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by Jim Van Nest Published: October 25, 2002
TEMPERS FLARE IN ONE CAMP, BOAT SEARCH IN THE OTHER So we begin our show in the morning in the Sook Jai camp, where Shii Ann is stoking the fire and Robb is well, he's just standing there. Penny is the voiceover saying how quickly trust changes in this game and that you really need to be aware. Robb and Penny are then talking and Robb asks her if she was going to vote for him at the last Tribal Council. She said never was that the plan. The plan was Stephanie all along. Robb finds that interesting since Ken told his Penny was going to vote for him. So, (no shocker here) off goes Robb to confront Ken. He accuses Ken of playing the game harder than anyone else out there, in effect saying he backstabbed him. And it started before the first vote. Robb asked Ken if it was down to him and Jed. Ken says definitely. So Robb is upset now because Ken supposedly told him he would come to him with anything he heard. Ken mentions that prior to the last vote that everyone told Robb they were voting Shii Ann and then voted Steph, but he told Robb from the beginning that he was voting for Steph. So essentially, the guy that Robb us accusing of "playing him" was the only one that told him the truth. At this point Ken's pissed off that Robb even brought this to him. They argue a little bit, nothing real substantial is said until Robb pulls out the ole "I'm not f'ing stupid." What's the deal, is any player named Rob or Robb obligated to say that? Over at Chuay Gahn we join Helen and Jan on a swim back from the water hole. The loss of the boat is really affecting the tribe. They're tired from the swims. They're on edge and it's got the potential to be bad over there real soon. Lots of talk around camp about where the boat could be. the guys finally determine that the boat could be hung up on the island across the sea from them. (The very same island we saw the boat attached to after it got away in the last episode.) So, Ted, Clay and Brian decide to take off and swim over and look for the boat. Well, Clay and Ted are not what you'd call "swimmers." And about halfway over there, I really thought we were gonna lose Ted. Amazingly enough he managed to stick it out and they all made it over to the island just fine. And now the search begins. They swim darn near halfway around the island and never do find the boat. So dejected, our braniacs start the long swim back to camp. Back at Sook Jai, Robb is still walking around with a chip on his shoulder, so he decides he's hungry and is going to have a banana. Sounds simple enough, right? Wrong. Apparently, the tribe made a rule that they could only eat the bananas together, so everyone got a fair share. Plus the bananas weren't totally ripe yet and they were waiting for some to get riper. Um...ok. Upon seeing Robb taking a banana, Ken felt it necessary to narc on him to Erin and Penny. Robb basically took the approach of "I'm hungry and I'm not asking anyone if I can eat." Makes sense, I suppose. but if he was part of the discussion on not eating bananas...well he should have kept his mitts out. So here we go again with Ken and Robb getting into it. Of course, there's no way something this juicy could happen without Shii Ann throwing her 2 cents in. Penny tried to tell her to stay out of it and let them handle it between themselves. Basically, if they want to act like children, let them. Writer's aside: Ya know, if you're having that hard of a time getting along and you're on each others nerves so bad...why don't you "take it outside." I mean, head out to the beach and kick the crap out of each other. This sissy boy whining and crying is ridiculous. Alicia and Kimmie put on a better show than these 2. And the longer this show goes the more I'm not liking Shii Ann. This argument was between Robb and Ken...stay out of it. While on the surface it's about a banana, everyone watching the show and every there knows it's about a lot more than that. Penny was right. Stay the hell out of it and let them settle it. It's none of your frickin business. REWARD CHALLENGE #5 And here we come to yet another physical confrontational challenge. This time around the tribes will be playing a game of catch. 1 person will man a large slingshot and will shoot wicker balls in the air to their teammates who will be standing around with wicker baskets to catch them. The other 4 folks will be at one of four stations set up facing off with a member of the other tribe. Basically, they have to catch their balls and try to block the other team from catching theirs. 