Survivor 20: Episode 11

I have tragic news. I was googling "are Amanda and Ozzy still dating?" a few days ago, and in one of the responses someone had listed who made the finals and in what order contestants made the jury. People I have shared this horrible news with have all immediately asked "why did you keep reading then?" I have an answer, but I am as yet unwilling to share it with you. For your own protection.

The consequences of this are huge. I don't really know the order of the jury members (although I did know Amanda was going out last night), but I do know who the final three are. As a result of this, I will no longer be doing my "power rankings" of our teams - it's not fair, and even if I try to ignore the information I have, I would be way too paranoid that I might accidentally give something away and spoiler it for the rest of you too. So I'll still report how everyone's doing and I'll do analysis of each episode, but there will be no more future predictions mentioned here. Feel free to make your own predictions in comments though!!

Anyways, enough sadness, let's get on to the show...

This episode was wacky, that's really the only word I can think of to describe it. Let's start with Danielle finding the clue, dropping it on the floor, and then getting physical with Amanda after she "stole" it. Survivor needs to give us a Rules explanation, because I have way too many questions about this. 1) what are Survivor's rules on one contestant being physically aggressive towards another player? 2) what are the rules Survivor has about "stealing"? IMO this was not stealing - Amanda didn't rip the clue out of Danielle's hand. It was sitting near her, but there was no clear possession of the clue at all. And let's not even get started on Colby wussing out about this and then Amanda caving and giving the clue back! What she SHOULD have done was open the clue and read it out loud. Then it's all square and the scramble can begin when they get back to camp. I thought this was the inevitable conclusion of the cat-fight and was insanely disappointed to see Amanda just hand the damn thing back over without even looking at it.

Also, how dumb was Amanda to not immediately check the popcorn bowl for the clue she was obsessed with finding? How can she not have realized that 100% of the time the clue was found either in food (e.g. in a jar of coffee) or near food (e.g. in a napkin)? She was absolutely right when she said she made too many mistakes in this game. Honestly, I don't think she actually did anything right - this season was just one giant mistake for her.

Next, let's discuss the Candice fiasco. I've never seen someone more easily manipulated. Candice is mentally and psychologically outmatched in this season. And for some reason she thinks that jumping ship as much as possible is a winning strategy. In her first season she mutinied against Yul and Ozzy (brilliant play, Candice, ditching two of the most dominant men in Survivor history) and now she's mutinied against her Heroes tribe simply because she's terrified of Russell. I felt so bad for Sandra, who worked her butt off to try and show Candice how idiotic she was being. But Candice is nothing if not gutless.

Which leads me back to my "Sandra should be a Hero" theory. Here are two women who both were placed on the wrong tribe. Being gutless is the anti-definition of being a hero. And Sandra never did anything villainous at all. I guess this is one of the big "what ifs" of this season (along with no one buying Candice for over a month). What if the producers had gotten it right and Sandra had been a Hero and Candice had been a Villain? Each tribe would have benefitted, since Heroes needed brains and Villains needed brawn in the beginning...


Current Standings:

"Beauty & 2 Beasts" Doug/Bri: 103 points
[1. JT (40 pts)]
[2. Tom (27 pts)]
3. Parvati (36 pts)

"Douchey" Dachui: 74 points
[1. Tyson (18 pts)]
[2. Boston Rob (26 pts)]
[3. Coach (30 pts)]

"Always the Bridesmaid, never the bride" Me: 72 points
1. Colby (20 pts)
[2. Amanda (32 pts)]
[3. Courtney (20 pts)]

"Gorbag" Bag: 58 points
1. Rupert (18 pts)
[2. Randy (6 pts)]
3. Jerri (34 pts)

"New Rookie" Courtney: 40 points
1. Evil Russell (33 pts)
[2. Stephenie (2 pts)]
3. Sandra (5 pts)

"Moonwalkers" Moon: 36 points
[1. James (7 pts)]
[2. Cirie (7 pts)]
3. Danielle (24 pts)
4. Candice (-2 pts)

Survivor 20: Episode 10

In another outstanding episode, the tides were turned supposedly against the Heroes, but I think the long-term effects will show that this episode hurt Russell more than anyone... anyone besides JT, I guess.

There were a couple of lessons learned from this episode: 1) it's impossible to overestimate Parvati, 2) Amanda is a terrible liar, 3) Rupert may be thinking after all, and 4) JT can look really really stupid when he tries to.

