Survivor Nicaragua: 9.29.10

La Flor realized that they had a lot of coming together to do before they were going to be successful.  Naonka of course thought it was all fake, and had some bitchy words about it.

Espada were stalking Howler Monkeys because they realized that they would lead them to food.  And Jimmy J. had a conversation with the monkeys.  Yve thinks Jimmy J's soul is inspiring.  Marty is just pissed off that Jimmy is a celebrity.  And no one is paying any attention to Marty.  Jill wanted Marty to calm down and think of the current tribe, not the threat Jimmy would be at the future merge.  She wants to show the hidden idol that they found to the others..

Over at La Flor, Jud Fabio was breathing in smoke from making fire, and he maintained that his strategy was to hang out and make people laugh, and he wants to be kept around for his spirit.  Naonka thinks that if you knocked on his head, you would hear hollowness, and she just can't stand him.

And Marty did what Jill wanted to, and showed the idol, saying they could share it as a tribe.  Jimmy T. thinks that this reveal strengthened the tribe 5x, but secretly thought that he was a moron (though a nice one) for sharing it.  Tyrone wondered at Marty's motives for sharing the idol, and still thinks he's shady.

After some bad sleep, Dan O' the Expensive shoes and the Bad Knee worried that the tribe would see him as a weak link.  He thinks he's stronger than the girls.  I don't think so.

And the younger tribe was trying to figure out what to do next.  Alina looks to be in the minority, along with Kelly B.

Chase seems to be in an alliance with Naonka, Kelly "Purple" (I hate that, by the way), Sash, Brenda.  Hmmm.


Challenge

Both tribes will race out to collect 10 barrels from a field and arrange them on a platform, and then one person at a time will toss sandbags onto the barrells.  First tribe with sandbags on all barrels wins immunity and a Survivor garden - spices, oils, and a sustainable herb garden.

La Flor decided not to use the medallion.  I think that's a good idea.

Both tribes spent some time on strategy first, and then they started.  The younger tribe got the barrels back just before the older tribe, but the stacking went faster for the younger tribe.  Dan was lagging behind.

Even so, they started throwing at about the same time.  Benry and Tyrone started, and Tyrone was a rock star.  Benry was doing a god job for the younger tribe, and tied it up at 6, then pulled ahead.  Tyrone didn't let anyone else have a chance, and Jimmy T was muttering about being wasted.  Jimmy J. acted coach and sent in Jimmy T... and he got one, but then Benry got the last one and won it for La Flor.  Benry, stupid name in all, really showed his stuff at that challenge.  Good on him.

As they grabbed their reward, Kelly B. saw a hidden idol clue, but unfortunately, Naonka saw it as well...

Back at camp, RUMBLE for the clue.  Naonka grabbed the clue right out from under Kelly B. and smushed bananas in the process.  Naonka said that she would do it again, and would push her so hard that her "damned leg" flew off.  Wow.  She really has an irrational hatred for Kelly B.

And then she shared the clue with Brenda, who is much smarter than she is, I think.  Naonka had no clue about the clue, but Brenda seemed to figure out a little...

The older tribe is reeling from their loss.  Jimmy T. in particular thinks that his talents are being wasted and asked Jimmy J. to evaluate him.  This started a bit of a heated grump about everything...

And Marty is gunning for Jimmy J.  He wants to shake the tribe to its core and make everyone follow him instead of Jimmy J.  I think it's ridiculous to get rid of Jimmy J. first.

Holly is sure her name is going to be on the chopping block, but Dog Trainer Awesome lady (forget her name) told her that she hasn't heard her name.  While fishing, Jimmy J. told the ladies (including Yve) that he knows he's in danger.

Tyrone thinks that Jimmy J. is all about motivating others, and he worries that Dan has physical ailments.  Marty sees his reluctance as weakness, and not thinking clearly.  I see it as smart.


Tribal Council

Probst wants to talk about the challenge.  Jimmy T. again brings up that he was not used properly.  Jane said that Jimmy J. is the most accomplished strategist among them, so obviously they listen to him.  Jimmy T. asserts that he hasn't had a chance to talk to Jimmy J.  Tyrone finds it baffling that Jimmy T. thinks that Jimmy J. is threatened by him.  Jimmy J. thinks that he and Jimmy T. have a good relationship, even though they haven't really talked.  Jill wants the tribe to be strong, to face La Flor.  Dan says that he is average in strength.  Jane brought up his obvious knee scar/weakness.

