Survivor 43, Ep. 1: LIVIN
Welcome back to a new season of Survivor here at Tribal Council Blog! Couldn’t be more excited. Trying something that I did when I blogged the finale of Surviving Barstool Season 1. This is my Live Episode Diary. What I type is in real time. If it’s important, I write it. If it gives me a thought to get out, I write it out. y’ou’ll see the time and the thought written out. The bigger paragraphs were the commercial breaks. Let’s see how this goes.
EPISODE 1 LIVE DIARY
8:00 OMG, OMG, OMG LET’S F***ING GO!!!!!!!
8:02 - Amazing Race and Survivor both have a rainbow hair girl? Interesting choices. 19 year old guy in tie dye. Another Lindsay who I think is going to captivate people this season.
8:03 - Cody is ready to go hard at the game like he does at his weekend and everything in his life. I don’t see this working out for him
8:04 - Cassidy is ready to dictate her game. I like it. James wants the game to be chaotic. Owen wants it so bad and now his name is in the opening credits.
I have chills!!!!
8:05 - Jeff, let’s do this, 43!!!
Pulling up and seeing Jeff has to be the most insane reality. Imagining the process to get there to that moment seems insanely daunting, and I think it’s crazy that they keep it together as well as they can.
8:06 - Jeanine gets called on and immediately talks about her father and the connection they had and how much she admires him. James has been a Day 1 fan like Gabler. Previous winners like Earl, who got snubbed from Winners at War, inspired James.
8:07 - Noelle lost her leg. She’s an inspiration instantly. She applied when she had two legs and is on with only one. Now there to prove herself and that amputees are badasses
8:08 - Story time introduction with Jeff. Survivor is a game and an adventure. Leaving normal life, flying across the world for the most exhilarating game in the world. Jeff is coming out hot delivering the message that Survivor is an opportunity that everyone playing needs to be willing to receive. That’s what I love about the show and I think everyone else does.
8:10 - Reward Challenge
In 42 there was an advantage/decision right away for 3 lucky players to make. They took it. I liked that twist because of the timing. The game is literally 87 seconds old and already the game is thrust into hyper drive. Let’s do it again for 43!
The immediate reward challenge feels like a way to just get the nervous energy out, let everyone scream, and get it all out.
8:13 - Noelle, the Paralympian on one leg is running and swimming out to retrieve the boat with additional boxes. I’m very interested to see how she navigates Survivor and how her disability effects her game and the game of her tribe.
8:16 - Cody’s brain wins the challenge for VESI. There is always a strategy and then there’s a winning strategy. Retrieving a flint suspended from bamboo with a bamboo stick is best done by letting the flint go inside the bamboo Dwight was holding and BOOM! Cody wins it for his tribe.
8:21 - VESI Camp
Cody started binge watching Survivor during the pandemic, but he strikes me as needing to calm down. He seems like a kid in a candy shop and above everything, a risk taker. VESI can’t build a shelter
8:24 - BAKA Tribe
Mike once again, is the old guy. He knows it’s a HUGE gap in his social game.
SAVVY or SWEAT
One guess or Dig up supplies. 4 hours to complete. Penalty of losing supplies til next challenge. Sami, the 19 year old, immediately volunteers to dig, of course he does. Typical young guy. However, they decide to go SAVVY.
SAVVY - move two bones to form the largest whole number. Can only move the two bones one time. They do have a chalkboard.
8:27 - COCO Tribe
Same decision as BAKA. Geo feels guilty and volunteers to dig. Ryan gets sucked into it too. 4 hours to dig and find it in the large area. Ryan has a plan to dig an X.
8:28 - Ryan had cerebral palsy and a stutter. He’s clearly been through great challenges in his life, so he is ready for Sur…wait, he just COMPLETED the SWEAT challenge. Pot, flint, and machete will help and Ryan didn’t lose much time scheming. Only took a 1/2 hour.
8:30 - SAVVY at BAKA
The number they were given was 5080. They could only move two bones and Sami came to the rescue. He’s a puzzle guy and smarter than he looks. Take two bones from the top and bottom of the first 0 and make a new 1 between the 8 and 0 to make the largest number 511810.
8:32 - WINNER WINNER SAMI DINNER!!! Leave it to the 19, I mean “22” year old to figure it out and save the day. Like that he covered up being 19. It sounds really young because it is really young.
8:35 - VESI Tribe
Noelle and Justine connecting based on age and being determined.
Nneka, Jesse, and Cody are off talking and Cody is ready to make connections and make shit happen. Nneka is all for it.
8:38 - Cody fears a salesperson (aka Justine) and uses it as a target. PLUS, he himself IS IN SALES, but covers it up as “working for an elevator company”. Brilliant.
