Survivor 10 Palau

Feed Change

2007-03-26T16:03:00.000-04:00

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Also visit my Survivor blog Survivor Hut - http://survivorhut.blogspot.com

Survivor 11 Guatemala Now Up and Running

2005-06-10T10:46:00.000-04:00

This blog, Survivor 10 Palau, will no longer be updated. I have moved on to Survivor 11 Guatemala which is now up and running. I invite you to join me for the latest Survivor news along with my thoughts and observations. Please update your bookmarks and news readers.

Of course you are welcome to stay here and read all about Survivor Palau - that's what it's here for. Perhaps you'd also like to read about Survivor 9 Vanuatu .

Episode 14, Tom Wins!

2005-05-16T23:37:00.000-04:00

Tom wins the final two Immunity challenges. He chooses to take Katie to the final two with him and has a relatively easy appearance before the Jury. Final votes shown: 4 for Tom and 1 for Katie (that's enough, but I suspect he got six of the seven votes).

The final two hour episode of Survivor Palau started with the final four (Tom, Ian, Katie and Jennifer) talking about the last Tribal Council where Caryn snapped.

There wasn't a Reward challenge. Instead the four of them had a memorial ceremony where they took the extinguished torches of the other Survivors and 'buried them at sea.' As each torch was dropped into the ocean they said a few kind words about their former competitor. It was a nice remembrance of all of the Survivors. Also there were some good looking underwater shots of the torches slowly sinking to the bottom of the ocean.

The first Immunity involved intelligence and a little luck. There was a tower and grappling hooks were used to retrieve ropes. Pieces to a puzzle revealed a combination to a lock. Tom won this Immunity.

Back at camp, it is decided that Jennifer will be voted off. This is all done out in the open and Jennifer is reluctantly resigned to her fate. She even hugs everybody. Then Ian says to Tom something like "I don't know if I would have been able to make that decision," (deciding that Jennifer would leave).

This for some reason makes Tom suspicious of Ian. Tom thinks that he was plotting to vote him off. Jennifer smells blood and throws fuel on the fire. "He was plotting against you Tom!" The three of them gang up on poor Ian and accuse him of 'dishonesty.' Ian says that it was just the game and that he was just exploring all options but that he was always loyal to the three of them (him, Tom and Katie). Didn't they also do similar things? (yes) Despite vehement protests and being on the verge of tears, they don't seem to believe Ian.

First Tribal Council
The voting is a tie, two votes for Ian and two for Jennifer. The tie is broken with a fire building challenge. Ian wins, so Jennifer is removed from competition.

Back at camp, Tom lays into Ian again. He tells Ian to be a man and admit that he made a mistake. (I don't think Ian did anything wrong.)

Final Immunity Challenge
This is traditionally an endurance competition and Palau would not break with that custom. Each Survivor was to stand on a tiny platform on top of a buoy in the water. The last one down wins Immunity.

After about five hours or so Katie was the first one to give up. (Who said women usually do better in the endurance challenges?) At around the seventh hour Tom offered Ian a deal: Ian steps down and Tom will take him in the final two with him. Ian doesn't trust him (I wonder why?) and makes the same offer to Tom. Tom also declines the deal.

At just before the twelve hour mark, Ian tells Tom he will give up if the three of them can be friends again and Tom takes Katie to the final two. Yes, you read that correctly. Ian was just giving up and he didn't even want to be in the final two; he just wanted to be friends again!

They then had an impromptu Final Tribal Council. Tom asked Ian again if he wanted him to take Katie to the final two with him. Ian said 'Yes', he just wants to be friends. Tom then said that they would have been friends anyway but now he also respects Ian. (See, all of the senseless brow beating that Tom heaped on Ian earlier really paid off in the final Immunity Challenge.)

Ian is voted off, leaving the Jury to decide whether Tom or Katie wins the one million dollars.

The Jury Questions Tom and Katie.
This was pretty uneventful. Tom played the 'I'm Just an Average Guy Lucky to be Here' role, and he played it well. Katie was a bit stand off-ish. This was really on display when Janu wanted to ask her a question and she refused. Katie said that Janu had already made up her mind to vote for Tom, so why should she bother to answer her question. I think this hurt Katie in the eyes of the rest of the Jury. Some of them looked on in disbelief as Katie declined to respond to Janu. Anyway, Gregg seemed to blame Tom for his demise and Cory was very angry with both of them. Of course when it was Ian's turn it was a love fest. The rest of the jurists asked the standard questions.

Time for the final vote.

The Survivor Reunion
(Held at the Sullivan Theater in New York City.)
Here the votes were revealed in front of a live audience. Four votes for Tom were shown to just one for Katie. That's enough to give the one million dollars to him. I suspect Tom got six of the seven votes. Tom then ran over to hug his wife and family. Tom, a New York City fireman, really had the audience on his side throughout the evening.

The remainder of the reunion was the usual feel good session. Past bad blood was forgotten as everybody reminisced about their time together on the island. Janu admitted that she had already made up her mind to vote for Tom before Katie refused to answer her question. Jeff Probst asked everyone if they thought that he coerced Janu into quitting at Tribal Council. They all agreed that he hadn't done so. Coby revealed that he has adopted a baby girl. As if that wasn't sweet enough, he then said that he's named her Janu after Janu. Coby and Janu then hugged while everyone let out a collective "Ahhh!" I may have missed it, but I don't think that James' stripper wife tried to kick Stephenie's ass, as James stated she would on several occasions.

So ends Survivor Palau. I hope that you enjoyed my little blog. The next Survivor will air in September and it will be set in Guatemala. The Survivors will live amongst ancient Mayan ruins.

I plan on blogging again. My blog for Survivor Guatemala is already started but it is a little sparse right now and I will change the template and its look before the next edition starts.

The URL is: http://survivor11.blogspot.com .

Have a nice summer and I hope to see you in the fall!

Tom Westman Wins 'Survivor: Palau'

2005-05-16T23:35:00.000-04:00

By Derrik J. Lang, Associated Press Writer

At 41, New York City firefighter Tom Westman scorched his competition on "Survivor: Palau" to become the oldest winner of the competitive reality show.

"I played with intensity," the gray-haired Westman told The Associated Press in an interview following his win Sunday at the Ed Sullivan Theater. "I didn't hold back and fly under the radar. I thought I might be able to do that, but they got the real Tom Westman out there."

In a season of "Survivor" firsts, Westman stuck to his day-one alliance with dolphin trainer Ian Rosenberger and advertising executive Katie Gallagher and led the Koror tribe to win every immunity challenge, a feat that's never happened in the past nine seasons of "Survivor."

"Somebody told me recently they stopped coloring their hair after I did so well on the challenges," Westman joked.

