Yahoo Lifestyle Survivor’s [Spoiler] on Why ‘Operation Italy’ Blindside Felt ‘Like I Went Home With an Idol in My Pocket’
The following contains spoilers from Wednesday’s episode of Survivor 47.
Operation: Italy was a huge success… unless your name happens to be Caroline.
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In Wednesday’s Survivor, Genevieve, Sam and Andy teamed up to break up the game’s power majority, but Andy simply flipping his vote was only half the battle. They also needed to convince the others to split their votes by making them think that Genevieve had an idol. After many conversations and crossed fingers, Teeny, Caroline, Sue and Rachel did just that, allowing Andy, Genevieve and Sam to pick who went home. After their primary target Rachel won immunity, Caroline was unfortunately next in the pecking order, and she was eliminated from the game by a vote of 3-2-2. (Read a full recap here.)
Below, Caroline talks to TVLine about being taken out by Operation: Italy, including why she trusted Andy and why she told Sue not to play her idol.
TVLINE | What a way to go out. Tell me how you were feeling when Jeff was reading your name.
CAROLINE VIDMAR | Oh my gosh, while it was an absolute blindside, this was the first Tribal Council I walked into where I had a bad feeling in my gut. I was like, “I know my name is out there but I feel like something bad could happen.” So as I was even walking to that Tribal Council, I was just looking at the set around me being like, “Soak it in. This might be the last time you’re viewing it as a contestant.” And so when my name was read, it felt like, “Yeah, it happened. The gut was right.”
The shock that runs through your body is like an out of body experience. I felt like I was kind of floating on a cloud. And honestly, when I started getting into my exit confessional, I started feeling drunk, completely sober, but just like all the emotions coursing through you. It is just such a crazy experience that honestly, I don’t look back on negatively. I thought it was fascinating to feel so intoxicated and so emotionally filled that you feel drunk. It was an experience.
TVLINE | What was it like watching it all back and seeing how Operation: Italy was planned and executed?
I heard about this all the time. Some people in Operation: Italy, their favorite conversation topic is Operation: Italy, so I knew a lot of these conversations that happened. I felt adequately prepared for this episode, but it was interesting to see how it all played out. Honestly, I love the set design for the Sanctuary. I thought it was beautiful, looked delicious. But I felt like I knew what happened. Obviously, it was all a surprise during the game, but it went according to how I frequently had heard about it.
TVLINE | What are your thoughts on Andy’s move? Why did you trust him so much knowing that he flipped on Sam and Sierra?
I’m glad you asked this question because from my perspective, this vote was Andy management. I could tell going into this vote that Andy really wanted to leave his mark in the game. He was feeling like this was his time to do something big and we shut him down pretty hard during the Kyle vote — not having it be Genevieve and having it be Kyle — harder than what was shown. And so I was thinking, “OK, I need to do some damage control. I’m worried he doesn’t feel like I’m respecting him or really including him.” So I want to make sure that when he proposes something next, I go along with it. So when he comes back with this plan. My thing is, “OK. Great. This is him trying to make a big move. Let’s have Andy take all the credit and feel like he’s making that big move.” So when he proposes that split-vote, “Great job, Andy! That’s a great idea.” He proposes that it’s Genevieve instead of Sam. I’m like, “Genius, Andy. Wonderful.”
What’s funny is that Sue was saying, “I think I should play the idol for you.” I was saying, “No, Sue, don’t do it because if we start using advantages to make sure that this vote happens the way we want it to, he’s not going to feel like he got to take agency over this and there’s going to be chaos at camp.” And so it was the right read, wrong timing. I didn’t realize Andy had already flipped, didn’t realize that this big move was not what was being talked about. But I try to not be too hard on myself because when I think through the game, I genuinely feel like it was in the best interest of Andy’s game to vote out Genevieve. So I thought it made total sense for him to go after Genevieve, take out the biggest threat, organize it, big move. So… got played.
TVLINE | How much more does it hurt knowing that Sue had that idol?
A lot of people talk about the regret of going home with an idol. I didn’t have it myself, but someone’s like, “Let me play an idol for you,” and I’m like, “No, don’t do it,” so I feel like I went home with an idol in my pocket, honestly.
TVLINE | Sol told me that he thought you were the one playing the best game at the time of his vote-out. What do you point to as your best one or two moves?
