Despite losing interest in the latest edition of Survivor a few weeks ago (right around when Stephenie was voted off and the potential for surprise went with her), I couldn't avoid the big finish.
The producers seem especially proud of the Palau edition and it will probably go down as one of the more memorable installments, but I'd argue it was also one of the least interesting. It's pretty rare to see an entire Survivor season without any real shift in the balance of power but that's exactly what happened this time.
The producers tried their best to create drama where they could but nothing ever truly threatened the dominant alliance of Tom/Katie/Ian which was formed on the very first day and survived all the way to the very end.
And the storylines for each character couldn't have been wrapped up in a more conventional (and less competitive) way:
lanky aw-shucks hero Ian got to prove he's the ultimate Survivor Nice Guy by giving up a chance at a million dollars to ensure his "friendship" with rivals Tom and Katie;
lazy, coat tail rider Katie was viciously torn into by the jury during the final tribal council;
and Firefighter Tom got to win the million after carrying his team to victory after victory in immunity challenges and winning several individual immunities.
But each of those endings was also problematic: Ian's decision was idiotic, Katie hardly deserved the treatment she got (especially from Gregg, who apologized in the reunion show and claimed he saw Katie as a "character," which is an odd thing for a contestant to say) and Tom proved beyond a show of a doubt that his mental game was never anywhere close to his physical game.
But Tom's win was symbolic of the season as a whole. I can't remember a season of Survivor so lacking in mental game play and strategy. There simply wasn't ever a need for it except on the part of Stephenie and the Gregg/Jenn combo, who actually wanted to win but could never generate the numbers to make that happen. Coby, Janu and Caryn seemed to give up, or failed to ever formulate a strategy, and Tom was never truly threatened.
It was almost as if none of these people had ever seen Survivor before. When Ian finally revealed he considered betraying Tom, Tom acted like his buddy was Judas Iscariot and the mentally weak Ian simply gave up.
Katie was probably playing the strongest mental game of the lead contenders, positioning herself perfectly between Tom/Ian and Gregg/Jenn and ready and willing to go with whichever one grabbed the power, but she never had to make that choice. Yes she could've turned the balance of power herself, but why? She was sitting pretty the entire time, her only mistake was not taking every member of her tribe seriously. But still, I wish she (or anyone) had done something. This season was in desperate need of a shake-up and it never came.
Despite its predictable outcome the finale did have a few surprises: Ian's stupid decision, Katie forcing a tie between Ian and Jenn (but why exactly didn't they have to pull rocks? the only time they've actually had to pick rocks before was when there were four people left) and both Katie and Tom tearing into Ian for his supposed two-faced behavior.
The best news is the season is over and next fall will bring a new location and new competitors. And, as always, I'll be watching...
Finale Grade: B
Season Grade: B
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