Here's the thing that astounded me the most - JT actually thought through the actual scenario, and then disregarded it! It's not like he was completely clueless. And the actual theory was much more simple, straightforward, and believable than his own contrived notions. He wanted so badly to be right that he ignored all the blazing neon signs that pointed to the truth. It reminded me of the movie Contact, where they talk about Occam's razor - the theory that, all things being equal, "the simplest solution is usually the correct one." In this case the two options are A: Russell was the victim of an all-woman alliance and managed to survive only because JT slipped him an immunity idol which then was played simultaneously with Parvati's because she somehow smelled a trap which meant that Courtney was simply collateral damage, or B: Russell is a villain and a liar. JT chose option A.

I loved how at the end Parvati gave up both of her immunity idols to save either Jerri or Sandra. It was a canny move, and one I'm sure she hoped would buy both of their allegiance for the rest of the game. Unfortunately I don't think she understands how much Sandra hates Russell. I think she also hates that she was put with the Villains tribe. She will be much happier switching over to the Heroes alliance, where she already has a relationship with Rupert, and they are easily manipulated. This is also partially wishful thinking, since both of my remaining players are Heroes, and they could really use her guidance.

** New Rule Proposal ** After all the fun and games of finding hidden immunity idols and then passing them out like they are candy, I'd like to propose adding a rule. I think they should be a point bonus for anyone gifted an idol, and possibly also a point deduction for giving one away. This rule should not apply to immunity idols won in challenges. What do the rest of you think?

Current Standings:

"Beauty & 2 Beasts" Doug/Bri: 103 points
[1. JT (40 pts)]
[2. Tom (27 pts)]
3. Parvati (36 pts)

"Douchey" Dachui: 74 points
[1. Tyson (18 pts)]
[2. Boston Rob (26 pts)]
[3. Coach (30 pts)]

"Always the Bridesmaid, never the bride" Me: 58 points
1. Colby (18 pts)
2. Amanda (20 pts)
[3. Courtney (20 pts)]

"Gorbag" Bag: 52 points
1. Rupert (18 pts)
[2. Randy (6 pts)]
3. Jerri (28 pts)

"New Rookie" Courtney: 35 points
1. Evil Russell (28 pts)
[2. Stephenie (2 pts)]
3. Sandra (5 pts)

"Moonwalkers" Moon: 34 points
[1. James (7 pts)]
[2. Cirie (7 pts)]
3. Danielle (22 pts)
4. Candice (-2 pts)


Rankings:

1. B2B - Doug & Bri were hurt badly by the loss of JT, but they still have a monster lead and the most dangerous player in the game on their team. I think they are still the favorites to win this season, but now there's actually a chance one of us could possibly beat them. What would be best is if Parvati got voted out next week... but I doubt that will actually happen. Keep in mind that last year's winner, Evil 'Box, won with 126 points, and B2B will probably make at least 113 points if Parv makes the minimum of the jury.

2. Bridesmaids - I'm ranking myself this high because I'm counting on a Sandra mutiny that will miraculously save my team. At first I was bummed that the Villains voted out Courtney over Sandra, since Sandra is so clearly a bigger threat. However, looking back on it now, I am really happy that Courtney got voted out when she did. No way could Courtney help Colby and Amanda as much as Sandra can. If Sandra doesn't switch sides though, I'm screwed.

3. Gorbag - I saw life in Team Gorbag last week! Not only did Rupert actually DO something, and think through a plan, but Jerri won his team some points as well! Either Jerri or Rupert could very well make final 3 if someone thought they wouldn't get enough votes to beat them, so they have the opportunity to win some points. They'll need to win some immunities on the way to the finals, but I don't think that's too out of their reach if it's a physical challenge.

4 - TIE. New Rook - Sandra is one of my new favorites to win the game, but she's likely going to take out Russell on the way, which would kill all hopes of the New Rookie to win her inaugural season of the pool. However, Courtney's team is slowly sliding down a muddy slope that is total points. Over the past 4 weeks, Courtney has netted a grand total of -11 points, thanks to sitting out challenges and "misplays" of immunity idols. It's not like Sandra really misplayed her idol - or that she even had a choice to not play it (although how badass would THAT have been had she been told her name wasn't being put down? "Thanks Parv, I'm just gonna hold on to it for now though...") but she must take the deduction all the same. Rules are rules after all, sorry Court!

