Survivor Philippines Finale Recap: Fooled Again!

The episode starts off with the tribe rejoicing, along with the rest of America, at Abi's exit.  They do some more dancing then go on about how great it is to be rid of Abi.  Funny thing is, they could of easily gotten rid of her at the previous council if they weren't so scared of Carter.
Malcolm realizes he has some tap dancing to do after Abi threw him under the bus with the compliment of saying he's a favorite to win.  It doesn't matter that both Skupin and Lisa's game is done at this point.  They made a fatal error by getting rid of Abi.  She was their only hope.  Neither one has a snowball's chance in hell of beating Malcolm or Denise.  I'm not even sure they could of beat Abi.
The next morning the tribe is surprised to get tree mail because they have two more days left.  Since there's only four players left the final immunity challenge shouldn't be until tomorrow.  Unless it's going to be a final two this season, like I've been predicting for several weeks now.  The tribe wonders if it could be a reward challenge.  This seems impossible because it's the finale and they never have a reward challenge during the finale right?  Wrong! 
It is indeed a reward challenge and I instantly realize I've been fooled again by this unpredictable season.  Unless they have an unprecedented two challenges in one day it's going to be a final three.  Probst quickly clears this up by revealing that tomorrow is the final immunity challenge and this reward is for an advantage in that challenge.  I thinking they're going to pull an exile island and give the winner a high protein meal, but that will remain a mystery for now.
The challenge consists of going through an obstacle course and getting puzzle pieces to form a dragon.  Denise jumps out to a lead but Malcolm is hot on her trail.  I'm thinking Denise is going to win since it's a forgone conclusion that since Malcolm is returning next season, he won't win the game, so he won't be in the final three, so he won't win the final immunity.  Malcolm shockingly wins though.  It seems improbable that Malcolm could lose a challenge with an advantage.  As Lisa says he was already a huge threat to win on his own but we know that's what's going to happen.  It also feels like Lisa is leaning towards going to the end with Denise.  She obviously thinks she still has a chance at winning this game and Malcolm is the only one who realizes that Denise will be the toughest to beat. 
Knowing she doesn't have much chance at the next immunity, Denise begins to work on Malcolm.  In an effort to preserve her vote Malcolm doesn't commit to anything, much to Denise's dismay.  So she plays the only card she has left and hatches a plot with Skupin and Lisa.  Unlike Malcolm, Lisa misleads Denise into believing she's in but in an interview she admit she's keeping her options open, as she's been doing throughout the entire game.  Lisa comments to Denise that Malcolm is the type of guy who will look you in the eye, stab you in the back, then visit you in the hospital the next day, which is exactly what Lisa has been trying to do to Malcolm for quite some time.
It's clear that Lisa still wants to get rid of Malcolm but Skupin appears to be unsure.  He does however, think that he can beat Malcolm.  Lisa on the other hand suggests they try to let Denise win so she can be the bad guy.  She also thinks Denise is no threat in the finals.
Before the immunity challenge the final four does the fallen comrades walk.  I'm really glad they include that this season so I can get a shot of Angie in her bikini, but we start off with Zane who says it was stupid for his tribe to vote him out.  Maybe that's right, but it's wasn't nearly as stupid as him telling them to vote him out!
The challenge is one from Micronesia where you must balance a small ball on a horizontal cylinder.  We find out that Malcolm's advantage is getting a second chance if he drops his ball.  Incredibly Malcolm has trouble immediately.  While everyone else is pretty still he struggles and even with his advantage he's the first one out.
We later learn that Malcolm told his mom before he came out to the Philippines that that was the one challenge he didn't want to see because he's so clumsy with his hands, which is odd, considering that he's a bartender who must be quick and efficient with their hands.  Denise is the next to go, which gives Malcolm a little bit of hope.  Malcolm makes another mistake in my opinion by rooting for Skupin albeit somewhat lazily, but by doing so he gives Lisa another reason to get rid of him.  Of course Denise comes close to doing the same thing by congratulating Lisa for making it through a tough round.  Never take sides in a final immunity until it's over.  Lisa and Skupin battle for a while but in the end super klutz Skupin prevails.  Lisa, who never stops playing the game, hugs Micheal, and says how they made it together.  Lisa may very well be the most manipulative player in Survivor history. 
