Survivor Gabon Bob Gets His Check and Stuff

Bob Crowley, the big winner of last night's Survivor finale, appeared on The Early Show this morning and picked up his check. Aw, he's such a nice guy!


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In other news, my Survivor finale review is up over on TV Squad. And, over on CliqueClack TV, my latest Reality Clack column is up and running. Late tonight, my review of tonight's The Big Bang Theory will go up there.

Today's musical non sequitur:
Say what do you think of gentlemen wearing mink?
Gentle and soft
But who'd just as soon off you
For looking the wrong way as not
Jojo, Jojo
-- "Jojo" by Boz Scaggs

Survivor Gabon Finale Post

This is it! It's the big three-hour finale and reunion show! Zoetawny has made us a new season finale graphic to lend to the party atmosphere. Alas, football has delayed the show here, but I will update this post with the major updates. My full review will be up on TV Squad later tonight or early tomorrow morning. Please join in down in the comments area -- that's where the real party is!

I'm expecting the show to start about 8:30 ET here. Sigh.

And ... it's ON! 8:30 PM ET start time here in the NYC area.

BOB WINS IMMUNITY AGAIN!

Kenny was blindsided. What comes around goes around, eh? Bye-bye Kenny.

Memory walk time. Corinne likes not being nice and Randy found out he can make friends.

Yikes ... Susie won the final immunity challenge. There goes my night!

It's a tie between Bob and Matty being voted out, onto a firemaking challenge. Bob has been practicing.

Bob wins the tiebreaker! Matty is out of it and the final three are Bob, Sugar, and Susie.

BOB WINS SURVIVOR GABON! Sugar got no votes, Bob 4, Susie 3.

BOB also won the 100 grand from the viewers. Sugar was #2, Matty #3.

Survivor Gabon: 12/11 Show Post

The show has started here on the East Coast. My full show review will be up later over on TV Squad. I'll update this post with major events, but the real fun is in the comments. I hope to see you there!

Bob continues his streak by winning reward. He chose to bring Crystal and Kenny with him to visit a gorilla sanctuary, overnight with a meal and all. He chose to send Susie to Exile Island. Matty hopes to flip Sugar while they're alone.

Bob wins Immunity! Four challenges in a row!

Whoa! Sugar saved Matty with the hidden idol and Crystal got the boot!

Survivor Gabon: 12/04 Show Post

The show has started here on the East Coast. My full show review will be up later over on TV Squad. I'll update this post with major events, but the real fun is in the comments. I hope to see you there!

Bob wins reward! Pizza, beer, brownies, and an extended message from home. Now they're all getting a visit, but only Bob got pizza and beer. Matty just proposed to his girlfriend. It was a yes.

Bob won immunity! It's a Bob night!

Despite a valiant effort with another fake idol built by Bob, Corinne was voted out.

Survivor Gabon: 11/27 Show Post

The show has started here on the East Coast. I believe it's all clips tonight, but thought I'd open up the post for discussion.

Survivor Gabon: 11/20 Show Post

The show has started here on the East Coast. While I won't be live-blogging it per se, I will update this entry with the big news. My full review will be going up on TV Squad later tonight. As always, have fun in the comments!

Bob's at Exile Island again thanks to Kenny picking him during the auction and Sugar is upping her anti-Randy game.

Kenny wins individual immunity!

Bwhahaha! Randy played Bob's fake immunity idol and was voted out! Oh, happy day!

Survivor Gabon: 11/13 Show Post

The show has started here on the East Coast. While I won't be live-blogging it per se, I will update this entry with the big news. My full review will be going up on TV Squad later tonight. As always, have fun in the comments!

Fang won reward and send Bob to Exile Island.

Merge on! Susie wins the first individual immunity building fire.

Whoops! Lost my pool player -- Charlie was voted out in yet another blindside by Kenny.

Survivor Gabon - 11/06 Show Post

True, this isn't my Survivor logo -- it's an update on that ornamental kale I photographed a few weeks ago. I am alive, my apologies for not posting much. I'm still fighting extreme fatigue and I'm tending to fall asleep after getting home from work.

Tonight's musical non-sequitur which I meant to post on election day:
It's time for a new direction
It's time for jazz to die
On the fourth day of November
We need a purple high.
-- Prince "All the Critics Love You in New York"

The show has started here on the east coast. I'll update this with major events and post my review on TVS later. Everyone is welcome in comments!

Ohhh ... not a merge, a reshuffle with numbered stones, odd and even. New Kota: Bob, Marcus, Susie, Crystal, and Ken. New Fang: Sugar, Charlie, Matty, Randy, and Corinne.

