The twelfth episode of “Survivor” season 49 featured one of the most chaotic Tribal Councils of recent times. Numerous castaways played advantages during the tense conclusion that ended up causing chaos as two advantages effectively canceled each other out and the castaways were left scrambling to figure out what had happened.
Speaking after his exit from the show, Steven Ramm has questioned the rules that govern the use of idols and advantages in “Survivor.”
Steven Ramm Confused Over How Idols & Advantages Are Played in the Show
In an interview with TV Insider following his departure from “Survivor,” Ramm opened up about his confusion over how the advantages and idols worked. While acknowledging he is not someone who fully knows all of the rules, he believes that the unique mechanics of his advantage meant that he wasn’t fully prepared for what would unfold.
“So I had to play it before I went to Tribal Council, which was honestly a unique mechanic that I had never seen in a season leading up to that,” Ramm explains. “Maybe it has happened. I’m not as big of a superfan as I think some people are playing the game. So maybe it’s happened before.”
The former contestant then went on to discuss the fact that this was something that left an impression on him as it meant he had to make his decision over whose vote he would block with his advantage without having all of the information. He said, “That was kind of scary too, because sometimes you want the flexibility to be able to change whose vote you’re blocking based on what you hear in Tribal Council.”
“Tribal Council is like 99% theater. It’s all politics, and people are all acting, and they’re all incredible actors, and nothing anyone says is true. And I was a little bummed that I had to burn that advantage before I left. I was like, dang, let’s say I want to switch it up for whatever reason. I don’t have that ability to do that.
However, he was eager to acknowledge that he didn’t think the way his advantage worked or that it was effectively cancelled out when Sophi played her Knowledge is Power advantage was unsporting. “I didn’t think it was unfair. Regardless of the mechanic, this is an opportunity for me to shake things up and really flip the game in my favor. And so I didn’t look at it as being unfair. I just looked at it as having an opportunity.”
Steven Ramm Baffled by Rizo’s Discussions
One of the most controversial moments from the penultimate episode of the season came after all the players had voted and Rizo began asking a lot of questions so he could strategize and decide whether it was necessary to play his idol. Many viewers believe this went against the spirit of the game and that host Jeff Probst should have stepped in.
When asked about the situation, Ramm expressed his confusion about whether full blown discussions like that were allowed but also admitted that he hadn’t read up on the rules surrounding that situation.
“I didn’t think you were allowed to,” he explained. “I don’t know. I was kind of like, ‘What the hell? Why are they able to strategize?’ I don’t know. I thought maybe that was part of the rules that I just didn’t see.”
“It’s not my place to step in and mediate when things are right or wrong. Yeah, I don’t know. I don’t think it changed too much, but the fact that they were able to have that conversation was something I didn’t know that you could do, but I don’t know. It’s out of my control.
He continued, “At the most, I felt you could nod or wink or make gestures, but I didn’t think you could have full-on conversations once they got back and were getting ready to read the votes. I was like, ‘Maybe I just missed part of the rules. Maybe this is fine.’ I don’t know. But yeah, it took me by surprise too when that happened.”
