The Real Reason No One Wants to Vote Out the Biggest Threat on This Season of 'Survivor'

Spoilers

This week’s episode of Survivor, despite all the editing trying to suggest otherwise, coasted toward its most predictable outcome: Mary was voted out, receiving every vote except her own, which she placed on Joe. Her exit wasn’t a shock following Star’s departure last week, as the dominant alliance of four — Joe, Eva, Shauhin, and Kyle — maintained their grip on the game. The only real moment of excitement came when the unhinged David — sitting on the jury — stood up as though to honor Mary (his closest ally) as her torch was snuffed. As Cedric said last week, he is “not a serious person.”

Seriously, that guy has lost it.

Although Kamilla talked about forming a foursome to take out Joe — and both Kyle and Shauhin entertained the idea, at least to Mary’s face — in the end, no one (aside from Mary) decided to risk voting for Joe at maybe the last viable opportunity to oust him. Joe, the strongest player in the game, didn’t win immunity this week, and the outsiders only needed to pick off one member of the alliance to take him out.

It’s an unusual season in that respect. Typically, strong physical players — especially the well-liked ones — are targeted right after the merge because everyone knows what a threat they are. Joe is a classic Survivor player: dominant in challenges and beloved by nearly everyone. Most players at this stage in the game would even concede that if he makes it to the final three, Joe will win. In fact, he’s illustrated several times over the past few weeks that he’s so unconcerned about being voted out that he’s already working on jury management.

In my family draft, I chose Joe in the first episode to win this season — not because I actually thought he’d win, but because of his great Dad energy and the touching bond he’s forged with Eva. Their relationship has been one of the true highlights, not just of this season, but in Survivor history.

But it’s also made for a boring game in recent weeks, especially after David’s departure. I even found myself rooting against my own interest — hoping Kyle or Shauhin would flip and take out Joe — just to see a shake-up. How would Eva fare without her number one, Joe? If Kyle or Shauhin turned on him, would they be able to forge a new alliance with Mary to the end of the game, or would the outsiders start picking them off as the biggest threats? Joe is not only a physical and social threat — he’s the perfect meat shield, protecting the other strong players who hide behind the game’s biggest target.

So, why didn’t Kyle or Shauhin turn on Joe this week? Or Mitch and Kamilla, for that matter? The latter two clearly know they’re on the outside of the alliance. Voting with Joe instead of against him only means they’re playing to survive another day, not to win.

I thought about it after last night’s vote, and while I wanted to chalk it up to fear, it dawned on me that there’s something else at play. Joe might be the most “Dad”-like player the game has ever seen. Starting with Eva, Joe has become the person everyone goes to when they want to talk about their feelings. They confide in him, share their worries, and talk about their real lives. He’s a comforting presence.

So it’s not fear that prevents them from voting Joe out. It’s that they don’t want to disappoint him. They don’t want to betray the game’s father figure. They can’t stomach the idea of seeing his disappointed face on the jury or, worse, being interrogated by him if they make the final three.

Joe has, perhaps unintentionally, built a force field of trust around himself. He’s framed his entire game as playing the “right way,” without being an asshole about it (like David was). Voting against Joe isn’t just a strategic risk — it’s akin to playing the game the “wrong way,” at least according to the Dad of the game. Taking out Joe might win you the million dollars, but it means letting him down, and then you’d have to answer for that at the final tribal.

I know it’s just a game for $1 million and everyone should be playing for themselves, but Joe has established ground rules where trust and loyalty matter more than anything, and the other players have fallen in line. Kamilla and Mitch, who both know they’re next to go, still voted for Mary because they couldn’t stomach the idea of going back to camp and living under Joe’s disapproving eye for another day.

I don’t know if Joe can win this game — because he’s such a Dad that he might even concede to Eva if they’re in the final two — but I genuinely don’t think anyone can form a large enough alliance at this stage to take him out. To do so would require peeling off at least two players from the alliance of four — assuming Joe doesn’t win immunity — and I just don’t see that happening, especially with all the advantages Eva has to protect either herself or her number one, Joe. Unless there’s a dramatic shake-up, the final three feels set: Joe and Eva, plus whichever one of Kyle or Shauhin wins the fire challenge.

The Dad Card has taken over the game.