Matty won Immunity for the new Fang tribe, good thing as he would have been the target had Fang lost.

Whoa ... Kenny worked his mojo on Susie and Marcus was voted off!

Survivor: 10/30 Show

The show has started here on the East Coast. While I won't be live-blogging it per se, I will update this entry with the big news. My full review will be going up on TV Squad later tonight. As always, have fun in the comments!

Kota wins reward - helicopter trip for a picnic. Guess who went to Exile? Yep, Sugar. Kota also got letters from home.

Marcus won individual immunity and had to pick someone from Fang to give individual immunity. He chose Sugar hoping a power player will go from the tribe.

Whoa! Sugar betrayed Ace! Yay! He's been voted out, blindsided by Crystal, Kenny, and Sugar.

Kota voted out Dan.

Survivor Gabon: 10/23 Show

The show has started here on the East Coast. While I won't be live-blogging it per se, I will update this entry with the big news. My full review will be going up on TV Squad later tonight. As always, have fun in the comments. But if you make a mess, you have to clean it up yourself! I've had enough to do with cleaning up Mandarin spam for days now. Sorry about missing a few. I reported the spam blog owner, but still getting it. You guys only saw a few -- it's been about two dozen a day all week.

Argh ... Sugar gave Ace the idol for "safekeeping."

Kota won reward -- baked goods, coffee, tea. They once again sent Sugar to Exile Island.

Kota won Immunity again, thanks to Ace thinking he's Boy Wonder on Fang.

Kelly was voted out.

Survivor Gabon - 10/16 Show

The show has started here on the East Coast. While I won't be live-blogging it per se, I will update this entry with the big news. My full review will be going up on TV Squad later tonight. As always, have fun in the comments. But if you make a mess, you have to clean it up yourself!

Kota won Reward -- herbal garden, oils, spices,and fruit. They're sending Sugar to Exile again. She'll be back for Immunity Challenge.

Kota wins immunity.

GC was voted out ... he wanted to quit anyway.

Survivor Review up on TV Squad

Why, yes it is... my Survivor review can be found right here.

Survivor Gabon - 10/09 Show

The show has started here on the East Coast. While I won't be live-blogging it per se, I will update this entry with the big news. My full review will be going up on TV Squad later tonight. As always, have fun in the comments. But if you make a mess, you have to clean it up yourself!

Yep, they switched tribes --

New Kota - Marcus, Dan, Charlie, Randy, Corinne, Susie, Bob
New Fang - Matty, Ace, Crystal, Jacquie, Ken, Kelly, GC (Danny)

Since she wasn't picked, Sugar goes to Exile and returns after TC going on whatever tribe is short a member. I hope she has her hidden idol with her and Ace doesn't have it!

Kota wins Immunity!

Uh-oh, my namesake was voted out -- Jacquie. They really should have voted out either GC or Kelly, but old Fang is running the show and Kelly teamed up with them.

Survivor Gabon - 10/02 Show

Okay, Survivor fans and those in the pool ... the show has started here on the East Coast. I won't be live-blogging it per se, but I will update this on and off with important events and/or some thoughts of mine. As always, everyone is welcome to chat it up in comments!

Wow, that rewards challenge was brutal ... and Fang actually won! They're sending Sugar to Exile Island.

That seems to be the wrong choice ... she's found four clues and has it!

Yikes, Fang won Immunity!

Paloma is out, Sugar didn't use her (and Ace's evidently) idol.

Survivor Gabon: The Jeff Probst Blog

Nah, paying Jeff Probst to blog here on my blog isn't quite in my budget. But he is blogging his thoughts on each episode at ew.com on their PopWatch blog. Since I can't get him here for you (my apologies, but I'm sure you don't expect him here, right?), I can do the next best thing ... spread the word about the blog he is doing and share some excerpts for discussion.

Regarding the Fang tribe, Jeff said:

• It's not the last time they'll make questionable choices either.

• The mismatched tribes continue to haunt Fang. I kept reminding them, "Quit complaining. You did it to yourselves." I like being a pain in the ass.

• They're all afraid to do anything and coming from a place of fear is never a good idea.

Regarding some of the castaways, Jeff said:

• Actions speak louder than words. Marcus and G.C., good for you. Hope that first episode immunity really pays off for you 'cause it may cost you later.

• Randy getting injured was a nice bonus for episode 1. Anytime there is an injury, along with blood or stitches, it's usually good for the show. Randy is going to be a star if he can last long enough. Everything he says cracks me up. I also think most of it is heartfelt. He's mean as an alley cat, and trust me they're mean.