Westman, a father of three who lives in Sayville, N.Y., made no secret of his prowess, winning seven individual immunity challenges and staying out of hot water when it came time for players to vote each other off the island. He never received a vote against him.

"When I saw how young the cast was, I thought, `This is gonna be perfect,'" Westman told the AP. "They're not going to know I'm a physical threat until it's too late for them. I didn't get to play that game. I played it hard. I played it as myself. While some people think that may not be too bright strategically, it did work out for me."

Westman is now $1 million richer and the owner of a new car. He said he plans to use the money toward college for his children and fixing up his house.

"I'm going to take care of my family," he said. "We've now got that cushion that most middle-class families don't have. Everything is going to be a little easier, a little sweeter."

The finale wasn't sweet for the three losers. Nanny Jenn Lyon lost during a tiebreaker challenge after Westman learned Rosenberger planned to double-cross him. Then, Rosenberger gave up during the final endurance immunity challenge, insisting Westman take Gallagher to the final two in a show of respect. During the final tribal council, runner-up Gallagher was called "mean" and "lazy."

Following Westman's win, host Jeff Probst announced the next location and title for the eleventh edition of the reality show: "Survivor: Guatemala — The Maya Empire." Probst said the latest batch of survivors will live among Mayan ruins.

Survivor Live: Caryn

2005-05-15T10:25:00.000-04:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Guest: Caryn
Hosts: Dalton Ross (Entertainment Weekly) and
Jenna Morasca, sole survivor Survivor Amazon

Caryn continues to be holier-than-thou by saying that she played with integrity and wouldn't give up so the others, presumedly liars and cheats, had to gang up to vote her off. The BS continued to fly as she says that no one pulled her through the game, that she got as far as she did by being honest and playing the "social" part of the game well. From atop of her dais, Caryn is disappointed with Ian. She said she thought he was a "golden boy" until she recently found out that he was "lying" (I'd say playing the game).

Hypocrisy thy name is Caryn.
She was dishonest on Palau. She admits to not telling the others that she is an lawyer, but in secret she told Willard the truth (on the island, during the game). Perhaps in her line of "work" such sins of omission are allowed and legal. Who knows what else she "lied" about that we aren't aware of.

Caryn get ye a clue.
You were Tom's pawn for a while. He used you for at least the last several weeks, "pulled through" in your vernacular. If Caryn played the "social" part of the game so well then why did she piss off so many people early on? She admits this too when she said that after Willard was voted off she had to get playing the game and be nicer.

Comments about the others.
Tom and Ian are real players because they were willing to resort to picking rocks if necessary. (And I'd say each of them played Caryn as well.) Besides Stephenie this wasn't a strong group of women. She regrets not talking with Coby and telling him to settle on just one or two people for an alliance. (Coby was more of a threat because he was a player, that's why he went so soon. Caryn was a pawn.)

She ends with that standard Survivor cliche: She now has a greater appreciation for everything. However she mixed in that she's now "much richer" than when she started the game. By richer she means spiritually. Nice touch, it's too bad I really don't believe her; her reality distortion field leaves me questioning everything she says. It's amazing, she thinks that people will believe everything she says.

What's next for Caryn? Back to work as a civil rights lawyer. I guess the 'civil rights' part is to soften the 'lawyer' part. She then made a shameless attempt to get on Law and Order or Court TV. I for one hope that she is quickly consigned to the dustbin of Survivor history and that we never ever hear from her again. Did I mention that I don't like her?

Note: there will be a Survivor Live Monday at 2:00 pm ET with the final four Survivors. Also Dalton and Jenna will do a redcarpet broadcast at CBS.com the night of the final show - hey that's tonight!

Early Show: Caryn

2005-05-15T09:34:00.000-04:00

Caryn is playing the "I played honestly, I have integrity, but they don't" routine. She was angry at all of the deception that was going on. Did she ever watch Survivor before going on the show! That's what Survivor is all about.

Anyway that's why she snapped at Tribal Council. She wanted Katie to know that Tom was plotting against her. (Katie is pretty smart, I'm sure she assumed that already.)

Caryn said that Katie and Jennifer aren't playing to win, they're playing to be runner-up. (Well, guess who also got farther than you Caryn?) She also says that the final four will be determined by the Immunity challenges. (Wow, thanks for that insight.)

Episode 13, Caryn Gone

2005-05-15T09:20:00.000-04:00

Since I missed this episode, Jeff D was kind enough to write up a synopsis for me. Thanks Jeff!

Right away, Jen knows she's on the block and tries to pull Ian into a 3-way alliance with Katie to take down Tom. This, incidentally, was my prediction as Jen's best move, and to my mind is indicates she can think clearly under pressure. As it turns out, Jen's pressure situation eased considerably after the rewards challenge.

The rewards challenge was a little boring this time, and a little easy to predict that it was only a shoot-out between Tom & Ian. The challenge was to paddle a raft back and forth from the dock to each of 5 buoys, and collect a marker from each one. Each marker had a number representing a distance from Palau to some world famous city. After collecing all 5 markers, the challengers had to match the correct distance to the city. I think they were (in order): Manila, Tokyo, Paris, London, & New York. Tom & Ian were neck & neck during most of the race while Jen held a solid 3rd. In returning the 4th marker to the dock, Tom made a fatal mistake and threw his marker towards the basket, but missed and had to go retrieve it. This gave Ian the easy victory... and with it, a brand new Corvette!

This is where Jen's game breathed a new life because Ian, who had promised to take Katie if he won reward, instead took Tom. Ian claimed that he and Tom had a prior agreement to take the other if a car was part of the reward. This was a dumb move for Ian, because even though he and Tom predicted an all-girl alliance and agreed to foil it by keeping the girls separated, he decided not to take Katie. This, then infuriated Katie who decided to take initiative at convincing Caryn to help vote off Tom or Ian, to which Jen happily concurred.

Very little of the camera time was devoted to the accomodations and food that Ian and Tom enjoyed, but more focus was given to Katie's displeasure with Ian's decision, and Caryn's considerations of her best move. Upon the guy's return, they find Caryn, who smartly asked Ian directly (with Tom there) about who would be going to the final 3. Ian sputters, and fails to commit to bringing Caryn into a final 3 with Tom. Tom, who has been convinced by Caryn that Katie is out to get him, goes into a mode of brow-beating Ian & Katie into remembering the original alliance, yadda yadda. It's an interesting turn of events where even Ian admits that maybe his best move is to vote off Tom.

Oh, and I couldn't forget the emotional exchange between Ian & Katie. Katie, who had been refusing to even speak with Ian upon his return from reward, finally agrees to go chat. Ian fully admits his mistake, Katie still can't trust him, they both start crying, blah blah blah. In the end, although Katie keeps her cards pretty close, it appears that she might have a hard time voting against Ian (but Tom I'm not so sure).