Probst asked what went down after the challenge, and Jimmy T. said that they are planning to keep the tribe strong, and refuses to call out names, but says there are 3-4 weak people he can think of.  The only person to admit he is one of the weaker people is Jimmy J.  Marty wants to accelerate the game.  I think he's a dumbass.

Vote time.

All votes go to Jimmy J... (except his for Dan) and I am so sad.  I don't think that was the smartest move at this point... Jimmy's parting words are to tell him tribe to win the million.  Probst tells them that they just voted out the proven leader, and wonders who is going to step up to fill those shoes.  I predict lots of roosters crowing around camp next week.

Also next week, there's warning for Hurricane Naonka.  Good lord.  She really annoys me...

Survivor: Nicaragua 9.22.10

Over at the elder tribe, Marty is grumping about not sleeping well.  Time for a group "conversation."  Jimmy J. stood while nearly everyone else sat, and they decided to rearrange their shelter.  Jimmy T. tried to bring up an idea, but he was shot down so that Jimmy J. could finish his idea, and T. felt

And over at the youngin's camp, Sash and Naonka bonded over their minority status, and he said he wanted to form a minority alliance, and bring Brenda in.. hmm.  They felt that Kelly B. was a threat because she's a "charity case."  Hmmm

At Oldsville, Jill was eating snails and Holly grumped about it, saying they were inedible, and ended up looking mentally unstable.  Then, Holly got upset because Dan was mocking her behind her back.  So, she did what any mentally stable person would do and filled his shoes with sand and sunk them.  Wow.  And... turned out that Dan brought $1600 alligator shoes to Survivor.  Ok, maybe he deserved the shoe sinking... who on earth brings $1600 shoes on Survivor?

Holly came clean about the shoe sinking.  He said that if she were a guy, he would have knocked her out.  Tyrone said every time she speaks, she gets more and more crazy, and he said he would keep one eye on her, and one eye on his shoes...

La Flor is bug bitten, and Naonka is missing a shoe and calling sabotage.  So she stole someone else's socks.  And they were Jud's socks.  I'm sorry, we're calling him Fabio now.  They are even subtitling him as Fabio now.  That's funny.  There's no love lost between Jud Fabio and Naonka, that's for sure.

Holly is having a chat with Jimmy J. about her place in the game.  She wants to go home.  He urges her not to give up yet.  He said "You can do it for one more day, right?" She is unsure, but the pep talk seemed to help her a little.


Reward & Immunity Challenge

And La Flor entered the challenge again with a dumb chant.  Oh man.  That alone makes me root for the older tribe...

One person from each tribe at a time will race through mud to dig through hay for four balls.  Then the other people will bounce balls on paddles to targets.

Reward is a choice of a tarp or fishing gear.

Will the older tribe use the Medallion?  The advantage is a ball in their bucket to start, and because of that, they can sit out a weak person.  They choose to use it, and the medallion goes to La Flor.

Dan is sitting out on the Older Tribe, and Naonka is sitting out for the Younger.

Brenda and Jimmy J were head to head through the mud, and Jimmy J got the ball first.  Kelly B. did not let the artificial leg bother her and busted out he last ball for her team.  Holly took a super long time finding the last ball for her team, and then Benry got a ball in and tied it up.  Then, the older tribe pulled ahead as Tyrone brought them in, and won it for them.  They chose the fishing gear instead of the tarp, despite their grumping about their shelter.

On top of getting their reward and safety from tribal, Estrada found the key for the immunity idol.  They were much better at figuring it out, and Jill told Marty when she figured out the last clue... and while Dan was there when he told her, he was not there when they found the idol together.  So, hopefully Marty will stay true to Jill, because he couldn't have found it without her.

Over at La Flor, plotting begins.  Naonka said that she sat out to see if Kelly B. used her leg as an excuse to get out of physical challenges.  And she didn't.  She busted it out.  So there. Worries about Brenda and Chase getting too close made people aim for Brenda.  Naonka was gunning for Jud Fabio.  And Shannon because he's too strong.  And then she talked to Brenda about the minority idea, which made Brenda happy. 

Chase went to chat with Brenda about the fact that everyone else was gunning for her, and she wondered why they don't just go for Shannon.  Looking like it might be a tie.  And ... Alina overheard their conversation.  Confusion abounds.


Tribal Time!

Shannon had never been camping before this. Wow.  And then he called Chase out saying "I hope his girlfriend stays with him when everyone else is gone."  Wow.  Chase said he was between Shannon and Brenda the whole time.  Probst is excited because never has an opening question in tribal open that much whoop ass.  Shannon went off on everyone saying that no one trusted him and he didn't trust anyone.  Then Sash spoke up, and Shannon said that he's from New York, and New York is just full of gay people.

