Episode 10 Missing Intelligence Award
Survivor: Fiji, Episode 10 Missing Intelligence Award - To Betray, Perchance to Dreamz by Heathyr Fields Ford -- 04/25/2007 This week’s episode of Survivor had Heathyr almost speechless. But now her speech is back, and it’s time to let some Survivors know that they’ve misplaced their intelligence. Is one of the lucky winners Dreamz? Wow! Now that was an episode, wasn’t it? More drama than you could shake a snake and rat at and none of it overly manufactured by the editors to make you want to throw things at the television set (coughAmazingRacecough). I spent the whole episode going “wow” or “idiot.” Or “WOW” or “IDIOT!” While I will miss Edgardo, because he really seemed more the brains behind things and savvy enough to let others be the ones in the forefront, I was thrilled to see such interesting game play, so he was an okay sacrifice for my entertainment and on the altar of intriguing strategy! Stacy, if she has any feelings at all, must have been hurting after this episode. Just about everyone voted her the person they’d least like to see after. Ouch! While we saw some classic bitch behavior earlier in the season from her, we hadn’t seen any lately. That vote, however, leads me to the conclusion that there was a lot more of that bitch behavior than we saw and more recently than French Press Gate. Despite all of that and no prior indication of any great strategic skills - indeed, despite indication of horrible strategic skills - she came up with the immensely simple and elegant solution to her alliance’s predicament. So, Stacy, for now, kudos. This week, I’ll be handing out some retroactive MIAs based on how things have fallen out! First off, Alex and Edgardo, you get one for telling Mookie about the idol and thus facilitating his finding it. While in the end, he did hand it over to Alex, there was a HUGE chance he wouldn’t, and he would have been smart not to in some ways. Don’t worry, you get just a tiny MIA, as it may not have ever made the slightest difference. Next, to the trio of the four horsemen for not telling Dreamz the instant they found it and making him feel a part of the foursome fully. By treating him like a second-class citizen, or in this case, ally, you all were potentially causes of the alienation that made him go tell other people. Once that damage was done, however, it was really just a matter of keeping the idol secret from Dreamz until they needed to play it. What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him as long as he never finds out until it’s too late! By telling him in the way he did, however, Mookie earns himself a fair-to-middlin’-sized trophy of absent intelligentsia. While it may NOT have made any difference, I certainly think it played a part. Dreamz is obviously searching for something - family, acceptance, whatever - and he was treated nastily by the Moto alliance on the original Moto. Now, he’s allied with two members of that original alliance, and he’s got to feel somewhat askew about it all. Then add in that all three others knew something he didn’t, and they didn’t want him to know, and voila, you have mixed a cocktail ripe for the spilling into the other alliance’s lap. Dreamz already had reasons to mistrust. Then they told him they hid the idol from him, and now he really mistrusts. And then, of course, they’ve also pissed off their other two alliance members by talking. All in all, it was a bonehead move. A special MIA goes to our dimpled and gregarious host, Jeff Probst. Last week, I refrained from being too nasty, because I assumed that during the Michelle ouster, ALL parties got to answer like Alex did for each person there. However, per Michelle’s interview, ONLY Alex got that sort of leading questioning from Jeff, and that makes it highly unfair and an interference not needed in this game. I don’t like how Jeff points out when another team or individual comes up with a good solution to a challenge so the others can copy, and I don’t like it when he leads the questioning so much you feel like he’s pointing a finger at someone to vote out. So, much as I adore him usually, he definitely earns at least a small honorary award from me. I’ll take it away if he shows up on my doorstep in boxers. Oh, sorry, I have to think of my boyfriend, too. Half goes away for Jeff in boxers on my door, the rest goes away if Julie’s there only wearing his boxers, too. That work, honey? A personal MIA goes to the hotel I’m staying at while in the Windy City. I’m used to free Internet (wireless) access in rooms and typically a minibar, and the ability to get most any kind of soda some how. I’m barely able to find water in this $240-a-night place with no minibar so I can grab something to eat when I get in after hours, and I’m DYING for Dr. Pepper. I think I saw some for $4 in the gift shop, so tomorrow morning, I guess I’ll snag it. Oh, and the whole thing smells like an indoor swimming pool for some reason. Oh yeah, and there’s a window on the inside. It’s weird. I don’t want to look out onto the hallway. I want to pretend it doesn’t exist. It just makes me feel weird! The big one, though, is making me pay for high-speed access. BOOOOOOOO!
However, I did just eat at a lovely place called Brazzaz, and it’s all I can do to stay up long enough to finish typing my article. I’m happily stuffed and ready to go lay down and watch expensive movies in bed. Business trips are so fun! Tomorrow night, I’m going Greek. If I had one more night, I’d meet up with Giordano’s for some of my favorite pizza that I haven’t eaten in 16 years since I lived here.
Dear gods, is that a digression or what? I am blaming the sugary rum drink they served me amidst all that meat.
All right, so this week, we do have a Missing Intelligence Award to be given out, and the winner should be no surprise!