1st team to catch 5 balls wins. The reward? An escape from camp to. A chance to take in some of the Thai culture. And most importantly, a huge feast! So, Sook Jai decides to sit out Shii Ann on this one as Penny and Helen take their places as the teams’ shooters. The lineups shook out like this: Erin and Jan were matched up. Jake and Clay were also. Ted was pitted against Ken while Brian tried to slow down Robb. The first shots go up and Helen misses her tribe by a mile, while Robb out jumps Brian to catch the first ball for Sook Jai. The next shots are both caught. Robb again for SJ, Ted for CG. The third shot, Robb catches again. (I'm sensing a pattern here.) A few rounds later, Robb hauls in #4 while CG is still sitting at 1. Chuay Gahn calls it's only time out. The big switch they make is to put Ted on Robb and let Brian cover Ken. On the next four shots Ted blocks out Robb while Clay, Brian and Ted all score for Chuay Gahn to tie the game at 4. Ted has been all over Robb for each of these shots and Robb is starting to get upset. At this point Sook Jai calls its time out and the bickering between Robb and Ken starts up again. Penny tells them all to shut up that she is going to shoot it in the middle of everyone and she wants all 4 of them out there getting it. Next shot Ted blocks out Robb again, and Jake takes out Clay. The next shot seems to go unnoticed right into Ken's basket, giving Sook Jai the win and they are sent off immediately to enjoy their feast. As we get back to Chuay Gahn camp, the mood is completely shot down. Ted is very bummed about losing and says it's definitely a team loss. He also apologizes to everyone if he gets out of hand yelling during the challenges. He doesn't really mean to yell, I don't think, it just seems like he gets excited and what he says could be misconstrued as hateful. The guys are also talking about being really tired during this challenge. Brian thinks it might be related to their huge swim looking for the boat. Jeez, ya think?? PRAWNS, MUSIC, MERGE AND BATS Sook Jai gets to the area for their feast and there's just food everywhere. Prawns the size of your fist. Pinapples full of rice. Shredded pork and shrimp, ice water and wine. The tribe goes absolutely bonkers over all this stuff. And after a few minutes, Robb mentions that after all the drama of earlier in the day, this reward is better than he could have ever hoped for. A couple people chime in that they can't believe a couple hours ago they were fighting over bananas and now they're having this massive feast. Right about this time 4 musicians arrive and begin playing some native Thai dinner music. And several young ladies come out to perform a native Thai dance. It's actually a very nice setting. A Thai show watched over a Thai feast and all of a sudden the tribe that's been at each others' throats since day 1 is happy, full and getting along. Oooooh, I feel the need for a group hug! Back at Chuay Gahn the topic has turned to merges and immunity. Ted is figuring that the merge should be coming within the next 4 days or so. Since they're down 6-5 right now, it's imperative that they win the next immunity challenge to even the number. After this whole talk, Ted decides to verify that his alliance with Brian is locked. Brian says it is and for the first time, he actually seems like this IS a real alliance. Up til now, it almost seemed like Ted had the alliance and Brian was just going along with it to keep the big guy happy. But this week, Brian seemed just as committed to it as Ted does. There's growing concern that Clay might be figuring out their alliance. The way they see it, they need to keep their friendship a secret otherwise it will make them instant targets for a vote. Writer's aside: This will be quick, but I'm hoping someone can help me here. When Brian and Ted are reconfirming their alliance sitting at the fire...what the hell is all that stuff on Ted? Wood chips or ashes from the fire? I mean, he's covered in whatever this stuff is. Just hoping that someone can shed some light on it. Back at Sook Jai, we join Ken and Robb on a long walk into the jungle. It's right here that I fully expected Ken to just beat the living crap out of Robb. Instead they stumbled upon a big cave filled with bats. So after checking that out for a little while they decide to have a talk. While this is going on, we here a confessional from Robb about how much this experience is changing him. He is finally starting to figure it out, I think. So they start having their talk and Robb says he just doesn't like being told what to do. Ken tells him that instead of getting upset about it he should probably listen. All he's been doing from day 1 is trying to help him and Robb has fought him every step of the way. So, they seem to get their feelings out in the open and definitely make up. Robb's confessional goes on to say that the talk was great and he feels so much better and that talking to Ken like that was like having a talk from an older brother. And now for something completely different... We're back at Chuay Gahn and Jan is hollering out to everyone that they have to have a funeral. Turns out she's found a dead baby bat. And I'm talking baby...as in may have never even stretched his wings out yet baby. She's very distraught over this and immediately gets to work on making a little cross out of twigs to mark the grave she's going to bury him in. The reactions of the rest of the tribe were great. Brian wondered if it was edible. Helen wanted to get rid of it before it attracted