Survivor 45: I Don't Want to Be the Worm - Ep. 5 - Blog Party

 

Good evening! Let's see if the new Lulu tribe is just as cursed as the old one was. They seem to be heading a better direction winning Immunity and getting flint after nine days without it.

A separate post for The Amazing Race will magically appear at about 9:25PM ET. So, please shift over to that post for that show. Merci!

I will be live blogging the show the best I can. I may have issues with some of the names as there are some we've rarely seen. Refresh this page to get the latest updates. As always, the real party is in the comments area. I hope to see you there!

Lifeguard SueGee has updated the blog pool with the tribe switches. Here's where we stand:

Belo – Blue Tribe – Fijian word for Heron

Brando --- Jasonuwp, Marthalight, MikesGirl

Kendra --- Cherry Pie, EthanC

Emily --- ChicMc, Donna in AL, Jackie

Austin --- Pearl, Nora M, Sharon N

Drew --- Dr Celine, monty924

Lulu – Yellow Tribe – Fijian word for Owl

Bruce --- Krysta, Skyriverblue

Katurah --- Donna NY, April W

Kellie --- Michelle, Bizaro22

Jake --- Donna in FL, TS14Fan
Kaleb --- CherylNY, Cookie Jar

Reba – Red Tribe – Fijian word for Goshawk

Dee --- Judi Sweeney, Brent McKee
Maya (J) --- Petals, Glenn Allen, Nickelpeed
Julie --- Andi, PDX Granny
Nicholas “Sifu” --- KelseyNY, Debbie in FL

Survivor fans ready?

Keeping in with my way of doing things, I'm sitting through the Previously On segment.

We pick up with Reba returning from Tribal. Sifu comments about his name coming up in the vote. Dee agreed she was surprised to see hers name. Dee, of course, was the vote for Sifu. She thought others would vote for him, too. Sean told Sifu he didn't vote for him on his way out. Julie is shocked. Now Sifu knows that someone is lying about writing Sean. He's suspicious but can't figure who wrote his name.

Belo Day 10. They have no food, no energy. Emily spots a worm. Kendra picks it up. The others encourage her to eat the worm. She does. Kind of, sort of. It doesn't stay down. The others talk about Kendra's energy.

Lulu Day 10. Jake and Bruce start to head out. Uh-oh. Jake collapses. It's the second time he's done that. Jake weighed 287 before going into Survivor. It took him two years to lose the weight. Kellie says his blood pressure lowered before he collapsed. He vows to fight until the end of the game.

Lulu Day 10 - Kaleb and Jake go off looking for crabs. Katurah realizes she's all alone and goes off looking for an idol. She bumps into the rest. The knew she was idol searching. They think Katurah is all over the place. Kaleb tells Katurah he saw her looking for an idol and tried to stop her before the others saw her. He, like he did with Emily before, creates bonds with others. He wants that bond with Kellie. He told her that Sabiyah found the idol in that camp and they bond.

Reba Day 10 - The women are upset that Sean quit and that he told Sifu he didn't vote for him on the way out. We get Dee's backstory and she doesn't come from a family that quits. Sifu is stunned by his wake-up call vote. He has made a fake idol. He tells Dee that he has an idol. J thinks Sifu thinks she put his name down. She didn't.

Belo Day 10 - Brando and Drew talk Kendra. Brando didn't have a strong connection in tribe before. Brando/Drew really bond, nerding out so to say. Nerd alliance? Drew is not for that at the merge. Brando wants to solidify the bond with Kendra. Brando thinks Emily is in the best spot as she is between the two members of the other two tribes she is in with now. She has promised both sides she's in with them. Uh-oh.

Lulu Day 10 - Bruce's Brucisms are coming out. He does seem to be always on. Katurah is on alert about him. Katurah thinks Kaleb may be seeing the issues with Bruce. He is definitely coming off as bossy. Kaleb is doing his best to please him.

Reba Day 10 - J tells Julie she will say she voted out Sifu and he doesn't need to use his idol. They don't know it's fake. She is going to pretend that she's on the outs and was desperate. Dee is thinking it might be best to vote out J if they go to Tribal again. Julie is in a quandary about it.

Day 11 Immunity Challenge. Race massive three level obstacle course, collecting keys, once they get the keys sandbags, knock down targets. Also playing for massive 10 fresh fish and cooking stuff, second half that prize.

REBA wins 1st Place Immunity! Lulu wins 2nd Place!

Belo will go to Tribal Council for the first time this season.

A twist - one person from each tribe to go on a journey. They will be back in time for Tribal. Reba, J goes. From Lulu, Kellie. Belo, Austin. The other tribes pick.

Once again, Emily is going to Tribal Council. Is that every single one this season? Hmm.

Belo is in pre-Tribal woe phase. Or will they scramble? Kendra is worried. She wants Emily on their side. She brings up Drew as he is so tall and thin. Brand offers to give Drew his shot in the dark to not write his name down. Let it be Kendra? Drew thinks he's being played. Emily and Drew talk. What? Vote out Kendra? Emily thought Brando and Kendra were together. Emily thinks Drew is lying to her. Kendra trusts that Brando and Emily will vote out Drew with her tonight.

Meanwhile, the journey. Kellie feels odd man out with two original Reba members. They have to hike to the top of a mountain. Ohh ... they find sandwiches at the top. They can choose sustenance or strategy. Food or an amulet which need to be played with all the amulets in the game. Austin wants the sandwich. J wants the amulet. If only one amulet remains in the game, it's like an idol. If two or three, steal a vote and extra vote.

