Watching Survivor

Hey there, Survivor Fans! Congrats to Dannyv84, who’s picks pulled him in the full 23 points and shot him all the way up to 5th place overall! Excellent job, Danny! Will he be the one to topple me from the top spot this week? Or will Collette’s slow and steady creep to second place do me in next week? How are YOU doing? Get those numbers in before show time next Thursday! It’s still early, and anybody’s game!

Speaking of - I got the last part of the prizes in the mail today, so each prize package is complete, but for the Banner I haven’t designed just yet. We’re up to 40 members of the pool too! Thanks for spreading the word, and Good Luck!

So, poor Mikey B - he hardly saw that coming, hm? He’s only done one interview so far, but I’m sure there are plenty more in the works. I’ll post them as they come in. For now, you can listen to an interview here, and find out what he thought of his stay on Micronesia, how he had to fight to be on the show, and how he wanted to lead the tribe. Included are some new details on how they prepared for challenges, too!

Next week, we’ll see a tribal shakeup, which has the Fans getting their chance to mingle with the Favorites! How is this going to affect the game? Will the Favorites take the lead and teach the Fans how to make a decent shelter? And of course, the big question of the day - who will be voted out next! I can’t wait to see how it all shakes down!

-:15 Hey there Survivor Fans! Just setting up this post for the As It Happens Recap of tonights Episode 4. Who do you think will go? Who gets the idol? Who will topple me from the top spot on the Survivor Pool Party? These are the questions we all want answers too… Answer’s that will come over the next hour! Thanks, as always, to Bobby at Live East Coast Feed who’s kind enough to play Survivor for us west coasters at East Coast time!

:00 Previously, on Survivor! It’s recap time, folks! 17 are left, who will be voted out tonight?

:02, We’re back at the camp with the Faves, where the talking begins, and Ami says she’s sorry she wrote her name down. jonathan jumpes in and Cirie says “I wasn’t even talking to you!” Jonathan says she’s much more manipulative and devious then he is. Cirie tells us that he’s mad he couldn’t make her vote the way she wanted too. Cue the fight we saw on the previews. Cirie doesn’t have to listen to him, cuz she’s grown. *L*

:04 Commercial.

:07 At the Fans camp, they start talking about who they think went home. Joel says they’re pleased to have won and it was good for them. They catch an eel! Dinner time for the Fans! Natalie says you have to do what you need to do, all she’s done is keep her head down and work. She doesn’t think Chet is pulling his weight and she’s not the only one. MikeyB says Chet is weak and is a physical and mental liability and he’s gone.

At the Favorites, Eliza is feeling sick, says her ears hurt and such - and James says she needs to suck it up. He says they were stupid to not get rid of her last night. James says they wanted to keep the strong people, but Cirie was hell bent on getting out Yau-Man out, and it was a big mistake. James says it in front of everyone, and Eliza is all “I’m sitting right here!” he says yeah and “you’re about to die!” and She says she’ll do better in any challenge today then Yau-man would have. Eliza complains to us that they’re making her feel like crap. She tells the guys that their attitude makes her not want to do well at all, and tells us she hates these people. Hahah.

:11 Challenge time!

Fans get their first look at the new tribe without Yau-Man. Here’s how it works, 4 member swimp to the platform, dive down to the cage containing coconuts, lettered ones are removed and put in a bin, swim it to the shore where the rest of the members unscramble for reward. Reward is three egg laying hens, 1 rooster, chicken feed and they’ve already laid eggs. Two members will go to Exile Island.

:13 Here we go - for reward! Survivor’s ready, GO!

All four tribe members have to be on the platform before the first member dives. Ozzy and Jason are out first, searching for the coconut with letters. Ozzie spends a lot of time underwater, as Jason has to com up for air - Jason gets the first coconut for the fans and Mikey B is next out. Ozzy is moving SEVERAL coconuts at once. Mikey B is up for the second coconut, and Ozzy FINALLY comes up with one coconut. Penner is in the water and hits to the front of the cage where Ozzy has placed the coconuts - Tied 2 each. Now Favorites have three, now four! Ozzy’s strategy is paying off as the Fans pull up another coconut. Jason in the water, and Faves have 5-3!

There are ten coconuts total, Faves have six! Ami in the water, as MikeyB is in the water for the fans, Ami has number 7! Mikey comes up with number 5, Natalie has number 6 for the Fans, Ozzy is under water again and pulls them all forward, puts number 8 in the bin, Penner gets number 9, and ozzy hits the water again for number ten - the Fans are unclipping and swimming back to the shore - Favorites are on the move as the Fans get number 8.

The Favorites haul the bin to shore and the other’s head to the puzzle to unscramble - James has the word, says it, and they spell it right as Mikey gets number 9 - FAVORITES WIN REWARD!

They send Kathy out to exile island again, and ozzy joins her. Fans - got nuthin for ya, head back to camp, and Faves get their reward!

:19 Commercial
(more…)

Hey ya’ll - how are my favorite Survivor Fans this fine morning? I’ve got a bunch of links for you today, as well as the Episode Four preview from Mr. Dimples himself, Jeff Probst. It doesn’t give away much this week, but it might help you make some of your Pool Party Picks if you haven’t already!

First up, though, My man Yau-Man’s interview circuit. He’s such a nice guy, and a definite fan favorite, it’s great to see his thoughts on the game this time around. You can catch his interviews here, here, here, here and here.