flies. Ted declined the funeral invitation but said he would send a card and flowers. Bottom line, I think the entire tribe thinks Jan has completely lost her mind. I mean, she's crying on camera as she's talking about this baby bat. She's not seeming too stable to me. Writer's aside: Seriously folks, is Jan really qualified to be on this show? Is it a smart idea to take someone this unstable and put them in the Survivor environment? I thought they had a real strict process for being chosen for this show. I mean, I know people who have applied for every Survivor season (hi there, coolchick) and keep getting turned down. Yet, this woman somehow managed to get on the show? I mean how the hell does that happen? IMMUNITY CHALLENGE # 6 And here we are with yet another brain teaser challenge. This one is quite simple. Inside a big circle on the ground, there stands 21 flags. Each tribe will take a turn removing either 1, 2 or 3 flags from the circle. The team that pulls the 21st flag wins. See? Real simple, right? Well simple to explain, but not simple to calculate. Seeing as this is a challenge of the mind, Sook Jai sits Robb out for this one. Not surprisingly, since she's such the master of the logic puzzle, Shii Ann takes the reigns for Sook Jai while Clay seems to be making all the decisions for Chuay Gahn. SJ starts by taking 2 flags. CG then takes 2 and SJ takes 2 more. Chuay Gahn breaks the trend and only takes one. So, after 2 rounds, there are only 14 flags left. Next SJ, CG and then SJ again alternate taking one flag each. Then Chuay Gahn takes 2 leaving the number of flags standing at 9. In a pretty bad move, SJ takes 3 leaving only 6 and setting up Chuay Gahn for the win. CG then takes 2 flags leaving only 4 flags in the circle. SJ is screwed. If they take one, CG will take 3 and win. If they take two, CG will take 2 and win. If they take 3, well that leaves the last flag for CG. So, they decide to go ahead and take three leaving only one flag left for Chuay Gahn to grab and change the entire complexion of the game. A CHANGE IN THE DUDE When Sook Jai gets back to camp, this is by far the most dejected we've ever seen them. I mean, even Robb isn't talking. Everyone just has their heads down. They decide to pop open the wine they had left from their reward challenge. So while drinking wine around the campfire, Robb starts talking again. He says that he feels like this whole experience has changed him. He feels a whole new outlook on life. He says that before he got there all he cared about was how much he made a week and getting wasted. In these 18 days all that's changed. Family is where it's at. The people you love and that love you. And he really feels like they're a family and if this game ended right now, he feels this has been a life changing experience for him and he's so excited to have had it. It was quite touching, I thought, because it was genuine. It wasn't someone playing the tribe hoping to not get the vote. It was essentially a kid starting to figure it out. His speech got everyone thinking, that's for sure. Ken apologized to him and made some skateboarder cracks. Hell, even Shii Ann apologized a little and said she thought he was a good guy. Basically, it was just an outpouring of emotions. One of, if not THE best moments on this show so far. The next morning Shii Ann is telling us how the conversation the night before was nice, but the politics here still exist. She asks if we think Penny and Erin trust her...and mentions that she doesn't trust them. However the feeling I get from all the members is that the finally started enjoying each other's company and this is going to be an excruciating vote. They want to continue to hang out. They don't want to lose someone now, but they have no choice. TRIBAL COUNCIL # 6 So we get to Tribal Council and it's obvious right off the bat that Jeff is pleased with the new Sook Jai tribe. He starts by asking Erin her take on the last 3 days. She said it went from having the best night (the Thai feast) to the worst night (losing immunity and knowing someone would go) in this span of 3 days. A very emotional couple days for the entire tribe. Penny, why the tone change of the tribe this time? She says that the team felt it was pretty important to win this challenge and they were pretty disappointed in themselves. He asks Robb how the last few days look through his eyes. Robb says he started thinking about how amazing this experience was and how he was so thankful for the opportunity and he starts to tell about the talk around the fire last night and how he had hoped that it would lift the spirits of the tribe and that the reaction was better than he had hoped for. Jeff says that he is genuinely delighted with the experience they're having, but now he wonders how hard it will be to vote. Shii Ann says that this will be really really hard, the toughest vote yet. Jake says this is by far the worst vote yet. Well, since we all know it's the worst, let's get to it. We are only shown 2 votes as they're voting. The first is Shii Ann's vote for Robb. She accompanies her