficient number of jurors and of course the possibility that she doesn't make it to the end. But let's assume she does face the Jury, since that's the main scenario I'm worried about. I think Parvati could win against anyone else. Amanda's edit may have been slow to get going but if enough jurors enjoyed seeing the HII used properly, that one move could be enough to win her 4 votes. While this jury doesn't know about Amanda's lousy performance last time, she is already showing she has learned from her mistakes. It's much better to have the jury witness a blindside in action than to simply tell them of all the moves you made to get where you are. On the other hand, when the hilarity fades, it's just one move and she needed Parvati's help in order to accomplish it. Will that be revealed through question and answer? Is Amanda's brilliant move just a way to cast doubt on Parvati's win, or is it the beginning of an arc that finishes with Amanda winning the million and Parvati being seated in a 2nd or 3rd placegetter's chair.
Parvati has had a typical good female winner's edit, and she may well earn some votes if she faces the jury (which seems likely. Too many people this season with "good edits" have already been eliminated.) But perhaps a good edit isn't good enough. As is often the case on seasons with returning players, part of the story this time could be How The Loser Lost. This season it may for once also be the story of How The Winner Won. The biggest question is, whose slow, steady development of the game will it be, Parvati's or Amanda's? Has Parvati made too many moves, or just enough?
Parvati's win feels to me to be in serious jeopardy, despite the high number of posters in Edgic proclaiming her victorious and pointing to numerous key points to back up that assertion. She was visible when she needed to be, complex and strategic at the right times, she made a good quality "opening statement in Episode 1." She has connections to lots of jurors (not all of them appear to be good but that could be misdirection.) Amanda was extremely quiet for the first 4 episodes, began to have a bit more presence and involvement in episodes 5-11 and now explodes onto the scene with a brilliant play, managing to look positive throughout. Maybe Amanda is the hare, rushing in with a fabulous bit of gameplay. The looks of shock from the rest of the active players! The laughing & exhilaration of the jurors! What if the jury dismisses it as one great move versus many great moves authored by Parvati?
Of course I worry that Parvati made too many alliances and in having to betray some, pissed off enough of the jurors to give away the win. Perhaps someone who was blindsided directly or indirectly by Amanda would nevertheless vote for Amanda at the end. What she did was just such a cool thing to have done, so kudos to the player who managed to use the Hidden Immunity Idol perfectly and all that.
As you can see, I am going round and round, finding elements to support first a Parvati win, then an Amanda win. All in all, it's really turned out to be a fabulous season and I'm very excited to see how it plays out. We will know soon enough.
Thanks for reading. See you soon!
* * *
Are you also watching American Idol? Check out the AI forum here.
Check out SirLinksalot: Survivor Micronesia for more recaps & articles on this show
Well, I've been participating in Edgic, and they mostly think Parvati will win per the season-long edit, so I'm cautiously optimistic.
