Survivor: David vs. Goliath – Two idols, double the power?

Dan Rengering from Survivor: David vs. Goliath has become only the seventh player to ever possess two idols at the same time. How did those other six castaways fare with having double the bulge in their pockets?

After fifteen days in Fiji, “Hot Cop” Dan is sitting pretty with two Hidden Immunity Idols. His first idol is known by several people in the game, thanks to Jeremy finding it in Dan’s coat and telling everybody on the Goliath tribe about it. However, in episode 5 of Survivor: David vs. Goliath, Dan was able to skillfully grab his second idol at an Immunity Challenge without anyone noticing.

There haven’t been many Survivor players who’ve had multiple idols at the same time. Although idol hunters like Russell Hantz and Ben Driebergen might come to mind, neither of them have possessed more than one idol concurrently. Here we’ll breakdown the six players who’ve had the privilege of holding two idols.

The blindside – James Clement (Survivor: China): 

When you hear the phrase two idols, there’s a good chance the first person that comes into your mind is James. In Season 15, James aligned himself with Todd Herzog and Amanda Kimmel. In fact, James wasn’t even the person who discovered the idols, as Todd was the one who got all the clues together. They needed James’ height to reach for the hidden-in-plain-sight idol.

With seven people left, Amanda and Todd felt that the time had come to blindside James, and you know the rest. James didn’t play either of his idols, giving the fans an unforgettable moment of watching him pull out both of them in his exit interview, wishing he played one.

James was responsible for one of the dumbest moves in Survivor history. One event that led to that was the two most strategic players in that season knowing about his idols. Many castaways know about one of Dan’s idols. Plus, we saw in the preview for the next episode that Alison was pushing to blindside Dan. Could Dan actually face the same fate as James?

Double idol play – Parvati Shallow (Heroes vs. Villains), Tai Trang (Game Changers) and Malcolm Freberg (Caramoan):

It’s interesting that half of the players who’ve had two idols at the same time have played them both during the same night. This strategy is most useful when the vote will determine which alliance retains the majority. Parvati played this perfectly, making for one of the craziest Tribal Councils ever. By saving two vulnerable Villain members, Parvati’s alliance took control and dominated the post-merge game.

As for Tai and Malcolm, they weren’t as successful after they used their idols. During the crazy, idol filled Tribal Council in Game Changers, Tai wisely played his own idol, as well another one for what seemed to be his closest ally in Aubrey. What made this move so pointless is that Tai agreed to vote for Aubrey during the following Tribal Council. This left him without an alliance and he was voted out next.

And then we have Malcolm. There’s no doubt the “Three Amigos” Tribal Council was one of the most exciting moments in the game. Malcolm’s theatrics completely shocked the majority alliance, but Phillip the “Specialist” was able to keep “Stealth R Us” unified and limit the damage. This resulted in Malcolm entering the next Tribal Council with no idol or immunity. Although this was a memorable idol play, it wasn’t effective as Malcolm got voted out the next Tribal Council.

All three of these occasions happened after the merge, so Dan probably won’t find himself playing both of his idols until then. It’s still too early to tell what the situation will be like post-merge, but with Davids and Goliaths at even numbers, Dan may consider using his idols to shift the power.

Using an idol as a decoy – Tony Vlachos (Cagayan):

Only great players are able to intentionally tell people about their idol and not become a target. Yul Kwon, Russell, and Tony were able to master that skill. Tony essentially had two idols that he didn’t need to play because everyone feared that he would play one. His plan to deceive the other players into thinking that his special idol allowed him to play it until the Final Four was brilliant!

At this point, it’s hard for me to see Dan being that smart with an idol. Remember, we’re talking about a guy who started a showmance on Day 1 and did a horrible job of hiding his first idol. I don’t believe strategy and manipulation are his strengths, so it would surprise me if Dan is able to use his idol to sway people to work with him.

Playing them one at a time – Jeremy Collins (Cambodia):

Our other winner that possessed two idols was the mastermind behind Second Chance. Now Jeremy didn’t have both idols at the same time for very long, and the fact that he played both of them separately makes it less memorable. That being said, he did play both idols correctly.

The first Hidden Immunity Idol that Jeremy used was for a key vote to break up a dangerous alliance. Jeremy saved Stephen Fishbach, and although he ended up getting voted out the next week, it was an important move to get rid of Ciera Eastin. She was part of the “Witches” alliance headed by Kelley Wentworth, and if that crucial vote didn’t happen, the end result of Second Chance would be very different!

Jeremy played his other idol at the Final Six, the same time Wentworth played hers, creating another memorable Tribal Council that ended in Kimmi Kappenberg getting her torch snuffed. Both of these votes kept Jeremy’s core alliance strong and increased the control he had over the game.

Out of the six players who had two idols in their pockets, I think Dan could follow in either Jeremy or James’ footsteps. If Alison isn’t able to pull off a blindside now, there will be another attempt coming since many castaways are aware of at least one of his idols. So the chances of him playing more than one at the same Tribal are rare.

The big concern is that Dan’s overconfidence could very well lead him to be voted out. If Dan can be more self-aware and understand what’s happening with everyone on his tribe, then he might be able to correctly use his idol to save him, and then keep the other one for down the road. Either way, having two idols at the same time doesn’t happen often, so we’re in for some more Tribal Council theatrics!