Before the immunity challenge, it strikes me that if Tom doesn't win immunity, he is probably done. Jen & Katie appear to be pretty solid and may be able to convince either Ian or Caryn (or both) to vote against Tom.

The immunity challenge is a combination of a balancing obstacle course and memory. The players had to cross a rope bridge with cross members, step from floating buoy to buoy, and then finally cross a tight rope (with a hand guide) to a floating dock. Then, they had to memorize a 4 X 5 set of tiles, cross back to the starting point, and match the puzzle. After a couple of hard falls and some serious pressure, Tom finishes first and wins immunity. It was surprising to me that nobody was able to put together the puzzle with less than 3 looks at the original (Tom got it after his 3rd look, I think), but it made for a gripping challenge.

Before heading up to tribal council, Ian & Katie have another one-on-one chat on the beach. Katie appears to be holding all the cards deciding whether or not she will vote off Ian.

Caryn shows concern that if Katie sides with the boys, then the old 3-way alliance will have been refortified and she will be out in the cold. To that end at Tribal, Caryn blatently attempts to smear Ian and sway Katie to vote against him. It gets pretty heated and the jury appears to be loving it. It isn't enough, though, and she ends up getting all the votes. The viewers weren't shown, of course, when the last minute negotiating went down. My guess is that Katie & Ian made up on the beach, and agreed right there that Caryn was the one going home.

I Missed Episode 13

2005-05-12T21:46:00.000-04:00

Real life has intruded into the happy world of my Survivor blog.

My aunt is in the hospital and I went to visit her this afternoon. What was expected to be a short visit turned into about six hours spent at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (a very good hospital, by the way). I'll spare you the details but it looks like she will be ok.

So I missed Survivor tonight. If someone would like to write up a review of tonight's show I'll consider posting it instead of my usual piece. You can email it here: Contact Me .

What I'd really like to know is:
(you can leave responses in the comments below)

1. What were Ian and Katie arguing about? Did it seem like one was just trying to use the other?
2. Did Jennifer really work to avoid being voted off? If so what did she do and who did she try and manipulate?
3. Are they still blind to Tom's power? I still can't believe he hasn't been a bigger target so far.
4. What were the challenges like? They have been interesting so far this season.

I should be able to post my notes on the Early Show and Survivor Live some time in the next few days and I'll tape the Sunday finale if I have to leave the house for any reason.

Survivor Fantasy: My Picks

2005-05-12T12:10:00.000-04:00

I'm sticking with the same line-up as last week.

Tom, first question at Tribal Council
He's obviously the leader maybe Jeff Probst will put him on the spot.

points last week: 58

Ian, first interview
He's often used for an objective view of what's happened, maybe he'll start off the show talking about last Tribal Council.

points last week: 25

Katie, first question at Tribal Council
She hasn't gotten much screen time maybe that's about to change.

points last week: 58

Caryn, first interview
I think she sides with Tom, Ian and Katie to be in the final four.

points last week: 10

I think this will be the final four with Tom and Katie in the final two. Tom most likely wins the 1 million dollars.

Tonight's Episode
It Could All Backfire, Episode #1013.
Gender lines are drawn as one group hatches a plan to vote off the Survivor who doesn't win Immunity.

One Survivor feels betrayed when the winner of a Challenge chooses a different tribemate to enjoy the Reward.

Going into Tribal Council, one Survivor holds the power and is torn between an alliance and a friendship. Which way will the vote swing?

Survivor Firsts

2005-05-11T11:52:00.000-04:00

At the beginning of Survivor Palau Jeff Probst (right) said in an interview that this edition of the series had a lot of firsts. Now that Palau is fast approaching its conclusion, I'd like to compile a list of these firsts.

To start us off:

No Merge
Stephenie as the last member of Ulong was "captured" into Koror (keeping with the war theme of this season). I read this was planned to happen only if a tribe got down to one member. Also I believe this is the first Survivor with just two tribe names, usually the merged tribe gets its own name.

Lone Survivor
Related to No Merge, Stephenie was the first Survivor to live by herself during the game after the rest of her tribe had been removed from competition.

Exile
First time a Survivor (Janu) was exiled. The producers wanted to give the players a reason to give their all in the competitions. Often when someone knows they're safe and don't really need Immunity they won't try their hardest. It's not so much living on your own for a night that's the punishment, it's being separated from the others so now they can plot against you. A nice twist even if it's not used every edition. It will be in the back of the minds of future contestants.

Quitting at Tribal Council
This was the first Survivor where someone quit at Tribal Council, Janu again. Players have quit before but never at Tribal Council. Also Ashlee and Jeff essentially just gave up.

Twenty Survivors
This was the first season to start with twenty Survivors, the most ever. More significantly two competitors were eliminated when they did the school yard pick'em to select the tribes.

Every Tribal Council
Stephenie is the first player to be part of every Tribal Council. Ulong lost every group Immunity challenge and Stephenie made it to the Jury so she will be at every Tribal Council on Survivor Palau.

This is what I've come up with off the top of my head. If you know of any other firsts please leave them in the Comments below and I'll compile an updated list.

Survivor Live: Gregg

2005-05-10T14:03:00.000-04:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Guest: Gregg
Hosts: Dalton Ross (Entertainment Weekly) and
Jenna Morasca, sole survivor Survivor Amazon

Gregg once again said the he should have seen it coming but he didn't; he had blinders on. He was blinded from the Reward. He innocently choose his friends Jennifer and Katie to go on the luxury yacht with him because they hadn't had a taste of Reward at that point. Gregg admits that he should have been thinking about the game at that point but it's a lot tougher when you're actually there. He just "shut down" game-wise at that point.

The Others
Gregg said that five of them were real close: Gregg, Jennifer, Tom, Ian and Katie.

Jennifer
Early on with Koror winning all of the Immunity challenges there wasn't too much to worry about and their relationship just developed. Gregg maintains that they weren't trying to be another Rob and Amber. (I believe him, Jennifer isn't as good a player as Amber.) Furthermore he says that they were a good team. She focused on the women and he on the men, "an extra set of eyes and ears" he said. He naively said that their alliance wasn't revealed until the Reward challenge last week. (Snuggle partners get noticed.) Jennifer talked with Gregg about the Girl Power alliance and voting off Tom, but it sounds like Gregg talked her out of it. A future with Jennifer? It doesn't sound likely; he said he's in Chicago and she's in Los Angeles. (As Rene Syler said on the Early Show, "that's what airplanes are for.") If he wanted to keep seeing her he could. I think this was just a Survivor relationship.

Katie
What isn't shown is how funny and entertaining she is (he used the word "hysterical"). Gregg's not sure how serious of a relationship she has with Ian. Ian did tell her brother that he would take care of her.

