Bloggin' the Finale: Facing the Jury and the Winner Is...

Continued from previous entry...

Aha! It's time to face the jury. Now, Danni thinks she's going to go for the All American Girl approach while Stephenie thinks there are good reasons as to why she should win -- the old Outwit, Outplay and Outlast bit and she's there and they're not. @@ - needs the ol' eyeroll, for sure!

Once at the final Tribal Council, Jeff reminds the jury that the vote they cast will be FOR the winner, not to vote out a person. Well, duh! He explains that the F2 will each have an opening statement, then the jury will each have questions or a comment for them followed by a closing statement from both of the F2.

The opening statements were both honored, great contestants, blah, blah, happy, blah... you get it.Judd just looked mad.

The following is paraphrased as I was taking notes while watching:

Bobby Jon -- Asked them why they deserved to be there or why they were in the F2. Stephenie told him it was because of him that she was there, she has no regrets, played the game the best she could play. Danni was happy and grateful.

Gary -- Said his vote would go to whoever was the most honest. He asked both why they shouldn't win. Stephenie said it would be because she changed alliances as the game went on. Danni said it's because she became selfish and allied with Rafe.

Jamie -- Asked who they thought should be Final 5. (Odd question - it's like he wanted them to say he should be in there.) Danni said something about getting close to people then having to vote them out. Stephenie talked about group decisions and good reasons.

Lydia -- Her questions of both seemed to be on trust issues. She mentioned she was loyal to Stephenie since Day 6 and wanted to know why she was voted out. Stephenie said she wanted to go against the best -- Danni and Rafe. Then Lydia told Danni that she trusted her and was loyal to her. Danni told her she had to think of the game and that they did indeed talk.

Cindy -- Asked both if they could remove a jury member from the vote, who would it be? Danni said Rafe because he'll probably vote for Stephenie. Stephenie seemed confused by the question and ended up saying Bobby Jon because he was the first jury member.

Rafe -- Told Danni that he thought he was deserving and that he felt sorry for Stephenie at the challenge when he told her that promises are released. Said Stephenie dominated strategy and determined who would be voted out. Steph and he agreed they were completely honest with each other.

Judd -- Opened with "Congratulations, youse." Then he asked if Danni ice skated or Rollerbladed. Confused, she said she has on occasion, not very well. He then told her she skated through the game. They fussed back and forth about lying, then he hit up Stephenie with how she always complained about starving when she ate more than anyone there, how she backstabbed him and lied to his wife. He brushed off her defense and sat down.

In the final statements:

Stephenie: Thank you, hardest game ever, yada yada, brings out worst qualities, yada, decided at the start to align with the right people, outwit, outplay, yada, outlast...

Danni: Merge, yada, my head on chopping block, yada yada, Rafe and Stephenie in control, yada, made friends with them, yada, outwit, outplay, money will go to good use, yada...

In the end, Rafe was the only vote for Stephenie to win, all the rest voted for Danni. Danni gets the million and one of those Pontiac Torrent SUVs while Stephenie gets the second place prize of $100,000.

Okay.... to my opinions --

In previous entries, I noted how good Danni's game was. This wasn't a case of flying under the radar or skating, in my opinion. She was playing, and very well.

I thought both Danni and Stephenie had way too fluffy hair for the finale. Oh, and Brandon looks a lot better with shorter hair.

So... what did you all think?

Bloggin' the Finale, Pt. 2: "I Release You From All Promises, But You Won't Get MY Vote to Win!"

Continued from previous entry....

All right, we're at Day 38 with the Final Three -- Stephenie, Rafe and Danni. The monkeys are howling, the corn rotted in the rain and Stephenie couldn't care less as it's down to a day.

