Survivor All-Stars Recap

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From Reality News Online....

We begin with three boats in the water under the highest security, we are told. We even see armed men escorting them. Yes, Mark Burnett went all out. Host Jeff Probst says they are returning to Panama for the greatest Survivor yet. And in order to ensure top secrecy, they have a full military escort and the airspace has been cleared. Uh, yeah, because certainly people on the internet hadn’t figured out who was on the show within just a few days. I guess Burnett couldn’t get armed guards for the internet.

Anyway, back to Probst. He says each of the All-Stars have been given one canteen and little information. Aside from their own tribemates, they have no idea who is in the game – they don’t even know there are three tribes (and I’m sure none of them could figure it out because there are only six people on their tribe). There is only one machete for the entire tribe waiting for them at camp. They will have no food, no fire, no help –it’s the least amount of supplies ever given. Probst says if they are the best of best, it’s time to prove it. Have they learned from their past or are they doomed to make the same mistakes?

39 days, 18 all-stars, 1 survivor.

Back from the intro without a commercial break (I guess they used them all up before the show began), Probst says this will be the most competitive Survivor ever. We are introduced to the players, who you have certainly read about before (but if you forgot, click here to refresh your memory about who is on which tribe. The Mogo Mogo tribe will wear green; Saboga wears yellow; Chapera wears red.

Chapera, Day 1. Rob C. says they are a very eclectic group, but he can’t wait to start wheeling and dealing, building shelters, and voting people out. Tom says it’s hard for him to realize that he’s 48 while the others are younger, but this is a big boy’s game, he says. Rob M. says it’s gonna be cutthroat, nobody trusts anybody.

Alicia says it’s weird because they all know each other, who be careful of, who is friends, etc. She says they all know how to push her buttons, which could be her demise.

They get a map to water, but it’s contaminated and they need to boil it, but they don’t have fire. Rob M. says without fire building materials, shelter is their primary concern. But Tom notes that there are immediately six ideas on how to do everything.

Sue says she is vulnerable and could be the first out because she’s the most outspoken. Rob M. says that once again, he’s on the buffoon tribe. Hmmm. Maybe there’s a reason that it’s the “buffoon tribe” when he’s on it… He adds that he’s the brains behind the operation, so they will make it work somehow. He’s the brains? Man, this tribe is in trouble.

Saboga also finds their map. Ethan says he is happy with their group – they have the mom, the nice guy, the mil guy, the hot chick – wait. They showed Jerri when he said that. Well, I guess he’s too nice to say, “the bish.” But he adds that all different styles of play are coming together. Tina says it’s not about the money, it’s all about life experiences. Yeah, well, easy for her to say – she already won once!

Rupert says he is the new guy on block because all of them know each other. So he’s just trying to stand back and let the other egos decide what to do while he acts as the worker bee. It’s a new strategy for a new game, he says.

The tribe finds a stash of bananas, but they aren’t quite ripe. Meanwhile, Jenna L. says she wants the two winners gone and it’s easy to convince the others to vote ‘em off. Jerri says she feels vulnerable because there’s a woman on her team who doesn’t like her. Sheesh, you’d think she’d be used to people not liking her by now. She adds that Tina didn’t like her in Australia, and still not now. But like Rupert, she is trying a new strategy – keeping her mouth shut. Hey, I’m all in favor of that strategy from her! She goes on to say that their water potentially contains brain parasites that could put them in a coma. I’d swear I hear people around the country yelling, “Drink it, Jerri, drink it!” But it’s not Jerri who is thinking about drinking it, as Rudy says he drank bad water all over world and it never bothered him.

At Mogo Mogo, Lex that since his time on Survivor ended, not a day has gone by during which he didn’t think about coming back. The tribe discusses where to put the shelter and fire. Colby privately notes that nobody has ever come back to play after having been on it once (thank you for stating the obvious, Colby). He says it changes the game psychologically. They know how bad it gets, so it will be interesting to see who’s up for it.

Jenna M. says they are such morons for coming back again. Yeah, there’s an easy joke there about her but I’ll leave it alone… this time. After all, I took some flack from her after the finale of Amazon for all the things people on RealityNewsOnline had said about her.

Yeah, like that’s really going to stop us! Ha!

(Just to be fair, I should note that she was, I think, mostly joking in the flack. She seemed to take it quite well, considering the many and varied names we called her. In fact, most contestants do take it well, though there are exceptions.)

Where were we? Ah yes, at Mogo Mogo. Kathy believes it will come down to the guys against the girls on the tribe. Rich talks to Colby about the fact that the women are already plotting. Privately, he says people are paranoid, and it’s good to get them that way.

