Survivor Maryland: Major Conflict Episode 5

Kemper Boyd

Hello to the 5 of you reading!

Last week ended with an all time great move from Eric but his aggressive style at tribal may not have done him any favours. This season of Maryland is shaping up to be a good one.

Thoughts:

  • the yellow tribe talk after tribal and even Dain was put off my the way Eric played that tribal, he was aggressive and rude. I’m not sure what he expected in terms of alliances and acceptance when he came into the first day trying to be a weirdo and slightly off putting. It worked, people don’t want to work with him.
  • Red tribe have many machinations but ultimately they voted out the two easy votes and now people have to show some of their cards and lines will be drawn. I hope the Tape Alliance (plus Liam) figure out a way to make a move but I hope it isn’t on Abby or Santi. Ie please vote out a white man.
  • This week it’s a whole game challenge. Everyone plays as individuals and will either win immunity and not go to tribal or lose and go, then it’s like a merge vote without anyone immune.
  • The Challenge itself is a complex animal game with habitats and win conditions. It’s very complicate to follow and I imagine is quite fun to play but is not the easiest to understand when watching.
  • During the part where people are getting their animals Doug talks to Mike and Abby and offers to sacrifice Eric if they go to tribal.
  • Interestingly when they are allowed to strategise before the challenge they split by tribes. Sadie posits a situation where every Stem member tries to lose so they all go to tribal and can control the vote (or vote out Eric as she claims in confessional to hate him).
  • Santi susses out Eric’s animal and kills him right away. The Josh kills Liam which was not part of the red team’s strategy at all, pissing Liam off.
  • Doug begs Josh not to kill him. Doug then lies deeply unconvincingly that Josh caught on and wouldn’t kill him.
  • In the end Eric, Abby, Dain, Ange, Amanda, Sadie and Tim  will be going to tribal council.
  • The Yellows could vote Eric out if they really want or they could take out Ange or Abby. I think the yellows would be hella dumb not to just vote out Ange.
  • Jasmin works on Sadie and Sadie tells Jasmin to make sure Ange votes with Sadie.
  • Sadie talked to Abby about voting for Eric, Sadie is doing a lot and it isn’t going unnoticed.
  • My issue with Amanda and her issue with Sadie is that Amanda doesn’t like that she isn’t the one making the move, but she was perfectly happy when it was Doug calling the shots. I really hope this internalized misogyny is something she has grown out of.
  • Amanda tries to convince Tim to vote for Ange not Abby but in the end they vote for Abby but it doesn’t matter as Eric doesn’t have the immunity idol and Eric is blindsided.
  • I think this was as good a move for most of Stem than just taking out a Humanities. Ange is well connected but they don’t know that and Abby really is just a number. Humanities haven’t had to make a contentious vote out and I think the fractures will appear at the merge and you don’t want a wildcard like Eric around, especially if you are Sadie, Amanda or Doug.
  • If Stem can keep this 6 and stay tight they could play the Humanities tribe against each other. But I don’t think that is going to happen because Doug is the kind of guy who will abandon his alliance the moment there is any hint of danger and his loyalty to Santi could turn his head.
  • This season is getting good guys. I’m excited.

Thoughts?