Survivor: 10.20.10

Uh oh... Did not know that Yve was not told about the ouster of Tyrone.  This could get messy.  Holly has come around from her near quit, and realizes that you should suck it up and finish what you've signed up for.  This is just as Dan decided to be done.

Yve is upset about being left out of the decision, and Holly told her that they didn't tell her because she and Tyrone had an alliance... which she didn't.  Holly says maybe they should be more open and honest.  Then she told Yve that Dan had declared he was done....

Over at La Flor, Marty and Jill worry that the young people just sleep all the time and don't do chores... but Jane fits right in and Becky says that votes would be split between Marty and Jill at a tribal, and it would flush out the idol...


Immunity Challenge

And.... it's individual immunities.  Both tribes are going to tribal and voting someone out.  Each tribe will have someone immune...

Everyone has to go out and dig in an individual area for rings, which they have to toss over their shoulders into baskets on their backs.  First back with all their rings wins.  Then, the winners compete for tribal reward - a feast enjoyed while watching the other tribe's Tribal Council.  That's a ring toss.

Holly wins immunity for Espada.  And Jill wins for La Flor.  The best laid plans of Becky are dashed.

And Jill won it for La Flor.  Fantastic.

And the schemes began... the plan was to split votes for Marty and Kelly B. - but tell Kelly B. they were voting for Jane.  Not sure about that...

And of course, Jud Fabio is the wild card.

Marty of course has a plan.  He told Jud Fabio that he is a grand master in chess and pulled some tennis player's name out of his butt as being the best strategist for the situation... and Jud Fabio ate it all up.  Marty admitted that he could pull anything out of the 70's on these kids, and they would buy it.  I think that is mostly true of Jud Fabio.. not so much all of the others.

And Espada was trying to figure out their move... Dan and Yve seem to be on the chopping block.  Naonka continued to show no sympathy for people with physical ailments and said that Dan's knees are about to give out and sooner rather than later he's going to be walking on nubs.  Nice.

Yve tries to pull in Naonka and Alina and tells them that she's got good relationships with the old Espada tribe, and this would be good for them somehow.  Alina brings up the point that this is the perfect reason to vote her out.

Chase was not sure what to do, and Naonka told him to not vote with his heart, but to vote with his gut.  She said that if they want to vote out Yve, she will write her name down and then smile in her face.  Nice.  Oh, nice. 

And La Flor, Jane thinks she is as thick as peanut butter and jelly (her words) with the younger people.

Sash told the plan of the split vote to Jud Fabio, and Jud Fabio is reticent to vote for Marty, because he thinks he's in thick with Marty.


La Flor Tribal Council

Becky brought up that Jane should perhaps be worried about Marty and Jill voting her out.  Marty told her that was preposterous - because he and Jill are two, against the rest of the group.  Kelly B. feels pretty safe in the tribe.  Uh oh.  Marty says he felt less secure than before Brenda started talking.

And of course, because Becky brought up Marty's plans, Jane voted for Marty.  Marty voted for Brenda, saying she was a black widow, king cobra, and black mamba all rolled into one.

Marty made a STUPID move and did not play his hidden idol.. Votes went Split between Marty and Kelly B, with Brenda getting Marty and Jill's votes.  And it's a tie.  Revote.  This is Kelly B going home, I'm pretty sure, because Jill isn't voting for Marty...  I am really sad.  I liked her.  She had spunk and never did anything to deserve to go home.  Boo.  I guess Kelly B. was going home no matter what, though, even if Marty had played the idol.  He probably figured that and that's why he didn't play the idol...


Espada's Tribal Council (while La Flor feasted)

Naonka pointedly did not look at the eating.  She looked close to tears.  Probst told Dan that they could hear the ice cubes plunk into the glasses, and he said if it wasn't a martini, it didn't bother him.  Yve brought up Dan's complaints and that he said he wanted to quit.  Probst tried to get them to admit that Dan was bad at challenges.  And Dan said that Yve is just speaking up because she's in trouble.  She admitted that was fair.  Then, he called her arrogant, and she countered with the fact that she is not the one talking about her cars and houses and the like, and Dan admitted that he does that, but thinks it's her attitude that's arrogant... ummm... ok.

La Flor left before the vote, and Yve is gone.  Lesson learned - saying what a great competitor you are and how the other guy is no threat?  Not the best strategy to be kept around.

Next week looks good - Sash is trying to get the idol away from Marty, Jane is cooking a fish in the forest on the sly, and Jud Fabio likes to pee in the water that they will all be competing for the challenge in.  Nice.  I forsee that being talked about on the reunion show...

Survivor Nicaragua: 10.13.10

Post Jimmy T's ouster, Espada despairs at having to go to tribal again and again.  Holly didn't have any idea that Jimmy T was going and she's really upset.  Marty called tribal a slam dunk and declared himself in charge of the game.  He "can't imagine anything going wrong" and tells Dan the same.  This is sure to be foreshadowing.

