Justice For MJ! The Winners Of ‘The Traitors’ Did Her Dirty

Maybe I’m just one of those simple-minded non-gamers, one of your Bravolebrities who didn’t enter The Traitors with a solid strategy built on alliances and a win-at-all-costs mindset, but I’m 100% with Mercedes “MJ” Javid, who described her banishment from the second season of the show as the “plot twist of the century,” one that seemed entirely unnecessary and unjust. She was a faithful, her fellow faithfuls CT and Trishelle seemed to know that, and they banished her anyway so they could share the grand prize together, without her. (Not to get ahead of myself, but look at CT just Scrooge McDucking it when he won. As much as I wanted him to win, especially after he gathered up all the flags in the final mission, this behavior was not becoming of our castle daddy.)

In the final moments of the finale, MJ, CT, and Trishelle voted to banish Kate Chastain, a Traitor who definitely knew that her own time was up and, like Phaedra Parks, Parvati Shallow, and Dan Gheesling before her, essentially stopped trying to convince anyone of her innocence and allowed herself to be voted out when there was nothing else to say. But after Kate was eliminated, CT and Trishelle voted to hold another banishment, claiming they they thought there still might be a Traitor in their midst. (The theatrics of this, as host Alan Cumming threw their voting pouches into the Fire of Truth and the fire glowed red hot, were precisely what you want from the show, but the look on MJ’s face when she saw that these two might be about to turn on her was gutting in a different dramatic way, like when you accidentally shart in church.)

I think it’s safe to say that we all have our own problems with Trishelle and her entitled behavior (Veruca Salt, but make it about shields and torches), but she is a savvy player – a gamer with over 20 years of experience strategizing how to win, much like her fellow competitors who appeared on Survivor and Big Brother. But this moment was a defining one that drew a line between gamers and non-gamers. Trishelle –who initially thought she wanted to banish CT, citing the fact that he changed his mind and voted Sandra Diaz-Twine out at that night’s round table, and not Kate – ended up voting to banish MJ, as did CT (citing that Trishelle was the only person he trusted 100% in this game… but why, all she does is whine that you weren’t loyal to her, CT!), and it feels like MJ was collateral damage, a third wheel in CT and Trishelle’s pact to win. They could have allowed to to stay, she was pleading for it and there was no evidence to indicate she was a Traitor (where’s your notebook now, Trishelle?), but they booted her anyway, to MJ’s, and our, shock.

At the reunion, MJ was rightfully angry at both of the winners, explaining, “The Traitors were eliminated, and the greedy people decided to make it a different game.” No lies detected. But that led CT to defend himself and his fellow gamers on the show, explaining that they’re all used to a certain level of shrewd behavior and backstabbing. “If it came off insensitive, I’m sorry. Coming from someone who’s done this for so long, I’m a bit numb to this kind of stuff, like a lot of us are, and this your your first real competition show.”

Big Brother alum Janelle Pierzina also added, “We never take anything personally… Yes, we love everyone… but I would never take anything personally.”

“I think it is a ‘cultural’ difference between people who come from the gaming shows and people who come from the other shows,” reunion host Andy Cohen summed up. MJ, who was stewing in her resentment, didn’t want to hear it, not from Andy, and not from CT or Trishelle, both of whom she blocked on Instagram after the show ended. (“You blocked her on Instagram? That’s fuckin’ serious,” Johnny Bananas exclaimed. The real travesty of the season might have been that we didn’t get enough Bananas, actually.)

Of course this is all just a game and there have to be winners and losers – and I think MJ will win in the court of public opinion which usually means more anyway – but it also feels like justice could be had if she’s invited back next season like Kate was. Who knows. I feel for her and her loss, but, if we learned anything from this season, it’s that you don’t need to be an official Traitor to betray your fellow contestants.