(S19E08) I know this photo might be considered sort of spoilerish for the front page. But since last week's Survivor promo showed the merge going down, I know you all know Evil Russell will attempt to work everyone. Heck, that's what the guy does. To me, he comes off akin to a snake oil salesman. Yet he seems to get people to believe his wily ways. I bet he could have sold a lot of snake oil a century back.
(S19E07) Even though we're down a Russell this week on Survivor, I'll continue to refer to the remaining Russell as "Evil Russell." It just somehow fits even without a confusion of Russells. However, there is just one Shambo. Although she's a good worker in camp and works hard on the challenges, that might be a good thing. One Shambo is quite enough. Perhaps she's just too nice to be on the show. Perhaps she is a bit dim. I just don't know.
(S19E06) Well, this was the most unusual episode of Survivor I've ever seen. Mind you, I've seen all of them since the first season. I won't get into why it was so unusual until after the jump just in case you've missed all of the hype over the injured castaway in commercials all this week. But it wasn't just the injury which made it unusual. It was all discombobulated.
You don't mind if I call you Rich, do you? I feel like I know you well. And it's not just because I watched you walking around naked on an island somewhere either. No, it's because you were on Survivor twice and in both those instances, you really impressed me with your game-playing. You deserved to win that first Survivor. You earned it, Richard Hatch. You outwit, outplayed and outlasted all the rest, including Sue who probably wanted to kill you.
So, now that you're out of jail -- hopefully for good -- I'm rooting for you to get your stuff together and move on with life. That means shut your mouth. Stop yapping about how the authorities are conspiring against you. Stop saying it's because you're gay.
The first thing you must do is pay the back taxes on the prize money you legitimately won. Surely, you know that's how they got Al Capone. Pay the IRS, man. Start a payment system, they'll accept that.
(S19E05) We're into the fifth episode of Survivor and I'm still getting some of the cast mixed up. True, they're mostly on the larger Galu tribe -- the ones who keep winning, yet we only see a focus on a select few. We all know "Good" Russell and Shambo. Did you know that someone named Brett is on the Galu tribe? No. Really, I'm not kidding. He got some airtime tonight. At this point, they could stick in stunt doubles and we wouldn't know the difference!
At 8, ABC has a new FlashForward, followed by new episodes of Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice.
CBS has a new Survivor at 8, then new episodes of CSI andThe Mentalist.
NBC has a new Community at 8, followed by new episodes of Parks and Recreation and The Office, the season premiere of 30 Rock, and a new Jay Leno Show.
FOX has new episodes of Bones and Fringe.
The CW has a new Vampire Diaries at 8, then a new Supernatural.
TBS has Baseball Playoffs at 8, the Dodgers vs. the Phillies.
At 9, Spike has a new TNA Wrestling.
MTV has a new Rob Dyrdek's Fantasy Factory at 9, followed by new episodes of Bully Beatdown, Nitro Circus, and Pranked.
Cartoon Network has a new Total Drama Action at 9, then a new Stoked.
At 10, Lifetime has a new Project Runway.
FX has a new It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia at 10.
(S19E04) So far we've had one of those lopsided seasons on Survivor. We've seen this happen before -- one tribe keeps winning, the other keeps right on losing. The numbers on the latter are decimated going into the merge which allows the stronger tribe to keep picking them off one by one. I prefer things a bit more evenly matched. The tribal losses affect both the strong and weak players across the board. Once a tribe keeps losing every challenge, morale goes down. Then they lose some more.
In his never ending quest to turn everything into some kind of reality series, Survivor and Apprentice creator Mark Burnett announced he will birth a new reality show baby based on the TV show Fantasy Island.
You might be thinking to yourself, "Isn't every reality show already just a real life version of Fantasy Island?" Not so fast Tattoo. Barnett's already got a trick up his sleeve. The contestants won't just be competing to have their fantasies come true. They are also competing to become the next Mr. Rourke.
I wish Ricardo Montlaban was still alive right now. He could "Khan" this whole production down with just one simple line.
(S19E03) If I had my druthers and could choose which weirdo to watch take over Survivor between Evil Russell and Ben "Coach" Wade from last season, I'd surely go for Russell. Don't get me wrong. I don't like Russell. I wouldn't invite him over for dinner or send him a birthday card. But he's playing the game and, despite saying he's not there to work, he works around camp and at the challenges. However, his expertise in work at camp is playing mind games. Wade did diddly. Now if only I knew what a druthers was.
Burnett, he of Survivor and a half-dozen other reality shows, is married to Angel star Roma Downey, and they're both executive producers while Wright is doing the writing for Sony Pictures TV. The show is the story of a lawyer who nearly dies in a car crash and gets a second chance at life when the ghost of his ex-wife appears to him.
Syfy has a Legend of the Seeker marathon all night.
At 7:30, FOX has Game 2 of The World Series.
Lately, what we've been hearing about reality television has been awful. The winner of Big Brother became a drug dealer by using his prize money to bankroll his illegal activities. A family that appeared on Wife Swap perpetrated a hoax involving their six-year-old son and a helium balloon. Is there anything good to say about reality TV? 
At 7:30, FOX has Baseball Playoffs, the Yankees vs. the Angels.
Dear Rich,
At 8, ABC has a new FlashForward, followed by new episodes of Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice.
What happens when the producer of Survivor collaborates with his wife, an actress who starred in Touched by an Angel, in a story created by the guy who brought us Dirty Sexy Money? Do you get Touched by a Dirty Sexy Angel? I guess that's what CBS will find out because Mark Burnett and Roma Downey are teaming with Craig Wright for a drama project for CBS.
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