Survivor 49, Episode 11 "Cherry On Top" Gameplay Breakdown

 "Spaghetti with garlic bread!"

-Jeff Probst

This episode doesn't quite reach the heights of last week's stellar episode, but it was still enjoyable enough.  I was especially surprised by how dangerous Steven's Journey appeared to be.  That definitely felt like something out of early Survivor, which was actually refreshing.  I'm just glad Steven didn't pull a Survivor 44 Matthew.  Anyway, let's get into who played well and who sucked.

Who Played Well:

I don't think Sophie S should have gone home here, but it was a good move for both Rizo and Savannah.  They did a great job of recruiting people and helped make it a unanimous vote.  I especially liked the olive branch Rizo extended to Steven and Kristina on the Reward.  He got them to make a move that wasn't great for their game.  Plus, once again, Rizo managed to hang onto his Idol.  I don't love that they just let Steven go on the Journey without any resistance.  It could tank both of their games, but for now, I'll give them both a net positive.

Steven was very close to having a totally stellar episode himself.  He made the right call in going on the Journey, he succeeded in getting a Vote Blocker, still has it going into the Final 6, and won Immunity, which most likely saved him from going home.  All of that is great, but I don't think taking out Sophie S was the right call for him.  He had Immunity, why not take a big swing and finally take down Rizo?  If he plays his Idol, than Sophie S goes home, but oh well!  At least Rizo's Idol is gone!  I'll still give him a net positive, but he missed a massive opportunity here.

Who Sucked:

I'll throw Sage, Sophi B, and Kristina in the same boat as Steven, but they didn't have all of the good stuff that Steven did.  Going after Rizo with Sophie S going home if he plays the Idol is great for all of them.  They could have pulled this off.  And I don't know why Savannah was the other name popping up.  Sure, she's good at the challenges, but plenty of people on this season don't like here.  Kristina even said so at Tribal Council.  That's someone to consider taking to the end, especially for Sage and Kristina.  They need to go the end with Savannah to even have a chance at winning.

And all of the hullaballoo around Rizo's Idol could have been dealt with by Sophi B playing Knowledge is Power.  I hate that mechanic, but I think this was the time to play it.  Letting Rizo get to Final 6 is far too risky.  Sophi B has to do something in the postmerge if she wants to win.

Sage handled Jawan's blindside badly.  I get that she plays with her emotions, but getting into it with Sophie S did nothing to help her game.  Also she's blindsided people herself this season.  And as much as I don't like Shannon, Sage was kinda a dick to her when she took her out.  I find Sage to be a petty hypocrite and I really hope she loses.  Sophie S was a better target for her than Savannah, true, but her motivations were all wrong.  Revenge can't be the driving force behind a move.  The best revenge she can have is winning the game and I don't think it's possible anymore.  Plus, like I said, the correct move was gunning for Rizo.  She's blinded by her personal feelings and that will be her downfall, and I can't wait to watch her lose.

As for Sophie S, it's a bummer to see her go here.  She wasn't given much screentime, but I really liked what we got.  She was seen as a physical and strategic threat, but didn't have a good enough social game to get past betraying an emotional player like Sage, and she didn't have the emotional connections for anyone to stick their neck out to try and save her.

Verdict:

Best Player of the Episode goes to Rizo Velovic for doing his part to get everyone on board to vote out Sophie S and for holding onto his Idol.

Worst Player of the Episode goes to Sage Ahrens-Nichols for handling the Jawan blindside poorly, letting personal feelings get in the way of good gameplay, and for taking out Sophie S instead of going after Rizo.

If the "Next time on Survivor," is to be believed, the war between Rizo and Steven will happen next week.  I'm very curious to see which Advantages, if any, are played.  I think this is the win-or-lose moment coming up.