Survivor: Edge of Extinction Episode 2 "One of Us Is Going to Win the War" Analysis

"Why aren't I looking for idols?"

-Julie Rosenberg

Well, it's been almost a week since this episode aired and I'm finally getting around to writing this breakdown.  I'm sorry!  I've been in the process of traveling across the country and am writing this from the middle of nowhere in a motel in Nebraska.  Anyway, I really enjoyed this episode and am excited to break down how everyone played in this episode.

Who Played Well:

Starting over on the Kama tribe, who we didn't see much of, Eric and Joe both did very well in the challenge.  We didn't see much of them otherwise, but they are the best challenge performers on the tribe and I don't imagine they will get voted out anytime soon.

Julia and Victoria both handled the situation with Aubry very well.  They were both extremely aware of what Aubry was up to and pointing it out to the other players was a solid move.  They did a great job of throwing Aubry under the bus and increasing their status in the game.

Finally, we didn't see too much of Ron, but he seems to be good for the morale of his tribe.  The ability to make people laugh can take you far in the game and I'm liking Ron's chances.

Over on the Manu tribe, we'll start with Kelley.  I don't know what she did or how she did it, but she somehow managed to avoid being the target of the vote.  I'm sure there was plenty of stuff we didn't see, so I have to give Kelley some credit for avoiding getting voted out.

We also have Lauren, who found the Hidden Immunity Idol.  She didn't come off as the most aware player in this episode, but good on her for finding the Idol and keeping it to herself.

Wardog was the one who got his way at the vote.  Somehow he got almost everyone onboard to vote out Keith even when most of them didn't want to.  It's unclear if he pushed too hard to get this done, but good for him for getting his way.

Rick had a bit of mixed night, but I think it was net positive.  It's great that he bonded with David.  That's a great meat shield for him and a solid ally.  I don't understand how he didn't get his way at the vote when he had the numbers.  I don't hate the getting rid of Kelley move for Rick and I don't understand why this plan didn't go through.  That said, I think Rick will be fine.

Finally, we have Wendy, who managed to go from the absolute second boot to not even being on the chopping block.  She did a great job in the challenge and managed to get David and Rick to be onboard with voting out Kelley.  I was actually super impressed with her gameplay in this episode.

Who Sucked:

Back on Kama, the only person really worth discussing is Aubry, who is being way too transparent with her attempts to bond with people.  If Kama loses, I can't imagine anyone else being the target.

Over on Manu, we'll start with Chris, who had a mixed night.  He did great in the challenge, but I really don't like that he didn't get the Kelley vote to work.  It makes sense for Chris to keep Keith over Kelley and him failing to execute on this plan, even when he seemed to have the votes, isn't great.

Finally, we have David, my winner pick.  I don't understand why he is so gung-ho about voting out Kelley.  He should want to keep the other returning players in the game.  If they get rid of one, what's to stop them from coming after him next?  I do like that he is bonding so well with Rick at least.

Aurora, Gavin, and Julie really didn't do much of note in this episode.

As for Keith, he did incredibly poorly in the challenge.  Who comes onto Survivor not knowing how to swim in this day and age?  Plus he should have done a better job of getting the vote onto Kelley.  The numbers were there, I don't know how it didn't happen.  I do love the cliffhanger about whether or not he goes to the Edge, but I can't imagine that he doesn't go.

Verdict:

The "Has Got It Going On" Award for this episode goes to Wendy Diaz for her solid performance in the challenge, doing a great job of throwing Kelley under the bus, and not being the target for the vote when she was clearly the next to go at the beginning of the episode.

The "Not The Player For Me" Award goes to Aubry Bracco for her completely transparent attempts to bond with people.

This was another solid episode of Survivor.  I really liked what we got from Reem and the Keith cliffhanger.  I wish we had gotten to see more of the Kama tribe, but I am liking the season so far.