Dreamz, step right up here and receive your award! Your strategy skills are fairly simplistic, and it shows often, and this week, it really showed. You gave critical information to the other alliance, but they didn’t need you at all, and you missed that key ingredient: being needed. Indeed, you radiate uncertainty and “willingness to flip every which way,” so neither alliance actually trusts you. By giving the other group information, you also gave them the power to make decisions without you, and you have paid a severe penalty. You were the sole Mookie vote, and he was the one who probably was on your side!
For bizarre and ineffective strategizing that screwed over your alliance and did not insinuate you into another, you get this MIA, Dreamz!
Survivor: Fiji, Episode 10 Missing Intelligence Award - To Betray, Perchance to Dreamz by Heathyr Fields Ford -- 04/25/2007 This week’s episode of Survivor had Heathyr almost speechless. But now her speech is back, and it’s time to let some Survivors know that they’ve misplaced their intelligence. Is one of the lucky winners Dreamz? Wow! Now that was an episode, wasn’t it? More drama than you could shake a snake and rat at and none of it overly manufactured by the editors to make you want to throw things at the television set (coughAmazingRacecough). I spent the whole episode going “wow” or “idiot.” Or “WOW” or “IDIOT!” While I will miss Edgardo, because he really seemed more the brains behind things and savvy enough to let others be the ones in the forefront, I was thrilled to see such interesting game play, so he was an okay sacrifice for my entertainment and on the altar of intriguing strategy! Stacy, if she has any feelings at all, must have been hurting after this episode. Just about everyone voted her the person they’d least like to see after. Ouch! While we saw some classic bitch behavior earlier in the season from her, we hadn’t seen any lately. That vote, however, leads me to the conclusion that there was a lot more of that bitch behavior than we saw and more recently than French Press Gate. Despite all of that and no prior indication of any great strategic skills - indeed, despite indication of horrible strategic skills - she came up with the immensely simple and elegant solution to her alliance’s predicament. So, Stacy, for now, kudos. This week, I’ll be handing out some retroactive MIAs based on how things have fallen out! First off, Alex and Edgardo, you get one for telling Mookie about the idol and thus facilitating his finding it. While in the end, he did hand it over to Alex, there was a HUGE chance he wouldn’t, and he would have been smart not to in some ways. Don’t worry, you get just a tiny MIA, as it may not have ever made the slightest difference. Next, to the trio of the four horsemen for not telling Dreamz the instant they found it and making him feel a part of the foursome fully. By treating him like a second-class citizen, or in this case, ally, you all were potentially causes of the alienation that made him go tell other people. Once that damage was done, however, it was really just a matter of keeping the idol secret from Dreamz until they needed to play it. What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him as long as he never finds out until it’s too late! By telling him in the way he did, however, Mookie earns himself a fair-to-middlin’-sized trophy of absent intelligentsia. While it may NOT have made any difference, I certainly think it played a part. Dreamz is obviously searching for something - family, acceptance, whatever - and he was treated nastily by the Moto alliance on the original Moto. Now, he’s allied with two members of that original alliance, and he’s got to feel somewhat askew about it all. Then add in that all three others knew something he didn’t, and they didn’t want him to know, and voila, you have mixed a cocktail ripe for the spilling into the other alliance’s lap. Dreamz already had reasons to mistrust. Then they told him they hid the idol from him, and now he really mistrusts. And then, of course, they’ve also pissed off their other two alliance members by talking. All in all, it was a bonehead move. A special MIA goes to our dimpled and gregarious host, Jeff Probst. Last week, I refrained from being too nasty, because I assumed that during the Michelle ouster, ALL parties got to answer like Alex did for each person there. However, per Michelle’s interview, ONLY Alex got that sort of leading questioning from Jeff, and that makes it highly unfair and an interference not needed in this game. I don’t like how Jeff points out when another team or individual comes up with a good solution to a challenge so the others can copy, and I don’t like it when he leads the questioning so much you feel like he’s pointing a finger at someone to vote out. So, much as I adore him usually, he definitely earns at least a small honorary award from me. I’ll take it away if he shows up on my doorstep in boxers. Oh, sorry, I have to think of my boyfriend, too. Half goes away for Jeff in boxers on my door, the rest goes away if Julie’s there only wearing his boxers, too. That work, honey? A personal MIA goes to the hotel I’m staying at while in the Windy City. I’m used to free Internet (wireless) access in rooms and typically a minibar, and the ability to get most any kind of soda some how. I’m barely able to find water in this $240-a-night place with no minibar so I can grab something to eat when I get in after hours, and I’m DYING for Dr. Pepper. I think I saw some for $4 in the gift shop, so tomorrow morning, I guess I’ll snag it. Oh, and the whole thing smells like an indoor swimming pool for some reason. Oh yeah, and there’s a window on the inside. It’s weird. I don’t want to look out onto the hallway. I want to pretend it doesn’t exist. It just makes me feel weird! The big one, though, is making me pay for high-speed access. BOOOOOOOO!