Surviving Samoa After 4 Episodes
by Don Hart

The Production

Russell H: “Every Good Story Needs a Good Villain”

Promoted by CBS as “The Most Evil Player in Survivor History”, Russell H has shamelessly lied to his tribemates, sabotaged them and promoted himself in his many-too-many confessionals. He has indeed turned out to be a villainous cad. Like Ace in Survivor 17, Gabon or Coach in Survivor 18, Tocantins, his value to the Samoan story is, as with any villain, that we wait for his hubris to lead to his inevitable downfall. His gameplay is flawed. He has weakened his tribe and his own position in his tribe by inciting the eviction of his perceived enemies, Marisa and Betsy, who were two of his secret allies. At the end of Episode IV, Natalie looks as if she is in a better position to play Russell H than he her, something the Producers seem to be leading us to expect. And if he gets into a fight with Elizabeth next episode, Elizabeth just might be the deciding vote to evict him. Undoubtedly, Russell H has helped increase viewership, but ultimately, he is just a lot of hot air.

Twenty Survivors: “More than Usual”

Twenty is the largest opening cast in the history of the Survivor series. The problem with the increased number is that there just is not enough time to spend on showing us why those voted out failed and at the same time tell us enough about all the remaining Survivors to at least identify all of them. Other writers have mentioned Brett and in the same breath asked: “Who is Brett?” Brett is the best example of a Survivor we know nothing about. Why not have some two-hour episodes at the beginning of the series when we can learn more about someone like Brett?

The Hidden Immunity Idols

Exile Island is gone. In place of it, there are now two immunity idols hidden close to each campsite. Clues about the idols are given to one member of the winning, opposing tribe. Ironically, the idols have been found not by a visitor, but Foa Foa’s own Russell H and Galu’s Erik. The Producers struck a bonanza here. We viewers don’t know yet whether Russell H and Erik can even use their idols if the idols are not found in the opposing camp. The inter- and intra-tribal dynamics have been greatly enhanced by the immunity idol changes in the game, as Russell H and Erik have ended up playing key parts in adding to the complexity of the game. In the Foa Foa camp, Russell found the idol on his own but shared his find with Jaison and Mick. At Galu, Erik pocketed the idol, but did not share the news with pals Shambo and John. It will be interesting to see how all this plays out.

Tribal Leaders Had to Be Chosen

This change has worked fairly well. Foa Foa’s low-key Mick is standing back and ruffling no feathers, allowing others to determine Foa Foa’s fate. By remaining likeable and avoiding blame for his tribe’s failures, Mick is in a good position. Foa Foa’s numbers disadvantage isn’t overwhelming. Down by 8-7 if Shambo ends up a Foa Foa rather than a Galu, Foa Foa is clearly still in this game.
Galu’s Russell S is leading by trying to please everyone. His flaw is that he makes strategic mistakes, such as not choosing that reward tarp before the rains and giving Shambo the opportunity to bond with the Foa Foans. He also seems to be distanced from Foa’s Yoga crowd, which could easily come to haunt him.

The Players & Their Game

The Overall Casting is Weak

As in previous Survivor series, Samoa is loaded with 20/early 30-something wannabe-actors from California. These young people are nice to look at, but just don’t seem to have enough depth of personality. The older players are more interesting. More geographic and age diversification could greatly improve the show. For example, why do we need three young blonde girls? If Ashley, Natalie & Kelly were to pass us by on the street (and remember, this is after four shows), would we recognize them?

The Tribal Team Game

In Samoa, there are two tribes, as usual, and it appears we’re going to have the same two tribes for quite a while. The longer the tribes stay unmixed, the stronger initial tribal bonds will have to cement. When the initial alliances hold and two opposing tribes stay together throughout the game, evictions become too predictable. Why can’t the Producers at least try a Survivor where the tribes are frequently mixed? The mixing could give the game some extra spice by greatly challenging individual game strategy. It would be worth a try, at least in one series.

Weaker Women are Still at an Early Disadvantage:

Vulnerable after Episode 4: Ashley, Shambo and Monica.

Pre-merge: weaker woman, (as well as social outcasts, of course), are at a disadvantage. Post-merge: stronger alpha males, (as well as social outcasts), are at a disadvantage.
The Survivor game continues to have these predictable dynamics. Again, frequent tribal mix-ups could make the evictions less predictable. Wasn’t one of the most satisfying series Survivor 6, Amazon, where Rob Cesternino really mixed up the game?

Who’s Looking Good?

It’s always fun to rank the players on their game play.

Foa Foa: It looks as if Natalie and Mick are doing well. Natalie is friends with everyone, has a secret alliance with Russell H and is considered valuable as a puzzle-solver. She also wisely knows how to keep her mouth shut. Mick is likeable, but he remains vulnerable to a post-merge Foa Foa numbers disadvantage, as he would easily be a prime target for opposing players.

Galu: Erik, and Dave. Erik is strong in both challenges and gameplay. He also doesn’t seem to have any social problems, with a good relationship with Russell H as well as being a yoga participant. Dave, meanwhile, is a challenge standout. He also seems also to be an interesting character, albeit a bit abrasive in his confessionals. The problem of our current assessment of Dave, as well as all the remaining Galuans except Russell S and Shambo, is that we don’t know enough about them. The increased numbers of game players is nice, but there should be more airtime to get to know them. So far, Survivor Samoa has concentrated on explaining why weak players are evicted, but has not spent enough time showing why stronger players are succeeding.

For feedback, please email me at cosohub@ix.netcom.com