The Tree [Jug] Mail gave them instructions for the ol' tribute to departed tribe members bit. Each tribe member voted out had a torch with a drawing of them perched atop it. The Three had to say a few words, then in Mayan tradition, throw the image on the fire. Now, that led to a few interesting bits, but not many. I giggled when they said what a great father figure Jim was and then nonchalantly tossed his image in the fire. @@ In voice-overs and video bits, the Departed had their moment. Judd said he was through being hotheaded. Yeah, right.

Then it was off to the second Immunity Challenge of the finale:Jeff told them that the challenge would demand good balance and intense cooperation. They had to stand on a board which was placed on a short pole. In the beginning they had two ropes they could hang onto to achieve balance. After an hour, they had to release a rope. Then after three minutes, the second rope had to go and it was hands off for the rest of the challenge. In the third stage, they found they could lean their backs on the support pole and keep their feet on the board. Rafe lost focus for a moment and used his hand. GONE!

Stephenie and Danni were out there a good long while. Stephenie was sliding down further and further and breaking down. Finally her butt touched the ground and she was GONE. Danni won final Immunity! Rafe immediately went to her and told her that he wouldn't hold her to previous promises -- take whomever she wants to the F2. I think he was very touched by Stephenie's efforts and her breakdown.

Back at camp once again, Danni was in shock that she would be in the Final Two -- she had to fight the odds for most of the game and the numbers were against her. Stephenie now thinks everyone loves Rafe (as opposed to when she was thinking Rafe was the only one she stood a chance to beat with the jury). Danni seems to seriously be considering everything... including jury votes she may or may not get. She says she won't know for sure until she writes down a name.

Off to the second Tribal Council of the finale! In my opinion, Stephenie tried to sway the jury and Danni by bringing up the Rafe "pissed off the same people" and she even said it was all his planning. Rafe told Danni to vote with her heart. He defended himself a bit, but not really emphatically. When Stephenie made the comments about Rafe and her getting the same folks mad, Jamie and Bobby Jon broke into grins and low-high-fived each other. Judd just looked mad through the whole TC.

In the end, Danni said she felt Stephenie was the most deserving to be in the F2 with her (remember, Rafe told her the promise was "released"). He did fine as he went, but in the confessional, he said he was disappointed in Danni and would be voting for Stephenie to win.

To be continued...

Bloggin' the Finale, Pt.1: "You ATE the Chicken? The Gods Will Be Mad!"

It seemed like the Recap To End All Recaps in the beginning of the show. We're talking almost 20 minutes and a recap since the season started. Oy.

Then, once that was out of the way, we found the Final Four at camp -- Lydia was happy and cooking; Danni was feeling the pressure and Rafe was proud of his decisions and happy with the folks in the F4.

Lydia headed off to get the Tree [JUG] Mail and came back skipping and frolicking... or something to that effect. The mail told of a Mayan ceremony, not a celebration! Lydia, you silly! ;-) They were expecting some Mayans to appear at camp to perform a ritual which ended up including a sacrifice. Yikes. When the Mayans arrived, there was incense, candles, chanting in native tongue and then... YIKES... a chicken lost its head. (And, certainly not of the chicken's doing.) It was a ceremony to honor the Mayan ancestors and the chicken was then burned in a fire.

The first Immunity Challenge of the finale was the most complex Survivor Maze ever -- it was in the shape of an Incan bird. The Survivors had to find puzzle pieces at seven separate stations, run them to a holder thingee and then, once all pieces were found, assemble the puzzle. Rafe won Immunity.

After the challenge, it was back to camp. Rafe thinks he just might make it to win while Stephenie thinks Rafe is the only one she might win against because they "screwed over the same people." But, when talking to Rafe about the F3, he said he gave Danni his promise that he wouldn't vote for her yet Stephenie thinks that Lydia should go to the F3 as she could be easily beaten in any challenge.

