Survivor - 11/15

[randwill]

That's odd. During the 'reward', the boat they kept showing was a different boat from the one the survivors were on. Or so it looked to me.

[Ring]

How anybody, whose ears aren't stuffed up by testosterone, could stand Courtney is beyond my comprehension.

I don't know how I do it, but every time she talks I do something with my ears that makes some kind of sound that drowns her out.

God, she's so shrill, silly, skeletal and stupid I just can't stand it.

[Terminus Est]

I'm concerned about Hot Amanda. Her butt seems to have developed a terminal case of the fuzzies.

[Ring]

I'm concerned about Hot Amanda. Her butt seems to have developed a terminal case of the fuzzies.

Yeah, that's really strange. I'm absolutely positive that no evil skin was showing, so it's got to be something else. But what?

[Slacker]

Yeah, that's really strange. I'm absolutely positive that no evil skin was showing, so it's got to be something else. But what?
NBC brand jeans?

[jk1245]

Anyone else notice that Courtney voted for her new love Frosti?

That'll kill any budding romance.

[Sapo]

Yeah, that's really strange. I'm absolutely positive that no evil skin was showing, so it's got to be something else. But what?
My new guess is that she somehow ripped her pants and her butt is showing through.

What is it with jerk voids that people feel like they must be filled? Take it easy, James.

I feel bad for Frosti. He made himself an outcast. Most people really liked him and if he had spent some little time reminding people how much they liked him, maybe they wouldn't have voted them out. Lack of self confidence strikes again.

And now Erik is the hot guy in town?! I gotta get on Survivor. It seems that not being an out and out psycho is all it takes.

I get a real laugh from Todd's faces at everything. He really shows through.

[rockle]

OK, maybe I'm getting jaded, but was this episode boring? I mean, there were monkeys, but otherwise ... meh. Erik still is "teh hottness," as I believe the kids are saying, but still and all, he doesn't ruffle me nearly as much as Dolphin Boy used to. Have I gone jaded?

[Borborygmi]

Nah, I'd say it was meh, too. But it seemed especially meh after last week's classic.

Somehow last week's ep and storyteller0910's hilarious recap got me really keyed up for last night's show, so a blowout RC and an IC with half the people sitting out just didn't cut it for me.

[rockle]

... so a blowout RC and an IC with half the people sitting out just didn't cut it for me.That reminds me: when I saw James eating a cheeseburger with french fries shoved into it, I was reminded of the one and only time I ever visited Pittsburgh. Loved the town, still not sure how I feel about that sandwich.

[Slacker]

OK, maybe I'm getting jaded, but was this episode boring? I mean, there were monkeys, but otherwise ... meh. Erik still is "teh hottness," as I believe the kids are saying, but still and all, he doesn't ruffle me nearly as much as Dolphin Boy used to. Have I gone jaded?
It's because we now have The Amazing Race to compare it to again. Survivor just can't hold up. ;)

[Ro Carter]

It seems like Probst has hosted this show long enough that he shouldn't get so disappointed in contestants when they do something he doesn't like. Either he has reserves of hope for the human race that would bewilder a saint, or he is putting on an extremely stupid act for the sake of the cameras. If the latter, I really wish he would stop. Most times he gets worked up over things that don't even make most viewers blink and completely ignores the things that make me throw things at my TV.

Also, if it wasn't clear to Frosti that he was on the chopping block before TC, Probst's questions that said "HI, YOU ARE ABOUT TO BE VOTED OFF, HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THAT" might have given it up.

[Batsinma Belfry]

I've always thought Erik was hot. I was hoping he would win, atfirst because he's local, and later because he's a sweety, but it's not looking favorable for him.

[storyteller0910]

I wasn't bored by this episode at all. Oh, the action was lame, the RC was dull, and the contestant I find most annoying in the history of Survivor won immunity.

But watching Todd's gradual descent into complete madness is incredibly entertaining. He's about one week from grabbing a conch shell and putting a pig's head on a stick. If, in the next episode, he killed, cooked, and ate Jeff Probst, I wouldn't be even a little surprised, is what I'm saying.

