By John Powell – GlobalTV.com

The merge is this week and now is the time when we not only rate everyone’s gameplay up to this point but perhaps more importantly their chances of pushing through and making it to the final tribal council.

He makes moves when he has to. He lays low when he has to. Shauhin’s game is very measured and very precise. He always has a buffer too, a social shield surrounding him.

She appears to be one of those castaways who has a rough start but her target just shrinks and shrinks. That could be due to their social game or there are bigger fish to fry. I can see Mary easily weaving her way to the final phase of the Survivor 48.

Eva’s situation can work one of two ways. Like others in the past, she will be targeted because of her backstory as that presents a sympathetic argument to the jury or media savvy castaways will fear how they will look targeting her and therefore refrain from putting her head on the chopping block. If I had to guess knowing the New Era attitudes like we do I would predict they shy away from going after Eva until it is far too late. She and her allies will have the numbers and the game in hand by then.

Where Eva goes Joe will follow. Their Survivor games and destinies are intertwined. The million dollar question is will Eva ever vote out Joe to save her own game? One wonders if he will fall on his sword giving her permission to do so?

A lot of fans want her out yesterday because of her attitude. Some may not want to hear it but Sai has the edit of someone who will evade having her torch snuffed again and again, kept around either due to advantages or the belief that she is the obvious next boot for everyone.

Slowly but surely, she has been rising in the ranks. Her social game is gaining her allies. If the rest of her game follows she could be a serious threat.

He doesn’t pose any kind of danger for anyone. He keeps voting for Sai though which could eventually lead to his exit. Sai never forgets. Just ask Cedrek.

A strong player, Kamilla really hasn’t made many in-roads with the others. Once Kyle is done she won’t be close behind. Besides that one big move she has been just wandering in the jungle.

He is a presented as a castaway who is at least a double threat with his social game and athletic games. It won’t take long for the other players to suss out his alliance with Kamilla either.

As Monty Python would say, he is “mostly harmless”. He bounces around, expanding his social circle and buffer. That can only take you so far though. He would be an “easy out” for most people.

His is a very chaotic, emotional game. The decisions he has made have really affected the course of the game and impacted several players. That kind of chaotic energy tends to be a threat to those in the final phase of Survivor. It is an energy they can do without.

It is assumed she is cut on tonight’s episode. The two team tribal sinks her game. She didn’t really have much of one from what we have been able to see.