Episode 4: Best Move/Worst Move

Every Thursday on FSG Blog, we will be posting at least three “Best Moves” and three “Worst Moves” from the latest episode. It’s up to YOU to vote for what you consider to be the best and the worst move. If you disagree with the three options for best or worst moves, then select “Other” and then write an explanation in the Comments section below of the move that you consider to be the best or the worst. The results for this poll will be posted every Monday.

Kellyn choosing to keep her vote

Sometimes the smarter move is to choose to do nothing. This was the case when Kellyn made the choice to keep her vote instead of risking it for the chance to receive an advantage. She knew that her alliance had a 5-4 advantage, so potentially losing her vote wasn’t worth the risk in this case. It wasn’t a flashy move, but it was indicative of the long-term game Kellyn is playing. And of course, it did end up paying off in this episode, as her tribe managed to keep the numbers.

Chris dominating the immunity challenge

Chris has proven again that he is a challenge beast. His tribe was losing the immunity challenge so badly that Probst called it a “blowout.” However, Chris encouraged his tribemates to help him pull the track into place, and when they finally caught up with new Malolo, he made quick work of the basketball-esque final leg of the challenge, securing a victory for his tribe. As a result, he managed to avoid the chopping block again.

Michael’s idol reveal at tribal

In contrast to Kellyn’s move this week, Michael’s idol reveal at tribal council was the epitome of a flashy Survivor move. Knowing that the Naviti alliance outnumbered his Malolo alliance 5 to 4, he brought out James Clement’s supersized idol from Survivor: China and declared that he was going to play it for two members of his alliance. Although that was a lie because the idol did not have power to make two players immune, Michael wisely used the uniqueness of the idol to his advantage, since James was originally voted out while in possession of two idols. The bluff made sense under the circumstances, so no one questioned it. Then, he made a pitch to Chelsea and Sebastian to flip to the Malolo side because they were all going to vote for Bradley and they had the chance to save themselves. Although nobody ended up flipping, Michael did a great job shaking things up as much as he could at tribal council.  

Bradley ostracizing the Malolo alliance

Although Bradley compared himself to Boston Rob and Kim Spradlin, what he failed to realize was that neither of those players made enemies with the opposing alliance at such an early stage of the game. Instead of making the Malolos as comfortable as possible, Bradley, by telling the Malolos that the Navitis were never going to flip, only managed to make them desperate to make a move. Bradley dodged a bullet this week because Michael’s idol play didn’t end up working, but his game could have easily imploded in this episode due to his mismanagement of the Malolos.

Domenick telling both Wendell and Laurel about his idol

Is it just me or is a pattern starting to emerge here? For the third straight week in a row, Domenick can’t keep his mouth shut about his idol! Sure, telling Wendell and Laurel didn’t have any repercussions yet. And although it might have made a little sense to tell Wendell because they both found themselves on the outs of their tribe, it really made no sense at all to tell Laurel. All Dom managed to do was give up information with nothing to gain in return. Fortunately for him Laurel wants to work with him, but he had no way of knowing that when he told her.

Michael’s failed idol play

Although Michael’s reveal of the idol was brilliant, unfortunately, he didn’t end up playing the idol on the right person, playing it on Stephanie instead of on Brendan. Playing an idol correctly can be one of the most difficult moves to pull off successfully, but Michael unfortunately didn’t read the Navitis’ expressions accurately to be able to suss out who they voted for. As a result, his idol was wasted.

Photo credits: Robert Voets/CBS Entertainment