• But nobody can touch Corinne on the Bitch meter. I only feel comfortable saying this because Corinne told it to me in person ... In her favor, Corinne plays the game hard, she knows how important alliances are, and if she forms a good one she could be around for a while.

• Not sure what happened to Michelle's attitude. I had her picked as a favorite in my preshow picks. Yes. A favorite. Something happened and her zeal disappeared.

• At the first tribal council, G.C. reluctantly accepted the leadership position. The question is how long will he last and how effective will he be? I would have never chosen him as my leader. This is the guy that raced ahead to get immunity for himself. It is a sign.

• Over at Kota, Ace is cracking me up. I love him!

• Sugar cries a lot. Just warning you. But I think you're going to like her. Maybe even root for her.

• Marcus is getting a lot of love from everybody. They love his leadership, they love that he's a doctor, and they love how calm he is. He drove us nuts as producers because he was telling everybody to act rationally! What?! What are you doing? Quit ruining Survivor, dude. Marcus is waaaay too good for this game.

• Dan's visit to Exile Island tells you everything you need to know about Dan. He's lovable and extremely well-intentioned but he overthinks everything. He's Hamlet.

• I actually liked Gillian quite a bit during casting. But once the show started, Gillian...you became a little annoying. You simply talked too much without saying anything substantive. You were a cheerleader, and let's face it, cheerleaders are…well, annoying. We hated to see you go, but if you hadn't been voted out, we may have removed you ourselves.

Jeff also said that the idol on Exile Island is relatively easy to find. He said that next week Fang needs a win and Sugar needs a Kleenex. Uh-oh for those on the Sugar pick in Orkmommy's pool!

Survivor Review up on TV Squad

I want to thank everyone for the fun evening on the Survivor post here! What a great bunch we are, aren't we? My sympathies to those who ended up with Gillian and Michelle in Orkmommy's pool. I see I have Charlie. I don't think he's going to win it, but I think he's in a good bunch with Marcus, Jacquie, and Corinne. If they do get Bob in there, that's going to be the alliance to watch.

Overall, I'm most impressed with Bob. Heck, I even like the bowtie.

My Survivor premiere review is up over on TV Squad. They almost weren't going to cover it this season, so I hope you can all take a gander at it. I'd appreciate it!

Survivor Gabon Premiere

Yes, Zoetawny has made a new and nifty graphic for the blog! I have said she rocks, right? I won't be live-blogging every detail of the two-hour show(s) tonight, but I will keep the blog updated with major events and stray thoughts about the show. Everyone is welcome to visit in comments! Survivors ready?

Interesting start -- I felt bad for Gillian struggling up the hill, but I was shocked that Crystal had trouble! Kudos to Matty for helping them. My Charlie (in Orkmommy's pool) lied about being a lawyer, as did the doctor lie about being a doctor. Crystal didn't mention the gold medal in the Olympics for track and field ... had she done so, she would have been humiliated. Kota is definitely a stronger tribe than Fang.

Kota has huts! So does Fang!

First injury on the first night -- Randy cut his head on a branch and needed stitches. Great start ... not even in a challenge! He's not quitting though and it was a definite cut, not really a bump to the head. He should be fine.

Kota won Immunity and fire. Fang goes to Tribal Council and one is going home tonight. Too bad Danny has individual immunity from the first challenge for his tribe. He sat and did nothing while the others were digging for their puzzle pieces. I don't think it looks too good for Gillian. Alas, she's more annoying than I thought she would be. Weak and annoying, she will make a good target for them at TC.

Tribal Council -- 5 votes Michelle, 1 vote Gillian. Enough for Michelle to go. I was wrong about the annoying factor for Gillian. Michelle is out because she's such a "Negative Nancy." GC (Danny) was voted leader of the tribe, albeit a bit reluctantly.

Randy is irking me. Heck, GC I'm not too thrilled with, but he's trying to lead. Hopefully Randy will follow his own plan and shut up, let others crash and burn. As long as the "shut up" part is done, I'll be happy.

Kota wins their second immunity and reward (fishing gear). At least this time Fang was close. Kota chose to send Dan to Exile Island.

Dan had no luck finding the idol and it looks like Gillian is the likely target again although she wants to get a movement afoot to get rid of the weakest young person (Ken).

Hmmm ... Fang is worried Dan has the hidden Idol and now he's targeted along with Gillian. Will she squeak through again?