Stephenie
She was a real wild card that's why he wanted her gone. He was with Koror so long he knew them well, but Stephenie was new and he didn't know how to read her. If she were in the final two no one would beat her out for the million dollars; it just would have been too good of a story. Gregg wanted her to go first after she joined them but Coby "dug his own grave."

Caryn
Caryn was supposed to go after Willard and she's still there. (That's because she became a pawn of Tom's.)

Jeff Probst
Jeff is sneaky and knows what questions to ask. You have to choose your words carefully not to "give up the goods." Jeff plays games too. Dalton Ross states the obvious: Jeff sometimes asks questions to see the reaction by other people. I'm sure Jeff watches video daily while they're shooting the show. I also bet he talks with the camera crews every day so he knows what's going on all of the time. This makes it a lot easier for him to ask probing questions.

Next for Gregg: he's working to help a village devastated by the tsunami (in Sri Lanka, I think he said). He mentioned a web site ( http://www.tsunamichallenge.org ) but it wasn't up when I checked it.

Survivor Live: Stephenie

2005-05-08T11:17:00.000-04:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Guest: Stephenie
Hosts: Dalton Ross (Entertainment Weekly) and
Jenna Morasca, sole survivor Survivor Amazon

Stephenie said that being on Ulong made her look physically stronger than she really is because she competed mostly with the women of Koror who aren't really that strong. She was surprised to see how bad Gregg wanted her voted off. The Girl Power alliance was Stephenie's idea (she tried it because Ian wouldn't commit to an alliance with her and Tom) and it fell apart because someone always screws something like it up - in this case Caryn. (An alliance of more than two or three people rarely holds up for long in Survivor.) Stephenie said that she gave up in the Perch Immunity Challenge because she had a very good idea that Coby was going to be voted off. Being alone was scary especially because she didn't know how long it would be for.

Stephenie really likes Angie, but that it was not a mistake to vote off Jolanda because most of Ulong couldn't bear to be around her. There was no negotiating with Jolanda; it was either her way or the highway. Stephenie and Katie attended the same university and graduated a year apart. (Monmouth Univ. in New Jersey is listed on both of their bios at the Survivor Palau web site.)

What's next for Stephenie?
She's back to work as a pharmaceutical representative but a few universities have inquired about speaking engagements.

Early Show: Stephenie

2005-05-07T14:47:00.000-04:00

Stephenie was interviewed twice during the CBS Early Show, first by Harry Smith and then later by Rene Syler.

The segment with Harry wasn't too revealing. Stephenie said once again how much she hates to lose. Caryn ruined her attempt at a Girl Power alliance. Harry commented on how strong she is and Stephenie said that she's not as strong as the men left on Koror. She's not sure why she was so good at the shooting challenge. Finally she said that her tears at Tribal Council weren't planned or faked. As the others talked and it became apparent that she was going to be voted off in stead of Janu, who didn't even want to play any longer, Stephenie was just all overcome with emotion.

The talk with Rene was more revealing. Rene asked Stephenie if she could have merged with just one member of Ulong who would she choose? Stephenie answered Bobby Jon. She would have picked Jeff if he hadn't hurt his ankle. (He broke his ankle over a year ago and knew it was in bad shape again.) Her letters from home were very positive and helped her a lot. She was only expecting a letter from her mother but she got letters from her entire family and boyfriend ('sorry guys). Some food items at the auction weren't shown (I was right, I can do math after-all.) Stephenie said that she voted for Caryn because she ruined her attempt at a Girl Power alliance. Also, more telling, Tom told her to vote for Caryn. Finally Stephenie tried for the Girl Power alliance because Ian would not commit to an alliance with her and Tom.

Early Show: Gregg

2005-05-06T08:43:00.000-04:00

Hindsight is 20/20 as they say. Gregg said that he should have seen it coming (his being voted off), but he didn't. Furthermore he set himself up by leaving his two biggest threats (Tom and Ian) alone while he went away for the night on the yacht. Gregg said he didn't try and get Tom voted off earlier because he was using him as a "buffer"; Tom would take the heat of being in the spotlight rather than himself. Gregg didn't say much about Jennifer other than that they bonded early.

It was nice to see a Survivor be honest rather than trotting out the old cliche about being "a threat." Gregg had more reason than most to use that old saw but he didn't, he was honest - he screwed up. I'm sure we'll get more information about his relationship with Jennifer this afternoon on Survivor Live.

Episode 12, Good-bye Gregg

2005-05-06T00:57:00.000-04:00

Gregg wins Reward and choses Jennifer and Katie to go for a night on a luxury yacht with him. While they are away Tom, Ian and Caryn plot Gregg's removal from the game. Ian wins Immunity in a challenge that features elements of previous competitions. Katie is given an ultimatum: vote for Gregg or pick lots to see who is removed at Tribal Council. She does indeed vote with the three of them and Gregg is voted off at Tribal Council.

After the recap of last episode, Tom confides with us that he thought that he might have been voted of at last Tribal Council and Caryn tells us that she feels very vulnerable. Tree Mail brings news of a luxury Reward Challenge and Ian says that he and Katie have an agreement to take each other if either one wins.

Reward Challenge
Competition: torch drop
Reward: one night on a luxury yacht with shower, food and drink (and a surprise)

Each Survivor has a burning torch hanging over water by a rope as levers are released the torches are lowered into the water. Players get to throw the lever of one other player if he/she answers questions correctly.

First Question
Because of the shape the islands, Palau's islands are known as? Rock islands.
Caryn is out after only the first question!

Second Question
In Palau's past stones were once used as money. What did the heaviest stone weigh? 10,000 lbs. (their wallets must have been huge!)
Only Tom gets this one correct. Now Gregg, Katie, Tom and Ian each have their lever pulled once.

Third Question
Palau is surrounded by the North Pacific and what body of water? Philippine Sea
All of them get it correct and Tom and Ian are knocked out.

Fourth Question
In relation to the equator Palau lies where? North (by just 7 degrees)
Gregg and Katie get this one correct. Gregg asks Jennifer permission for who's lever to pull! He pulls Katie's lever which leaves Jennifer in the lead.

Fifth Question
True or False, Palau was the first country to issue a Elvis Presley postal stamp. True
Katie gets knocked out leaving just Gregg and Jennifer.

Sixth Question
The coconut crabs of Palau can do what after eating? Change color
Only Gregg gets it right so he wins Reward.

Jeff Probst tells Gregg that he can chose two of the others to go with him on the yacht. He selects Jennifer (no surprise there) and Katie (I thought that he would chose Tom or Ian).

Let the scheming begin!
While the three of them are enjoying the night of luxury, Ian tells us in private that the Reward Challenge showed him that Katie isn't that solid on his side (which is what it was designed to do). He, Tom and Caryn plot to vote Gregg off saying that he and Jennifer are in control of the game. In order to shake things up, Tom and Ian are willing to resort to picking lots (colored rocks) if there's a tie. Caryn is told to play like she is going to be voted off.

