No More Fun and Games
Wow, where to start. I closed last week's recap by saying that this season looks to be "fun-packed," but after this week's cavalcade of craziness I'm beginning to think "fun" was not an appropriate choice of word. Survivor Nicaragau may have the most off-the-wall, bonkers cast of characters in the show's history, and that's saying something for a show that has previously included nutty personalities like Shane Powers and Kathy Sleckman.
Episode 2 was certainly entertaining, but fun it was not, it was mean, catty, and ever so slightly unhinged. All the ingredients for a great season of Survivor!
Holly's on the Outs
At the beginning of the episode Holly felt she was on the outskirts of the OAP tribe (Espada), based on the fact that she formed a quick alliance with someone on Day 1, whom she then voted out at the first Tribal Council; that someone was Wendy-Jo, remember her?
Holly's mental state seemed to be dwindling from that point forward. Her first lapse of judgment came during breakfast, the most important meal of the day, but not for Holly, not when the only option on the menu is snails. Holly decided that the snails were off and not to be served under any circumstance, so she disposed of the bucket full. If Holly didn't want to eat them, then of course nobody else could possibly want to eat them!
Holly's snail removal antics got her fellow tribemates talking, they all agreed that she was losing the plot, and mafioso-looking Danny, in his first line of the season, labeled her "crazy." Unfortunately for Danny, Holly just happened to be listening at that exact moment. In an act of revenge, Holly stole Danny's alligator shoes, filled them with sand, and returned them to their natural habitat, the water. I'd like to think that this act of retribution was a clever parody of the old mob threat of "cement shoes," but something tells me Holly isn't that smart. Holly's guilt finally got the better of her and she came clean, telling Danny of her shoe-theft. Danny took the news well all considering, although I suspect in the back of his mind he was planning to put a hit out on her.
Holly appears to be a couple of fries short of a Happy Meal, in fact, she's a bun and a burger short of a Happy Meal, but due to a pep-talk from Jimmy Johnson, Holly's deteriorating mind-frame was steadied, and any ideas of quitting the game were soon buried, along with Danny's shoes.
Minority Report
Alliances are formed for many reasons in the game of Survivor, some are divided down gender lines, others emerge through age, or similar interests, same hometowns, physical attraction, some are simply born out of necessity, but over at Club Kids (La Flor) we have the Minority alliance. This alliance was the brain-child, or perhaps brain-fart, of New York's most eligible bachelor, Sash. His goal is to take all the minorities to the end, this would include NaOnka, the black woman, and Brenda, the Asian woman. That is all well and good, I'm all for equal opportunities, but I've already seen the Cook Islands season, and I don't want reminding of it.
NaOnka was on board with Sash's humanitarian strategy, and cemented her acceptance with a shifty wink. When the idea was brought up to Brenda, she was just happy to find herself in another alliance without even having to do any work. I suppose the idea is good in theory, but I don't believe for one second that Sash will stay loyal to this alliance down to the bitter end, this is Survivor, a show were people would kill their own grandmother for a million dollars (see Johnny Fairplay), and I believe if a KKK alliance formed and offered Sash a better deal, he'd dump NaOnka and Brenda quicker than it takes him to put the hood on. But that's just my feeling, perhaps Sash will prove me wrong.
NaOnka has Attitude
I'm sure I'm not the first person to say this, but I don't like NaOnka, not because she's bitchy, or catty, or mean about Kelly Bruno, those things are forgivable in light of this being an entertainment show, and those attributes can certainly be entertaining. No, I don't like NaOnka because of her blatant aping of one of the best Survivor characters and players of all time, two time Survivor winner Sandra Diaz-Twine. Twice during this episode NaOnka stole famous Sandra lines, the first was "It didn't just grow feet and walk away." And the second, and most obvious, was "I can get loud too!", the only difference was NaOnka didn't deliver these lines with the same sass and conviction that Sandra did.
There's just something that screams false to me with NaOnka, like she is reading from a script, her actions at Tribal Council towards Fabio definitely seemed put on and badly over-acted. She is clearly going for the bitch role, and it is entertaining up to a point, but if she over-eggs it it could just become irritating.
MOP saves OAPs
This week we got to see the MOP (Medallion of Power) in play, I still think it is a lousy idea, but it did allow the OAP tribe to gain a victory, and if it means that this season won't be a white-wash in favour of Club Kids, then I guess the MOP is here to stay. I just hope it doesn't flow over in to following seasons.
The challenge was for both immunity and reward. I much prefer when the challenges are combined, it allows more time for tribe dynamics and focus on the various characters. When episodes feature two separate challenges it often means certain cast members get left out. It also means I don't have to listen to Jeff Probst shouting "Purple Kelly!" for twice as many times during an episode. Purple Kelly? Really? That surely has to be the worst nickname in Survivor history, at least Boston Rob was actually from Boston. If Purple Kelly is an acceptable nickname then what does that mean for future seasons? We'll soon be having "No T-Shirt Bob" and "Moustache Andrew."