The always hungry Stephenie had asked Lydia to ask the Mayans if they could eat the chicken. The Mayans said no, it's a sacrifice and sacred. An hour after they left, Stephenie and Lydia checked out the chicken and then ate it with Danni. Rafe, who was very enthralled with the whole ceremony and touched by the cultural experience, refused to eat the chicken. But when the skies let loose less than an hour later, Rafe got rained on as well as the women. Were the Mayan gods angry? Rafe mentioned that he heard the Mayans say something about the Thunder God when they were there. Now, I don't know if I would have eaten the chicken or not. I think I'd be too creeped out by the thought of it unless I was absolutely starving. Would you have eaten the chicken? (I also would be wary that it was sitting out for an hour or more and had bugs all over it.)

Off to the first Tribal Council of the finale:
Danni tried to be convincing as she said Lydia is indeed a threat because she's so well liked by all. Did that work? We'll see. Jeff questioned them about the chicken -- he didn't seem too thrilled that they ate it. (Except for Rafe, mind you.) Stephenie mentioned that Danni is likely to get jury votes because she didn't have to backstab like Rafe and herself -- something I mentioned in last week's blog, I believe. ;-)

The votes were tallied -- Lydia voted for Danni, the others all voted for Lydia. Lydia goes off into the sunset and the Final Three are Stephenie, Rafe and Danni. Lydia took it well. She seemed thrilled to have lasted as long as she did.
To be continued...

East Coast Update - Winner of 'Survivor: Guatemala' is...

DANNI

East Coast Update - Final Two are...

Danni and Stephenie...

East Coast Update - Final Immunity Winner

Danni won the Final Immunity. Rafe told her he will release her from all promises -- take whoever she wants to the Final 2.

East Coast Update - Final Three Are...

The Final Three are Rafe, Stephenie and Danni. Lydia was voted off 3-1 (she voted Danni).

East Coast Update - Immunity

Rafe wins the Immunity which will guarantee him Final Three.

Tonight, Tonight... and Jeff Probst News

Tonight, tonight... won't be like any other night! If you're west coast and just "gotta" know, check back for breaking east coast updates on tonight's finale which starts in about two hours here. As it's a three hour ordeal -- hey, you know I have to watch the reunion hour -- I won't be posting the recap/review until tomorrow after I get home from work. Yeah, unfortunately I do have to work for a living and they even expect me to be there in the morning! Sheesh! But I will be taking my show night notes and posting major update brief as they happen tonight. I'm sure to be full of opinions and love to hear your opinions, too. :-)

In other rather late news (I meant to mention this before), Jeff Probst fans can breathe a sigh of relief. Our favorite Dimpled Host has signed on to go through the 16th season of the show.

Survivors ready? Let the finale begin... er... in two hours!

Bloggin' Ep. 13: "The 'Survivor' Car Curse Lives On"

Five are left. Who will be voted out tonight? (Um... last night.)

After recapping Judd's loving departure, the episode began with the remaining five talking about Judd. No surprise. He made his departure talkworthy. Cindy is a bit leery. She sees a pattern. Jamie was blindsided. No one told Judd. Judd was blindsided, no one told her. She's very concerned that she'll be next. The camera cuts to a howling monkey who seems equally concerned.

Rafe is in his element -- last man standing, the women like him and almost consider him "one of the girls", he thinks of them as Rafe's Angels which must be some sort of play on 'Charlie's Angels' in his mind. Is he old enough to remember the series? He feels all who are left are very close. But, as the game of 'Survivor' goes, close friends mean nothing in the long run as you go for that million dollar prize being the Sole Survivor. I snickered a bit when Rafe referred to Judd as one of the 'cool kids' gone leaving the dorks to have fun. I personally wouldn't list Judd as a 'cool kid' but that may be just me. I thought he was a bit dorky! (Hey, I myself am dorky... takes one to know one!)

In the Tree (MAYAN JUG) Mail, all they got was a car key. Gee, do you think they're competing for a car? ;-)

As the castaways got excited, we found out tidbits like Stephenie has never owned a car at all, new or old... and Lydia would give it to her son. They were all psyched for the challenge.

