The finale is here! After about 14 weeks this blog is comming to an end, and i am going to miss it :(
Firstly, let me do a brief opener to the final four...
After a long, unpredictable and challenging game, JT, Stephen and Taj has defied all odds and numbers and joined forces with Erinn, and has now found themselves in the finals…
Taj, after being exiled during the earlier weeks of the game, quickly created an Exile Alliance with Stephen on her tribe, and Brendon and Sierra from Timbira, found the Hidden Immunity Idol and later, with Stephen, abandoned the Exile Alliance after the merge. Prior to the merge, she has proved to be one of the most strategic people in the game prior to the merge, but after placing herself in a comfortable position post merge, she has slackened off with strategizing. Will this come back to bite her?
Stephen, initially part of the Exile Alliance, abandoned the alliance and joined forces with his close friend JT, and made separate alliances with every member of Timbira after the merge, and ended up having a hand in voting each of them out. Will this cost him a million dollars, or will his strategic gameplay be rewarded?
JT developed a close friendship with Stephen from day one and had found himself in a position of power after the merge when the Timbira tribe put their faith in his hands. He is well liked by his competitors and is a physical threat in challenges. Will he put his friendship with Stephen first or will he do whatever it takes to win the game?
Erinn had a target on her back from day 4 after being on the outside of Timbira. Her plan was to survive until the merge and jump ship with the Jalapoa members, play under the radar and make it to the end. Will this strategy pay off for her, despite betraying her initial tribe?
On face value, it is anyone’s game…lets see how this plays out…
The first immunity challenge took the form of tarantula maze, finishing with a puzzle. Jt took the lead, and won immunity…
Stephen and Jt went back and forth with deciding whether to keep Erinn or Taj. They eventually decide to vote out Taj…
Taj had come a long way to make it to the end. She made powerful alliances and built strong friendships to ensure that she would not only be safe, but also to ensure that she would make enough friends to hopefully get their vote. Furthermore, she remained motherly to her fellow competitors and gained a lot of respect for making it so far without having her family. Taj, I believe, was the biggest threat to win this game. Unfortunately, the power was out of her hands this time. She was able to make big strategic moves, yet remain respected and likable, and that is why she was given the boot tonight.
Farewell Taj- you will be missed
Down to three…
Stephen and Erinn both realize that their best shot to win this game is to stick together and vote off JT. They realize that JT will be too hard to beat and the plan to work hard enough to beat him at the final immunity challenge.
The fallen comrades…
Carolina…Candice…Jerri…Sandy…Spencer…Sydney…Joe…Brendon…Tyson…Sierra…Debbi…Coach...and Taj….an amazing cast with so many competitors….great personalities…and some truly spectacular blindsides…
The immunity challenge required a lot of focus and concentration on the mechanics of motion and speed. I thought Stephen had this challenge in the bag…but JT just barely managed to last longer than him and won immunity. At this point, JT has won more immunity challenges than anyone in this season; however some past competitors like Kelly Wigglesworth, Colby Donaldson, Tom Westman, Jenna M, and Terri Deitz have won more challenges- there will certainly be more challenge dominators in the future.
JT now has to battle with the classic decision of who to keep. Should he remain loyal to his best friend Stephen or vote him off. Does he have a better chance at beating Erinn? How will his decision be viewed upon by the Jury? Is he digging his own grave? This is why I love final two juries as opposed to final three…
Erinn makes the case that he can beat her much more easily than Stephen. Stephen reminds JT that they were loyal to each other from the beginning and they made promises to each other.
Stephen may be putting his foot in his mouth by telling Jt about the strategic moves that he has made because it could set off alarm bells in his head and making him alert to the possibility that he could be a bigger threat. At the same time, Stephen could have messed his chances up with the Jury by saying “they shared the same brain” because to win, you have to stand out from the person sitting next to you. This is why this game is so tough- you cant let your competitor see yourself as a threat- so you have to make them think that you are weak and undeserving, while simultaneously, you have to look deserving in the eyes of the jury to give them to vote for you.
Jt decides to take Stephen to the end to remain loyal. He also says that he wants to go up against the best. This could be a clever tactic that JT is implementing to show the jury that he is not afraid and this could earn him respect votes.
The vote is read and JT has spoken…Erinn’s came has came to an end….
Up next…the battle of David and Goliath- brains versus brawn, the Wizard and the Warrior, The Country mouse versus the City mouse. In history, brains have triumphed. Will this be the case again?
