Sherea was voted off and I can't say that I'm sad to see her go. She competed well in the challenges but didn't really interact with the others. As Courtney said, she was the only one Sherea talked with. Above all else Survivor is a game of social interaction and Sherea did not really participate in this phase of the game.

Sherea has Frosti to blame for being voted off. Zhan Hu - Jaime, Peih-Gee and Erik - changed their strategy of throwing the Immunity Challenge after Frosti failed to make eye contact with them. They took this as a sign that he and Sherea were no longer solid in their alliance. Had they thrown the Immunity Challenge, James (their target to be voted off) would have used the Hidden Immunity Idol that Todd had given him and then Jaime, Peih-Gee or Erik would have been sent home. I would have loved to have seen that.

So we had a reversal of last week's Immunity Challenge but this time Zhan Hu was unsuccessful in throwing the Immunity Challenge. James really looked depressed as he 'won' his eating contest with Denise. I wonder if Jaime and Peih-Gee now regret throwing last week's Immunity Challenge?

Oh well, so it goes . . . this is what makes Survivor so interesting.

Episode title:

That's Love, Baby! It Makes You Strong!

from CBS:
The castaways dine on unusual Chinese delicacies, ranging from a chicken heart to a “thousand-year-old egg.” A castaway discovers the Hidden Immunity Idol, but the secret is blown when an unwelcome tribe member sees it in their possession. And later, one castaway wants to go to Tribal Council, even though he knows he won’t have the votes to survive.

from TitanTV:
The castaways eat exotic Chinese food; one person finds a hidden immunity idol; and one player wants to go to tribal council, even though he believes he will be voted out.


Rumors

This episode James may end up with two Hidden Immunity Idols. He will manage this by making a deal with Todd, who he'll share a clue with.

Who wants to go to tribal council, even though he believes he will be voted out? That is reportedly Jean-Robert.

Reward: Fei Long
Kidnapped: James
Immunity: Zhan Hu
Voted Off: Sherea

Vote Analysis
Erik, Jaime and Peih-Gee all voted for Aaron - no surprise there. However James and Aaron split their votes. Aaron voted for James and James for Peih-Gee. Why? Wouldn't the two of them have been better off if they had voted for the same person (say Peih-Gee) and tell Erik that if he wants to shake things up then he can vote with them?

Aaron's Exit Interviews
Here is what stood out to me from reading several interviews with Aaron after he was voted off Survivor: this was the first time he ever applied to be on the show and he was on a flight to China roughly ten days after he bumped into someone from casting! Really?

The two final episode of Survivor China has been set for Sunday December 16, 2007. Get ready for a full night of Survivor, the finale will air at 8:00 pm ET to be followed by the one hour reunion show at 10:00 pm ET.

The finale will start with four Survivors and then the jury will award the one million dollar prize to one of the remaining three contestants.

I like this twist, each tribe got to permanently kidnap two members of the other tribe. Each tribe will pick strong players (however they define 'strong') and then either try and win with the new members or vote off these strong players. I think we saw both last night.

At the beginning of the episode Sherea said that life in camp was getting boring and that she was 'really looking for something changing' in the game. Well, she got what she hoped for last night.

Zhan Hu Gets a Clue

When the Chinese fishermen were dropping off the lists of other tribe members names, Fei Long picked up real fast that this could very well be a permanent kidnapping for both tribes. While over at Zhan Hu they thought that they were just getting two more members and Fei Long would be short two players. Peih-Gee led the stupidity charge for Zhan Hu but she and Jaime recovered quickly. These two pretty women conspired to throw the Immunity Challenge so they could vote off one of their new tribe members (Aaron or James).

Didn't Aaron and James realize that Peih-Gee and Jaime threw the Immunity Challenge? They must not have or they would have gone to Erik to try and flip him. Erik probably would not have flipped anyway, the virgin's thought capacity is diminished by Jaime's pink bikini.

I thought that maybe Erik was just saying that he was a virgin as part of a strategy in the game but no he is really naive, a virgin and a bad player of Survivor. Did you see the look on Jaime's face when Erik told her that he was a virgin? She looked like 'Oooo, yuck, a virgin. Really?'

At Tribal Council James looked surprised to hear that the women threw the Immunity Challenge. Was this the first time that that thought crossed his mind? Anyway it was Aaron who was voted off by the pretty women and their virgin man-slave.

You may have noticed a few changes to the layout of this blog. I have added a few banner exchange ads to try and get this blog a few more readers. The BlogRush widget thingy is also an attempt to increase readership.