The challenge was called Second Chance. It took elements of previous challenges and was done in three rounds. In the end, Cindy won. What did she win? A 2006 Pontiac Torrent and an overnight barbeque excursion at the local archeologist dig site. Jeff gave her a speech about the Survivor Car Winning Curse -- not one person who ever won the car has gone on to win the show. Four more Torrents drove in and Jeff told her if she sacrificed her win, the other four castaways would each get a car. [Hmmm... this makes me think. They've already procured five vehicles to give away. I have a feeling that if she had given up the car to let the others have them, the show probably would have given her hers, too. I could be wrong. But, a previous season had this sort of scenario with family visits and the one who gave up the prize received the prize. What do you think?] Cindy chose to keep the car for herself and chose 2nd place in the challenge Stephenie to accompany her to the overnight barbeque.

Important note: The four remaining Torrents are being given away. If you want a chance to win one of them, head to your local Pontiac dealer and ask for the 'Survivor' scroll. Then you go to the CBS website where you can find out if the code on your scroll is the winner of a 2006 Torrent. You only have until 12/12 to do this. Scoot along, but bookmark this page to finish reading!

Ah, you're back! Did you win?

Stephenie seemed almost as excited as Cindy was and said she would have kept the car, too. Cindy seemed too excited to be having second thoughts. She wanted to break the curse.

But... back at the camp, Rafe wasn't so thrilled with her choice. He insists he would have given the car away so the remaining four could have cars. My thoughts about this? He probably would have. While I think Rafe is a tremendous player and a nice person, I think he lives in a different world from the others remaining on the show. Well, perhaps not so much different from Danni, but very different from Stephenie, Lydia and Cindy who don't seem to have come from any sort of privileged backgrounds, plus weren't raised in an environment such as Rafe was (read his bio on the website). So, while the girls are away, Rafe plants the seeds and Danni sows 'em. Lydia seems very quiet. I think she would have loved the car if given to her, but if she won the challenge she wouldn't have given away the cars... just like Cindy. She later told Rafe that she thought Cindy made the right choice.

Cindy's determined she will beat the odds and come away with both the car and the million. Yeah, right. As Stephenie and Cindy talk at their sleep away and eat until ya bust, the talk turns of ousting Rafe! Yep, Cindy is pushing that angle and Stephenie seems receptive. They talk of getting Lydia to join the Darkside against Rafe of Goodness and Light. Will it happen? Hmmm...

Upon returning to camp in the morning, Cindy made the fatal error of going on and on (and on and on) about the car. Tsk, tsk. If her fate wasn't sealed prior to that point, it would be soon. Danni and Rafe didn't say much at all to her and Lydia just worked around the camp. Shut up about the car, Cindy! Sheesh! I thought while watching that her only chance to stay after the car would be to win Immunity.

So... off to the Immunity Challenge! This was yet another physical tasks one and now the players (except Lydia) are more equally matched on that level. Rafe may have an edge, but Steph, Danni and Cindy are all pretty tough. There were shackled hands and feet, ropes, keys, knots and running at the end to raise a flag. Finally, Stephenie won something on her own -- for the first time. She was in happy tears. She's made the Final Four.

Scheming time comes, as per usual. Rafe and Danni commit to each other that they want to be the Final Two. Rafe says he trusts her and won't vote for her. Meanwhile, Danni seems to have a trick or two up her sleeve. I think in the past week or two she's proven to be excellent at the Outwitting and Outplaying aspect of the game. Will she Outlast? Rafe is a good player, but I think Danni may have the edge on him. She's shrewd, yes she is.