The next segment is classic Survivor.  Malcolm and Denise each work on Lisa and Skupin, who tell both of them they're safe.  Neither one makes a very good argument though.  If I were Malcolm I would of conceded to them that he was the favorite to win against them, but that they have NO chance against Denise, but at least against him they have an outside chance.  We see Skupin contemplating how great it would be to go against Malcolm in the end.  If history is any indicator we know that Malcolm is toast because he said the same thing to Pete, Penner, Carter, and Abi.
Any doubt of this is alleviated at tribal council when Probst asks Lisa if there's a good reason to take Malcolm and she is honest for once and says "no" much to Malcolm's shock.  I guess the fact that she gave her word to Malcolm isn't a good reason to take him to the end.  We can see by the look on Malcolm's face that he knows he's toast and Denise seems a lock to win the game at this point.  Malcolm even acknowledges this by congratulating her in an effort to admonish Skupin and Lisa.
Will Denise actually win though?  She had a hand in voting off her former Kalabaw members, although she didn't vote for Jeff, but she also refused to vote with him against Pete in the first vote after the merge, which was never seen.  Will Malcolm really hold Lisa and Skupin more accountable then Denise for his exit?  Who will Abi vote for?  She told Skupin and Lisa they can't beat Denise but she also hates Denise.  So maybe Lisa or Skupin still have a slim chance at winning.  Not to mention the fact that Denise is sounding very arrogant when she gets back to camp.
Meanwhile Skupin admits that "some people might not want to vote for either one of us".  Some people?  Try the entire Jury.  Well maybe not, quite all of them, but probably most.
The final tribal council begins with Denise wishing Skupin "good luck".  If that doesn't prove what a big phoney she is, I don't know what will.  Unless she's a complete moron she wishes Skupin and Lisa the worst luck possible.  Luckily the two people she's sitting next to aren't exactly pillars of the Survivor community.
The jury comes in.  Most have pretty intense looks upon their faces but no two are more different then RC and Abi.  RC is relishing the moment with a bigger smile then anyone else, while Abi looks like she's about to go postal.  Hopefully there's some kind of metal detector she had to go through to get to tribal council.
Denise remarkably continues to be very patronizing, practically rubbing it in the jury's faces when she says "I outlasted you, I outplayed you, and I outwitted you."  Her stature as a favorite continues to diminish with each passing moment.
Lisa on the other hand does a pretty good job kissing up to the jury, especially Malcolm.  She calls him the heavy weight champion of the season and credits her self with knocking him out.  I can see the jury is wondering the same thing as me, which is how the hell did she stumble her way to the end?
Skupin kisses up to himself in his opening statement.  He continually pats himself on the back during his statement and it's easy to see that no one in the jury is too anxious to join him.
The jury is pretty fair compared to past seasons.  Carter comes up looking like he just got a prescription from one of the Philippines street pharmacists.  Artis doesn't ask any questions he just vents. Skupin lies to RC saying he thought Penner was going home when she got voted out.  Of course he told her he was voting for Pete when she went home.  I would of loved for RC to bring that up.  She does find the whole thing pretty amusing and can't stop giggling during her entire speech as well as the finalists responses.  Malcolm scolds Denise and she continues to give hope to Lisa and Skupin by telling him "I'm sitting here, and you're standing there". 
In true Abi fashion she acts like a huge drama queen during her turn but no one is more harsh then Penner.  Penner calls Denise a bitch and exposes Lisa's secret, which doesn't get that big of a reaction.  He also calls Skupin on his argument that he was always a target.  As Penner points out Skupin has never had his name written down while Jonathan had his name written down 15 times.  Penner suggests this could be a record.  As I reported a few weeks ago Penner did break Ozzy's record of most votes cast against a single Survivor with a total of 29 over three seasons.  Penner also suggests that Skupin will probably see his name written down that night as many times tonight as it was in the game.  In a way he's correct.  Skupin get's one vote from Carter although Carter doesn't write "Skupin" but instead writes "SKOOPIN".
Back in America before we get to hear who the winner is, like we don't know, Probst ask for a moment of silence for the tragedy which occurred on my birthday last Friday.  We already know that RC voted for Lisa and it's no surprise to find out the she and Carter are the only ones not to vote for Denise.  Even Abi voted for Denise!  So for the SIXTH time out of seven seasons to feature returning players the winner turns out to be a female.

