Survivor hot streak continues to roll

Dude, I’m tellin ya………

It’s funny because it takes me a little while to get into each season of Survivor. I love the show. I love to mock the show and mine it for comedy material. But I usually think the people are boring and the season kind of uneventful thru the first six or seven weeks. By then though, a handful of people have developed their personalities and players are maneuvering and selling each other out. That’s when I start to enjoy it more. The first several tribal councils are the ousting of the old people, the sickly, and the non-workers. After they get weeded out is when the show starts getting good.

And the show is damn good right now. Actually for the last four episodes that began the “blindside” stretch.

Last night’s show opened with Monica expressing some mistrust for John based on what happened at the Tribal Council that voted Laura out. Twenty-eight days out in the boonies and she still looks good. Bless her little heart. Monica was kind of quiet this episode. So I had to get some mention of her in this thing.

The next interesting thing to happen was the traditional Survivor auction. Like most viewers, I like this part of the season. It’s fun to see some people get an awesome feast, others get dogshit, and a few people are too cautious and get nothing at all. And that’s what happened this time around too.

Cutie pie Natalie bought a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for $200

It reminded me of when government overspending on basic items was a big issue. Like when we learned the government was paying like $24 per roll of toilet paper. Or that a paper clip was like $4.95 each ???

Then Shambo—-who was more wacko in this episode than any to date—–paid $200 for a plate of slugs. She tried to play it off, but it’s like when you got an F on a test and the teacher announced it to the class. You can’t do anything but go up there and get your paper. She had that embarrassed but “I’m-going-to-feign-dignity” kind of look on her. What a screwball. Take your slugs and slink back to the bench.

Someone paid $300 for a roasted chicken which was the deal of the auction. Then Jaison paid his whole $500 for an advantage in the immunity challenge—which paid off for him later. Natalie followed up her PB & J sammich with a Survivor shower. Which was nice. You couldn’t see anything. But HEY !! It could’ve been Shambo or Russell or Dave………and who the hell wants that? I’ll take Natalie and my friggin imagination, thank you.

Finally, there was a comical situation where John paid $300 for a big ol’ hunk of apple pie. But Pretty Boy Probst made him an offer of a whole pie that he could share among other people. He opted to have his own wedge stating, “I know these people and they’re good people. I don’t think any of them will vote me off over a piece of pie.” 

Immediately they show Russell in a personal aside and he says something to the tune of, “John just made a big mistake right there. He should have shared the pie.”

I’m laughing my ass off and thinking, UH OH !!! Here comes another cookie controversey !! Like last season when that issue rippled thru camp for two days.

But this one seemed to die down right away and wasn’t mentioned or considered again. (or was it ???? )

More comedy ensued as they returned to camp and one of the next situations was Shambo saying goodbye to the chickens. She told them she’d see them in heaven. Oh for chrissake. Then she seemed to adopt this really cocky kind of attitude as if she is the puppetmaster in the game, and not Russell. She just seemed so self assured versus when she felt like an outsider. Then she got into a verbal spat with Dave over how to cook the damn chicken. Dave forged his way onto her shit list.

Apparently the chicken came out OK because that wasn’t mentioned again either. But Shambo then said she had a dream where they voted Dave off. She seems to have adopted some whack-job oracle persona. But everyone around camp has her pegged. When she decides she doesn’t like someone, it dominates her thoughts and she will vote for that person no matter what. She would be very hard to sway in another direction. And that worked against her later.

In the immunity challenge, they had to hold a heavy log up with the power of one arm. On the strength of the advantage that he bought at the auction, Jaison won the challenge. So he was safe. And if Russell learned his head was on the block, he’d have played the idol. So he was pretty safe (at least from my TV observer role with knowledge of his idol).

Russell decided to switch gears after he made a bad decision and confirmed for John that he had the immunity idol. Russell decided that he would align himself with Dave and get John voted off. Dave was on the chopping block because of Shambo’s wrath. Russell was willing to sell out on Shambo in order to eliminate John and his sole knowledge of the idol.

In the end, that’s how it was. Dave and Monica both voted for John. {Monica’s vote was kept rather quiet but revealed at the end of the show}. Shambo voted for her enemy Dave and was shocked when her’s was the only one. John was totally blindsided as he was sure that he and Russell were partners in crime. So this week, both Shambo and John had those dumb, surprized looks on their mugs.

Maybe things would have been different if John-boy had shared some pie with the group. I seriously doubt it. But maybe a slice of pie could’ve saved his sorry ass.

So as we head into next week, the only one with knowledge of Russell’s current immunity idol is gone (John). I don’t think Russell told Shambo about this third idol. And she’s reeling anyway because she doesn’t know who her friends are now.

Next week should be yet another good show. People are selling each other out left and right.

Just the way I like it.