''Russell's keeping me around because I'll never get a single vote. But I don't know about that."
That was a pretty good finale! It was a lot better than I thought it would be. Usually you can predict how things will go but by the end, I honestly didn't know who was going to win between Parvati and Sandra.
Ok, let's get to it...
* It was finally good to see Colby compete in that immunity challenge. Although he didn't win, I think he may have saved his reputation a little bit. His little speech about throwing in the towel was pretty convincing, but his "strategy" to go to Russell was not. This move was a little too late and why does everybody go to Russell??? Even though they teased that Russell would change his mind, I didn't buy it and Colby was sent packing.
* I already shared my thoughts on Colby in the last email, so I won't go further. It was funny to think that if he had won that immunity challenge, he would've been really close to winning a million dollars.
* I thought that the last immunity challenge was very interesting. It was unlike any that they had before, and when it started, I didn't like the set up. Well, that certainly changed as I started yelling at the T.V. screen when Russell, Jerri and Parvati were all so close to grabbing that necklace! The producers lucked out on that one because it could've gone a completely different way.
* Russell's choice to vote out Jerri was very interesting and quite unexpected. I would have thought that for sure Parvati was a goner. This showed to me how much Parvati had him wrapped around her finger (I don't know why she didn't bring this up in her final argument). I wonder how much he regrets that decision? Maybe she was more liked than I thought. Plus, she was not a guaranteed vote like he imagined (more on that later).
* I can't believe I'm saying this, but I think Jerri played a really good game. Not win-worthy, but by the end, I don't think she has anything to be ashamed of. I don't think she made any huge strategic decisions, but she flipped to the correct alliance, and she held her own in challenges. It really looked like she was having fun out there, and for being labeled a Villain, she was way more heroic than a lot of Heroes this season. She got really far in the game and she stayed quiet, yet effective. Thanks Jerri for not letting me hate you this season.
* Sandra throwing Russell's hat in the fire was priceless! Hilarity aside, I think that really affected Russell and he even admitted that it rattled him a bit. How funny is that? Sandra was the only true person in Russell's past two seasons that talked down to him and could rattle his bones a bit.
* The last tribal council was pretty good and I thought from a editing stand point was done very well. I thought everybody asked some pretty good questions and for the most part didn't come off too pretentious (minus Coach, but that goes without saying, right?). I thought Parvati and Sandra did amazing with their answers. Both stayed true to how they played the game, but without being condescending. Unlike somebody else, ha ha.
* I'm going to go back to the final three and break down their gameplay, but I LOVED this final three. Not only was it unexpected, but I loved that there were actually three players that deservingly could've won the million dollars. You don't always get that with a final three, and that's a testament to how great this season was.
* What a fun reunion show. This could've been two hours and I would have been thoroughly entertained. Probst talking down Russell, Sandra's lip, J.T. almost throwing his letter into the fire, Rob and Russell getting into it... It was good live television that actually felt live.
* For the record, I don't think J.T.'s move was the stupidest ever. It might be if Russell would've won, but it just won because it was the most relevant. In my opinion, it was Eric giving up his idol at tribal council. And although it's not as entertaining, Colby taking Tina did cost him a million dollars.
* I can't believe people like Rupert as much as they do. I know I talk about this way too much. I apologize.
* The ultimate survivor morph did not go over well. That poor graphic designer's hard work was mocked by the silence of the audience.
Okay, now to the final three survivors:
* Russell - I could go on and on about his gameplay. Yes, everybody knows his cockiness is as much as a downfall as an attribute to his gameplay , so I won't go into that too much. I was the first one to say that he should've won his first season. He was against very weak players and he clearly played the hardest. But, after seeing this finale, I may have changed my opinion. You can not, and I repeat, canNOT be the ultimate survivor when you fail to think about the jury members on the other end. That's just how the game is played. Dan Marino is considered one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play football, but what's one thing that he lacks? A superbowl ring. You can match up his stats against Aikmen, Brady, and Manning, and they may be better, but those guys will always be above him because they have the title. The same correlation can be made to Russell. He doesn't have the ability to see through other people's eyes, and that's why he hasn't and won't ever win this game. I'm not discounting how hard he plays, and has a valid argument that it's the only way he can play this game. But to think that others will give you a million dollars because you are true to that is just ridiculous. His whole gameplay is based on lying and deceitfulness, yet he doesn't bring that when it comes to the end. He thinks that if he gets to the final three he's golden, when in fact, he ditches the one strategy that has gotten him to that point.