You're my Idol
With an Immunity victory and a chest full of fishing equipment, the OAP tribe were living it up, and busting some moves back at camp, all they needed to top it off was a clue to a hidden immunity idol...oh wait! The clue the OAP tribe were given was an exact replica of the one Alina and Kelly B received over at Club Kids, only instead of stashing the clue, the OAPs decided to decipher the symbols. It didn't take them too long to figure out that the idol was hidden 15 yards from a tree, the only question was, which tree? The symbol was of a man and a tree, and as the rest of the camp went off searching for the most masculine shaped tree, Jill stayed behind to work the clue out.
Jill had her smart cap on, it must have been those snails she ate for breakfast, because she finally worked out that the symbol meant Tree Mail, but in a baffling decision, instead of going to seek the idol for herself, she gave the information to Marty and Danny. Maybe it's a move that will work out for Jill in the long run, she perhaps gained their trust and loyalty, but if I were her, I'd feel much safer with an idol in my back pocket than in Marty's.
When Targets Talk
Club Kids didn't have the luxury to go idol hunting, there were much more important things to discuss, like who are we voting out tonight at Tribal Council. The initial target was NaOnka, her attitude was grating on peoples nerves, especially Fabio's, and the boys, Shannon, Chase and Benry were more than happy to write her name down.
Kelly B and Alina, idol clue buddies, had other ideas. Their thinking was why get rid of NaOnka when she can be taken out at any time, why not use this opportunity to eliminate a threat, such as Brenda? It was a sound strategy, and one that Shannon and the boys were open too, well most of the boys, Chase wasn't exactly jumping for joy.
Meanwhile, NaOnka and Brenda were enjoying some bathing time, and they got to talking. The thing is, in Survivor, you should never let the targets talk to each other, because if they do, the chances are they'll team up and formulate a counter strike. That's exactly what NaOnka and Brenda did. Seeing that Shannon, Mr I Don't Want No Female President, had taken a leadership role, he became the girls' number one target, along with Sash, Purple Kelly (*shudder*), and a conflicted Chase, the plan was to vote Shannon out.
For the plan to work Brenda needed to make sure Chase was on board, and proposed to him (not in the way he would have liked) the idea. Chase is a little love-struck with Brenda, and he agreed to the new plan. Another key point when playing Survivor, is that if you are having an important strategy discussion, its always best to whisper, or at least speak quietly, otherwise somebody will hear, and that's exactly what happened here, with Alina listening in to Chase and Brenda's conversation.
Alina warned Shannon that Chase had jumped ship and was now cruising with Brenda and the Minority alliance, she didn't actually refer to them as the Minority alliance. Shannon was on the cusp of explosion.
"New York is full of gays"
There have been plenty of exciting, jaw-dropping, arse-kicking Tribal Councils over the years, but this one is right up there with the best, especially for a TC so early in the season. Shannon was not a happy camper after learning of Chase's betrayal, and he was quick to air his disgust as soon as Jeff Probst opened the forum. Shannon blasted Chase and Brenda in his opening remarks, slamming Chase for his lies, and threatening that if he doesn't vote out Brenda tonight and she goes, then he is next on the chopping block.
Stay tight-lipped and don't reveal too much, that's always been my thinking when it comes to Tribal Council. All the best players keep their cards close to their chest. Richard Hatch did it in Borneo, Boston Rob did it in All Stars, Todd did it in China. There are certain exceptions, like Sandra, who can get away with speaking their mind while still keeping people on side, but you have to be pretty special to pull that off. Shannon isn't special, he is dumb, at least based on that display at TC. As Sash said "You're digging your own grave." But Shannon didn't take the hint, instead he brought up, for no reason whatsoever that I could see, the question of whether or not Sash is gay. Shannon then went on to inform us that New York is "full of gays," at least "more than Louisiana." It was odd, uncomfortable, and completely unnecessary.
Fabio did his best, which you can imagine isn't much, to calm the situation, but was only shouted down by NaOnka, and also Jeff Probst, who told him to get his head out of the clouds. NaOnka did a bit of acting up for the cameras, and finally we got to the vote.
Shannon was voted out in a 7-3 vote, with Kelly B and Benry switching votes, rescuing us from a tie, and saving Brenda to fight for another day. It was an amazingly intense Tribal Council, with a satisfying conclusion, and has set the standard for the rest of the season.
Martin Holmes - I'm a 22 year old writer, or I suppose I should say 'aspiring writer', from Hull, England. I have a BA degree in English and Creative ...
