Survivor 9 Vanuatu

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2007-03-26T15:56:00.000-04:00

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Survivor Fantasy League

2004-12-11T00:15:00.000-05:00

The answer to this week's Survivor Fantasy League Bonus Question is:

Jeff Probst

The question is: On the December 10 finale of SURVIVOR LIVE, Julie was asked if she is dating someone. Who is that someone?

My clueless prediction for the final four:
First Place: Eliza will win it all! I've been in her corner all along so why stop now?
Second Place: Chris, however he's leading most online polls that I've seen to win it all.
Third Place: Twila, who wouldn't want to be in the final two with the "liar"?
Fourth Place: Scout, she's too nice and no one wants to be in the final two with her.

Chris will win the final immunity challenge and choose Eliza to be in the final two with him. Chris will then join the long list of final immunity winners to finish in second place.

Here's how I see the votes shaking out.

For Eliza:
Ami, Leann, Julie, and Scout.
Julie will vote for Eliza because she was hurt that Chris voted against her. The others will hold to their womyn's alliance.

For Chris:
Sarge, Chad, and Twila.
Twila hates Eliza so much that she won't vote for her. The guys will stick with Chris.

Notes:
1. The final Survivor is Sunday night.
2. There was a Survivor Live Friday with Julie but I missed it. I'll try and watch it Saturday and post my notes before Sunday night.

Episode 13, Julie Says Good-bye

2004-12-09T22:51:00.000-05:00

or That Julie Chick is Dreamy

Note: the finale is Sunday night!
Two hours, plus a live reunion show.

Julie wins reward and has some alone time to work on Chris. Eliza wins immunity. Julie, despite her best efforts, is voted off the island.

After the previous Tribal Council, Chris is relieved that Ami is gone "one less thing to worry about". Twila gets real defensive about her "lying" and proceeds to drop several "F" Bombs. Privately Chris says that her outburst really offended Julie and Eliza. (In my opinion her blow-up seemed uncalled for.)

Reward Challenge
Competition: a series of mini-challenges (1 Survivor eliminated at each stage)
Reward: Winner gets a horseback ride to Mount Yasur for an over night stay in a rustic hut with plenty of food.

This competition was series of challenges seen earlier in the season.

Stage One: crawl under netting through mud. Eliminated: Scout
Stage Two: Capture a Pig. Eliminated: Eliza (she had trouble catching a pig before too)
Stage Three: Tiki Assembly. Eliminated: Chris (he totally missed one of his pieces)
Stage Four: a short Obstacle Course ending with a Sling Shot contest. Eliminated: Twila

Julie wins Reward and picks Chris to share it with her. On the ride to the mountain there were several beautiful views including a water fall. Their hot dogs were cooked with the heat of the volcano (I think). At night there was a spectacular view of the erupting volcano.

Of course Julie worked on Chris while she had him alone. Chris played along but didn't really commit to saving her. Twila was the obvious target. As soon as he got back to the camp Chris reassured everyone else that the plan to vote Julie off remained unchanged.

While Julie and Chris were away, Eliza had a little fight with Twila over bananas that Twila had buried (to help them ripen and save for breakfast later). Scout seemed to side with Twila.

This really upset Eliza. When Julie returned they worked to get Chris to change his mind and vote for Twila.

Immunity Challenge
Competition: Story time and a race to answer questions based on the story Jeff told them about Vanuatu.

Jeff told them a story about an old tribal chief of Vanuatu. The Survivors then raced to huts to assemble a puzzle with a question about the story on it. The first one to answer five questions correctly wins immunity. Eliza won immunity and Julie was a close second.

Tribal Council
(paraphrased)
Jeff: It's been 36 days and only 5 of you are left. Twila is there anyone who doesn't deserve to be this far?
Twila: I don't know.
Jeff pressures her some more.
Twila: Well yes, some one doesn't belong.
Eliza: It's me. She thinks I don't deserve to be here!
Twila basically says "Yes".
Jeff: Eliza do you think everyone deserves to be here?
Eliza: Yes, we have all worked hard to get this far.
Chris: Tonight is the hardest vote yet.

Julie is voted off and Eliza looks a little upset.

Alliances
Chris and Eliza versus Twila and Scout. The next immunity challenge is very important and I think Chris or Eliza will win it.

Heroes & Villains
My favorite is Eliza (as she's been since the start) followed closely by Chris (he had to grow on me as an under-dog). Twila I'm indifferent to and Scout I really don't care for. Scout just seems smug and doesn't seem to do anything except talk (often cryptically - "Julie get back to your roots." What?). So I hope Scout is the next to go.

Official Episode Title: Eruptions of a Volcanic Magnitude!

Won Reward: Julie
(A horseback ride to an overnight stay on Mount Yasur.
She chose Chris to go with her.)

Won Immunity: Eliza
(Her first immunity win.)

Voted Off: Julie
Aired: 3 votes for Julie, 2 votes for Twila
Scout voted for Julie; Julie voted for Twila

Survivor Fantasy League

2004-12-08T22:17:00.000-05:00

The answer to this week's Survivor Fantasy League Bonus Question is:

The Amazing Race

The question is: On the 12/03 episode of SURVIVOR LIVE, which other reality show did Ami say she wanted to be a contestant on?

My clueless prediction: Julie will be gone this week.
I think Chris and Eliza would like to be in the final four with Scout and Twila, so that leaves Julie on the outs (unless, of course, she gets immunity).

Note:
The next Survivor Live (tomorrow) is the last one.

Survivor Live with Ami

2004-12-08T22:08:00.000-05:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Guest: Ami
Hosts: Chris Booker & Richard Hatch, winner first Survivor

Comments made by Ami
Lost 20 pounds during Survivor. She never watched an entire season of Survivor before and Eliza had to tell her about the merge! She claims not to hate men, that she just wanted to see an all women final four. (I don't believe her.) She's still disgusted about Twila's lying but realizes that it's just a game (again I don't believe her, she still takes it personally). The women would have taken in John K. Ami would have liked to be in the final two with Leann. Ami liked Rory too, except for all his cursing.

Scout, Twila and Eliza really liked Chris that's why she didn't try to get rid of him. Julie and Chris are like brother and sister. Eliza didn't eat any coconut (she doesn't like it). Twila is playing the game but playing it scared. Scout was amazing, she was real helpful with the shelter and picking food. Ami's biggest mistake was telling Twila she wasn't going to be in the final four. Ami would play Survivor again, but next time be focused 100% of the time.

Comments made by Richard
Ami played with her gut instead of her mind. She was made out to be the villain but was accurately portrayed. Twila's playing more of a game than he thought. Eliza is still not playing well. (Will Richard still say this after Eliza is in the final two?)

Note:
The next Survivor Live (thursday) is the last one.

Episode 12, Adios Ami

2004-12-02T22:36:00.000-05:00

or Ding Dong the Witch is Gone!

Eliza wins a car at the Reward Challenge. Chris wins immunity. And they do the right thing by extinguishing Ami's torch at Tribal Council.

After last week's highlights, Ami did the predictable thing and stated how disappointed she was that Twila lied (how dare she!) about promising to vote off Eliza and then getting Leann voted off. Ami, what part of "Outwit, Outplay, Outlast" don't you understand?

Reward Challenge
Competition: a water obstacle course relay (dive to collect three flags)
Reward: Winner gets a new car! Top three get a luxury overnight getaway.

Ami led most of the way but Eliza managed to win (you go girl). Third place was close too. It came down to Chris and Julie and Chris just barely beat her. I wonder if the game would have changed if Julie had beaten Chris? Then Ami could work her Svengali skills on Eliza and Julie during the overnight stay at the beautiful bungalow.

However Ami did the best she could to influence Eliza, luckily Chris was there too to handle damage control. It was a pretty lame attempt too, something about needing to break up Scout and Twila.

Immunity Challenge
Competition: Vanuatu shuffle board

Again Ami almost won this competition. It came down to her last shot and she needed to score a point or knock a point off of Chris' score to tie with him. Thankfully she did neither and Chris won immunity.

Tribal Council
(paraphrased)
Jeff: The women aren't that strong any longer.
Scout: No we're not.
Jeff: It seemed you (Scout) were all for a strong women's alliance when it served you.
Ami: Last vote wasn't part of the women's alliance. Twila lied (although she didn't mention her by name).
Twila: Let me clear things up. I lied, I'm sorry. I'm not the first one to lie on Survivor. Get over it.
Ami: It's not worth it to me to lie like Twila (swearing on her son's life).
Jeff: Eliza, is this just a case of Sour Grapes (referring to Ami)?
Eliza: No, I think Ami really feels hurt.
Jeff: Will you miss Ami?
Eliza: Yes, she's been like a sister to me.
Ami & Eliza both cry (sniff, sniff)
Ami: I'll miss Eliza too. She's grown a lot in this game and she's been willing to change. (one last attempt to get Eliza to change her vote)

Alliances
It looks like the plan is for Chris, Eliza, Scout and Twila to be in the final four. That would leave Julie in an alliance of one.

Heroes & Villains
Thank you to everyone who made Ami's exit a reality. Sure she's pretty, but she's also such a man-hater and manipulator (not to mention passive aggressive) that I couldn't stand her the last five or six episodes.

Now if we can just get Julie in the final four instead of Scout. I could watch Julie and her red bikini stand for hours holding her hand on a rock (or whatever endurance challenge they come up with).

Official Episode Title: Now Who's in Charge Here?!

Won Reward: Eliza
(a new car!, second reward win in a row for her.)

Won Immunity: Chris
(Ami almost won it.)

Voted Off: Ami
Aired: 4 votes for Ami, 2 votes for Scout
Twila & Scout voted for Ami; Ami voted for Scout

Episode 11, Later Leann

2004-11-25T21:48:00.000-05:00

or The Loved Ones Visit

The Survivors' loved ones pay a visit for the Reward Challenge and show up again for the Immunity Challenge. Eliza won Reward so her mother spends a night at their camp and then later Ami won Immunity. In a major shake-up, Eliza (fearing that she's the target) sides with Twila, Scout and Chris to vote off Leann.

Chris starts us off by immediately telling the women that it was Twila and Scout's idea to vote for Eliza last episode.