Tribal Council - Gillian is out. Five votes for her and one (hers) for Ken. Enough to boot her.

Checking Out the Survivor Gabon Castaways: Part 3

This is my look at the last six castaways accompanied by their video clips from the CBS website. You can find parts one and two here and here ... but not here.


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Jacquie Berg, age 25, Santa Barbara, California
Cool, a Jackie on the show, albeit with odd spelling and I'm not a 25-year-old natural blond. At least CBS fixed the spelling on her name. I pondered if she was transgendered with the name "Jacque." I kind of like her. Whether she'll get anywhere near the final four, I don't know. I think she's a contender, but wonder if the Sugars will stay on instead of her.


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Gillian Larson, age 61, Temecula, California
Oh, I think I already adore this retired nurse who's tried 15 times to get on the show. She keeps herself fit, but I'm not sure how well she's going to hold up endurance-wise throughout the season. I'd say she might be just a bit nutsy, but she's turned into my newest favorite for the win. Who knows? It could happen!


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Danny "GC" Brown, age 26, Portland, Oregon
Ah, a working man "Dreamz" -- one who actually has a job and home even though he had a hard upbringing. He's a maintenance man although his family has been homeless in his youth. The guy has some good ideals. While I'm not getting the "sole Survivor" vibe from him, I think he could go a long ways in the game.


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Dan Kay, age 32, Boston, Massachusetts
Not to be confused with castaway Danny, nor Danny Kaye. A lawyer from Boston who comes across quasi-smug with himself to me on initial glance, he's wearing one of those silly little faux-hawks. You know, kind of like Memphis. Hopefully he won't have hair product in Africa. I'm a bit leery of anyone who talks about wanting to lead. They may as well say, "Slap a target on my back and stick a fork in me." Maybe I'll think differently once I see him in action. He isn't bad on the eyes and doesn't have the Boston Rob accent.


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Crystal Cox, age 29, Durham, North Carolina
Crystal is a former track and field Olympics champion. She seems very determined and she certainly has overcome challenges in her life. I think she could definitely go far physically and probably isn't too shabby mentally, either. I only wonder if her own super confidence in herself might be a downfall. It's one thing for an older woman like Gillian to be super confident, but when it's a very physically fit younger woman, she might be looked upon as as much of a threat as a young physically fit guy.


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Charlie Herschel, age 29, NYC, New York
Okay, this makes the second lawyer this season and I've lost count of how many of them are 29. He's this season's gay guy representative, I guess. He does run marathons and is a huge fan of the show. I think it's going to be interesting to see him work his strategies. He's making a lot of really good points. He's a go-getter in education and career. I think I might like his gameplay if he goes the route he says he will in the video.

Checking Out the Survivor Gabon Castaways: Part 2

Carrying on with what I started yesterday, I continue to explore the castaways we'll be seeing this Thursday when Survivor Gabon premieres. When you compare and contrast the casting between Big Brother and Survivor, you generally find folks with more stable careers on Survivor. I think that might have something to do with the time away from the job needed. Survivor is just over a month while BB is around three months. Oh sure, you still get the bartenders and the Hollywood wannabes represented on Survivor; that's the nature of the reality TV beast. Part 1 of my look at the Survivor Gabon cast can be found right here.


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Randy Bailey, age 49, Eagle Rock, Missouri
I don't know. I think I'm getting sappy as I age. He's 49, thus I want him to do well. Yeah, I know that's not a great reason, but there you go. He does seem capable enough on the mental level. But on a physical level for challenges, I'm not so sure. He's a wedding videographer, not generally an all too physically demanding job. In a bio segment elsewhere, he describes himself as a bully and a train wreck. Uh-oh. I'm not liking him so much now. But he does do marathons and such. He might have what it takes to make it to the end if he doesn't brush too many folks the wrong way.


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Paloma Soto-Castillo, age 24, Downey, California
Close your eyes as she talks and notice the Keesha-esque quality to her voice! Like, wow, like she should be blond. But this girl seems to have much loftier goals than Hooters. If she wins, she wants to build a school in Kenya for students with whom she previously worked. Yes, she works part-time as a waitress, but she is still a full-time college student with a B.A. already in pocket. She has experience living in Africa and I think she'll do very well in that aspect. If she can be cut-throat enough and think ahead, I think she could be a strong player.


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Michelle Chase, age 24, Los Angeles, California
Ohhh ... I like her and I don't. What I don't like is that she's very smug and arrogant. But that can play well in the game. She seems to have adopted the strategy of Dan the Man in BB -- she's very strong and plans to come off as weak as long as she can to stay in the game. She's spunky, has lots of personal survival skills, has been on her own since the age of 16, married and divorced by 19. Plus, she boxes and is into triathlons. She's going to be one to watch, methinks.