4 - TIE. Moonwalkers - Candice is my other new favorite to win the game - but like Courtney, Moon is so far behind in the rankings that I just don't think he can catch up to B2B. Unfortunately I had just finished telling Ben how I loved Candice because she's such a competitor, and then she stepped right off that pole and gave immunity to one of the Villains. Had she stuck it out, I think she absolutely would have turned the tides of the vote. Parv only had 2 immunity idols - if her friend Danielle were vulnerable, she surely would have given her one, right? Meaning it was a 50/50 chance whether she'd give her other immunity idol to the correct person. Meaning that Parvati probably wouldn't have done it, since it would help her more to hold on to her 2 hidden immunity idols, and still have a good relationship with Russell. I guess we'll never know though....

6. Dachui - Danielle told me that their demise wasn't entirely unexpected. She predicted a Villain domination until personalities broke them to pieces. She just hoped they could make it to the merge, where they could take their angst and bitterness out against Heroes instead of each other. Not a bad plan, Dachui, and in the long run I think it was worth the risk. I'm excited to see what schemes you have for the next season too!

The next season of Top Chef

I just checked Wikipedia for an update on the next season of Top Chef and was disappointed to find the following:

"On October 5, 2009 it was announced by Bravo TV that a 7th season of Top Chef has been picked up.^[6] Shooting began in early April, 2010, in Washington, DC^[7][8]

The show will bring 17 contestants, similar to prior seasons, but this time one of the contestants will be a Top Chef "veteran", who participated in one of the prior editions (and didn't win). It has been also reported that classic episodes such as Restaurant Wars and Wedding Wars will return. The Finale is planned to happen in Montreal, Canada. It will bring five chefs and will be comprised of three episodes (instead of two).

Judges for Season 7 will be: Tom Colicchio, Gail Simmons, Ted Allen and Fabio Viviani.

Bravo TV is planning to air the first Episode right after Labor Day, in early September 2010. Since the audience of Season 6 was below that of Season 5, Bravo TV has decided to extend the period between seasons."

Fabio is a judge now? Blah! The finale is in Canada!?! Blahh!! And what's the deal w/ bringing back a veteran? With some shows I support this, but not with Top Chef. They had their chance! If it's anyone besides Kevin's beard then send them away!

In other "sequel" news I stumbled across the fact that they are making a Transformers 3, which will include Frances McDormand and John Malkovich among the cast. This seems like an extremely strange marriage of styles and attitudes.

Survivor: Episode 9

Throughout the whole episode I was convinced that the Heroes would somehow fail at slipping E. Russ the hidden immunity idol. Either they'd lose the challenge, or they'd somehow be kept apart - something must happen, I told myself, to stop this train wreck from happening. Sadly, I was wrong. The incompetence of the Heroes is astonishing. I loved the part where Candice and Amanda both realize that slipping him the immunity idol is a terrible decision, but decide to let it happen anyways. The next episode will be very interesting; we'll get to see what the repercussions of the hidden immunity idol swap will be. From previews it seems apparent that the Heroes will smell foul play when they see Parvati still around. But will they actually do anything about it? And even if they do act, and take Sandra and vote for one of the remaining Villains, they have TWO immunity idols to protect themselves with. I'm guessing that Jerri will end up being the collateral damage of the next week.

Another FAIL of this episode was that the Villains voted out Courtney instead of Sandra. I'm not sure why they did that. First of all, Courtney is my player, so they should have left her in for that reason. Secondly, Sandra is much much smarter than Courtney, and she's capable of making moves that Courtney is not. I'm hopeful that the Villains will be punished for this mistake. It looks like in the next episode that Sandra will at least try to switch over to the Heroes side. This is a good play not only because she can dominate those guys in the vote and mentally, but because she really should have been on the Heroes tribe from the start. This woman is not a villain!

The merge is going to be really interesting because it's going to pit many players' ponies against each other. Parv v. JT, Sandra v. Evil Russ, Rupert v. Jerri, and Candice v. Danielle. I'm the only player who's ponies are actually in an alliance together! So many of these cage matches are at the same level too. Parv and JT are the "captains" of each alliance, Sandra and Evil Russ are the "brains", Rupert and Jerri are the "cargo", and Candice and Danielle are each "dark horse" threats. I definitely get the feeling that there'll be a couple episodes where the only names that will be bandied about will be from one player's stable.