They made it look like Rafe would be voted out, but in the end all voted for Cindy to leave. So, for the Final Four, we have Stephenie, Rafe, Danni and Lydia. In my mind, though I think she's probably a great lady, Lydia doesn't belong there. Will she be next to go? Who do you want for the win? I think Stephenie has redeeemed herself a bit, but I'm straddling on a Rafe or Danni win. I was a huge Rafe supporter all along... but now I'm thinking Danni could have it in the bag if she makes it to the Final Two. Rafe will be seen by many on the jury as deceitful as he was part of their leaving and was supposedly a friend. Danni, on the other hand, was on the "other tribe" and her actions weren't technically those of a "friend." We'll know Sunday night!

What do you think?

'Survivor Insider' Transcripts

Once again, the fine folks at the Survivor Sucks site have transcribed the latest 'Survivor Insider' video clips from the CBS website. My own computer hates the videos on the CBS site and tends to gather all kinds of bizarre adware whenever I try to watch them. So, it's easier to read the transcriptions other people take the time to write! :-)

This week was a good one as Judd was such an angry, nasty loser. Check out the link in the first paragraph!

Judd on 'The Early Show'

Rats. I would have liked to have seen this one, but I had to work. It doesn't sound like they grilled him as much on his exit behavior as I would have! The CBS website has the scoop at CBS News Doorman Gets Denied On 'Survivor' December 2, 2005 11:00:05. As I'm typing this, Judd is going to be appearing on the Saturday 'Early Show' to answer their 20 questions. I never searched out links to that secondary appearance, but I'll scout about.

An excerpt from Judd's Friday morning interview:
On The Early Show Friday morning, co-anchor Rene Syler wanted to know if Judd will speak to Stephenie at the "Survivor" reunion. "We'll see what happens," Judd replied. "Like I said, I thought me and her were tight. Not only tight, I thought we were pretty good friends. I took her on every reward there was. She blindsided me, back-stabbed me." But, Syler asked, "Can you honestly tell me you wouldn't have done the same thing?"

Bloggin' Ep. 12: "You're All Lying Scumbags! Even my Jersey Girl!"

First, I'd like to thank AOL's One and Only Zoetawny for creating this nifty holiday Jackie/Survivor tag for me! She rules, she surely does! :-)

Onto tonight's 'Suvivor: Guatemala' --

Six are left. Who will be voted off tonight?


After the inevitable recap, we opened on Xhakum Day 31 where Danni is fully expecting to be targeted in the next Tribal Council, and Lydia had the rather odd sensation of smelling sausage and eggs. The first valid concern, the latter was all in Lydia's mind. Judd and Danni then practiced their cartwheels. Please don't ask me why -- I haven't a clue. In Danni's confessional, she spoke of a plan to get with Lydia and how the alliance (Judd, Stephenie, Rafe and Cindy) must be broken up whether she instigates it or they just turn on each other. We'll see...

It's off to the Rewards Challenge! Woohoo! ;-) Jeff issued each Survivor $500 to spend at auction. Two people could pool their money to bid on an item and then share it. Danni jumped on the first item, beef jerky, most likely as it's high protein. She got it for twenty bucks and refused Jeff's offer of trading for "what's behind the curtain." A wise choice as the trade was a huge bowl of uncooked corn, the only food they seem to have in camp. Lydia spent $140 determined to get a mosquito net for one. But, the big prize was... ta da... loved ones come out of behind bushes. Lydia gave Stephenie all her money, but that didn't beat Judd pooling in with Cindy. The winner won the family member overnight. Judd won with $880 spent. Before the Loved Ones, Danni bid and won a rather cool item. She got a sealed envelope which may help her win the Immunity Challenge. She was very determined to outbid everyone on that one for obvious reasons.

But, wait! Is there more? Yes! The winner could also select two others for the visit while the three Unchosen (wasn't that a movie?) had to go spend the night at the old Nakum camp. Judd chose Cindy as it was her money which helped him win and Stephenie, his Jersey Girl. @@ - I can roll my eyes at that as I'm writing this in NJ! So, it was Judd and his wife, Cindy with twin Mindy and Stephenie and her boyfriend doing the overnight while Rafe, Lydia and Danni hiked on outta there.

