09:29 AM EDT 05/15/2013
Stephen Fishbach
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Stephen Fishbach Blogs: The Right Person Won Survivor
Originally posted 05/13/2013 02:15PM
"What I have to do is focus on the positive, visualize success, and just get these negative thoughts out of my head."
– John Cochran, Survivor: South Pacific
Cochrowned! On Sunday, Survivor super fan John Cochran swept the challenges and swept our hearts. More importantly, he swept the jury votes, becoming the third winner in Survivor history – after JT and Earl – to shut out his opposition. Congratulations, Cochran! You win a million bucks and the final Fishy!
When the season started, I thought Cochran was DOA. He was physically maladroit, he was a known backstabber and his skin blistered on exposure to sunlight.
But the politics of the Favorites tribe favored him. Phillip, Andrea and Dawn wanted to work with him while they settled old vendettas. Cochran served as therapist to a group of volatile players.
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Stephen Fishbach Blogs: Dawn's Misstep Turns a Loyal Ally Into a Bitter Juror
Originally posted 05/09/2013 10:45AM
Stephen Fishbach was the runner-up on Survivor: Tocantins and has been blogging about Survivor strategy for PEOPLE.com since 2009. Follow him on Twitter @stephenfishbach.
"You're here to win, so why take chances?"
– Brenda Lowe, Survivor: Nicaragua
What Survivor: Caramoan lacks in brains, it makes up for in tears. What this season has missed in strategy, it's delivered in breakdowns. I joked early on that this cast of Looney Tunes would lead to a daffy season. Has there ever been a final six more prone to bug-outs?
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Stephen Fishbach Blogs: How Cochran's Blindside Left Andrea Out
Originally posted 05/03/2013 04:30PM
"It's a little hard to be living with people for 32 days and have these relationships and what you think is trust, and then find out they've been lying to you the entire time!"
- Andrea Boehlke, Redemption Island
We've been waiting for this moment all season. With antagonists Malcolm and Reynold twirling their mustachios from the jury bench, the remnants of Stealth R Us have to turn on each other. For 33 days, the Favorites have coasted in their easy majority, kept in lockstep by Phillip's relentless drumbeat. With only seven players left, who will take the reins?
The episode came down to an amicable power struggle between Cochran and Andrea. Cochran wants to protect his bestie Dawn and ensure he's part of every alliance. Andrea wants to keep her boy toy Eddie and take out the adorable Brenda.
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Stephen Fishbach Blogs: How One of Survivor's Most Dynamic Players Got the Boot
Originally posted 04/25/2013 11:00AM
Stephen Fishbach was the runner-up on Survivor: Tocantins and has been blogging about Survivor strategy for PEOPLE.com since 2009. Follow him on Twitter @stephenfishbach.
"There's no reason to give people a reason to get rid of me."
– Malcolm Freberg, Survivor: Philippines
Goodbye, bro. After 25 straight episodes of Survivor, we finally say farewell to Malcolm Freberg, one of the season's most dynamic characters. Malcolm proved you don't have to be crazy to make the show fun. He was strategic without being robotic; physical without being muscle-brained; charming without being smarmy.
He was the complete Survivor package. So why's he going out in ninth place?
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Stephen Fishbach Blogs: How Survivor's 'Three Amigos' Took Out Their Boss
Originally posted 04/18/2013 09:10AM
Stephen Fishbach was the runner-up on Survivor: Tocantins and has been blogging about Survivor strategy for PEOPLE.com since 2009. Follow him on Twitter @stephenfishbach.
"Early on in this game, I made myself the villain."
– Phillip Sheppard, Survivor: Redemption Island
Oh lucky day! The Specialist has been neutralized!
In a way, all of us has a Phillip to face. For some, shyness might be their Phillip. For the Three Amigos, their Phillip is an overbearing former federal agent (?), who wants to vote them off Survivor.
But as sure as their names are Malcolm, Eddie and Reynold, on Wednesday the Amigos conquered their own personal Phillip – who also happened to be the actual Phillip!
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Stephen Fishbach Blogs: Is Dawn Survivor's 'Most Fearsome Assassin'?
Originally posted 04/11/2013 09:45AM
Stephen Fishbach was the runner-up on Survivor: Tocantins and has been blogging about Survivor strategy for PEOPLE.com since 2009. Follow him on Twitter @stephenfishbach.
