Operation Italy... Chef's Kiss - Survivor 47 - Ep. 12

After that episode aired on Wednesday night, it was quickly on pace to be the highest-rated Survivor episode of all time, according to IMDB. I think it’s for obvious reasons. I sat on my couch with my heart pumping out of my chest for what felt like the full 90 minutes, and I know a lot of you did, too. 

It’s wild when you think this season has reached its high point, and then another jaw-dropping ridiculous twist comes. Call me sick, but I cannot get enough of it. 

I’m going to say it… that might have been my favorite episode in the new era of Survivor. I have seen a lot of Survivor in my day, but that move (Operation Italy) could go down as one of the best strategic plays in arguably all of Survivor. The planning, execution, and outcome made it exceptional. Don’t worry we’ll talk plenty more about it during this episode. 

Going into this episode, it was very hard to see anyone other than Genevieve or Sam going home. However, the promotion/preview videos were giving some subtle hints. For example, there was a portion where Sam said he and Genevieve wouldn’t go down without a fight. Then there was another clip shown where Caroline was super confident with her relationships (particularly with Sue) and standing in the game. It made me think…is she too confident? As we know, Caroline did end up going home! 

By the way, Sue telling Caroline to wipe dirt off her was so funny and ironic. That’s one of those moments where the editors have to be seeing all the posts on social media about Sue’s dirty face too. They are staying up to date on all the trends.

Now let’s jump into the reward challenge. I think it’s probably a good thing that Jeff did not mention the loved one letters as a prize before the challenge. If he had done that, I honestly don’t know if I would have wanted to win it. While it’s arguably the best reward possible in the new era of Survivor, it also might be the easiest way to burn bridges with other players. By being the reason people don’t get to go on this challenge, It’s the quickest way to make an enemy. This is exactly how Teeny took it in this episode when Sam didn’t pick them for this reward. 

Don’t get me wrong, I like seeing this fire and passion from Teeny in this episode. However, it wasn’t always rational emotions. At the beginning of the episode when Genevieve told her that Rachel would beat Teeny in the end… I don’t get how Teeny could see that as a threat. Maybe it was harsh, but Genevieve was being honest and telling the truth. Personally, If I was on that jury too I would vote for Rachel over them. 

Then with Sam… why would he choose you? Teeny had mentioned multiple times now how they thought Sam was a threat that they needed to eliminate. Teeny is also a part of the majority tribe that has made it clear that they want Sam out. How would it help Sam bring you along on this reward when he knows there’s no chance of saving his own game with it? It just seemed like the outburst back at camp came out of nowhere and was a little irrational. 

What I am hoping for Teeny is that they can turn this emotion into some big-time strategic moves! Turn it into something that can better your resume if you were to sit at the final tribal council meeting. Use it like fuel. Don’t let this continue to be a negative and instead make it into a positive!

Personally, Genevieve has been such a fascinating player to watch. It feels like every episode she continues to recognize things about herself and her gameplay. It’s even more evidence of how this game can break you down, humble you, and pick you up in the most bizarre of ways. 

We saw it at the sanctuary in this episode where Genevieve was going through her loved one's letter. She mentioned how it was her own fault that she had no friends on the island as a part of her game plan. In these past episodes, we’ve seen her question that idea and have this internal battle. So much so that in the past episode she vowed to let more people in even if it’s awkward! It’s so cool to see her adapt on the fly. 

I loved how her husband put it in her letter when he said, “Remember that mistakes can be fixed, especially in Survivor.” It just goes to show you that there’s always room for growth on this show. Sam and Andy recognized that in their own loved one's letters too. 

Now for the moment we have all been waiting for… Operation Italy. So many different things had to fall into place for this masterful plan to actually work. Starting with these three being at the Sanctuary together with no distractions and time to discuss! It did seem like Andy might of had this idea ready to go before the sanctuary reward. However, I think Genevieve apologizing for discounting Andy’s game and Sam showing some love to Andy might have encouraged Andy to make the big-time move too. 