As sad as I was to see him go, I guess it’s a compliment to him that the rest of the Favorites didn’t think they stood a chance against the wily old guy!

From the looks of the press images, one of the challenges is again under water, which bodes well for Ozzy and the Faves, and not so good for Chet and the Fans. Does this mean they’ll come on top? Not necessarily, as we’ve seen the fans and faves are pretty well matched determination wise. And with Cirie going a little power happy, it might drag the faves down once again.

In other news - the Hidden Immunity Idol comes into play, and rumor has it the real one is found and replaced with a fake! I’ve watched the following preview several times to see if I can figure out who’s hands those are towards the end. Any ideas? I had heard that Cirie would find the idol, but that don’t look like her hands to me, for obvious reasons… what do you think?

Only 24 hours to go until all the questions about this episode are answered! Get your picks in for the Survivor Pool Party, and see you tomorrow with the show recap!

Hey, it was morning when I started writing this - close enough, right? (grin)

Congrats to those who chose well in our Survivor Pool Party this week! I certainly didn’t expect them to turn on Yau-Man so soon and am sad to see him go…

Congrats to Sugarbooger62 for pulling out the top numbers for the week with 18 points! That moved her clear up into 4th place overall. Colette was second for the week with 13 points, which kicked her up to 2nd place overall, right under me! Well done, you two!

As you can see - the standings are ever changing, and one good week can get you on top and in reach for those prizes, so get your picks in for next week’s episode soon!

As heartbroken as I am to see Yau-Man go, he handled it like I expected he would - with class and gratitude. You can find some of his interviews here and here - the last done by my buddy Lynn over at Reality Expoits. I’m sure other interviews will pop up around the net too - Yau-Man is extremely popular - and I’ll miss seeing him on the show!

In other news - if you’re around Penn Laird, Virginia on April 5th, you’ve got to check this out! There will be a Charity Pro Wrestling Event that will feature two of our favorites - Billy Garcia from Survivor Cook Islands, and the man we all love to hate, Jonny Fairplay! Thye’ll be squaring off in front of a special Celeb Guest Judge in a no DQ, no holds barred wrestling match with their partners Mr. Terriffic and Coach Dodson. This event will raise money for computers, smart boards, speech devices and other learning devices for severe and profoundly disabled children. And the big prize? The winners shave the loser’s head, right in the ring! That’s right - Billy might just be taking Jonny’s curls from him after the match!

There will be other special guests there - including Cao Boi (Cook Islands), Tracy Wolf (Micronesia) Kynt & Vyxsin (The Amazing Race 12) among others. The event is on April 5th, 2008, at the Spotswood High School. Admission is $10 and doors open at 6pm. If you get a chance to go, let me know, as I’d love a first hand account of the festivities! (When, oh when will these guys come to Alaska so that I can attend a function?! Sigh!) Good luck with the fundraiser, Billy and Jonny!

-:10 Just setting up the post here before the show gets started. Hope you got all your picks in for the Pool Party! Will you be the one toppling the leaders off the board tonight? Good luck!

:00 Last time on Survivor… It’s recap time! 18 are left, who will be voted out tonight?

:02 We rejoin the Fans right after Tribal Council on day 6, where Mikey B says he can only assume that Joel stuck a knife in his back ALREADY - and Joel is playing a long term game, when you have to play short term and keep your strength until the merge. Joel says Mikey thinks he has everyone in his pocket, and Mikey B says that he didn’t have to do it yet. Joel adds he’d like to see his face when the baseball bat hits him in the face and he realizes that he doesn’t have the tribe in his pocket.

:03 Commercial

:06 At the Favorites Tribe, they’re starting a fire, and they’re talking about who they hope was voted out. Amanda Ozzy James and Parvati go down to the beach and invited Eliza with them, and she says they were working her, big time. They tell her they distrust Johnathan, and says they need to get rid of him and Cirie. Eliza says she listened but doesn’t trust them.

They go back and talk to Cirie, who admits they’ve been trying to get her to join them, and she tells us she’s juggling and trying to decide which side is better for her. She says it’s all about who she thinks she can trust. She’ll go all the way with someone she trusts - if she doesn’t trust you, you can’t believe a think she says.

Day 7 - Tree mail with the Fans, and it’s a big one - says war paint, three choices for the reward, and be ready to tackle, but lose and you take a beating. There’s the reward book too, where they get to pick three things out of it.

The Fans are looking through to figure out what they want as well, and everyone starts painting themselves for war. Dundundun! Yau-Man still looks cute. Hahah. Eliza says there is NO way they’ll lose the challenge. Joel says their moral is a little bit down, but logically if someone invades his home, they’re going down.

Reward Challenge time!
Both tribes will start at opposite sides in the apponants endzone. You’ll charge carrying three canvas bags - goal is to get three bags from your tribe, and two from the other in the end zone at the same time. Faves are playing for Shelter Lighting and Survival kits, Fans have Fishing, Kitchen, and Shelter. Let’s get it on!

:11 Little bit of Rain to make it fun - survivors ready, GO! Joel knocks Yau=man and takes down Amanda, it’s physical QUICKLY. James pulls Kathy off Cirie - Faves have 2, Fans have 1 - but have to get 5 at once. Yau-man into the endzone. Jole and James go at it - Joel tosses the bag and people COLIDE! Faves 2, Fans 1, Amanda is pulled down hard. It’s tied, 2-2!

