And then there were 5! Tonight we find out who the sole Survivor is! The previews from Thursday's show hint at an evacuation, and I sure hope that isn't true--unless it is either Dawn or Sherri (not wishing an injury on anyone, but if there is one, I'd rather it be someone who doesn't deserve to win any way).
After Tribal
They make their way back to camp, and Erik is not OK. He was feeling very dizzy and things were spinning. Out of nowhere, Probst shows up. They lay him down and the docs check him out. They think he is malnourished and dehydrated. Eddie is an EMT, so he's telling Erik what's happening to him. His blood pressure is too low and the doc says he's going down fast. He makes the decision to not let him go back to camp, and they pull him from the game. I feel so bad for him! He was so close! Being voted out is one thing, but to have to leave because of medical reasons just sucks! And that will haunt him forever...(and I didn't realize until the Fallen Comrades section, that he left in exactly the same spot as last time he played: 5th).
And then there were 4...and never in a million years would I have imagined that these 4 would be the final 4.
Reward Challenge
Build a house of cards...with one hand...while holding a bar that's balancing the base of the tower of cards. Good luck!
Win the challenge and earn an advantage to the Immunity Challenge (plus food).
Cochran is out early, but his takes a tumble. Dawn and Sherri take the lead, but Sherri's goes down. Eddie is taking it slow and steady. He's making a move on Dawn. Eddie's falls and Dawn's falls with only 1 card needed at the top. Dawn loses her stack as Probst says "Dawn is in the lead". It's all back and forth. Sherri's hands were shaking uncontrollably the whole time. She got so close, and then it all fell down! And it's Cochran! Win #3 for him! He's becoming quite the challenge dominator!
Strategy
Cochran is glad that he won the challenge, so that Dawn and Eddie didn't win it. Sherri talks to Eddie and says she would rather sit next to him and Cochran in a final 3 than with Dawn. She's played the sympathy card with all the crying and talking about her 6 kids, etc.
Dawn is breaking down...again! This time it's a "catatonic breakdown" according to Cochran. She's paranoid and she wants Cochran to "spend 20 minutes reassuring her". Cochran says that she thinks that she deserves a fast pass to the finals for some reason, and he doesn't know why. Me either! I'm so sick of her! He's so tired of it, he's ready to dump her. Oh, if only it were that simple! I really think it doesn't matter who he sits next to in the final because neither fan has a chance, meaning Dawn is the only other person with any kind of shot at winning. At this point, it's not even that great of a shot for her either. If Cochran wins Immunity, I think he is a lock to take it all. BUT, that's only if he doesn't win immunity, or they turn on him and decide to vote him out.
Fallen Comrades
The finale staple...a walk down memory lane, remembering those who have had their torches snuffed. It kind of feels like forever since some of these people have played.
Immunity Challenge
Climb a huge set of stairs and mazes, to retrieve bags of puzzle pieces, then build the puzzle
Cochran's advantage = he doesn't have to untie the bags of puzzle pieces
Cochran has his last bag, as all the rest are only on their 2nd bags. This is a significant advantage. Sherri stumbles in last place. Everyone has their pieces out and he has NO PIECES in place yet?! Come on! Sherri and Dawn start putting pieces in, and Eddie just stands their looking puzzled (like he has for most of the game). Eddie finally gets his first piece, and he grins from ear to ear like it's some big accomplishment. He calls out when he gets another one, and Probst says "and that's...2". And it's Cochran!!! Wow!
Who To Take to the Final 3?
Cochran has a dilemma? He knows he's bringing Sherri, but who deserves to go to the final between Eddie and Dawn. Dawn has been an emotional wreck. Eddie is a cocky young kid. I think he's stupid if he takes Dawn. Dawn has a slight chance of winning. There is no way that Eddie or Sherri wins, so it should be a no-brainer. I think he's stupid if he thinks he has a better chance of beating Dawn than Eddie.
Tribal Council
Eddie's talking a really good game...by belittling himself. He's pointing out just how little he did in the game. Cochran would be stupid to not listen to him.
The Votes
Dawn-1
Eddie-3
As Cochran votes, he says "I think you're the only one who can beat me, so you have to go." Why does Cochran think Eddie is the only person who can beat him? I don't get that AT ALL!!! How is he rationalizing this? Everything Eddie said was true: he made no moves, had no strategy and Dawn will play the sympathy card and cry, and people will fall for it. I really hope Cochran doesn't come to regret this decision.