Kathy talks to Shii Ann about girl power, but she doesn’t even think to look around first! Wow, she has been out of the game, hasn’t she? Rich is right there and hears everything. It actually turns out to be good because he takes the opportunity to get everybody to air their dirty laundry. The women thought the guys were already plotting, which is why the women were plotting against the guys. Lex says they need to take a timeout from plotting so they can build a shelter and win challenges. Colby states for the record that he doesn’t trust any of them and the others agree.

Rich says he is trying to figure out how to play a different game because he is a big ass target. To prove it, he immediately starts showing his big ass by skinny dipping. Shii Ann says they are off to an interesting start. Yup.

Chapera is trying to start a fire by rubbing sticks together – and they are going nowhere fast. Alicia says the first tribe to get fire and water will go the furthest. Sue doesn’t even bother to try, saying she tried for two days in Borneo and couldn’t. Rob M. tells her that’s the positive attitude they’re looking for. Heh. Tom is less than impressed with Sue. But she privately says she won’t let herself get even close to dehydration, so she just drinks the water as-is. She figures that she was in Canada for six years and just drank water right out of the lake, so if she handled beaver poop, she can handle this. Rob M. says she’s a dumbass.

Saboga is also trying get fire. Rupert tries until he is completely tired out. He says they could all be like Rudy and just drink it, but none of them want to die. Ethan tires himself out trying too. Rudy tries to create a firestarting bow, but it breaks quickly. Jerri says they need some hope and Rupert is worried too.

As Rudy and Rupert are sitting alone, Rudy just pipes up that the two of them should think of an alliance. They agree that they are both men of their word and they need to protect themselves. They can depend on each other and Rudy says that’s all he has to hear. Rupert says Rudy is a man of honor and if they can stick it out for the first few days, they can make it through the end of the game.

Chapera, Day 2. Rob M. complains that he got no sleep at all, between the shelter floor and getting bitten by bugs. In fact, he says it was the worst night he ever spent on Survivor. So he wants to reconstruct the shelter. But Alicia says they need fire first. She says six people have been without water (well, five actually, but we won’t quibble), while only two people (Rob M. and Amber) are concerned about the shelter. Alicia challenges Rob M. and he starts arguing. He says he’s not going through another night of no sleep. Tom privately says he has never heard so much crybaby whining in his life and that they had better toughen up. Privately, Rob M. says Alicia is a drama queen while Alicia wonders who made Rob M. the master of camp along with Amber in his pocket. To solidify that point to the viewers, Rob makes an alliance with Amber. He says he did it for obvious reasons, such as the fact that she’s beautiful. Ah, well, that’s a good solid reason. But he says he will keep his word no matter what. He trusts her and she won’t screw him.

As we get a nature scene between showing tribal activities, there’s a pelican. Look out! Oh, wait, Osten isn’t here this time around. Still, I have to wonder if that’s Pete, who won the “Best Animal” award in the 2003 RealityNewsOnline Year in Review Awards. He hasn’t picked up his trophy yet.

Mogo Mogo, Day 2. They are still trying to make fire. Lex and Colby are switching off so when one gets tired, the other takes over. It’s a good plan, but it still isn’t working. Rich says he thinks could start a fire without even blinking, but they don’t need to know that. He laughs that he has no interest in trying – look at how skinny they are, but he’s not even hungry and feels he can last longer. Still, he says he’s playing it by ear, as the others might think he’s cocky and can last the whole game. “Imagine that.”

Indeed, Shii Ann does think Rich is obnoxious and going out of his way to not do work. She says he wants to stand out, to be a little shocking, like he doesn’t care what happens. Lex reminds us that Rich was the first person to win, ever, and has spent the years since then talking about how he is the best the game has ever seen. But he tells Jenna and Shii Ann that Rich was king when he was playing with sheep.

Rich, meanwhile, tells Shii Ann that he is setting himself apart to show that he’s not scheming with the others. Interesting direction to take. Shii Ann says Rich was the prototype, so everybody wants him down – they want to dethrone the king. But she also says it would be no fun if the king left on the first day. And this, my friends, is yet another reason I love Shii Ann.

Back at Chapera, Rob C. finds treemail. Rob M. reads it and it ends by saying they will “face the man of flame.” Rob C. chimes in: “That must be Richard Hatch.” Heh. He needs a rimshot like Ron Jeremy on The Surreal Life. Rob C. says it’s killing him not knowing who else is there.

Which means it’s time for them to find out who else is there! Chapera shows up first. Then Mogo Mogo is brought in. Probst says there are more familiar faces, but Rich says they can count themselves gone already. Then the third tribe, Saboga, comes in. Rich yells to greet Rupert while several others acknowledge their newest alumni member as well.