Alexis is on the run, but is SLAMMED hard and she’s pulled back HARD. James just busted up the whole pile, Erik pulls Eliza into the endzone to steal her bag, Erik steals a bag, and James goes running in. Alexis runs THROUGH ElizA with a stolen bag, and then James steals another one and ties it up again 3-3. Amanda tosses the bag to James and its 4-2, they need just one more and have their hands on it - FAVORITES WIN REWARD!

They send Kathy to Exile again, and she isn’t happy, and Ami heads off to Exile with her. They’ll be back for immunity later. Fans head back empty handed, and are told they made it one hell of a battle. The Faves head back to camp with their loot.

:15 Commercial!

:19 And we’re back with the Faves who are rehashing the challenge, laughing at the flirting that was going on during the challenge. Cirie wanders off, and wonders if they feel relaxed because of alliances, but she doesn’t feel relaxed at all, and scrambles to make sure everything is in her favor for sure. Parvati is flirting with James and how proud she was of his throwing people left and right, Cirie says that if she was in THEIR position, people could do a little more for her to try to woo her vote. She should be carried on the chariot! (she’s laughing - clearly thinks it’s a joke!)

They head out fishing, and Cirie tells Parvati and Amanda that she makes it nervous, and Parvati tells her that she made James no promises, and Amanda says the same thing. Eliza asks Jonathan if he’s nervous about Cirie - and she’s like Eliza, needs reassured all the time, and He says “So reassure her!” Cirie makes a promise with Amanda and Parvati that it’d be them three to the end, even if Ozzy proposes or something. Eliza says she hopes she doesn’t forfeit her courage.

On Exile Island, they’re looking for the Hidden Immunity Island again. Ami reads the clue at the top of the tree, and Kathy says she was too tired to go Island Hopping again. The waves are starting to get choppy, and they headed back because of weather.

:23 At the Fans beach, the storm hits in earnest, and everyone huddles together to try and stay dry. Alexis says the shelter sucks, everyone is freezing, and wet. They’re bemoaning not having won the tarp.

At the Faves camp, they’re cuddled under blankets, and the rain is hardest since they’ve een there, but they’re totally sheltered. Ozzy feels kinda bad for the Airai Tribe, knowing they’re probably not doing too well right now. Jason says yeah, they’re probably laughing at the Fans, as he hides in a cave and hopes no spiders or rates get him. Aww..

:25 Commercial!

:28 We rejoin the Fans the morning after, and their stuff is strewn around everywhere - Joel looks pretty beaten down. Says it was the worst night since they’d been there, the shelter didn’t do a bit of good. They feel like they’ve been beat up twice yesterday - by the other tribe, and by nature.

It’s not the sort of night they want to have before an Immunity Challenge, and Alexis points out the obvious - they can’t lose today.

:30 Immunity Challenge!

Ami and Kathy return from Exile Island, and are welcomed back with hugs. Immunity is now up for grabs! Each tribe will choose 2 men and 2 women, who will hold onto a heavy rope net - while everyone else tries to shoot coconuts into the net. Tribe that holds on the longest wins Immunity.

Ozzy and Mikey B shoot first, and miss. Jason connects for the fans, it’s harder to throw the coconut then you think. Alexis connects, Eliza misses, Jason keeps showing it how it’s done while Yau-man puts the Favorites on the board, and no one on the Fans is missing for a while. Jonathan, James, Crie and Amanda are holding for the Faves, and they’re talking a lot of trash, which Jeff says reminds him of Cook Islands.

The nets are getting heavier, James says “I’m just chillin.” as Jeff asks him how it’s going. The Fans are readjusting, as everyone starts to connect to the ‘basket’ and the weight is starting to take it’s tole - Favorites are starting to pull back.

Natalie, Tracy, Joel and Erik are struggling to hold up that net, while everyone ties to hold on for the Faves, and they’re losing it! The rope slips and FANS WIN IMMUNITY!!

:35 Commercial

:38 We’re back, as the Favorites head back to their camp, and Ami says it SUCKS that they lost, and coming back from exhile was bad enough, but it doesn’t get worse then this on Survivor. Yau-man asks if they’re good on Parvati, and Jonathan says she’s sleeping with James and they have to stick with the plan and break that out. The couples foursome say Yau-man. James doesn’t want too, and says he can’t let Parvati go home. Cirie says they thought they were solid with Yau-man, and Ozzie and Amanda and Cirie says Yau-man, and Jonathan breaks up the party. On purpose, of course, and the girls say they were talking girls stuff.

Jonathan asks who Cirie is voting for, and Ami says she doesn’t know. Jonathan says he’s starting to feel a little antsy and he hopes that Cirie is happy enough to stick with them. They approach Cirie and tells them that she is NOT a target, they need to get rid of Parvati. And Cirie says the same argument that Yau-man is using the other group used. Jonathan starts to try to use common sense, and she says that getting in her face is not the way to get her vote. She says “How far did YOU go?” She says she’s been watching everything - she knows there’s no way she’d not be a fifth wheel. Jonathan tries to assuage her doubt, and she says she’s trying to keep it real.

Cirie says she’s gonna change and think and needs five minutes without all the stuff.

Jonathan and Ozzy talk about Eliza vs. Yau-man and try to figure out where they’ll be going. Ozzy says he’s voting for Eliza, and that’s what they need to do. Parvati says that Cirie is voting Yau-man, and Parvati says that it’d be a bad move to vote against Cirie. Jonathan is close by, trying to listen in as they talk. The couples go and talk to Cirie, who is like oh man. Here we go.