Also, I think your winner is going to be either Amanda or Erik.

[Borborygmi]

For me, it was Todd's lack of lunacy this week that was the biggest disappointment! Not to say he wasn't fun when he was on camera, but he seemed to have it together this week, as opposed to last. Plus, losing Frosti would, I imagine, unfortunately simplify a lot of the scenarios percolating in Todd's ferret-mind.

[Eureka]

I was also irritated by James's jerkishness--not that he wasn't provoked, but still.

And irked by Jeff when he talked about the people competing for immunity being really in the game (or whatever stupid thing he said). If I'd been there, I think I would have looked at the food, looked at the number of people I was competing with for immunity, and gone for the food. Not if I were in imminent danger of being voted off--although I'd probably be worse than most at determining that. But I would have hated being the first person to fail the memory challenge and get to watch folk compete--and other folk eat.

And the drum challenge was kind of a new twist on the whole team obstacle course thing.

[Lamar Mundane]

...

[Lamar Mundane]

This is where the game gets interesting. Seven left, the point where alliances start to fall apart as the weakest three try to win over the weakest of the remaining four, and there is no doubt who that is. At least that's the way it should work, unless you have a complete paranoid (Todd) who makes his alliance mates more nervous than the competition does.

So what is the state of the competition now? James is bulletproof. It would take the most brilliant, lucky, and coordinated sheme in the history of Survivor to knock him out now. There is no one left with the organizational and social skills to pull off another blindside. Add to that James is not only the strongest physical player in Survivor history, he is 3.14159 times stronger than the next strongest remaining contestant, plus he is smart and rational. Amanda hasn't received a vote against her - she hasn't even had a negative word spoken of her all game. What she needs to do is to lead some sort of a coup, probably against Todd, to earn her some "Outplay" points, or else she is the designated coattail rider in the final three.

That leaves five for one spot. P-G is annoying and not in the inner circle - she is toast. Todd's paranoia has sealed his fate - out. Lunch lady - no chance. That leaves Eric and Courtney. Eric is in the position that Dani was on Guatemala - the last of the Mohicans, but at this point in the game that can be an asset if you play your cards correctly, and he seems to be doing that so far. Courtney seems like a real wildcard, but she gained points for offing Frosti last night. Maybe it was JR that turned her into a bitch after all, and she is a better person than she appeared?

In my mind, it comes down to these four, and the only one who can beat James in the final endurance challenge is Courtney. Anyone who wins final immunity shouldn't have a hard time getting two others to vote out James (am I correct that he can't use his II at final four?). If James makes the final three he wins, but that final challenge must be won. I think Courtney's got too many enemies on the jury. I don't see any difference between Erik and Amanda at this point.

My odds:
James 2-1
Amanda 4-1
Erik 4-1
Courtney 7-1
Todd 10-1
PG - 25-1
Lunch Lady 50-1

That was all off the top of my head.

[Eureka]

Maybe it was JR that turned her into a bitch after all, and she is a better person than she appeared?
re: Courtney

I don't think so. She was incredibly nasty during the first episode about hating everyone and being a waitress from NYC. JR may have contributed to her unhappiness later on, but I don't think it's anywhere near the whole story.

I'm not sure whether they've stated whether an immunity idol can be played at Final Four or not--but I suspect it can. Certainly on an earlier season, Dreamz's choice not to hand over immunity to Yau-Man gave the game to Earl. But, even aside from frequent tweaking of rules, I think that was a standard immunity necklace, not an immunity idol in question.

[jsc1953]

Yeah, not a memorable episode.

Most memorable was the utter cluelessness of the yellow team during the reward challenge: if you're trying to pass & dribble a ball off a drum head, try to avoid using the drum with the smallest freakin' diameter. But noooo....PG, with a drum the size of a teacup, had to get involved in all ball-handling...and they wonder why it went so badly.

[John Mace]

I liked this episode. I really didn't know who was going to be voted off. Not sure I agree with the decision, as I think Erik is more of a threat than Frosti. And they have to get rid of Courtney soon-- she's too much of a loose cannon. I loved it when Frosti mentioned the Lunch Lady's mullet.

