Q: What do Gretchen of Survivor: Borneo, Ted of Survivor: Thailand, Alex of Survivor: Amazon, Burton of Survivor: Pearl Islands, Leann of Survivor: Vanuatu, and Gregg of Survivor: Palau have in common?
A: All were blindsided at tribal council.*
Last week’s episode of Survivor: Palau was by far my season favorite. And it wasn’t because I had anything against Gregg and wanted to see him take the Walk of Shame or anything like that. On the contrary, I respected Gregg’s game and fully expected him to make the final two or three, if not take the whole thing. But damn, there’s nothing like a good blindside to stir up the game and keep the viewers (as well as the players) guessing. Hats off to Tom, Ian, and Caryn for pulling a fast one on the Dark Horse.
The minute Gregg won the reward challenge, I knew he was in trouble. He tried to smooth his victory over by promising Tom and Ian, “I’ll pay you back,” to which Tom retorted, “No, we’ll pay you back.” If Gregg had given up the reward to Tom, Ian, and Katie, would Caryn have gone home as was originally planned? It’s hard to say. One thing I know is that any time someone leaves for a big ol’ reward, the plotting back at camp tends to step up a notch. The losers sit hunched over their coconut popcorn, annoyed and jealous. They start to see their tribemates as less worthy of winning the game because they enjoyed massages, cocktails, and a big meal. And that’s when the plans are built.
I can’t say I blame Gregg for taking a reward that he won fair and square. It would take a will of steel to resist the temptation of such a pleasure-filled evening. And let’s face it, most heterosexual guys would probably prefer to spend their time on a yacht in the company of two fun, attractive young blondes rather than Ian, nice guy that he is. Tactically, it would have been smarter for Gregg to choose Ian over Katie, but the dizzying prospect of chow, liquor, and spa treatments probably impaired him from making a decision with his head (the one above his neck, that is). And hey, he and Jenn could, at long last, literally get a room. Like he was going to pass up that opportunity.
And like Tom, Ian, and Caryn were going to pass up the opportunity to turn the game around. I was pleased to finally get to see a bit more of Caryn’s game during this episode. So far, her role on the show has been that of a member of Koror’s underdog alliance with Janu, Coby, and Willard and Katie’s adversary. Even though her resume boasts incredible physical strength (marathons and three kids) and mental power (civil rights attorney), Caryn’s performance thus far in the game hasn’t stood out in any significant ways. Until now, that is. She lived up to her promise of delivering an Oscar-worthy performance as the sulky player who knows she’s the next one to go. And her strategy of sticking with Tom and Ian shows her determination. When her old alliance was eliminated, Caryn went to Plan B.
Which is something that Jenn needs to do very quickly if she wants to save her own neck. Like Caryn, I haven’t seen much of Jenn this season and haven’t been sure of what to make of her as a player. Her showing at the immunity challenge this week was impressive, though, particularly when she ate three balut faster than Gregg. I predicted that her alliance with Gregg would serve her well and it did for a long time. But the expression on her face as her man walked out the door last week said it all. Jenn knows her perky, toned ass is on the line. It may be too late for her to do anything about it, but, if the previews are any indication of what’s to come, she may not be at the center of camp conflict.
I cringed when Ian pulled Katie aside right before tribal council to let her in on the plan, but she went along with it. However, it looks like there will be hell to pay for it next week. The previews revealed that Katie “cleaned house,” according to Jenn. We saw a snippet of the tearful fight between Ian and Katie, which, unless my eyes deceived me, looked a lot like a lovers’ quarrel, complete with a promise from Ian to give up the game for his lady. Do those two have the hots for each other or something? Ian did refer to Katie as “my girl” when he talked about who he’d invited if he won the reward challenge. Have they been keeping a passionate affair under wraps all this time? Or am I just grasping at straws? Oh, I don’t care. I don’t think I could handle another proposal at the season finale.
However, that’s probably a fear I can safely put to rest. By the time this group makes it to the final tribal council, there will be so much venom flying, no one will even be exchanging addresses for Christmas cards. In particular, I predict that whoever gets voted out fifth or fourth will be incredibly bitter about it and make every effort to replicate a Snake and Rat speech (although Sue’s is the original and best). And due to my poor prognosticating skills, I do not want to make any more attempts at guessing who the winner will be or even who’s going home next, because I suck at that. And if Gregg’s surprise exit was any indication of future plays in this game, I’m better off keeping silent on that matter.
*There are arguably more blindsides than this in the Survivor archives, but I chose to list the ones most memorable to me.
