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.