Day 11. Still at the mountain. Austin is SO hungry! He relents and they will work together with the amulets. He wants to turn his amulet into an idol.

Belo Day 11 - Emily talks to Drew about the voting out of Kendra. She asks him if he's the one who started that. She tells him that she doesn't know who to trust. Austin lies to them, telling them they had sandwich or carry coconuts and they failed the task. He shows Drew the real truth on paper. Both Drew and Austin have advantages but they need to get Emily's trust. Austin shows Emily what he has. Drew or Brando? Which will get her vote to go?

Night 11 - Tribal Council. It's Belo's first time there. 

They get Jeff's Probsting questions about being there. Drew seems a bit into embellishments. Is Emily in the middle? Yep.

Time to vote. Austin sacrifices his vote to extend the life of his idol, but then restores the vote with his other advantage.

The tally: Drew, Brando, Drew, Brando, Brando ... Kendra is shocked. Emily apologizes to her. Drew and Austin briefly touch hands with Emily.

Next week is the merge?!?!

Survivor 45: Brought a Bazooka to a Tea Party, Ep. 2 Blog Party - Oct. 4

 

Good evening! Are you ready for our big three-hour reality extravaganza? Well, only 90 minutes of it are Survivor. A separate post for The Amazing Race will post at about 9:25PM ET. Be there or be square! Yeah, that's the hipster in me talking.

I will be live blogging the show the best I can. Keep in mind that these castaways are still very new to me, and I may have issues with the names! Refresh this page to get the latest updates. As always, the real party is in the comments area. I hope to see you there!

Lifeguard SueGee has made the random picks for the blog pool. You can refer to my cheat sheet casting post that has photos to check on your pick!

Belo – Blue Tribe – Fijian word for Heron

Brando --- Jasonuwp, Marthalight, MikesGirl
Bruce --- Krysta, Skyriverblue
Jake --- Donna in FL, TS14Fan
Katurah --- Donna NY, April W
Kellie --- Michelle, Bizaro22
Kendra --- Cherry Pie, EthanC

Lulu – Yellow Tribe – Fijian word for Owl

Brandon --- Indiana Jane, SueGee
Emily --- ChicMc, Donna in AL, Jackie
Kaleb --- CherylNY, Cookie Jar
Sabiyah --- Cheryl in NC, cctru
Sean --- Auntie Leigh, David

Reba – Red Tribe – Fijian word for Goshawk

Austin --- Pearl, Nora M, Sharon N
Dee --- Judi Sweeney, Brent McKee
Drew --- Dr Celine, monty924
Maya --- Petals, Glenn Allen, Nickelpeed
Julie --- Andi, PDX Granny
Nicholas “Sifu” --- KelseyNY, Debbie in FL

Survivor fans ready?

We start off with Previously On. My blog pool pick is highlighted, of course.

Lulu - Night 3 - The tribe feels bad that Hannah is gone, quit the game. Sean laments missing flint and Hannah. Emily apologizes to both Kaleb and Sabiyah, as well as Sean. She claims to feel like they gaslighted her and her game blew up. She tries to explain to Sabiyah that she felt it as do or die. Her tribemates have issues with her behavior. Emily is the blog pool pick I received. This is going to be a tough one.

Reba -Day 4 - Sifu is out there doing tai chi or something. Now he's punching trees and machete chopping branches. Okay. Maya thinks there is a clue hidden in the tribe flag. Drew and Austin are also looking. Austin has the advantage clue and tries it with the flag. He thinks it says "dig in the fallen palm tree x." He has no vote due to the advantage.

Belo - Day 4 - Bruce is working hard and they're calling him Uncle Bruce. They say he's hilarious as well as helpful. Of course, Bruce calls it Crazy Uncle Bruce. He feels his tribe is working way too slow. Katurah thinks he's acting like a Dad. She sees right through him. She says he is a threat and she thinks she's the only one who sees it.

Lulu - Day 4 - Emily is out there looking for an idol or advantage. The rest of the tribe decides to follow her. Brandon says she is now Public Enemy #1. He thinks he himself should search for it. He approaches her and says he will search with her. Kaleb also offers to search with her. Brandon finds something along with Sabiyah. Brandon thinks it is the Beware advantage and he didn't want to lose his vote. He gives it to Sabiyah. She loses her vote and it's a clue to lie the clue over the map to their camp. It lines up with a tree. Brandon and her can't find it. She tells Sean and Kaleb. They can't find it.

Reba - Dee's toes segment. Um. Okay. The tribe is bonding. Julie's knees are all scraped up. She decides to work with Dee and Drew ... also Austin. Drew's knees are also rough.

Lulu - Day 4 - Emily tries to talk to Kaleb. He thinks he understands her. He is trying to help her. They bond. Quite surprising. She seems to really respond. Now she's making up with Sabiyah. And Brandon. And Sean. She's really upset with her own attitude. Her knees are a wreck, too. A boat is arriving.

All tribes get a boat. One person from each camp, will return this afternoon. Brandon goes from Lulu. Bruce rock paper scissor to go as does Drew.

The three boats let the three castaways off on a beach. There is a table. Use the time to get to know each other, the game centers around relationships. They need to get to know each other, then they will go off on separate paths. Drew thinks Bruce kept too much to himself while Brandon was open.

They each come upon a puzzle box with a combination lock on a case to earn an advantage. They can choose to play or leave. Bruce doesn't do it, doesn't want to risk his vote. Brandon plays. Drew plays. 

Drew gets his. Brandon runs out of time. Drew gets safety without power, can last get played when there are ten players in the game. Leave before Tribal, come back after.

