I don't hate on Cassandra.
Oh, I wasn't saying you were.
But again, that wasn't her plan, that was "Dreamz" plan. (I can't figure out how to make that name possessive!) Cassandra is riding coattails, which I guess is a strategy, just not one that I'm overly fond of.
Yeah, but is agreeing to another's proposal when it's something you've previously considered, is beneficial to your long term game and when you wield the most influence over your voting bloc, riding coattails? I have no problems with riding coattails as a strategy but, for me, that means being a low ranking member of an alliance whose leaders ignore you to dump perceived threats. Cassandra hasn't been ousted because she is being ignored, she hasn't been ousted because she doesn't want to be. I mean, Dreamz was pretty adamant about voting Yau-Man out before Alex and Cassandra put the kibosh on that. What she has wanted, for a long time up until now, has been what has transpired.
I don't think Stacy's comments at tribal council were what tipped Yau Man and made him play the idol. He had already told Earl that he was uneasy and felt something in the air back at camp. And Earl was still believing at that point that Stacy was all set to go gently. I think Stacy's comments at tribal might have finally made Earl wake up, but my bet is that Yau Man already had guessed that something was up because he's been a couple of steps ahead of this game for a while now.
I agree; Stacy's significant misjudgement was in not faking a scramble as a distraction.
But for my money, Yau Man is outplaying everyone.
I feel that Yau's doing the Survivor equivalent of overwriting a novel: viewed individually his actions make sense but overall his strategy has been mistaken. He's simultaneously made himself an unattractive opponent for the final and an unattractive player to rely on.