They try to get her to vote Eliza, and they try to get on the same page. She says she doesn’t want to change her vote, her vote has never changed - they have. James tells us you just can’t be the boss of everything, that can’t happen - the others are being a bunch of dumbasses! (LOVE HIM)

Jonathan says its crazy for the vote, the four are gonna vote for Parvati because the other group is split, Eliza and Yau-Man, so their four might be enough if they can keep them split. That’s what he’s hoping for.

Time for Tribal Council!

Jonathan says today was a tough day, and James says that the fans earn some big respect, they’ve got a more hunger in them, they might be a little soft, and he don’t like it. Yau-man says they need to be hungry for the win, but he feels vunerable when they lose. Jonathan says they’d like to stay together, but some are making moves already to eliminate threats to them to try and control the game. Cirie says he’s looking at it for tribe and herself. Jonathan Cirie is making a lot of moves, and he accuses her of flopping on the alliance, and Cirie says she came in as a fifth person, and how could she trust that - she doesn’t trust him period. She says everyone came to a decision, and Jonathan swears he’s trying to make the tribe strong, and Cirie says she can’t trust him at all. Jonathan says to vote their conscience, so they have common ground, to strengthen the tribe. Cirie rolls her eyes. Parvati is looking like I just wish this’d go away, and she says people think she’s just flirting and she knows her name has been brought up but it doesn’t surprise her at all. It’s time to vote.

The votes: Parvati, Yau-Man, Yau-man, Parvati, Cirie, Yau-man, Yau-man, Yau-man.

(That SUCKS!)

He leaves with a “Good luck, you guys, have fun!” and Jeff says the problem with the tribe is their divided, question is - what are you going to do about it? Head back to camp…

:54 Commercial

Next time, on Survivor - It’s Cirie vs. Jonathan, and Joel vs. Mikey B and an Exile Island that can’t be missed…

We finally have some interviews with Mary, where she talks about being blindsided and her time in Palau. You can hear a podcast interview here, and read others here and here. She talks about her ousting, and her strategy, and what she really thinks of Joel and his early power play.

An eagle eyed commenter told me something that was confirmed by the insider Transcripts at Survivor Fever - Joel, for all his mastermind, didn’t vote for Mary! He voted for Tracey, declaring that on the way to TC, he realized he needed a failsafe for the two alliances of Alexis and Natalie. So had Mary not gone, Tracey would have. You can read the rest of the transcripts here, or catch the videos at cbs.com.

Next up - here’s Jeff’s preview of this week’s episode on Thursday, where it’s been promised to be brutal.

Also looks like Kathy gets stuck on Exile Island yet again - could this lead to the promised meltdown in the next couple episodes?

Don’t forget to get your picks in for the Survivor Pool! You have until Thursday’s show to get your choices made and in at Fun Office Pools, and don’t forget to answer the bonus questions for more chances to win! I got the card game for third place in the mail today - only one more box and all the prizes will be in my greedy little hands…. until they’re won and I’ll send them to your greedy little hands! (grin) So head over there and place your picks.

And if you haven’t joined yet… what are you waiting for? You know you want to play!

If not, you don’t know the fun your missing! There’s still time, of course - hit up Fun Office Pools and join today! There’s still plenty of time to creep up the Leader Board and topple me off the head spot!

In fact, several of you jumped up in standings this week! Congrats go out to Collette who kicked all our bums and pulled in the most points this week, with 18 of a possible 23 points! Several other’s moved up, and the top three are only separated by 5 points!

Get those picks for week three by Thursday afternoon, and increase your chances to win!

In other news - Mary hasn’t done a lot of interviews as of yet but here’s a podcast for you to enjoy! The best interview, however, involves the one and only Johnny Fairplay too. I know, weird, right? Seems he’d befriended Mary and after they were done filming, he introduced her to his buddy from Pearl islands, Ryan ‘Ryno’ Opray on December 9th. They hit it off immediately, and two weeks ago got engaged! And they plan to have All-Stars Lex Van Den Berge officiate their wedding. Awwww! How sweet is that?! Never thought of Johnny as a matchmaker, but I always knew he’s a good guy off camera. (grin)

I’ll post more interviews as I find them - in the meantime, what did you think of Thursdays episode? Poor Mary, she never saw it coming! I think that Joel may have played too hard too fast, in order to make sure that he’s seen as just as much of a leader as Mikey B. Might end up hurting both their games. As Super Fans, they sure have forgotten what they should know from watching seasons before!

Welcome back, Survivor Fans! It’s time for us to gag while Ozzy and Amanda make out, and hopefully other more exciting things! Here we go!

Last time, on Survivor: Micronesia…

We rejoin the faves as they return to the beach after Tribal Council, where Ozzy is carrying a fish he caught with his bare hands, much to their delight. They talk a bit about Johnny, and Jonathan isn’t pleased because it screwed up his plans, but he knows they know what they’re doing and should be able to win. They have basically a years worth of experience and can beat the fans at almost any challenge.

At the Fans beach (Yes, I’ve given up remembering the tribe names for now) They’re trying to get their act together, and Alexis is happy they have flint and thus can now get fire, and they had it - then lost it again. Joel tries, and they yell at him for using half the flint. Kathy is being all weird, and says her priority is shelter, and she doesn’t understand. Joel wants to know why they’re all talking, not working, because they don’t have shelter. The boys go dig for wood. And Kathy says she can’t go another night without shelter and sleep, and Joel yells at her to DO SOMETHING then!

