(S14E01) Season 14 and how are they going to mix it up this time? We've had old versus young, men versus women, and last season's controversial race against race season. This is the season of haves and have-nots because nothing provokes discord like sleeping under a tree with the knowledge that members of the other tribe are living it up with a couch. A couch? I wonder if the team living in the lap of luxury will later be at a disadvantage from living too soft. And didn't I already see this concept on the latest season of The Apprentice? Still, the overall tribe looks to be a bit more compelling than the usual and maybe a bit more feisty than last season's precision fighting team over at Aitu. They did a good job of building tension at the start of the episode, dropping off the whole team without any information. They are given things to build a shelter and food which makes them nervous because they know that the Survivor powers that be are from benevolent. This is sort of fun to watch although it makes me a bit sad for them because they have the sword of Damocles perched above their collective heads and they know it.
Sylvia, the architect gets saddled with the choice of dividing the group into two tribes after the shelter has been built. It has to have been a tough call since she doesn't know which tribe, if any, she'll get hooked up with. Poor thing, she gets sent to snake-filled Exile Island until a tribe loses a member. This is a last minute idea, I think, because as Probst has said in interviews, the 20th member of this season's cast got cold feet and bailed out due to panic attacks (you can find an interview with her here).
Meanwhile the tribes compete for immunity and the chance to stay in the posh shelter they have created. Unfair? Pretty much. The Moto tribe wins and gets luxury and ease, Ravu gets a map and a machete. The funny thing about watching Moto frolic at their location is how they take it for granted as their reward for winning. I'm telling you, that couch is going to be a liability in the long run. The other tribe tries to make the best of things but instead of planning shelter and survival they roam around in tiny cliques trying to figure out who goes home. Jessica, a fashion stylist, finally gets the axe but it's not exactly a strong majority.
There are already a bunch of breakout characters, many with goofball nicknames. Boston is back in the form of "Rocky" the Stallone look-a-like who even has a Rocky-like hat and makes Stallone faces at every opportunity. People from my beloved hometown are always good for a bit of instigation on Survivor and Rocky is already getting his fair share of confessional clips. Plus he gets in a scuffle with Dreamz, the "cheerleading coach" who grew up homeless. These two are on opposite tribes now but if they both stick around I predict lingering tension. Also look for trouble from Erica, the Macy Gray lookalike who was the first person to hustle herself into an alliance. And Anthony has one of the most interesting jobs listed I have ever seen. "Expert witness locator?" Sounds cool but than the endless parade of bartenders and models.
The person who is probably the most likable so far is Yau-man, the tiny sage-like man who grew up on Borneo and he hopes that even though he is old he will stay since he can help with the coconut gathering and native vegetation identification. He's also a computer engineer so he is smart about things like opening boxes when the manly men get all aggro and start smashing rocks around. He's like Cao-Boi but without the far-out mysticism, Bruce but hopefully with the rock garden and gut pain. Maybe he is trying too hard but he's like MacGyver out there. Love him.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
2-09-2007 @ 8:46AM
Steve said...
lots of pretty girls this year
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2-09-2007 @ 9:43AM
Max said...
I'm a die-hard Survivor fan and looked forward to each and every season, but the inane play-by-play from Jeff "Captain Obvious" Probst during each challenge is insanely annoying, and his "words of wisdom" at the conclusion of each episode drive me crazy!
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2-10-2007 @ 9:20AM
slutty_whore said...
We've learned by now, time and time again, that Survivor always shows us the alliances that do not last.... I'm not so sure about this cast. I don't think that much strategy will go into this season; so far, the cast was lackluster to me, but there are at least some players to watch. And, as far as the vote last night, it was anticlimactic, as Jessica was the obvious choice to be voted off.
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2-09-2007 @ 10:15AM
Gordon Werner said...
so if the orange team wins the next challenge ... do they switch camps? or are they screwed for the duration?
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2-09-2007 @ 11:37AM
rvkey said...
Go Team Ravu!!
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2-09-2007 @ 11:39AM
rvkey said...
I was wondering that myself. All I can say so far is that I'm rooting for team Ravu. I think it would have been interesting to have put Rocky and Dreamz on the same team. Might have been a good strategy for Sylvia.
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2-09-2007 @ 11:44AM
Monty said...
And what's with all the nicknames, Boo, Dreamz, Rocky, Mookie. Nothing says douchebag more then meeting people for the first time and having them call you by "your" nickname, ugh.
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2-09-2007 @ 2:55PM
Tammy said...
I didn't watch the Apprentice this time because I wasn't thrilled with the whole mansion vs tents concept. You are trying to get a job so why does it matter where you live? Seemed too Survivorish to me. So what does Survivor do... the same thing. Yeah I know they are both Mark Burnett productions but it's still lame.
I do like how they quickly fixed their odd man out situation. So if there are two idols, does that mean one hidden at each camp? The fun part is trying to sneak off on your own without anyone wondering what you are doing. That part I like.
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2-09-2007 @ 11:56PM
Bash said...
"Bruce but hopefully with the rock garden and gut pain"
Don't you mean without (!) the pain and the rock garden? I also think there's a word missing in that sentence after the comma.
Or maybe I am totally misunderstanding the whole sentence.
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2-12-2007 @ 11:10AM
laura said...
Dreamz....is going to play the "homeless" card i just know it, just like that b*tch did on Top Chef, and just like anyone else who ever was on any reality show, he will be rude but excuse it with the "homeless" excuse. I hate the dumb nicknames, this isnt "myspace" survivor. As soon as someone busted out with "Boo, Dreamz, or Rocky" i would have booted them out immediately.
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2-14-2007 @ 5:36PM
YFB said...
I like it when Jeff provokes the tribes by stating the obvious (to us) but the not so obvious to them. The faces, squirms, and eye contact are great.
It's early and there aren’t many vying for big strategies yet. Hopefully soon!
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2-15-2007 @ 11:13PM
Debbie Upsdell said...
Wasn't Boo the kid on Monsters Inc.? Maybe Dreamz (can't even frickin' spell forget homeless) and Rocky will make it to the merge and we can see a real tilt lol.
Looking forward to tonight!
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3-07-2007 @ 12:35AM
Gordon said...
Jeff bugs me every time he says " I`ll go talley the
votes". when he should be saying " I`ll go get the votes " brings them back to the tribal council area,
and then say " I`ll now talley the votes !
Jeff my boy "talley " means to count!
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