Welcome back to another edition of “The Eyes!” If you’re reading this, and you read last week’s column, then obviously I haven’t been working hard enough at trying to scare you away yet.
Kidding. Just kidding.
I’m glad you’re here, beginning another SURVIVOR journey with me. It’s been quite a wild ride”¦.nine seasons”¦..and so far, no end in sight.
Last week, I made pre-show predictions on how the male tribe, Lopevi, will perform in the upcoming SURVIVOR: VANUATU. (By the way, that premieres TONIGHT, Thursday, 9/16, on CBS at 8pm ET! Tune in, it’s going to be crazy!)
So, naturally, this week’s column goes to the female tribe, which is called “Yasur.” At the end of those predictions, I’ll give my general predictions on who the winners could be, from either tribe, and who I think will be the first person voted out tonight.
So, without further ado, here are the ladies of the Yasur tribe, in alphabetical order by first name:
AMI CUSAK: Right away, I liked Ami. I got good vibes coming from Ami. If you read my column last week, then you know a little about my past prediction record, so I don’t know what that means to you. But hey, who’s counting? In any case, Ami just gives me the feeling that she’s going to be a tough, competitive, down-to-earth type of player. I look at her picture alone, and can see that she’s ready to play. I expect she’ll go far.
DOLLY NEELY: She looks like a real sweetheart. You know, Neleh-type. If you recall, Neleh did quite well for herself. Second place is definitely not too shabby. However, the sweethearts never win this game. She said in her bio that she wouldn’t do anything to “jeopardize her place in heaven.” I truly admire that. Seriously. I’m a practicing Roman-Catholic myself, and truly admire when someone stands up for what they believe in. Sadly, however, these traits alone will not compensate for what she needs to do in order to win. If she can get out there and realize quickly that she needs to start playing the game the way it’s designed to be played, and the way others will play it, or go home. We’ll see how she fares.
ELIZA ORLINS: It’s the law, I have to root for her. (Real bad pun, I know. Read her bio and you’ll get it.) But anyway, I’m serious in the respect that I have to cheer for her, seeing as she’s from my hometown of good old Syracuse, NY. We finally get someone from Syracuse, and you think I won’t be cheering for that person? Puh-leeze. Not that I have any good reason NOT to cheer for her. She looks like an EXTREMELY strong player who will do very well for herself in Vanuatu. Keep your eyes on this one. (Okay, okay, I’ll stop with the bad puns!)
JULIE BERRY: Another very-strong looking competitor. She just really stands out in my mind as someone who will do well. I’m also afraid, though, she may get the Tanya Vance curse. My impressions of Tanya in Thailand were very similar to what I think of Julie right now. I thought each one would do very well, and possibly even win. She looks strong, though, so I’m going to cast my chips in her favor.
LEANN SLABY: Geez, these females this season look TOUGH. Here’s another one I like! Another person who looks like a strong competitor! Here’s an excerpt from her bio at the official site: “Slaby, big on adventure and thrills, enjoys bungee jumping and skydiving. Her hobbies include fishing, volleyball, golf and blackjack in Las Vegas.” Geez. Could a person be any more cut out for this game and the type of environment they’ll be working in? Leann gets another vote from me as someone who will go far.
LISA KEIFFER: She looks like yet another strong woman. However, when I see her picture, I get “Linda” vibes. I get “Joanna” and “Jeanne” vibes. What’s the common denominator? Women who found themselves on the outside looking in from core alliances in their tribes that centered around age. Jeff Probst hinted in a recent interview that the women this season would have the same problem as those in Amazon: tensions due to age differences between the younger girls and the older girls. I think Lisa would do fairly well on any other tribe than an all-female tribe. But for this circumstance, I don’t get the feeling that she’ll fit in.
MIA GALEOTALANZA: Wow. Is it just me, or is this tribe made up of extremely strong-looking women? Here’s another one who I think will go very far. Just like Eliza and a couple of the others, Mia gives me the feeling that she’s here to play, and play hard, and win. What else can I say, besides the fact that here’s another one I think will go far?
SCOUT CLOUD LEE: I can tell right away that I’m going to love Scout. She seems like such a sweet lady. I love seeing people who are cancer survivors. It can bring such hope and inspiration to people who have cancer. With all that being said, however, I can also tell right away that Scout will be an early boot. She reminds me exactly of Sonja. I can tell we’ll love Scout to death, but I also predict that she’ll be gone within the first three episodes.
TWILA TANNER: Right away, I had my doubts about Twila. I know I’m rooting for her because of her financial situation. A million dollars would be a huge help in making her life a lot better. Working three jobs to make ends meet and having no time for fun has got to stink. Unfortunately, though, I can’t really see her fitting in with this crowd. On the Early Show, she said that she “didn’t want to listen to the younger girls whine and cry about breaking their nails.” Ouch. VERY bad trait to have in this game. She needs to keep her disgust in check when the others start doing things she doesn’t approve of, or she’ll have a quick ticket out of this game.
So there you have it. The nine women who will be competing on SURVIVOR: VANUATU starting tonight on CBS.
As far as official preshow predictions go, now that I have run down each tribe, I’ll give it my best shot.
I think the women will dominate over the men for the most part. I think it will be a pretty close contest, but it just seems that the women have stronger personalities than the men do. Reread this week’s and last week’s columns. You’ll notice I found a LOT more people who give off the vibes of a strong player in the female camp. While they have potential weak links, I think the men appear to have more.
Sorry, guys. But I’ve got to tell the truth as I see it.
As an overall winner, though, I predict a male will come out on top. As I said last week, statistics must speak in the end. After having three female winners in a row, it’s time for a male.
As that winner, I choose BRADY FINTA to be the Sole Survivor this time around.
As far as first person voted off, I’ll choose one from each tribe.
SCOUT CLOUD LEE from Yasur.
JOHN KENNEY from Lopevi.
And there you have it. Enjoy the premiere, and I’ll “see” you next week for my reactions and week 2 predictions!