"Everybody tells me all the time how much they believe me, how much they trust me. Were these guys paying attention the first 32 days?"
– Rob Cesternino, Survivor: The Amazon
Has Dawn Meehan hoodwinked her entire tribe? The kindly mother of six adopted children has somehow become Survivor: Caramoan's most fearsome assassin. She lures her prey into a false sense of security – and then, she strikes!
On Wednesday's episode, yet another alliance fell victim to the poison stinger of the weeping Meehan. Malcolm, who somehow isn't on the outs even after his failed coup last week, is nonetheless determined to destroy his position in the majority alliance. He rallies lothario Eddie, sexually ambivalent Michael and exuberant golden retriever puppy Reynold for another putsch.
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Stephen Fishbach Blogs: Corinne Snatches Defeat from the Jaws of Victory
Originally posted 04/04/2013 01:00PM
Stephen Fishbach was the runner-up on Survivor: Tocantins and has been blogging about Survivor strategy for PEOPLE.com since 2009. Follow him on Twitter @stephenfishbach.
"If I told everyone to their face what I said behind their back, I wouldn't be playing a very good game, would I?"
– Corinne Kaplan, Survivor: Gabon
Corinne Kaplan was in a perfect position – or so it seemed.
She was a day one founding member of the Stealth R Us alliance. She had a side alliance with Michael Snow (whose sexual orientation we may never learn). Then her partner Malcolm approached her about a secret pact with the Bros from Gota. Now Corinne was part of a plot that could unseat her longtime antagonist Phillip and take control of the entire game.
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Stephen Fishbach Blogs: Cochran Proves Himself as Malcolm Plots Survivor Victory
Originally posted 03/28/2013 09:05AM
Stephen Fishbach was the runner-up on Survivor: Tocantins and has been blogging about Survivor strategy for PEOPLE.com since 2009. Follow him on Twitter @stephenfishbach.
"It's usually not the strongest person that wins. The more pathetic you look and act usually seems to get you pretty far in the game."
– Tyson Apostol, Survivor: Tocantins
Wednesday night on Survivor, we finally saw the Cochran we'd been waiting for.
When Cochran was cast in South Pacific, he seemed like a hilarious super-fan who would be great at strategy and funny in confessionals.
Then he fell on his face. Almost literally.
Cochran never found his footing with his tribe, and his anxious humor only isolated him further.
On Wednesday, however, Cochran proved he could joke hard and play hard. He kept Phillip and Corinne placated while they had one of the stupidest arguments in Survivor history (whether or not to throw a stray vote at Michael). In his confessionals, he rolled his eyes at the ridiculousness.
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Stephen Fishbach Blogs: Good Survivor Strategy Emerges Post-Swap
Originally posted 03/21/2013 07:20AM
Stephen Fishbach was the runner-up on Survivor: Tocantins and has been blogging about Survivor strategy for PEOPLE.com since 2009. Follow him on Twitter @stephenfishbach.
"I listened and I observed."
– Denise Stapley, winner, Survivor: Philippines
Maybe it's Stockholm Syndrome, but I really believe there's an undercurrent of good strategy this season on Survivor. It's been drowned out by larger-than-life characters like Shamar, Brandon and Phillip bellowing their cris-de-coeur up and down the Philippine jungle.
Underneath that clamor, though, smart people are making good decisions. We finally saw a glimmer of it on Wednesday's episode, when Corinne gave us a peek of what's going on behind the scenes.
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Stephen Fishbach Blogs: Brandon Hantz's Sad Survivor Meltdown
Originally posted 03/14/2013 09:15AM
Stephen Fishbach was the runner-up on Survivor: Tocantins and has been blogging about Survivor strategy for PEOPLE.com since 2009. Follow him on Twitter @stephenfishbach.
"This is like a constant battle for me – good/evil, good/evil – and I really want to do good."
– Brandon Hantz, Survivor: South Pacific
Wednesday's episode of Survivor may have been my least favorite in the show's 13-year history. Brandon Hantz, of the Louisiana Hantzes, had a complete mental breakdown. He threatened people's safety and poured out the tribe's rice. It was gripping viewing, no doubt. But it was also very sad.
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