Kathy and Tracy try to go clean out a cave, where Mikey B is already there and said it was his cave. Kathy’s in tears. Then she tells us they’ve been shunned, and it feels like high school when she was an outcast. Kathy, Tracy and Chet go and make their own shelter, more clearly dividing the tribes.

The Favorites are in the boat, going fishing, while Yau-man is tending the fire. They’re hoping to do better, because their camp is awesome. Ozzy says he’s attracted to Amanda, because she’s cute and beautiful and OOOH and they have to stay apart as long as possible.

Tooo late, Ozzy.

Meanwhile, Parvati says she’s been flirting with James, and Amanda thinks they have something going on, and she thinks Ozzy is cute, but she doesn’t want it to screw up her game.

Day four, with the fans, people are surprised that Kathy Chet and Tracy made a shelter so quickly. Joel wants to build a shelter on the other side, and they asked Tracy to help them build it like theirs, but she’s feeling the lack of water. They attempt fire again, and get it this time, Fire at last! They’re feeling good, with water and clams, and the whole dynamic turned around and Mary says they’re much more unified. Mikey B is flirting with Mary, and hopes to get her to trust him and get her in his back pocket. It’s not going unnoticed. Joel has been watching, and says it’s player school 101. He’s watching, but his priority is to keep the tribe strong, and wants the outsiders out as soon as possible.

Night four, at the Favorites beach, with spooky rats with night vision glowy eyes. And Amanda makes the first move, and she and Ozzy start making out. Cirie says she was awake and heard the sounds of jungle love and expects birth announcements from Amanda about the Ozzlettes, and that James and Parvati will be married as soon as it’s over. Jonathan is like “go get a hotel room!” and think that there might be someone awake, you’re all sleeping together in a cave.

Jonathan and Cirie considers the two couples together posing a problem and it’s time to dismantle the foursome. Jonathan basically pulls in Cirie to their alliance.

Challenge time! The fans applaud the voting out of JFP. Immunity is back up for grabs!

Five swimmers, 3 puzzle makers, and one Key master. Swim to the platform, climb and jump to smash the tile, then find the key. Keymaster opens the chest with the puzzle pices, and then the others put the puzzle together. Reward and Immunity - fishing gear and boat, and the winning tribe picks a loser to go to Exile Island. There’s another twist - but not known till after the challenge is over.

The fans sit out Kathy. Survivors Ready? GO!

Ozzy is across the lillypads, Jason falls behind, Ozzy is rocking the swim, of course. No hesitation at all, smashes and finds the key, and is swimming back. Jason has his key and heads back. Ami falls hard on the lilipads, Alexis tries had to close the gap. Second key gotten for the favorites. Then the fans. Amanda and Chet on the course, Chet belly flops, then can’t find his key. Amanda is back and Parvati on the course. Chet has problems going down, as Parvati heads back home. Joel is yelling at Chet to get out of the water. Chet takes his time getting out of the water, and Joel is screaming. Jonathan heads out, and Mikey B heads for the fans.

Jonathan can’t find his key, Mikeyb has his and is trying to make up some time. Erik is on the course for the fans, Jonathan has his key and heads back with the last key. Erik fighting hard to catch up. James starts unlocking the chest. The fans have one key still in the water and Jason heads out someone to head out for Chet’s key.

Yau Man, Eliza and Cirie are working the puzzle as Jason heads back with the key, and the Favorites win Immunity And Reward!

The fans choose Kathy to send to Exile Island. Then they hear the twist, they have to choose someone from their own tribe to join Kathy on Exile Island. Two people, One Hidden Immunity Idol. Cirie offers to go, and they head off.

At Exile Island, Kathy is in fan girl mode with Cirie, and she thinks it’s a good thing, because she knew a lot. They start searching for the idol, and finding out the clue - which sends them all over the place. They find clue number two, and have to keep island hopping to find it. Cirie says it is torture, and they’re trying to hurry up. They find clue number three - and its back across the ocean again. Cirie tells us she’s never worked so hard in her life and is all AAAAAUGH! Its another clue! Fourth clue, and it’s back across the ocean. They searched and searched, and got frustrated.

Back at the fan’s beach, they’re happy they worked as a team, but Erik says it’s a big deal and is frustrated. They are mostly pissed about losing the fishing boat. Erik says Chet is old and weak, and they’re talking about getting rid of him. But Mikey B is thinking of other variables. Mikey is suggesting splitting the votes between Chet and Tracy, in case Kathy finds the immunity idol, then one of them go home for sure. They start over examining it all! Joel is laughing because he got confused. his initial thought was to send Chet home, and Joel doesn’t like Mikey B thinking he can run the show - so he wants to make it abundantly clear at Tribal Council that it is not the case at all.

Night falls on the fans, and Joel stalks to Erik and Alexis early in the morning, and he wants to break up Mikey and Mary. They decide to target Mary, because they need Mikey to help them win. While they’re waiting for Kathy to come in on the boat, he pulls in Chet to the plan.

Kathy comes back and says Cirie is the nicest woman she’s ever met. Joel tells Kathy to vote Mary and not to ask any questions at all. She was worried they were going to pick Chet, and she’s confused, but Tracy and Chet let her know not to say anything stupid at Tribal Council. Tracy isn’t sure he can trust Joel, because he might want the money more then everything. Mary and Mikey see Joel talking to Natalie, as Mikey continues to work. Mary says she trusts the right people and won’t be voted out anytime soon. Joel is pretty sure that Mary is going home, and Mikey confused, and Joel running the show. If they’re smart, they might be thinking about sending him too - so he’s a little worried. He says he thinks on his feet though, and we’ll see what happens.

