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Disarm you with a smile

After painfully bearing witness to the epic downfall of what used to be must-see tv for yours truly, I’ve been pleasantly surprised at the level of quality found on the other reality tv show in my life. That would be the venerable Survivor - still keepin’ it real in its 16th season. Proving yet again that quality entertainment always works better with the right mix of aesthetics and substance, Survivor: Micronesia has reclaimed its place as the undisputed king of social strategy gameshows. Thursday’s penultimate episode featured a fantastically well-executed mind control trick that blew my socks off. Who doesn’t remember this? Well, the woman pictured above, Cirie Fields, orchestrated the closest thing to a real-life Obi-Wan Kenobi impersonation that you’ll ever see. Here’s what happened:

With only five castaways remaining, this week’s individual immunity award was won by Erik, the last remaining male. He’s been winning quite a few challenges lately, and as physicality historically plays a crucial part in the final immunity competitions of all Survivor seasons to date, his departure was of utmost importance to the four women left on the island. Cirie’s solution? Simple - just tell him to give his immunity necklace to somebody else. Through a series of trickery, false promises, and thoroughly convincing acting by all four women involved, Erik voluntarily gave up his immunity necklace at a tribal council that would have guaranteed him a 25% chance at a million dollars! The obvious result? He’ll now be casting his vote for the winner as a jury member on this Sunday’s season finale.

That’s the one and only time anyone’s ever been voted out after winning the individual immunity award. I can’t get my jaw off the floor. You just earned your spot in the reality tv hall of fame, Master Cirie. Well done.