Next week should be even more fun!

[Sarahfeena]

Yeah, not a memorable episode.

Most memorable was the utter cluelessness of the yellow team during the reward challenge: if you're trying to pass & dribble a ball off a drum head, try to avoid using the drum with the smallest freakin' diameter. But noooo....PG, with a drum the size of a teacup, had to get involved in all ball-handling...and they wonder why it went so badly. They did it the SAME WAY every time! It was so obviously stupid to use that little drum at all, I can't believe they kept trying & trying it the same way. The other team figured it out so quickly...they mostly used the 2 middle-sized drums & they kept the ball low.

ETA: Why they aren't all banding together to oust James is beyond me. If I knew someone had 2 immunity idols, I'd get rid of them as soon as possible.

[Spoke]

So what is the business that remains to be done at tribal council? (As announced by Jeff at the end of the show.)

[Eureka]

Who knows--but I was majorly irked by that bit, too. Especially since I think last week's previews hinted that Jeff was going to make the announcement.

(My best guess is that another player will be voted off, with no time for discussion.)

[JSexton]

ETA: Why they aren't all banding together to oust James is beyond me. If I knew someone had 2 immunity idols, I'd get rid of them as soon as possible.
The question is: how? And who leads it? See, Todd and Amanda don't dare turn on James now, because they desperately need him in their alliance. Without him, they are vulnerable to the sudden majority of outsiders. They sealed their fate when they voted out the cluelessly leadable JR.

Courtney has no mind for that kindof strategy. She is a follower. Frosti and Erik were just trying to stay in the good graces of the majority. PG has the balls to do it, but no ability to convince anyone. And Denise has no idea where she stands, and is close to James to boot.

The real clincher is that it would be nearly impossible to organize a coup and keep it quiet. If you fail, James will use his idol and vote out the person that first suggests it, which is a real disincentive to be that person. That's why Todd should have gone along with JR's "idea" to get rid of James, because it had literally no downside for him. If it works, James and the idols are gone, and James won't hold it against Todd when it comes to time to vote for a million. And if it fails, James uses the idol on JR, you get rid of JR, and you burn one idol.

That's why James is safe: The time to oust him was two weeks ago, and they failed to do it. Now he's a lock.

[JSexton]

Who knows--but I was majorly irked by that bit, too. Especially since I think last week's previews hinted that Jeff was going to make the announcement.

(My best guess is that another player will be voted off, with no time for discussion.)
And we saw James, Todd and Erik in next week's previews, meaning they are safe from any surprise votes.

[Sarahfeena]

The question is: how? And who leads it? See, Todd and Amanda don't dare turn on James now, because they desperately need him in their alliance. Without him, they are vulnerable to the sudden majority of outsiders. They sealed their fate when they voted out the cluelessly leadable JR.

Courtney has no mind for that kindof strategy. She is a follower. Frosti and Erik were just trying to stay in the good graces of the majority. PG has the balls to do it, but no ability to convince anyone. And Denise has no idea where she stands, and is close to James to boot.

The real clincher is that it would be nearly impossible to organize a coup and keep it quiet. If you fail, James will use his idol and vote out the person that first suggests it, which is a real disincentive to be that person. That's why Todd should have gone along with JR's "idea" to get rid of James, because it had literally no downside for him. If it works, James and the idols are gone, and James won't hold it against Todd when it comes to time to vote for a million. And if it fails, James uses the idol on JR, you get rid of JR, and you burn one idol.

That's why James is safe: The time to oust him was two weeks ago, and they failed to do it. Now he's a lock. That's all exactly right. When they didn't do it last week, they totally screwed themselves. It was a great plan, and obviously didn't take a genius to think of it, since both Todd & J-R came up with it separately. Whatever Todd's ego problem was that made him change his mind is probably going to be his downfall.

[lalenin]

And we saw James, Todd and Erik in next week's previews, meaning they are safe from any surprise votes.

Not only did we see them, but we saw them cleaned up and hair-trimmed, which means they are on the winning side of some pampering reward challenge.