vote with a proverb that goes something like this, "A wise man knows much, but says little. A fool knows very little but talks too much." She's just beginning to like him and no hard feelings. They show Robb's vote for Shii Ann with him saying that hey had their ups and downs but he's glad he got to know her. Writer's aside: I have time for one more. What is up with this chick? I mean really. The entire tribe was able to forgive Robb and embrace him as a member of this tribe. And after all he said last night and all that will do for this tribe, it sucks enough that he's getting a vote for it, but was the insult necessary? I mean, sure, it's true...but to me, it seemed pretty ignorant to say at this juncture in the game. And when the votes come in, it's unanimous. The other 5 Sook Jai all voted for Robb and Robb becomes the 6th person voted of Survivor: Thailand. One humorous thing during the reading of the votes was that everyone spelled his name with only 1 B. So he had to tell them over and over that it's 2 Bs, dude. QUOTE OF THE WEEK Well, there were many good quotes from this episode and I've chosen 2 I fell worthy of the coveted Quote of the Week. The first goes to Ken who during Robb's comments around the fire says, "I tell you one thing I never imagined, was that I'd be hanging out with a skateboarder freak." And the second quote belongs to Jeff Propst. At the end of Tribal Council, after Robb's walked down the runway, he looks to the rest of Sook Jai and says, "Well clearly you guys have experienced some real spiritual growth and yet it sounds like the person that inspired that growth is the same person you voted out. Great game, huh?" PREDICTIONS Well, what else can I say? Here we are after the 6th episode and my preseason Final 4 are all gone. Robb, Jed, Steph and Tanya. Whew, I sure am good at this aren't I? becca: Among other things I predicted wrong last week, I was also off target with Brian and Ted. Their alliance sure appears for real now. Drats! Ted seems dopier to me each week. When he talks, the sound of his voice draws you in and so the content seems important, but it’s not. That alliance he initiated with Brian was out of desperation. He needs a friend, believe me! During the last minute of the IC, he said that they should take one flag. Then Clay mentioned that they must take two and Ted chimed in like he had that thought, too. Hmmph! I’ll never let him off the hook regarding his actions with Ghandia and for not being more careful with the boat. In the preview column, I predicted that his behavior might be reckless. I may be headed near target with that, at least. The way he lagged behind in the water is yet another signal that tells me he can’t go much further in this game. Earth to Ted! Clay is on to you, no matter how many times you go, ‘shhhh’. What’s with Brian’s girly socks tucked in his shoes? And he’s swimming in them, too? That looked not only strange, but also uncomfortable. The Chewy tribe made a nice effort near the end of the RC. I so wanted them to win it. Oh well, at least the Giants won a game tonight 16-4. Woohoo! I gotta cheer them on since I live near San Francisco. One more cheer: Go Clay! He called the time-out during the RC that got his tribe close to winning it and it appears that he thought of the strategic move that gave Chewy the IC. Poor Jan is going batty over embryonic bats. That lulu is very lucky to have made it this far. Since I lost Tanya and Stephanie for the final4, I’m predicting that Helen arrives there safely. I’ve been impressed with her for quite a while and surprisingly so. For a while I’ve been thinking that Clay and Helen are gonna form an alliance especially since Brian and Ted are in their own little world. How brave of Ken to act as Robb’s big brother for 18 days. Being friendly with the wrong people is often dangerous in this game and Ken may presently be looking like a bull’s eye to most of the Sooky tribe. I think that may be why we see him approaching Shii-Ann in the previews. Jake, Erin, and Penny seem to have a tight alliance and that’s something I don’t like to see often, as they will have the best advantage over everyone else since they are a threesome. I think that Erin will succeed further than Penny and Jake. I sure hope so! She appears tougher and more independent than the other two. Jake is as boring as I predicted he’d be. Yawn! Penny continues to annoy me to no end and her endless grins during TC didn’t help to change my mind. An important IC was at stake tonight and Shii-Ann said she couldn’t think. Well, that’s understandable. She obviously needs to be doing puzzles in her sleep in order to figure them out. I came to a conclusion about Robb tonight. If he spoke all his words in a different tone, I might feel something. For 6 episodes, I couldn’t hear him because his dude voice got in my way. So, that’s why I didn’t pick on him too much – I didn’t listen. Funny how both he and Shii-Ann mentioned no hard feelings when they cast a vote to each other. During TC, am I the only one who doesn’t like the particular sound right before