In our new feature, Gus and Ali, a real-life couple and fans of Survivor, will be individually ranking the Survivor players into two categories, Hot or Not. The Hot list symbolizes anyone we feel has put themselves in a good position or exhibited good gameplay that week. Those people are individuals we think will not go home in the next episode. The Not list is people that we feel have had their Survivor stock take a significant hit that week. We will then share our rankings with one another and have a chance to trash talk each others’ analysis. Also, we encourage merciless teasing to anyone who has someone on their Hot list go home the following week.
Go ahead, hit us with your best shot. We’re probably wrong anyway, but that’s why it’s fun!
Disclaimer: Our article contains discussion centered around information revealed as part of the “next time on” preview segment. Should you wish to watch this coming week’s episode without any foreknowledge, don’t read this article!
Ali: Mike
“I feel like this is the most momentous vote of the game so far… whatever happens today is going to impact everybody’s game for the rest of the game.”
I have long predicted that if Mike makes the merge, he will go far. I still think that’s the case. I don’t think that anyone is going to target him right away. There is a danger that the Goliaths won’t trust him because he flipped on Natalie, but I trust that Angelina will go to work for him smoothing things over. John, the person who most wanted to work with Natalie going forward, is aligned with Angelina, so it shouldn’t be too big of a problem. The Goliaths will probably understand better than anyone the myriad of reasons why Mike and Angelina would want to get rid of Natalie. I doubt they will hold it against him for long. In addition, I feel that Mike ultimately made the right decision keeping Angelina this week. There isn’t a lot of benefit to going into the merge with one’s starting tribe down in numbers. Mike was able to dodge the Davids cake-walking to the end – and good on him! And yet, Mike’s erratic gameplay is a point against him. He wouldn’t have been in a potential rock situation if he hadn’t voted emotionally to get rid of Natalie.
Gus: Mike
Mike picked the wrong week to worry about the numbers advantage! That’s a quandary that he should have been addressing last week. Faced with the difficult decision between voting out Angelina (who opted to come forward and reveal herself as a strategic threat in a big way) and Lyrsa (who found herself on the wrong tribe at the wrong time), Mike chose to keep the Goliaths up in the numbers for the merge. The smarter move would have been to eliminate Lyrsa last week, both guaranteeing that numbers advantage for his tribe and allowing him to decide between Angelina and Natalie at this week’s tribal. Had the Jabeni tribe not found themselves at tribal with Natalie in Lyrsa’s place (which, I mean, they would have still been at tribal), he would have been able to keep both Natalie, Angelina and Nick around. Enough “woulda, coulda, shoulda”-ing from me: Mike gets a Hot this week because he independently secured the mathematical advantage for the Goliaths at the merge, avoided overly harming the alliance he has with Nick and has Angelina to throw under the bus for Natalie’s elimination.
Ali: Nick
“Whatever we think suits us best is what we’ll do.”
I’ve been shaking my head at Nick for weeks saying he is playing too hard. I still think that. However, his saving grace is that there are other people playing way harder. Angelina, Dan, and Christian have emerged as a bigger targets. Plus, Angelina and Mike expressed interest in working with Nick. What I like about Nick’s gameplay right now is that he has a lot of options, and if everyone thinks of him as a potential ally then no one will go for him. However, at the merge, there’s no place to hide because you are always at tribal council. The minute Nick has to cast a vote, his allegiances are made known. I think from that point forward the road will be rocky for this member of the Rockstars.
Gus: Nick
Had we not been heading into a merge, I would have Nick as the Nottest of Nots. As we are merging next episode, Nick gets a Hot because of the bonds that he’s made across tribes. I don’t know whether Nick has an alliance with Angelina (at least, I’m mostly sure that there’s not one with a name), but his connections to Mike and Christian will likely start to show dividends post-merge. With Christian connected to Dan, John and possibly Alec, this’ll put Nick in a great spot for the merge.
Ali: Angelina
“The only reason I wrote your name down is because I wanted Natalie’s jacket.”