On the yacht, the luxury starts. They shower, get a massage and eat some nice looking fruit. Then surprise, family and friends show up! Survivors, family and friends get to go swimming with dolphins. Gregg, Jennifer and Katie all seem to think the plan is still on to vote Caryn off. Katie tells us that her strategy is to suck up to whoever has power until they don't have power any longer and then suck up to the new power holder. (It's a strategy, but not one that usually wins. I also think that it's lame.) Gregg tells us that Tom and Ian are a threat (then why didn't he try to get one of them voted off?).

The Reward winners return to the others and introduce their family and friends to the rest of Koror. Big tough guy Gregg cries talking about his mother.

Immunity Challenge
Competition: second chance

This competition takes parts of previous challenges and uses them in a series with the last place finisher of each stage eliminated.

1. The Rope Net climbing obstacle. Caryn eliminated.
2. Sea Star Puzzle (smaller and done on land this time). Katie eliminated. (Jennifer just beat her out)
3. Balut eating (3). Gregg eliminated.
4. Untie a Box. Jennifer eliminated.
5. Target Shooting. Tom eliminated.

Ian wins Immunity again!

Gregg and Jennifer seem to be falling for the ruse. With Ian and Katie alone, he gives her the ultimatum: vote for Gregg or take the chance of being removed from competition by the luck of the draw.

Koror at Tribal Council
The Jury watches: Coby, Janu, Stephenie
(paraphrased)
Probst: Winning Reward is nice but you miss out on the game while your away.
Gregg: Even though I won I think it was a good thing.
Probst: The Reward Challenge was designed to show who's weak and who's strong. Caryn you were the first out and in a hurry.
Caryn: It's hard but I think it was because I've had more food (reward-wise).
Probst: There are more implications than just missing out on some food. This is getting close to being over and one of you can win a lot of money. Jennifer the challenge really showed you and Gregg to be a team.
Jennifer: But we're playing individually.
Gregg: I didn't mean to be malicious at the Reward Challenge.
Probst: Caryn you came packed to Tribal Council?
Caryn: I've packed for every TC and I feel vulnerable here tonight.
Probst: Tom has anything happened recently to change your vote?
Tom: Not really we're all friends but all's fair in love and war. (and Survivor)

Time to vote.

Caryn gets two votes and Gregg four votes.

Gregg is voted off! Coby looks surprised (hand over mouth surprised) and Jennifer looks horrified (glazed eyes, slack jawed, mouth open horrified). I guess that she's smart enough to realize that she's next.

Alliances
Jennifer's the next one gone. I don't think she's won a challenge yet and she's not about to start. Then it will be Caryn and Ian's turn.

Heroes and Villains
Is Caryn a bad player or what? She didn't realize the power she had, she was the swing vote. She could have run to others and voted off Tom or Ian. Of the five left, I'd like to see Tom or Ian win it all. Caryn hasn't played well, she's just Tom's pawn. Katie's Suck Up strategy is plain stupid. Who's the fifth player? Oh yeah, Jennifer is totally forgettable. She's possibly the most boring player ever to make it to the jury.

Official Episode Title: We'll Make You Pay

Won Reward: Gregg
(a night on a luxury yacht and family/friend visits)

Immunity: Ian
(second week in a row)

Voted Off: Gregg
(4 votes Gregg, 2 votes Caryn)

Survivor Fantasy: My Picks

2005-05-05T13:31:00.000-04:00

Tom, first question at Tribal Council
He's obviously the leader; maybe Jeff Probst will put him on the spot. Things have to go real bad for him not to be in the final two.

points last week: 16

Ian, first interview
He's often used for an objective view of what's happened, maybe he'll start off the show talking about last Tribal Council.

points last week: 33

Katie, first question at Tribal Council
She hasn't gotten much screen time maybe that's about to change especially if she is going to be in the final two as I predict.

points last week: 18

Caryn, first interview
I think she sides with Tom, Ian and Katie to be in the final four. She's just a pawn of Tom.

points last week: 8

I think this will be the final four with Tom and Katie in the final two. Tom most likely wins the 1 million dollars.

Tonight's Episode
We'll Make You Pay, Episode #1012.
The aftermath of an emotional Tribal Council and stormy weather combine for a night the tribe will never forget.

To their surprise and delight, some Survivors are overwhelmed by a visit from their loved ones.

A strong alliance leaves one castaway on the outside looking in, with Immunity the only chance for survival.

Paranoia sets in as alliances crumble and some Survivors feel like they've lost control of the game.

Note: I apologize for not posting this week but I’ve been busy. I’m back to normal now, so I’m back to posting several times a week. This weekend I will post my notes about Stephenie on the Early show and Survivor Live.

Episode 11, So Long Stephenie

2005-04-29T00:29:00.000-04:00

In an episode full of plotting and scheming Stephenie is voted off at Tribal Council in a landslide. The Reward Challenge was a Survivor Auction (done blind) for food and letters from home. Ian won Immunity.

After the recap of last episode, Stephenie says it would have just been wrong to keep Janu when she didn't really want to stay. Stephenie also says that she doesn't know who to trust. They all try and make her feel welcomed. Tom jokingly gives her the Immunity necklace. In private Gregg tells us that they should have taken her out the first chance they had and Tom tells us that she has great instincts and is really working hard to stay longer. Jennifer says that she would be willing to go against Gregg for a Girl Power alliance.

Reward Challenge
Competition: blind auction
Reward: various food items and letters from home

Each Survivor was given 500 US Dollars (the official currency on Palau) of real money for the auction.

First covered item was won by Jennifer for $120. She won an ice cream sundae.

Second covered item was won by Stephenie and Caryn for $200 (split evenly between them). Jeff Probst offers them a trade - both items unseen. They accepted the trade and won a double cheese burger with fries and a soda pop. They had originally bid on cheese and crackers.

Third item: Ian and Gregg won a plate of spaghetti for $300 (Gregg threw in $20 for a single bite). They too were offered a trade but turned it down. It turned out to be a bunch of live crabs. As Ian collects his prize Jeff Probst comments that he reeks.

Fourth item: Jeff Probst said that the first $40 wins a beer and Ian quickly won it.

Fifth item: Letters from Home. After tree mail Tom suspected letters might be offered so he was holding out for them. He won his letter for $220. Jeff Probst then said that anyone else could buy their letters for the same amount. Caryn and Stephenie quickly took him up on the offer.

That ended the auction. Jennifer said "No cheese and crackers?" (She's pretty vacant and I don't care.)

I think some items weren't shown. Seven people with $500 each is $3500. The total value of items shown was $1,260.

