Survivor: Cook Islands - Advice for the Remaining 7

I always love the Survivor auctions, because they give insight into how everybody is thinking. Jonathan bought a lot of food, Parvati bought herself a bath, and Becky bought the one thing that really matters—power.

It showed that the better players were willing to pool their money to take any advantage they could grab. It cost Candice another trip to Exile Island and all of her auction money. However, it also showed who was working together. Yul and Becky pooled their money; so did Adam and Candice. That showed who is tight with whom.

I also loved dinnergate. It really showed why the Aitu plus Jonathan alliance is in control. They work. Adam, Candice, and Parvati probably had some fun relaxing in the tent and playing kissy, but Survivor isn’t about that. You want to eat, you have to work.

The ex-Raro people tried to bargain with Yul, offering their jury votes in exchange for getting rid of Jonathan. Nice idea, but I don’t think the rest of the Aitu members would exactly think it’s a good trade. Everybody else in Aitu would want to get rid of Yul simply because he’d have those jury votes.

Adam won immunity, which was exactly what he needed to do to stay in the game. Candice ended up losing as a response. Plus, isn’t it interesting that while the game started with tribes divided by race, the alliance in control contains a mixture of all four?

Yul also exposed the idol, which should have explained to the Raro tribe why Jonathan flipped. The look on Nate’s face at Tribal Council was priceless.

So with Candice gone, what moves should each player be making to stay in the game? It’s advice for the remaining seven.

Jonathan: You made out like a bandit in the auction, winning a lot of food and some mouthwash. However, you need to turn it down a notch. The truth is that the alliance doesn’t need you anymore, except as the person the Raros hate for flipping, even if they might now understand why you did what you did. As long as you are jury bait and keep bringing in the food, you’re safe, but you should tone down your attitude.

Yul: You made a choice to show everybody the idol, which makes you almost invulnerable until the final three. Plus you did a good job at the auction, helping Becky win the power to send Candice to Exile Island and take away her money. All that should be on your mind is the end game, as the idol keeps you safe until the final three, and then you need a partner you can win against. Becky and Jonathan are your best choices.

Becky: Good job in your bid. You sent Candice to Exile Island and still kept the alliance working. You should be safe as long as you don’t do anything stupid.

Sundra: I’m sorry you only ended up with a sea cucumber as your auction prize, but it wasn’t a bad bid, just unlucky. In your situation, you have to think about the final three, and it might involve teaming up with Jonathan and Ozzy. Becky and Yul are tight and Jonathan will want to go against somebody he can beat, even if he has made enemies in the game. If you can convince him you are his best shot at winning, try to take out Becky at four and hope you or Jonathan can win final immunity. Good luck.

Ozzy: You should start plotting now to take out Becky, and then plan a trip to the final three with Yul and Jonathan. Jonathan has enemies, and Yul can’t be touched, but if you want to win, you need to pick the person you can beat in the end. For now you’re probably OK, though your challenge skills should worry the others somewhat.

Adam: Win immunity. It kept you safe last time, and it’s probably the only way to keep you safe this time. You can also try to push for the Aitus to get rid of Jonathan, but that dinner probably bonded them even more. Your other option is to try to outdo him by providing more fish. It might be a little late, but it’s worth a try.

Parvati: If you now understand why items like power are the best things to bid on, you’re getting better. I think you’ll need to win immunity or keep it out of Adam’s hands to last another vote, and keep pushing on Jonathan’s behavior in the hopes he’ll be eliminated. Otherwise, the clock is ticking for you.

Candice: What went wrong? Well, you declared mutiny, which angered four people, then decided to make an issue out of the dinner. Let’s face it; you were in the tent kissing Adam and Parvati while those four people were working. That didn’t make them happy, and they decided to eat by themselves. You did a good job trying to stir up trouble between Jonathan and the other Aitus, but it didn’t work. They are still together.

Jeffrey Clinard has been writing about Survivor since the second series, and has published over 100 articles about the show and given advice to nearly 150 different Survivors on RealityNewsOnline. He can be reached at realityfeedback@bookslv.com.

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