Board Thread:Virtual Tribal Council/@comment-1294345-20160407062505/@comment-5277627-20160407115621

OH MY GOD!!!! OH. MY GOD! OH MY GOD! This episode was absolutely beautiful. Hands down the best episode this season has produced. All I can say is: Slay, Cyndey, Slay! My queen. heart emoticon 

The thing that was so great about this episode was that strategy took a backseat as focus turned to entertainment and character building. The Tai vs Chicken chronicles added a second chapter, Debbie did hilarious yoga (I actually laughed out loud), Joe snored, and they competed for a reward of ice cream in what was arguably the most entertaining and funny episode of Survivor in recent times. However, I was also appreciative of the sympathy card the episode pulled, tugging at my heart strings and giving humanization to brawn man Scot and the life-sized Hantz replica Jason. It was a great move by the producers to show that these men weren't complete robots, and I will admit, I almost cried hearing Scot's story with his family, and Jason's story about his autistic daughter... almost.

A perfect marriage to the entertainment, this episode also produced two of the best challenges the season has seen. The reward challenge was a laugh-inducing blowout which featured fall after fall from the hopeless blue team and one of the funniest Probst comments I've heard: "AUBRY TAKES A DUMP!" (Darnell, anyone?) The immunity challenge was yet another endurance challenge which looked boring on paper but in reality was one of the most dramatic and enthralling immunity challenges of the season. Alliances were drawn, arrogance was shown, and best yet, King Tai absolutely slayed and took down Queen Cydney to win the immunity necklace, showing he was the bamboo stick he claimed to be. heart emoticon  heart emoticon 

While the entertainment and hilarity of the episode took charge this episode there was also a fantastic element of strategy in there. Sporting the most amazing hat in the history of Survivor (sorry Colby) Queen Cydney, who had been pretty much invisible all season, finally had her breakout episode as she laid the foundation for an all female alliance to blindside Nick, who was firmly under the belief Debbie would be going home from the outsider Brains tribe. The only question was, would Michele and Julia- who were aligned with Nick- take the chance? Credit to the producers here for leaving me in suspense. It was Cocky Nick vs. Defiant Debbie. Anyone could go home.

And, after a dramatic tribal council in which my loveable King Tai accidentally outed he held a Hidden Immunity Idol, Queen Cydney's female alliance came to fruition, she slayed, and the arrogant Nick was voted out, leaving the men stunned. As Debbie so perfectly put it during her voting confessional: "Overconfidence is a weakness." And boy did Nick learn that lesson tonight.

This episode had everything and more. It was my dream as a superfan: A perfect mix of entertainment, character building and strategy, and even King Tai winning immunity! I couldn't ask for a better episode and would not change a single scrap of it. This episode gets a well deserved 10/10, the first 10 I have given since episode 3, which has now been usurped by episode 8. In fact, make it 15/10. Everything about this episode was perfect.