Survivor
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The first 45 minutes of the latestSurvivorepisode chugged along in the usual fashion.
There was the post-tribal-council fallout with Hai and Romeo bickering about hinky votes.
The reliably old-school Rocksroy went back into hisSurvivorcirca 2002 handbook and tried to form an all mens alliance.
So far, standardSurvivorfare.
Then something happened that went beyond the game, completely changing the tone of the episode.
So lets talk about what happened.
The first tribal council of the night ends with Rocksroy having his torch snuffed.
Mike, who gave Rocksroy his word, shows some reluctance, but he ultimately falls in line.
Rocks was part of the majority alliance, so his elimination rightly causes some confusion.
But for Drea and Maryanne, its more than just surprise and befuddlement.
And then it always happens where at one point the Black contestants get booted out Boom!
and then thats exactly what this is right now.
So yeah, Im pissed.
PerhapsSurvivorof the past would have glossed over this.
So Jeff continues the conversation, asking Drea if she believes the vote-offs to be race-related.
Subconsciously, a little bit of that, unfortunately, Drea responds.
Im not going to let that happen to another one of us point-blank.
Its a reset for me.
This was a game changer.
This blows the doors wide open.
The real-world experiences of Drea and Maryanne are now impacting their approach to the game.
Drea openly declares that she is playing her idol to ensure shes not the next Black player sent packing.
Maryanne, meanwhile, tells Tori she can no longer in good conscience write Dreas name down.
I am so sorry.
Morally, I cannot write her name down.
But its also an issue littered throughoutSurvivorhistory, which makes Drea and Maryannes plight understandable.
Im sure a subsection of viewers are screaming about wokeSurvivor!
But I would encourage those people to take even a cursory glance back atSurvivors past.
Minority players have often been eliminated early in the game.
Does that mean everySurvivorcast is racist?
They come into the game knowing that history, hoping not to see it repeated.
How can they not be thinking about the bigger picture?
It took fellow CBS reality showBig Brothera staggering 22 seasons to have its first Black (non-celebrity) winner.
Yes, we all technically have a 1-in-18 shot for the million, Maryanne says.
And its what makes her stand with Drea.
The whole tribal is unique.
Understandably, the topic of race dominates the conversation.
Jonathan gets defensive, feeling like his character is being attacked.
I dont feel this is right because youre coming at this like were racists, he says.
But as Drea and Maryanne reiterate, that isnt their point, nor is it what they believe.
They are talking about the larger implicit biases in society and inSurvivor.
Drea says its not about Jonathan, and she shuts down his claim that she is being aggressive.
Unfortunately for Tori, this last-ditch effort does not pay off, and shes sent to the jury.
Would Tori have been voted out before the blowup?
Its hard to say for certain, but the odds were highly likely.
Drea already noticed red flags before tribal.
So in that scenario, Tori would have been eliminated as the backup split vote anyway.
Maryanne might have even played her idol if she got spooked by Drea playing hers.
So the same end result, just under an entirely different set of circumstances.
This wont be an episode we forget in a hurry.
Yes, it was uncomfortable to watch at times.
But life can be uncomfortable, and after all,Survivorhas always been a microcosm of life.
Thats what makesSurvivorso endlessly fascinating.