Ian declares that it is bath day and goes in the ocean with some of their soap and shampoo. Gregg helps him wash his back. Tom talks with Caryn. He tells us in confidence that he's trying to bring her into his alliance.

Immunity Challenge
Competition: tile toss

Each Survivor has five tiles in a horizontal frame that sits about two feet off the ground and maybe about fifteen feet way from them In turn they get a chance to throw a coconut to break one of their tiles. The first player with all five of his/her tiles broken win Immunity. If they break the tile of another competitor it scores for the other player.

Ian wins Immunity when Tom accidently knocks out Ian's fifth tile. (I don't think Tom did it intentionally. He wasn't very good at this at all.) Stephenie who really needed this was horrible. She finished with just two tiles broken. Most of the others had three tiles broken.

Now the scheming really heats up.
Katie talks to Caryn about a Girl Power alliance to vote out Tom. Caryn goes to Tom and tells him about it. Tom says "you must be sure of our alliance" and she says "huh, I'm telling you because I told you I would tell you things." (Man, she's bad at this game. Tom has himself a pawn.) Tom tells Ian about the Girl Power thing. Ian tells Katie that Caryn is talking about a women's alliance. Katie tells us in private that there will be no Girl Power alliance because Caryn "sucks." Gregg just wants Stephenie gone.

Koror at Tribal Council
The Jury watches: Coby, Janu
(paraphrased)
Probst: Ian has paranoia set in yet?
Ian: A little but we're a solid group.
Probst: Stephenie what was the tribe's reaction to last week's Tribal Council (where Janu quit)?
Stephenie: It wasn't too uncomfortable. They made me feel welcomed.
Probst: But you are still a bit of an outsider in their happy family.
Stephenie: Yes, it is tough.
Probst: Caryn when did the game intensify?
Caryn: After last Tribal Council. (She's pretty clueless. I'd say it's been intense for longer than that.)
Probst: Would you be surprised it you were voted off tonight?
Caryn: No. (At least she's not totally stupid.)
Probst: Tom you've been the leader and haven't held back. Was that a conscious decision?
Tom: No, it just happened that way. We needed to win competitions (against Ulong) so I just did my best. I hope they don't hold that against me. (He was sincere but they usually do hold it against the strong player.)

Time to vote. As she is voting Katie says "it's nothing personal, I'm just voting with the rest of the tribe."

Caryn gets 1 vote and Stephenie 4 (that's enough).

Alliances
I still think that Tom wins this thing. Caryn just takes the place of Stephenie. Which makes it even easier for Tom. Now his only real threat is Ian. Tom, Ian, Katie and Caryn should just vote Gregg and Jennifer off now.

Heroes and Villains
Caryn does indeed suck. A Girl Power alliance would have given her a real shot at the million dollars (and kept my Stephenie in the game longer). Stephenie would be the first target of the final female four leaving Caryn with Katie and Jennifer. All three would be equally undeserving of winning.

Official Episode Title: I'll Show You How Threatening I Am

Won Reward: everyone won something at the auction
(food and letters from home)

Immunity: Ian

Voted Off: Stephenie
(4 votes Stephenie, 1 vote Caryn)

Survivor Fantasy: My Picks

2005-04-28T11:34:00.000-04:00

Tom, first question at Tribal Council
I'm still waiting for Jeff Probst to grill him. He's gotten a free pass so far.

points last week: 35

Ian, first question at Tribal Council
He's often used for an objective view of what's happened, maybe he'll start off the Tribal Council.

points last week: 0

Katie, takes a nap
Well, "takes a nap" is more likely than "gets naked." She doesn't seem to get interviewed that often.

points last week: 8

Stephenie, first interviewed
After last week's narrow escape she's a likely candidate for first interview.

points last week: 10

Tonight's Episode
I'll Show You How Threatening I Am, Episode #1011.
Certain tribe members work to form a secret alliance; one castaway follows advice and makes improvements to personal hygiene; three contestants devise strategies to survive the upcoming Tribal Council.

Some Survivors entertain the idea of forming a secret alliance and persuade a tribemate to join their pact.

A Survivor heeds some advice and makes personal hygiene improvements, delighting the tribe.

As the game nears its conclusion, three castaways formulate individual strategies for surviving the upcoming Tribal Council.

Survivor Palau Prediction: Tom Wins!

2005-04-26T14:46:00.000-04:00

Before we know it Survivor Palau will be airing its two hour finale. The final show usually features the last four Survivors and there are seven of them now so we have only three regular shows left. I figured that this would be a good time to take a look at the situation.

The Final Seven:

Stephenie
Young, attractive, smart and athletic, a Survivor quadruple threat.
Close to: Tom, Ian and Katie

The lone Survivor from the Ulong tribe. She's very likable and everyone knows it. She has a big target on her back.

Gregg
Young, strong and intelligent.
In tight with: Jennifer

Has played a good game so far. The others should want him gone as soon as possible.

Jennifer
Young and attractive. Not so sure how smart she is.
In tight with: Gregg

She hasn't gotten much air time. Either it's one of the greatest Under the Radar performances on Survivor or she's a lousy player. I think it's the latter.

Caryn
Older and annoying.
In tight with: no one really, although I'd say she sides with Gregg and Jennifer.

Someone may want to be in the final two with her because she has been annoying. This is sometimes referred to as the Johnny Fairplay strategy, although I don't think she is doing it on intentionally.

Ian
Tall, smart and athletic despite looking lanky.
In tight with: Tom and Katie

A real threat, he's been letting others take the spotlight. Someone must want him gone.

Katie
Young, pretty and smart. She has also annoyed a few people.
In tight with: Ian and Tom

She has had heated arguments with a few people, like Caryn and Janu.

Tom
Older but strong and athletic. The clear tribal chief.
In tight with: Ian and Katie

He's won a lot of challenges and he seems to be a good judge of people. Why he hasn't been a target yet is a bit of a mystery to me.

My Prediction
Tom, Katie, Ian and Stephenie will be in the final four, at least that will be the plan. The next three to go are Gregg, Caryn and Jennifer; in that order if they're smart. Then it really becomes a matter of who wins Immunity, but I'd say Stephenie gets voted off unless she wins Immunity. That would put Katie in the final two because Tom and Ian are smart players and would want to be in the final two with her instead of each other. Tom has won a lot more challenges than Ian so he has the edge there. Also Katie is closer with Tom than Ian. Either Ian or Tom beats out Katie to win it all. All this points to . . .

. . . Tom winning Survivor Palau and one million dollars.

Survivor Live: Janu

2005-04-25T11:59:00.000-04:00

Survivor Live, the Internet Talk Show
Guest: Janu
Hosts: Dalton Ross (Entertainment Weekly) and
Jenna Morasca, sole survivor Survivor Amazon

Janu said she quit because it was the best thing for her to do. Her body just couldn't take it anymore. She lost 12 pounds and she was "sick of being sick."