Jeff P. reads the next vote of the one to leave? I don’t want to know that soon. Give me just a few more seconds of suspense, please! It looks like we’re gonna see a merge with a twist next week. In the previews we see Helen, Clay, Ken, and Shii-Ann on one side of a circle with the others opposite them. I can only imagine that the 4 of them have formed an alliance, but that may be too easy. Who knows, but I sure like that scenario! Whether there’s an individual or a team immunity next time, I see Jan or Ted leaving. I’ll stick with Ted. jakey: Hi folks. I hope you didn't tune in 5 minutes late and think you had tuned into The Osbornes instead of Survivor! Robb and Ken's little dust up had so many bleeps in it I thought my smoke alarm was going off! Robb demonstrated his lack of understanding of the concept of alliance and the consequences of disruptive behavior. Round 1 to Ken. At CG camp, Jan once again proves she is an idiot with her "It's just 3 miles" in reference to the swim for water. NOT A BAD SWIM??? Huh? Maybe if you're training for the Olympics! So the 3 stooges set out to search for the canoe with a swim to the other island. A navigationally challenged Ted almost swims to Japan before Clay calls him back in. This was a move Clay may come to regret when Ted and Brian stab him in the back. The expedition is a failure and has only served to exhaust them for the upcoming challenge. Back at SJ Round 2 of Robb vs. Ken ensues when Robb dips into the Banana bucket in spite of an agreement in the tribe to let them ripen before eating. More nasty words are exchanged. Robb, Robb, Robb have you not watched other survivors? If you dip into food be sure it is with the approval of the others. The skin on the banana you ate may as well been signed as your ticket off the island. Round 2 to Ken. The reward challenge was a close contest with Athletic Robb shining and carrying SJ to victory but not before Penny showed some spunk and instructed the whole team to move their butts to the middle when she launched the ball, increasing their chances at success. Great advice as SJ wins the Thai Feast. This is our second hint of Penny's strength this episode as earlier she had told Shi Ann to back out of the banana debate and let Robb and Ken hash it out themselves. The Reward feast is phenomenal, with everyone chilling out and feeling sheepish over the banana skirmish. At this point I'm sure you thought ------O my God. Robb is going to win them over! I sure thought this and broke into a cold sweat. NOOOOOOO!!!!! I guess Stephanie was right about the effect of food on the temperament. On the walk back after the Feast Ken and Robb do some serious male bonding and patch things up, while I was hoping bats from hell would carry "Ska8er boi" away. Now back at camp CG Granny Janny has dropped her tranny over the death of a bat! A funeral is held for Oscar the embryonic slimy bat remnant while Clay gives his best "beam this crazy lady outta here" expression! I'm with Clay----please get this wrinkled prune like nut bar off my screen!! Make her go away! A humbled and somber SJ regretfully reject the rejuvenated Rob. Now dang Shii Ann-----I like ya but I thought your comments on voting for Robb, while true, were best left unsaid. So, what happens now? Will there be a merge as we have come to know it? What does Jeff mean when he speaks of something very different in next week's promo? Judging by the facial expressions of Ken and Helen we are led to believe something else is afoot! Who knows? If there is a normal merge will Shii Ann stay loyal to SJ? I think so, I hope so. Trying to pick who will be booted is a real crapshoot now. Usually with the merge the stronger players are targeted while weak insufferable pinheads like Janny survive! Grrrr. Next week will probably be a tie vote between Ken and Brian. Who goes? Toss a coin! While I disliked Robb, I agree with Jim that it will be a lot harder to write about this show with Robb no longer around to pick on. Ah well, C'est la vie, n'est pas? Have a good week Cheers A couple of quick notes before I sign off. Looking below the vote chart is up to date and I'll do my best to have a new chart available when and if the tribes merge. Also, a quick note about next week's column. With Halloween falling on a Thursday and me having 2 little kids, I will not be able to log the time necessary to watch the show twice, take notes and write the column and still get to bed at an unreasonable hour. So, I will be taking a week off next week....but have no fear. Amanda Jones from The Trades will be filling in for me and I'm sure you'll love her. She's a better writer and is funnier than me, so next week's column oughta be a hoot. So, I suppose I'll catch y'all in a couple weeks. Until then, take care and God Bless.
Survivor: Thailand Recaps at The Trades: Preview | Ep 1 | Ep 2 | Ep 3 | Ep 4 | Ep 5 | Ep 6 The S-Ratings at The Trades: Episode 2 | Episode 3 | Episode 4 | Episode 5 | Episode 6 On the Internet: CBS.com | SirLinksalot.net | SurvivorNews.net |
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