Survivor 41, Episode 2 "Juggling Chainsaw" Analysis

 "Butterflies are just dead relatives saying hi."

-Xander Hastings

I've been a little apprehensive of all the new twists Survivor has thrown in this season so far, but the Beware Advantage is definitely my favorite of the bunch, simply for its sheer entertainment value.  Watching Xander try to force the above sentence into everyday conversation was definitely the highlight of the episode.  What ever happens next with the Beware Advantage, it was worth it.  Anyway, let's figure out who played well and who sucked.

Played Well:

Starting on the Luvu tribe, the best was easily Naseer who pulled a complete 180 with his social game and survival know-how.  He was described as essential to the tribe.  That's a great spot to be in.

Sydney, Erika, and Deshawn all killed it in the Immunity Challenge.  I have some issues with Deshawn volunteering to go on the journey.  You shouldn't separate yourself from the tribe like that, but it worked out basically perfect for him.  He has a new ally in Evvie, a ton of information, and an Extra Vote.

Moving over to Ua, I liked that Shan threw Brad under the bus to Ricard.  It just further solidifies their alliance.  Plus Ricard and JD seem to have squashed their beef...for now.

On Yase, ultimately I do think Liana and Evvie were smart to stick with Tiffany.  Who cares about challenges at this point?  I really like that Evvie has a solid, logical plan for the long term and she's making moves to solidify that.  She's accepted Yase is probably not a long-term option, has a working relationship with Deshawn, and was willing to be flexible in working with an overly paranoid ally.  Could this blow up in her face?  Yes, but I like it so far.

I don't blame Xander for taking the Beware Advantage.  No one could have predicted how insane it would be.  He did about as well as he could have in the terrible position he's in and I love that he managed to say that ridiculous sentence. 

Who Sucked:

Going back to Ua, Brad was way too trusting of Shan when he went to go spy on JD and Ricard.  It's made everyone trust him less and I wouldn't be surprised to see him go next.

Over on Yase, Tiffany was terrible in the challenge, but even worse was how paranoid she got with her alliance.  She wasn't listening to Evvie or Liana at all and she even made them consider voting her out.

We didn't see enough of Danny, Genie, or Heather for me to say one way or the other.

As for Voce, the guy got a bad break.  When an alliance is formed based on gender and you don't fit in, it's tough to break that up.  He seemed less likely to have an Idol to Tiffany.  That's what sent him home.  Not much you can do about that.  Maybe he shouldn't have told people he was a doctor.   It might have made him seem less threatening.  It's a bummer to see him go so early.  I really liked Voce.

Verdict:

Best Player of the Episode goes to Evvie Jagoda for her social game, making an alliance with Deshawn, and keeping her main alliance intact.

Worst Player of the Episode goes to Tiffany Seely for her terrible challenge performance and her utter paranoia.

This was a really fun episode and I'm excited to see how this Yase tribe holds up.