Reward Challenge
Competition: Five Questions
Reward: overnight stay by a loved one

1. In the seventh immunity challenge who broke the most tiles with a sling shot?
2. In the Great Escape challenge who was the first man to start putting his ladder together?
3. In the second immunity challenge (blind puzzle) who sat out?
4. In the fourth immunity challenge (colored symbols) what were the four symbols? (1 point each)
5. In the first reward challenge who fell into the water the most?

Eliza and Julie were tied after the five questions so they got a final deciding question:
Name as many pairs that you can in the Memory/Matching Pairs challenge.

Julie couldn't remember any at all. Eliza had a list and "Grapefruit" was a correct answer so she won the Reward Challenge.

Answers:
1. Rory, 2. Chad, 3. Dolly, 4. volcano, pig head, palm tree, skull; 5. John K.

Immunity Challenge
Competition: Blindfolded Race & Puzzle

The Loved Ones were blindfolded and had to be directed by the Survivors to pick up three bags containing pieces to a puzzle. After the bags were collected, the Survivor and the Loved One could work on the puzzle together.

Ami and Chrissy were the first two to start on the puzzle followed closely by Chris and Lori. Eliza and Leann were never really in this one. Ami barely eked out Immunity.

Ami, Scout, Twila and Leann decide to vote off Eliza (not my Eliza!) It's Leann's idea, she just doesn't think Chris should go before her. Twila goes to Chris to tell him that he can really shake things up now if he talks with Eliza. Chris, not being as dumb as he looks, does indeed talk with Eliza. Was he convincing enough? We'll have to wait until Tribal Council.

Tribal Council
(paraphrased)
Jeff: Did your mom's visit wake you up to realize how far you are?
Eliza: Yes! Early on we all talked about how it would be nice to get this far.
Jeff: Chris, you really needed immunity.
Chris: Yes, Lori (his fiance) tried really hard. She gave it 110%.
Jeff: Leann it didn't look like you and Terri (her friend) tried all that hard.
Leann: I told her that I really didn't need immunity so we just had fun visiting. (she's in for a big surprise!)
Jeff: So Eliza you're packed again.
Eliza: Yes, you can call me paranoid if you want.
("When everyone is out to get you, paranoia is just good thinking." Dr. Johnny Fever)
Jeff: Chris as an outsider is there a lot of tension in the tribe?
Chris: Yes, it's me and six women so there's tension.

Alliances
Apparently Ami, Scout, Twila and Leann were in a final four alliance together. This fooled me, I thought it was Ami, Leann, Eliza and Julie in an alliance. Whatever the alliance, all bets are off now. Can Twila, Scout, Chris and Eliza stay together and vote off Ami next? I hope that that's their plan.

Heroes & Villains
Hopefully Ami's days are numbered now. Chris has a good shot at making the final four now.

Official Episode Title: Surprise! And ... Surprise Again!

Won Reward: Eliza
(Eliza's mom stayed with them overnight.)

Won Immunity: Ami
(This time she really needed it.)

Voted Off: Leann
Aired: 4 votes for Leann, 3 votes for Eliza
Ami & Julie voted for Eliza

Survivor Fantasy League

2004-11-22T16:54:00.000-05:00

The answer to this week's Survivor Fantasy League Bonus Question is:

Leann

The question is: On the November 19 episode of Survivor Live, which woman did Chad and the hosts think was playing the game with "subtle brilliance"?

My fearless prediction: Chris will be gone this week.
Yes, I know I predicted that he would be booted last week but he's the last man standing now so he's gone this week.

The internet is full of people predicting that Leann will be voted off. I think this is unlikely. With seven castaways left, four votes are needed to remove a player. Sure Twila, Scout and Chris would vote for her but who else? Certainly not Ami or Eliza who I think are in a "final three" alliance with Leann. Julie may be persuaded to vote off Leann but she would be in the final four either way, so what's in it for her to go against Leann?

Note: it looks like Survivor is still scheduled to air this Thursday night (Thanksgiving, so set your VCR), however Survivor Live the Internet Talk Show will not be online this week (Thursday or Friday).

Survivor Live with Chad

2004-11-20T01:24:00.000-05:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Guest: Chad
Hosts: Chris Booker & Richard Hatch, winner first Survivor

Comments made by Chad
He went before Chris because Chris lied to the women and played up the lie that at the last minute Sarge had asked Chris to vote for him. Eliza really annoyed the women but since the merger she's been cool. However she's never been in a real alliance because she can't keep her mouth shut. The Fat Five voted off John K. because they were sure that he would side with the women once a merge happened, so they trusted Twila and voted him off. Chad was friends with Rory even though Rory often lost his temper.

The immunity challenge was real difficult (it lasted about thirty minutes) and he just couldn't outlast Twila. This season's tie breaker at Tribal Council is this: a random castaway not receiving votes (at that particular TC) is removed from the game. (So you can see why Twila was reluctant to vote with the men unless they had a clear majority.) The pig that they traded the native tribe for was left behind. The kava drink really did a number on him. He couldn't feel his arms or legs.

Comments made by Richard
Twila is clueless, Scout flip-flops too much. Chris is a good micro-player but he doesn't think about the big picture. No one can count on Eliza. Rewards can be refused, traded or given away.

Episode 10, So Long Chad

2004-11-18T21:53:00.000-05:00

or Dangling Chad Falls Off Island

A few of the women waiver, but they hold together long enough to vote Chad off of Vanuatu.

Reward Challenge
Competition: Rope obstacle course
Reward: overnight sleep-over and feast with a native tribe.

They competed in two groups of four. Eliza, Chad, Chris and Ami versus Julie, Scout, Leann and Twila. Eliza and Julie had their hands tied and had to pass through a rope obstacle course. It was close but Eliza's team won.

The four of them took the pig they had been given last episode to the feast, where they exchanged it for another pig. There was a lot of singing, dancing and kava. Chad couldn't handle his kava. What's kava? A species of Macropiper (M. methysticum), the long pepper, from the root of which an intoxicating beverage is made by the Polynesians, by a process of mastication; also, the beverage itself. (thanks Webster)

As hungry as they were, they didn't describe to food too well. A cow's head with banana leaves behind it with piles of fatty meat that wasn't fully cooked. Mmm, mmm good!

Meanwhile back at camp . . .
Twila and Scout start talking about voting off Eliza next (not my Eliza!). Their reasoning, besides not liking her, is that having the men around for a few more days would be nice since they need to rebuild after the storm. Julie sort of goes along but Leann is silent. The look on Leann's face is like "wait until I tell Ami!"

Immunity Challenge
Competition: Post hanging, hang onto the side of a post as long as you can.

They went off in the following order:
Julie, Chris, Scout, Ami, Eliza, Leann, and finally Chad.

Twila wins immunity.

Twila considers voting for Eliza with Scout and the men, but then it would only be four vs. four and a random person would leave the island. So she's real reluctant to do so unless a third woman is in on it.

Tribal Council
(paraphrased)
Jeff: There's been a change in the weather (lots of storms), has it changed anything else Leann?
Leann: The change in the weather is driving me crazy (not really the answer Jeff was looking for).
Jeff: Chris are the women sticking together? Has your stock gone up?
Chris: Our (the men) stock is up, the women aren't very solid.
Chad: Chris and I have like 25-30 plans for whatever could happen.
Scout: There's been a lot of scurrying. The men have talked to everybody.
Eliza: I'm nervous and uncomfortable. The men have been plotting!
Twila: You can't trust anyone.
Ami: I know who I can trust (that would be Leann and Eliza).

Eliza really sounded surprised that the men had been talking and plotting with some of the other women. Ami and Leann really must keep her sheltered from the others.

Alliances
Ami, Leann, Eliza and Julie will pick off Twila, Scout and Chris. Maybe Twila, Scout and Chris can swing Julie over to them but I doubt it.

Heroes & Villains
Please, please don't let Ami win this. I'm really pulling for Chris now.

Official Episode Title: Culture Shock and Violent Storms!

Won Reward: Eliza, Chad, Chris and Ami
An overnight sleep-over and feast with a native tribe.

Won Immunity: Twila

Voted Off: Chad
Aired: 5 votes for Chad, 2 votes for Eliza
Ami voted for Chad; Chad and Chris for Eliza.

Survivor Live

2004-11-18T17:07:00.000-05:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Guest: No one.
Hosts: Chris Booker & Richard Hatch, winner first Survivor

Survivor Trivia
Near the end of the show they had a trivia contest. If a caller answered three questions correctly then they won a Survivor buff. The answers are at the end of this entry.

Set One
1. On Vanuatu what was the name of the women's tribe?
2. Who was the first one voted off Yasur?
3. Who was the first voted off of All-Star Survivor?

Set Two
1. On Vanuatu who's middle name is Cloud?
2. On Vanuatu what did the men win in the first episode?
3. Who did Richard Hatch beat out in the final two of the first Survivor?

Set Three
1. On Vanuatu what was the name of the Men's tribe?
2. Of the remaining Castaways on Vanuatu, who has had the most votes cast against them?
3. In the history of Survivor, who is the only one to voluntarily leave at Tribal Council without being voted off?

Comments made by Richard
Scout is still in the game because she doesn't make waves, contributes (but not in physical competitions), and is inoffensive to the others. Eliza can't stand her for some reason and it will be interesting to hear why. Ami is the leader and Scout is a good follower.

Caller: Richard when did you start to look for someone to be in the final two with?
Richard: The first day. You want someone that you can rely on and who puts off the others. Of the ones left on Vanuatu, Eliza, Chad and Chris fit the bill. However none of them is smart enough to exploit it.

Heidi was not invited to be on All-Star Survivor. She wasn't interesting enough (apparently a nice body and a willingness to get naked isn't enough). Johnny Fairplay was a good character but he was too irritating to the others to win it all.

Best Caller Observation: there hasn't been a bug eating contest yet.

Trivia Answers

Set One
1. Yasur
2. Dolly
3. Tina

Set Two
1. Scout
2. Spirit Stone
3. Kelly

Set Three
1. Lopevi
2. Ami and Leann, four each
3. Osten, Pearl Islands

Survivor Fantasy League

2004-11-15T15:45:00.000-05:00

The answer to this week's Survivor Fantasy League Bonus Question is:

chicken wings

The question is: On the November 12 episode of SURVIVOR LIVE, Sarge was upset that the women had eaten a certain food item. What was the food?