* Parvati - I really feel bad for her. She played an AMAZING game and if I was voting, she would've got my vote for the million. I think that the Heroes did not quite grasp how much she controlled Russell. They should have not faulted her for aligning herself with such a hated person. She used him right from the beginning. She perfectly played the game in all three categories. Outwit - Russell took her to the final three, 'nuff said. Outlast - The first vote for the Villains was between her and Randy! Then, after the merge, all the Heroes were gunning for her. Outplay - She was the standout in most of the challenges, especially for individual immunity. She won when her butt was on the line. If Colby would've won that next-to-last one, she definitely would've been on that jury.
* Sandra - All that said about Parvati, I absolutely have no qualms about the fact that Sandra won. I was thrilled and very surprised when she was announced as the winner. I in no way think she was a coattail rider. Jeff Probst has always said that she always plays with the strategy that when it comes to deciding who is being sent home, she plays the "as long as it's not me" card. She knows when to play hard and how to vote, and that's why she won. She's vocal enough for people to know that she's around and she's never been tagged as being lazy around camp. Although she said her strategy from day one was to get rid of Russell, I think in code that means, "From day one I was set out to survive past Russell." The only time she really conceded to Russell's ways was when he was deciding who to take to the final three, and by playing the, "No one will vote for me" card, he took her. She played him just as much as Parvati at that point. And another thing that was a huge play was the fact that she strategized with the Heroes, but not enough for the Villains to fault her for it. All five heroes on the jury voted for Sandra. There were four Villains on the jury and Courtney was the only one of them to vote for Sandra. Unlike Russell, Sandra knew where the numbers lied on the jury. And that was probably Parvati's slightest fault was that she didn't socialize with the Heroes more. Sandra absolutely deserved the million dollars and I hope Russell despises that fact until the day he dies. Something tells me that he will.
What a great season! It's going to be extremely hard to beat this one. It'll be a while before another season comes close to it. 10 years and 20 seasons of Survivor. I'm so curious to see how this new decade plays out. Will it really last another 10 years? It'll be fun to see what new villains, heroes, and favorites will emerge and if another all-star edition is even plausible.
Before I sign off, a big congrats goes out to Ashliegh Whiteman for winning! I'll let you know what the prize will be. Like this season, nobody really had Sandra on their radar and you are one of the few that picked her.
I thought I did pretty well with the recaps this year. I only missed one week. It's a lot of fun to do, but a lot of work. Thanks for reading and I look forward to doing it again in the fall with Hallie doing all the typing for me :)
Until then!
* Parvati - I really feel bad for her. She played an AMAZING game and if I was voting, she would've got my vote for the million. I think that the Heroes did not quite grasp how much she controlled Russell. They should have not faulted her for aligning herself with such a hated person. She used him right from the beginning. She perfectly played the game in all three categories. Outwit - Russell took her to the final three, 'nuff said. Outlast - The first vote for the Villains was between her and Randy! Then, after the merge, all the Heroes were gunning for her. Outplay - She was the standout in most of the challenges, especially for individual immunity. She won when her butt was on the line. If Colby would've won that next-to-last one, she definitely would've been on that jury.
* Sandra - All that said about Parvati, I absolutely have no qualms about the fact that Sandra won. I was thrilled and very surprised when she was announced as the winner. I in no way think she was a coattail rider. Jeff Probst has always said that she always plays with the strategy that when it comes to deciding who is being sent home, she plays the "as long as it's not me" card. She knows when to play hard and how to vote, and that's why she won. She's vocal enough for people to know that she's around and she's never been tagged as being lazy around camp. Although she said her strategy from day one was to get rid of Russell, I think in code that means, "From day one I was set out to survive past Russell." The only time she really conceded to Russell's ways was when he was deciding who to take to the final three, and by playing the, "No one will vote for me" card, he took her. She played him just as much as Parvati at that point. And another thing that was a huge play was the fact that she strategized with the Heroes, but not enough for the Villains to fault her for it. All five heroes on the jury voted for Sandra. There were four Villains on the jury and Courtney was the only one of them to vote for Sandra. Unlike Russell, Sandra knew where the numbers lied on the jury. And that was probably Parvati's slightest fault was that she didn't socialize with the Heroes more. Sandra absolutely deserved the million dollars and I hope Russell despises that fact until the day he dies. Something tells me that he will.
What a great season! It's going to be extremely hard to beat this one. It'll be a while before another season comes close to it. 10 years and 20 seasons of Survivor. I'm so curious to see how this new decade plays out. Will it really last another 10 years? It'll be fun to see what new villains, heroes, and favorites will emerge and if another all-star edition is even plausible.
Before I sign off, a big congrats goes out to Ashliegh Whiteman for winning! I'll let you know what the prize will be. Like this season, nobody really had Sandra on their radar and you are one of the few that picked her.
I thought I did pretty well with the recaps this year. I only missed one week. It's a lot of fun to do, but a lot of work. Thanks for reading and I look forward to doing it again in the fall with Hallie doing all the typing for me :)
Until then!
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