On Monday night, Heroes and Villains dropped their buffs for the long-anticipated merge, bringing friends and foes back together in one camp.
For Flick, who had made strong relationships both pre and post-tribe swap, the merge put her in a tricky situation - stay loyal to Shonee and Liz, who had just gone out on a limb for her, or stick with her old allies.
Ultimately Flick decided to flip back to her original alliance, pitching Shonee and Liz’s name for Monday night’s vote. Having pulled Flick out of hot water when the target was on her back, Shonee and Liz were shocked by her decision to flip. Dubbing it a big mistake, the pair had revenge on their mind and gathered their alliance to vote Flick out and become the first member of the Jury.
Speaking to 10 Play, Flick acknowledged that, with hindsight, the decision may have been the wrong one.
“Look it’s super easy to sit here and say ‘Oh I shouldn't have flipped on them, I should have just stayed working with them and everything would have been fine right?’
“Hindsight is 20/20,” she said.
But in a game where perceptions are warped and trust is hard to form, she says the decision wasn’t as straight forward.
“In the game, I was damned if I do and damned if I don’t. If I went back with my original Heroes alliance I would have pissed off Shonee, George and Liz, which is what happened. But if I went with Shonee, George and Liz I would've pissed off my original Heroes, so tribe swap was not kind to me.
“I had a hard decision to make. The decision I made obviously didn't end up panning out well for me, but at the end of the day, it's gameplay and there's nothing I can do about it. What's done is done.”
As a returning player, Flick expressed that the decision to come back to play the game was an easy one to make. While she played well in Australian Survivor: Brains vs Brawn, placing third overall, Flick’s first time in the game was overshadowed by her mum’s passing.
"The first time I played Survivor, I had the most amazing and also traumatic experience at the same time. You know, with losing my mum the first season playing... It was, you know, obviously one of the best things I've ever done, but also one of the hardest things.”
So, when she got the call to join the game for a second time, she jumped at the opportunity - excited to play the game without the emotional burden she experienced last time.
“As soon as I got the opportunity to come back to Heroes vs Villains, it was a no brainer for me,” she told 10 Play.
“You know, my [last] experience was overshadowed by something so traumatic and even though it was amazing, and I did really well, it just didn't feel like a real Survivor experience. I wanted to go back where the only thing that I had to think about was strategy or my next move or what I was going to do."
On reflection of her gameplay this season compared to last, Flick says that while she still played a very social game she was determined to play with a more strategic approach.
"Going back the second time around, I really wanted a little bit more emphasis on strategy, which I think I did. So, I'm pretty happy with how I went back and my gameplay although I didn’t do as well [as last season].”
Although she says that perhaps this wasn't the best call.
“I was really trying so hard to really focus on strategy and maybe, you know what, maybe that was my undoing. Maybe I just was thinking about it so much.”
Walking into Heroes vs Villains, Flick was instantly nervous when she saw Simon was also in the game. Having been a part of his undoing in Brains vs Brawns with a major blindside, Flick was certain that they would be enemies. But despite their past grievances and some Cookie Idol confusion, Flick says all is well between the pair.
“So, you know what, I'm actually glad I got to go back a second time and play with Simon because after Brains vs Brawn I had a little bit of a bad taste in my mouth, but like now I can confidently say we're mates and like we're good friends. So, I'm glad we got the chance again to play on Heroes and Villains in Samoa. And yeah, we got to clear the air and clear the Cookie Idol air and yeah we're good friends now.”
Playing for the Heroes tribe in Heroes vs Villains, Flick says she didn’t feel entirely connected to the title of ‘Hero’. Acknowledging that to do well in the game of Survivor you need both villainous and heroic traits.
“I think it's pretty funny because really, in the game of Survivor, you need both and I think all good Survivor players would say that. You know, you can't get through the game without telling a few white lies. And you can't get through the game without friends as well. So, I feel like every single player on this season played like a hero and a villain all at once.”
