Survivor: One World – Two tribes, one beach

Survivor is back for its 24th season, and there are a few changes to the game this time around. The first, and most welcome change, is the elimination of Redemption Island (and no returning players!).  Once you’re gone, you are gone. Hurrah! Second, is the obvious — two tribes on one beach. The third is kind of interesting — anyone who finds a hidden immunity idol that is meant for the other tribe must give it to someone on that tribe before the next Tribal Council — but how much of an effect will it have?  We may not have long to wait to find out.

Let me make just a couple of observations about the first episode …

• When did the players start making up their own names? On the men’s tribe we have a Tarzan and a Troyzan. Seriously.
• Men are arrogant/totally playing the game. Way … too … hard. They stole items from the women, then demanded an apology when the women wanted to barter a wild chicken for fire! They think being domineering over the women will get them further in the game and prefer those icky girls stay on their own side of the beach. They won the immunity challenge by default when Kourtney broke her wrist, and instead of continuing the game in the spirit of competition, they decided to quit. Their game plan is to obviously demoralize the women in the hopes that they will quit, one-by-one.
• Matt is the Manono tribe’s Type-A personality, and he’s already rubbing some of his tribe the wrong way. People still haven’t learned that playing too hard, too fast is the quickest way out of the game.
• The women’s tribe, Salani, is a complete mess. Alicia, who already picked her final five during the walk to camp, comes off as a leader in her interviews, but isn’t stepping up to the plate when decisions need to be made. She’s better at throwing people under the bus, it seems. It’s been every woman for herself during the first three days as various women went to the men to make a deal for some fire (they even tried to steal some embers while the men slept). Christina offered to open a sweatshop for the guys to weave palm fronds for the men, and Alicia was none too happy. These two will be butting heads the longer they stay.
• Chelsea knows how to catch chickens. If the guys weren’t playing their strategy so hard, there would have been no issue about her sharing the chickens in exchange for fire.
• Colton, the token flamboyant gay guy, has been stereotypically bonding with the women, but even Type-A Matt doesn’t have a problem with that … as long as Colton can bring information back to the men. Matt doesn’t realize that Colton has placed a huge target on his back.
• Sabrina found the Manono tribe’s hidden immunity idol and decided to give it to Colton because he seems to be the outcast on the men’s tribe. She thinks he may be useful to the women at the merge, but Colton just may be pulling the wool over all their eyes with his little innocent “I don’t fit in” act.
• People need to listen to Jeff. When he says, “Hold your hands to your chest and fall on your back,” do it! No one did what they were told, and Kourtney paid the ultimate price … a broken wrist that took her out of the game on day three. Which was good for the women, because they didn’t have to vote anyone out at Tribal Council.
• “‘Cause there’s only two things that’s gonna keep me in this game and that’s the idol and Jesus, and he ain’t showing up.” — Colton
• “You guys are looking at me like I’m kryptonite or something.” — Sabrina visiting the men’s camp
• “We’re going to cut his throat faster than Taylor Swift can write a song about an ex-boyfriend.” — Colton on his plan to get rid of Matt first

It’s still way too early in the game to even consider picking a winner, but I’m going to keep my eye on Chelsea. She seems level-headed, she can catch chickens, she’s probably a force to be reckoned with in challenges. Who do you think has the potential to make it to the end? Cast your vote below (choose three).

Clacked by Chuck Duncan
on Feb 15, 2012 @ 22:17 EST5EDT