The three return to their tribes. Brandon arrives on Lulu. He tells them he didn't complete the challenge and lost his vote. Drew arrives at Reba. He tells them the truth. He suggests that if he can hang onto it until the merge, he might give it to someone. Austin tells Drew about his advantage. Drew thinks Austin is his ride or die.

On Belo, Brando is mixing in very well with the girls in the tribe. Bruce and Jake think the girls will work together. He tries to talk to Brando. Brando thinks he's good with Bruce. Bruce thinks he is good with Kelli, Brando and Jake.

Day 5. Immunity Challenge. One at a time climb tower, smash ball in the water, retrieve keys, balance beam,  all three keys a puzzle. Reward fishing gear, second tribe lesser fishing gear. Losing tribe will go to Tribal and lose flint. New sit out rule, must play in the next challenge.

REBA wins 1st! BELO wins 2nd. Lulu lu-looses again. Brandon did horribly on the puzzle.

Lulu - Brandon has no vote and his voice shaky as he tries to tell them he wants to stay. Emily and Brandon know it will be between them. Sabiyah doesn't have a vote either. They go looking for the idol again. Sabiyah spots the coconut in the tree with the idol. It's encased in wax and they must melt the candle to get it. They have no flint. Emily gives Sabiyah her shot in the dark to earn trust.

Night 5 Tribal Council. Jeff brings up the "heat" between Sabiyah and Emily. He asks Sean the tribe dynamics. Sean says Brandon and Emily are in trouble. Brandon says it's his first team. He says the puzzles are just bad days and he's Lulu Strong. Kaleb says Emily is trying as does Sean. Jeff tells Brandon he's likable. Emily says she has to tone down and show them trust. She mentions giving Sabiyah her Shot In The Dark.

Time to vote. Emily votes Brandon of course. Sabiyah can't vote, neither can Brandon.

The tally -- Brandon, Brandon. He's gone!

My pool pick Emily stays in the game.

Survivor 45: Season Premiere Blog Party!

 

Don't forget to sign up for the blog pool!

The link to the blog pool sign up is right here. Please sign up ONLY on that post, not this one! The cut-off is Friday but do it now! If there is a boot tonight, that castaway won't be in the pool.

Tonight is the night! We get our first 90-minute show with the all-new castaways. Well, one is one from last season -- Bruce, the one with the head injury knocking him out of play the first day. All the others are new. And, as such, I am bound to have trouble with their names for a few weeks. So, please bear with me! For a cheat sheet with photos and names, check out my post on the cast.

I will be live blogging the events as the show airs here on the East Coast. Refresh the page for the latest updates. As always, the real party is in the comments. I hope to see you there.

Survivor fans ready?

We have three boats heading to the shore. We're getting brief soundbites from the castaways. No way can I keep up with the small talk! Once again and as always, they are in Fiji. Well, the boats aren't heading to shore. They are heading to a huge boat where Jeff Probst is standing.

They already have buffs on for their tribes. Yellow, Blue and Red. Jeff comments on their energy. Brandon is emotional. He's on the Yellow tribe. Bruce from S44 is introduced -- Blue tribe. Red is Reba. Yellow is Lulu. Blue is Belo.

Challenge - two from each tribe unload bags, key. Next pair, swim to boat, boat to key. Next pair, swim, use keys. Get supplies by unrolling bags through a huge spring thing, not much but a flint, pot and machete! Eep. Brandon is having trouble with the ladder getting up, losing Yellow's lead. Reba wins the supplies!

The other tribes have to choose two people for Sweat versus Savvy to get supplies.

Reba is celebrating their win. They do introductions. Julie the lawyer is lying about lawyering. 

The four Belo members are on their beach. Bruce brings up "mean girl Emily" lighting into him on the boat. Bruce claims to be the fun uncle, not the father of the tribe but then starts running everything. Brando and Jake went on the Sweat vs. Savvy. 

Meanwhile, on Yellow Lulu, Emily is bringing up how two volunteered to go on the trip and she's suspicious. Brandon, who had to be treated by medical arrives at the camp. Kaleb and Sabiyah went for their tribe.

Sweat has them moving 40 logs across the beach and then do Savvy - a puzzle in 40 minutes. Both tribes have sweat done are trying to figure out the puzzle. Both tribes are running out of time. They return.

Brando and Jake tell their tribe neither tribe got the supplies. Kaleb and Sabiyah got Emily ticked when they said they got nothing. She does not believe them at all. One of the guys tell them that Emily thinks they took an advantage. Meanwhile, Hannah and Brandon are bonding.

Belo Day 2 - The women are already talking final three. Kendra wants Jake out because he's a lawyer when one of the women is a lying lawyer. She's claiming office manager.

Lulu Day 2 - No machete. But they are working hard. Emily is being pessimistic about everything it seems. Her tribemates are wearying of her. She knows she isn't mixing well and risks being voted out.

Reba Day 2 - Sifu is looking for idols. His tribemates want to find him. He thinks he's playing a Tony game while Dee says he's trying to play a Tony game. They catch him. Austin finds an advantage which he must do if he reads it. Series of tasks, decipher message on their tribe's flag. If he doesn't do it, he loses his vote.

Day 3. We have the first Immunity Challenge. Up over ramp, into mud pit, heavy bag of coconuts, shoot into basket get set of keys, all go up tower, to puzzle. First two tribes get Immunity. Loser also loses flint. The two tribes without flint will have it back at camp unless they lose.

Uh-oh. Yellow Lulu is running behind again! Austin once again is having issues.

BELO wins Immunity! REBA wins Immunity! 

Lulu has to go to Tribal Council. Brandon feels bad that he will have to vote for someone who performed better than he did in the challenge.