The reunion starts off pretty ordinary.  Probst asks Malcolm if he would consider coming back.  This is a blatant effort to plant doubts in peoples minds that Malcolm is returning next season.  Malcolm nonchalantly says he would consider it.  Yeah right.  Like isn't dying to come back a third time. 
I really would of liked Probst to ask Lisa and Skupin why they thought they could beat Denise.  I was expecting him to say, "Abi and Malcolm both told you, you don't have a chance against her."  Along those lines Skupin and Lisa do admit they were pretty oblivious to their poor jury management skills.
The most exciting moment of any reunion does occur towards the end.  Jeff is quickly trying to get updates from early victims of the game and when he gets to Dawson he begins to bring up the kiss she planted on his cheek.  Before he can finish his sentence he gets this surprised looked on his face, says "oh my god" and we see Dawson rushing him and planting another kiss on him, but this time right on the lips!  This moment is so outrageous I wonder if it was setup.  We later see Probst talking to Dawson but can't hear anything he's saying.  Was he scolding her, or thanking her, or trying to arrange a booty call?  We'll probably never know.
When the player of the season is announced we find out it was the closest one in Survivor history.  It came down to Malcolm and Lisa.  Lisa edged out Malcolm by less then 1%.  I was a little disappointed in Lisa's game play but seeing one of my childhood crushes come on my favorite show, and not only make it to the end but also win player of the season was extremely thrilling.  Even though, I voted for Malcolm.
And so another season ends.  A pretty good one all things considered.  See you in February for Fans Vs Favorites 2, unless the Mayans are correct, in which case, I'll be seeing you all next week in the afterlife!
  

Survivor Philippines Episode 13 Recap: Take Me To The End MORON!

So last week Abi survived, and the big question is, will she finally admit she was bluffing about her hidden immunity idol?  Well, in an interview, she says she intends to keep doing just that but she spends most of the episode making it painfully obvious she has nothing up her sleeve.  When they get back to camp from Tribal she immediately starts thanking everyone for not voting her out.  It might of been much smarter for her to tell everyone they should of voted her out last time because now she still has her idol.
Lisa continues to privately express her desire of wanting to take someone to the end that she can beat.  Then we see Malcolm reflecting on this revelation from her.  The question is, will he be smart and do something about it?
Abi is still playing as hard as she can.  In addition to faking an idol the first chance she gets she starts working on Lisa.  Apparently she is still itching to get out Denise.  Lisa doesn't believe Abi about her being on the bottom but wisely plays along to keep Abi close.  I'm sure Lisa knows she's better off giving Abi some hope but not too much hope in order to keep her options open.  The last thing she wants is for Abi to start plotting against her with Malcolm and Denise.  However given the fact that Malcolm has only one more chance to play his idol, and both he and Denise are strong candidates to win immunity she might of been had a better chance getting those two to flip, even though her and Denise have a hate hate relationship.
At the reward challenge players are told they are playing for pizza and whale watching.  They are also told ahead of time that the winner gets to bring two other players with them.  The challenge consists of climbing over a large ramp , then running into the ocean to retrieve two bundles of rings which they must toss onto five pegs.