Jesse is getting invited to the Noelle and Justine party and the Cody and Nneka party. Always nice to be in the middle at this stage.
8:39 - BAKA Tribe
Not much strategy going on.
8:41 - Elie’s sister who passed away from drugs. The last conversation she had with her was about Survivor. Wow. It’s amazing how Survivor fits into people’s lives, what it represents, and what it means to people. It connected Elie and her sister and an emotional connection moment among the women happens. Elie, Morriah and Jeanine are in on working together.
8:42 - COCO Tribe
Camp life is underway and Cassidy is ready to start playing the game. She wants to be sneaky and behind the scenes.
8:43 - COCO girls alliance. Lindsay, Karla, and Cassidy are primed to run this tribe and pull in a guy, James. Lindsay makes a dumb move by telling James that he can be with the girls. All 3 women have said they want to work with James, the chess player, and he better be careful about how he plays his game, or he will be facing checkmate early.
8:49 - BAKA Tribe (Day 2)
Mike is struggling to get the fire going. Sami the Pet Cremator is ready to start a fire like the ones he has to incinerate animals. I’m impressed. Sami is savvy in more ways than one. Gabler is a dope. He’s the old dude and definitely tried to be the camp builder.
Gabler is desperate for a connection and he finds a connection in Elie being a “metalhead”.
8:52 - COCO Tribe (Day 2)
Karla and Geo are both gay and latino. They both have had challenges with their sexuality within the culture of their family. Geo has been outcast by his family because of his sexuality, but he’s found a friend in Karla and vice versa.
Karla, Geo, and Ryan. Karla, James, and Cassidy. Karla in the middle. Everyone wants a piece of Karla and it seems she’s not used to being in that position. In this game, that’s a great spot to be in.
8:54 - VESI Tribe (Day 2)
Jesses reveals his background in LA, tattooed on his face, drug addicted family, arrested, juvenile hall, and in a gang. In juvinile hall his life changes from the educational opportunities there. Berkeley and Duke! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?!?! Unbelievable story.
8:56 - Cody as LIVIN tattooed on his ass. I think I would be targeting Cody.
8:58 - Boat shows up.
At this commercial break I’m thinking that the producers have downshifted the immediate out of the gate advantages like the amulets for more backstories of players. I like not having the advantages two seconds in. I think it’s ok to focus on the players, their stories, and letting us get to know them.
9:01 - More boats show up.
There is a clue. “One person must get on this boat. They will return this afternoon.” COCO’s democratic selection process sends Karla on the adventure. At BAKA they are playing 43rd finger. Avoid targets by making it random. Gabler is going. At VESI, Dwight, the super fan volunteers. Mini target.
9:04 - Karla, Gabler, Dwight to make a group decision at the giant rock.
We learn that Karla pursued education at UC Berkeley and was awarded the Bill and Melinda Gates Scholarship and the first to graduate from college in here family. Inspiring.
9:06 - RISK or NO RISK
The prisoner’s dilemma is back from 41 & 42. Their vote is on the line if they choose RISK.
Karla - NO RISK
Gabler - RISK
Dwight - RISK
At this commercial break, Gabler and Dwight have a 50/50 chance at winning an advantage or losing their vote at their first Tribal Council. Gabler feels he’s on the outskirts socially and thus needs to take as many risks as he can to appeal to his tribe. Dwight is a super fan and isn’t willing to let this opportunity to “play the game” slip away. Tough spot to be in for the one who loses their vote. Karla was comfortable with her decision to play it safe and it makes sense with her being in the middle of her tribe alliances and her background being the first to break the norms of her family. She isn’t a risk taker.
9:14 - VESI gets fire. Still like watching the tribes struggle with fire.
9:15 - Dwight has to share his experience. He tells the truth, but Cody’s not buying it. Cody has been the firecracker so far.
9:16 - Gabler spills the beans with the truth. Gabler wins a two Tribal Immunity Idol. Dwight gets nothing.
Gabler in typical of new era of Survivor fashion tells everyone what he got. I understand that Gabler felt he needed an in with his tribe to be able to build trust, so this idol is his way to achieve that goal. He strikes me also as the guy who could have this social game weakness get used against him at Tribal should BAKA be there and find himself voted out by a much savvier strategist.
On the losing end is Dwight. He loses the opportunity to gain an advantage but the advantage gained is that he can reveal to his tribe that he told the truth and that he won nothing. Trust building is always a plus in the early stages.
9:21 - Immunity Challenge
Crawl under barrier in mud dig for keys, cross balance beams, and first to do it gets to maneuver balls through a table maze.