I will test these things out for a few weeks and if I don't notice an increase in the number of visitors to this blog then I will remove the banner exchange ads.

PaperBackSwap and Swap A CD
I use and like both of these web sites and I have referral links scattered around. If you are interested in swapping books and/or CDs online then check out PaperBackSwap and Swap A CD.

Here's a review of PaperBackSwap that I wrote for Newsvine.

My blog entry about last night's episode will be posted shortly.

Episode Title:

Love Is in the Air

from CBS:
One castaway [Erik, pictured] confesses that he is a virgin while flirting with a tribemate [Jaime] he admits he has a crush on. A physical attraction provokes a shocking reveal--the existence of the Hidden Immunity Idol. And later, chaos abounds after a tribal switch, leading to tears, fears, cracks in tribal loyalties, threats of throwing challenges and a blindsiding vote at Tribal Council.

from Titan TV:
Some castaways fear alliances will be broken after a tribal switch occurs; a physical attraction between two players occurs and leads to the revelation that a hidden immunity idol exists; another castaway is voted out of the game.

Rumors and Spoilers

Reward: no Reward this week as tribes are mixd up.
Immunity: the magic eight ball is cloudy, it could go either way but I'm going with Fei Long.
Kidnapped: canceled for the tribal switch?
Voted Off: Sherea or more likely Aaron.

There is still talk about James finding the Hidden Immunity Idol but I don't think that it will happen this episode.

New Tribes
Frosti and Sherea go to Fei Long.
James and Aaron go to Zhan Hu.

In the most recent TV ratings Survivor China was ranked number 11. Last week Survivor was ranked number 12. I guess a little bit up in ratings is better than a little bit down.

full story at TV Squad

Quick Vote Analysis
Everyone voted for Dave except for Dave who voted for Sherea. This surprises me a little, I thought Sherea might have gotten another vote or two.

Dave's Application to Survivor
Many contestants spend years trying to get on Survivor but not Dave. He was auditioning for a modeling job for a large mass retailer and at the same hotel Pirate Master (also produced by Mark Burnett of Survivor) was casting and they thought Dave would be good for Survivor.

Dave said that he was interested more about the physical challenge of Survivor rather than the social aspect of the game - could you tell?

Dave (bartender, former model) was voted off and just about everybody, including him, saw it coming. He just rubbed his tribemates the wrong way, I guess. Peih-Gee and a few of the others did not like that he worked so hard(!) and Sherea did not like the shells that he was saving for his mother (the nerve of him!).

Dave played things all wrong. His tribe 'elected' him leader when Jeff Probst forced their hand at an early tribal council. I think they were thinking 'This guy Dave is annoying us with all of his ideas about what to do so let's make him leader.' It seems Dave mistook this as a sign to boss the others around even more. The tribe voted him off even after he was kidnapped and they struggled at camp with basic things like making a fire.

Double Tribal Council Fake-Out

Early in the episode both tribes got tree mail to report to Tribal Council and I thought 'Will two people will be voted off this early?' Well no, it was a Reward Challenge at the TC Pagoda. I guess this was the best place for the fireworks that were used in the challenge.

Jean-Robert Shuo Poudonghua

Well surprise, surprise, surprise. Jean-Robert speaks a little Chinese, probably better than I write pinying. Hen hao Jean-Robert. What was with James (gravedigger)? I did not think Jean-Robert was bossing anyone around but James took offense for some reason. 'I'm just translating what she's saying,' Jean-Robert said a few times.

Todd Gets A Clue (again)

Dave was kidnapped and ended up sharing the clue to the Hidden Immunity Idol with Todd (gay Mormon flight attendant). Leslie shared a clue with Todd and now he has all the clues. Despite this the rumor is that James will find the Hidden Immunity Idol. I may be wrong but I don't think anyone has told James about the clues, he better hurry if he is to find the Idol because Todd seems to be a pretty smart guy.

 

That's it for now, I'll post more of my Survivor thoughts as they strike me.

 

Episode Title:

Ride the Workhorse Till the Tail Falls Off

from CBS:
Seashells saved for Mom prompt an explosive fight between Sherea and Dave at Zhan Hu. Jean-Robert tries to help Courtney from burning herself on a kettle. In return for the helpful warning, Courtney snaps back! Later, both tribes receive tree mail telling them they must go to Tribal Council.

from Yahoo TV:
Sherea's work ethic becomes an issue for her tribe-mates; an ominous tree mail instructing the tribes to meet at council prompts fireworks; another castaway must go.

