Yau Man plays the hidden immunity idol.
Survivor: Fiji Blog
14th Elimination: Stacy
Just an all around unbelievable episode! I’ll just get right to it…
1. Tell them what they’ve won, Rod… …A new car! That’s right ladies and gentlemen, it’s the Ford F150. This stylish pick-up boasts a roomy interior, leather seats, plenty of cargo space. It’s the perfect vehicle for racking up your credit card bill with gas payments. And best of all, it comes with a guarantee of ruining your chances at the million dollars!
Yau Man ended up winning the reward challenge and the truck, but like the crafty old man that he is, he ended up striking a deal with Dreamz. Dreamz had been going on and on about how he was the only person in the game who didn’t have a car and how badly he wanted it. Knowing that Dreamz is extremely impulsive, Yau Man dangled the keys in his face and offered to exchange the car. The catch: if Dreamz won immunity in the final four and Yau Man was still in the game, Dreamz would have to fork it over to him. Dreamz stupidly accepted and sealed one of the most shocking deals in the show’s history. Let’s break this one down…
If the final four ends up being Earl, Cassandra, Yau Man, and Dreamz and Dreamz gives his immunity to Yau Man, either Dreamz is gone or forced into a tie-breaker with Earl. So instead of being part of the final tribal council, he’s likely out of the game. Outcome: Bad Move.
If Dreamz makes it to the final four, he can just tank the immunity challenge. This would likely put him in a tie-breaker with Yau Man, when he probably could’ve won immunity and been safe. Outcome: Bad Move.
If Yau Man gets eliminated before the final four, Dreamz doesn’t owe Yau Man anything, and just got a free car. Outcome: Good Move.
Of course, the chances of Dreamz finishing either first or second and netting either a million dollars or 100K is slim to none. Basically, the only person left that he has a prayer to beat is Boo. So with that being the case, does it matter if he loses his “shot” at a million? Isn’t he just better to take the car and call it a day?
I don’t think so. You see, if Dreamz couldn’t afford a car, any car – even a used beat-up one, what makes you think that he can afford to pay the hefty taxes on his brand-new truck? All Yau Man did was give Dreamz a nice chunk of debt to pay the IRS and a visit from the repo man.
Final Outcome: A Decidedly Bad Move Overall.
2. Yau Man – Genius or Doofus? I’ve had a hard time coming to a conclusion with this guy. I’ve said before that Alex, Edgardo, and Earl seemed to be the only people who were truly playing the game intelligently, and that Yau Man and Cassandra were just faking it. Well Cassandra’s repeated failure to pounce on opportunities that would let her take over the game, have settled her fate. But I still can’t figure out Yau Man. The man is definitely thinking, but I’m not sure he’s making the right decisions.
First of all, he comes off as totally self-interested. And that’s not exactly the case as he appears to truly be working with Earl to make the final. But when he strategizes with Cassandra, he makes it pretty clear that he doesn’t have the best interests of the alliance at heart. You can’t allow yourself to come off that way, or you’ll end getting burned by your alliance, just like he almost did.
Second of all, he sent himself to Exile Island. That was a brilliant move if he intended to find a second hidden immunity idol and potentially set himself up for three consecutive immunities. But then he ended up sharing the information with Earl, who ended up with the second idol. If you were going to tell Earl, why wouldn’t you just send him? I don’t get it.
Thirdly, trading the car was a good move if he and Dreamz make it to the final four. The question is, will he be able to survive to the final four with everyone gunning for him? He already had to play his hidden idol, which means that he’s completely vulnerable next time. Seeing as he’s such a big threat in the final tribal council, I’d be shocked if Cassandra, Dreamz, and Boo didn’t team up to knock him off.
The man’s definitely a schemer, which I something I have to respect. But it just seems to me that his plans backfire on him all too often. I’d be really surprised if he makes it past the next vote.
3. You Eeeeeeediots! After about five hours, Dreamz finally made the connection that Yau Man’s motives in giving him the car may not have been purely altruistic. He realized that giving Yau Man immunity at the final four would basically punch his ticket out of the game. So for once, Dreamz actually put together a little bit of strategy and began conspiring with Cassandra and Stacy to eliminate Yau Man before the final four. After Boo won immunity, Stacy knew that she would be getting Earl and Yau Man’s votes, so she was quick to pounce on the idea. And Cassandra finally decided to bite the bullet and make a strong play as well. It was the absolute perfect setup to blindside Yau Man. But never underestimate the stupidity of Dreamz…
Both Yau Man and Earl view Dreamz as mental midget who can easily be manipulated – and for good reason. However, being viewed that way is one of the biggest advatages you can get in this game. becaise being underestimated affords you the oppotunity to catch people completely by surprise. After he had traded the truck for immunity, Yau Man thought he had Dreamz in his back pocket. He figured Dreamz was too dumb to realize that giving away immunity would effectively kill his chances of winning the game and would be too full of gratitude to pose as a threat. Of course, he was entirely wrong and Dreamz actually had a good handle on the situation. All Dreamz had to do at this point was play dumb and let Yau Man feel really comfortable about his status in the game. Had he just gushed with thanks, Yau Man would kept the hidden immunity idol in his pocket with the hopes of rolling it over into a guaranteed spot in the Final Four. But Dreamz, while not stupid enough to get completely suckered by the trade, was stupid enough to let Yau Man know that he knew exactly what was going on.
“I’m not dumb, Yau. I know you’re strategy is to take me out at three. It’s a good strategy.”
Why Dreamz? Why?
But that wasn’t the worst of it. The whole time the plot was being hatched, Stacy was smart enough to play the “it’s ok guys, I know I’m next” card. Again, just another way to make Yau Man feel really comfortable before they blindsided him. She really did an excellent job. However, she followed up her great performance with what might just be the dumbest statement in all of Survivor history.
Remember, Yau Man has the hidden idol. He realizes that he’s a big threat and is going to have a very itchy trigger finger. If he even gets the slightest whiff that people are conspiring against him, he’s going to play it. So the key to blindsiding him is to make him feel as absolutely safe as possible. Dreamz has already planted the seed in his head with his dumb comment before, but if everyone else just plays it cool, he’ll hold onto the idol and be knocked off. So what does Stacy say?
“I think that everyone wants to seem like they’re playing nice. But I think that there’s going to be lines drawn. And there’s going to be division among the tight knit alliance. Because I don’t think that it’s all going to be a vote one way or another. I think it’s going to be spilt”
When she said that, I absolutely lost it. I can’t stand Stacy. I’ve been waiting weeks to see her kicked out of the game. But I can’t stand horrendous strategy even more. I can’t recall anybody blowing up their own spot in tribal council worse than Stacy did. All you have to do is make an overconfident Yau Man feel comfortable, and you blurt that out? I guarantee that had she kept her mouth shut, Yau Man would’ve kept the idol and been voted off. Instead, she’s the one sent packing.
I’ve never seen such an easy setup fall to pieces like that before. But this is exactly the kind of thing that’s been happening all season. This Survivor: Fiji cast makes the Axis of Idiots looks like card-carrying members of Mensa. It’s just disgraceful. I can only imagine what moronic moves we’re in for at the finale…
