We all know why Chet quit—mental, emotional, and physical drain. Notice that the list of reasons did not include a (mysterious) foot ailment. Seriously, when he showed Ozzy his foot, I looked HARD. If I had a TiVo, I would have paused so I could get a longer look. I am no doctor, but to me, it looked a little pink and that’s it. I think I have seen my foot look worse just through the course of a normal workday (heels can do that to a person’s foot). Even more amusing than Chet’s foot problems was the fact that his “alliance” thought he would consider staying another 3 days (potentially more if they miraculously got on a winning streak) to help vote out Ozzy. I thought this strategy was ridiculous. What good would getting rid of Ozzy do? Voting out these stronger players first is what got the former “fans” tribe in trouble in the first place. One could argue that voting out Joel severely diminished the tribe’s chance of winning any challenges, but truth be told, Joel didn’t do anything but strategize poorly. His physical dominance was never a factor. Voting out Ozzy would pretty much guarantee a loss in every subsequent challenge. Ozzy is one of those people that you need to keep around before the tribes merge (when it’s still group immunity, not individual immunity).
The other castaway to go home never got his torch snuffed. Jonathan was injured during last week’s reward challenge. Despite a severely infected and swollen knee, he still managed to help his team win reward. I also think that switching up the tribes gave him new life in the game. At the old “favorites” camp, I think he would have been on his way out (since he was not part of the couples + Cirie alliance). So when he said “I had this game,” as he was being shipped to the hospital, I kind of believed him. Some might say that his personality was toxic (maybe Parvati who likened him to cancer during Cook Islands), but I found him to be reasonable, logical, and decent in physical challenges—a pretty lethal combination in the game of Survivor. No one would ever accuse him of flying under the radar either. It’s too bad he had to leave under such circumstances. Jonathan’s exit is really making me re-evaluate my television viewing habits. Should I continue to watch even though both of my favorite “favorites” are out? Are there any standouts on the “fans” side to root for?
