CliqueClack TV
TV SHOWS COLUMNS FEATURES CHATS QUESTIONS

Survivor – Why can’t the men stick together?

The original Manono tribe seems to have forgotten the game started as men vs women ... and now they are paying for it.

- Season 24, Episode 7 - "Go Out With a Bang"

Troy and Jay talk before Tribal Council

Oh, Jay, Jay, Jay. You do realize you’re playing the game of Survivor, correct? You also have been paying attention to who the last two people were to be voted out, yes? Jonas and Michael. Men. In a game that was originally divided into two tribes of men vs women. So after all of the tribal shuffling and the surprise merge when Colton left that basically put everyone back on equal footing, did you think that the women were dysfunctional simply because your original all-male tribe was a mess?

Jay, who thought he was on to the women possibly still working together, refused to listen to Troy when he tried to convince him that the women were up to no good. Not even after the immunity challenge, when every woman except for Chelsea gladly gave up their own safety for cookies, cupcakes and candy, did Jay think Troy was on the mark with his suspicions. He was even secure enough in his alliance with Chelsea and Kim to step down for some wings and beer (Troy fell and got nothing). Even when things got a bit hairy at camp after the challenge, Jay stuck to his guns that he was safe in his alliance and that the women were going to vote out Alicia as a sign of good faith.

But did Troy inadvertently lead to the outcome at Tribal Council by revealing to Jay that he had and was going to play a hidden immunity idol? Jay had no idea Troy had the idol and promptly went back to his buddy Kim to tell her what was going to happen … not knowing that the women had planned to split their votes between him and Troy just to play it safe. I figured with a six/four split, that the women would vote four for Troy and two for Jay just in case Troy used an idol, while the men would stick together and vote out Alicia. Troy uses the idol, the four votes send Alicia to Tribal. As it turned out, the only real allegiance in the game is with the women. Had all the men voted together for Alicia, there would have been a tie (and I’m a bit confused by Tarzan’s voting record … he wants the men to stay together, yet he keeps voting with the women). But Troy was adamant on voting for Kim, Jay and Leif voted for Alicia and Tarzan voted for Jay. So while Jay is just misguided in his trust of Kim and Chelsea, Tarzan is actually the biggest traitor of the bunch! Here’s the vote breakdown:

  • Kim – Jay
  • Sabrina – Jay
  • Christina – Jay
  • Alicia – Jay
  • Tarzan – Jay
  • Kat – Troy
  • Chelsea – Troy
  • Troy – Kim
  • Leif – Alicia
  • Jay – Alicia

Poor Jay. Troy telling Jay that he was using the idol really saved him this week and was the main reason Jay became the third member of the jury (Kim obviously had time to talk to the women and redistribute the votes). Had he not blabbed and had been able to convince Tarzan to vote with the men, then Troy would have had four votes, Jay would have had two, and Alicia would have been sent packing even with Troy’s vote for Kim. When will people learn that this game is about outwitting, outplaying and outlasting everyone else? For Jay, it’s a little too late.

Photo Credit: CBS

3 Responses to “Survivor – Why can’t the men stick together?”

April 12, 2012 at 8:06 AM

I was marveling at how stupid Jay was during this episode, but I suppose it’s easy to judge when we get to see everything. It’s pretty clear that Kim’s on another level than everyone else when it comes to both strategy and social game. She managed to keep both Mike and Jay completely in the dark, and flush out Troy’s idol. Jay blabbing to her certainly helped, but she played it smart. I was really hoping Troy’s plan to oust her would materialize, because that was the only chance of something interesting happening in the next four episodes. There’s not a thing Troy can do now except stave off elimination for as long as he wins immunity (and he’s no Colby). We’ll see an all-female final five, and Kim probably takes it down because she’s the only one who’s played this game worth a damn and she’ll recognize that her only threat in the finals is Sabrina (who she can concentrate on outshining to the jury).

April 12, 2012 at 9:56 AM

Let me get this straight – Probst took a half day off, right?

So not only are they lazy in casting only dumb models who, 12 years in, are too stupid to understand the game, together with idiots like Tarzan who IMHO isn’t as much of a traitor as he’s an idiot who only votes out people who crossed him in the last couple of hours before a vote, no, Probst actually thinks that he isn’t necessary in half of an episode. With the challenge being a repeat. AND absolutely revealing about the women.

Boston Rob would’ve gotten 200 over 120 blood pressure over that information, only getting out of the challenge falling asleep or getting unconcious after several hours.

This season is a complete joke. Some of the contestants on the show literally grew up with Survivor on the air. And yes Adam is right about the “we had all the information” standpoint but seriously after watching Rob and Russell and Parvati play the game a couple times each you can not seriously tell me that someone can go into this game THIS gullible. This is at a level that is insulting to ME as a viewer. It’s at a level that the models on “Beauty & the Geek” look smart compared to what’s left on this show.

Seriously CBS. Get some casting people who ask questions that demand knowledge of THE GAME OF SURVIVOR. Do yoursleves and your viewers a favor and cast people that have a higher IQ than their bust-size. This season is a complete and utter embarassment. The idiot in the soiled underwear, who is supposed to be A SURGEON, who’s running around asking women if they harbor grudges because of possible botched-up boob-jobs is the lowest of lowpoints ever (not counting the annual entitled racist asshole on the show).

I mean COME ON. Compared to Seasons 1 or 2 or anything with Rupert or Yao Man or Rob or Amber or even Hatch.

This is so extremely weak. Man…

April 15, 2012 at 1:13 AM

I’m pretty much on-board with everything you’re saying. I miss the days of actual people in my reality shows.

Powered By OneLink