My fearless prediction: Chris will be gone this week.
Don't let the previews fool you, a man will be voted off this week. There are now eight castaways left (six women and two men) so to ensure that someone goes they need five votes. That means three women would need to side with the two lonely men and I don't see that happening.

My prediction for the final four: Ami, Leann, Eliza and Julie.
Ami and Leann have a tight alliance and they'd both like to be in the final two with Eliza. Julie was brought into the final four recently to assure that she won't defect to the men. After the men are gone, Scout and Twila will be the first women evicted. At least that's the plan, immunity may shake things up a little bit.

Survivor Live with Sarge

2004-11-12T23:12:00.000-05:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Guest: Sarge (Lea)
Hosts: Chris Booker & Richard Hatch, winner first Survivor

Comments made by Sarge
Twila was scared. She needed the assurance that another woman would go along with the men before she committed to them. Eliza is a great person and lovable (finally someone with nice things to say about her). Ami just flat out hates men, she said to him "I have no need a man." Her tone all along was hateful to men. Sarge also doesn't like Scout. She doesn't do anything and she's just floating along in the game. Julie is a deceitful player (that's good). He also didn't like the arrogant young men.

It was hard to fish without fins, but he still managed to catch about a dozen fish. The Spirit Stone was still there when he left, however it disappeared for a while (he said it was "stolen"). The men could not get Eliza alone to talk to her about voting against the other women because she was never left alone with a man (did they ever think about asking Twila to talk to her?). Sarge gained about twelve pounds before going on Survivor (he's not as dumb as he looks) and he got farther than he thought he would.

Comments made by Richard
Eliza is not bright enough to get far on her own. She's just a pawn of Ami and Leann's. Richard had to challenge Sarge when Sarge said that he was thinking ahead in the game. "Then why did you vote off John K.?" Sarge really didn't have an answer. Leann and Julie look like they really bonded on the volcano. Richard thinks Julie is now in the Fourth position.

Comment made by Chris
Chris finally had a comment that was worth writing down. Something is going on with Chris, since he not only voted for Sarge but he also tried to make it look like a woman's handwriting. Could Chris be planning on using this to sow dissent amongst the woman? I don't think he's that smart.

Episode 9, Siyanora Sarge

2004-11-12T01:25:00.000-05:00

or Two Legs Good, Three Legs Bad

Ami's grand womyn-power plan chugs right along unabated. She won immunity and Sarge had his torch extinguished.

Reward Challenge
Competition: Vanuatu trivia, 3 flames on your skull and you're out.
Reward: helicopter ride to dormant volcano for a picnic.

At just about this point in every Survivor there is a challenge like this to let everyone know where they stand with the others. In this trivia competition when someone answered a question correctly they got to light a flame on someone else's skull. Three lights on a skull and that Castaway was knocked out. As was to be expected the men were the first three to go out.

The women were eliminated in the following order: 1. Eliza (and she was hopping mad), 2. Julie, 3. Scout, 4. Ami, and 5. Twila. I'm surprised that Scout went out before Twila.

Leann won reward and wisely chose Julie to go with her on the helicopter ride and picnic. They really bad-mouthed Eliza. One of them even said she could go before Chris. (They better not let Ami hear them talking like that!)

Meanwhile back at camp, Eliza let it be known to everyone that she feels Scout and Twila have it out for her. Scout tried to placate Eliza by telling her that it was only because she's smart. Privately Scout tells us that she has been feed up with Eliza since Day 2. (Why is everyone picking on my Eliza?)

Interesting Vanuatu Trivia:
Vanuatu means "land eternal". The Vanuatu archipelago consists of 83 islands. Amongst the natives, long curved pig tusks represent wealth. Vanuatu has the highest concentration of languages on Earth with over 100 tribal languages.

Immunity Challenge
(Individual now)
Competition: puzzles, a series of similar puzzles in several rounds.
The stupid men went out in the very first round, thus quickly ending any drama in the challenge. Ami won after four rounds.

Tribal Council
(paraphrased)
Jeff: Eliza do you feel vulnerable?
Eliza: Yes, I'm the only woman to pack a bag tonight.
Jeff: Do the woman have sub-groups?
Sarge: Yes, Julie really played Twila.
Twila: I'm stuck in the middle. I like the men.
Jeff: Leann do you repsect Twila for being up front and honest?
Leann: Yes (target sighted!)
Jeff: Is duplicity part of the game Chris?
Chris: Yes, certainly.
Ami gives a nice knowing smile, like she is all safe and secure.

Alliances
The preview for next week's show says Scout makes her move. It may be too little too late. However maybe Scout, Eliza, Twila, Chris and Chad can vote off Ami. We can only hope.

Heroes & Villains
Someone please do not let Ami win this thing!

Official Episode Title: Gender Wars ... And It's Getting Ugly

Won Reward: Leann
Leann chose Julie to share the helicopter ride and picnic.

Won Immunity: Ami
like she needed it.

Voted Off: Sarge
He becomes the first member of the jury.
Aired: 5 votes for Sarge, 1 vote for Eliza, 1 vote for Julie
note: Chris voted for Sarge!

Survivor Live with Dalton

2004-11-11T23:30:00.000-05:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Guest: Dalton, TV writer for Entertainment Weekly
Hosts: Chris Booker & Richard Hatch, winner first Survivor

This Dalton guy has covered every Survivor to date and has been behind the scenes so there was a lot of general Survivor talk. I'm more interested in Vanuatu so my notes are a bit sparse.

Comments made by Dalton
Survivor is like two games in one - before and after the merge. Scout won't turn on the women. Sarge really needs to win immunity.

Comments made by Richard
The next woman most likely to go is Eliza, the man Sarge. The men should try and work Julie and Twila.

A caller asked about another All-Star Survivor:
If Mark Burnett did another one it would be different than the last one. Maybe it would be with all past winners. Jeff Probst probably wouldn't host it. The show takes him away from home for very long stretches and the egos of returning Castaways is too much for him.

Survivor Fantasy League

2004-11-08T20:44:00.000-05:00

The answer to this week's Survivor Fantasy League Bonus Question is:

Chris

The question is: On the November 5 episode of SURVIVOR LIVE, which man did Rory say has the "best opportunity" to win the game?

My fearless prediction: Sarge will be gone this week.

Survivor Live with Rory

2004-11-05T15:48:00.000-05:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Guest: Rory
Hosts: Chris Booker & Richard Hatch, winner first Survivor

Rory was really laid back and low key, nothing like the angry Rory that was shown on the last few episodes of Vanuatu.

Comments made by Rory
Twila was planning all along on sticking with the women and she really put one over on the men. Rory says that he would never have fallen for it. Julie did a good job of playing the men as well. The men who are left are playing very bad and they'll just get picked off one-by-one. Even though he was with the women's tribe it wasn't a huge part of him to be distracted by them (whatever that means).

What would Rory have done differently? He would of held his tongue a little more. However he contends it was all done with the game in mind.

Ami's biggest threat is Eliza (see, I told you that she's a player). Eliza plays all of the angles and talks to everyone and feeds others lines. Leann and Ami are strong Allies.

Amongst the men, Rory gives Chris the best chance of going the farthest. He's got a nice personality and a good sense of humor. Chad is indecisive and has a blah personality.

Comments made by Richard
Rory looked really exhausted during the immunity challenge. Richard thought Rory could beat Sarge in any physical competition. The men were very stupid not to pick up on Twila's disloyalty when Scout was so happy to see her at the reward challenge. Not that it would have definitely changed things, but they could have better worked to swing her vote over to them before Tribal Council.

Lastly the remaining men aren't smart enough to work the weaker women to shake things up, so they will be picked off in short order.

Episode 8, Rory Bagged & Tagged

2004-11-04T22:29:00.000-05:00

or Merge Mania

Lopevi wins reward, the tribes are merged, Sarge wins immunity and then at the first merged Tribal Council Rory is voted off - which surprises the heck out of the men. Rory just barely made it out of Yasur, but he couldn't dodge just one more vote. So finally, after how many votes against him?, Rory is sent packing. He came close to winning immunity too. The poor guy tried so hard and yet he doesn't even make the jury. The jury is comprised of the Castaways voted off from next episode on.

Reward Challenge
Competition: Water Toss Relay to Fire Tower
Reward: Milk, cookies and chocolate cake
This was close, but Lopevi won. Rory and Chris were the pourers.

Twila has Chris and Chad fooled. They think that she's in solid with the remnants of the Fat Five. Chris thinks he has all of his bases covered since he has deals to go to the final two with Chad, Sarge and Julie.

the Merge
They decide to settle on the old Lopevi beach and change their name to Alinta. Scout came up with the name it means People of Fire (I think) in some aboriginal language. They had a nice little party of coffee, wine and chocolate cake, which must have been at least a day or so old. Rory quickly got the men to focus on voting off Ami, because she's the leader of the women. The women have other plans and focus on Rory. Will the Lopevi women (Twila and Julie) stick with the men or vote with the women?

Immunity Challenge
(Individual now)
Competition: Swimming, climbing, flag relay.
Sarge, Eliza, Rory and Ami were in the final relays which Sarge won. I was surprised that he was strong enough to win. I thought Rory or Ami was going to win.

Tribal Council
(paraphrased)
Jeff: How about the merge?
Sarge: It' s fun.
Julie: Everyone's cooperating and the body painting is fun.
Jeff: Do you prefer separate tribes Leann?
Leann: No, this means we're advancing.
Jeff: Is this a second chance for you Rory?
Rory: Yes! I didn't think I'd make it out of Yasur.
Jeff: What's gotten you this far Ami?
Ami: My good attitude.
Jeff: Are you stuck in the middle Twila?
Twila: Yes, I've enjoyed both tribes, but I get along easier with the men.
Jeff: Do you want to keep immunity Sarge?
Sarge: Yes.

After the votes were revealed and Rory was voted off, Chad had a big "Oh my gosh!" look on his face.

Alliances
It's back to men versus women, but now they're all in the same tribe. It looks like the women can pick off the men one-by-one. Hopefully that doesn't happen or this could get a little boring for a few shows.

