The Survivor Research Project: Ep 12

This was a great episode centred on strategising, taking risks and executing a plan. It's probably the best strategising episode since Rob C's betrayal of the in-crowd alliance in the Amazon season. We learnt this week that Ian is really playing, although strangely loyal to Katie, while realising that she is not as loyal to him. The dynamic between them is something the show hasn't shown much of, so this is a loose end I hope they tie up next week. Gregg probably got a little too comfortable and trusted too much that Tom and Ian would stick to the Koror 5 alliance, little thinking that taking Katie on the reward would create enough doubt in their minds. Caryn and her "Academy Award winning performance" was prominent this week, and it would be interesting to see if Tom and Ian will continue to ally with her next week.


ST: Screen Time ; Im: Impression Left ; Lk: Likeability

Caryn
ST: 3
Im: 4 (she's lucked into a better position in the game, because she is the free vote they could use.)
Lk: 2.5 (They have not shown the sour complaining side of Caryn in a few weeks, and she seems to have gone along with the strategy with much gusto, which I admire)

Gregg (voted off Ep 12)
ST: 3
Im: 4 (his "asking permission" to lower Jenn's torch during RC was rather wimpish, and showed him to be somewhat "whipped" in the relationship. He's also memorable for having a best friend also name Greg. He was not shown much talking strategy other than a short segment on the yacht, because I suppose there was little more to it than getting to 5, then getting Katie to switch. This was ultimately faulty, leading to his ejection from the game.)
Lk: 3.5 (His parting words were wonderfully gracious, and actually showed a lot of admiration of his tribemates.)

Ian
ST: 5
Im: 5 (appeared to have been the mastermind of the Gregg ouster, first mooting the idea of risking the purple-rock tie-breaker, then telling Katie at the last minute to persuade her to vote with himself, Tom and Caryn. Also won the IC in a rather impressive display of both puzzle solving and shooting skills. What was somewhat puzzling was his loyalty to Katie, with all that talk of watching her back, despite her open willingness to sell him up the creek.)
Lk: 4

Jenn
ST: 2
Im: 3 (perhaps it's her blondeness, but she came across rather princess-like during the RC, especially her reaction when Gregg chose to take her along on the reward. Other than that, I liked her interview segments when she spoke about seeing her sister, and she did show a lot of spunk on the IC. She still seems somewhat dull, because they hardly show her talking. However, her open-mouthed disbelief when Gregg left was a highlight that makes her memorable in this episode. )
Lk: 2

Katie - Koror
ST: 4
Im: 4 (she was the alliance jumper this week, and showed her hand early by taking Ian out in the RC. She was also the swing vote that got Gregg voted off, after being rather masterfully played by Ian, Tom and Caryn )
Lk: 2 (I could not believe that she told Ian outright that she was "in a good place" and that it was unfair that he was suddenly springing the Gregg vote on her. She had the stupidity to tell him that she would not win against him, effectively telling him that she would vote against him. It's fine to think so, in fact it's only smart to think so, but she should never say it directly to his face!!)

Tom - Koror
ST: 5
Im: 5 (wonderful interaction with Caryn and Ian this week, as they plotted Gregg's ouster. I liked how he instructed Caryn to act sour and dour. He was also philosophical about missing out on the reward and was quite touching in his reaction when learning that the reward included a visit from a loved one. He appears to really have his eye on the game.)
Lk: 4

Such a satisfying episode this week that you wonder what else can be in store. How will Jenn fight to save herself, now that she has to really start playing her own game separate from her twosome alliance with Gregg. Will Katie's and Ian's strangely lopsided alliance hold strong, or will Ian stick with Tom instead? And what of Caryn and her new-found lease of life?