Current Standings:

"Beauty & 2 Beasts" Doug/Bri: 93 points
1. JT (30 pts)
[2. Tom (27 pts)]
3. Parvati (36 pts)

"Douchey" Dachui: 74 points
[1. Tyson (18 pts)]
[2. Boston Rob (26 pts)]
[3. Coach (30 pts)]

"Always the Bridesmaid, never the bride" Me: 58 points
1. Colby (18 pts)
2. Amanda (20 pts)
[3. Courtney (20 pts)]

"Gorbag" Bag: 42 points
1. Rupert (18 pts)
[2. Randy (6 pts)]
3. Jerri (18 pts)

"New Rookie" Courtney: 40 points
1. Evil Russell (28 pts)
[2. Stephenie (2 pts)]
3. Sandra (10 pts)

"Moonwalkers" Moon: 28 points
[1. James (7 pts)]
[2. Cirie (7 pts)]
3. Danielle (16 pts)
4. Candice (-2 pts)


Rankings:

1. B2B - if this team keeps finding hidden immunity idols the rest of us are completely screwed. On the plus side, JT and Parvati are not in an alliance together, so I feel confident that they both won't make the final 3. On the negative side, if even one of them makes the final 3 it's probably enough for Doug to lock up a victory. Still, a lot can happen when going from 10 players down to 3, and both players are known as threats, so it is possible that they will both only make the jury. Hopefully that happens soon, so the rest of us have a chance to catch up!

2. Bridesmaids - So close! I came so close to sneaking Courtney into the merge, but alas, the Villains voted her out in the 11th hour. Colby and Amanda could get me the victory, but it all hinges on them either growing brains or starting to listen to someone smarter than them. Their greatest strength starting with the merge will be their likeability, so I'm hoping they won't start stepping on other players' toes in the next few weeks! I'd be very happy to see a Candice, Colby, Amanda, Sandra alliance get together later in the game...

3. New Rook - Courtney's in a good position because I feel like the Heroes + Sandra are going to start eliminating Villains, but they'll constantly fail when trying to get rid of Evil Russ. It was huge that Sandra made it to the merge - she's got the time and the ability to put herself in a much more secure position. Russell, on the other hand, thrives on the brink, and that's where he'll be come merge time. Out of all the teams that are left, I think Courtney's is the most capable of getting both her players to the final 3. Unfortunately, that's what she'll need to have a chance at winning, since neither of her players are known for winning individual challenges.

4. Moonwalkers - Moon's dark horse team is doing really well, considering the circumstances. Candice and Danielle both seem to be laying low while still having a full understanding of what's really going on. There is a huge point deficit for Moon to make up, though, so he'll need more than just a victory from a pony to get him the victory in the pool.

5. Gorbag - Jerri is lost and confused, and Rupert is most confident about things the things he's most wrong about. He thinks that the Villains are in an all-female alliance, and he thought he was their best candidate for a challenge where he's spend most of his time putting all his weight on a broken toe. Delusional? Yes. A future winner of this game? No.

6. Dachui - It's disappointing that only one of their players made it to the jury, but it's cool that the one who did is Coach. This guy steals the show even when he's not playing!

This one's for Ben

I was reading Bill Simmons' latest article on the Masters. When he got to the part where they interview people after the match, he wrote the following to describe the creepy fake cabin they all sit in:

"It has its own music -- just a few strands of acoustic guitar that sounds like something you'd hear while getting a massage. It has no relation to any other sporting event, or really, anything about sports other than the part in which athletes are competing for something. Like Richard in "Lost," Jon Gruden or Coach K, it never seems to age or change in any way."

While I think he should have been more specific and said "Coach K's hair".... well said Bill. I'm giving you a polite, quiet golf clap here in my cubicle.

Survivor 20: Episode 8

Last night marked one of the biggest turnarounds in Survivor Pool history - and not a good one. From having a commanding, dominating lead to being the first ones completely out of the competition, I say to you Dachui: bad beat. Three weeks in a row, Dachui lost their #1, #2, and #3 picks respectively. Really, if the Heroes weren't so stupid, Coach should still be in this game. His lack of breasts is what got him knocked out of the competition when the Heroes let it be known that they thought the Villains tribe had an all-female alliance going. It's dumb enough to assume something based on little evidence, it's even DUMBER to say it out loud so that the other tribe knows exactly how to get the best of you in the future.