Another reason why I think Andy wanted to go through with this play is because I think he recognized that he was at the bottom of that “underdog” alliance. Had they easily gotten Genevieve and Sam, he would been the next person picked off by the four remaining women. He was once again perceived as someone who wasn’t much of a threat and that others could use. Therefore, he was going to make himself a threat with this move. He wants to fix his perception in this game and he had the perfect opportunity to do so. 

The quick summary is this: To build suspicion that Sam or Gen has an idol. If they do so they might be compelled to split the vote. Then Andy only needs to change his vote with them and they can take out the person of their choosing. Originally that target was Rachel (which we know changed with her winning immunity). 

What makes this plan so wild is that there is a multitude of ways that it can fail. Below I listed out every way that this plan could have failed:

1. The underdog alliance votes aren’t even split between Genevieve and Sam

2. Rachel decides to play her idol or block a vote

3. Sue decides to play her idol and saves Caroline

4. They aren’t able to play off that the idol Genevieve holds is fake or she fails to make it. 

5. Genevieve or Sam wins immunity! They both had to play that off like they were trying when in fact they were throwing it. They didn’t show this in the episode but Sam confirmed it on Twitter/X. 

6. Andy decides to change his mind and stay with the underdog alliance. 

7. With Andy, Sam, and Genevieve acting their butts off throughout the episodes… one of the women could catch them in a lie and see through the fishiness.

Another reason that Operation Italy was so fun to watch was because of the way it was edited. You have to give major props to the editors for the spy music, and heist-like feel to it. It felt like we were watching an Ocean’s Eleven movie. 

To be honest, there were multiple moments in this episode where I thought the plan was a bust. One was when Teeny was pushing back against the split vote and the thought of Genevieve having an idol. It seemed at one point like they were just going to push towards putting all the votes on one of them. 

However, I think the most underrated moment of the episode came when Genevieve was able to flash the fake idol at Teeny in a way that they wouldn’t be able to scope out that it isn’t real… but give enough intimidation as if Genevieve does have it. I felt like that improvised acting moment from Genevieve and Sam might have sealed the split vote. They didn’t show it, but I am wondering if Teeny probably went back to the other women and gave them the thumbs-up for the split vote after gathering that information. They even thanked Andy for such a great plan later in the episode lol!

Another time I thought it was a bust was when Rachel said it would be easy to play her block a vote instead. I think Andy must have done a good job convincing Rachel not to and that it wasn’t worth it. Another moment of skepticism was when Sue said she would play her idol on Caroline if things got weird. I came to know after the episode that it was in fact Caroline who told Sue to not waste the idol. I bet she regrets that now haha.

Finally, we made it to this ultimate Tribal Council. The jury was in for a wild ride and seemed to have no idea what they were about to witness. You had Teeny constantly making faces as if they were scoffing at Sam and Genevieve. People were talking about their endgame strategies. You could even see Operation Italy acting continuing throughout this Tribal Council. For example, when Sam was urging Genevieve to use the fake idol. 

I am still just in awe that Operation Italy actually worked. My multiple TikToks (which you can find @RealityTVWithAlec) showed my shock! 

One noticeable thing that we saw was that the jury noticed it was Andy who flipped again to make this blindside happen. Now, I am skeptical whether they like this move from him. I am a little worried because they almost made it sound like it frustrated them more and turned them even more bitter. If Andy were to get to a Final Tribal Council, I would hope that he would be able to prove why he made those moves. Maybe to fix his perception, threat level, and standing in the game?! If he can do that well, maybe he could sway the jury.

Lastly, I am sad to see Caroline go! She was able to do something this season that not many other people can do. Which was being a supportive/positive person to everyone while also remaining a deeply competitive player in the game. If I ever get to play Survivor, I would hope to have an attitude like Caroline’s. I look forward to her on the jury and I know she will bring some great insights!

Sadly, that brings me to the end of this blog. What’s even more sad is that Survivor 47 only has two more episodes with the finale airing this upcoming week! This season has flown by but I am very much looking forward to how this season finishes up. Talk to you later!