Survivor: David vs. Goliath finale preview: David’s route to the end

The underdogs of Survivor: David vs. Goliath lived up to their tribe name by using their slingshot of advantages to stay in the game.

Over the past year, we’ve had to endure through some rather lame themes including Ghost Island and Heroes vs. Healers vs Hustlers. The fear was that Survivor: David vs. Goliath would be another cheesy and forced premise. Although Jeff still takes every opportunity to bring up this season’s theme, it has been far less irritating and much more relevant. How has the David tribe lived up to their archetype this season?

A rough first few days

Three out of the first four castaways eliminated were Davids. The worst part about that is two weren’t even voted out! Pat needed to be medically evacuated and Bi took herself out of the game after suffering a knee injury that could have hindered her MMA career. Just like that, the Goliaths had a two-person advantage. Add in a couple of cyclones and you had a David tribe that had to combat even the elements to get back in this game.

The one thing you did see from the Davids were dynamic characters and interesting alliances forming. You saw Gabby and Christian playing in the sand, Carl and Davie getting together, and really Nick making alliances with everyone! So even though their journey early on wasn’t easy, the Davids formed very close relationships that helped them succeed later on.

Two tribes into three

It was hilarious how the tribe swap and expansion led to three groups that all had one more Goliath than David! It seemed like the Davids would never be able to get their footing, but that feeling didn’t last long. The turning point came when Alec decided to flip on his fellow Goliaths, joining Elizabeth and Davie in voting off Natalia.

This move sent Carl back to that tribe with an Idol Nullifier, and Davie secretly possessing an idol of his own. It also sent a message to other Goliath members who were looking for validation to make a move. The next Tribal Council saw Mike White do just that, as he voted with the Davids to take out Natalie. However, Nick formed a pact with Angelina and Mike as he wrote down Lyrsa’s name to give the Goliaths a one-person advantage going into the merge.

The merge brings an inter-tribal alliance

The one hole within the David tribe was the feud between Elizabeth and Carl. They just got on each other’s nerves, and with Lyrsa gone, Elizabeth didn’t really have any strong allies left in the game to keep her alive. This is when the Strike Force alliance was born, bringing three Davids and three Goliaths together, to pretend they were loyal to their tribes, and when the time is right, they would flip the game on its head.

But in Survivor, things don’t usually go as planned. The Davids agreed to vote out Elizabeth, but Mike and the rest of the Goliaths changed their minds after that vote about this alliance moving forward and they all decided to stay Goliath strong.

The Davids beat the odds

After the Elizabeth vote, the Davids were outnumbered five to seven. That became clear when you saw all seven Goliath members spend most of their time together, walking up and down the beach, scheming up a plan to take out Christian. This is when those strong relationships built between the David members paid off.

They trusted in each other so much that they were willing to discuss their advantages together without fear that someone would spill the beans to the Goliaths. First, Davie told Christian and Nick to throw votes on the Mayor of Slamtown as Davie played an idol to block seven votes heading Christian’s way.

The next Tribal Council was more of the same. Nick used his Vote Steal advantage and Carl played his Idol Nullifier correctly *bing*, to completely blindside Dan. The next episode saw Christian outlast Alec in that epic, six-hour challenge, which resulted in a unanimous vote to take out the game’s biggest physical threat. In a matter of three tribals, the Davids went from the wrong side of the numbers to forming a majority for the first time in this season!

Tribal lines officially blur

From this point on, the game has shifted towards voting blocs. The focus is on putting together a group of people to vote for a common threat. It all started when Gabby and Christian decided to vote with the Goliaths to blindside Carl. Gabby tried to do the same thing the next vote, but Davie was able to throw it back in her face as he informed Christian to use his idol. Even last vote saw Nick joining forces with former Goliath members to blindside Christian.

With only six people left, just two Davids remain. Although Davie and Nick are David members whose names have been thrown around, I think its more of a matter of their threat level as opposed to their original tribe. Sure, being the only David to make Final Tribal would help their case, but at this point, David or Goliath, Nick and Davie have been playing the best two games. If either of them makes the finals, they win.

It’s fitting that Davie and Nick are the last two Davids left, as they have worked wonders with their advantages and even their social game to keep this from becoming a Goliath washout. It’s not going to be an easy path for either of them to get to the end, but if they do, then Survivor: David vs. Goliath would have a worthy winner!