Going to Tribal Council she thought she was going to be voted off. She quit also because she didn't want to be a pawn; it wasn't about saving Stephenie. Janu doesn't believe Jeff Probst's questions affected her decision to quit. Although she did say he is very perceptive.

Being exiled really satisfied her. She wasn't scared and it was good to be alone.

Janu on the Survivors
Stephenie's emotion at Tribal Council was real. Coby was her rock and he didn't act like the "bitch queen" that much. He played well and is a colorful person. Tom is playing the best game so far. Janu doesn't hate Katie but she did say Katie has "no balls" for not confronting her with problems instead of talking behind her back. Katie is a "unique individual" and they don't see eye to eye on things. A Girl Power alliance won't happen. Jennifer is too close with Gregg and Katie is too close with Tom. Tom, Gregg and Jennifer were very understanding with regard to her being sick and consoled her. She wants someone from Koror to win the million dollars.

Janu on the Challenges
The Reward Challenge was difficult because the pieces of the scaffold were awkward and heavy (about thirty pounds). Janu said she only lasted six minutes in the Immunity Challenge. She criticised Stephenie for not trying hard enough during the last two Immunity Challenges (the perch and water torture competitions). Janu thinks Stephenie should have won one of them.

My Take on Janu
I liked Janu early on in the show. In the first or second episode when she climbed up a tree to get a coconut I thought that she would be a tough competitor. Unfortunately she got sick around Day 3 and wasn't the same afterwards. As for her comments about Stephenie and Immunity, I don't take her thoughts too seriously. Janu was really out of the loop at that point. During the perch Immunity, Stephenie probably had a good idea that Coby was going. In the water-cage Immunity last week, I think she did try her best to win. Stephenie was last woman in the competition and shortly after she gave up Gregg and Ian surrendered giving Immunity to Tom. I think Jeff Probst's questions did affect Janu's decision to quit. However I don't think it was his intention to get her to give up. In past seasons he's asked similar questions at Tribal Council and no one's ever quit. Finally if she really wants someone from Koror to win it all, then why did she quit? If Stephenie was voted off instead of her (as was the plan) that would have left only Koror Survivors thus ensuring a Koror winner.

Early Show: Janu

2005-04-22T15:20:00.000-04:00

Janu said that she quit because it was the best move for her spiritually and for the game. She went on to say that she went into Tribal Council thinking about quitting. She was thinking about it while exiled. She didn't do it to save Stephenie; she didn't want to be a pawn.

Katie is a unique person who for some reason just couldn't deal with Janu being sick all the time. Janu was shocked when Coby was voted off.

Episode 10, Janu Quits at TC

2005-04-22T00:12:00.000-04:00

Tom, Janu, Caryn and Gregg win Reward. Tom wins Immunity. Janu is exiled for being the first out of the Immunity challenge. At Tribal Council Janu quits and the plan was to vote off Stephenie.

After the recap of last episode, Janu feels betrayed because she wasn't told that her friend Coby was going to be voted off. (I think that I would feel more threatened than betrayed, but that's just me.) Janu catches Katie and Caryn gossiping about her and confronts them. She says something like "are we in junior high school?" The discussion gets pretty heated. (I wouldn't do this either, it just makes her more of a target.) In private Katie says Janu is a crazy person who talks in circles and Gregg says she's a "buzz kill."

Reward Challenge
Competition: build a tower in the water
Reward: a feast with the native Palauans

The Survivors are split into two teams. Each team has six scaffold pieces to build a tower out in the water. One piece at a time is carried out to the water to assemble the tower. The first few sections are underwater and the last few rise above the water. Once the tower is complete, someone is to climb the tower and retrieve a flag and everyone is to return to the beach.

It was close, but the team of Tom, Janu, Caryn and Gregg won. They met the chief and were entertained by some lovely young dancing women. Food-wise they had fish, chicken, ribs and corn on the cob. Beer was served but no one was shown drunk. Janu feels sick, excuses herself from the table and then vomits outside. (I'd say that's a buzz kill. Coby said on Survivor Live last week that she was sick with diarrhea and vomiting since Day 3.)

Immunity Challenge
Competition: Palauan water torture

All the Survivors were out in the water under some bars. There was about six inches between the bars. To start, the bars had several inches of clearance above the water however that changed as the tide came in. The last one to stay under the bars wins Immunity. To make things a little more interesting the first person to quit is to be exiled to an island to live by themselves for a night.

Here's the order that they gave up in: Janu (very quickly gave up, saying she was cold), Caryn (about an hour in), Katie, Jennifer, Stephenie, Gregg, Ian and Tom (the winner!). The men were smart and tried to make snorkels with their hands. Tom was the most successful at it so he won Immunity. When Janu quit most of the others were cracking jokes at her expense (the jerks). They laughed when Jeff Probst asked Janu if she ever made fire and she answered "no."

Immediately following the challenge Janu is whisked away on a boat to another island for the night. She's given a machete, flint, steel and a canteen of water. However she really struggles and it's not until after dark that she is able to start a fire.

Back on Koror, the plotting begins - who to vote off? Tom says to Gregg that the women want to vote off Janu. Gregg and Jennifer want to vote off Stephenie. Gregg says that she's a real physical threat. Tom tells us in private that it looks like Stephenie although he's personally against it.

Janu returns and is welcomed back by the others.

Koror at Tribal Council
The Jury watches: Coby, Janu smiles when she sees him.
(paraphrased)
Probst: Janu how was exile?
Janu: Hard but I did it. It took like ten hours to start a fire.
Probst: When the others wished you "Good Luck" did you believe them?
Janu: No, it was half sincere half the game.
Caryn: I'm shocked that Janu feels that way.
Probst: Tom how do asses your vote, the worth versus the threat of the others?
Tom: The game is on. Voting is strictly about the game.
Probst: And you Gregg?
Gregg: I see them all as threats. It's about what's best for me.
Probst: Katie why should they keep you?
Katie: I'm not a threat. (Good answer.)
Probst: Janu same question?
Janu: No reason. If I were them I'd vote for me.
Probst: It seems like you want to go?
Janu: I'm satisfied with how far I've gotten. Vote me off.
Probst: Ian why should you keep Janu if she wants to go?
Ian: No one is forcing any one to stay. If you want to go then go.
Probst: Stephenie if looks could kill then Janu would be laid out on the ground right now.
Stephenie: [all choked up] I cannot believe that she doesn't want to stay. I would do anything to stay and she could care less whether she stays or goes. (I think she even cries.)

Janu quits! She says that it's all on her own accord. Stephenie and Coby exchange glances and smiles.