Lulu Day 3 - Hannah is having ups and downs. She tells Brandon she wants to go. She knows they all want Emily out. Brandon tries to convince her to stay. Brandon feels he's a zero so far in the game. He physically feels awful with reflux. He tells others (not Emily) he is playing his shot in the dark because he feels like a liability. Sabiyah says they were all planning on voting out Emily. Meanwhile Emily tells Brandon and Hannah that they need to break up Kaleb and Sabiyah as they are so strong. Brandon tells Kaleb that Emily is targeting him. The vote seems to be between Brandon and Emily.

Time for Tribal Council. 

Jeff asks his Probsting questions. Will they keep the strongest? Emily throws Sabiyah and Kaleb under the bus. Sabiyah tells the others that Emily has isolated herself. Then it's to Brandon's struggles. Hannah still wants to go. She begs them to send her home but offers to quit. Jeff picks up on it. Is everyone on the same page? They all feel bad but they will all vote her out.

'Hannah, grab your torch." The tribe has spoken.

Survivor 45: Cast and Stuff

Unfortunately, I've been ill and haven't had a chance to really delve into the cast of Survivor 45. The show premieres next Wednesday evening at 8PM ET/PT. All episodes will be 90-minutes and it will be followed by The Amazing Race, also airing 90-minutes. The Big Brother veto show moves to Tuesday nights but there is no BB veto show scheduled for the 26th, only the Sunday and Thursday shows.

I found an article on Parade.com with in-depth interviews with each castaway that you might want to read. This link to that article is this here linked link.

While there definitely seems to be great diversity of cultures, once again we see a rather young cast. Bruce, the one who was taken out by medical for a head injury in the first episode of Survivor 44 within the first 12 hours of the show, is returning. But he and only one other castaway, a woman named Julie, are in their late 40s. Everyone else is more than a decade, most of them two decades or more, younger. Hmm.

A blog pool will be opening up for the castaways soon. Stay tuned! As usual, the first boot will be reassigned.

Austin Li Coon, age 26

Brandon "Brando" Meyer, age 23

Brandon Donlon, age 25

Bruce Perreault, age 47

Dee Valladares, age 26

Please read on after the jump ...

Survivor 44: Blog Pool Update - March 2

 

Good evening! I think last night was an excellent start for what looks like a promising season ahead. Well, Bruce and Maddy might feel differently about that, I guess. It's such a shame that Bruce went out in a medical during the first episode. I think he showed a lot of promise. It would be nice if the show brought back some of the ones injured and medically evacuated some season. 

Anyway ... since Bruce went out unexpectedly, his blog pool person will be reassigned to another castaway. Since we didn't really get to know Maddy at all before she got the boot, her blog pool person will also be reassigned. Plus, we caught three people sneaking into the pool over the fence and, since they brought snacks and adult beverages, we're adding them in to the pool. Yes, we can be bribed.

Lifeguard SueGee did her random magic, and this is the updated blog pool:

SOKA TRIBE

Claire - DonnaNY, TS14Fan 

Danny - Donna in AL, Mikes Girl

Frannie - Auntie Leigh, Brent 

Heidi - John Cantrell, PDX Granny 

Josh - Skyriverblue, Nana in the NW 

Matt - Bizarro22, SueGee 

TIKA TRIBE

Carolyn - Krysta Gibson, Sydney 

Carson - Petals, Donna in FL 

Helen - Martha Light, Jackie 

Sarah - Judi Sweeney, AprilW 

Yam Yam - Sharon N, Glenn Allen 

RATU TRIBE

Jaime - Andi, monty924 

Kane - Nickelpeed, Cheryl in NC 

Lauren - David, KelseyNY 

Matthew - RJM in SC 

Brandon - Mike Barer

Torch Snuffed

Bruce (medical)

Maddy

Survivor 44: Season Premiere Blog Party!

 

Good evening! Welcome to yet another new season of Survivor! We've been doing this for more than two decades now. Where is our million dollars?

Tonight's show is two hours long, running 8-10PM ET/PT. Right now, I'm not sure if there will be one boot or two during that time. As par for the course as of late, I'm sure we will get touching backstories on some of the castaways. I'll be live-blogging the show here as it airs in East Coast time -- updating this entry with all the major happenings. Refresh the blog to get the latest update! As always, the real party is in the comments area. I hope to see you there.

Before we dive into things, let's dive into the blog pool. Lifeguard SueGee has made the random matches and here's where we stand --

SOKA TRIBE

Claire - DonnaNY 

Danny - Donna in AL

Frannie - Auntie Leigh 

Heidi - John Cantrell, PDX Granny 

Josh - Skyriverblue, Nana in the NW 

Matt - Bizarro22, SueGee 

TIKA TRIBE

Bruce - Mikes Girl 

Carolyn - Krysta Gibson, Sydney 

Carson - Petals, Donna in FL 

Helen - Martha Light, Jackie 

Sarah - Judi Sweeney, AprilW 

Yam Yam - Sharon N 

RATU TRIBE

Jaime - Andi, monty924 

Kane - Nickelpeed, Cheryl in NC 

Lauren - David 

Maddy - KelseyNY 

Matthew - RJM in SC 

Brandon - Mike Barer

I ask that folks bear with me during the beginning of the season as I'm learning who is whom. I may be vague or mistaken now and then with a name. If you wish to check out your blog pick, I do have photos on these blog entries -- Ratu - Soka - Tika

Survivor fans ready?

We start off with Carolyn not knowing what to say in her first confessional. Ah, now they are arriving by boat and we're seeing a very Survivor-dedicated Carson. It sounds like we're going to get a brief bit from each one and I won't be able to keep up with them all.