Skupin jumps out to an early lead and is one ring away from winning but then Malcolm starts to make a comeback and pulls within to just one ring.  In the end Skupin wins the reward and picks Malcolm and Lisa to join him.  When he hears that a helicopter will be transporting them to the reward it brings back memories of the last time he played when he was air lifted out of camp.
Maybe he should of picked Abi to keep her from doing any scheming but given the fact that she was left behind with her new arch enemy Denise that seems pretty unlikely.  Abi has a bad case of sour grapes and sarcastically comments that her vote must not mean anything, indicating she won't be voting for Skupin if she's on the jury.  This might be actually be a strategic move by Abi to try to get him to keep her around to the end since he won't be getting her vote.
It's pretty amusing watching Abi and Denise trying to get along back at camp.  Denise compares it to being on date with a kid that pulled her hair in grade school. Abi continues to try to strategize but doesn't really try to pull in Denise.  Denise just politely agrees with everything she says, trying her best not to lose Abi's jury vote.  Or should I say, trying to win Abi's vote.
On the reward Skupin, who apparently doesn't normally eat sugar, gets "drunk" off of sodas or "pop" as he calls it.  Growing up I used to call soda "pop" but they I realized that few people outside of Illinois use that phrase.  Anyway Skupin starts acting like an idiot, climbing sails, and feeding Lisa cookies of a flipper.  Can't help but think of how much Angie would of enjoyed this reward.  Then they go diving to swim with a giant shark whale.  It isn't caught on camera but we are told that Skupin has a head on collision with the whale. 
Never the less I am very jealous of this reward and my desire to get on Survivor strongly intensifies.
When they come out of the water Malcolm suggests that neither of them can beat Denise and proposes they band together to knock her out soon. Malcolm comments that it will be a blowout if Denise makes it to the end because she hasn't betrayed anyone.  I'm not sure how sound this logic is.  After all, Denise was on Kalabaw and had a hand in all of their exits from the game.  They still all agree though, but Lisa is quick to point out in a private interview that she's keeping her options open.  If it wasn't for Abi, Lisa would probably be the season's primary villain and apparently they STILL have not figured out it's going to be a final two this season.
The next day Denise wakes up in a lot of pain after getting bitten by something.  She has fang marks on her neck.  Maybe Robert Pattinson snuck onto the island.  She's appears to be in so much pain that I'm wondering if she might be evacuated which brings much delight to Abi.  However, after a hardcore healing prayer session she makes it to the immunity challenge.
This challenge is waterless and involves navigating yourself over a rope bridge with two planks while retrieving puzzle pieces that are attached to each bridge.  This pieces form a maze that you must then navigate a ball through to the end.  Malcolm falls behind in the bridge portion when he falls off right at the end but makes a miraculous comeback and wins the challenge.
This gives Malcolm an enormous amount of power since he still has a hidden immunity idol which is useless after the next vote.  This could seal Abi's fate if Malcolm decides to give Denise his idol but after the challenge right before the break we see Denise talking about Abi going home tonight, which is normally and indicator that the person is question isn't going anywhere.  Will Malcolm use this opportunity to get rid of Denise who he expressed a fear of early in the episode?  That seems to be a distinct possibility when Denise asks Malcolm for his Idol and he shows a lot of reluctance, supposedly because he wants to give it to his mom as a souvenir.  Before that we get a comical shot of Skupin cooking something and being thrown back by a spark from the fire.  Judging by his panicked reaction he is still very weary of being around fire.  
At this point Abi has just about given up on playing her phantom idol.  She makes a desperate plea to Skupin and Lisa.  She argues that they have no chance since Denise and Malcolm "such a story".  This leads to a pow wow between Skupin and Lisa where Lisa suggests they seriously consider voting off Denise.   
Then in the middle of tribal council Abi starts calling Skupin an "idiot" and a "moron".  The scene was obviously edited pretty hard and I'm guessing that Skupin probably told her before they left for the tribal that he wasn't voting with her.  Abi pleads her case to Jeff on why they should take her.  I'm surprised Probst didn't confront her about her phantom idol.  He does however get Malcolm to agree how Abi's argument has helped a lot of people win the million dollars and I think he's right.  Like I said last week, if Parvati can win this game you can't count anybody out.  Except of course for Russell Hantz. 
In the end Abi is voted out even without Malcolm playing his idol.  I'm guessing Skupin and Lisa wanted to vote out Denise but got scared that Malcolm would use his idol for her.  I think it was a mistake not to give the idol to Denise.  That could have helped secure her loyalty.  I'm thinking he's probably thinking he's confident in his ability to win the next and what he BELIEVES to be the last immunity challenge.  That may very well prove to be his undoing.  The episode ends with Skupin do a crazy dance back to camp indicating he might still be drunk from too much sugar.  So RC finally gets to have her confrontation with Abi.  It's definitely worth watching and you can do so by clicking HERE



NEXT WEEK ON SURVIVOR!  The finale is this Sunday and I'll be looking forward to seeing Angie again.  We know that Malcolm doesn't win so I think it's say he doesn't make it to the final 2.  So that means the final 2 will either be Skupin and Lisa, Skupin and Denise, or Denise and Lisa.  I thing the most likely combination is Denise and Lisa.  I think Denise will probably turn on Malcolm at the final four and then Denise and Lisa will use girl power to get rid of Skupin.  Then again Skupin could win the final immunity or Lisa could get too scared to go up against Denise.  It's still anybody's game.  I don't think Denise is a lock if she makes it to the end because if she betrays Malcolm she'll probably lose his vote, Abi probably won't vote for her.  However, from everything I've heard from post game interviews it sounds as though Lisa makes it to the end but doesn't win.  So the two favorites are probably Skupin or Denise.  Man what a crazy season!

