Survivor: Fiji (03.29.07)  —-  aka Gonna Fly Now

Posted Mar 29, 2007 by Chris Kuhn

Updated Mar 29, 2007 at 10:32 PM

Last week’s big tribe shake-up on Survivor: Fiji (CBS/Thursdays) has left things in a bit of a disarray in the Ravu camp. Anthony was sent packing even though it looked as if Alex and Edgardo were the only ones with some sense. I wish I knew why they did that to him. Much like Sanjaya on Idol, Rocky is the player who just won’t go away. Please, Ravu, come to your senses and vote off Rocky or Lisi this week.

And speaking of the lazy whiner, Lisi meets up with her new tribe and assures them that Exile Island reinvigorated her – gee, think this might be for strategic reasons to stay on the island? Hmmm…that’s not transparent.

Earl and Yao-man are still scheming to find the hidden immunity idol. Like last time, Earl takes the gang far away to give Yao-man a chance to dig. And dig away, he does. Amazingly, he finds it! When Earl returns with the gang, Yao-man sneaks away to show his partner in crime the big loot. They are both psyched to have the treasured safety guard and both vow to make the other aware when they’re vulnerable and share its power.

The tribes meet up for this week’s reward challenge. Team members will use flame-throwers to hit three far away targets. The winning team will get picked up and flown to a private island arcade with foosball, bowling and other fun distractions with tasty hot dogs and beer to make the day complete. Now, that’s a cool reward. The teams go head to head and it soon becomes clear that they’re pretty evenly matched. But Dreamz shows everyone how it’s done by going two for two and winning Ravu its first ever reward challenge. Ravu selects Earl to go to Exile Island, which is ironic since we know that he already owns a piece of the hidden immunity idol.

We get to watch Lisi and the pigs of Ravu eat way too much food, drink far too much beer and puke uncontrollably. Rocky’s whining about his fallen comrades crashed on the couches with sore bellies and the gang is getting tired of hearing his rants. Earl is making the best of his time on Exile Island. There’s nothing to scheme since he and his buddy found the idol, so he enjoys the scenery and the sunshine, even renaming Exile Island “Earl Island – in Fiji” with a flowy script logo drawn in the sand. He’s a cool guy. I like Earl and really hope he wins this thing. I just hope Yao-man doesn’t turn on him now that he technically holds the power in his pocket.

Back on Moto, Boo is bummed that they lost and knows that if they go to Tribal Council later, he’s planning to vote out Yao-man. Of course, we know the man’s got the hidden idol. But we get to witness the coolest, most clever action I can remember seeing on the show in years. Yao-man creates another hidden immunity idol – made of a coconut shell with an I.I. painted on it. He buries it in the same location as the one he discovered. What a brilliant idea. Now, if someone else finds it, they’ll think they’ve won immunity but upon presenting their idol, will learn that it’s not authentic. How cool!

For tonight’s immunity challenge, one tribe member acts as caller and guides their team to smash skulls containing letter tiles that once found will spell out the mystery phrase. Michelle calls for Moto and she is spectacular. She guides people safely to the hanging skulls and to the table to drop off the letters, and gets so enthusiastic she even drops off the high platform upon which she stands. It’s both scary and hilarious at the same time, but she picks herself up and hops back on the plank to guide her team. Lisi and Alex lead their team through the challenge successfully and it comes down to puzzle-solving. Once again, Michelle shows how valuable she is to the team for her smarts and figures out the mystery phrase first – Cannibal Isles. Moto wins immunity again!

Ravu is contemplating who’s going home. To Alex, Edgardo and Lisi, it’s pretty easy. Rocky is their man. Mookie doesn’t want to vote against his old tribe member and he’s trying to figure out how to save his buddy and get rid of someone from the original Moto crew. Lisi tells her buddies Alex and Edgardo that they should work together to locate the hidden immunity idol on the island, so using the same general philosophy as Yao-Man and Earl. She seems pretty close to the right spot and we see her digging a little. We’re not sure if she found it or not as the group heads to Tribal Council.

At Tribal Council, it becomes clear that it will be either Rocky or Lisi, but we’re not sure which. No one presents the hidden immunity idol and with a 4 to 2 vote, Rocky goes home. Woo-hoo! I guess he’s not like Sanjaya after all.

So what did you think of tonight’s show? People in my Survivor pool have been putting points on loud-mouthed Rocky for weeks and weeks. It’s about time he finally hit the road. But he gets in the last word as he wails out loudly about his anger to the viewing audience and vows to get revenge as a jury member.

Next week, Lisi cries, Boo dances like a crazy man and Mookie digs for an Idol. Sounds like fun. Stay tuned…