[Whiteknight]

Not only did we see them, but we saw them cleaned up and hair-trimmed, which means they are on the winning side of some pampering reward challenge.

Amanda was shown in the preview, as well as what I believe to be Courtney's legs.

[Sapo]

...as well as what I believe to be Courtney's legs.

Are you sure there weren't some fishbones someone had left there?

[Eureka]

Obviously, some people pay much more attention to the details of the previews than I do.

I leave it to the reader to decide whether that is proof of their obsession, or my indifference. (The indifference is a valid theory).

[Terminus Est]

Courtney seems like a real wildcard, but she gained points for offing Frosti last night.
Frosti was always just a Courtney's boy toy. He pretty much knew it too, as he admitted that Courtney was "out of [his] league."

Frosti, you can do better than Skeletor. Much better.

[Johnny L.A.]

what I believe to be Courtney's legs.
The last time I saw legs like that there was a note tied to them!

[squeegee]

OK, maybe I'm getting jaded, but was this episode boring?Yeah, me too. I thought that tribal council would never end, it was quite tedious.

[PunditLisa]

If there is a second vote, that would be the time to write "James" on the ballot. At least make him use one of the HII's.

And now Erik is the hot guy in town?! I gotta get on Survivor. It seems that not being an out and out psycho is all it takes.

This heterosexual chick thinks that Erik is completely hot. He's also a musician which gives him bonus points.

I was completely surprised at the number of people who chose hamburgers over the chance for immunity. Not that any of them would have had a prayer in a memory game against PeighGee. Rat Rabbit Donkey Ram....holy crap.

[Eyebrows 0f Doom]

I'm surprised so many people decided to eat the food instead of playing for immunity, not because they needed it, but to stop PG from getting it!

[jayjay]

All I can say is, Frosti needs glasses and a good mirror. I can't believe he thinks Courtney is out of his freakin' league! The boy is afuckingdorable. Courtney looks like Jack Skellington's stunt double.

[Johnny L.A.]

I'm surprised so many people decided to eat the food instead of playing for immunity, not because they needed it, but to stop PG from getting it!
They didn't know PG was going for immunity. They made their choices, then revealed simultaneously.

[jayjay]

They didn't know PG was going for immunity. They made their choices, then revealed simultaneously.

They couldn't NOT know PG was going for immunity. She knew she was Target #1, and they knew she knew she was Target #1. She's not stupid enough to NOT play for immunity.

At the very least Todd dropped the ball on this one, and probably James. The point shouldn't have been, "Do I need immunity?" The point should have been, "How do we keep PG from getting immunity?"

[The Controvert]

James is by no stretch a "lock". They are down to seven, possibly six after a surprise twist. Presumably, he cannot use them at final four, so there are only 3 more tribal councils that they can even be used. Strategically, he should give one out to someone in return for future consideration... then he still holds one in reserve. But that means he must win 2 or 3 immunity necklaces to be a lock for the final 3. And he must win immunity at final 4 time, or he is in danger of being ousted.

[rockle]

All I can say is, Frosti needs glasses and a good mirror. I can't believe he thinks Courtney is out of his freakin' league! The boy is afuckingdorable. Courtney looks like Jack Skellington's stunt double.He's not just cute, he's nice. A lot of the people on reality TV -- even the ones that I love because they make good TV -- are bona fide, world-class, grade-A douchebags. Frosti does not seem like one of those people at all. His name is annoying (well, maybe "peevish" is a better word), but that's about it. I do so love the kids (and they usually are KIDS) who come on the show and just have a genuinely good time because they can.

When did I turn into an old person? This week, I feel really jaded.

[want2know]

My biggest problem right now is the fact that no one has even mentioned getting rid of Todd! What's more, people are actually still listening to him and his ever-changing strategies:

"We need to get rid of Pei-Ghee"
"No, wait! Courtney is the biggest threat in this game!"
"Frosti is the wild card!"
"Let's get James' immunity idol out of play!"

I'm waiting for him to start targeting Rupert or Colby any day now! ;)

This week he said something like "I don't know what I'm gonna do."

YA THINK?????