Not to be mean, but crying and having meltdowns and needing to be consoled and reassured for 39 straight days does not a "Survivor" make. She may have outlasted, but she sure didn't outwit or outplay. Let's hope the jury thinks about that.
Final Tribal Council
Dawn: Everyone has seen how hard it was on me. I wanted to have at least 1 ally and that was Cochran. I wanted to be in control of my own game. I gave myself permission to play the game and do things she wouldn't normally do.
Sherri: Everything I've said is true about me, but you don't know that I'm actually a successful business woman. I own several businesses and have 75 employees. At this point, she loses it and can't even speak for several seconds because she's so nervous, then continues...I'm a fan and i had to make connections with you as Favorites, and obviously I did, because I'm still here.
Cochran: This is the culmination of 13 years of passion for Survivor. He used to wear a buff to school on Survivor days and I wrote newsletter's and papers about it. I'm socially awkward but fell into roll of therapist. I know i can't out muscle. strike before the threat can strike.
Jury Questions
So much to cover, but I'll try to summarize and paraphrase the best I can...
Malcolm:
Cochran: "What do you have that I don't?" Healthy insecurity. When someone else was making plans, he didn't like that.
Dawn: Own it! You can't be the sweet lady with 6 kids but also backstab people.
Sherri: No question for Sherri.
Eddie:
Cochran: "How will this affect you going forward?" He will be next to the 3 Amigos at the bar.
Dawn: You were the weakest most fragile player.
Sherri: "Were you carried to the final 3?" "No"...everyone laughs.
Phillip:
Cochran: Played a straightforward game and he enjoyed playing with him.
Dawn: He shrieks and cries like Dawn and finds it hard to vote for her. Awesome.
Sherri: She strategized to join the Favorites...but he removes her from Stealth-R-Us.
Erik:
Cochran: Nothing.
Dawn: Thought they shared something powerful, but what she did to Brenda did a lot of damage.
Sherri: Do you understand why you are here? She thinks she played hard. "You never did anything in this game. You were a seashell on the beach." He's trying to help her understand and she tells him "Now you can sit down".
Michael:
Cochran & Dawn: he thinks they both are playing the same game. Dawn doesn't think Cochran would be here if she hadn't made the connections and decisions. She doesn't have the blood on her hands.Cochran tells her that she wouldn't be in the game if she wasn't her therapist.
Sherri: Nothing.
Reynold:
Cochran: Nothing.
Dawn: He thinks she is a fraud. He wants her to say what she thinks of him in 3 adjectives. He can believe her because she said the truth by saying he was chauvinistic and vulgar, in addition to having a great sense of humor.
Sherri: Nothing.
Andrea: She is grateful to play with them and being blindsided was awesome.
Cochran: "What animal are you like?" Cochran says a chameleon.
Dawn: She understands where Dawn is coming from and how she played.
Sherri: Nothing.
Brenda:
Cochran: She wonders why should she give him the win, when she gave him the family visit and then voted her out. She was a threat, so they took her out. Brenda seemed OK with that answer.
Dawn: They had a strong bond, so getting voted out by her after what she did for her (finding her retainer) was what hurt. Brenda's main question came back to the teeth. She told Brenda she would take herself out of the game if Brenda didn't find her teeth, so Brenda wanted to know if she was serious or not. Dawn says "No." That totally devalued what Brenda did for her, so to prove it to her, Brenda tells her to take out her teeth in front of everyone! She at first said she didn't think she didn't need to. I didn't think she would do it, but she actually did it...wow!
Sherri: Nothing.
The Final Vote for the Winner
Cochran-8
Dawn-0
Sherri-0
All is right with the world! I was worried for a minute that the jury might find a soft spot for Dawn and give it to her. Congratulations to Cochran! He deserved the win. It should have been and was a no-brainer. It wasn't the perfect end to the season that I had hoped for, but it wasn't a complete loss. Malcolm was my first choice to win, obviously. I would have loved for Reynold to win. Eddie would have been good also, but really, he wasn't deserving. I even would have loved to see poor Brenda or Erik win. But what a great story for Cochran though.
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