With the exit of Jefra, so too comes to a close the story of the Beauties. Beauty will not be the quality that wins this season of Survivor. But in remembrance of the Beauty tribe, I thought I could dedicate my casestudy this week to the last remaining member: Jefra.
Now you might think: You are going to write an entire blogpost about Jefra? Granted she does come of as a ‘non-entity’ as the title of this blogpost suggest. But I wanted to take a closer look at her journey this season to analyze the moves she made. (if she made any) Because for all we know the editors downplayed her moves in the game to push in her in the part of ‘non-entity’.
In my preview I saw Jefra as your typical eye-candy player who adds little to the season. For the most part she lived up to that part since right from the get go she connected with LJ and Alexis. I guess you can see that as a move, even though it’s the most basic survivor move out there. But the fact is that ever since she made that alliance (or maybe more accurate agreed to that alliance)she didn’t do anything until the tribe swap. She did make a nice little nest for her to settle in, so she didn’t had to make a move. But still, it’s at those times that you have to make preparations for future moves.
Her comfy little alliance of beauties was rudely disturbed when the tribe swap arrived. The beauties drew the short end of the stick as three beauties went to Aparri to almost immediately turn on each other. All the while Jefra remained on Solana but was joined by 4 brawns. Her situation looked pretty grim but luckily she still had LJ with her. LJ connected with Trish and pulled the Brawn alliance apart. Now what was Jefra part in this? Maybe a bit more the you might think at first. The episode suggested that LJ made Trish switch but we also saw that Trish approached Jefra first who reassured Trish that LJ is with her. Now I don’t believe the flip of Trish and Tony is in large part due to Jefra but it is clear that since that episode she got herself a final three alliance with Trish and LJ that probably would have gotten her to the end if Tony didn’t blindside LJ. A bad situation turned perfect were it not she lost her close ally Alexis just before the merge.
At the merge it looked like Jefra and her alliance were going to be picked of one by one, were it not for ChoasKass. Kass flipped and put Jefra’s alliance in the powerposition. Jefra’s part in this was pretty much zero though.
Things looked very good for Jefra and a final three was definitely in the cards. Winning of course is a different matter if she ended up with LJ and Trish next to her. Sadly for Jefra her A-plan to reach the end was shattered to pieces when LJ was blindsided by Tony. With her rock gone, Jefra had nothing to hold on to and seemed a little lost. But she had a chance here to finally play her game and to her credit she did try although it looked very clumsy. At a reward challenge with Spencer, Tash and Jeremiah she promised her loyalty to them in order to vote of Tony. Now her big move didn’t last long as Trish reassured her that the final 5 still stands and that she has Tony under control. Jefra broke the news of her reflip to Jeremiah and not much later signed his exit note.
Now did she make the right decision here? I would say yes but she did it in a very clumsy way. She should have never flipped to Tash, Spencer and Jeremiah in the first place. She never in a million years had a chance to beat Tash, Spencer or Jeremiah in a final three. At least with the other 4 she has a chance to win, al be it very difficult. The only way Jefra might have had a chance to win was to go to the final three with Kass and Woo. Kass is hated by almost everyone and would surely be keen to the idea to a final three with Jefra. And Woo has done nothing this season, except basically being Tony’s little bitch (excuse my phrasing here). So If I were to be Jefra, I would have picked off Tash, Spencer and Jeremiah until one was left, preferably Tash. Then I should have rallied Kass, Trish and Tash (or whoever was left) behind me and voted of Tony.
Now of course with Tony’s superpowered idol that probably wouldn’t have worked but Jefra didn’t know that so that should have still been her plan regardless. After voting out Tony, Woo would have been a free agent for Jefra to recruit in order to blindside Trish in case Tash won immunity. If Tash didn’t win immunity, Jefra should first have targeted Tash and then try and blindside Trish at final four. This would have resulted in a final three of Jefra, Woo and Kass. Granted, a little bit of an anti-climax but I can see Jefra winning in that instance.
This should have been what Jefra should have done but I do realize that this doesn’t really fit Jefra’s character and she doesn’t really have a feel for the strategy part of the game. It’s also what caused her eventual exit because it becomes clear that Trish doesn’t have Tony under control. Scared by an all-women alliance that never was a thing, Tony changes allegiance once again and blindsides Jefra. So instead of being a player that breaks the stereotype of young pretty girls on survivor, she ends up being a footnote in survivor history confirming the stereotype rather then breaking it and in the end still being somewhat of a non-entity this season.
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