Heroes & Villains
Will a woman please side with the men to vote off Ami? Eliza nows the time to make your move! Julie can help too.

Official Episode Title: Now the Battle Really Begins

Won Reward: Lopevi
Milk, cookies and chocolate cake.

Won Immunity: Sarge
Yes, the tribes have merged.
Now there will be individual immunities.

Voted Off: Rory
Aired: 5 votes for Rory, 4 votes for Ami

Survivor Live with Gervase

2004-11-04T18:57:00.000-05:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Guest: Gervase Peterson, first Survivor
Hosts: Chris Booker & Richard Hatch, winner first Survivor

Comments made by Gervase
The castaways on Vanuatu really aren't thinking and playing well. Rory's next to go if Yasur has to go to Tribal Council. After the merger then being physical and winning immunities is really important. Mentally you want to hold back a little something; you don't want to be too obvious in your playing. Letters and pictures from home really pick up the player's spirits. Chad has competed well despite being differently abled. Gervase keeps in touch with Joel, Kelly and most of the Castaways from the first Survivor.

Comments made by Richard
Rory is the next to go, even-though he's working it the best he can. Julie's smart playing the flirt. Chad could get the sympathy vote if his personality fits it, although Richard isn't sure if it does. "I don't think Eliza knows how to change her shoes.", in response to a caller asking if he thinks Eliza has changed her strategy.

Survivor Fantasy League

2004-11-02T09:16:00.000-05:00

The answer to this week's Survivor Fantasy League Bonus Question is:

Chris and Twyla

(Note the spelling of 'Twyla', this is correct for the Bonus Question even though on the Survivor web site her name is spelt 'Twila'.)

The question is: On the October 29 episode of SURVIVOR LIVE, with whom did John K. say he'd like to form an alliance?

My fearless prediction:
Julie will be the next Castaway to be voted off of Survivor Vanuatu. Next, will we see all of her in Playboy?

Survivor Live with John K

2004-10-29T15:44:00.000-04:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Guest: John Kenney
Hosts: Chris Booker & Richard Hatch, winner first Survivor

Comments made by John
John knew he was in trouble the second that Brook was voted off. The Fat Five basically stopped talking to him. He tried to talk to Bubba about voting Rory off and he would have none of it. Chris is really a good liar. John tried to make an alliance with Chris and Twila and Chris lead him to believe it was a possibility. He worked to get Brady off before him. Basically John told Rory that Brady was saying bad things about him (Hatch said that that was too easy, Rory gets mad so easily). The Fat Five may be older but they're not wiser or more experienced in life than the young bucks. Hatch said, well it's not an alliance built on intelligence.

When he was with the women for an afternoon John told them about the old/young split amongst the men (aka The Fat Five). Everyone (men & women) knows Ami is in control of the women. Twila is a bigger threat on Lopevi now than Julie. The men and Lopevi are in real trouble because they don't have the numbers now.

He had a lot to say about Rory, so here it is:
Rory was the one who was really lazy (John was just lazy the last few days when he knew he was a goner). Rory napped all the time and when he did go into the jungle he ate all the food before he brought it back to camp. He may have been the first to pray each day, but Rory was also the first to curse each day too. Rory has the wrong strategy with the women. Instead of being confrontational ("I will not work if I am leaving."), he should be kissing their butts and telling them the men don't like him and were about to vote him off.

Julie getting naked was just an obvious attempt to get in Playboy. (Maybe that's why Sarge gets naked in the next episode.)

John prepared for Survivor by drinking beer and napping a lot to get his weight up to 185 pounds.

John's most humorous comment: Just imagine being with Eliza with caffeine!

Comments made by Richard
John K played well considering the circumstances. He gets the game and didn't take it personally. Ami is still playing well, but maybe a little too obvious in her control of the women. Her calm nature serves her well in the game. Rory is a lunatic and a pawn. He's also a hypocrite for his big celebration in the sling shot challenge (remember he previously criticized the women for just such an act).

Episode 7, Farewell John K

2004-10-28T21:53:00.000-04:00

or Dead Eye Rory

Yasur sweeps both of the competitons and Lopevi votes John K off of Vanuatu.

Chad and Chris are shown bad-mouthing John K. Basically they say that he's lazy.

After failing to persuade Ami that Eliza should go before him, Rory vows to go into "Self Destruct Mode". Which is his "slash, burn and salt the Earth" policy. He was really mad.

Reward Challenge
Competition: obstacle course: fill jar with coconut juice (Sarge sits out)
Reward: Home Cafe
This was fairly close, but Yasur won.
Everyone cried at the Home Cafe after reading letters and seeing pictures from home. Yes, even Rory cried. His wife's letter calmed him down, which was probably a good thing.

Immunity Challenge
Competition: sling shot: hit tiles, first tribe to twenty wins (Chris sits out)
This was all Rory. I don't know if Yasur planned it this way but Rory was able to knock out most of the tiles for them. Despite Sarge's boasting before the challenge, Lopevi was pretty bad with the sling shot. I think they were trying to knock out the tiles of the weaker players first, but even Sarge, John K and Chad had trouble hitting the targets. Why didn't Julie sit out? Was Chris that bad with a sling shot?

Tribal Council
(paraphrased)
Jeff: Back-to-back losses, Chris what happened?
Chris: I dunno, they were both close (he's right)
Jeff: Chad what's your reaction to being here?
Chad: You become even more aware of who's with who and who's talking to whom.
Jeff: Chris does everyone have a role?
Chris: Yes everyone does things to benefit the tribe (lying, what about John K?)
Jeff: Sarge what does Twila do for the tribe?
Sarge: Twila does everything. Cooks, fire wood...
Jeff: John K what bothers you about Twila?
John K: She's a work horse but she works too much. She needs to take a nap. (translation: she makes me look bad)
Jeff: Chad how do you know if you're playing well or being played?
Chad: I can just tell if I can trust someone (talks about someone's "core level", whatever)
Jeff: Does Lopevi trust you?
Julie: I hope so.
Jeff: Chris what's your vote based on?
Chris: My vote is based on trust and my future.

Alliances
Twila and Julie conferred and found out that Sarge, Chris and Chad had promised both of them an alliance to the final four. Not only are the guys fat, but they are also stupid! Didn't they think that just maybe Twila and Julie might talk about the game with each other? Over in Yasur, Rory is "an alliance of one" as he puts it.

Heroes & Villains
I really don't like Ami now. She has this irrational, womynist, lesbo idea that the women (even Twila and Julie over in Lopevi) should stay together no matter what. "A women's alliance has never won Survivor," she says. So it appears that Ami is playing Survivor (a stupid reality TV game show) for all of womenkind, what a bold grand gesture. (As a male of the species I feel so threatened.) Rory tried talking to her about Eliza going before him and Ami would have none of it. Basically no matter how valuable to the tribe Rory is, he still has a penis so he's the next one gone. On Yasur I'm rooting for Rory and Eliza, on Lopevi it's Julie and Chad.

Won Reward: Yasur, won Home Cafe (coffee, letters & pictures from home)

Official Episode Title: Anger, Threats, Tears... and Coffee

Won Immunity: Yasur

Voted Off: John K
Aired: 4 votes for John, 1 vote for Chad

Survivor Live with Tina

2004-10-28T17:16:00.000-04:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Guest: Tina Wesson (by phone), winner Survivor Outback (also on All-Star Survivor)
Hosts: Chris Booker & Richard Hatch, winner first Survivor

I watch Survivor Live to gain insight into the current game - Vanuatu. Today they spent most of the time talking about past editions of Survivor, so my notes are a little sparse today. No one asked the question "Who's playing well, who's playing bad?" or "Who do you like/dislike?"

Comments made by Tina
In general, there are two types of contestants on Survivor: Characters and Players. Rupert was more of a character than a player. Sarge is leading in a good non-threatening way. Scout is also playing well.

Comments made by Richard
Ami is the player to watch, although she may be starting to break down. Chris is not smart enough to be Sarge's puppet master. Eliza is skittish, emaciated and expected to be voted off very soon. However she makes a great pawn. Physical fitness becomes more important (and a threat) after the tribes merge and Individual Immunity is up for grabs.

Survivor Fantasy League

2004-10-26T17:02:00.000-04:00

The answer to this week's Survivor Fantasy League Bonus Question is:

Maria

The question is: On the 10/22 episode of SURVIVOR LIVE, what is the name of the caller from Louisiana who knows Lisa Keiffer from church?

My fearless prediction:
John K. will be the next Castaway to be voted off of Survivor Vanuatu. Lopevi's streak is bound to come to an end. So Sarge and the remnants of the Fat Five plus Twila will vote off the last remaining young buck.

Survivor Live with Lisa

2004-10-22T16:47:00.000-04:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Guest: Lisa Keiffer
Hosts: Chris Booker & Richard Hatch, winner first Survivor

Comments made by Lisa
Survivor was the best experience of her life, it was awesome. She applied four times (Survivors 3, 5, 7 & 9) before being accepted. CBS once asked her to be on Big Brother, but she turned them down (she wanted to be outside, I wonder if the prize money had any influence?). Her tips in applying: be clever, be creative and be yourself.

So what happened on Vanuatu? Ami surprised her and she just froze. Lisa didn't have enough time to react and rally her forces and so she thought that she would "shake it up at Tribal Council" (that never works). Lisa claims that she was a threat (I've heard that before), partly because she was strong in the competitions. Complicating things was that she was friendly with Rory and Bubba (she says she really clicked with Bubba). She obviously regrets not choosing Lopevi instead of Yasur when she had the chance.

They're fake and they're not fabulous.
When asked if her breasts were fake, Lisa jokingly replied that she can't answer because it's in her confidentiality agreement with CBS. Besides looking real fake, I infer this to mean that they are truly fake (so did Chris Booker).

the Castaways
Rory: just got lucky, he has no real plan. However, some of the women may have fallen for his "cheesy speech".
Leann: playing well, riding Ami's coat tails.
Scout: largely responsible for building their shelter; knew which leaves were edible.
Mia: an incredible person, fun to be around.
Eliza: talks even in her sleep.

