Recap: The Traitors US 2, Episode 7 – Blood on Their Hands
Well that was quite the underwhelming episode. Honestly, nothing much happened. I don’t even know where to start, but I guess let’s start with the challenge first.
It was a fun challenge. Great to see different pairings. And actually putting the contestants in “traps” was hilarious. Kate, however, definitely did not deliver with her reaction. She enjoyed it? Really? After complaining about everything else, she’s fine hanging up in a net? Come on. I really don’t know why she was brought back if she can’t even deliver with snarky comments while hanging from a net. lol
I’m very happy Peter refused the invitation. I felt like that was the obvious outcome last week, but the show has seemed to avoid the obvious. So I was expecting he’d become a Traitor. Thankfully, that did not happen. I already saw people on the internets calling Peter “boring” for turning the Traitors down. But I think it’s a good decision for him. He’s got the Traitors pegged. All he has to do is convince enough people in the castle.
Parvati calling Peter a “dummy” for refusing is hilarious. I think Parvati is the only who is playing more of a “dummy” game. I really don’t know what Parvati is doing though. It doesn’t feel like she’s a Survivor All-Star. Instead, it feels like she’s a newbie who’s never played a competitive reality show before. Take the fireside scene where she was shocked Phaedra did not light her fire. Like, why would Phaedra ever do that? There would be no reason for Phaedra to choose Parvati. It would make more sense if she chose Bergielicious even rather than Parv.
And her comments all episode echo many of the fans’ sentiment as well apparently. Peter is obviously playing the game as hard as the Traitors and certainly the most amongst the Faithful. But apparently that’s not a good thing to Parvati or the fans. Just like Parvati (and Phaedra and Dan too) thinks Peter not doing what they want from him is “bad,” the fans will automatically think he’s horrible just because he didn’t do what they wanted him to do. Or he doesn’t make decisions that will help their favorites.
Typical reality TV fan behavior. Or at least, Big Brother fan behavior. Which I definitely see lots of crossover with The Traitors and that’s really a frightening prospect.
But anyway, I am 100% #TeamPetersPals. Again, Dan, Phaedra and Parvati have (for many different reasons) turned me against the Traitors. They’ve made me root for the Faithful much more, especially in recent weeks. And also considering the Traitor/s won last season, I’d like to watch the Faithful win this time around.
I don’t have any issue with #PetersPals wanting to speak privately with each other. This is a game where you are never sure who you can trust. So if you can keep your inner circle close and have a lot of trust in them, go for it!
Plus, the people they are excluding from their alliance are the two people they suspect as Traitors (Parvati and Phaedra) and their friends. Namely, the other Bravo people Sheree, MJ and Kate. Plus honorary Housewife Sandra and the surprisingly floater-ish CT.
They call themselves the Outsiders and Sheree takes issue with them being lumped together. But they brought it upon themselves. Again, they’ve stuck with each other all this time. Even if there are no private meetings or official alliances, there’s obviously (at least) an unspoken understanding between the Bravo people to have each other’s backs. Throw in Sandra who has been shown to have favored the Housewives more than the CBS alliance and CT, who by his own aloofness has made him untrustworthy; you’ve got the “Outsiders” of their own making.
One great thing though is Sandra seemingly coming around to believing Peter is a Faithful. I think the MVP this episode was her, for sure. With that glimmer of a realization at the end plus her Shield win and her pretty foolproof plan to keep their side of the castle safe, she finally stepped out into the spotlight in a big way. And I would definitely love to see her finally rise up and make a case for herself to reach the endgame.
Honestly, I wouldn’t mind if it meant her becoming the sole Traitor after Parvati and Phaedra get banished somehow. Or if she is one of the last Faithful standing. I could see either happening, to be honest.
Sandra’s plan though was interesting because it definitely showed how The Traitors could easily be a numbers game. Doesn’t even having anything to do with finding out who are Traitors. Just keep your numbers and you can make it to the end. I was afraid though because it definitely seemed like #PetersPals were doomed after Sandra’s pool table strategy meeting. And again, I’m #TeamPetersPals all the way. lol
But once TPTB saw that scene, they sprung into action with the awkward twist. lol
I’ll be honest. I was going to form my opinion on the twist depending on the outcome of who’d be safe or not. If Peter was safe, I’d be happy and he lives another day to spearhead banishing one of the Traitors. If he didn’t end up safe, I’d think it was horrible producer meddling to keep the Traitors safe. Lol I would’ve even thought this episode would be the best evidence that this is all fully scripted. lol
When Kevin went along with Sandra choosing Sheree first to save, I was like, “omg here we go” lol. But Peter ended up safe. And the biggest thing we get from the Survivor-lite scene was the hurt feelings of Trishelle and MJ.
Which, I don’t have a problem with. They can feel upset and betrayed that people they thought were their friends would not keep them safe.
And the most interesting was how outside history from other shows affects the drama on The Traitors. I think that can be both a strength and a weakness for the show. A strength because it can affect game with different perceptions and relationships. Which in turn, can cause drama like we saw here and also in both seasons. But also a weakness because having to draw upon history from other shows just to drive the narrative here means there’s something lacking on The Traitors itself. And could doom any effort to have a season of regular people only. We’ll see.
Moving on to next week, I don’t know who Parvati and Phaedra will murder. I could see it being either Trishelle or MJ. I will assume Trishelle. Which would be a shame. She deserves to stay longer in the castle than a Sheree or MJ or Kate or even CT. Unlike them, she’s actually playing the game. And the fact that she caught on to Dan throwing Phaedra’s name out is a good thing.
With MJ, I feel like she’s quite expendable. Which would be a good reason to murder her now because, like they said, she’s definitely not going to be banished any time soon. So who knows.
So, to close, I’m fully on board with #TeamPetersPals. Before it was because it was so refreshing to see a Faithful actually be able to figure things out. Now, it’s also because it would annoy so many people if they end up going far or even win this game. The meltdowns will be even more entertaining than this episode was! lolol