Jacketgate has really taken on a life of its own. As the life of Jacketgate grows, Angelina’s game life wanes. I’ve been saying from the beginning that Angelina will make a good player if she learns to cool her jets, but sadly she hasn’t been able to do that. Pair that with her slightly cocky confessionals, and she’s got a recipe for disaster on her hands. Early on, I predicted that Angelina might find an idol based on her scene with Alison where they hunted for them. However, all of the idols in the game have been found, so perhaps instead this is foreshadowing an idol play in which she goes home.
Gus: Angelina
Our original forecast about Angelina – that she would turn out to be an aggressive player who people would likely see as a threat before long – seems to have begun to pan out. With Angelina overplaying to the extent that Mike was seemingly considering getting rid of her pre-merge, and considering her lack of strong alliances (Dan and Kara are the only folks that we know she’s tied to with Alec’s coup of the apparently nonexistent Six-Person alliance a couple of weeks ago, and though she claims to be tight with John we’ve not heard anything about that from him) and her alienating of the folks from her merge tribe, I expect Angelina to get the boot before all that long.
Ali: Christian
“I’m becoming this Goliath-like figure from these David origins.”
In honor of Christian’s profession, I’m going to do a little math equation. Puzzle champion + social threat + merge = big trouble. Christian made me smile this week. I love his general enthusiasm for the game and his genuine eagerness to learn. However, the puzzle shoe I long predicted would drop at the merge is still hanging over his head. He’s going to be looked at as a potential target for his challenge prowess alone. On top of that, I think that the more aggressive players like Angelina will realize how connected he is, and that will be another nail in his coffin. We even saw her on the “Next Time On” saying that Christian is the heart of the Davids. I think that he has a good chance to go far, but with so many moving pieces next week the chances of him going home are significant.
Gus: Christian
Christian is a tough one. He’s got arguably the most social capital of anybody heading into the merge – he has Gabby more or less in his pocket, he has Nick on his side, he has Dan, John and maybe Alec willing to go to bat for him, he voted alongside Elizabeth pre-merge and attempted to mend fences with Davie and Carl pre-swap to the extent that they were willing to place all of the blame for Jessica’s (remember her?) vote-out on Gabby. There’s hardly anybody in the game that he doesn’t have some level of connection to. What I worry about is, is that too much social capital? Will it be seen as a threat? Will he be able to negotiate votes without fomenting too much discord amongst his enormous net of connections and alliances? Realistically the only people Christian could cast a vote for next week while not ruining an alliance are Angelina, Mike, Elizabeth, Kara and Alison. If Christian can maneuver through the web that he’s woven, I think he’s bound to go far… but if he trips and tangles himself up in it, I think he’ll be eaten alive. (P.S.: I’m still worried that his puzzle knowledge could wind up hurting him. That’s why I gave him a Not after the first episode – his only Not from me so far this season!)
Ali: Gabby
“Hope is not a strategy.”
This was a turn around week for Gabby. Instead of sitting on the beach and crying, Gabby took matters into her own hands. By trying to make inroads without Christian, Gabby exhibited some much-needed independence, which makes me optimistic about her future in the game. Now, the one downside for next week is that she may leave because people target her to get at Christian. I’m really hoping that this doesn’t happen because I think that Gabby’s game has finally gotten a boost.
Gus: Gabby
“Hope is not a strategy.”
Fun fact, Gabby is the only person remaining to whom I have never once given a Hot. I really hope that changes, and soon, because I really don’t think that Gabby will be eliminated next week, or the week after, or even the week after that. Gabby has reached the merge, but I don’t think she’s done anything yet besides provide the catalyst for Jessica’s vote-out. For my part, I believe Elizabeth is far more responsible for rallying those votes; however, we know that Davie and Carl blame Gabby. John and Dan expected her to be an easy vote-out for Tiva. Alison wants to work with her, but I worry that that connection either won’t manifest post-merge or will only prove to burn Alison. The only thing I see in her favor is that, Davie and Carl excepted, nobody has reason to want to get rid of Gabby – and no way are Davie and Carl about to rally five other votes singlehandedly to get rid of her. I see almost no way that Gabby is eliminated next episode, but I also see almost no way for her to be the Sole Survivor, so – with only circumstance elevating her clear of “totally screwed” – I have to give Gabby her sixth Not.