Comments made by Richard
Finally Richard gives Eliza some credit for playing well, i.e. when she consoled Lisa (I think) about performing bad in a competition. However Richard still thinks Eliza is just a pawn. Rory only thinks that he's playing well, but he's just a pawn as well. Has Ami made herself a target now? Hatch seems to think that just might be the case, time will tell.

Episode 6, Lisa's Slip of the Tongue

2004-10-21T22:24:00.000-04:00

or Rory's Still Standing

The Yasur tribe loses both Reward and Immunity challenges (again) and banishes Lisa from Survivor Vanuatu.

Rory was really working it and trying to play his best. The day after the tribal council (which sent off Bubba) Rory gave a little speech. He apologized to the women for getting angry the night before, but that he's just trying to prove himself to them. That he has no loyalties with the other tribe because he doesn't know if he'll see them again. Later privately Rory described his speech as "cheesy". I don't think it really saved him. Ami just decided that if Rory went then the women would turn on each other. Who knows then, Ami could be gone. So it's better to keep Rory around as a pawn.

Reward Challenge
Competition: Hog Catcher, each tribe member must catch two pigs.
Reward: Steak and eggs! (pork chops and apple sauce would have been more fitting)
(note: Scout was the gate keeper for Yasur, Julie for Lopevi)

Eliza stunk up this one, she didn't even get one pig. Later someone, I think it was Leann, asked "did she even get dirty?" Lopevi gathered up their pigs fairly easily and won the reward. Afterwards Eliza was crying and Ami was consoling her. Of course Rory used the opportunity to put forth the idea that Eliza should be voted off. I think Leann let some of her breast slip out while she was collecting pigs. It was brief but I think I caught some pixelation.

Immunity Challenge
Under Water Obstacle Course
Competition: Move pieces of a tiki on a rope through a largely underwater obstacle course. Two castaways on beach assemble the tiki. A lot of repeated diving was involved.

Jeff said that this would wear them out and he was right. Ami and Chris, the first two through, just collapsed on the beach when they finished. The race was even until Leann (Yasur) just couldn't do it. Julie easily finished ahead of her and then John K was the final one from Lopevi and he passed her too! Eliza didn't even get a chance to try.

So Yasur, for the second week in a row, went to Tribal Council.

A slip of the tongue looks like it did in Lisa, but I think Ami was just looking for an excuse to evict one of the women. Ami was going for manioc and asked who else wanted to go. Lisa said she wanted to go so she knows where it is in case Ami is not around later. Ami took this to imply that Lisa wanted Ami voted off the island.

Meanwhile over on Lopevi's beach, Julie sunbathes nude! Sarge said he tried not to look too much (yeah, right), but that it was a fine sight to behold.

Tribal Council
(paraphrased)
Scout: We don't feel worried yet. (she should after the vote)
Leann: I feel a lot responsible for us being here. I'm not a strong swimmer.
Eliza: Am I trustworthy? Yes! (that's my girl)
Lisa: Am I trustworthy? I hope so. (Ami thinks not, good-bye!)
Ami: Loyalty is important.
Rory: I'm on the hot seat. What can I do? I give 110% and ask for a fair chance.

Alliances
On Yasur, the sapphic alliance is no more. The women have turned on themselves. Or rather Ami wanted to get rid of a rival and keep Rory around as a pawn. Scout better watch her ass from now on. Over on Lopevi, Sarge has told Twila that she's in with him, Chris and Chad. I guess that one Twila equals one Bubba. I still wouldn't count out Julie and her feminine ways.

Heroes & Villains
I still like Eliza, she doesn't seem as mouthy now. Ami has turned hard ass, so I like her less now. Is she really in tight with Eliza? Or is Eliza just her pawn? Maybe Eliza is using Ami. Scout is looking like she's out of the loop. On Lopevi I like Julie and John K.

Official Episode Title: Hog Tied

Won Reward: Lopevi, steak and eggs.

Won Immunity: Lopevi

Voted Off: Lisa
Aired: 4 votes for Lisa, 2 votes for Rory.
Lisa and Scout voted for Rory.
(how many votes has Rory had cast against him?)

Survivor Live with Lex

2004-10-21T15:35:00.000-04:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Guest: Lex van den Berghe (by phone), from Survivor Africa & All-Star Survivor
Hosts: Chris Booker & Richard Hatch, winner first Survivor

Not much insight into Vanuatu (as is typical of Thursdays), just general Survivor chit-chat.

Comments made by Lex
He's glad they mixed up the tribes. They formed alliances early so it was hard to get to know the individuals. Sixteen is a lot of players and this one started with eighteen, so it is really hard to get to know the Castaways. Also there are so many Survivor scholars now that castaways are so guarded and careful that it's hard to see the real people.

There are two general ways of playing Survivor. 1. Hard and Obvious, like Richard Hatch and Ami in Vanuatu. This has to be balanced with one or two people you can trust. 2. Slide Through (aka Fly Under the Radar). This is easier than Hard and Obvious, but riskier too. Most Castaways play Under the Radar.

Lex thinks Ami is playing well. She's not afraid to stick her neck out and make the tough calls. However his favorites are Chad and Scout. He doesn't like Eliza, "she has to go, like yesterday".

Lex prepared for All-Star Survivor by gaining twenty pounds and taking a month in Hawaii to learn survival techniques.

Amber/Boston Rob. She started out just playing him as a strategy but they fell in love. (Ahhh, isn't that so romantic?)

Comments made by Richard
As fewer and fewer Castaways remain strategy becomes more and more important. Once only a dozen or so are left and the tribes merge Richard will be better able to comment on who will win. This Survivor is particularly hard to read since alliances were formed so early in both tribes. Past strategies are risky to re-use because Mark Burnett (the producer) watches too and he changes the game from Survivor to Survivor.

Survivor Fantasy League

2004-10-18T14:53:00.000-04:00

The answer to this week's Survivor Fantasy League Bonus Question is:

earthquake

The question is: During the 10/15 episode of SURVIVOR LIVE, Richard & Chris screened a clip from SURVIVOR: VANUATU. What occurred in this clip?

My team has gotten me 315 points so far. I'm going to add Julie to my team and set bonus points to "Gets Naked". Last episode a preview of this week's show showed Julie all pixelated, so I think it's a safe bet.

Survivor Live with Travis

2004-10-15T15:55:00.000-04:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Guest: Travis Sampson (aka Bubba)
Hosts: Chris Booker & Richard Hatch, winner first Survivor

Even-though I'm not a fan of Bubba's, he did have some nice insights into how the game is being played on Vanuatu.

Comments made by Bubba
His strategy was to not let the others see that he was playing the game. (Is this a variation of "flying under the radar"?) Bubba was in tight with Chris, who's actively and openly playing the game. They were planning to go to the final three with Rory, who they thought no one would give the million dollars to. Furthermore Rory could be voted off whenever the need arose. They (Bubba & Chris) were making Sarge feel like he was the leader. Chris was also a focus of the tribe, which was fine for Bubba because no one was thinking about him playing the game with Sarge and Chris in the limelight. By the way, Chris was really struggling on the beam. He wasn't throwing the challenge.

Fat Five
Early on the four young bucks boasted quite openly about being an alliance. So the other five formed an alliance as a result of the young ones' stupidity (four out of nine is not a safe majority).

In the New Tribe
The Fat Five tried to plan for something like the new coed tribes, but you can't plan for everything. Lisa warned him before the Immunity Challenge that Ami didn't like him and that he was the most likely to be voted off. That's why he took the chance in communicating with Chris; he was a goner anyway. Bubba was connecting with Scout, but this game is not about making friends.

Orange Bob Barker t-shirt
It was his lucky shirt. "Everyone" had one in high school. He and his grandfather used to watch Price is Right together.

Comments made by Richard Hatch
Richard had fewer comments of note than is usually the case. Bubba was the real talkative one today, which is how it should be. Ami is looking like she is in control and playing well. However she is sticking out a little bit now, which isn't good for her. Lisa must be playing some sort of game we're not seeing. Otherwise he feels she's playing real bad. Chris is being too obvious in his support of Sarge.

Episode 5, Bye Bye Bubba

2004-10-14T22:08:00.000-04:00

or the Earth Moved Under Our Feet

The tribes go coed and the reconstituted Lopevi wins both the Reward and Immunity challenges. Bubba packs up his stupid orange Bob Barker t-shirt and leaves.

"Drop Your Buffs" The New Tribes
Scout, as chief of the women, split the men and women evenly into new tribes (although they kept the old names) and Sarge, as chief of the men, picked which new tribe he wanted to join. Lisa, the extra woman, got to chose which tribe she joined.

Here are the new tribes.
Yasur: Scout, Rory, Eliza, Bubba, Leann, Ami, Lisa
Lopevi: Sarge, Chad, Julie, Chris, Twila, John K.

Reward Challenge Going Down!
Competition: swim out to a buoy, dive down and untie markers, return markers to platform.
Reward: Waterfall, Pringles and beer.
(note: Bubba sat out)

This was a close challenge. As time was running out, it came down to Chris and Ami. Which one would bring up the winning marker? Would you believe Chris? Well, he did it. He beat out Ami to win potato chips and beer for his new tribe. Oh, and the waterfall too. Julie, her red bikini and the waterfall were real easy on the eyes (I may have a new favorite amongst the ladies). Sarge quote: "This tastes like gold." He was referring to the potato chips, not the beer.

Immunity Challenge
Super Karate Monkey Death Canoe
Competition: tribes race to untie parts of a canoe, build the canoe, paddle said canoe out to retrieve tribe flag. (note: Scout sat out)

Lopevi lead pretty much all the way and won immunity.
Chad and John K. paddled for Lopevi, Ami and Bubba for Yasur. "That was some of the worse paddling I've ever seen," Jeff commenting on Ami and Bubba. Before the start of the competition, the Yasur women catch Bubba trying to communicate something with Chris in the other tribe.

Back at the camp Eliza, who's usually very talkative, had trouble finding words. She eventually said that she was reluctant to vote off one of the men because they needed their strength. She quickly lost all doubt when informed it would be a woman then.