Tribal Council time!

The Fans light their torch for the first time this season, and Mr. Dimples gives the old “fire equals life” speech. Jeff asks Kathy how she ended up with the Immunity Idol last week, and she says its because of Yau-Man. Jeff explains it’s only good tonight.

He tells chet that this challenge was exhausting - he says he wasn’t exhausted and Jeff says he gives himself too much credit, because he took forever. Chet just says it was what it was. Mikey B says if you weren’t that good of a swimmer, why not step down? He was irked by it.

Tracy says camp life is aggravating, because there’s a lot of conflict. Natalie see people grouping together because they get along better. Jeff asks Alexis about the two shelters, and she says yeah, there’s conflict there. Jeff asks Chet if he’s worried, and he says yeah, it’s definitely three against seven, but you have to just hope. Erik says if he was Chet, he’d be concerned. Mary says she feels pretty secure wth her own position.

Joel says he doesn’t care who goes home, he barely knows them, anyone can go at any time and he wouldn’t be surprised if anyone votes him. And with that, it’s time to vote. Kathy keeps her Immunity and is safe.

Mikey votes for Chet and that he blew it with his body, brains and heart and it’s not acceptable for a teammate. Tracy says she’s sorry - but we don’t see who she voted for. Time to tally the votes.

The Votes: Chet, Chet, Tracy, Mary - she’s surprised, Mary - She’s frowning, Tracy, Mary, And Mikey is all WHAT?, Mary, Second person voted out, Mary - and Mikey B is shocked, mouth open, as Joel smiles.

Joel says that based on what he heard, Mary never saw it coming, and congratulates them on their first Tribal Council, first blindside. And they head back to camp.

Next time: The fans continue to suffer, and it’s war between the favorites and the fans.

While we’re waiting to watch Survivor here on the West Coast - here’s a link for you! The Survivor Sexy Calendar Widget! That includes Johnny Fairplay. Uh….. and everyone else of course, with links to cool stuff on the web about Survivor, too!

Enjoy!

There’s still time to get in this weeks picks for the Pool Party! I received the items for the grand prize in the mail yesterday, and I can’t wait to give them away at the end of the season! Who will topple me off of the top of the leader board this week? I know my spot won’t last forever, and ya’ll will kick me off sooner rather then later - which is perfectly ok with me! So get those choices in over at Fun Office Pools, and up your chances of kicking me back a notch or two! Don’t forget the bonus questions for some extra points!

And to get you good and ready for tomorrow’s Valentine’s day episode - here’s Jeff Probst’s Preview of Episode two:

It sounds horrible, but I’m glad it’s Ozzy and Amanda that get caught making out, because I’d hate to spend the hour yelling at my screen (again) for Parvati to GET HER HANDS OFFA MY JAMES ALREADY! (…again.) Because… ew. I mean Ozzy/Amanda is bad enough… but I hope that James is just playing his social game, and doesn’t take it too far into slutsville.

Because then I’d have to throw things at my screen. Again. And no one wants that, right? Remember to join me back here tomorrow night for a full show recap, as well as the results of our Pool Party Picks for the week! It looks to be a good episode - but then again, aren’t they always? (grin)

As is customary here at Watching Survivor, I’ll post links to all the interviews that each bootee has done over the weekend on Monday - so you have everything in a one stop shop type of post.

I admit to being skeptical, as with most of you, of Johnny Fairplay’s motives and his reasons for asking the tribe to oust him in a move he claimed wasn’t a quit - but kinda was. As I read and listen to his interviews, though… it might be the biggest con of all Fairplay cons, but I’m inclined to believe him. I’ve chatted with him a couple times before, and yeah - he’s always struck me as a nice guy playing a role. Maybe I’m just sentimental…

At any rate, you can read the interviews here, here, here, and here, and decide for yourself.

Bits that stuck out to me - I didn’t realize that the taping started so soon after the Bonoduce Bash at the Realty Awards - If I had been in that much pain, I certainly wouldn’t have gone. It does help us understand a bit why he was so upset about Yau-man’s headslam into the boat too. It likely hurt a lot more then we though because of his jaw and with that knowledge, I think he handled it considerably better then I would have, and better then we expect Fairplay to do at all.

So is this really a more mature, more responsible Johnny Fairplay? Only he knows, and we can only speculate. I think so. I hope so. And I still kinda like the guy - when he’s not on TV. (grins)

In other news - get your Pool Party Picks in! Remember you have until Thursday morning to do so, but better early then never! Head on over to FunOfficePools.com and make your choices! Don’t forget to answer the bonus questions this week too!

How’d you do this week? Were you close, but not quite? Did you rock the pick - even if it was by closing your eyes and pointing, or eenie, miney, moeing it? Who’s going to be the one next week to topple the prplmoose and me off the top spot? And you know my picks don’t count over all when it comes to the prizes. (grin) So kick me off the top spot!

Congrats to Prplmoose, Silver, Jo, Kevin, Silent_rain, Sugar and Magicode for scoring the first points of the season. The rest of ya’ll - get your picks in for week two, and there’s even two bonus questions this week, so there’s the chance for additional points as well! See the sidebar down there under Blogging Flair, and check the widget for the standings and how the possibilities are stacking up as people choose. And it’s still not to late to join in the fun, either!

