Survivor 47: Episode 8 "He's All That" Gameplay Analysis

 "I hate running."
-Genevieve Mushaluk



Man, I needed this episode of Survivor.  With the election results being what they were, I got pretty drunk to watch this episode with my buddies and it was a really nice break and a genuinely fun episode.  Although the alcohol may make this more challenging than usual, I'll try to break down who played well and who sucked.


Who Played Well:

I really like that Tuku and Lavo joined forces along with Andy to take out a member of Gata.  Sam, Sierra, and Rachel are all solid threats and I would have been fine with any of them going home.  So good on all of them for making that move happen.  The final choice ended up being Sierra, which was better for some people than it was for others, but they all got on the same page to make the Sierra/Sam split happen.

Kyle and Sue both managed to win Immunity and I think Kyle especially needed it.  The second he doesn't win, he's a prime target to go out.  It's too late to do anything about that now, so good on Kyle for winning here.  I also like that he was willing to eat the chicken wings at the auction.  The protein might help him win more challenges, so I'm proud of him for making the hard, but smart, choice.

Sol formed a bond with Rachel about giving her the Advantage, which saved her in the previous episode.  Sol also managed to get his way with the final vote.  Rachel stayed in the game and Sierra went out.

Finally, Rachel got lucky with finding an Idol clue in her fries, but she took advantage of her good luck and got a tricky Idol to obtain without getting caught.  I also really like that she played her Shot in the Dark.  She knew something was up, but instead of playing her Idol, she played her Shot in the Dark, so she could get a read of everyone's reactions.  She read the room correctly and didn't play her Idol.  She was left on the outs, but she still played well all things considered.


Who Sucked:

The only remaining contestant that I have here is Sam.  I won't put losing his vote on him.  That was just bad luck due to the Auction mechanics.  However, he was left out of the vote and lost his closest ally.  We were never shown any attempts by him to make Andy feel secure in their alliance, and if he tried, he clearly failed.  My guess is he's the next one out.


As for Sierra, she made her mistakes a long time ago.  I said it was a mistake for her to take out Anika when she did.  She should have gone after Andy and then distanced herself from Sam.  Everyone knew they were a duo and she didn't do enough to change that perception.  Plus she did a bad job of making Andy feel comfortable in their alliance along with Sam.  All of those mistakes caught up with her here.


Verdict:

Best Player of the Episode goes to Kyle Ostwald for winning Immunity, taking out Sierra, and being willing to eat chicken wings to give himself a better chance of winning Challenges.

Worst Player of the Episode goes to Sam Phalen being left out of the vote, losing his closest ally, and failing to make Andy feel comfortable with him.  As a reminder, the eliminated castaway is not eligible for either Award.

It was nice to finally have the lines drawn.  Now we know where everyone stands and it will be a little more fun to guess what's going to happen next.   

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