Survivor Philippines Recap Episode 12: Buckets of Slobbering and Back Stabbing!

Before I begin this weeks recap I need to admit that I forgot to mention last time that with the four votes he received last week,  Penner has officially broken Ozzy's record of most votes cast against a single player.  Over the course of three seasons Penner has had a staggering 29 votes cast against him.  Good work Jonathan.
Now onto this weeks recap.  We're now down to the final 6!  Three Tandang's, two Matsing's, and one Kalabaw!  Who will survive this episode?  The episode begins right after last weeks tribal and Abi starts it off by an unbelievable display of clairvoyant powers when she announces that it's clear to her that there's an alliance between Malcolm, Denise, Skupin, and Lisa.  Wow, eat your heart out Kreskin!  She continues to play her fake idol, however.  It's her only defense, knowing full well she has almost no chance at winning another immunity.
Immediately after the first commercial break we jump strait to the reward challenge.  This is the week for visits from loved ones which leads to the most disgusting emotional outbursts in Survivor history.  The main perpetrators are Skupin, Lisa, and Denise.  As soon as Probst makes the announcement Skupin immediately starts crying at the top of his lungs.  He is also the first to get to see his loved one and he proceeds to slobber all over his son.  When Denise's husband comes out she jumps on top of him and blows snot all over his shirt, which Probst is happy to point out.  It's been a while since Lisa has done any professional acting, but she evidently still has a huge fear of being upstaged.  Not wanting to be out-shined by Skupin or Denise, Lisa has a meltdown so intense at the sight of her brother, that her face looks like one the melting nazi faces from the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark.
The challenge involves castaways tossing muddy bags to their loved ones who must throw them to knock over a group of short bamboo poles on platforms.  Winner gets to take their loved one back to camp until the next day.  In light of last weeks teaser it's no surprise when Malcolm wins.  Probst gives him the opportunity to pick another Survivor's loved one and he surprisingly chooses the Texas Girl that threw him under the bus a few weeks ago instead of his long time ally Denise.  Skupin asks Malcolm to ask for another one.  He does and Probst grants his request, to which Malcolm again disses Denise and chooses Skupin.  Malcolm reveals this was done to reward them for sticking with him and Denise at the last vote.  I expected to hear some bitching from Denise about Malcolm's choice.  It may very well have occurred but is not a part of the final edit.  As Carter's mom leaves, Skupin starts telling her over, and over, and over, AND OVER AGAIN about what a hell of guy Carter is.  It's painfully obvious that the jury marching wind has shifted sharply from Abi to Carter.
Back at camp Lisa and Skupin reward Malcolm's generosity by immediately plotting to blindside him at the next vote.  They realize Malcolm will be hard to beat in the finals and none of the players have yet to figure out that this season is going to be a final two.  At first, Lisa is firm, or at least pretends to be firm in keeping to her word, THIS TIME, but then her brother advises her that Malcolm might respect getting blindsided by her.  Yeah right.  There have been a couple morons in Survivor history to actually respect being voted out but Malcolm is not nearly as dumb as Brandon Hantz, John Fincher, or Shambo.  Still this is enough to bring back Lisa's greedy side who begins to gleefully orchestrate Malcolm's demise.
I know this is game for a million dollars but I have always had a real problem with people turning on a player that just gave them a reward.  I know it's been done many times in Survivor but I still don't like it.  Especially when you're pretty much guaranteed to make the final four with the player in question.  I also think it creates really bad karma for yourself when you do that.  I'm talking to you Stephanie Lagrosa!  At least they didn't swear to God like Dreamz from Figi but its still pretty despicable of them in my book.   
In an effort to clear their conscious's they pray to God that his will be done.  That way when Malcolm loses the immunity challenge they can say, we were doing God's will by blindsiding you Malcolm.  They also ponder how Jesus would probably look a lot like Malcolm if he were to play Survivor.  How ironic that the immunity challenge takes place on day 33, which is how old Jesus was when he died.  So will Malcolm's game die at 33 as Jesus did?
Well the challenge consists of players running out into the water to retrieve three bags of sticks and ropes.  They must then use these materials to form one big pole to reach over to a target to activate the immunity flag.  Everyone plays like it's the final immunity challenge, everyone, that is, except for Abi who seems to be on a holiday during the challenge, which absolutely infuriates Probst.  It's never said in the episode, but I for one believe this was a strategic move by Abi.  I think she knew she didn't have much of a chance to win, so she decided to act like she didn't need it, in a effort to convince everyone she has a hidden immunity idol.
Lisa, Skupin, and Carter jump out to an early lead with their pole building but their poles aren't strong enough to push the target.  Malcolm who has no idea how much he needs this, takes the advice of the tortoise and goes slow and steady to build a strong pole.  Then for the third time since the merge, the player who needs it the most, wins immunity, even though he didn't know it.  This leads to Lisa doing a very weird impression of a sports announcer calling her defeat.  Another sign that Lisa is losing it.
Back at camp Lisa and Skupin are both bummed.  Lisa acknowledges that they did pray to God for the best result.  Skupin is so into the conversation he points out a huge ant crawling on a nearby branch.  Doh!  Could Skupin be related to Homer Simpson?
So now the tribe has to decide between Carter and Abi.  It's hard to say who it will be, because Carter isn't putting any effort into saving himself and Abi seems to be putting forth a huge effort to annoy everyone.  At one point Denise pleads with Abi to drop the subject but that only encourages her to continue more strongly.  Abi points out how Denise doesn't have to worry because she's in the final four already.  Then Lisa and Abi get into it.  Lisa admits she may have to write down Denise's name at the final four but she's not doing it until that time.  Denise adds that she would not begrudge her for doing that.  Yeah right, and monkey's will fly out of my butt!  What she means to say is, "I won't begrudge you, as long as I'm not the one voted off that night!"
To her credit, Abi doesn't give up and continues to play her imaginary idol.  Her reasoning is, that if you tell a lie long enough, people will start to believe it.  She admits that even she now believes she has a fake idol.  That's probably how she convinced herself for so long that everyone didn't hate her.  Malcolm also admits that Abi's fake idol has to be considered along with Carter's dangerous challenge ability.
I'm not surprised by Carter's lack of scrambling but still disappointed.  He revealed in a post game interview that Lisa and Skupin had approached him about getting rid of Malcolm before he won immunity.  If he had been smart he would tried dropping the dime on Skupin and Lisa to Malcolm and Denise and tried to target one of them instead of being focused on Abi.
When it gets to tribal council I'm still thinking Abi is toast.  She's so desperate she even tells Probst that she has an idol and intends on playing it tonight.  Carter does speak up for himself by saying that there's been a lot of talk about taking people to the end who are deserving.  Lisa gives a hint to the outcome of the vote by saying she wants to bring people along who she can beat.  No one seems to believe Abi has an idol but they still vote out Carter much to RC's disappointment who must once again continue to play the waiting game to confront her nemesis!  So that's the end of Kalabaw!  Unless you count Denise.