Ali: John
“The biggest thing that makes dancing cool is misdirection.”
I went back and forth as to where to mark John this week. It’s very difficult to predict how things are going to go down next episode, because of the impending merge. John isn’t playing badly. His alliance with the Brochachos could be enough to save him. However, I feel that John might be in a bad spot next week and I decided to stick with my gut on this one. Queen Kellyn once taught us that your gut is a mix of your head and your heart, so it feels like that’s the way to go. The merge boot has been a mixed bag of late, either a strong man or a young woman has gone home pretty consistently. It looks like the Goliaths are primed to go to war with the Davids next week, but I feel that with erratic players like Mike and Alec on the Goliath side, things will quickly become an individual game. Natalie went home recently, which was someone that John professed an interest in working with. Dan and Angelina, John’s other allies, both have large targets themselves, which could call further attention to John at a point where it would behoove him to disappear. Possibly, this could be a boon for him because Angelina and Dan might have made themselves bigger targets than John. But the target on John’s back is only going to grow bigger as the weeks progress unless he can fake an injury or pretend he’s bad at challenges. Because there isn’t going to be a lot of room to hide for John, I don’t know if there’s a lot he can do to salvage his game going forward. I like John, but he’s definitely vulnerable right now.
Gus: John
In opposition to Gabby, John is the only person remaining to whom I have never once given a Not. I had expected that I would start to worry more and more about John as the merge approached, but his game has been so strong I don’t find myself that concerned about him. With the tendency of recent games of Survivor to swing more and more clear of the “alpha male” merge boot (Chris Noble’s hilarious elimination notwithstanding), and with the tendency of most immunity challenges to wind up being decided entirely by a puzzle (last week being an extremely welcome exception), I don’t know if his stature will count as much of a mark against him either. John is close to Dan, Alec, and Christian; he may be close to Angelina, per the mythical Six Person Alliance. With Christian, he potentially gains ties to Nick and Gabby. With that many folk alongside him, I fully expect John to make it through next week’s episode.
Ali: Dan
“I don’t know how I could be playing better right now.”
Dan’s target is going to grow even more at the merge because he’s a buff guy. Also, I assume since Nick knows about one of his idols, very soon Christian and maybe Elizabeth will know about them too. I think people will want to target Dan sooner rather than later, and since Carl has his idol nullifier, Dan might not be able to save himself. It’s going to be quite the uphill battle for Dan, but perhaps Christian will have an interest in keeping him a little longer.
Gus: Dan
Pretty hard call this week for Dan. By rights, he should have a Hot – he’s got a ton of alliances (as many as, if not more than, John), he’s got two Hidden Immunity Idols, and he’s at least decent in challenges. In keeping with Season 37’s theme, though, Dan gets me thinking not about who has the advantage; he has me thinking about what is the advantage. Dan has two idols, enough to get him a Hot from me in last week’s article, but at least one of them is known about. That’s a far more dangerous situation for Dan next week than this past week when more and more people are bound to know that he’s got one – and with the Idol Nullifier being in the same tribe as he is. Dan has a ton of alliances, but we also know that at least a couple of people who should – ostensibly – want to stick with him are actively thinking about targeting him (Alison and Gabby). Dan is in a showmance – that most of his tribe know about because he can’t ever stop talking about it. My hope for Dan post-merge is that he’ll start to keep more things to himself; if not, I very much doubt whether Hot Cop’s torch will be burning for much longer.
Ali: Alison
“I need to find a way to kind of take my game into my own hands.”