Before the challenge, Probst asks what they found upon arriving. Tom says just a machete and a bucket. Nobody has made fire yet, but they note that Susan drank the water. Probst asks Rudy, the former Navy SEAL, if drinking the water is smart. Rudy says it’s okay. Probst asks if it’s okay because she’s on another tribe. “Yeah” is Rudy’s short and to the point answer, but it gets a laugh from almost everyone.

So it’s time for their first immunity challenge, which harkens back to the first ever. They will start on floating platforms, dive in to release their raft from the ocean floor. They will take torches from the raft and use them to light a series of woks as they push the raft towards the beach. Once they make it to the beach, they have to drag the raft under bamboo poles. The first two tribes to light all their get immunity. The third goes to Tribal Council.

The immunity idol this time around is made up of two pieces, representing a human being and the environment. If they hold either piece, they are safe.

The tribes get to their rafts and Rich gets naked. Probst says that with that, Survivor: All-Stars is officially on. Go!

And they’re swwiming! Rich gets one clamp. Sue gets one. Ethan gets one. Chapera is the first out of the block, with Mogo Mogo right behind ‘em. Chapera and Mogo Mogo are neck and neck, with Mogo Mogo getting their wok lit first; Chapera is next. Where’s Saboga? They are struggling along and finally get their first wok lit.

Mogo Mogo and Chapera are still dead even and both have their second woks lit. Probst says Saboga is catching up, and they get their second lit, but it’s not looking good for them.

Mogo Mogo gets to shore first, with Chapera on their tail. Both light their third woks. Saboga gets to the beach and also gets their third lit while Probst claims Saboga is closing the gap – but I don’t see it. Chapera pulls through to the end and become the first to win immunity. Mogo Mogo is still trying to get there, but there is no way Saboga can realistically catch up. Indeed, Mogo Mogo gets the second immunity! Saboga will go to Tribal Council the next day while Chapera gets to light up the burning man and dance around a bit in celebration.

As Chapera walk back to camp, they all agree they played as a team. Rob M. says they are the biggest bunch of misfit survivors, the ultimate underdogs. Amber says more than she said on her whole original season in noting that they took first place in the first All-Star immunity. But they still don’t have fire – unlike previous times when similar challenges were held, the winners did not get to keep the fire for camp.

Saboga, Day 3. Jenna L. says it’s horrible to go to Tribal Council – none of them came there to be the first one voted off, but one of them will. Jenna tells Jerri and Rupert that it’s important to take out the two winners first. Rupert is noncommittal about it, though and Jenna says privately that she doesn’t know Rupert well enough to know if she can trust him. Funny, Rudy knew him well enough. Sounds to me like some people were watching Pearl Islands before they headed out and others weren’t doing their research. Jenna tells Ethan flat-out that she doesn’t want him and Tina around. Ouch. She says that nobody wants to reward a winner again.

Naturally, this means Tina and Ethan must band together to try to save themselves. They decide to target Jenna. They hope to pull in Rupert and surprise everybody. Ethan talks to him about getting into an alliance. He points out that Rupert knows how Jenna and Jerri play, and it’s not the way he plays. He reminds Rupert that he held his word through Africa. Rupert says he knows and likes that about Ethan, and Ethan continues to press by telling him to think long-term. But Rupert doesn’t know what to do. He only knows for certain that he will stick with Rudy.

I find this whole turn of events quite interesting. Right off the bat, the newest guy who nobody really knows (because they didn’t see his whole season before heading out) is the decision maker. Everybody Loves Rupert is back on the air!

Saboga heads to a very rainy Tribal Council. Hey, guess what? Fire represents life. Etc. Probst notes that it is the rainy season in Panama, so this Tribal Council may be a sign of things to come. He asks how the first three days so far compare to the first time they were on the show and Jerri says it’s been total hell.

Next Probst notes that Rupert just barely got back home before heading out again – is he sorry he made the decision to return? Rupert admits there is a little piece of him wondering why the hell he came back, but he has to think about his wife and daughter, and that’s why he’s back. Maybe he’ll do better this time.

Probst notices that Jerri is collecting rainwater in her cupped hands and slurping it down. She says they can’t live without water, so they have to take what they can get. Jenna is using her buff to collect the water and then squeezing it into her mouth.

Rudy is asked how the tribe stacks up against the others. He says it’s a good bunch, but he wishes he were 23, not 75. This leads Probst to mention that Rudy has just talked about his liability – he’s 75, even though he’s in better shape than most 50-year-olds. So he asks Ethan what his drawbacks are. Ethan states it simply: he’s won before. Probst asks if that means people respect his playing and know he’s dangerous. Ethan says that’s part of it – plus payback.