Abi has gotten a lot of criticism from a lot of people over her outrageous game style, including myself, but when all is said and done, she's made it to the final five.  There are two returning players and a former professional athlete who would love to be where she's at right now.  She's also in a very good position now to squeeze into the final three.  She just needs one of the two sub alliances to flip over to the dark side.  If she can get Lisa to take her to the end she may be able to pull out the biggest miracle in Survivor history and actually win this game.  You may now all release a collective groan at that prospect.  I know that's very unlikely, and I think she's most likely going home next week, BUT if the wicked Parvati can win a season anything can happen here.

NEXT WEEK ON SURVIVOR!  Only one more episode until the finale and as long as Malcolm isn't stupid enough to not play his idol he's guaranteed a spot in the final four.  If he can win immunity he can give his idol to Denise which almost certainly will seal Abi's fate at last!

Survivor Phillipines Recap Episode 11: ABSOULTELY Abi's episode!

I've come up with a new drinking game.  Every time Abi says "absolutely" you take a shot.  I guarantee you'll be hammered by the end of the episode!  Judging by her extensive use of it, I think that must of been the first word Abi learned to say in English.  Funny thing is half the tribe has started to jump on the bandwagon.  Mostly at tribal council.
Malcolm "ABSOLUTELY, I don't want to get into an argument with Penner" (to Lisa)"I would ABSOLUTELY trust you in the 11th hour"
Lisa "Penner that is ABSOLUTELY part of my consideration"

Well Abi ABSOLUTELY appears to be a dead woman walking but looks can be deceiving.  By ganging up on her the tribe has lit a fire under her ass, at that's very dangerous for a hot head like her.  Speaking of Abi's ass, it's Survivor Auction on this weeks episode and Abi has a plan to save her bountiful ass for at least one more vote.  Instead of trying to buy any food she decides to patiently wait for the inevitable advantage item, and the rest of the hungry tribe isn't about to stop her!
First Denise blows all her money on pancakes, bacon and tall glass of orange juice.  Skupin remarks how he could get the same meal at a diner for $1.99.  Something tells me Skupin hasn't ate at a diner for a long time because you can't even get a large glass of orange juice for that much at most diners.  Then remarkably on the very next item Skupin immediately blows all his money before Jeff can even describe the item, which looks to be a glass of wine with cheese and crackers?  Apparently Skupin is STILL smarting from that blow to the head he received from Abi's runaway coconut.
Eventually Jeff reveals the advantage item and without any hesitation Abi immediately bids every cent she has.  I was actually surprised Abi had enough knowledge of the game to make this move.  I had assumed she had been a recruit who hadn't watched the show much, but she even later remarks on how she has seen auctions in the past.  This actually increased my respect of Abi a little bit.  The only question is will her gamble pay off?
Well luckily, even though she spent all her money on an advantage she doesn't have to leave the auction on an empty stomach.  Carter buys the last item which is covered and when Probst reveals it as a heap of veal shanks, he also reveals that it's for the entire tribe with a 60 second clock.  This is the second time Carter has been able to provide for the tribe during the auction because earlier he was given the choice of trading his meal for bags of rice and beans, which he took.  These were the only two times contestants were allowed to share during the auction.  They could not pool money or share food.
In the beginning of the episode Malcolm does some jury marching by consoling Abi as they get tree mail.  We know it's pretty insincere because later in the episode he compares her to an ex girlfriend who won't go away.  Still we can't really blame him for trying to secure her vote.  Seems like that's a common thread lately.  Several hardcore gamers are trying to get Abi's vote.  Lisa did it when she handed Abi her torch at the end of last weeks episode and Penner is also doing it this episode.  After the auction Penner and Abi get into a very dramatic discussion with Abi continuing to garner sympathy from everyone and whining about getting destroyed.  Penner tries to defend himself and the tribe and also make a little peace.  Of course in Penner's case he may also be preparing for Abi winning immunity now that she has an advantage which is still a mystery to everyone.