There’s not a lot that I can say about Alison’s gameplay this week other than her conversation with Gabby. However, the credit for that conversation lies with Gabby, and Alison was shown actively resisting. Much of what I say going forward is going to be conjecture. Alison’s lack of content has a reason, whether it’s because she is boring on camera, or if it’s because her gameplay ultimately doesn’t have any meaningful impact on the game. Gus and I both have been predicting for a while that Alison gets idoled out of the game and that’s why she is getting so little content. Regardless, there are too many variables come the merge, and I don’t know Alison’s game well enough to call her a Hot.
Gus: Alison
Look, I won’t lie to you, I fully expected after seeing Alison get a confessional that we’d be seeing her head home this week…. but with Tiva being an unstoppable Immunity challenge juggernaut, I was #blindsided once more by the editors of this season. Looking ahead, though, I don’t know what to expect from Alison. We know that she’s willing to turn on the Goliaths – which, frankly is a good thing – and that’s about it. She may be hoping to pick Gabby up as an ally and work with her long-term… but then again, she also might not. With so little gameplay from Alison thus far, I worry that if she tries to pull something big, she’ll be immediately turned upon and eliminated. And, call me crazy, but I sort of think Alison is planning on trying to play big post-merge.
Ali: Elizabeth
“There’s two things in life I don’t like: lazy people and it’s stupid people.”
Speaking of people who couldn’t keep their emotions in check. Now, I understand Elizabeth better than some people might in this situation. I have back problems, and they can make me very ornery if you catch me at a bad time. If Elizabeth’s back problems were that awful to the point where she’s not sleeping, in a game that already pushes you toward the edge, I completely empathize with where she’s coming from. There was even a point where Kara was cracking her back, and Gus got excited because I make him do that for me all the time. That being said, Elizabeth failed to communicate her needs in a way that made her tribe want to help her. Instead, she sort of threw a tantrum, and it clearly rankled Alec, Davie, and Carl. I worry for Elizabeth going forward if she continues to annoy her tribemates and react emotionally to conflict. I’m a teacher, and I’ve learned over the years that behavior correction and directions need to come from an unemotional place. One must always react to potential problems before they become problems. If you become actually angry with your students, you’ve failed. I think it’s similar in Survivor, once you’ve had an actual conflict with another player, it’s a reflection on you.
Gus: Elizabeth
Let me start by saying that I’m as grumpy as Elizabeth was this week if I’m getting five hours sleep in a proper bed, so I really can’t fault her for her outburst. That being said… her fellow players definitely can. Elizabeth was already treading on thin ice with Carl and Davie – they’ve got a pretty solid bond, and can unite behind the common grievance of the Jessica vote-out (I did not think I’d be talking about Jessica Peet so much in this article, but, so it goes) – and BambooBedGate looks to have been enough to move them from “warily allied” to “actively hoping to eliminate.” Add to that her loss of one of her only strong allies in Lyrsa, and Elizabeth may just find herself with no place to hang her hat after the merge.
Ali: Davie
“Pump the breaks! Rrr rrr rrr!”
Davie is another one who got heated in the confrontation with Elizabeth this week. As Rupert once said, “not good”! However, unlike Carl, he has an idol to protect him going forward. This is his one saving grace that is keeping me from giving him a Not. He’s opened up some cracks but has a shield should a wall come tumbling down. Carl has an idol nullifier, but that isn’t necessarily protection for himself so much as a protection for the group as a whole. Unlike Dan, Davie’s power in the game is under the radar. No one knows about Davie’s idol, and Davie hasn’t emerged as a potential challenge threat. So, Davie has the ability to protect himself and slip under the radar, making his gameplay superior to Carl’s and Dan’s at this point.
Gus: Davie
This guy is hard to get a read on. He’s really entertaining, he’s well placed within ex-David (I think), he’s holding an Idol, and he’s some level of a provider. Davie’s low on alliances – his only real strong alliance at this point being Carl – but when combined with Christian and Nick’s cursory outreach, his natural charm, and his Idol, I feel that Davie should be safe for at least the next few weeks.
Ali: Carl
“Things change every single second in this game.”