What I like about this new Villains tribe is that they all know exactly where they stand. They're a canny group. I especially like the subtlety of their social game - they're thinking through every scenario. First of all, Sandra knows that Russell will go for anyone going for him, so instead of trying to go for him directly, she starts spreading rumors that manipulate him into taking out members of his own alliance. Secondly, I think that if the Heroes had heard the Villains incorrectly assume something about their tribe, I don't think they would've considered doing anything to perpetuate that false assumption. They probably would've laughed about it, but they never would have seen it as an opportunity to use to their advantage.

What I don't understand is how the votes fell. Coach, Jerri, and RUSSELL voted for Courtney. Sandra, Courtney, Danielle, and Parvati voted for Coach. Why did Russell switch his vote? Pre-voting he wanted Coach gone and Danielle wanted Courtney gone... and yet they each voted opposite of their wishes. We were trying to figure out if Russell was trying to protect himself from some kind of blind side, but splitting his vote only made Russell more vulnerable, not less. Did Parv and Danielle vote against his wishes? If so it means that Danielle has a closer alliance to Parv than Evil Russ... and he'll probably start getting paranoid about that. If anyone else can explain, I'd love to hear your theories!

The other "shocker" of the evening was how large the jury will end up being. With Coach making the jury, it looks like there will be a final 3 facing a jury of 9. I think we all hate the final 3 format, but it's nice that there will be so many jury members.

Also of note was Jeff's constant mentionings of "if" there is a merge. I'm 80% sure there will be a merge, but man I'd love it if there wasn't. It would be such a great ploy by those sly producers to have each tribe plan on - nay, count on - an impending merge that never happens. If the Villains knew that there wouldn't be a merge, I think Coach and Tyson would still be in the game, maybe even Boston Rob. But now they could be utterly screwed because of another assumption.


Current Standings:

"Beauty & 2 Beasts" Doug/Bri: 78 points
1. JT (27 pts)
[2. Tom (27 pts)]
3. Parvati (24 pts)

"Douchey" Dachui: 74 points
[1. Tyson (18 pts)]
[2. Boston Rob (26 pts)]
[3. Coach (30 pts)]

"New Rookie" Courtney: 40 points
1. Evil Russell (28 pts)
[2. Stephenie (2 pts)]
3. Sandra (10 pts)

"Always the Bridesmaid, never the bride" Me: 40 points
1. Colby (15 pts)
2. Amanda (17 pts)
3. Courtney (8 pts)

"Gorbag" Bag: 37 points
1. Rupert (15 pts)
[2. Randy (6 pts)]
3. Jerri (16 pts)

"Moonwalkers" Moon: 23 points
[1. James (7 pts)]
[2. Cirie (7 pts)]
3. Danielle (14 pts)
4. Candice (-5 pts)


Rankings:

1. B2B - Doug & Bri have almost a 40 point lead over the next closest contenders, which means they will be very hard to catch. Although JT is making himself way too conspicuous right now, which could put him in very serious jeopardy. The rest of us need for him to go if we are going to have a chance to catch this juggernaut. I'm putting Parvati as the favorite to win it all right now, but she probably won't be winning a lot of challenges on her own or with her current tribe, so I'm much more comfortable with her going deep than JT.

2. New Rook - Obviously Russell is a threat and very capable of making it to the final 3, but I'm kind of hoping he gets voted out soon. I think it would be VERY entertaining to watch him steaming over on the jury week after week. Plus, his rant at final tribal would be epic, probably topping Sue's Rat & Snake speech. Sandra is down but never out - she's super canny, and if a merge comes soon she could be a very dangerous swing vote. If they merge next week I hope the first thing that happens is Sandra and Courtney switch to the Hero alliance, wake those dumbasses up, and give them a much-needed intelligence boost.

3. Bridesmaids - Geez, I don't even know what to say. Courtney survived by the seat of her tiny little pants. I've been saying from the start that she's a threat so long as she makes it to a merge, and it looks like that may not happen. Please merge soon! Let me keep all 3 of my players! They're finally starting to earn points! If the Villains lose again I just don't see Sandra being able to save her one more time.

