Post by John on Dec 11, 2015 18:32:23 GMT
FINALE
And then there was five!
With the addition of Feji to the jury, they decided to have their own little bitch fest last night, with a few "I told you so" comments thrown in. Honestly even though they had the number advantage at the beginning of the merge I definitely saw the Squad alliance as the underdogs compared to FEJM. They really bungled this one and really only have themselves to blame for being on the jury. Taking out Mikki was a terrible move and being greedy with the powers was too. They had three and should have played one at the merge, it was way too close of a call.
I think everyone saw Eric and Mike as the true frontrunners of this season, and although they had the powers and really bungled using them, I think a lot of that has been due to the excellent gameplay of Squad. As an alliance they have dismantled the most powerful group in the game without even using powers themselves, purely strategy and social play.
Since we have now technically entered the "Finale" stage I'll go into a power ranking of how I see the current players in the game stacking up:
#1 Casey
This shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone, Casey is currently the favourite to win the game, she is going into the Final 5 with a clear majority and an idol in her pocket, so she's a lock for Final 4 already. Casey has been seen as the leader of her Squad and the biggest game threat by the opposition since the merge began. She was a huge factor in securing Stephen, a driving force in the Mike blindside, but her biggest move in the game was convincing her squad to keep her over Regan. I've said this before and I'll say it again, there is no reason Regan should have ever left before Casey, to get people to do something so counter productive to their own game to benefit yours is masterful.
The only negatives for Casey would that this is a very bitter jury and she will have enemies. Namely, Feji. Feji does not like Blake and Casey, she is in the jury now and is a very toxic influence. The rivalry between Casey and Feji is not over, and with her on the jury, it could potentially prevent her from grabbing that win. Also, if these guys are smart, at the Final 4 Casey needs to go. Keeping her is insanely stupid, all of their best shots are in situations without her in the Finals. But, Casey does have them wrapped around her finger, they are right now seen as her minions and whoever is the one that breaks free could be the person that steals the title from Casey.
#2 Kyle
This one might be a bit of a shock, but if there's someone who's going to make the play against Casey, it's going to be Kyle. Kyle has a a huge advantage that a lot of others don't, and that is that he's from original Vagar. He has ties from that stage with Eric, Mike and Johnny which put him in a more favourable light. The one tough move he made blindsiding Mike was to the least bitter member of the jury so he lucked out in that sense. He's also in an alliance with three people who are seen VERY negatively by the jury. Kyle could be the person to receive enough "vote for" and "vote against" votes to pull off this win. He has some moves under his belt, he isn't hated, it's a perfect combination for a Final 3.
Negatives for Kyle, he's too under the radar. He needs to step out of the shadows, but luckily for him it's not too late. His best case scenario is getting Casey out at F4. If she's out of the game, he's going into the Final 3 having taken out another huge player and being next two the two most hated players in the game. If he doesn't do this, he will have to rely on getting votes against Casey/Blake and hoping that it's enough the tip the scale. I don't think Kyle has no shot at winning, I think the way things have gone have really helped him, he just can't relax and rest, he needs to think competitively and make the right move at Final 4.
#3 Johnny
Johnny is the wildcard of the Finale. He has the toughest battle to fight, but if he succeeds I believe he wins this game easily. He went from being the fringe member of the most powerful alliance in the game, to the only player of that alliance to correctly use a power and now is the definitive underdog of the game. Johnny is probably the only person in this game to actually be an underdog at any point during it, and that is one hell of a story. He is well liked, he has friends on the jury, and he pulled off easily the biggest move in the game, buying himself and Feji one more round of chaos.
The biggest hurdle for Johnny to overcome is actually getting to the end. If he gets there, I believe against almost anybody still in the game he could win. But, he has to win his way there. The players remaining in the game know that Johnny will win, so they're gunning for him. He is public enemy number one and without Immunity he is toast. He had a great card to play last season, but Stephen chose not to work with him and Feji. Johnny wanted to take the risk, but other's didn't. We'll see if Johnny can close out this underdog story with a win, but it won't be easy for him.
#4 Blake
Blake is an interesting one, because I personally think Blake could win this game if he wanted to, I just don't think he does. Now obviously he hasn't given up or anything, but Blake doesn't have the do what it takes drive to win. He last confessional outlined his biggest flaw in the game, he is just playing to make the Finals. Saying you're ok with someone else winning is awful. You've made it this far, Casey is a big girl, you'll still be friends after this, so why not actually try to win, take the risk and try to take her out. Sure, you could still lose, but at least you know you lost making a move.
That being said, Blake is in a good spot to actually make the Finals right now. I think if he makes the FTC Blake could actually have a surprisingly convincing performance, the problem he faces is the same that Casey faces, they're both disliked by the jury, but Blake to an even greater scale. Blake has non-fans in the form of Eric/Corey/Feji, and the other members of the jury who worked with him just see him as Casey's minion. Regan said when she was voted out "you guys are dumb for keeping Casey", and she was right, they fucked up, and in an FTC that will be Blake's biggest hurdle. Differentiating himself from just being Casey's minion.
#5 Stephen
Stephen is HATED by the jury. It's bad guys, so bad if he gets voted out before FTC I'll give him the option of not joining the jury chat. He did the first chunk of the jury dirty in this game. He stabbed Eric and Corey in the back, he stabbed Feji in the front, he played a very dirty game. His only saving grace would have been to own that game, be like yeah I played a dirty game and I owned it, I made moves, I took out the big guns, I was the best player. But last round he killed that. He couldn't make the tough call, he played personally and he played weak. I still don't understand how he can rationalize making the moves against certain people and not others. He talks about being loyal to them, but he voted out the people who saved him in the game, and stayed loyal to those that blindsided him. It just makes no sense.
I like Stephen and because of that I hope he doesn't make the FTC, because he will get destroyed. It will be so bad, like not even good entertainment, it will just be shitty to watch and to have someone go through it, so I hope he goes. He really has no chance at winning, I just don't think there's anything he can do at this point. Last round was his last chance and I don't even know if that would have secured it for him. Could it have repaired some of the damage he had done with Johnny/Feji? Maybe, we'll never know.
If I had to guess how the next rounds would go I would say: Johnny (5th), Stephen (4th), Blake (3rd), Kyle (2nd), Casey (1st). But, how I would love for things to happen: Stephen (5th), Casey (4th), Kyle (3rd), Blake (2nd), Johnny (1st). Bit of a pipe dream, but I'll say if Johnny wins this next challenge, he is probably the favourite to win the Final 4 challenge, so I gotta root for the underdog of the season. Though I'd also love a Casey win because she has absolutely crushed this game!
Who do you guys wants to win?