I actually almost started to like Courtney this week. I think that's not so much her being a better contestant as much as everyone else taking turns being worse! As far as her voting for Frosti this week, that was no surprise at all. She only hung with him as long as it was advantageous to her; as soon as the others targeted him, she fell right into line. She hasn't a sincere bone in her body--we know this because we can actually see all of them!

She's a lot smarter player than most people are giving her credit for, and I think she has a good chance of making it at least to the final 3.

[Justin_Bailey]

My biggest problem right now is the fact that no one has even mentioned getting rid of Todd!

Hot Amanda (who started this by the way, it's brilliant!) mentioned a few episodes back that Todd's constant flip-flopping was making her nervous and that she might have to get rid of him.

She's a lot smarter player than most people are giving her credit for, and I think she has a good chance of making it at least to the final 3.

Where she would get a maximum of one vote... Frosti's. And I think even that would be wishful thinking on Courtney's part.

[Mama Tiger]

They can't assume James is going to be an immunity monster, however. Most of the challenges have involved skills other than the purely physical -- or if they're physical, they're not things where brute strength can be a major factor, like the log-sitting, or that involve hand-eye coordination that he obviously lacks, like this week's ball-drum bouncing. James has been at a distinct disadvantage in nearly every challenge recently -- and yet he's always still the first picked. You'd think they'd figure out that they want a smart player more than a strong player.

And speaking of the ball-drum bouncing, I noticed that Lunch Lady had one of the biggest drums -- and yet neither Papa Tiger nor I could remember anyone even trying to pass her the ball and let her do her thing. They just kept going back to Peih-gee with that microdrum. Did Lunch Lady even get a chance to try that challenge, or did they just dismiss her out of hand as useless, as always? Ever since last week's schoolyard pick for reward where she was left out in the cold, I've been feeling more and more sorry for her. The rest of them just don't appear to be smart enough to look past the mullet and realize that they could probably buy her loyalty with a little simple kindness and attention.

[squeegee]

Did Lunch Lady even get a chance to try that challenge, or did they just dismiss her out of hand as useless, as always?It seemed like the latter, but the editing may not have been fair to her. I do recall her trailing along with that big drum, looking like she had pretty much nothing to do, but being proximate just in case.

[John Mace]

They did it the SAME WAY every time! It was so obviously stupid to use that little drum at all, I can't believe they kept trying & trying it the same way. The other team figured it out so quickly...they mostly used the 2 middle-sized drums & they kept the ball low.
Yeah, and you don't give the big-ass, heavy drum to the guys doing most of the bouncing. You need to finesse the drums you're using, and James just couldn't do it with that hulking thing he had.

[LavenderBlue]

These people are idiots. They showed it last week when they didn't vote James out when they had the chance. The only smartish thing I've seen them do so far was the vote in this week's episode. I like Frosti (and I totally agree he seems like a very nice person) but he was a major threat in challenges.

[Ring]

In the ball bouncing challenge Peih-gee was the major problem for the whatever the name tribe. She kept trying to bounce the damn thing about six feet high. There's absolutely no way to control the ball doing that. The slightest off center non vertical bounce sends the thing way off course.

Peih-gee sucks canal water.

[brownie55]

Checking ahead in my online guide I found this week is a recap. It's another week until we find out what other business awaits. Damn them that they have me hooked.

[StarvingButStrong]

Checking ahead in my online guide I found this week is a recap. It's another week until we find out what other business awaits. Damn them that they have me hooked.

No, no. It's *both*. The production crew rolls out a big screen there at TC, and they all get popcorn to eat while watching clips of themselves from the previous weeks.

While we watch them watch the clips. :D

[rockle]

No, no. It's *both*. The production crew rolls out a big screen there at TC, and they all get popcorn to eat while watching clips of themselves from the previous weeks.

While we watch them watch the clips. :DHahaha. I'm actually glad it's a clip show, because I will be drunk, because Thanksgiving + my crazy-ass family = rehab waiting to happen. (I don't feel like doing all the research because I'm a total lametard, but I'm pretty sure I'm a Lohan.)