And over at La Flor, Naonka is proud to be on the younger tribe, and she has a happy alliance, has her hair done, has her shoes clean, and thinks if she looks good, she's going to do "good."


Challenge Time.

And.... ha.  Drop your buffs.  Tribal shake up.  So there, cocky people.  Probst brought out a bag of rocks and they drew for new captains.  The new captains are Brenda and Holly.  Brenda gets three people from the older tribe, and Holly got four from the younger.  Jane, Jill, and Marty joined La Flor.  Aline, Benry, Chase, and Naonka joined Espada.

And no more Medallion of Power.

It's Survivor Plinko - with balls going down what is essentially a plinko board, after being thrown up a flat wall, with tribe members at the bottom catching the balls.  If you drop, the other team gets the point.  First to three points wins.  And they are playing for two chickens and a rooster.  Naonka can't wait to "wring them necks on them chickens."

Right off, it was tied... and then Marty dropped one for La Flor, and Espada pulled ahead.  Then, Alina dropped one for Espada, and it's tied again.  And Marty dropped a second one, and Espada headed back to camp with the chickens.

Newly mixed tribes got to know each other.  Tyrone wanted to leave all the chickens alive for a while so they would produce eggs, and seemed to be stepping right into leadership role of the tribe with Marty gone.  And he was telling all of the new tribe members what to do, keep things clean and do chores and such... and Naonka took offense to being told that there were things to do.  Holly felt like the "kids" were receptive to her.  She and Naonka got on well together right off.  Two crazies together.  Awesome.  Alina was hanging with them, too.  Naonka wants to go where ever the numbers are, so suddenly she's ok with Alina.

And on La Flor, Jud Fabio is pretty stoked about the switch.  Then, Marty starts asking about responsibilities and tribal chores, and Brenda just looks bemused, with Jud Fabio looks confused at the concept.. Jane likes new tribe and their easy-going attitude.  She wants to get rid of Marty and Jill.  Then, Marty found out about Naonka's tussle with Kelly B, and her running away with the clue, and Jud Fabio said "I guess we're the young tribe, and we really don't know what we're doing."  Marty talked to the tribe as a whole and told them that he has the immunity idol.  Brenda thought it was cocky of him, and said it was like he walked in and declared himself king.

The new Espada is feeling rather unfortunate... the resources at their camp don't seem as lush as at La Flor, and the shelter is built in such a way that the rain drives right through them.  Naonka is cold and she doesn't do well when she's uncomfortable.  Poor thing.  Alina said that Naonka seems like a PMSy high school girl, and thinks it's better for her if Naonka is despairing and wants to go home.  She told Naonka "You have the rest of your life to be warm and comfortable."  Chase came and told her a story about a rainbow that appeared when his dad died.  But it's hard!  And she's cold!  And wet!  And she wants to go home!  Oh, Naonka... sorry this isn't Club Med.  I have a hard time finding any sympathy for her.

Immunity Challenge

La Flor is happy to have a great camp with a dry shelter, and Alina said that Espada bonded in a different way because they were wet. 

And this challenge is crazy.  Three tribe members will be strapped to a revolving wheel, and they will be spun around to go briefly under water to grab water in their mouths, which they have to spit into a pipe on the top of the wheel to fill it and release balls.  Then it's Survivor Skee Ball to break tiles to win. 

Kelly B, Purple Kelly, and Brenda are on the wheel for La Flor, with Yve, Holly, and Alina on the wheel for Espada.

La Flor was spinning fast, but missing their target, while Espada had a more comfortable pace and filled their pipe first.  Tyrone and Benry were off to the Skee Ball game.  Shortly thereafter, La Flor released their balls and Jud Fabio and Jane threw for them.  It was all tied up, and then Jud Fabio won the challenge for La Flor. 

Naonka had a feeling they were going to lose, and she's ready to go home, thinking Espada's cursed.  She says if she continues to go, kudos to her, but if not, she's happy.  Naonka wants to eat before Tribal, and they decide to eat one of the chickens.  Tyrone is in disagreement of the idea.  They put it to a vote and the chicken dies.  Tyrone didn't take part in chicken prep, but was ready to eat when it came to it.  And he seemed to eat more than anyone else, after telling people to be mindful of their neighbors when they were getting food.  Alina and Benry also brought up the fact that Naonka was totally mentally checked out... we'll see.  I'm hoping for Naonka's swift exit, that's for sure.

Tribal Council

Alina brings up that she felt a bit like a child coming into the tribe, and Tyrone was the obvious boss man.  Naonka said that the night was the worst for her, except for getting a divorce at 26, but she blames herself for that.  Then, she did some weird math and said that she wanted to quit, and there weren't 24 hours in that day, there were 26, but it felt like 48.  huh?