Abi reads the note and finds out it allows her to automatically jump to the final round of the immunity challenge.  Knowing that this may not be enough to save her she hatches a plan and pretends that it's also a clue to hidden immunity idol.  She goes to Malcolm and tries to make a deal by telling him that she doesn't think she's going home at the next tribal because she now has another idol.  Despite all her flaws you gotta admire Abi's tenacity.  This girl never gives up!  She is one of those characters that you just love to hate!  Not like Russell where you just plain hated him.  At least Abi doesn't try to be an asshole.  I do think she over played her hand here though.  She should of just told Malcolm that she wasn't going home and hope that he would assume that she has an idol. Then she should of targeted Penner or Lisa.
At the immunity challenge Probst asks Abi to read the note she got at the auction.  She tells him there are two parts of the message and it's up to her to read the second part.  She then reads how she gets to jump to the final round of the challenge then ever the drama queen she rips up the note.  Probst, who as a producer of the show has a vested interest in seeing Abi survive doesn't drop the dime on her and just says "ok" during her blatant lie.  I know that inside, Probst is loving Abi's assertiveness.
The challenge consist of three stages.  To give Abi an even bigger advantage players must answer questions before each round and if they get it wrong they must carry bags of sand equaling 5% of their body weight.  Lisa is eliminated in the first round, then Penner and Carter finish the second round first to face off against Abi in the last round.  For some reason we don't get to hear the triva questions on the last two rounds but Abi and Penner get it right.  Unless they made Abi exempt from the questions but cut that out to keep people crying favoritism.  Penner also answered the first two correctly so both he and Abi are clean.  Carter on the other hand has missed two questions and must carry 10% of his body weight through this last round.
Denise predicts that Abi doesn't stand a chance but she takes off to an early lead flying through the maze like a woman possessed.  Carter gets hot on her tail while Penner doesn't come close.  Everyone is rooting for Carter but he comes up just a little short.  Who'd of thunk it?  Abi wins immunity which almost makes Denise throw up.  Of course that doesn't stop her from politely applauding Abi's victory.  As Probst dons the immunity necklace on Abi he comments on her survivor journey, "you've gone from being on top, to being on the bottom, to being an outcast, to being safe!" and Abi has gained a little more respect from me.
There's been a lot of speculation on the survivor boards that the challenges in this episode were designed to help Abi avoid being voted out.  I have to say there might be something to that.  At the auction no one was allowed to pool money like they've been able to do in the past, thus making it impossible for the rest of the tribe to gang up and outbid her on the advantage item.  There was also the fact that the final item had to be shared by everyone in the tribe, thus making sure no one had a huge hunger advantage against Abi at the immunity challenge.  Then there was the fact of contestants having to answer questions that caused them to be weighed down if they got it wrong during the first two rounds of the immunity challenge that Abi didn't have to participate in.  I wouldn't be surprised if a producer advised her on the auction move she ended up making.  Despite all that I'm not too upset if that was the case.  Even if the person isn't liked, it always makes for some great tv when the one person who everyone wants out ends up winning immunity.  And lets not forget that the rest of the tribe could of saved their money just like Abi did and could of tried to bid on the advantage item.  I do think they should of made it a little less obvious and given Carter the choice to share his veal shanks, but told him if he did he had to share it with everyone.