Jeff has a mullet thing this season. Eep!

The boats arrive and the tribes already have their buffs separating said tribes. Now we're seeing the bit already released as the promo for the season.

Right to first Reward Challenge -- break into pairs, retrieving one puzzle piece each through obstacle course, two solve puzzle, raise three rings over a very tall pole. Bruce banged his head hard. He needs medical attention. Uh-oh. He's up and will be able to continue in the game!

Winning tribe wins a flint -- Soka wins! Next winning tribe wins -- Ratu -- they can choose Sweat or Savvy. Tika gets what they don't pick.

Jeff gives the maps to their individual camps.

Soka Day 1 -- Green. We get a Matthew segment. They have their machete and pot at the camp and introduce themselves to each other. They find a bird cage with a bag inside with a rusty padlock. 

Ratu Day 1 -- Orange -- Sweat has them collecting coconuts into a net, four hours. Savvy -- brain teaser, 15 minutes, one guess. If they fail, they have to wait for Day 3 for their supplies. They decide to do Sweat instead of trying to solve an unknown puzzle. They feel more confident in their physical abilities.

Tika Day 1 -- Purple -- They get the Savvy task. They have to count numbers of rings in two slowly spinning spheres. Carson and Helen work on it. They also find a bird cage. Helen and Carson solve the puzzle right! They get their supplies! 

Meanwhile, Ratu is still doing the coconuts. The ones not hauling the coconuts find their bird cage. The two doing the coconuts are struggling with the amount of coconuts now in the bag. They just make it and those two are now bonded. It was Brandon and Matthew.

Yam Yam makes fire without any problems! He says he's very familiar with the beach. They start talking about watching the show for years. Talk turned to relationships. Carson has never dated. Oh my. He gained 30 pounds to go on the show.

Heidi makes fire for her tribe, a little more difficulty than Yam Yam had, but she did the task. Matt and Frannie bond. Will they be the rumored showmance this season? Brandon tells his tribe he's out of a vote. 

On Tika, they think Bruce really bounced back well but now they are worried. The medic comes in. Bruce says his head is killing him. Uh-oh. He's getting an IV. Jeff is there. They have to pull him from the game. What a shame. He was SO exciting to be there and was full of promise.

Ratu Day 2 -- Matthew makes fire. He seems to be the one who knows the most and his tribe is grateful for him. Now they are out looking for food. He has a real outdoors background. He's climbing a rock formation and takes a tumble. He said he needed a medic but then said his shoulder popped back in. His foot is bleeding badly. He's in tears as the medic arrives. He gets a sling for his shoulder.

Tika Day 2 -- Sarah, Carson and Helen are bonding, Carolyn not so much. She thinks she's weird and loud. She would annoy me!

A boat arrives with a note -- one person has to get on the boat to return this afternoon. Sarah goes on a straw draw. Matt goes from his tribe. Lauren goes for Ratu.

Ratu searches for the key to the bird cage. Brandon finds something! He doesn't want anyone to know. Maddy is suspicious. He tells her and it is indeed the key. They have to decide whether to tell or not. He doesn't trust her and calls out to the others.

Hidden Immunity Idol. They thought it was a group thing. There is also a dummy idol in the bag. Brandon now has a target on his back because everyone knows he has an idol. (And a fake idol, too.)

To the boats. Matt, Sarah and Lauren. Matt is anxiety-ridden. They follow a path to a Lookout. They come up on a sign to pick a path and each takes a separate path. Bag - three packages -- two say Lose A Vote, one is an advantage. They can choose a second one if they get Lose. If they draw two Lose a Vote, lose a vote.

Sarah gets a Lose, then the Inheritance Advantage. Matt gets Lose, then Lose again. Lauren gets Bank a Vote advantage. Lauren lies to them, tells them she lost her vote. Sarah lies to her tribe. Matt was honest with them about losing his vote.

Time for the Immunity Challenge. Push a boat into water, paddle around buoy, load chest, giant slide puzzle. First two tribes win Immunity. Whoa ... losing tribe has to go to Tribal AND lose their flint!

Soka gets to the puzzle part first. Ah, someone from Matt's tribe told Mattew that Matt showed them he lost the vote. Interesting. Brandon seems to have heat exhaustion. Uh-oh. He's hydrating and they will go one without him.

SOKA wins Immunity! Tika wins Immunity! Ratu (with Brandon) will go to Tribal tonight.

Ratu Day 3 - Brandon feels he let everyone down. (Now, he does have an idol, but everyone knows.) Matthew tells Brandon he thinks Lauren is playing them about losing a vote. The three guys decide to vote Lauren. Meanwhile, Lauren is talking to the women about not trusting Brandon. She wants to blindside him. Jaime is confused. Should she play her shot in the dark? The guys are nervous about the women. Sheesh! Will the women convince Kane and Matthew to target Brandon? I doubt it.

Tribal Council time. Jeff asks them about the tension. Matthew says he's not comfortable. Brandon talks lies and truths. Jaime tells of Brandon's idol. Mattew says what they don't know is the snake that will get you. Brandon talks of weaker links. Jaime says she will play her shot in the dark. Matthew also played the shot in the dark. Matthew is not safe. Jaime is safe. (First time ever.) Brandon plays his idol.

The tally - Brandon, Brandon, Maddy.

Maddy is voted out!

Survivor 44: It's Coming!

 

Yes, Survivor 44 is almost here! Its season premiere is Wednesday, March 1 at 8PM ET/PT. Once again, the season is set in Fiji. It seems like that's its home now. I do miss the seasons of the past when they set the show in places like Australia and Africa. But they don't consult me on these things! 