Rumors and Spoilers

Reward and Immunity: Fei Long.
Kidnapped: Dave.
Voted Off: Dave.

Survivor China is ranked number twelve in the Nielsen ratings for the week ending Oct. 7, 2007. This is not as good as Survivor has done in past years but far from a disaster, if you ask me. Would CBS cancel a top 12 show?

full story at TV Squad

Is Courtney (annoying New York waitress, pictured) out of the loop? Everyone voted for Leslie (except Leslie, of course) but Courtney voted for Jean-Robert (pro poker player). Is she out of touch with the others? I thought that she was kind of tight with Todd. Maybe Courtney just wanted to send a little message to Jean-Robert.

I am kind of sorry to see Leslie, the Christian radio host, go home. While I did not think that she would go far in the game she was likable and I thought her connection with Todd (gay Mormon flight attendant) would keep her around a little longer.

I am glad Leslie did not play the 'persecuted Christian' card on the way out. She was voted off because her loyalty to her tribe was in serious doubt and not because of her religious beliefs.

Creep Vibe

At the start of the episode, Courtney (annoying New Yorker) said she did not like Jean-Robert (pro poker player) because he had a creep vibe about him. Leslie seemed to agree and said he would be the first to go if they went to Tribal Council. Boy, was she ever wrong.

"I don't like the outside."

Well James (gravedigger), you picked the wrong reality TV show to be on.

Bricks are Heavy

Peih-Gee (jeweler) and some of the others complained that Dave (former model) was working too hard around camp. Dave had a crazy look on his face when he said in confessional that 'Camp does not sort itself out . . . It's not rocket science.'

"Dave still naked."

Wasn't Dave afraid of getting splinters from the junk in his junk? I guess that he figured the psychological advantage of being nude was worth risking getting wood fragments in his scrotum.

Stick out your can, here comes the garbage man.

Jean-Robert and James thought they were alone when they talked strategy and made fun of Courtney and Leslie. However Todd and Courtney were close enough to overhear them and Todd now considers them to be trash that needs to be disposed off. Also I liked James up to this point but now not so much.

Sister Christian Kidnapped

Leslie was ultimately voted off because she handled her kidnapping all wrong. She returned to her tribe and said how great the other tribe was. Also she admired how three of the others were fellow Christians. This basically brought her loyalty to her tribe in question.

"Keeping it real" at Tribal Council

Jean-Robert said that he was 'keeping it real' when he said that Courtney and Leslie were weak players. Then he said that he never said they were weak and Jeff Probst quickly called him on it, 'But you just said they were weak.' Jean-Robert may be a good poker player but he sucks at the game of Survivor. Even so, Leslie did not help herself by once again saying the other tribe is united and has a number of good Christians.

"A choking walrus."

As Courtney voted she said that Jean-Robert snored like a choking walrus. That's a good line even though I don't like Courtney.

Jonny Fairplay filed charges based on this?

I Lost Two Hands and Possibly a Shoulder!

Preview from CBS:
The kidnapped castaway bonds with the kidnappers over issues of faith, and the floodgates open as that castaway reveals their own tribe's dynamics. The women on one tribe have a hard time getting shut-eye as they avoid the snuggling and smothering of a cuddly castaway. As two guys joke in private that the only reason to keep a weak female tribemate is because one has a crush on her, that woman spies on their crude conversation. To stew or roast a crab? That is the question that prompts two alpha-males to duke it out.

From TitanTV:
For a reward of comfort items, including pillows, blankets and a tarp, the two tribes are each given a boat and must defend it against attacks. For immunity, the teams use wooden Chinese coins to solve a puzzle. At tribal council, another castaway is voted out of the game. Jeff Probst is the host.

Rumors

The Fei Long dominance continues.
Reward and Immunity: Fei Long (Aaron, Amanda, Courtney, Denise, James, Jean-Robert, Leslie and Todd.).
Kidnapped: Sherea (elementary school teacher), she shares the clue to the Hidden Immunity Idol with Leslie (Christian radio host).
Voted Off: Dave (former model).

Former "Survivor" contestant Jonny Fairplay filed a police report Wednesday, alleging that Danny Bonaduce threw him and knocked out his teeth during an awards show.

The battery report was taken by police shortly before 2 a.m. at a Hollywood hospital where Fairplay was treated and released, Officer April Harding said.

full story