Tribal Council
(paraphrased)
Jeff: Are you all truly a new tribe?
Lisa: I enjoy having the men around.
Leann: I haven't made the mental switch yet.
Ami: In the morning I though so, but then I caught Bubba communicating with the other tribe (Chris).
Bubba: I messed up, but I was trying to receive info not send it. I wanted to see if they were going to throw the challenge. (yeah, right)
Jeff: Rory, are you worried?
Rory: Yeah, but I'd be in this position unless we won immunity. (duh!)
Jeff: Bubba and Rory, why should they keep you?
Bubba: I busted my butt and I've never been in the ocean before. I'm a team player.
Rory: I'll give 110% as part of the tribe. I'll go down with the ship.
Scout: I like both Bubba and Rory.

Alliances
In Yasur it's simple. Four women to one man. Rory is gone if Yasur has to go to Tribal Council again. On the other hand, Lopevi should be interesting. John K., who never was one of the Fat Five, should try and team up with Julie and Twila to vote off Chad or, more likely, Chris. I think Julie would be open to such an alliance.

Heroes & Villains
I still like Eliza although Julie has my attention too now. I'm not too fond of Ami, she was a bit of a hard ass tonight. Bye bye Bubba, bye bye; I'm glad you're gone. I'm rooting for John K. now. I think he can make it to the merge (if there is a merge).

Bubba Quote
"I'm sweatin' like a prostitute in a church."
Commenting on how he feels to
be out numbered by the women.

Official Episode Title: Earthquakes and Shake Ups!

Won Immunity: Lopevi

Won Reward: Lopevi

Voted Off: Travis aka Bubba
Aired: 4 votes for Bubba, 1 vote for Rory.

Survivor Live with Rob

2004-10-14T16:02:00.000-04:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Guest: Rob Cesternino, Survivor Amazon
Hosts: Chris Booker & Richard Hatch, winner first Survivor

Technical note: sound and video were awful and my browser shut down on me once.

Comments made by Richard Hatch
Rory is fun to watch because he's a "train-wreck". Lisa is vulnerable since she shocked the other women by switching her vote. Chris is not looking like he's the brightest bulb in the box, he's got a fearful look to him. Chad's leg (or rather the lack there of) hasn't slowed him down and probably won't in the challenges. Dah was a great reward, though Richard doesn't understand why the women were singing to him as he left them.

"Rupert caught guppies!"
Hatch believes himself to be the only great fisherman in the history of Survivor. He also disparages the fishing ability of Boston Rob.

Advice before going on Survivor: know yourself and realize it's a game, don't get hung up on "lying".

Comments made by Rob
Chris will make it farther than some think. He's "in the ear" of Sarge so he'll go far with the Fat Force Five. Chad is playing well. Scout is a wild card since she has Twila as a buffer.

Advice before going on Survivor: watch a lot of reality TV. He may be biased because he was also plugging a reality TV website that he's involved with - the Fish Bowl.

the Callers
Chris continues to be a favorite of the callers. One caller even said he was the Richard Hatch of Vanuatu; again Hatch found this laughable. Another caller thinks Chris faked his struggle on the balance beam (Hatch has severe doubts).

Eliza has her fans as well. One viewer even predicts that she'll be in the final two with Ami! (I like Eliza, but I don't think she's getting that far.) Another Eliza fan said that she's getting him a lot of points in the Fantasy League.

Survivor Fantasy League

2004-10-12T10:34:00.000-04:00

The answer to this week's Survivor Fantasy League Bonus Question is:

panoramic roof

The question is: On the October 8th episode of SURVIVOR LIVE, which feature of the Pontiac G6 did Richard Hatch talk about?

I usually watch Survivor Live and blog my notes and opinions right here. Additionally I will post the answer to the Bouns Questions as I get them. The answer is something that was talked about during the Friday edition of Survivor Live. The hosts don't tell us what the question will be during the show. If you're playing Survivor Fantasy League then the Bonus Question is worth an extra 40 points to your team.

How are you doing with your Fantasy Team? I have 215 points right now. There are people who have broken 1,000 points already and I don't know how they do it. I've played in several Survivor Fantasy Leagues and I've never done well.

Survivor Live with Kathy

2004-10-08T16:31:00.000-04:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Guest: Kathy (by phone) from Survivor Marquesas & All-Star Survivor
Hosts: Chris Booker & Richard Hatch, winner first Survivor

Usually on the Friday Survivor Live the guest is the Castaway that was voted off the night before, which in this case would be Brady. However, according to Booker and Hatch, his employer prefers that he not be in the public eye. Also they said that this goes for all media and Survivor Live is not being singled out. Brady's occupation at CBS.com is listed as FBI Agent/Ex-military.

As a consequence of Brady's absence, today's show was as boring and uninformative as Thursday shows often are. Unless I really like the guest it's difficult for me to get into the show. I don't care for Kathy so today's show was a disappointment for me. (I do like Shii Ann but was also disappointed that yesterday's show was cut to thirty minutes - woe is me.)

Technical Note: today's show was back to the choppy video, but the sound was fine thru-out the broadcast.

Comments made by Richard Hatch
Sarge showed how big his ego is when after losing the puzzle immunity challenge he said 'I knew how to do it but Rory was the eyes'. Sarge won't last long. Rory has lightened up as evidenced by his complimenting the women after they won a challenge. Ami is playing well (calm and understated). Bubba is playing awfully bad. It was way too early to cry about being homesick.

Comments made by Kathy
Kathy agrees that Ami is playing well, but disagrees with Richard about Bubba. She thinks he's playing well.

Comments made by Callers
Several callers think that Chris is the real mastermind of Fat Force Five. Hatch found that to be laughable (so do I).

Episode 4, No Brady in this Bunch

2004-10-07T22:31:00.000-04:00

The bickering uncooperative men lost both challenges and sent Brady packing despite his fishing skills which he thought might save him.

Reward Challenge
Husker Du, do you remember?
The women really kicked the men's collective butt in this memory reward challenge. The men played foolishly. If you don't remember where a match is then don't reveal a new object to the women. Stupid, stupid stupid! Twice the women were all over the men's mistakes, like white on rice.

Immunity Challenge
Tile Me Up, Tile Me Down
The men were going in a dozen different directions to their detriment. No one listened to Rory who was supposed to be their 'eyes'. It was a total mess. On the other hand, the women worked the problem out logically and then cooperated to get'er done. Eliza was the 'eyes' for the women (and she has nice eyes too).

Tribal Council
(paraphrased)
Jeff: Rory you seem to have zero respect, you've gotten votes every TC and no one listened to you during the immunity challenge. Are you worried?
Rory: I'm scared as hell.
Jeff: The momentum seems to have shifted to the women. Bubba, do any of you sense it too?
Bubba: We sure do, the women kicked us in the groin today.
Jeff: Brady did the guys start playing individually too soon?
Brady: Basically yes, from the get-go.
Chris: We don't know how the women are playing!
Jeff: Does it matter if they merge with numbers against the you? They'll just pick you off one-by-one!

Jeff seemed to do his best to get the men to play better as a team. I wonder if it will help any?

Alliances
Obviously the Fat Five are a force to be reckoned with in the men's tribe. OK it's really only a problem for John K., who's the last young buck left. After he's out of the way, the Fat Five can turn on each other. The women seemed worried about what Eliza is doing but winning immunity has bought her some time.

Heroes & Villains
At this point, I really can't say I like any of the men. That orange Bob Barker t-shirt of Bubba's has got to go. Chad is so boring that if it weren't for his prosthetic leg I wouldn't be able to recognize him. Sarge bugs me the most. He said that he learned that when you "go to war" you "take your strongest warriors". This isn't some great insight, but he thought it was. "No warrior scholar is he", Yoda.

My two favorite women are Eliza and Ami (what is that tattoo on her lower back?). Twila annoys me. I wish she weren't around.

Bubba Quote
"The women kicked us in the groin today."
Not one of Travis' better sayings, but it will do.

Official Episode Title: Now That's a Reward

Won Immunity: Yasur Tribe (color yellow, gender female)

Won Reward: Yasur Tribe (color yellow, gender female)
They won the services for one day of Dah, an island native, who showed them that food is everywhere. Leaves, roots and sugar cane. Oh my!

Voted Off: Brady
Only one vote for Rory.

Survivor Live with Shii Ann

2004-10-07T17:16:00.000-04:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Thursday, Oct. 7, 2004
Guest: Shii Ann from Survivor Thailand & All-Star Survivor
Hosts: Chris Booker & Richard Hatch, winner first Survivor

The show started about thirty minutes late (for technical reasons?) but still ended at 3:00 pm. So this was an abbreviated thirty minute show. Initially the sound was awful but when they straightened everything out, in addition to fixing the sound, the picture was clearer than in past shows.

Comments made by Richard Hatch
The non-merger twist on Survivor Thailand that Shii Ann fell for was one of the biggest in all of the Survivor seasons. Also he said of Shii Ann: "This chick can eat!". Bugs and entrails don't bother her. Also she eats constantly. Finally he's still getting to know the current Castaways and it's too early to predict who will win.

Comments made by Shii Ann
Shii Ann likes Twila but doesn't think that she's playing well. On Survivor Thailand the Castaways picked their own tribes and she didn't like her tribe (she fell into the young tribe). She basically said that they were idiots (she usually hangs out with "people who read") and she was a target all along. Despite messing up the non-merge twist, she's proud about how long she lasted on Survivor Thailand. On All-Star Survivor her strategy was to wait and see what happened (aka "Fly Under the Radar"). A caller asked "Why don't they practice making fire before going on Survivor?" Shii Ann responded that people do, however it's much more humid and damp so it's harder on the tropical islands where they play Survivor. Shii Ann said that she's currently working in the real estate business in New York City. Her picks to do well: Scout and Chad. Not playing well: Eliza and Rory.

Caller Comment
A caller said that he remembered that in the very first Episode Jeff said something like: "These will be your tribes for the duration of Survivor Vanuatu." This would imply that there won't be a merge! I doubt this is the case and Richard Hatch was also skeptical.

Survivor Live with John P. & Mia

2004-10-01T16:33:00.000-04:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Friday, Oct. 1, 2004
Guests: John P. & Mia (Dolly called in to say "Hello".)
Hosts: Chris Booker & Richard Hatch, winner first Survivor

Today's show was more informative and lively than yesterday's show.