I could roll my eyes at the entire Overnight Sleep Out Crew, especially Judd and his wife. @@! On and on it went. "Oh, Judd does all of this?" "He's so great!" "I do it all. I'm just darn wonderful." In confessional, Stephenie spoke of how much she owes Judd and how cool it would be if the Final Two were from NJ. "Jersey would be proud." Um. Er. Speak for yerself! In game talk, Judd has decided Danni would go and, if she won immunity, then it would be Lydia. Cindy and Stephenie were fine with that.

As the discussion at the old Nakum camp wasn't all Judd-centric (well, in a way it was, but...!), I found that more interesting. Danni is making her move and working her plan. She talked to Rafe and planted the Judd Out seed as he admitted that he doesn't trust him. Rafe thinks Judd has to be caught in a lie. Didn't Gary do that last week in front of all?

As the Exiled Three returned in the morning, the loved ones (mushy) were still there. The ever romantic Judd likened seeing his wife to eating 25 White Castle cheeseburgers. Eww! Sliders! Now, if I were to say that about someone, I'd be talking ghastly ill. He said it with love. Eww. After the company left, Lydia kept prying at Judd for info... plans, Final Two thoughts, etc. But Judd was pretty quiet about things. Danni and Lydia both started playing Judd as if they want Rafe out. Judd feels like a secure man, but he's Dead Man Walking. Heh. They played him like a fiddle!

And, it's off to the Immunity Challenge! There was a roughly circular platform made of white tiles with a spinning part like in a childen's park placed in the center. The Survivors had to turn a tile over to reveal red, then step on it. They couldn't move diagonally. When surrounded by red, they were out. If they could make it to the spinning thingee, they could spin to choose a spot near them. Danni opened her envelope -- it was a one shot opportunity to change position with anyone. She used it to switch with Stephenie when Stephenie had been doing best. The challenge went down to Stephenie and Danni, Danni won and saved herself from an almost certain fate at Tribal Council. Stephenie seemed mad at first, but then backed off a lot as Danni needed the immunity right at this point. Almost desperately needed it.

Back at camp, Danni goes to Stephenie planting the Judd Seeds of Doubt. Stephenie is reluctant, but goes along as, even though she likes him, he's a threat and can't really be trusted. You go, Danni! Now Rafe, Danni, Lydia and Stephenie are in on the Judd ouster. They didn't think it would be wise to get Cindy in on it. Meanwhile, Judd is strutting about like he's King Rooster and untouchable. He's so certain that Lydia is going, smug about it, too. "As long as it ain't ME!"

We're onto the moment of truth, Tribal Council. Eh, no good confrontational questions for the most part from Jeff until Judd opens his mouth practically dissing everyone there. Smooth move, Judd. You sealed your fate if it wasn't already a done deed. "Deal with it!" Heh.

In showing Danni's vote, she said (paraphrased) "You say the squirrels get the nut. You're the nut." Someone wrote Judd's vote as the Juddinator. Judd voted for Lydia. Smugly, I might add.

As Jeff read the votes, he jockeyed the first four between Judd and Lydia, then Judd, Judd, Judd. I have never seen such a sore loser! He went on about not lying, called the others "scumbags" twice before he left Tribal Council and once more in the goodbye message. At TC he told them he hopes they get eaten by crocodiles. In the goodbye he said he'll say more to the Final Two. Yikes, look out Sue Hawk! And, trust me, he wasn't joking. No class. None at all. Don't let the torch hit you on the way out, Judd.

Jeff dismissed the others saying "You can't rely on what used to be. The game has changed in a big way."

And, yes... it has.

I wasn't expecting it to work. I really thought Lydia would go when Danni got immunity. I didn't think Danni and Lydia could work 'em the way they did. Danni really impressed me tonight. How 'bout you? What did you think of tonight's show?