Survivor: Guatemala, Episode 4 MVPs: The Old Switcheroo

This week on Survivor, we saw the earliest tribal switch yet. This swap might have happened sooner than they typically do, but it had the same effect. Players were scrambling to reestablish old alliances, look for potential turncoats, and all the while pretend that they are hap-hap-happy to have a brand new family. Throughout it all, two players emerged as the Most Valuable Players for their tribes, albeit for two very different reasons.

Let’s start with Yaxha. The MVP for Yaxha, both old and new, is, once again, Gary. Gary is in a terrific position right now. Along with Rafe, he discovered an inventive way to catch minnows. As David Bloomberg pointed out in his recap, having a food source besides Lydia’s inlets make her potentially expendable, thus making Gary’s position all the more secure. Providing food for your tribe is always a good idea, so well done, Gary.

At the reward challenge, Gary’s teammates showed how much they value him. He was voted the smelliest member of the tribe. That’s not exactly a compliment, but it could indicate that he got that stinky through a lot of hard work. When he lathered up in the shower, no one seemed the least bit jealous or resentful – they were just happy to smell him when it was over. Finally, Gary was the man chosen by his tribe as most deserving of a picnic. Jamie and Danni, who were chosen as most in need of nourishment, had to have been a little jealous of the fact that their nourishment took the form of a piddling apple and not a fried chicken lunch. And as another aside, I liked the fact that Jeff told the players that they could not take food back to their tribe and had to eat it all. I’m bored with players being nice and sneaking food back! I’d prefer that they create resentment and jealousy.

At Yaxha, Gary is clearly a respected, valued member of his tribe. He has just one chink in his armor (well, two if you consider the fact that he is a giant threat and will probably be promptly voted out post-merge). His lie about not having played for the NFL could really get him in trouble. He’s consistent, I’ll give him that, and I understand that if the other players knew he was a former professional athlete, they might decide he doesn’t need the money and vote him out. But now he could be voted out for lying. After all, if you were on Survivor, wouldn’t you be tempted to vote out the person who you know is lying? Danni has heard his story that he’s not a former football player, and she’s not buying it. Danni is a sports reporter, so she knows what she’s talking about, and I think in time the rest of the tribe will believe her story over Gary’s. In the meantime, he’s smart to avoid participating in challenges like the immunity challenge that would have shown off a powerful, professionally trained arm. Gary might be in trouble later, but for now, he’s sitting pretty as Yaxha’s Most Valuable Player.

I remember watching the movie The Bad News Bears as a kid. When the Bears lost, the opposing team had a little chant:

The members of Nakum – the new ones, anyway, could well be doing that chant about Judd. Like that famous Little League team, Judd made some losing moves at the last tribal council. He let his personal feelings – dislike of his original tribe and a connection with Jamie and Stephenie – influence his vote. It may very well be his undoing in the future. The former Yaxhas on the tribe now have a numbers advantage and can easily pick off the Nakums – Judd himself included.

Judd has made himself a valuable part of his tribe. He’s the biggest, strongest guy there, so they can use him to make challenges. He was also willing to vote with the Yaxha, thus making him valuable strategically to Stephenie, Lydia, Jamie, and Rafe. The only person he’s not valuable to right now (well, other than Brooke) is himself. Judd has now painted an even bigger post-merge target on his back. He’s a threat to win individual immunity, which makes him a good person to get rid of. He has also shown that his word can’t be trusted- another good reason to vote him out. The former Yaxhas would say, without a doubt, that Judd is their Most Valuable Player.

That’s it for this week. We’ve got two MVPs – one a strong player respected by his tribe, the other a strong player exploited by his tribe. Who will come out on top next? We’ll soon find out!

Betsy Wasser is the Associate Editor of Reality News Online. The only former pro football player she’d be likely to recognize is O.J. Simpson. She can be reached with any comments or MVP nominations at at betsywasser@Gmail.com.

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