4. Moonwalkers - Considering how close we turned out to be to the jury, it would've been foolish NOT to have bought Candice. Even without her other point-accumulations, Candice is now guaranteed to pay up her debts and then some! She's also doing a good job of forming tighter alliances and creating a healthy amount of paranoia among the Heroes. Danielle needs to stop pissing Russell off - if she can keep her opinions to herself she may actually make it to the final 3, although I don't think she'll win. Moonwalkers I see making a strong run in the second half of this season, but I just don't think Moon can overcome his enormous point deficit to come back and win this one.

5. Gorbag - I think Gorbag has the two nuttiest players on his tribe. Jerri is confident one minute, confused the next, and straight up pissed off and hungry most of the time. She's not doing a good job controlling her emotions, and that will be the end of her. Rupert hasn't really shown himself to be a great thinker - he's made his alliance with JT and it seems like that's about when he stopped playing the social game. I love his effort in the challenges, but he's practically non-existent in camp!

6. Dachui - RIP. Team Dachui is incapable of winning, but they still have a chance to not lose!

Words of wisdom from the guy who directed Ace Ventura

I’ve been brooding lately – a dangerous past time, I know. Sometimes I see my future as a bright, exciting time full of potential. But when I’m feeling more pessimistic I see my future as a dull grind, where it takes years and years to accomplish just one of my goals. That’s what I’ve been thinking about lately, brooding on the supposed difficulties of my life.

It’s a danger, I think, of our time - where everything comes so quickly and easily - that it feels like our life goals should be accomplished with as much ease and simplicity. But life doesn’t work that way. Most of the time I appreciate the slow pace, the ability to appreciate life while I have it... but when I don’t, I brood.

I guess patience isn’t a virtue I have; I’m going to have to work at that a little more.

Today, I went to a Conference on World Affairs session called “How to Make a Bad Movie.” I almost didn’t go because it sounds kind of depressing, but it was better than working, so I decided to go for it anyways. I could not have been more surprised by the quality of the panel. It had an Oscar-winning special effects master, a former SNL star, a screenplay writer, and the guy who directed Ace Ventura and Liar Liar, among other films. I guess technically these people have all been involved in projects that resulted in bad movies, but what they talked about wasn’t how to make a bad movie, the message they really focused on was what it meant to be an artist. The Ace Ventura guy especially said that no matter what other people think of your work, so long as what you are producing comes from your heart it’s a quality piece of art. He spoke of vision, being true to yourself, and he insisted that the only “bad” art is art that was never made because the artist was too afraid to try.

I never expected such optimism and idealism from a man who became (in)famous for making Jim Carrey talk out of his butt. Maybe because the message came from so unexpected a source that it affected me so much. But instantly I was lifted out of my funk. I feel like I’ve balked at some many things in my life because I was afraid that I would fail at them, but it’s better to try and fail than to have never tried at all.

Survivor 20: Episode 7

The mighty battle was waged and after the dust settled, Evil Russell emerged as victor. This was an awesome example of how much potential this game truly has. Both Russell and Boston Rob proved their mental toughness and ability to completely manipulate other people. Danielle and Parvati both earned themselves "best supporting actress" nominations as well for the way they leaned on Jerri. This truly is an all-stars cast: it's like watching LeBron go up against Kobe, but in a game that's much more subtle.

It's going to be fun to watch the collapse of the Villains - I have no expectation that they will win many more challenges. Russell is not a leader that can win this tribe points - he thrives on dissention and paranoia. The more his tribe splinters apart, the better he does. Boston Rob was the real leader of his tribe and it's really unfortunate for them that he lost this war. However, as someone who is supporting the Heroes and Evil Russ, I was really pleased with the outcome.

And speaking of the Heroes, what a turn-around they're having! I thought it was premature for Probst to be talking about how the Villains were getting whooped, but now that Boston Rob is gone, I think his statement will be accurate. Colby's attitude change was huge, and I think that all 5 of the remaining Heroes can make it to the merge easily. Once again, it really comes down to when they will merge. Will it happen next week? If so, Sandra and Courtney have ties to Rupert and Amanda respectively, and they could easily jump ship and give the Heroes the majority of votes. If it's a couple episodes from now, they may have a 5 v. 5 showdown of epic proportions. I can't believe I'm actually thinking that the Heroes could even the count - just two weeks ago this seemed like a pipe dream!


What If?

