I expected to be pissed off by this episode, but I was pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed it. Laughed aloud a few times, despite some predictable "turns of events" (Totally called that the couple would get engaged…)

Yep, I skipped Mad Men last night too :P

I was wondering about that, @CathodeRayMissionary:disqus  — the pre-merge game will leave the "orphans" as you call it, who may be seen as non-threats, e.g. excellent swing votes to get under the radar. THen they can climb the ladder with other "orphans", or persuade other pairs post-merge to blindside the stronger…

Interesting… you guys are making me a bit more optimistic about this "twist".  After all, the twists can't all be as enigmatic as the Medallion of Power…

Happy Birthday!

I look forward to the comments here as well — it's definitely made it lots more fun. I only wish I wasn't a mom to [soon to be] 2 young kids so I could actually stay awake and comment before the next morning, but what are you going to do ;-)

I've been steadily middle-of-the-pack, but I've been enjoying this a lot! Thanks @JudgeReinhold:disqus !

HAhahaha, I thought the same thing…. and then I wondered if she was at home, grinding her teeth, plotting… plotting…

I don't think Eddie had any sway on Cochran's decision. I think Cochran was astute enough to recognize:

She looked great. Life's not fair ;-)

I don't have any strong feelings about the cast one way or another, but I'm wondering if the dynamic of having people compete against (or let's face it, in PAIRS with) their loved ones is going to work out well.

Sweet! Thanks for doing it, it's made watching the show more fun :)

Exactly. I don't get why the hate is RESERVED for Dawn. She didn't even mastermind the decision to vote out Brenda. She went along with Cochran…

*takes a bow*

I love how they didn't even tell him about the vote for Brenda, so he just threw around his random vote to Erik.

Agree 100%. This is what I've been trying to get at regarding the key difference between Cochran's and Dawn's came this time around. They have been making, essentially, the same strategic decisions, but Dawn is the one coming across as the betrayer, and Cochran's coming across as the smart guy masterminding great…

She was angry & emotionally exhausted from being jerked around by the producers all day with the loved-one crap. She didn't get time to digest what happened, so she had an emotional dump. I would have been the same way.

I think the key to Cochran's game is that he's managing to control the game without LOOKING like he's controlling the game. Dawn might have made the same choices, but she had far more emotional connections to the players she blindsided, and therefore has the "stench of betrayal" that Cochran, miraculously, doesn't…

Would people have been THAT bitter/resentful if she had kept the reward? It wasn't just her, it was her AND Dawn, and it's not like nobody understands the personal value of the home visit.

@avclub-080acdcce72c06873a773c4311c2e464:disqus And it better be WORTH playing for, or else all bets are off ;)