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Matty Whitmore, age 29, Pacific Palisades, California
Okay, I'm glad he's so proud of being self-sufficient and on his own at the age of 29. I guess it's a generational thing, but I was proud of the same things at the age of 17. Well, no dog, but I had a cat! It will be interesting to see if there is a showmance or a snake in his days in Africa. Heh. I'm tossing around with whether he'll do well or not. For some reason, I'm thinking not. But I can't tell you why. Maybe it's the young male physically fit bit. I'm thinking he might be an early target. I could be wrong, though.


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Marcus Lehman, age 28, Atlanta, Georgia
Is there a doctor in the tribe? Medic! Medic! Yep, we have an actual doctor in the cast and not too bad on the eyes either. In 2006, he was named Georgia's Hottest Bachelor by Cosmopolitan magazine. He went to Harvard. I liked him in his interview. I think I'm gah-gah goo-goo over this one. How well will he do? Well, he has both the mind and the physique to go far. I only worry about that target thing. I wouldn't mind watching him for most or all of the season. Yeah, I'm being shallow.


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Kelly Czarnecki, age 22, Buffalo Grove, Illinois
We're talking a self-proclaimed "denim expert" who, unless I'm hearing wrong, likes to "snooze" her customers to make them buy more. Um, that would be "schmooze." While I think she's probably got some good things going for her, I'm not all that sure she'll do too well. For some reason, I can see her coming on with MY doctor.

Stay tuned for part three. What can I say? It's a big cast.

Checking Out the Survivor Gabon Castaways: Part 1

Okay, now that we have Big Brother out of the way, it's time to think about Survivor! I'm going to give my own first glance opinion of the castaways based on what CBS is telling us about them right now along with a few other sources. Definitely jump in with your thoughts! Survivors ready?


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Jessica "Sugar" Kiper, age 29, Brooklyn, NY
Well, I'm not so sure about the crying. This isn't BB after all -- no Wahmbers welcome on Survivor! She's a pin-up model/actress/waitress currently living in Brooklyn, but has lived in both the South and the West, too. I just don't know. She seems a bit not cut out for living in the jungles of Africa for me. I do like her thoughts about using the show as a weight loss plan -- that's something with which I can identify!



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Ace Gordon, age 27, Naples, FL
He seems quite the character. The English accent comes from being raised in London although he was born in New York. He does definitely come across as arrogant. It's interesting that he mentions he might be portrayed as "evil" when this season is going to be a battle between good and evil, doesn't it? I have a strong feeling that I won't like him as a person, but he stands a chance to do very well in the game if he doesn't offend others too much.



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Corinne Kaplan, age 29, Los Angeles, CA
Okay, she's from New York, not California and she's yet another pharmaceutical sales rep. Why are so many of them on reality television shows? Don't they have to work for a living? But, besides that ... I like her views on showmances. However, something tells me we may see her in one if for no other reason than to get closer to the prize. After all, she seems in it to win it. She might be a strong competitor. I'm getting better surviving vibes from her than I did from Sugar.



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Ken Hoang, age 22, Westminster, CA
While I think he's young and a bit cocky, I think I'm going to like this kid. He's a professional gamer who will hopefully do a lot better than the last professional poker player. He seems intelligent and he is looking at the show as a game. He's probably going to try to think moves ahead and he just better be good at the puzzles, too! He also seems to be physically fit. Of the ones I've looked at so far, he's my favorite. Mind you, I have over a dozen more to look at.



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Susie Smith, age 47, Charles City, Iowa
You know, she might end up being my sentimental favorite. How well she'll do in the game, I don't know. I get the feeling that she might have to rely on others too much and could be weak in challenges. But then again, she grew up working as a crop field worker as a child with her Miexican immigrant parents. She's been through some rather tough things. I'm not all that positive she's going to see too many horses in Aftica, though. I predict no further than mid-season but I hope I'm wrong.



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Robert "Bob" Crowley, age 58, Portland, Maine
Oh my, he looks like Richard Belzer's older brother. You know, John Munch on L&O:SVU and Homicide: Life on the Streets. The shame of it is that I believe they're probably around the same age. A physics teacher, eh? My Survivor-sense is telling me he might be a competitor. But I think that he thinks the others will underestimate him. I think they're going to realize he's a threat. I'd say past mid-game for him.

Stay tuned for the next bunch!