Back at camp Lisa continues to try to trump Abi on being the tribe drama queen.  She admits uncertainty to her final four alliance who has targeted Penner.  Lisa immediately goes running to Penner and starts dropping dimes.  However she tells him she's going to stick with her alliance and vote for him but she hopes he can get someone else to flop.  Translation, I want to face you in the finals but I don't want to be the bad guy.  Bet he's wishing he had taken Lisa and Skupin up on their offer last week.
He secures Abi and Carter's vote against Denise but he needs one more and his only option is Skupin. 
Right before tribal council.  Skupin says he believes he can beat Penner in the final three.  This tells me Penner is doomed and going home tonight.

Penner pleads his case to the best of his ability but it's not enough for this Academy Award winner.  Yes, that's right.  Jonathan actually has won an Academy Award. During the vote Jonathan yells out Denise's name while he writes it down and Abi sticks her tongue out at Denise when she goes to vote.  Unfortunately for them, Skupin and Lisa both vote for Jonathan and RC has to wait at least one more tribal for her confrontation with her nemesis Abi.  Penner gives Carter a hug goodbye then Abi tries to hug him but he tells her to get lost.  He then tells the rest of the tribe to suck eggs and leaves whistling zippity do da or something.  Personally I think Penner owed Abi a hug after she tried to keep him in the game even when he told her to get lost last week when she tried to align with him.
A few weeks ago I predicted that neither Jonathon, Malcolm or Carter could win this game.  Well Jonathon is out, and we know Malcolm isn't winning because he's coming back next season.  I'm now thinking that neither one makes it to the final three because I'm sure they would win if they did.  I just can't see Carter winning after he was practically invisible during the first three episodes.  I can't believe they would edit a winner like that.  That leaves Lisa, Denise, Abi and Skupin.  All of these people have so many enemies on the jury that I don't know who's going to win.  Judging by Jeff Kent's post game interviews Lisa makes it to the final three but doesn't win.   That leaves Denise, Abi and Skupin.  Could Abi actually win?  Could she pull off the biggest miracle in survivor history?  With only six left people could end up getting greedy and decide to take her to the end because they think she can't be beat.  I'm actually thinking that this last group of people could result in the first ever tie for first place.  That would be a great twist to a great season.


NEXT WEEK ON SURVIVOR!  Will Abi win immunity again and make it to the finale?  Will Malcolm finally use his idol because of his big mouth brother?  If Abi doesn't win immunity will a new alliance emerge that wants to take her to the end?  There's only six left so that means just one more episode before the finale, right?  WRONG!  That's what I thought but after watching Survivor Live After Show and checking tvguide.com I've discovered that there are still two more episodes before the finale.  So I guess for the first time in years the finale will have just four people left in the game and will air December 16.



To see some pretty funny footage of Abi gloating click here