Now that we’ve gotten a bit more of a feel for the Fans, it’s easier to choose - how about that Kathy, huh? Will she survive long enough to get booted? Is she really as nuts as she comes across? I was impressed with the Fans - they clearly had an abundance of drive and heart during the competition, but they are like every other first time survivor when it comes to camp life. The Faves should have had that competition in the bag. Over-confidence is a bad thing.

(And what about the Showmances coming up next week? They’ve known each other for SIX DAYS! I’m stunned. Shocked. And Parvati - get ya HANDS OFF MY JAMES. Harumph. )

If you missed any of the episode - don’t worry, I’ve got ya covered! See below for the full recap.

“You guys are dumber then you look!”

And there he is - Jeff is flying over the stunning pictures in Palau as he points out the 10 Fans about to share the adventure of a lifetime. He introduces them - and points out the faves rowing in from the other side of the island. James is so (gorgeous) cute “I should be on the fan side! Seeing Yau and Ozzy? That’s crazy!” Of course Fairplay considers his last game perfect - except that he LOST. duh.

Jeff invites the Fans in - in the pouring rain. Jeff clues them in, and invites the Faves out one at a time and introduces them one at a time. Applause for all of them - loudest for Ozzy, James and Yau-man, of course… and then there’s Fairplay who comes out to smattering of applause, and OOOOOOOOHS and groans with his “Will lie for food” and dressed like Jeff. Funny! Jeff slams back at him with a “I’m impressed you want to rise above your current life.” nice.

The Fans are now tribe Airai and the Faves are tribe Malakal - both of which will take me most of the season to learn to spell. hah. I’ll figure it out just about time for the merge. Anyway…

Jeff tells them that just across the water there are boats with maps - and two individual immunity idols, one for each tribe. You can only play them the first time you go to Tribal Council. “You can go anytime you want” he says, and they’re off, running and swimming and headed through the pouring rain to the boats and idols. Erik’s a madman in the water - he beat Ozzy, but can’t find the idol.

Fairplay grabs one, but it was the wrong boat - and Yau races him to the other boat and TACKLES Fairplay to get the idol! HAHAHAH! Kathleen saunters up to pick up the idol after saying she didn’t know what was going on, and Yau says “JUST PICK UP THAT!” hahaha.

Fairplay is pissed, of course, and all “Even I wouldn’t tackle someone. Yau-man’s not nice! Soon as that idols gone, see you later, bucko!” And they’re off, paddling toward their new homes.

We see the Fans arrive on their beach and start to get to know each other on the Airai beach. Instantly someone is like “Gross, Johnny Fairplay!” The fans say they have the advantage, because they know the Faves - and the Faves don’t know them. They start to clear a place out to build a shelter, and Kathy asks if Chet is ok with being called “gay” and then adds “so do you want to be a girl?” Oh dear. She’s immediately pegged as crazy, as she also checks out Tracy’s fake boobs. Nice. They’re of course a little bummed that she got that immunity idol, because they all, already, want her to be the first to go.

At the Fave’s beach, it’s all business for Tribe Malakal. They get right to work building their shelter. Johnny says he was on the prowl, but now he has a girl at home and wants to bring home the money for her. Parvati is all over James - who appreciates the Tribe’s work ethic. Ozzy catches some food, and they agree it’s so much more pleasant then the first day last time. Parvati admits that she’s a flirt, and she and James are already hitting it off - and just typing that makes me want to throw up a little bit. Then she gave him crabs. Ok, she gave him A crab on their walk, and James is falling for this hook line and sinker. Le sigh. Ozzy and Amanda are not far behind in the flirty-ness, and Eliza has noticed the two couples that are all cuddled up together in their shelter.

Darkness falls and the Fans are still trying to get their shelter built, just as a storm rolls. Kathy complains about the downpour that came and poured and didn’t stop, she’s in tears and it sucks! (How did this woman get cast?)

Eliza, Yau, Jonathan and Ami decide to make an alliance, though they know there’s another foursome - the two couples (man.. WHY?! ahem.) Jonathan wants to bring in Fairplay, but Eliza isn’t sure. Meanwhile, Parvati and Ozzy approach Fairplay to vote out Eliza at first chance because they know they shouldn’t trust her. (Yet…they’re trusting Fairplay?) Though Ozzy knows they need Fairplay, but doesn’t completely trust him. (Ya think!?)

Right after that, Fairplay goes and tells the other four what’s up. And where the heck is Cirie during all this? Jonathan figures Fairplay is a gem to keep around because everyone knows he’s a slimeball. Nice. Fairplay, of course, is overly confident. “They believe what I say - have they not watched this show before?!”

Yau-man starts fire with a drop of water on his glasses, the sun, and coconut husks. They’re fed and confident - I sense a loss coming up…

It’s time for the first challenge! The Faves brag about having shelter, fire, food and full bellies. The fans say they don’t believe it, and Johnny says “You guys are dumber then you look” to some laughter, and a shrug off from the fans. The challenge - put together the wheels for the cart, drag the card through obstacles - breaking down fences to a sand pit where they have to dig up the planks to finish the bridge, drag the card over the bridge to the end, take the wheels off. Then put the puzzle pieces of the wheels into place to complete the turnstile, spin it to lift the basket to light the flame. First one there wins immunity and flint.