Probst asks Jenna if there were a winner and a non-winner in the final two, could she think of a scenario in which she would vote for the winner? No. Never. So, he points out, the best person might not win? Right. She says she bases this on a million dollars. They have a big bank account already.

Tina is asked if this is fair. She says of course it isn’t, but they knew that coming in. Probst asks Rupert if it matters to him. No, he says he’d like to think he’ll vote for the best. Rudy chimes in that if they can do it again, let ‘em. Ethan tries one last gasp by saying that some sports teams win every year and they shouldn’t be knocked out just because they won last year.

Time to vote. We see both Ethan and Tina vote against Jenna, with Ethan saying that her mouth just keeps going and going and going, and she’d better be careful because it might bite her on that big ol’ butt of hers. Ouch.

As Probst goes to tally the votes, Jenna is shivering in the cold while Jerri is still drinking rainwater.

The votes are: Jenna. Jenna. Tina. Tina. Tina. (Ethan doesn’t look happy.) Tina.

So the winner of Survivor: The Australian Outback, who never had a single vote cast against her on her original show, is the first person booted off of Survivor: All-Stars.

In her last words, she says that nobody wants to be first off, especially her, but she was only here three days and it was already very hard. Her experience was different because it’s not an equal playing field this time. She kind of expected it, but that didn’t make it any easier.

As the rest of the tribe prepares to head back, Probst tells them to leave their torches behind – they can’t take them back until they have their own fire at camp. Talk about adding insult to injury.

Well, I knew that Tina would have a target on her back, but I didn’t realize it would be that big. Jenna definitely has an axe to grind here, and Jerri was only too happy to help her. I’m a bit surprised that Rupert sided with them over the seemingly more honest Ethan and Tina, but if he is looking for the big payoff to support his family, it may be that he figures sticking with two previous winners might not be the best plan.

If you missed this episode because it was on so late (or for any other reason), it will re-air on Tuesday. Then, on Thursday, we are back to the usual Survivor schedule. There is no food, no drinkable water, and the challenges are so tough that even the best of the best are breaking down. We’ll see you then!

David Bloomberg is the Editor of RealityNewsOnline and can be reached at RNO@pobox.com.

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Comments.

Tina getting the boot trhis time was a given after seeing her at tribal council despite Jenna getting two votes.

Jenna need to keep her yap shut if she plans to go anywhere in this game, and the fact that the diva herself Jerri is taking a low profile in the beginning is smart.

Richard was .....well Richard doing what he's does best being outragious and we'll see how long the naked man will last.

For now the persons that has the inside edge is Rupert & She-Ann.

Rupers has a wealth of knowledge on these people with little know about him and Shi-Ann just want payback and with Richard as her tutor.. could go a long way.

S99

Member

I took Rupert's/Rudy's vote as in getting rid of a previous winner, now if they lose again they can side with Ethan and dump the ladies. If they would have voted of one Jenna/Jerri they might have been left with a unknown quantity with their voting. By keeping Ethan (who claims he is a man of his word and also a target) they can target the other two and take them out.....but things never work that easy

Member

I agree Rupert's got an edge, aka The Unknown Man. I disagree about Shii Ann, though - she's way too emotional and will fold like a wet house of cards quickly. Richard is brilliant, and I'm curious to see if his strategy will reward him again. Rob C was great the first time, and he no doubt will be this time, too. I can't wait for a Richard-Rob C showdown!

I thought the 3 tribe scenario was fascinating, but it does create a different game with a different feel. I liked the show, but it's not "real" Survivor because you "know" these people. Half the fun of Survivor is figuring out who to like, and who to watch to win. Not as interesting already knowing their personalities this time around.

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I like the fact that these people are basically receiving not much of anything (a machete and bowl) and some might just want to give up or the tension will be incredible .... as for fire- lighting one and keeping it lit will not be even more fun in the rainy season

Gone Fishin

5-words..

Rich.keep.your.clothes.on.

my boys could swim

Great episode of survivor last night!

I absolutely loved it.

I found it ironic that the two Robs are on the same team. The two weasels together.

Definately a lot of eye candy for the shallow minded man.
(yes I am referring to myself.)

crazy cat lady

GREAT episode, I love seeing Rudy and Rupert aligned, I just loved seeing a lot of these people again. I don't know a few of these marqueses and africa people, so I have no analysis as of yet. But this is going to be great.

Anyone catch that the finale is going to be in MAY? Shocked

How long are they dragging this one out???

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Flailing Homosapiens

Disgusted! Just DISGUSTED that Richard was wearing a kilt...well...half the time anyway.

He gives gay men a bad name.

crazy cat lady

Member

POTFH

Didn't see it. I fell asleep during the game. (A few to many cheers

) during the game!

Member

Survivor All-Stars Recap

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