Power Couple SA Recap: #TeamCoupleWhoActuallyPlaysTheGame
Survivor and Big Brother fans must have watched the second episode of M-Net’s new reality competition show and thought, “What are these people doing?”
A few times throughout last night’s Power Couple SA, the word “logic” was thrown around to explain why a couple chose to evict the couple who is dead last on the leader board – and much less of a threat – over the couple who is sitting atop the leader board with 140k in cash.
As an avid viewer of Survivor and Big Brother (The US version, anyway), and as a big fan of players who play the game with a strong, smart, thought out and sometimes cunning game plan, I was a little disappointed by last night’s events.
When Emile and Razia clocked the worst time in last night’s Couples Challenge, they went from atop the leader board directly into the danger zone, in danger of being eliminated from the competition. The first couple to be eliminated, nogal. The couple at the bottom of the leader board would automatically be up for elimination, and it was PE’s Juran and Juanita who occupied that spot.
So, the question the other six couples were faced with: which couple do they want to stay in the competition?
Fans of Survivor and Big Brother would have had no trouble with the correct logic behind their decisions. Which couple is more likely to beat you for up to a Million Rand? Which couple is a bigger threat? The answer was clear: Emile and Razia. Which couple could be easily eliminated the next time? Which couple could be dragged with and then exposed of when they’re no longer needed? Juran and Juanita.
But, ultimately, contestants who really play these games are considered bad people. Viewers love to hate them. Viewers like nice, and these couples decided to be nice. Will the niceness last throughout? I’m sure M-Net hopes not. They want a show. This show is designed for game moves, and if M-Net wants a season 2, they’ll hope that these couples are willing to make them a show.
Juran and Juanita apparently had a target on their back since they’re the only couple who isn’t married, a reasoning some of the couples gave for choosing Emile and Razia to stay. Marzanne, who along with PJ set the fastest time during the Couples Challenge and won themselves an extra 25k – pushing them up to 2nd on the leader board – was the only one with a worthy argument to the “why aren’t they married?” question. She argued that this is “Power Couple”, not “Power Marriage”, and that they shouldn’t have the power to judge them based on that. Kudos.
It’s a silly argument, really, and the producers probably should have equalled the playing field a little, cast a better ratio of married to unmarried couples.
But then there’s what Ivan said: Ivan and Roshila agreed that this was an easy vote for them. They’re voting out the couple they don’t get along with. Was Juran drunk when he decided to sing during dinner? If I had to base my vote on likability, I would have voted Juran and Juanita out too. As a viewer, I enjoy Emile and Razia more.
Then we have Dyllan and Vix. Dyllan told Juran who he was choosing to stay, straightforward, without consulting his wife. During a conversation with Dean and Crystal, Dyllan says he made the decision immediately. He knew how he was going to vote the moment the couples up for elimination were revealed. He says he’s “impulsive” (clearly), and it doesn’t really look like Vix has much of a say – apparently he wears the pants. During a private conversation with Juran, Juanita calls Dyllan a snake, and Vix herself admits to Juanita that Dyllan is “hard”, he’s not a softie.
Predictably, when it came to voting, the couples unanimously voted to keep Emile and Razia, meaning Juran and Juanita became the first couple to take their bags and exit the villa.
Dean and Crystal should probably start campaigning right about now. They’re at the bottom of the leader board, and with couples rather being nice than thinking about their game, they could be in danger of being the second couple to leave the competition.
Like Marzanne said, “We’re in a game”. Now they just need to start playing it. That includes Gift and Bana, the latter who said she doesn’t want to be involved in any plotting. She just wants the game to play out, and she calls them “outsiders”. You don’t want to be outsiders when you’re sitting so low on the leader board. Play the game.
Logic clearly means different things to different people, but in the end, it’s how you choose to play the game, or not play the game, that is going to make the difference. Be the masters of their own destiny and all that shit, right?
Start playing.