While it was fun to see Eliza get smacked in the face as the Faves ran into a tree - it’s clear that they cannot communicate clearly. They’re behind, while the Fans push their way through the obstacle. They catch up at the sand pit, and Erik throws sand into the Faves pit to distract them (cute!) - the Fans are first over the bridge, and despite a wipeout, they make it to the turnstile first, take off the wheels and get the turnstile together and spinning.

Despite getting closer - the Fans are working together why better then the Faves, and n the end, the overconfident Faves are bested by the Fans! Fans win Immunity!

The Faves look stunned, and head back to camp. Once there, they start doing the ‘I should stay because’ routine, as they try to figure out who to vote off. Jonathan knows that the fans were so excited, that they simply had more heart. No shame in trying their best and losing. They’ll do better. Johnny says he’s good for morale and entertainment. He feels he’s in control of the game because he’s playing both groups of four - Cirie is a wild card, and he doesn’t even mention he.

On a walk with Parvati though, he starts talking about his girlfriend - who, at the time, was 7 months pregnant. He gets emotional, and maybe I’m jaded, but I feel like he’s trying to hard to prove he’s a good guy, a nice guy, a responsible guy. He basically tells everyone to vote him off, while Parvati thinks this is a good plan, to have him tell everyone that then vote off Eliza. We don’t see anyone talk to Cirie though - so there’s a flaw in the plan no one seems to notice…

Ami is suspicious of Fairplay’s motives, and thinks it might be a trick.

Time for Tribal Council, where they light their torches for the first time. Jeff goes straight to Fairplay and asks him how things went when they got to camp. Johnny says it was ‘cake’ and their problem was overconfidence. Eliza says that reputations definitely play a part in the game. Back to Johnny who agrees he has the biggest rep, and Fairplay says that people were surprised that he was ‘nice’ - the real Fairplay, and says he’s not completely there, mentally, because of the impending birth of his baby, that’s changed his head. Jeff doesn’t fall for it - and Johnny says last time he learned to be an asshole, maybe this time he learns to be a better dad - his heads messed up. Yau-Man is thinking it’s a trick, but Ozzy doesn’t seem to think so. Fairplay says he isn’t trying to put on a show. Jonathan says he’s asking for votes, and since Johnny wants to go home, he’s going home. Jeff says “It’s a quit.” Johnny says it’s not a quit.

Time to vote, and with no surprise, Johnny Fairplay is the first to be voted off, and he is so unanimously. (Johnny voted “I ‘heart’ Ozzy”) He asks for, and receives a hug from Jeff before he goes. Johnny of course says everyone was eating out of his hand, but this time people like him and he’s a responsible adult “What’s going on in the world?”

Next week: the fans are in turmoil, the rules have changed for exile island, and two castaways have a night to remember.

Tonight, all of our initial questions will start to be answered as Survivor: Mirconesia premieres! Will the fans be able band together and pick off the Faves? Can the big egos of 2-Timers be tamed enough to work together? Will Johnny Fairplay get tossed and lose some more teeth? Who will be the first alliance, the first romance, the first injury, the first to get the boot? And most of all - will this season live up to our hopes and all of the Hype? Jeff Probst seems to think so, and he’s rarely steered us wrong! It all starts tonight at 7/8 pm!

HURRAY!

Of course, I have to wait an additional four hours from ya’ll on the East coast, but I’ll be here with a recap of the episode by tomorrow morning, of course, as well as with the standings for our Survivor: Pool Party!

As of this posting, you have 5 hours to join and get maximum point possibilities, make your choices if you haven’t done so yet, and those same five hours to make any last minute adjustments. Then you’ll be locked in until next week’s picks start tomorrow! So head over now, check it out, make sure you’re good to go, make any last minute invitations and of course - Have Fun!

If you don’t make it by that 5 hour mark - don’t worry, you can join us anytime! You’ll just have some catch-up to do point-wise, no biggy! What are ya waiting for? Head over there now!

And here’s another preview by Jeff Probst to wet your appetite for tonight!

Two more days until the premiere of Survivor: Micronesia! I can’t wait, can you? There’s still time to join our Pool Party - and if you’ve been waiting around to see if the prizes were worth it? Well, have I got a deal for you! That’s right, I’ve got the list of prizes for the top three Pool winners all but in my greedy little hands (as in ordered and on the way!) - et voila!

Grand Prize Winner
The participant with the most over all points at the end of the season will receive a prize package that consists of the following items:

1 banner, designed by me, declaring you to be the Sole Pool Party Survivor
1 copy of the Survivor Blast game on DVD
3 Tribal buffs from Survivor: Thailand - 1 gold/yellow, 1 purple, 1 orange

Second Place will receive the following:
1 banner, designed by me, declaring you the Pool Party 2nd place winner
1 Survivor Board Game
2 Tribal Buffs from Survivor: Africa - 1 gold, 1 red

Third Place will receive the following:
1 banner, designed by me, declaring you the Pool Party 3rd place winner
1 Survivor Card Game starter set
1 Tribal Buff from Survivor: Thailand - 1 gold/yellow

See, didn’t I tell you it’d be worth it? Barring any USPS snafus in getting the gear to me, this is what the prize packages will be. There is the possibility of additional items added later too, depending on how many people we get into the pool.

So if you’ve already signed up - yay! Tell your friends and family and co-workers and other Survivor fanatics to sign up too! If you haven’t… what are you waiting for… sign up today!