Survivor Redemption Island - April 27/11

I am the official substitute scribe for Pat who is off at some sort of soiree or something… probably a sand-bagging party. But at any rate, I am filling in this week, I hope to hit the high notes and keep you up to speed with Game 7 of the Bruins/Canadiens series as well.

So it’s night 27 back at the Murlonio tribe, and the first words that are uttered were ‘another crazy tribal council’… seems to be the norm in this Survivor.

Steve, however, being the bigger man offers up a handshake and apology to Phillip saying that no prejudice was intended in his ‘crazy’ comment that he had directed at Phillips and he insists that he just thinks that Phillip is well.. Crazy. Phillip doesn’t believe Steve’s apology, but Steve thinks that the issue is done with. Steve’s strategy at this point is to be nice and let Phillip’s behaviour get him voted off, but Rob wants to keep Phillip around saying that “as long as he keeps up his stupid antics, he will come with me all the way to the final.” (Please remember this comment for later).

Phillip the undercover something or other, has another vision. His grandfather came to him in a vision saying that his shorts were hidden near water. Phillip instinctively knows that the water in question is not the ocean, but he is confident it must mean their water supply. As I’m giggling to myself about ‘crazy’ Phillip.. he digs around one rock, then another… and you guessed it, he finds the shorts that Julie had buried. Go figure!! He prances around camp quite proud of himself for quite some time, quotes Nicholson saying, “the truth, you can’t handle the truth”… and something about not messing with a specialist. Alrighty then...

Meanwhile, back on Redemption Island, Mike, Julie and Matt are waiting for their challenge. Matt has great faith and has done well, but Mike points out that Matt is in a downward spiral and, in tears, Matt admits that ‘God is carrying him’. He’s been on Redemption Island 21 days out of the 28. The challenge on Redemption, with Phillip proudly wearing his new found shorts, is Survivor Shuffleboard. Pretty much the same version as people have played at home, minus the beer. First two Survivors to get 3 pucks in the end zone win and stay in the game, Mike is off to an early lead while Matt and Julie struggle, but then Matt finds the his groove to come from behind and score all three pucks in the end zone ensuring that God is not quite done with him yet, and he is staying in the game. Mike is soon to follow and will be staying, sending Julie home from Redemption Island. With Julie goes our own pool member Jan Ayer.

Julie however tells the story of why she entered Survivor, her house like many other American’s homes is in foreclosure and she was hoping to find a better life for her girls. She says she came away with very much more, that she is inspired by Matt and plans to start attending church. But before she can do that, Julie will become the second member of the jury.

Back at camp, Andrea is feeling bad about sending Matt to Redemption Island, but Rob valiantly points out that they all put him there, not just her. The strategy for the Rob/Grant duo is to send Andrea to Redemption. Grant does point out that timing is everything in this game, and he’s not sure if the timing is just right yet.

With the Immunity Challenge competitors compete in a log roll, the survivor who stays on the log the longest moves on to the next round with the loser being out… last man/woman standing wins immunity AND a chocolate cake and milk! Along with this is a ‘twist’ which was to be determined later at Tribal Council. Grant and Rob are first out and Grant takes it, moving on to the next round. Although, Steve did say he was in a log rolling league at home, Ralph easily takes him and so Steve is out. Also moving on to the second round are Ashley and Phillip. In the second round Ashley and Philip are knocked off first and the final consists of Grant and Ralph. Grant wins the final match and is allowed to pick another survivor to enjoy cake with, he of course, picks Rob. He is then allowed to pick yet one more Survivor and he picks Andrea, his logic in this is to lull her into complacency so that they can vote her out later. REALLY??? Is that ruthless or what!

6:00 minutes left in the Boston/Canadiens game… 3-2 Boston.. but I digress.

Back at camp everybody is guessing on the ‘twist’ from the top of the food chain, Rob/Grant, to the bottom… Steve/Ralph, but Andrea feels comfortable in her place in the tribe, probably because of the sugar high she’s on. Ralph is hoping the ‘twist’ helps him stay in the game because he knows that it will be him or Steve being voted out at Tribal Council. Rob was thinking the twist would be a vote for a 2nd survivor and so some discussion ensued on whether it would be Ralph and then Steve; or Ralph and then Andrea. Steve goes to Rob’s girls and says that he and Ralph are voting for Boston Rob saying that Rob will vote them out one by one and taking ‘nimrod’ (presumably Phillip) to the final (a reminder here of what Boston Rob had said earlier in the show). The girls tell Rob about Steve’s plan, being loyal to their leader. Rob’s not happy and reconsiders sending Andrea home and considers now sending Steve if there’s a second vote.

At Tribal Council Andrea pipes up saying they are ‘rock solid’. Ralph figures it will be him being voted out, and Steve agrees saying that Ralph is stronger in challenges, and poor Steve is so weak, blah blah blah. Jeff points out that’s the smart thing for Steve to say, take attention away from himself and Steve brings up the Survivor All Star episode where Rob enlists the help of Lex to keep Amber around and then sends Lex home the very next chance he could, but he did also say that he remained loyal to his alliance with Amber. Rob at this point pipes up and says that it is an alliance that he is “loyal to this very day!”. Gag.

So, votes are cast, and no surprise, it’s Ralph who is sent to Redemption Island to join Matt (Pat’s guy!)

But wait.. there’s more. The Twist! Another immunity challenge and another vote immediately following. Every survivor gets a stack of cards. Jeff holds up cards in a particular order and the Survivors have to pick the correct card in the correct order. At this point, regulation time in the hockey game is over, we’re going into OT and Survivor is doing a double Immunity challenge.. what to watch.. what to watch, but I decided to stay loyal to you Survivor fans, and so we continue…

Jeff holds up a series of cards, about 7 in total and I lost track of which ones he held up. The survivors all get the first 2 or 3 right, then Natalie and Phillip are wrong, they’re out, then Grant and Andrea soon after. The final card Ashlee and Steve hold up a picture of fire, Boston Rob holds up a picture of a cooking pot and Rob is correct and wins immunity.

Another vote is cast immediately without allowing any time for one of Phillip’s speeches/visions/rants or whatever else falls out of his mouth… and this time it’s Steve voted out and going to Redemption Island. (Not a huge surprise). But Jeff points out that now that all the former Zapatera members are gone, now the ‘rock solid 6 Ometepe’ have to start turning on eachother, and now there’s nowhere to run or hide.

Back on Redemption there’s a getting to be quite a crowd, Matt (Ometepe), and three Zapatera members; Steve, Ralph and Mike are all out there.

So, Boston Rob wins immunity and Boston Bruins take the series in Game 7 at about 5 minutes into the 1st overtime… Canadiens are sent golfing.

Until next week..

Your unofficial scribe (Donna… never wants to be associated with Phillip unless Rob takes him to the end… Hodel) in lieu of Pat (21 day Matt Elrod)