Survivor: Cook Islands – What’s So Horrible About Peace, Love, and Understanding?

As the final five progressed to become a final four, it seemed as though this bunch had as much malice as a bodybuilder has body fat – that is to say, if there was any, it certainly wasn’t noticeable.

Let’s start with the final five. Adam was obviously the odd man out, and needed to win the challenge to stay in the game. But as the rest of the tribe noted, he had apparently given up. Indeed, while they were still working away, Adam was laying around. And he called them boring? To his credit, he did do his best to stay in the game by planting seeds of doubt in the minds of the others, but when he finally got voted out, he admitted they outplayed him.

So that left us with the little tribe that could, and did. Contrary to Adam’s accusations, this group of four has been one of the most enjoyable to watch in the history of the show, if for no other reason than that they overcame seemingly immense odds to stay in the game and stay together. One false move and we might have seen Candice, Adam, or Parvati take home the million.

Once the Aitu four became the final four, they got hit with a bombshell: For the first time ever, there would be a final three instead of final two. In a way, this twist helped preserve their legacy of “niceness.” The four agreed to let a tiebreaker settle who would make it in between Becky and Sundra, so there would be no hard feelings no matter who won.

This bring us to the following question: Did Becky do the right thing by refusing Yul’s offer of the idol? I say yes, because she knew how it would look to the jury if she “snuck in.” You can say it didn’t matter since she didn’t get any votes anyway, but it was still her best chance to look good before the jury.

Then came the (yawn) tiebreaker. Like the final four itself, the fire-building contest featured a lack of friction. Obviously, it was rather boring, as judged by the yawning members of the jury. This is when it’s time to give thanks you’re watching it on TV and not in person, as the producers were able to leave most of it on the cutting room floor.

Finally Sundra ran out of matches, and could only watch on helplessly as Becky finally got her fire started, to the relief not only of Becky, but the jury and probably the producers. Even Sundra cheered Becky and gave her a congratulatory hug. When you’ve teamed with someone for so long, especially through the kind of adversity and odds these four went through, it’s hard to feel any animosity towards that person, especially when your tribe didn’t actually turn on you.

When Jeff Probst finally snuffed out her torch, Sundra blew a kiss and smiled at her now former tribe members, in effect leaving the game the way she played it – with an absence of malice.

In some ways, this final four reminds me of the cast of The Real World: London. While the cast had its conflicts, they might have gotten along better than any cast before or after it. One of the cast members said some people thought they were the best cast ever because of the lack of conflict, but others find them to be the most boring cast ever for the very same reason.

Here’s my question for readers: Did the lack of tension among the Aitu four make for a pleasant change of pace, or did it make for a lackluster climax? Personally, I liked the peace and harmony. Maybe this is the “love tribe” Gabe from Marquesas set out to build.

Then again, it didn’t hurt that the two players most in the running for the million, Yul and Ozzy, were both deserving for very different reasons. It seems as though almost every finale contains at least one player that’s hard to like. But here, while Becky and even Sundra were arguably not deserving of the million, neither of them were particularly unlikable either.

Then it came time for the final jury of the game. You just knew there probably wouldn’t be any “snakes and rats” speeches aimed at this group. In fact, the first juror to say anything negative to them was Adam, who repeated his “boring” accusations, saying they were afraid to take risks. Translation: They wouldn’t let him back in the game. And trust me, if Adam had been in their position, he would’ve been just as “boring.” Of course, watching him, Parvati, and Candice lay around while the others worked made for absolutely riveting video.

Adam tried to get Ozzy to trash the other two, but while answering the question, Ozzy, as he had most of the game, kept the nastiness to a minimum.

Then there was Jonathan, who accused Ozzy of arrogance and having a sense of entitlement. Huh? Did Jonathan forget his own behavior at the food challenge? Even his own allies thought he was acting arrogantly.

If any other moment of final Tribal Council stood out, it was probably when Brad asked Ozzy about the most challenging experience in his life and Ozzy discussed the relationship, or lack thereof, with his father. When he started to cry a bit, it came across as sincere and genuine, rather than manipulation for the sake of strategy. Most likely, as he was answering the question, he didn’t realize the emotions it would bring out in him.

Let’s now ask this question: Did the right person win? While I would’ve voted for Yul, it would not have ruined my day if Ozzy had won. Choosing between the two was like choosing between chocolate pudding and chocolate cake: It’s hard to go wrong either way.

In conclusion, this finale may have been the Survivor equivalent of the Rorschach ink blot test: Did you see a finale full of peace, love, and understanding (with apologies to Elvis Costello for the article’s title), or did you see a snoozefest and feel relieved once it was over?

Well, that’s it for another season. See you in Fiji!

Ken can be reached with any comments, criticisms, or money orders at YourNextOfKen@aol.com.

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