No voting. Janu will still be part of the jury.

Alliances
It looks like it will be Tom, Ian and Katie versus Gregg, Jennifer and Caryn. Stephenie is a goner next week unless she wins Immunity. In a preview to next week's episode, Stephenie is shown trying to get a girls-versus-guys thing going. That won't work, Jennifer is too close to Gregg.

Heroes and Villains
How can anyone not like Stephenie? She gives her all for the game - physically, emotionally and mentally. She's also easy on the eyes. Alliance-wise, I like Tom, Ian and Katie. I don't care for Gregg and Jennifer. I really don't like Caryn, she's annoying.

Official Episode Title: Exile Island

Won Reward: Tom, Janu, Caryn and Gregg
(an island feast)

Immunity: Tom

Removed from Competition: Janu
(No voting, she quit on her own accord at Tribal Council.)

Stephenie Phila. Inquirer Article

2005-04-21T17:29:00.000-04:00

A tribe of one, and a singular personality

By Jonathan Storm
Inquirer Columnist

A star is born, but can she survive?

Fellow competitors call Stephenie LaGrossa, who grew up in Glenolden, Delaware County, "charismatic," "determined" and "forthright."

Jeff Probst, host of Survivor: Palau - where Stephenie, 25, became the first one-person "tribe" in the show's history - says she is second only to Survivor god Rupert Bonham in generating viewer interest.

"Stephenie has proven she is one of the toughest ever to play Survivor, and, when it comes to women, perhaps the toughest," Probst said in a telephone interview.

"Every guy wants Stephenie," said Coby Archa, the 32-year-old hairdresser from Tyler, Texas, who was voted off last week. "And every girl wants to be Stephenie."

People who dismiss TV reality shows as, at best, superficial brain candy are missing a fascinating character study and naturalist video extravaganza when they skip CBS's Survivor, the best, most popular and longest-lasting of the current reality game shows.

Tonight at 8, they will miss one of the most capable and compelling of the more than 160 candidates who have scrounged for roots and berries, and for the admiration of their compadres, in wildernesses around the world, as she tries to navigate new waters in her quest for glory and $1 million.

Check that. This lean, mean fighting machine already has the glory.

And Stephenie (Survivors always go by their first names) was almost the only contestant with a brain in the young (average age: 27) and buff Ulong Tribe that set a Survivor record for losing eight consecutive "immunity challenges," contests contrived by the producers to guarantee members of the winning tribe more time in the game. With only two Ulong left, she used her head to knock off Bobby Jon Drinkard in a ceremonial fire-building contest, and she was all alone.

After fending for herself overnight and for most of a day in a tropical island jungle in Palau, a tiny country southeast of the Philippines, Stephenie - a lacrosse standout at Archbishop Prendergast High and at Temple and New Jersey's Monmouth University - was allowed to paddle over the water last week to join the eight other remaining Survivors in the Koror tribe. (Survivor producers are enamored of exaggerated ceremonial hoodoo and exotic tribal names with indigenous roots.)

"We've never had anybody go back to camp alone," said Probst, who has supervised 10 iterations of Survivor since 2000. "It's basically the scariest scenario we've had. You're forced to live by your own wits. The cameramen don't factor in, because you know, after 20 days, they would never even speak to you, much less help."

Now, Stephenie, a pharmaceutical sales rep who has four brothers and is the youngest child in her family, will be forced to engage a different set of wits as she jockeys to remain in the game with a group of older competitors (average age: 36) who have lived together for three weeks.

Her arrival immediately blew a hole in the tribe.

"The whole time, we agreed we were going to keep strong all the way to the end," said Koror's Coby by phone from his home. "She changed that immediately. She's a likable player, and everybody wanted to play with her."

They didn't want to play with Coby anymore. He was exiled, but not before giving Stephenie the complete lowdown, at least as he saw it, on the rest of his team.

The show was taped during the winter, but candidates still struggling on TV are kept incommunicado.

Coby said he was not surprised when Stephenie showed up on his island, but now, as a viewer, he wishes the producers had let her soldier on alone. "I think that would have been fascinating."

Many fans agree, but Probst explained that the producers had discussed the possibility of an eventual one-person tribe before starting the Palau installment, whose biggest wrinkle was that the contestants would be allowed for the first time to choose their own tribes.

"You can't end the show at an immunity challenge, and Stephenie loses, and she goes off in a boat," he said. "That's not Survivor... .

"Since World War II is a theme of the show [Palau is littered with downed planes and shipwrecks], we decided if one tribe conquered the other, it would get its remaining member.

"We never dreamed it would happen."

Neither did James Miller, self-styled leader of the Ulong tribe, who also never dreamed Stephenie would connive to vote him off and out of any chance to win money. Apparently, he still doesn't get it.

"She seemed like she was just honest. She was forthright with me," he said with admiration.

He does know one woman, however, who is not sold on Stephenie.

"My wife," who looks forward to meeting Wonder Woman at the May 15 reunion show, he said. "She's debating on whether or not she's gonna whip Stephenie's tail."

A tip for Mrs. Miller: Don't even try.

Survivor Fantasy: My Picks

2005-04-21T11:46:00.000-04:00

Tom, first question at Tribal Council
He's the leader of the pack, so maybe Jeff Probst will want to put him on the hot spot.

points last week: 89

Ian, first question at Tribal Council
He seems to be shown a lot and he likes the water. He's also close with Tom, so maybe Jeff Probst askes him about Tom.

points last week: 56

Gregg, takes a nap
More naps have been shown in recent weeks and maybe Gregg will be shown napping with Jennifer.

points last week: 50

Stephenie, first interviewed
She was an obvious target last week and yet she survived so maybe she'll be the first interview this week.

points last week: 164

Tonight's Episode
Exile Island, Episode #1010.
An unexpected performance by a tribemate during a Challenge results in a victory for the team.

One castaway confronts her tribe, leaving everyone feeling uncomfortable and leaving her feeling alienated.

A twist at a Challenge brings very bad news for one Survivor.

In danger of going on the chopping block, a Survivor makes a heartfelt plea not to be voted off. Will this plea fall on deaf ears?

Sea Mist Beach Club

2005-04-20T20:50:00.000-04:00

The Sea Mist Beach Club, my tribe in the Survivor Fantasy League, has scored 11,416 points so far. We are 1,100 points behind the 100th place team in the private tribes standings. At one time we were less than 100 points from making the table. Oh, well . . .

This Week's Bonus Questions and Answers are:
1.Which Koror member seemed to have too much to drink after a long day of fishing? (Tom)
2. What was the first food the Survivors were enticed with at the Immunity Challenge? (donuts, or try doughnuts)
3. Name one of the two Survivors who jumped from their perches for pizza during the Immunity Challenge. (Stephenie or Caryn)