Say WHAT?

And Jud Fabio wanted them all to be friends.  Probst told him to get his head out of the trees.

Then Brenda didn't know why she was a threat.  Shannon said that it was going to be Naonka, but then they talked about Brenda instead.

On top of that, Naonka let it be known that she really hates Fabio, and he just didn't like her attitude... I tend to agree with him...

Jud Fabio ended with "Can we just vote now?" and Naonka said "Yes, CAN we?"  Wow.

During voting, Sash called himself the biggest bachelor in NY.  Humph.  I don't think I can get behind him, either.

I have to say, I don't think I like any of the men on La Flor.  Maybe Chase.  He seems a solid guy just caught up in a bunch of crap...

At least Shannon is gone.  So much for making sure a dude wins this season, dude with a girly name.  Won't miss him at all.  Probst told them that the biggest threat to their tribe is the tribe itself.  Yup.

Looking forward to next week!  Shannon said that he should have been with the older tribe because he's been married for 11 years, so he's really 41.  Oh, I feel sorry for his wife. 

Yay for a New Season! Survivor: Nicaragua 9.15.10

Wednesday for Survivor, huh?  Not sure how I feel about that... but I'm very excited about this new season.

I did watch the preview, but did not blog about it.  There are some really interesting characters this season, that's for sure.

Namely, Shannon, who says he doesn't want another girl to win this season.

Instead, let's let the guy with the girly name to win.

This season, the tribal lines are split by age.  I really can't get behind Benry.  Because his name is Ben Henry and he goes by Benry.  That speaks to some sort of mental imbalance, in my opinion.

Just saying.

They started out not split by age lines.  Tricky.

Kelly B. is an amputee and is trying to not show her prosthetic leg (and she had a special leg made for the game).

Probst revealed the new twist in this game - The Medallion of Power.  It's hidden somewhere down the beach, and the first person who brings it back wins it for the tribe.  But they have not yet been told what their tribes are.

Brenda skitters up a tree and gets the medallion first.

NFL coach Jimmy Johnson congratulated her.

Marty was proud of Brenda for winning the medallion, because he thought it was for his tribe.  No such luck, as they are told to separate by age.

 And CRAP.  I just lost a whole bunch o' blog because my computer had a hiccup.  Boo!  Basically, tribes separate, older women rock it out and start a fire, Jimmy Johnson is the first to puke and gives his team a pep talk, the truth about the prosthetic leg comes out (from the owner),  Shannon beats his chest and declares himself alpha male, and Brenda flirts with Chase and he has to decide whether to side with the cute girl or the alpha male.  And Wendy has a really hideously fringed jacket.

Onward to the Immunity challenge, La Flor tribe enters with a really cocky and annoying chant/dance.  The challenge is to pour water down a chute of gutters into a bucket to release a bag of puzzle pieces and the first tribe to solve the puzzle wins.  Espada decides to not use their medallion (which would give them a bucket of water advantage) and goes on to lose the challenge by a hair.

Back to play by play... stupid computer.

Espada is back at camp, and Jimmy T. is feeling down after the loss.  He is voting for Jimmy J.  Then he proceeds to talk in a really annoying manner about how stars blind people.  Jimmy J. admitted that he is one of the weakest players, and says that he thinks it's between him and Wendy.

Marty and some of the girls stand around and try to talk about who to toss out, and no one is willing to really say anything.. interesting.

Tribal Council

They talk first impressions, and Jimmy T. says he felt annoyed by the presence of Jimmy J.  Jimmy J. reiterates that he is not going to be a threat to win ... Jimmy T. disagrees, because if he's such a good leader, the jury might reward him.

Holly is concerned that she made an alliance that was too quick (with Wendy).   And Wendy was annoyed because no one even asked her age.  And the others say that you never ask a woman her age.  She then said that she stayed quiet because she didn't want to get on the outs with anyone, but then she continued to talk talk talk about how much she talks, and how much she could bring to the tribe.  To me, it was a demonstration of "I'm much more annoying than you think I am at first glance!"  And I think she may have just shot herself in her unblistered feet.

Wendy gets votes, and Eve got a vote.  Really? Wonder if that was Holly. Well, at least she looks good for 48.  Really good.  On her way home.  Goodbye, stupid fringe and giant hat.

Good first episode!  What did you think?

Next week, someone gets his shoes filled with sand and sunk.  Wow.  That's a rather Russell move.