Richard Hatch Comments
Flexibility is a key attribute to do well on Survivor. John P. wasn't and it cost him. He expected to be in a mixed gender tribe and didn't adjust to the all male group as well as the old/young split. Also John P. was too confrontational, especially in dealing with Chris. Starting a confrontation just makes you a target.

The women were stupid to reveal to John K who voted for Dolly. Twila doesn't have the social skills to last long. In the Fat Five (Old Guy Alliance), Chris is just a pawn.

Hundreds of hours are filmed for each hour of Survivor broadcast and the show does a good job of being accurate.

John P. Comments
He really doesn't like Chris. The "all frame, no brain" comment really stung. Basically he said Chris is an annoying, back stabbing slacker.

His preparation: he practiced making fire and watched tapes of past shows.

Chad has no real personality. Sarge is playing well, he's the father figure.

What John P would do differently: suck up to the pawns.

Mia Comments
Why did she run at the mouth so much? She thought that her alliance had the numbers and she was just being herself. (She said something like: "I know I have a mouth on me.") Apparently Lisa was the swing vote. They didn't consider voting off Eliza because they felt once they merged she would annoy the men so much that she would go then. John K. mentioned Eliza's talkativeness and he was with the women for only a few hours!

Ami is playing well. Her speech about French braids was real smooth. Obviously Mia doesn't think Twila will do well.

What would Mia do differently? Keep her mouth shut (duh!).

Episode 3, Momma Mia

2004-09-30T21:59:00.000-04:00

or Mirror, Mirror

On tonight's episode the two tribes were mirror images of each other. It started by showing the men debating whether to vote off Rory or John P., while the women were debating whether to vote off Mia or Twila. (By the way, I think the Mia/Twila fight is one of the more memorable on Survivor.) Then at the Tribal Councils, the older alliances voted off the younger Castaway in five to three votes.

In between was a joint Reward/Immunity Challenge. John K. won immunity and then showed me that he's not the mimbo that I thought he was. In a single afternoon he found out the alliances in the women's tribe. Then at Tribal Council he let the other men know what he found out. Furthermore his little speech after passing immunity to Ami didn't make him any enemies with the women. All in all, a good day for John K.

Tribal Council, Men's Division
Brady, any change in first impressions? Answer: Sarge isn't as big a hard ass as I first thought. (he's just sucking up to the 'leader')

Sarge, is this a tough vote? Answer: Yes, but I'm here to play.

Voted off: John P. (five votes, Chad, Chris, Lea, Rory, Travis)
Rory (three votes, Brady, John K., John P.)

Tribal Council, Women's Division
Ami was surprised that John K. gave her immunity (translation: 'I didn't lobby for this. Please don't hold it against me.')

Scout said something about voting to maintain a healthy, harmonious tribe and Mia and Twila had one last fight.

Voted off: Mia (five votes, Ami, Leann, Lisa, Scout, Twila)
Twila: three votes (Eliza, Julie, Mia)

Quote:
Scout: "Mia, good luck in finding a husband who will put up with you."

(Bubba let me down, he didn't have one of his memorable quips this episode.)

Official Episode Title: Double Tribal, Double Trouble

Survivor Live with Jenna Morasca

2004-09-30T17:52:00.000-04:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Thursday, Sept. 30, 2004
Guest: Jenna Morasca (by phone), winner Survivor Amazon
Hosts: Chris Booker & Richard Hatch, winner first Survivor

This was the least informative Survivor Live yet. Richard and Jenna both think that about half of the Castaways on any given Survivor don't play the game very well (and it really drives Richard nuts). Jenna doesn't understand Rupert's popularity among viewers. Apparently he's real hard to live with on a desert island. She also resents him 'winning' a million dollars without surviving an entire Survivor season. Jenna spends time now traveling, writing a column for a magazine (a women's mag., sorry I missed which one) and helping Ethan with his Grassroots Soccer AIDS foundation. She'll be traveling with him to Africa soon.

Not doing well at Survivor Fantasy League? Well, don't feel too bad because Chris and Richard only have 40 points.

Finally, I'll conclude with comments that Richard and Jenna made about the current Castaways.

Richard Hatch
Ami: solid, playing well
John P.: clueless
Rory: a good bet to be voted off tonight
Sarge: playing better now

Jenna Morasca
Most likely to go tonight: Mia, John P., and Brady
Rory and Eliza: not playing well at all

Survivor Live with Dolly

2004-09-24T16:23:00.000-04:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Friday, Sept. 24, 2004
Guest: Dolly, second Castaway voted off Vanuatu
Hosts: Chris Booker & Richard Hatch, winner first Survivor

First off, let me just say I think Dolly is one big phony. She is not a poor sheep farmer from Pennsylvania. She inherited a 90 acre farm form her grandfather and only has 40 sheep on it (from her bio at CBS.com). I really doubt that she makes a living off of that few sheep. But what really convinced me that she is a phony is when her Mercedes car dealer called during the talk show. I bet she listed her occupation as "Sheep Herder" because she felt "Idle Rich" wouldn't get any sympathy.

I've broken it up into Dolly comments and Richard Hatch comments.

Dolly

I thought that they would want to keep my positive spirit around, instead they wanted my beautiful ass gone (well, isn't she modest?). She wouldn't do anything differently, she was just herself out there. Her faith made her naive in the game. It was great just to participate on Survivor. It was harder physically and mentally than she thought it would be. She was never dirtier or hairier. Mentally the maggots were the toughest, they made her cry. Her biggest problem was that she cannot read people well.

Lisa wants to be involved in, and try, everything. Eliza talks nonstop and Mia is also very talkative. Scout is a mother figure and a leader. Twila is the Rupert of Vanuatu. Brook has nice abs (Richard agreed).

Richard Hatch

Overall Richard had kind words for Dolly. He said she has a calm beautiful personality. Her biggest mistake was that she was indecisive when they came to her asking who she wanted to vote off. (I guess the reasoning is, that if you don't care who's voted off then you have no alliance and therefore an easy target yourself.)

Survivor is a brilliantly created mental game that anyone can win. Speeches at Tribal Council usually don't sway anybody's vote. Players rarely can keep secrets and it's best to let information out early that may effect people's perception of you. This was commenting on Ami and Scout letting the others know that they are lesbians. Survivor is harder than it looks.

Eliza and Mia aren't playing well. They are irritating the others by talking too much. Scout's got it going on. Twila is not going to win it because she is too driven. (Again, hard asses rarely go far in this game)

Odds & Ends

Dolly doesn't like Big Brother. The eggs were boiled and eaten. They were fertilized so they had little chicks forming inside them, but they ate them anyway. Best caller question: What makes you think you could kill a chicken by throwing a rock at it?

Episode 2, Good-bye Dolly

2004-09-23T22:39:00.000-04:00

or Revenge of the Spirit Stone

The women managed to win the Reward Challenge but lost Immunity and sent Dolly back to her flock of sheep. Before the Immunity competition, Chad said the guys are focusing more on the Spirit Stone now, apparently they were neglecting it before. Did the Spirit Stone help the men win Immunity? We may never know for sure.

Survivor Rule #2:
If you think you're the swing vote then there's a very good chance you're the one being voted off at Tribal Council. Dolly thought she was the swing vote between the Old Gal Alliance and the Sorority Girls and she said good-bye tonight.

Reward Challenge
I'm Not Touching You.
Why did the guys have such a hard time on the balance beam? Are they so homophobic that they didn't want to hold each other as they maneuvered across the beam? I was amazed at Chad. He did well and he's missing half a leg.

Immunity Challenge
You Wanna Piece of This?
As soon as they blindfolded the Castaways, I knew someone was going to get hit with something. Remember Big Tom in All Star Survivor (I think), he took a plank to the head. Although it didn't seem to knock any sense into him. Tonight Jeff winced as one of the women fell hard over one of the pieces.

I don't think Sarge made any friends with his directing/yelling during the IC ("Stop, you are messing me up!"). He was irritating me and I was just watching him on TV.

Tribal Council
Scout: I blew it during the Immunity Challenge. (nice and honest)
Twila: I get a lot of help with work around the camp. (she's a good liar)
Leann: Sleep has been tough so far. (just stating the obvious)
Dolly: I'm getting along well, it's hard being the swing vote. (see Rule #2)
Eliza: I'm worried that I could be voted off. (very perceptive)

Alliances
Don't Trust Anyone Over 30
Ami talked about the split between the old and young in the women's tribe so here are the numbers. Ami 31 years old, Leann 35, Lisa 44, Scout 59 and Twila 41. I bet they all voted for Dolly. Eliza 21, Julie 23, Mia 30 and Dolly 25. I bet they all voted for Leann.

Heroes & Villains
I still like Eliza. I didn't like Dolly, I hate it when Castaways cry. Mia just bugs me. I thought I'd like Scout more but she's too diplomatic. That's why I like Twila, she's a straight talker.

Rory and Chad are cool. Lea "Sarge" and Travis "Bubba" really annoy me; Brady, John P., John K. less so.

Bubba Quote
"I slept like a baby last night. I woke up every five minutes and cried."

Bubba Quote (Episode 1)
"That's easier than pouring pee out of a boot on to a flat rock."

Official Episode Title: Burly Girls, Bowheads, Young Studs and the Old Bunch

Won Immunity: Lopevi Tribe (color red, gender male), plus they won fire.

Won Reward: Yasur Tribe (color yellow, gender female) hammock, pillows, blankets. They had fire already.

Voted off: Dolly, 5 votes to 4.
Leann had 4 votes.

Survivor Live with Ethan

2004-09-23T16:46:00.000-04:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Thursday, Sept. 23, 2004
Guest: Ethan Zahn, winner Survivor Africa
Hosts: Chris Booker & Richard Hatch, winner first Survivor

I listened live again this afternoon and here are some of my notes. I've broken it up into Richard Hatch comments, Ethan Zahn comments and Caller Questions (that both answered). Again host Chris Booker didn't add much to the show.

Ethan Zahn

Ethan didn't have many earth-shocking revelations. He did say a successful alliance is made up of people who compliment each other. A caller asked if he would do Survivor Africa again. He said he isn't sure that he would do it, that physically it was very difficult. Richard Hatch thinks Africa was the most difficult physically.

Richard Hatch

As you can imagine, Richard had a lot to say. Here is what I think was the most insightful.