The perils of emotional gameplay is going to be a theme going forward in this post. Carl’s content this week was pretty negative. I feel he failed to properly pacify Elizabeth and empathize with her struggle. His reaction to her anger was understandable. She almost pushed him over with bamboo. However, it’s not good gameplay. His inability to keep his cool makes for a crack between himself and Elizabeth large enough for Kara to potentially slip through. Elizabeth isn’t going to forget his pushing back against her and it may come back to bite him later on. Yes, Carl has an advantage in the game and that will help him going forward. That’s only if he can use his head rather than react emotionally to situations, and he didn’t this week.
Gus: Carl
I know, I know. Why give Carl a Not if you gave Davie a Hot? Carl also has an advantage. Carl also received Davie and Nick’s friendship overture. Carl doesn’t have any of the blood on his hands that Elizabeth and Davie will have to contend with. But, Carl also flat out told us that Elizabeth getting irked around camp was enough reason for him to want her out of the game. Carl has yet to show much in the way of strategic chops; I worry that he’ll find himself once again overwhelmed by the level of gameplay post-merge, just as he was when Jessica (I DID IT AGAIN) was eliminated.
Ali: Kara
“As much as I hate conflict between two people, it also makes me sit back and kind of eat my popcorn knowing that it’s not going to be me.”
Kara played this week perfectly. All she needed to do was sit back and allow someone else to piss off the tribe. She did that so well that Carl considered going into the merge down in numbers just so that they could get rid of Elizabeth. Her confessionals about her strategy for the week showcased how aware she was of the role she needed to play. I underestimated Kara early on. She could have easily played emotionally this week due to being incredibly vulnerable. Her ability to stay calm is promising for her game going forward. Now, Kara is back with her tight alliances from the Goliaths and a showmance partner with two idols. Dan might not be able to play his idols correctly, but I think Kara has the chops to really make those idols work. Now, it could be bad for her coming back with Dan when he has such a huge target. But there’s something about Kara that has started to convince me that she has this. The merge couldn’t have come at a better time for her, so her stock has risen for sure.
Gus: Kara
Surprisingly, Kara has found her way to a pretty good position post-merge. She’ll be able to reunite with the Goliaths and plead innocence (honestly) with respect to Natalia’s elimination. She will, hopefully, be able to hide behind Dan. She’s got at least some level of bond with Davie and Carl, and potentially a tie with Elizabeth as well. With the Goliath tribe up in the numbers, I very much do not expect to see Kara voted out next week; there are way bigger fish to fry before anyone kicks her out.
Ali: Alec
“……”
The merge has come, and Alec now has to face his burned former tribemates. Unlike with Natalie and Mike, a lot of people liked Natalia and wanted to work with her. Alec has some ‘splaining to do, and if his explanations to Kara are any indication, it won’t be a smooth recovery. Plus, he’s a big guy who is good in challenges, the merge is killer for his game at this point. The merge is open season and it looks like bartender is on the menu. Order up!
Gus: Alec
Judging from the preview, Alec is planning to, once again, betray the Goliaths in favor of working alongside the Davids post-merge. Clearly, the man has not learned his lesson. Alec has cleaved his bond to Kara, and likely many of the other Goliaths (although Dan and John do still seem to be willing to keep him around). None of the Davids within Vuku wanted to work with him that we know of, and he’s getting ready for a second round of betrayals. I love me some #bigmoves when done well, and I love #bigmoves done really badly even more. With that being said… nobody’s going to want to keep Alec around for long. He’s simply too erratic and volatile.
RETROSPECTIVE: LYRSA TORRES
Last week, Gus ranked Lyrsa as a Not, but Ali ranked Lyrsa as a Hot. She wants it on record that she screamed at the sky when Lyrsa was eliminated. I guess third time was not a charm for Lyrsa heading into tribal council.
Over the course of the season, Lyrsa received:
4 Nots and 1 Hot from Gus (-3)
2 Nots and 3 Hots from Ali (+1)
Culminating in a total of 4 Hots and 6 Nots (-2)
-Lyrsa is the second person this season to have a net positive temperature from either Ali or Gus upon being eliminated, the first being Jessica (+1 Ali).