I really love the positioning I very consciously put myself in. I was very big on forming majority alliances, but in every single vote-out, in my opinion, I was instrumental in making sure the vote happened the way that it did and with the execution it did, but I was getting none of the credit or was not seen as the mastermind behind it. It was very tactful. Every single vote up until that point was a person I was happy and content to go home, and [was] working behind the scenes on, but was able to make sure I was working with my alliance where it was portrayed as other people really doing that. So that was my goal coming into the game. It’s a bit nuanced and tricky and I didn’t know if I’d be able to pull it off, so I’m really proud I was able to pull off those moves the way that I did.
The con of it is I personally felt like (granted I didn’t win and my moves sometimes take more explaining) it’s not shown. But at the end of the day, I played the way that I wanted to play and I’m so grateful that I did not play for other people or play for a certain outcome. I played for the outcome to win, but I did not play for the approval of other people, for people to see it. I played the strategic game that I [wanted] to play so I sleep easy at night.
TVLINE | Who did you want to go to the Final 3 with?
There were quite a few people I was comfortable with. The person I really wanted to sit at the end with was Sue. She was my personal Day 1, even though I was more of her Day 2. And there was a really cool moment where she was talking about how proud she was with me and my game and she thought I was playing really beautifully. She also told me that if we made it to the end together, “I think you should win and I’ll figure out ways to advocate for you on the final three bench.” I’m like, “That’s cool. Let’s see if we can make this happen!”
I was also comfortable sitting with Teeny. I was still considering sitting with Andy. I was considering sitting with Sam. Those are the people who were my top picks. I was not fully comfortable with Rachel, but I hadn’t ruled it out and I was not comfortable with Genevieve. Did not want to sit at the end with Genevieve whatsoever. She’s scary. Very scary Canadian.
TVLINE | OK, Caroline. Tell us: What did that fish eyeball taste like?
Oh my gosh. It’s wild because it does not taste like much. A little bit like seawater. It’s the texture! The texture is unlike anything I’ve ever had. I wanted it to be better because food, calories… but the texture was goopy. The iris part is crunchy. The outside is tough. It’s bad. Don’t. I wouldn’t recommend it.
TVLINE | Is it like an egg yolk in terms of when you bite into it, it just oozes out and gets goopier? I don’t know why I’m asking follow-up questions to this.
Because it’s fascinating! I kid you not, when I saw Austin bite the fisheye during the auction on Season 45, I thought, “Huh? I wonder what that’s like?” I consider myself to be an adventurous eater and I kid you not, I thought, “You know, if I’m on Survivor and I’m presented fisheyes, I’m gonna try it.” So I think I manifested this, I’m not gonna lie. I have zero regrets and now I know what a fisheye tastes like.
TVLINE | When I spoke to Tiyana, she seemed very hurt that you wrote her name down. Why did you ultimately side with Gabe over Tiyana at that vote?
I have to say that was easily the most emotional vote for me. That was the one where it was heartbreaking doing it. And that was the one where I really felt like strategically, 100% the right move, but emotionally devastating. Gabe and I had really clicked strategically and we did a good job hiding it from the rest of Tuku, aside from Sue. Gabe and I just got each other strategically. We were working really well. And what was so valuable at the merge was that Gabe and I were clicking with different people and we were forming different relationships. Whereas, I felt like Tiyana and I were trying to form relationships with the same people. So it felt like at that early point in the merge, I really wanted to keep options open, and more options were kept with Gabe.
Also, I knew what he was doing at all times. Every time he had a significant conversation, every time he learned something or every time his endgame changed, we were talking about it constantly. With Tiyana, I did not have that same type of rapport. I could tell there was always a few things she was keeping from me. [She was] more reserved and also, when she was throwing Gabe under the bus at that reward and no point wanted to run it by anyone or think it through, it felt like she was sometimes operating a little bit more on her own than with me. So I very much so strategically felt closer to Gabe even though I felt more emotionally connected to Tiyana. I went with strategy in that moment. I don’t regret it, but emotionally, easily the worst vote.
TVLINE | What’s something that didn’t make the edit that you wish was shown?
Rachel and I became really closely aligned after the Sierra vote. So I think there’s a little bit in the edit, like I’m talking Rachel, I think she’s a threat. “She’s got to go,” and then out of nowhere, I just kind of stop talking. It’s really because I ended up working with Rachel and thought that she was strategic, charismatic. The reason I clocked her as a threat was how much I wanted to work with her ironically, but ultimately, when I felt like she was in a position in the game where I knew she was looking for people to be loyal to, I was thrilled to be that person for her and work together. It was so much fun and after a few merge votes, she really evolved into my strategic No. 1 out there. I was always wary of her. I wasn’t sure I wanted to sit at the end with her, but I loved working with her and I felt like both of our games, especially mine, really benefited from working together.
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