9:22 - Immunity Idol reveal
Two tribes will win immunity and one tribe will go to Tribal to vote out the first person from 43. I love this moment every time. The immunity idols are always cool, none cooler than 42’s snake eating its tail, but this one measures up and meets the necessary standard.
9:23 - Get in the mud and it is THICK! Gabler’s face looks like an octopus.
9:24 - Dig through the wood chips for 3 balls. Dig a hole under the log for entire body to get under. No way I could do this part of the challenge. Too claustrophobic.
9:25 - Up the wall.
James was throwing people up the wall but loses his shorts in the process of getting himself up. HAHAHA.
9:26 - COCO 1st to Balance beam. BAKA gets to wall third.
9:27 - COCO selects table game 3 - the maze. VESI chooses game 2 - the straight shot.
9:28 - Everyone at the table games. Looks like the straight shot was hardest. Dumb move.
9:29 - COCO is one ball away from winning. BAKA’s ball falls. COCO wins immunity.
9:30 - Sami and Gabler within an inch, ball drops. Jesse and Noelle figure out the straight shot. 2 balls in. Zero for BAKA.
VESI wins immunity.
9:31 - BAKA will go to Tribal. Gabler cries while rallying how hard they tried. Morriah is sobbing. I guess everything isn't rainbows in her world.
9:32 - BAKA didn’t talk strategy at all and now they have to go to Tribal. Love it.
Gabler is lucky to have won his advantage when he did or he would be the easy target as the old guy. He still could be the target, but if I’m him, I’m playing the idol if there is even the faintest whiff of doubt. It’s only good for two Tribals and if you screw this up and put your faith in people too early, it could be an idol good for ZERO Tribal Councils and you become the first out. 🤢
At this point the first Pre-Tribal Scramble will begin. The girls at BAKA were ready to work together. Gabler has an idol. Jeanine screwed up at the challenge getting under the log. Sami has a bunch of skills that have helped the tribe so he seems in the clear. Owen better be careful about wanting to strategize.
9:37 - Gabler lays it out there. He feels part of the loss and feels he should be at risk and he wants to play his Shot in the Dark.
WHAAAAAAATTTTTT?!?!?!?! IS HE INSANE???
Insert the therapist Elie to walk Gabler off his own self made plank back to reality. Elie throws Morriah out there to Gabler and Owen and then to Jeanine.
9:40 - Morriah thinks she has her girls and Sami.
9:41 - Sami/Morriah throw out Owen to Elie and Jeanine setting up a showdown of Morriah’s plan and Elie’s plan.
9:42 - Jeanine fears the boys forming an alliance. Morriah is weak but she wants to be in alliance with Jeanine and Elie. Elie doesn’t want to let the boys be able to team up and the threat of Owen later on has her questioning her decision.
This commercial has me playing out what will happen at Tribal and who will wear the scarlet letter of 1st out of 43. First, guys don’t do all guy alliances, so the all guy alliance threat is total crap.
I think Gabler is definitely going to say something stupid at Tribal Council. He’s still capable of being a total idiot and taking a Shot in the Dark, if there even is a Shot in the Dark. SMH.
9:47 Prediction: The easy strategy of voting out the weakest challenge threat, Morriah wins the day and Elie, Owen, and Gabler vote out Morriah. It’s too early to worry about strategy threats later in the game at the first vote. The game has barely started and its likely that next couple challenges will have two tribes win immunity. Voting out Owen only increases the chances of losing and returning to Tribal.
9:49 - “In this game fire represents your life in this game…” you know how it goes.
TRIBAL COUNCIL
9:50 - BAKA avoided strategy and game planning for Tribal.
9:51 - Morriah says “we won today because we tried hard…blah blah blah”. Please vote her out. That would seal the deal for anyone who was wondering. Come on Morriah. There are no rainbows in Survivor. Thankfully Sami put the kabosh on the moral victory argument.
9:53 - There is a look in Elie’s eyes that tells me she is in game mode full throttle. She’s not interested in this “texting” code crap that the Koombayah tribe had been living in. I think she has potential to go far.
9:55 - VOTES
Moriah, Owen, Morriah, Marya, first person voted out of Survivor 43…Morriah.
9:56 - I’m happy that Morriah was voted out. She was the obvious choice. She was a weak link in challenges and that was enough for the tribe to make their decisions. Also, I love color. I wear rainbow/tie dye tank tops like Rupert from time to time, but Morriah was too Rainbow Brite for my taste and needed to go.
9:59 - Morriah’s happy with the game she played. Of course she is. She thought the tribe won WHEN THEY ABSOLUTELY LOST.
The blog has spoken!
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