Survivor has changed since the first season, which he won. Players now need to be more subtle. He was more direct in the first season. Players must focus on the game and not the cameras. The players who are concerned with face time usually don't do well.

Does he really dislike Sue Hawk? Yes, she just rubs him the wrong way. He doesn't feel he sexually abused her in All Star Survivor and Ethan agreed with him.

Lastly Richard doesn't understand why Ethan didn't want an alliance with him in All Star Survivor. He feels the two former winners could have gone farther as a team. By the way, each of them said that they thought that they had a decent chance of winning All Star Survivor.

Caller Questions (paraphrased)

What do you think about the strategy of voting off the physically strongest players first? For example Brook on Vanuatu?

Ethan: You need them around to win challenges.

Richard: The mental part of the game and inter-personal relationships are more important in the long run. However early on it's a little random, they're just looking at more superficial things.

What about alliances forming along age lines?

Ethan: It's a common theme and it's nice that this time the older players are stronger. Usually the younger players pick of the older players.

Richard: It's still early in the game and only time will tell if these alliances hold up.

Is Brady a threat?

Richard: Yes, especially early on in the game. Hard to tell long term.

Ethan: Brady is smart enough to play the game the right way.

Finally they were going to select their choices for the Survivor Fantasy League, but I don't remember them doing this. If I just missed their picks and you know them please email them to me (mydree[at]yahoo.com). However during the show, Richard Hatch said that he likes Julie (native American beauty), John K. (mimbo), Scout (older renaissance woman) and Chad (bald, peg leg). He dislikes Sarge. Ethan agreed that he likes Julie and Scout.

Survivor Live with Jeff

2004-09-17T17:40:00.000-04:00

Broadcast live at CBS.com (it's free), Thurdays and Fridays, 2:00 pm ET / 11:00 am PT. Old shows are archived online for later viewing. Hosted by Chris Booker and Richard Hatch, first Survivor winner. I'll watch and blog as I get time. Note: I have a broadband connection, but the video is a bit choppy (audio is fine).

Survivor Live - Premiere - Thursday, 09.16.2004 - 38:12
The premiere of Survivor Live: the Internet Talk Show with special guest Jeff Probst.

I watched the first show and here are my notes regarding Richard Hatch's and Jeff Probst's comments (that Chris Booker guy pretty much just answered the phone).

Jeff Probst
Twila, single mom, stood out. She works three jobs and could really use the money. Working all those jobs, she has little social life and it will be interesting to see how she fits in.

Vanuatu was mild compared to All Star Survivor, where it rained 36 of the 39 days. Also the bugs weren't as bad on Vanuatu. Jeff said he was against All Star Survivor and thought it was a bad idea. He didn't think viewers wanted to see people play the game a second time. By the way, I thought it was a good idea. While shooting Vanuatu they experienced a 5.7 earthquake. He didn't say if it makes the show or not.

This is the first Survivor to have eighteen castaways, yet there are still only sixteen hours of show. So the castaways don't have a regular schedule to plan and plot around. A Tribal Council isn't every three days like in the past and maybe more than one person is sent off at a single Tribal Council.

Richard Hatch
He said that it was rare that someone played the game well all the way through it. Some people are really clueless when playing, like Lexx in All Star Survivor. The game is more mental than physical. The most important quality to do well in the game is self-awareness.

Who he thinks may go far, just from their bios and audition tapes: John K. (the mimbo) and Scout, the 59 year old renaissance woman. Hatch thinks John K. is smarter than he lets on and Scout has that self-awareness that's so important. He doesn't like John P. or Mia.

Episode 1, Fire Beats Spirit Rock

2004-09-16T22:07:00.000-04:00

Women Win Immunity and Fire, Men Left Holding Spirit Rock (it brings good luck, so they have that going for them). Men vote off Brook (the spirit rock isn't warmed up yet).

I found the start of this Survivor to be unique and interesting. Most Survivor's start with the Castaways searching for their beaches. This one started with a ceremony by the local natives (they're reformed cannibals) that involved the ritualistic slaughtering of a wild pig and the climbing of a greased pole to get a spirit rock (Brady did the honors). I wonder who's idea it was to start the ritual by separating the men and the women? Is that part of the ceremony or did the producers want it to be that way?

Immunity Challenge
The men deserved to lose immunity. No one went to help Chris get across the beam. They all just stood there looking like idiots. At this stage, team work is very important. Was it Survivor Amazon where they started out men versus women? Whichever one it was, the women won the first four or five challenges. I hope this one is different. It gets boring for me if the same tribe loses over and over again.

Alliances
In the women's tribe it's too early to tell who's forming an alliance. This episode focused on the men since they had to vote someone off the island. By the voting, I'd say the older men are in an alliance to get rid of the young bucks. Brook was a young (27) athlete (hockey player) and the first to go. Chris (33) is not athletic and messed up the immunity challenge, yet he's still playing. That says it all.

Heroes & Villains
No real stand-outs yet. Chad (bald, peg leg) seems likable. I didn't like Lea, he refers to himself as "Sarge" (it just bugs me, OK?). Eliza seems to be stirring up the women. She speaks her mind, so I'd like her to stay around for a while (plus she's easy on the eyes).

Final thought: Why wasn't this a two hour show? The opening ceremony, immunity challenge and the Tribal Council took a lot of time. It didn't leave much time to show plotting and scheming.

Official Episode Title: "They Came at Us With Spears"

Luxury Challenge: none shown

Won Immunity: Yasur, the women's tribe (and flint to make fire)

Voted off: Brook
Voted for Brook: Chad (age 35), Chris (33), John P. (31), Lea "Sarge" (40), Rory (35), Travis (33).
Voted for Chris: Brook (27), John K. (22).
Voted for Rory: Brady (33), the FBI guy.

It appears the two youngest were told everyone was voting for Chris. But why wasn't Brady in with the pack of old wolves?

Meet the Castaways

2004-09-15T16:25:00.000-04:00

I read through their biographies so you don't have to. Here are my notes and thoughts.

Ami, 31 barista/model, Lakewood, CO
Has attended art school and worked as a charitable director. She looks forward to being a mom and taking care of her family and she is currently dating Crissy, whom she's been with for three years.

Brady, 33, FBI Agent/Ex-Military, Huntington Beach, CA
This guy appears to be a hard ass, and they almost never go far in this game.

Brook, 27, Project Manager, Winthrop, MA
Likes to play ice hockey. Hockey players are generally outgoing people so he should do well in Vanuatu.

Chad, 35, Teacher, Oakland, CA
Cancer survivor (2 years cancer free), amputated below right knee. If he can survive cancer, Survivor should be a piece of cake.

Chris, 33, Highway Construction, South Vienna, OH
An outgoing NASCAR dad, aspires to be a teacher.

Dolly, 25, Sheep Farmer, Mercer, PA
A conservative's wet dream. She's cute, rich, a member of the NRA and a devout Christian. She wouldn't do anything that would jeopardize her spot in heaven. She may be in trouble as long as "Thou Shall Not Lie" is a requirement for heaven.

Eliza, 21, Pre-Law Student, Syracuse, NY
She's a senior at Syracuse University, where she is working a dual major in international relations and political science, with a minor in Chinese. She is a Dean's Scholar and has made Dean's List every semester. She may be too smart for her own good, kind of like Shi Ann in Thailand.

John K., 22, Mechanical Bull Operator/Model, Los Angeles, CA
A mimbo (male bimbo), the sooner he's gone the better.

John P., 31, Sales Manager, Los Angeles, CA
The home-coming king type: football scholarship, MBA, scuba diver, hunter (you know the routine). Could go far if he doesn't have an overbearing personality.

Julie, 23, Youth Mentor, Gorham, ME
A native American beauty, recently reunited with her sister. The two were separated when adopted as children.

Lea "Sarge" Masters, 40, Drill Sergeant, Columbia, SC
Also has a Masters in Chemical Engineering. He's not going to make them call him "Sarge" is he? Again, hard asses rarely go far in this game.

Leann, 35, Research Assistant, Kansasville, WI
Has worked in commercial print modeling and is an aspiring actress. She has only one kidney, she donated her other kidney to her dad.

Lisa, 44, Real Estate Agent, New Orleans, LA
She attended Louisiana State University for three years, where she was an LSU cheerleader. Employed for 10 years as a pharmaceutical sales representative. Born-again Christian.

Mia, 30, Finance Manager, Toms River, NJ
She attended Northeastern College in Boston, where she received a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice. While in Boston, she tended bar for 10 years. Bar tenders for some reason don't usually do well in reality shows.

Rory, 35, S8 Housing Case Manager, Des Moines, IA
He may be too much of a good guy to go far in this game: inner-city social service worker, counselor specializing in substance abuse, mental health evaluations and drug testing. And he's spent time working in adult and adolescent corrections and detention centers. Or he could be another Rupert.

Dr. Scout Cloud Lee, 59, Rancher/Entrepreneur, Stillwater, OK
A renaissance woman: a motivational speaker, entrepreneur, rancher, former university professor and author of eleven books and more than 100 articles. In the 1980s, Lee began focusing her skills as a singer/songwriter and has since produced two compact discs. She calls her original tunes "Country Rock Gypsy Funk." Lee has survived cancer, bankruptcy, divorce, car wrecks and horse bucks. Has had a knee replacement. Lee is in a committed relationship with Annie, her best friend and playmate of twenty-six years. Old people don't usually do well, but she could have the staying power of Rudy.

Travis "Bubba" Sampson, 33, Loss Prevention, Blountville, TN
Southern conservative. Former wrestler (known as "Romeo Bliss") and he attended a police academy. He wants to bring leadership and aggressiveness to Survivor (good luck). What, yet another hard ass? He's the one with the orange Bob Barker t-shirt.

Twila, 41, Highway Repair, Marshall, MO
A single mom, she says she's in it for the challenge. She has the usual list of outdoor activities and could go do well on Vanuatu.

Note: the castaways will reportedly start divided by gender in tribes of women and men.

Survivor Starts September 16, 2004

2004-09-02T18:37:00.000-04:00

The next season of Survivor starts Thursday, September 16, 2004.

Until then, why not get to know the survivors?

Survivor 9 Home Page at CBS