Survivor: JT Giving Russell the Immunity Idol was Not a Dumb Move
Some Viewers Declare JT's Move the Dumbest in Survivor History, but It's Not Even Close
All over the blogosphere, Survivor fans are calling it one of the dumbest moves in the show's history. Nothing could be further from the truth. It wasn't a dumb move at all. It was simply an educated gamble that didn't pay off. In fact, Russell himself made a far dumber move just a few weeks ago.
Let's break this down and examine why people are overreacting so vigorously to what transpired.
Survivor: Russell's Survivor history was unknown to JT
Russell Hantz is the greatest evil genius in Survivor history. He tortures his own tribe by hiding their machetes and secretly emptying their water bottles, he ruthlessly discards anyone who isn't in his alliance and he lies to people with a straight face.
We, as viewers, know this. But Russell's fellow competitors on Survivor: Heroes vs Villains didn't have a clue. Because this season was taped before last season (the season featuring Russell) aired, nobody in Heroes vs Villains knew Russell's history. They knew he was a member of the "Villains" tribe, but they had no reason to believe he was any more devious than anyone else in the game.
Survivor: Why JT gave Russell the immunity idol
When Russell's tribe voted off its two strongest players, Rob and Coach, in successive weeks, leaving only Russell with five women, the Heroes tribe misread the situation and assumed the Villains were being dominated by an all-female alliance. This was incorrect, as it was actually Russell who was pulling the strings.
The Heroes assumed Russell would be the next victim of the all-female alliance, so they engineered a plan to save him, thereby earning his gratitude and potentially persuading him to come over to their side. With the Heroes down 6-5 in numbers and a merge on the horizon, the Heroes had to do something to improve their position in the game. Bringing Russell onboard was the obvious, logical move.
The Heroes also had an immunity idol to spare. The tribe had decided they would use it together as a group, to save whoever needed it most. Why not give it to Russell so he could save himself and vote out one of the women instead?
Survivor: JT gives Russell the immunity idol, the Villains laugh
Of course, it didn't work out that way. JT did indeed give Russell the idol, but Russell went back to his camp and laughed about it. He showed it to Parvati and Danielle, two members of his alliance, and they mocked JT and the Heroes for being so gullible.
Russell ended up persuading his tribe to vote out Courtney instead. He's now in a power position, with an idol in his pocket and the Heroes tribe at his mercy. JT and the Heroes sure look silly, but their logic was absolutely sound. You have to make bold moves to win Survivor. JT took a gamble, and it didn't pay off. But it was a worthwhile effort. The only thing about the move worth criticizing is JT's use of a silly handwritten letter to accompany the idol.
Survivor: Why JT giving Russell the immunity idol isn't the dumbest move in history
The dumbest move in the history of Survivor will always be Erik giving up his immunity necklace and a guaranteed spot in the final four, and in turn getting himself immediately voted out. Or how about James getting voted out with two immunity idols in his pocket? JT giving Russell an idol doesn't even come close to those maneuvers in terms of stupidity.
In fact, think back to just a few weeks ago when Russell gave his own immunity idol to Parvati at Tribal Council. If Tyson hadn't switched his vote from Russell to Parvati at the last minute, Russell would have been voted off. That was a far dumber move than JT giving Russell an idol! But because that move worked out okay, nobody's talking about it.
The bottom line is that JT giving Russell an immunity idol was a calculated risk that didn't work out. If there had indeed been an all-female alliance and Russell had played the idol and kept himself alive, we'd be talking about JT's move as one of the most brilliant in the history of Survivor.
Survivor: JT giving Russell the immunity idol was not a dumb move: Sources
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Published by Scott Allan
Scott Allan runs a travel blog at http://quirkytravelguy.com. He is a freelance journalist specializing in music, travel and sports who has been published on Yahoo! Sports, Livestrong.com, Spinner.com, AOL T... View profile
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5 Comments
Post a CommentI agree with Scott, it really wasn't a dumb move at all.
@ John, "But making a move based on the fact that there are more women than men"
It's not just more women then men. It's not like there were 4 men, and 5 women. It was because Rob and Coach, were both voted out successively, and that led to a 5 women 1 man group, it would draw the question.
Had I not been watching along and knowing the obvious, it'd be the number one assumption I'd make, and probably one that most people would make.
It was actually a pretty good choice. They didn't need the idol as much as they needed a vote.
I think Russell made a worse move than that right after he received the idol. Instead of voting out Sandra, he decides to vote out Courtney...obviously the weakest girl in the entire game.
Now, if he had voted off Sandra, it seems like that would've been much more believable to the Heroes. She's a stronger competitor than Courtney, and she knows how to talk the talk. And it woul
Understand where you coming from but this cant be a 'calculated risk' at all!!! Because in a calculated risk, one will ALWAYS think abt the consequences, one way or another. What's happen if its not work out? then what? HE WAS SOOO CONFIDENT that this is the greatest move in Survivor History.
How do you figure there are immunity idols to "spare?" I think the next big play will be made by Parvarti, hopefully against Russell.
Thoughtful piece Scott, and you're right about it not being the dumbest move, but I still think it is pretty dumb. True, none of the Survivors knew anything about Russell during the show's taping, and he gets an unfair advantage in that, especially since he's so nefarious. I'll give you that one! But making a move based on the fact that there are more women than men and assuming it's because there's an alliance on the women's part is pretty simplistic thinking, I believe. No, it's not the dumbest move ever, as you pointed out (Tyson killed me with his earlier this season!), but I still say it belongs in the top five. Good article!
;-);-)