Survivor: Edge of Extinction Finale "I See the Million Dollars" Gameplay Breakdown
"Dude."
-Reem Daly
Well...that sucked. I had extremely low expectations coming into Edge of Extinction and it was even worse than I could have possibly imagined. Whatever, dude...let's get to the gameplay.
Since there were four rounds of play in the finale, I will be breaking each of the four parts down and giving out four sets of awards. Let's start with the Final 6 Redux.
Who Played Well:
We have to start with Chris who managed to win his way back into the game. He did a great job of trying to work with pretty much everyone when he returned and got the target off of his back. I think he made the right choice in giving his half of the Idol to Rick. Devens had an Idol of his own and was the most likely to survive Tribal Council. I also liked how he helped Julie with the puzzle. He knew he had no chance of winning, might as well get in good with the person who was going to win. He was a big part of getting Victoria eliminated, much to my displeasure, and he somehow convinced Lauren to play her Idol on him!
Rick did a good job of reaffirming his relationship with Chris to the point that Chris gave him half of an Idol. He also managed to play his own Idol correctly saving himself.
Julie won Immunity and made the right choices when picking Chris and Lauren to go on Reward with her. There was absolutely no reason to pick Rick. She also helped formulate the Victoria backup vote, which was a good move.
Who Sucked:
Gavin was simply not in on the backup plan to vote out Victoria. Lauren, on the other hand, was in on the plan, but fell for Chris' sales pitch about needing to play her Idol. She fell for it and wasted her Idol on Chris, which is what ultimately cost her the game.
As for Victoria, she played a really great game and I don't think she would have gone home here if it wasn't for the Edge of Extinction. According to Chris, everyone on the Edge thought Victoria was the biggest threat after Rick. That wasn't really apparent to everyone still in the game. I liked that she tried working with Rick, but she had the weakest relationship with him out of the remaining players. That's probably her biggest fault, but she was mostly just a victim of a bad twist.
Verdict:
Here is the first set of awards. The Platinum Probst goes to the best player in a round of play. This time it goes to Chris Underwood for getting back into the game, working with everyone, giving half of the Idol to Rick, helping Julie with the puzzle, getting rid of Victoria, and getting Lauren to waste her Idol on him. This is Chris' first time winning the Platinum Probst.
The second award is the Rotten Coconut, which goes to the worst player in a round of play (excluding the person who was eliminated). This time it goes to Lauren O'Connell for falling for Chris' sales pitch and wasting her Idol. This her second Rotten Coconut.
Let's move on to the Final 5!
Who Played Well:
Starting with Chris, he got his half of the Idol back from Rick and he correctly played his Idol saving himself.
Rick once again found an Idol, made two fake Idols that made both Julie and Lauren look bad, won Immunity, and made a smart deal with his Idol with Gavin. Sure, Gavin was lying, but it was worth a shot. It was the last night Idols could be played. Might as well try and get something out of it.
Gavin did a good job lying to Rick about taking him to the end in exchange for the Idol. The guy was definitely playing with his head.
Who Sucked:
Julie didn't do much in this round of play, but she was fooled by Rick's fake Idol. It wasn't catastrophic by any means, but it's not a great look in front of the jury.
As for Lauren, her mistake came from the Final 6 where she wasted her Idol on Chris. She too was fooled by Rick's fake idol, but again, not terrible.
Verdict:
The Platinum Probst for the Final 5 goes to Rick Devens for finding an Idol, making Julie and Lauren look foolish, winning Immunity, and making a deal with Gavin. This is Rick's 5th Platinum Probst.
The Rotten Coconut goes to Julie Rosenberg by default for being fooled by Rick's fake Idol. This is her 3rd Rotten Coconut.
On to the Final 4!
Who Played Well:
The only person we have to talk about here is Chris. He won Immunity and made an incredibly bold move in deciding to take on Rick himself. This was a phenomenal move for Chris. He took a massive risk and personally eliminated the biggest threat in the game.
Who Sucked:
Gavin and Julie were basically taken to the end by Chris. They didn't get the opportunity to take on Rick and be the hero.
Rick Devens was easily my favorite character of the season. I didn't want him to win, but I enjoyed him as a character. It only makes sense for him to go out here and, apart from winning the challenges, there was nothing else he could have done.
Verdict:
The Platinum Probst goes to Chris Underwood for winning Immunity and personally eliminating Rick. This is his second Platinum Probst.
The Rotten Coconut goes to Julie Rosenberg simply because she seemed less eager than Gavin to take on Rick. It was a good look for Gavin to be raring to go and I think that may have endeared him to some members of the jury. This is her 4th Rotten Coconut.
On to the Final Tribal Council!