-Lyrsa is the third person to go home the week after being rated Hot by Ali (after Jessica and Jeremy).
-This was only the second episode that Gus and Ali disagreed on Lyrsa’s ranking, the first being episode 2 when she was almost voted out of David (Ali gave her a Hot, Gus gave her a Not).
-The only other person who entered into this week with a cumulative temperature of (-2) was, interestingly enough, Angelina.
TRASH TALK ZONE
Gus: To begin with, Ali gave a Hot to Lyrsa last week, and, per the intro, we actively encourage merciless teasing of people who gave Hots to players who are sent home the following week. With that in mind, HEE HEE HEE HEE HEE HEE HEE! Great, moving on.
Ali: No, no, no. That is not all the teasing you gave me this week. I insert the following photos as evidence of the teasing that Gus gave me this week:
Ali: Okay, who do you want to discuss first
Gus: How about Slamtown’s Comptroller?
Ali: Alright, Hubicki himself. So, as Gus was reading my article, he called me crazy twice. This should be good.
Gus: Let’s be fair, you did give a Hot to Lyrsa last week.
Ali: There it is.
Gus: And, even more than that, this was more in reference to the full three opposing rankings, more than just Christian. You have a point: Christian is a dangerous player. I myself was concerned for him, especially with Angelina apparently about to gun for him.
Ali: The merge is all puzzles. Christian was the pre-merge puzzle king! And if he misplays this week, he’s doomed.
Gus: Alright, that’s what my problem is with your OTHER rankings, so, we’re just gonna keep that last message in mind as we go forward. Sure, he may well misplay this week. But there are SO many people who are tight with him – Dan and John for two, Alec for a third (according to both Dan and John). Christian has SO MANY alliances, and I think that there are enough people in opposition to him (nonstop Not Champion Angelina for one) that he’s got a good deal of game ahead of him even before he needs to start cutting alliance members. If he DOES have to cut alliance members, he’ll have to just start with his very smallest alliances.
Ali: I think his pre-merge statement about his puzzle prowess is not going to help him, and I think he will be in a tough spot soon when he’s forced to declare sides, as I’ve said. I think eyes are going to be on him. And I think it’s becoming clear that he’s a social threat.
Gus: It certainly is. But the only one who’s blowing that particular whistle at this point is Angelina. And more people are IN his alliances than AREN’T.
Ali: I hope I’m wrong! I love being wrong! (Btw, I just wanted to say how hilariously dumb it was for me to declare Lyrsa was a Hot. I didn’t actually believe I did that until Gus showed me.)
Gus: I’m pretty confident that his bizarre mist will carry him another few weeks. A social threat and a challenge threat is one thing, but not everybody knows about his other alliances, nor do they necessarily look at him as much of a *strategic* obstacle.
Ali: It’s quite possible that Angelina is ultimately going to pay for trying to ‘engineer’ Christian’s exit, but I think that this upcoming week is going to be a risk for Christian, and I don’t want to lose another Hot again. Mist? Look at you using the kids’ lingo
Gus: I also worry for Christian at the merge, but I feel like the social connections that he has will carry him through for a while longer. If things begin to degrade, my tune will shift drastically.
Ali: Sure, but this week is too dangerous that the Puzzle King could easily become the King of Ponderosa. And if that happens, I’ll be sure to fill your texts with some delightful photos.
Gus: Yeah, well, tbh I would deserve it, but I don’t think giving Christian a Hot this week is as nuts as, say, giving Lyrsa one for last week.
Ali: Oooooo. Nice. Okay, let’s talk about John.
Gus: I would LOVE to. I would like to begin with a short quotation: “The merge is all puzzles.” Said by yourself about thirty or so lines of text ago.
So, if that’s the case, what’s the argument for a Not against Hennigan?
