Things are starting to pick up – I told you! – as the Tribal Council we witnessed last night on Survivor: HHH was easily the best of the season. There was drama, chaos and excitement, but also a serious blunder by a fan-favorite that led to a shocking outcome.
Caution, as spoilers from this week’s episode are to follow! Turn back now! If you want to get caught up, be sure to check out the Episode 12 Recap here.
CLICK THE CONTINUE READING BUTTON FOR MORE, AND THIS IS YOUR LAST *SPOILER* WARNING!
Darn it Lauren! Lauren Rimmer, the 35-year-old fisherman from Beaufort, North Carolina, became the fifth member of the Survivor jury after a sequence of crazy events led to her downfall. Lauren started the game on the Hustler tribe, and the description fit her well: She was a no-nonsense, authentic-feeling person, and a sort of Survivor throwback to the days where “normal” people populated the show.
Lauren quickly became a fan-favorite with this “realness,” but also because she proved to be a great strategic player. She admittedly was challenged in the social aspect of the game, but even in that area, Lauren made great strides over the course of the season.
After the tribe swap, Lauren and Hero (?) Ben found themselves in the minority of their new group, and the two formed a real bond. It appeared to be the sort of bond that would last to the end, but it definitely did not. The Ben/Lauren relationship eroded to the point where this week, Ben’s lone vote sent Lauren out of the game (after Lauren had cast her vote for Ben). But Lauren drew expected criticism with two big decisions down the stretch that contributed to her downfall: One, she never used her “extra vote” advantage and told the others that she had ripped it up (or did she?). Second, she entrusted Dr. Mike with one half of her Immunity Idol, a move that ended up being labeled as one of the worst in Survivor history (I don’t know about that, but it’s definitely up there). Dr. Mike threw this half-Idol into the fire at Tribal Council, as the Survivor Gods made Lauren pay for her blind trust in Dr. Mike.
Still, Lauren would have escaped Tribal unscathed had Ben not been in possession of his own Immunity Idol. By playing it, all six votes against him were nullified, meaning that his vote was the only one that would count. Staying true to his earlier word, he wrote down Lauren’s name, the latest casualty in an increasingly long line of players that have gone toe-to-toe with the Marine.
I had the chance to speak to Lauren today on the FilmSurvivor Podcast (the full audio of which you can find and download at the bottom of this article). But here were some highlights:
LAUREN INTERVIEW HIGHLIGHTS:
On why she decided to give Mike half of her Idol:
Lauren Rimmer: Basically Mike, he kind of felt like he was on the outs when it came to certain votes, and I had somewhat of a good rapport with him. But I wanted to make sure that what we had was really good. There were those few rumors that Ben was throwing my name out there, and so I wanted to try to secure me and Mike, because he swung back-and-forth, and I wanted to keep him as close as I could.
On what she thinks of Ben as a person:
Lauren: I actually enjoyed being around Ben. He told me a bunch of stories about being in the military and obviously it’s something I couldn’t do, I wouldn’t make it three days in the Marine Corp. But him as a person, I think he’s a great guy. You can tell he’s a family person but he’s had a hard life and I think we connected in that aspect because both of us I don’t think grew up easy. He’s accomplished something and he’s proud of that. Being on the show and being in the military I think that brought him back to his final objective, of getting to that Final Three, and Ben had a goal and he’s working really hard to get to that goal. Granted he got me out with one vote, but I can’t hold it against him.
On if any part of her was tempted to jump in the fire to retrieve the half-Idol that Mike threw in there:
Lauren: Well I mean, if I would have thought about it, damn right I would have done it. It would have just been two seconds, you’re just going to reach in there and grab it. I mean, I play with fire every day in my own little world, but I really was dumb-founded. You don’t know a person’s thought-process until you’re sitting there. And there was so much going through my head that I was almost just blank. I was in shock and then I looked at it and I was like, damn, why didn’t I go get it? It would have been nothing. But then again, who is to suggest that I would have ended up playing it? But it would have been worth trying. But I swear to God, I no more thought about it than the man on the moon.
For much more from Lauren Rimmer, including my full interview, please listen to the latest episode of the FilmSurvivor Podcast below or by clicking here.
Be sure to follow me on Twitter – @tomsantilli – and on Facebook, for all of the latest Survivor coverage, interviews, and movie reviews.
TELL US: WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT LAUREN’S ELIMINATION?
Photo Credit: CBS/Monty Brinton/Robert Voets/Timothy Kuratek/Jeffrey Neira