Honestly, I though all three of the finalists did a great job in front of the jury. They all made their points well and defended the game they played. Personally, I would have voted for Gavin, but that's not how I'm basing my awards.
Verdict:
The final Platinum Probst goes to Chris Underwood for winning the season. After coming back into the game, he played about as well as he possibly could have. I hate that he won, but he played the cards he was dealt. This is his 3rd Platinum Probst.
The final Rotten Coconut goes to Julie Rosenberg, which is her 5th. She didn't get a single vote and gave the weakest performance at Final Tribal Council. I liked what she did for the most part, but somebody has to be the worst.
Well, that's it for this season, which is now my least favorite season of Survivor. I'm really bummed out by how this ended and I'm not looking forward to season 39 either after that promo. I just hope Survivor can course-correct and do it soon.
As for Victoria, she played a really great game and I don't think she would have gone home here if it wasn't for the Edge of Extinction. According to Chris, everyone on the Edge thought Victoria was the biggest threat after Rick. That wasn't really apparent to everyone still in the game. I liked that she tried working with Rick, but she had the weakest relationship with him out of the remaining players. That's probably her biggest fault, but she was mostly just a victim of a bad twist.
Verdict:
Here is the first set of awards. The Platinum Probst goes to the best player in a round of play. This time it goes to Chris Underwood for getting back into the game, working with everyone, giving half of the Idol to Rick, helping Julie with the puzzle, getting rid of Victoria, and getting Lauren to waste her Idol on him. This is Chris' first time winning the Platinum Probst.
The second award is the Rotten Coconut, which goes to the worst player in a round of play (excluding the person who was eliminated). This time it goes to Lauren O'Connell for falling for Chris' sales pitch and wasting her Idol. This her second Rotten Coconut.
Let's move on to the Final 5!
Who Played Well:
Starting with Chris, he got his half of the Idol back from Rick and he correctly played his Idol saving himself.
Rick once again found an Idol, made two fake Idols that made both Julie and Lauren look bad, won Immunity, and made a smart deal with his Idol with Gavin. Sure, Gavin was lying, but it was worth a shot. It was the last night Idols could be played. Might as well try and get something out of it.
Gavin did a good job lying to Rick about taking him to the end in exchange for the Idol. The guy was definitely playing with his head.
Who Sucked:
Julie didn't do much in this round of play, but she was fooled by Rick's fake Idol. It wasn't catastrophic by any means, but it's not a great look in front of the jury.
As for Lauren, her mistake came from the Final 6 where she wasted her Idol on Chris. She too was fooled by Rick's fake idol, but again, not terrible.
Verdict:
The Platinum Probst for the Final 5 goes to Rick Devens for finding an Idol, making Julie and Lauren look foolish, winning Immunity, and making a deal with Gavin. This is Rick's 5th Platinum Probst.
The Rotten Coconut goes to Julie Rosenberg by default for being fooled by Rick's fake Idol. This is her 3rd Rotten Coconut.
On to the Final 4!
Who Played Well:
The only person we have to talk about here is Chris. He won Immunity and made an incredibly bold move in deciding to take on Rick himself. This was a phenomenal move for Chris. He took a massive risk and personally eliminated the biggest threat in the game.
Who Sucked:
Gavin and Julie were basically taken to the end by Chris. They didn't get the opportunity to take on Rick and be the hero.
Rick Devens was easily my favorite character of the season. I didn't want him to win, but I enjoyed him as a character. It only makes sense for him to go out here and, apart from winning the challenges, there was nothing else he could have done.
Verdict:
The Platinum Probst goes to Chris Underwood for winning Immunity and personally eliminating Rick. This is his second Platinum Probst.
The Rotten Coconut goes to Julie Rosenberg simply because she seemed less eager than Gavin to take on Rick. It was a good look for Gavin to be raring to go and I think that may have endeared him to some members of the jury. This is her 4th Rotten Coconut.
On to the Final Tribal Council!
Honestly, I though all three of the finalists did a great job in front of the jury. They all made their points well and defended the game they played. Personally, I would have voted for Gavin, but that's not how I'm basing my awards.
Verdict:
The final Platinum Probst goes to Chris Underwood for winning the season. After coming back into the game, he played about as well as he possibly could have. I hate that he won, but he played the cards he was dealt. This is his 3rd Platinum Probst.
The final Rotten Coconut goes to Julie Rosenberg, which is her 5th. She didn't get a single vote and gave the weakest performance at Final Tribal Council. I liked what she did for the most part, but somebody has to be the worst.
Well, that's it for this season, which is now my least favorite season of Survivor. I'm really bummed out by how this ended and I'm not looking forward to season 39 either after that promo. I just hope Survivor can course-correct and do it soon.
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