Ali: Okay, so, the brochachos haven’t made it a secret that they’re hanging out. Gabby and Alison were both talking about it and it caused them to seek each other out and align. Not a great look for John last week. And now, we have two women who are aware of a bromance happening. They even said “brochacho” in front of the women while they were eating. I think that their game might be a bit exposed and if they start targeting that alliance, John could be a prime target. His target is only going to get bigger unless he can fake an injury.
Gus: John before Dan? Ehhh I’m not so sure about this injury-faking thing. Puzzles and endurance are far more important. The endurance challenges center around either balance or a body-weight kind of thing. John is ENORMOUS. A bodyweight challenge would have him dealing with a proportionally massive amount of weight. If they did the classic “tank all the weight that you can” challenge, I mean, Hennigan would slaughter all the opposition. But, we haven’t seen that for years.
Ali: Yeah, but endurance challenges have two types. The stand on some tiny foothold thing or on a balance beam, which favors women. Then, there’s the hold your arm above your head or hold something for as long as possible. For those, you just need to be able to… endure, for lack of a better term. John is a wrestler. He can take pain.
Gus: I just don’t see him as the number one all-around biggest threat in EVERY challenge. I think I’ll start worrying for him in about four episodes. But, then again, I also might just watch him get snuffed Wednesday. Even so, I think that his connection with Christian and his friendliness is worth more than the strength will offset.
Ali: Again, if he does, I’ll make sure your phone explodes.
Gus: You must. What about Gabby?
Ali: She put in work this week! I think she’s finally starting to come out from under Christian’s shadow.
Gus: If “doing something at all” means putting in work, sure.
Ali: Harsh.
Gus: That’s high praise for “she asked another person for help.”
Ali: You’re so mean to her. She’s been in several bad positions and she’s managed to find some wiggle room.
Gus: I’m honestly not trying to be mean! I really like her! She’s been excellent in challenges, credit where it’s due, but apart from that, she hasn’t really played social Survivor except to hot-glue herself right to Christian.
Ali: You aren’t wrong, but I think this week showed that she has game beyond Christian. And now Alison is ready to work with her.
Gus: And I am THRILLED about that, but my concern is that she’ll hop from being on Christian’s coattails right to Alison’s. And Alison hasn’t got that much of a coattail to work with. Gabby using Alison as a new shield is just going to kill Alison.
Ali: Christian is a great shield for Gabby. No one’s eyes are going to be on her this week. However, many eyes have already been shown looking at Christian.
Gus: Lots of people are thinking about voting for Christian, but if Gabby did lose Christian, I feel like she’d just be despondent. She’d only have Alison for support. Carl and Davie can’t stand her. All the other Brochachos planned to eliminate her in a Tiva tribal. Goliath is entirely unaware of Gabby’s existence. Nick… I guess? But Nick was the first person to start “throwing Gabby under the bus.”
Ali: “Can’t stand” is a little strong. They have mistaken beliefs about her that were put in their heads by Nick and Christian. She could work it out with them. But, at this point, people are going to be looking at threats. At this point in the game, Gabby isn’t one. And I think her confessional that it’s time to stop hoping might signify a new birth for her in the game.
Gus: We’ll see. If she DOES start to really play, I’m going to be overjoyed, Like, the dream scenario in my mind is for her to go from -6 all the way back up past 0 and ultimately win. But, I really don’t think she will.
Ali: We will see what the future holds for Gabby. But I think you’re wrong and I hope I get to laugh at you next week.
Gus: You’ve got two opportunities to get me back next week. I realllllllly do hope that you don’t, cuz you would be downright b r u t a l (very rightly so).
So, with all of that having been said, let’s pick our picks. Two people who we expect to see in trouble. And two who we really do not.
Ali: Hmmmmm… Angelina and Christian are in trouble. Sneaking under the radar are Mike White and Davie.
Gus: Ooo a hot pick! Not safe: Angelina, Elizabeth. Very safe: Nick, Gabby.
Ali: Interesting picks! Can’t wait to see what next week holds! Bye!!!
Gus: Ta ta!
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