Candice continues her point-winning streak, earning 5 more points last night. Since Moon has now purchased her, I'm going to stop keeping track of this, but wanted to do one last point comparison. Since the beginning of the game, Candice has earned 18 points through our system. While no one would have been able to win all of those points, had Courtney bought her after Episode 2, she would now be officially out of debt with +1 points! Had Bag bought her the week afterwards he'd be at -4 points (as would Moon had he bought her after episode 4 and not after episode 6). Doug and Dachui would still be at -10 points, which is where Moon is currently. I think it was a smart buy by Moon, but we'll see HOW good as the weeks progress.


Current Standings:

"Douchey" Dachui: 64 points
[1. Tyson (18 pts)]
[2. Boston Rob (26 pts)]
3. Coach (20 pts)

"Beauty & 2 Beasts" Doug/Bri: 63 points
1. JT (12 pts)
[2. Tom (27 pts)]
3. Parvati (24 pts)

"New Rookie" Courtney: 42 points
1. Evil Russell (28 pts)
[2. Stephenie (2 pts)]
3. Sandra (12 pts)

"Gorbag" Bag: 34 points
1. Rupert (10 pts)
[2. Randy (6 pts)]
3. Jerri (18 pts)

"Always the Bridesmaid, never the bride" Me: 32 points
1. Colby (10 pts)
2. Amanda (12 pts)
3. Courtney (10 pts)

"All Blacks" Moon: 20 points
[1. James (7 pts)]
[2. Cirie (7 pts)]
3. Danielle (16 pts)
4. Candice (-10 pts)


Rankings:

1. B2B - JT and Parvati are two of the three players currently in control of this game. They are a force to be reckoned with and I think that it will be very difficult to get them out of this game. Combine this security with the massive amount of points B2B already has, and this team will be tough to beat. Obviously anything could happen - see example #6: Dachui - but both are conniving, attractive attractive players who have no qualms about backstabbing anyone. Given the chance, will Parvati betray her "savior" Evil Russell?

2. New Rook - Evil Russell's coup d'etat was huge for New Rook Courtney. Unfortunately it means that her other player Sandra is now in serious danger. It also means that her team probably won't be winning a lot of points until the merge... unless Russell starts finding more immunity idols. I think this team will go through a point-earning drought for a while, but it has the capability to go very deep in this game. Russell has worked his way out of every possible "death" scenario, does he have it in him to make it to the finals yet again?

3. Bridesmaids - I still have all 3 of my players, which is a minor miracle. All of their names have been brought up to be voted out and yet they are dodging bullets left and right to hang around. I feel like Courtney will be Russell's next target at the beginning of the next episode, but Sandra will probably piss him off more in the long run, so I hope he gets rid of her first. But really my success hangs on Colby and Amanda keeping the Heroes tribe on top once the merge happens. Is it possible that one of my players will finish in 2nd place AGAIN?

4. Gorbag - I gotta say, I didn't think both Jerri and Rupert would still be in the game at this point, but Jerri is turning herself into an important, pivotal player. Rupert's alliance seems secure, and with an upcoming merge I think they can both safely fly under the radar. This team is really starting to grow on me, and I've only ranked them this low because I have more players and I think that Gorbag will have a tougher time winning individual challenges, not because I think they won't last long. Does anyone else think that Jerri's hair looked fantastic in the last episode? Long, unwashed hair really suits her!

5. All Blacks - Moon is in the hole with his purchase of Candice, but that doesn't mean he's out, just down. Buying Candice was crucial for him to have a chance to win this game. It's just that he now has a lot of ground to make up to get himself back into this competition. What will Moon name his re-vamped team? Will he go with the brilliant suggestion of"Michael Jackson"?

6. Dachui - While Dachui leads in points currently, they only have sad old Coach to keep their team afloat. They have no chance of buying Candice now, so they're going to have to depend on an emotionally unstable flip-flopper. I think he could win some individual challenges and maybe even make top 3, but it's going to be hard for Dachui to maintain their lead while everyone else has 2 or 3 players earning them points. How many more times will Coach cry this season?

No Survivor Post

Hello all. I haven't watched Survivor yet, so I won't be able to post on it. I'm going to Indianapolis this weekend to see the NCAA men's semi-finals, so in all likelihood I won't be able to have it posted until maybe Tuesday or even Wednesday. Sorry about that and thanks in advance for not giving anything away!

Go Duke!