I will be delving into each castaway between now and when the show starts. However, I'll give you all a sneak peak at the tribes now ...

Tika Tribe

Soka Tribe

Ratu Tribe

Survivor 43: Episode 12 Blog Party - December 7

 

The Amazing Race season finale is on at 9PM EDT. A separate post for that show will magically appear a few minutes before the end of this show. It's odd that both shows aren't finishing up at the same time.

As for Survivor, I will be live blogging the major events as the show airs here on the East Coast. Refresh the page to get the latest news. As always, the real party is in the comments section. I hope to see you there!

The Esteemed Lifeguard SueGee has updated the blog pool -- check it out to find your castaway!

Cody       Cheryl in NC, ChicMc
Jesse       AprilW, Donna in AL
Cassidy     Cherrypie, Kelsey NY
Karla       Glenn Allen, monty924
Gabler     Donna in FL, Joanne Victoria
Owen    Mike Barer, SueGee

Jury

Jeanine

James

Ryan

Noelle

Sami

Survivor fans ready?

It's Day 22 with six remaining. Owen wanted Karla to vote for Cassidy to stir things up. But Karla voted for Sami instead. He still wants to stir up issues between Karla and Cassidy. And Cassidy seems to believe him.

She confronts Karla about it. Karla denies it that she was coming after her (even though she was). Cassidy is the only one who really knows about Karla's idol. Karla pulls out the tears. She tells Jesse so he can back her up.

Instead of backing her up, Jesse throws Karla under that good old reality bus to Cassidy. 

It's right to the Reward Challenge. Random two teams of three, one person strapped into a huge ball and two pushing while blindfolded. The one in the ball has to direct the blindfolded through a course ending in a table maze that the one in the ball has to call. The Reward is Sanctuary and pastries.

Owen (in ball), Karla and Cody win Reward!

On Sanctuary Cody might be overdoing it on the caffeine and sugar. But the three start talking. Karla admits she's a threat but won't admit she has an idol. She fake cried to the guys, Cody and Owen believe she doesn't have an idol but that she is very dangerous. Owen wants Karla out more than Cassidy.

Back at camp they are eating rice and Gabler talks final three with Cassidy and Jesse. Cassidy tells them that Karla has an idol. They also know that Cody has one. Jesse has Jeanine's idol that no one knows about. Gabler and Cody talk about taking Karla and her idol down.

Immunity Challenge time! Race obstacles collecting number tiles, combination, retrieve key, unlock puzzle pieces, put puzzle together.

CASSIDY wins Immunity!

Owen and Gabler are worried if both Cody and Karla may play idols. Cody talks to Karla, both admit to idols. Cody tells her neither of them should use their idols and vote either Gabler or Owen. Hmm. Karla talks to Gabler who says he will vote Owen. Owen admits he will vote Gabler if he has to.

Cody tells Owen about his "plan" with Karla so they can blindside Karla. He is sure Jesse is in his corner. Jesse is getting to the point where he wonders if he can beat Cody. Will he betray the trust? He has Cody's idol because of the Knowledge is Power advantage a few weeks back. Ohhh ... he goes to Owen about taking out Cody. Oh my. Owen tells Cassidy. Uh-oh. Jesse has to give the idol back to Cody so Cody can prove he has it. He needs to get it back from Cody. That blows Jesse's plan.

Tribal Council time. Cody looks very smug. Karla says she still doesn't feel well -- her body broke down during the immunity challenge. Jesse says Karla and Cody will be playing their idols tonight. Jeff wonders if it's a bluff. Gabler thinks he will be lasting until tomorrow. Jesse doesn't seem as sure. Owen isn't all that sure. Cody is still smug.

Time to vote. Karla votes Owen.

No idols played. Wait. Jesse plays one for Owen.

The tally - Wait. Karla plays hers for herself.

Owen, Karla, Cody, Cody, Cody ... aha! He was too smug! Jesse betrayed him!

Jeff tells them they will be heading to a new beach tonight. Next week is the season finale. 

Survivor 43: Episode 11 Blog Party - November 30

 

The Amazing Race is on at 9PM EDT, a separate post for that show will magically appear a few minutes before the end of this show.

As for Survivor, I will be live blogging the major events as the show airs here on the East Coast. Refresh the page to get the latest news. As always, the real party is in the comments section. I hope to see you there!

Some weirdness to mention -- last year we had no Ponderosa videos with the jury members in sequester after they were voted out. There are none on the website for this season. But if you do a YouTube search for "Survivor 43 After the Snuff" -- there are videos obviously filmed with a cell phone posted. Hmm. 

The Esteemed Lifeguard SueGee has updated the blog pool -- check it out to find your castaway!

Cody       Cheryl in NC, ChicMc
Jesse       AprilW, Donna in AL
Cassidy     Cherrypie, Kelsey NY
Karla       Glenn Allen, monty924
Gabler     Donna in FL, Joanne Victoria
Owen    Mike Barer, SueGee
Sami      Brenda, Indiana Jane

Jury

Jeanine

James

Ryan

Noelle

Survivor fans ready?

We open with the castaways returning from Tribal Council. I still feel bad that Noelle is out but I totally understand it. I think she more than proved her point that her disability doesn't stop her. Sami was shocked at Noelle being voted out. He thinks he and Owen were left out of the vote. Sami admits to the others he wrote down Karla's name. 

Gabler tries to make good with Owen so they can work together. Owen feels the others are all out to get him. Sami is still mad that he was left out of the vote for the first time. We get it teary sentimental bit about Sami, his mother and his little brother. Aw. Head up, shoulders back and make the best of it.

