I'm going to start with some earlier points before I get to my thoughts on the votes.
First, is Mason-Dixon the worst alliance name ever? Even Stealth R Us was better. I cringe whenever I hear them refer to themselves as Mason or Dixon. Although, they did do a nice job of putting the blame on Gabby. One thing I am observing is that Christian is building a seemingly strong relationship with Gabby, but Gabby is emotional. If/when she finds out about Christian throwing her under the bus, he better watch out. I can see him playing a sound strategic game, but people taking his gameplay personally. There just doesn't seem to be a lot of empathy there from him, and I think that's one big part to winning people over after you've voted them out.
Moving onto Bi. I'm wondering how serious this knee issue is. You RARELY get taken back to the winning tribe's beach after a challenge, and injuries aren't typically called out unless there's a bigger story going forward. Even before her injury, I though she was going home if the Davids lost again.
Now onto the Goliath tribe. This was an entertaining segment of the episode. Watching Jeremy and Natalie go back and forth with each other while Kara was awkwardly standing there was hilarious. It's like she was front row for a new play that just hit the stage. I do agree with Jeremy, but there's also truth to what Natalie said. Jeremy lacks self-awareness, big time. He was the first one to go crazy with strategy, and these days that's typically the reason you're voted off first from your tribe. Case in point: Ciera from Game Changers.
I was happy that Natalie stayed. Jeremy was starting to annoy me, and I'm actually enjoying Natalie's character. She is so matter of fact and doesn't care that she's being perceived as rude and bossy. She is owning that persona. Honestly, it's oddly working for her. She's really like an older Michaela, but much more enjoyable to watch. I'll be keeping my eye on her as the season progresses. I hope she goes far.
Also, did anybody else notice Sea Bass getting a subtle shout out early in the episode? That's probably his most exciting moment on Survivor, and he wasn't even on screen.
Next week come a swap. I wish we could go 4 episodes before a swap, but that's not the current era of Survivor. I'll be interested to see how that shakes out. We will be at 17 contestants, which means we can't have 2 or 3 equal groups. I know they've done two tribes, plus one exiled contestant, but I don't really like that. They possibly could also do something weird where they have different size tribes, which I wouldn't like, either. We shall see.
Another solid episode. The rain and weather continues to be a great addition. It's not the main focus, but it's not brushed off, either. It's a nice blend into the game that has very much been missed since they've switched to Fiji.
