Survivor Island of the Idols episode 8 power rankings: Officially dateable

10. Jamal Shipman

Jamal has had extreme ups and extreme downs in Survivor: Island of the Idols so far to the point where it seems like the editors love his story so much despite his gameplay. Early on, it seemed like he was King Vokai that could do no wrong, only to be usurped of power by Lauren, Tommy, Janet, and Kellee before the tribe swap.

After the tribe swap, he had his incredible teaching moment with Jack, espousing wisdom about the merits of how a simple joke can transcend intention into the reinforcement of stereotypes. It seemed like the tribe had his interests at heart, although his (seemingly accurate) hunch of a forming women’s alliance opened up a discussion on sexism based on his comments.

It’s not that Jamal is problematic; he’s far removed from those negative conversations had about other castaways. The gameplay issue with Jamal is that anytime something goes well for him, another thing is taken from him. With Jack out of the game, he’s out of allies in a numbers alliance where he’s just another number (for now).