Probst tried to get the others to admit that it would be easy to vote out Naonka, because she was breaking down.  Benry feigned that he had no idea what Probst meant, but Yve admitted that she was looking for longevity in people to keep around, and if Naonka broke down, she could easily break down again.  During the vote, Benry declared it was time to dethrone the king of Espada, saying "Benry's here, baby," before knocking something off the voting table.  Nice, dude.  Smooth.

Votes go to Naonka and Tyrone, with the person going home .... Tyrone. 

While he was abrasive at times, I think they are going to regret that vote mightily. 

Next week, Dan is pretty well ready to go home, and Marty reveals that he is a chess grand master... and there's another twist - no tribal immunity.  Wow.  Can't wait.

Survivor Nicaragua: 10.6.10

Oh, Marty... got rid of Jimmy J.  Will this be a mistake?  And can Naonka be any more hateful?

Let's see!

After the ousting of Jimmy J, Jimmy T denied that Jimmy J was a good leader at all.  And then he broke out into a really weird impromptu song.  Really?  Marty called it the Jimmy T. Show, and said that he needs to hear his own voice.  Marty said if you give Jimmy T a little rope, he'll hang himself from the nearest branch.  Wow.  Faith in your tribe, Marty.  Amazing.

The next morning, they had some serious beach flooding and washed up debris.  No more swimming in the ocean.  Also no fishing.  Jill brought up the point that there was no food and no means of getting it - 2 c of rice a day and that's it.  They watched a pelican fishing and decided they should fish like him.  Jimmy T tried to fish all by himself and refused help.  As you can imagine, that went well.  Jane wants someone to step up as Captain and Co-Captain... we'll see.

Over at La Flor, Naonka said she slept so well that she didn't even know it had rained until she got up and it was damp out.  And then Brenda figured out the hidden immunity clue.  She and Naonka fund the idol.  Crap.  And Naonka said that Brenda helped her figure it out, but the idol is hers.  Classy, Naonka.  That was Brenda all the way.  Naonka said "Not even a one-legged person would stand in my way.  One shove, and she's out of there."  Wow.

Alina and Kelly B. have formed a bond, and they had found the previous clue, so they went out searching for the idol, and Naonka said she was going to go get in their heads and scare them.  Mostly, she made herself look crazy.  Well done.

Espada was still starving, but thinks that they are doing well.  Marty wants one voice to delegate what they are going to do in the challenge, and he nominated Tyrone.  Jimmy T. spoke up and said he usually wants to be a leader, and he is aware that he is going to snap every once and a while, begging to be played, but he doesn't want to be a leader in this case.  He thinks that Marty doesn't like him because he is insecure and feels threatened by him.  Ummm... I don't think that's it.

Tree Mail brings messages of a possible blindfolded challenge.  They practice listening to Tyrone blindfolded.  Then Jimmy T. spoke up to make sure that everyone would listen to Tyrone.  Ummm.  Ok.


Challenge

No chanting (visibly) from La Flor upon arrival at the challenge.  That's good.

Pairs of blindfolded people will be directed by vocal calling to gather 10 items, then find keys to unlock a chest.  Winner gets all first.  Also, the challenge winner gets to choose three of the items to keep.  La Flor decided to use their medallion of power and they start with 2 of 10 items back on their mat.  Dan sits out for Espada, and the two Kellies sit out for La Flor.

Brenda and Tyrone are callers.  Even with the practice, Brenda was doing a better job of getting people to items and back with them.  It wasn't even close - 4 items made it back for Espada and La Flor already had all of their items.  And guess what?  Jimmy T (who gave the speech about listening to directions) wasn't listening even a little, and La Flor won.

Three groups of items going back to their camp are fishing supplies, a tarp, and cooking supplies.  Excellent.

Back at camp, Espada tried to decide who was going to be going home.  Jimmy T. wants the opportunity to be a leader, and said that coaching basketball teams in his regular life means he would be good.  Everyone was pretty annoyed with him, it seems.

And at La Flor, Chase quietly found a clue to the Hidden Idol.. and he shared the knowledge with Brenda.  He had no problem at all figuring out the rebus clue.  She felt badly leading him on a wild goose chase, and after ascertaining that he trusted her more than anyone else on the tribe, she told him that Naonka had the idol, and told him that she found it for Naonka. She urged him to keep his mouth shut.

Espada resorted to eating sea urchins.  And according to Jimmy T, Marty was eating too many, and he called him out for not being a team player.  Then the talk was getting rid of Dan (because he's weak), or Jimmy T (for obvious reasons).  Marty wants to keep Dan.  Jimmy T. kept talking about how he wants his chance to lead. 


Tribal

Probst called them out when they said that they thought it was close in the challenge.  It was not close.  They are delusional.  And then Jimmy T complained about not getting his chance.  Daniel admitted that he wasn't good at challenges.  And Holly thinks that Jimmy T. should have his chance.

Too little too late, though... Jimmy T. is gone.  Hurrah.