Review: Survivor, "Don't Get Cocky Kid" | Season 44, Episode 8

Do you just immediately feel a deep sense of dread when you say something like that out loud on this show?

Having just caught up on last week’s debacle and the discussion about it here on the site (I did add a few thoughts), I’m still pretty worked up about the state of the game right now. But ultimately, while it’s possible that the contestants were as pissed about the events of last week as we were, there’s really no space for this critique within the story itself. No matter how unfair it might have been that Matt went out the way he did with such bullshit around it, the game never stops long enough to dwell on that.

We, of course, had a whole week to dwell, but it’s not necessarily easy to stay mad at Survivor when it can reset to its basic appeal so successfully. Much as I think the circumstances of Matt’s exit were bullshit, it admittedly leaves behind a compelling game dynamic: the Ratu 4 thinking they have control of the game, while both the Soka 3 and the Tika 3 each consider their options as they approach the path ahead of them. Last season’s “pair showdown” immunity challenge offe…