Karla and Sami talk. Apparently, he didn't burn that bridge. He lies to Karla and tells her that the first one to mention her name was Cassidy. So, Karla is freaking because she told Cassidy about her idol and she thought they were allies.

They see boat mail coming. It's handed to Karla. "Seven days left Any advantage is an advantage worth having. There's one hidden in your jungle. GO." They all run off looking for it. I may be mistaken but they keep going all around it. Yep, that's it. Hanging on a tree. Ah, Cody notices it and sneak pockets it.

It is an advantage -- he can bet on a player to win the next Immunity Challenge, if they win, he wins. He's given a heads-up about what the challenge it -- the almost drowning one we've seen before.

Immunity Challenge time. Test your ability to remain calm when all seems to be not calm. They are under a grate which gets lower as the tide rises, trying to breathe in the ocean. Cody gives Jeff his advantage. Jeff tells them about it but says he won't say who he chose until Tribal.

Gabler out first. Sami out. Jesse out. They are now at an hour. CODY is out -- he was sure he would win! 90 minutes. Almost two hours. Cassidy is out. She lasted two hours. Karla and Owen the only ones left. Two hours 45 minutes. Now the tide is dropping.

Jeff tells them since they beat the tide, BOTH will win Immunity because they outlasted the challenge! This has never happened before. For some reason, I don't think Cody chose either of them. Sami thinks Cody will also be safe and he will need to play his Shot in the Dark at Tribal tonight.

Sure, they're all hugging back at camp. Cassidy is upset with herself. Owen talks to her. Like Sami, she feels that three will be safe and she's vulnerable. They two talk about Sami going tonight. Karla agrees. She is worried that Cassidy knows about her idol ... and tells Sami they need to vote out Cassidy. Hmm. Sami is a bit suspicious. Now more are mentioning Cassidy's name. 

Jesse is leery. He thinks it might be time to take out Sami. He talks to Own who is a bit suspicious about him. Jesse tells Cody about only Karla voting Cass with the rest of them voting Sami.

Tribal Council time. Jeff has to talk about Karla and Owen outlasting the high tide. Gabler says there was chaos back at camp. Karla says they're all polite. Owen brings up that he was left out of the voting plans last week. Sami thinks he's at the bottom. Cassidy talks about strengths, weaknesses and trust. Sami mentions they haven't seen an idol played. He tells them he's going to play his Shot in the Dark tonight. Karla says it's unfortunate that people trust him, and he is willing to throw his vote away.

Time to vote. Samu does pull the die out of his pocket. 

Cody voted on OWEN to win, so he is safe. 

The tally -- wait, Sami's Shot in the Dark -- he's NOT SAFE.

Now the tally -- Sami, Sami, Sami, Sami ... he's out! He's good about it. We do have to remember he's a kid. He just graduated from high school before the filming of the season.

Survivor 43: Episode 10 Blog Party - November 23

 

Good evening, Survivor fans!

The Amazing Race is on at 9PM EDT, a separate post for that show will magically appear a few minutes before the end of this show.

As for Survivor, I will be live blogging the major events as the show airs here on the East Coast. Refresh the page to get the latest news. As always, the real party is in the comments section. I hope to see you there!

The Esteemed Lifeguard SueGee has updated the blog pool -- check it out to find your castaway!

Cody       Cheryl in NC, ChicMc
Noelle     MikesGirl, Tammy
Jesse       AprilW, Donna in AL
Dwight    Petals, Skyriverblue
Cassidy     Cherrypie, Kelsey NY
Karla       Glenn Allen, monty924
Gabler     Donna in FL, Joanne Victoria
Owen    Mike Barer, SueGee
Sami      Brenda, Indiana Jane

Jury

Jeanine

James

Ryan

Survivor fans ready?

We start with them coming back from the Tribals. Karla voted with the crowd only because Sami told her the plan. She feels left out and is worried. Cassidy is thrilled James went home. Jesse feels comfortable and has two idols. He thinks Sami is overplaying. He feels great about where he's at. Huh. Over-confidence has sent many a castaway packing.

We start with a Reward Challenge. They spin themselves dizzy to draw a sandbag towards them, obstacle course, balance beam, throw sandbag atop a small platform on a pole. Reward is a feast and an overnight at Sanctuary ... and even beer.

Cassidy then Karla are the first ones through to throw their sandbags. All are now throwing sandbags. NOELLE wins after having real troubles with her leg and the obstacle course! Her leg had fallen off at the end -- the suction let go.

She also gets letters from home as well as whoever goes with her. She can choose on other -- Sami. One more -- Jesse. One more -- Owen. Ah, the letters are from several people -- Owen got ones from his mother, father and girlfriend. Lots of tears. Jesse is crying reading the letter from his wife.

Hmm ... someone should be keeping an eye out for an idol. Sami says he would like Cassidy out. Owen suggests splitting the vote between Cassidy and Karla in case Karla has an idol.

Back at camp, Cody is definitely leery about what's going on with the Reward people. They talk about Sami, Noelle and Owen. Cody thinks Owen is the new Dwight. Cassidy wants to get Gabler to get on board with her. Cassidy and Karla want him to work with them. He feels others at Reward also are on his side.

Immunity Challenge time. One hand steady a balancing board, other hand builds house of cards. First house to reach a red arrow marker wins. The cards are not playing cards. They sound ceramic. They're all falling all the time.

CASSIDY WINS IMMUNITY!

