'Survivor 14: Fiji' - Ep. 11 -or- "Snakes and Rats Run Amok in Mud"

Ah, the show is fresh once again. Of course, it's not too cool if you're named Alex or Mookie, but it's all in the game. Last week was one of the best episodes in years and this one wasn't too shabby, either. New and different challenges, too.

Eight are left. Who will be voted out tonight?

Picking up on the return to camp from the last Tribal Council, Mookie and Alex think Dreamz burnt them -- double-crossed their alliance. (And, yes... he did.) Meanwhile, the six are happy with the way their strategy worked at Tribal. Edgardo was totally blindsided, the hidden Immunity Idol of the "Four Horsemen" was brought out and wasted, and the opposing alliance lost a member. Life is good if you're on Earl and Yau-Man's side.

Stacy was the real shocker. For someone who had been toyed with by the Horsemen for their own purposes, yet was disposable to them, she's turned full force to the bigger alliance. She's really turned against Alex and Mookie. "They'll be lucky if they get fed."

In the morning of Day 28, Mookie and Alex were still down on Dreamz. When they talked to him, he gave some odd excuse although admitting he voted for Mookie. He played dumb saying that "we all got outwitted." Dreamz told them that he had no clue how the vote was going. He confused the two Horsemen and they weren't as mad, but the trust certainly isn't there. They seem to know it's them against the six.

The Reward Challenge saw the tribe split into teams of two once again. The split was random. On the Orange Team, there was Yau-Man, Boo, Cassandra, and Mookie. On the Green Team, it was Stacy, Dreamz, Earl, and Alex.

There was a big muddy field and two platforms with slingshot devices to fling balls. Stacy and Yau-Man were chosen to be the ball-slingers for their respective teams. Out in the field, the other members had a catching device with a basket. Each ball caught counted for the team who caught it no matter who slung it. (Are you following me?) The first team to catch five balls would win.

It got down and dirty... and way too muddy. People played dirty, but they were in mud, so it seemed fitting. At one point Boo went down and medics had to be called. The others heard something pop in his knee and we heard when he popped it again while putting weight on it. Well, the sound may have been edited in. Despite the injury, he kept on playing. He may regret that later as knees tend to blow up, but we'll see.

In the end, the green Team won. They chose to send Boo to Exile Island because he has been living pretty much the life of luxury since the start of the show. The winning team won a seaplane trip to a luxury spa with lots of Olay product placement. As they were showering with it, they kept repeating the brand name. And, gee... yes, they're a sponsor of the show. Go figure.

Alex thought he may have a chance to try to wiggle into the Alliance of Six, but his talk with Earl seemed to go nowhere. Earl was basically just evasive in the talk. Alex switched strategies and tried to get a clue whether he was the more immediate target. He planted the seed that Mookie was growing tired of the game. Earl just nodded and didn't really say much at all.

On Exile Island, Boo found the new clue for the re-hidden Immunity Idol. It said that the Idol was back on their beach, a singular tree, and in reach. His knee was hurting and he was dehydrated, so he was happy to rest knowing the Idol wasn't on Exile Island.

On Day 29, Mookie told Dreamz that he thought Yau-Man had the other hidden Immunity Idol. Then Mookie and Alex went to the camp and searched Yau-Man's bag. They found the Idol in it. Dreamz had no part in the search, nor did they tell him they were going to do it. After all, they don't trust him.

As Mookie and Alex were talking about how they were going to expose Yau-Man to his alliance at Tribal Council, then force either the use of the Idol or, at the very least, ruin Yau-Man's trust within his team... Cassandra and Stacy were eavesdropping on their conversation. I love it! While Alex and Mookie thought they were ruining Yau-Man, they were digging a deeper hole for themselves. You don't go through the personal belongings of others!

Mookie and Alex heard the girls and ran to confront Yau-Man. They told him that either he told his alliance or they would. Yau-Man told them to do whatever they felt they had to do, it wouldn't change anything. In confessional, he told us it would change his own personal strategy and may affect things down the line. But he feels safe with his alliance.

When Yau-Man reported the confrontation to his alliance, they all freaked out. No, not mad at Yau-Man. Although Earl was the only one who knew he had the Idol before this, the rest were mad that Mookie and Alex went into personal bags and they all seemed very protective of Yau-Man. It was as if Mookie and Alex had punched him or something. So, their little plan totally backfired and made the bonds of the Alliance of Six even stronger. Heh.

No one seemed upset that Yau-Man had the Idol or that he hadn't told them. In confessional, Dreamz thought it might be worth something down the road for flipping folks. But that can wait. He knows he's not a target right now. Yau-Man is a bit worried that Dreamz or Boo may flip, but not right now, either.

The Immunity Challenge was a thinking one and not a puzzle (thankfully). Each tribe member was given a three-square (diagonally, horizontally, vertically) row on a grid. They knew their own, but no one else's. This photo shows the grid lighted up to show the audience Stacy's row.

Each one would give coordinates to "bomb." The game depended on memory and strategy. When all of a person's squares were eliminated, so were they. It came down to Stacy and Yau-Man at the end. Then it was Stacy alone -- the winner of individual Immunity. And, of course, a strong member of the Alliance of Six. Since she's been away from Lisi, I'm sure admiring her game a lot more.

Then Mookie and Alex knew one of them would have to be a goner. They tried the "Yau-Man can't be trusted card" but it fell on deaf ears. Boo thought that it might be possible that one of them had the second round of hidden Immunity Idol as the clue made it sound very easy to find. So, the Alliance of Six decided to split their vote -- half voting for Alex, the other half voting for Mookie. That way it would be a tie and either gone would be okay. Earl wasn't too thrilled about the split, but went with it.

At Tribal Council, Alex decided he'd talk about snakes and rats. But then Jeff called both him and Mookie about going through the private property of others when Mookie admitted to searching Yau-Man's pack. That's the snakiest and rattiest, according to Jeff.

The vote went down as planned with one flip... Alex betrayed Mookie to save his own butt in the game. Yes, he voted Mookie, thus tipping the scales. Mookie, knowing he was throwing a vote away, voted Boo and didn't betray Alex.

Mookie was voted out. He actually took it pretty well.

Oh, this is getting good.