Day 19 and the ocean looks great! Noelle tells us they need to come up with a new backup. Noelle feels she can't trust Sami. She's thinking they can probably still vote out Karla. Jesse emotionally wants to keep Noelle but thinks she is the strongest competitor. He talks to Cody.

Jesse has a plan and is using cover stories. He wants Noelle to go and talks to Sami to make him a fall guy for targeting Noelle. He tells Noelle that the vote will split between Karla and Sami. He tells Karla the vote will split between Noelle and Sami. Then he talks to Gabler about blindsiding Noelle. Gabler wants to think on it. Okay, Gabler tells him he will vote Noelle tonight.

Gabler goes to Karla and tells her that Jesse and Cody are running the show. Hmm.

Tribal Council time. Time for Jeff's Probsting questions. He brings up the Reward Challenge and Noelle's amazing efforts. She says she hopes to be an example. Jesse is questioned about his time at Sanctuary. Gabler gets to compare what's happening compared to surgery. Now they're comparing each other to assassins.

They vote. Owen votes Karla, Jesse votes Noelle. That's all we see.

The tally -- Karla, Noelle, Sami, Karla, Noelle, Noelle, Noelle.

I hate to see Noelle go but I actually do think that no one would win against her at the end. It was a smart decision.

Survivor 43: Episode 9 Blog Party - November 16

 

Good evening, Survivor fans!

The Amazing Race is on at 9PM EDT, a separate post for that show will magically appear a few minutes before the end of this show.

As for Survivor, I will be live blogging the major events as the show airs here on the East Coast. Refresh the page to get the latest news. As always, the real party is in the comments section. I hope to see you there!

My apologies for the non-blog last week. I'm actually still in the same predicament. The television I ordered mysteriously got lost in transit and its replacement hasn't arrived. I was thinking I could stream tonight's TV shows on my old tablet, but no go. It's too old for streaming, I guess. So, I'm doing this split-screen on my desktop computer tonight. Please bear with me!

The Esteemed Lifeguard SueGee has updated the blog pool -- check it out to find your castaway!

Cody       Cheryl in NC, ChicMc
Noelle     MikesGirl, Tammy
Jesse       AprilW, Donna in AL
Dwight    Petals, Skyriverblue
Cassidy     Cherrypie, Kelsey NY
Karla       Glenn Allen, monty924
James     DonnaNY, Krysta Gibson
Ryan       John Cantrell, Jackie
Gabler     Donna in FL, Joanne Victoria
Owen    Mike Barer, SueGee
Sami      Brenda, Indiana Jane

Snuffed Out
Morriah
Justine 
Nneka  
Lindsay 
Geo
Elie

Jeanine

Survivor fans ready?

We open with them returning from Tribal. Sami wants to shake the game up and pick off the people at the top. He talks to Owen. Owen is upset with James as he told him they were sticking with the Ryan vote. Gabler is the one who told him otherwise. After all, James is not the Godfather, dude.

James is trying to work others against Owen. He does seem to think he's the Godfather after all.

We're right into the Immunity Challenge. Two teams of five, separate Tribal Councils. The last person standing wins reward -- PB&J for their team and they get to go to Tribal second. Two going home tonight. Red/blue.

They have to lift up a handle to keep a ball above them trapped. Ball comes down, so do they. Jesse out first for red. Cassidy out for red. Noelle out for blue. James out for blue. Gabler out for red. Owen out for blue. Sami out for blue. 

KARLA wins Immunity for Blue! She did it with a stitched-up finger even.

Karla out, so Red will win the reward. It's Ryan and Cody up still for Red. Ryan out.

CODY wins Immunity for Red as well as the Reward!

Blue goes back to the beach where they decide who will go home. Red goes back to camp to enjoy the PB&J.

At camp Ryan tells Gabler it's Cass tonight. They talk to Cody. Cody tells Cassidy that it's Ryan being voted out.

At the Vesi camp, Karla wants to vote out Owen with her ally James. Noelle talks to Sami about the Owen vote, too. I personally wouldn't mind if James went -- his voice always sounds like he has marbles in the back of his throat! Owen tries to confront James in front of the rest of the team because James is putting on a rather big jerk act. I don't know. If they keep focusing on Owen going in the edit, he just might not.

Day 17. The Red vote still seems to be between Ryan and Cassidy. Cody and Jesse are trying to figure out what ties the two have with others. They know James would want Ryan out. Cody likes Gabler, so wants to recruit him into his way of thinking. Gabler is finally finding a home! They figure Owen or Cassidy will go from Blue.

Noelle would prefer James go. She wants to make a big move. She is thinking of using her Steal a Vote advantage. Sami, Noelle and Owen want to vote out James. Woot! Uh-oh ... Sami is allied with Karla and gives her the idea they should vote James out.

Night 17 and Blue settles in at Tribal. Jeff recaps. They had no rice, etc. James says there was frustration at the beach. Sami talks about James and Owen having a heated discussion. Yes, there was yelling. 

Noelle uses her advantage Steal a Vote. She steals Owen's vote. She gets two votes. 

The tally -- Owen, James, James, James ... three is enough. Bye, James! He is sarcastic and tells them "see how far you get now."

The Red Team comes into Tribal. They see that James is on the jury with Jeanine. Jesse seems a bit shocked -- he knows James had the Knowledge is Power advantage. To their own questions, Cassidy loved the PB&J but the evil eviction is back. Ryan says the voting in a small group is a lot scarier.

Time to vote. Ryan votes Cassidy. Cassidy votes Ryan. And, that's all we see.

The tally -- Cassidy, Ryan, Ryan, Ryan ... there goes my pool pick. He tells them they will go hungry now. Unlike James, he really did keep them in food with his fishing.