Survivor China: And Then There Was One
It’s hard to believe that the survivors have been playing the game for 30 days already. Where has the time gone? Who were the other players? I recall there was a man named Chicken… So with only nine days left in the game and power player James gone Hae Da Fung was whittled down to the final six. Now it really was anyone’s million to win.
After tribal council Todd was very glad he made it and that James was gone. It was a big victory and gamble for him. If James had played an immunity idol, Todd would now be sitting on the jury. Plus, if James had survived there would have been one serious yelling match back at camp for attempting to oust him. However, the attempt became reality and James was now a member of the jury. Peih-Gee also loved it that she was still in the game. That girl keeps making it from one council to the next
On a side note both my husband and I love how they show the merged tribe and the jury in the opening credits instead of just all the players on Survivor. Nice touch!
The next day there was a big storm at camp and they were all huddled miserably in a cave. Todd had been homesick lately too. He pointed out that he couldn’t trust anybody in the game right now, even his alliances which were Amanda, Courtney, and Denise.
Then it was time for the reward challenge. They would be required to be speedy and communicate as they would be paired up in teams of two, placed on opposite ends of a maze and then blindfolded they had to find their partner and get to the middle. The winner got a boat trip and a feast. So Jeff told Erik that his partner was…HIS MOM!! Oh, I didn’t see that coming. They got paired up with their family!! Erik was paired up with his mom, Amanda with her sister Katrina, Peih-Gee with her dad Lawrence, and Todd with his sister Brandi. Todd was all emotional over his sister. How sweet was that!! Then she told him that his other sister miscarried and he was genuinely shocked. Courtney was with her daddy Graham who was English and so proper and they too were so darling. Finally Denise was with her husband Robert. I love it! Denise asked him if she could have his socks. Courtney’s dad was hilarious too in his suit. He obviously didn’t really want to do the challenge and Courtney kept apologizing to her daddy. That was the best.
Then off they went blindfolded and scrambling. Amanda and Katrina had funky bird calls to each other. What was that all about?!! They all did pretty well but Denise and Robert won the challenge so thus won the reward!!! Denise then got to pick two survivors to go with her and their family members and she got a Sprint phone to receive calls that day from family. Of course Denise had to pick Todd after his bad news and of course she did!! I mean, I totally would have!! Of course some people might think he was pulling a “Johnny Rotten Fairplay” and lying about his sister’s miscarriage but I just don’t think that Todd would do that. That was already done and you don’t repeat strategy like that. Plus, Johnny Rotten blatantly lied left and right, Todd is just sneaky not a low down dirty liar and player like Johnny. His expression when his sister told him was to me of genuine surprise. I believe him!! He deserved time with his sister. Then Denise picked Amanda. Well, that should give the pecking order to Courtney. That was dangerous leaving Courtney to hang with Peih-Gee, and Erik alone. Plus, Peih-Gee picked Denise last reward and Denise didn’t pay her back.
So with that they were off on a boat trip and some good food together. As they climbed into the boat we saw Amanda’s tush blurred again. They are always having to blur Amanda’s backside out of the picture. What kind of bikini bottoms was she wearing out there?? Denise was so excited about her husband coming to China because he was afraid to fly and Amanda after dinner screamed for JOY when she saw the chocolate cake. That is exactly what I would have done. I would have screamed and screamed and screamed. Then Denise got a call from her oldest daughter who cried and cried because she loved her mom so much and missed her. It was all very touching seeing what a fantastic family and life Denise had. She may be just a lunch lady but boy was she rich in family and life in general.
As Denise, Todd, and Amanda enjoyed their chocolate cake back at camp Peih-Gee was mad because she wasn’t picked and then they all doubted Todd’s story about his sister’s miscarriage. Was he pulling a Johnny Fairplay? How funny we all thought about that. Erik was the most kind by saying if it was true his deepest condolences to them but Courtney went off about the miscarriage and said that Todd was going for the Oscar with his performance and that it was so convenient of his sister to lose the baby. Yikes Courtney. I’m sure they will all watch this back on national television and feel like total heels for being so insensitive for what was a REAL loss. Then Denise, Todd, and Amanda arrived back at camp and they noticed that they all brought back melted chocolate in their hands. Oh no they didn’t! Oh no they did not!! They did not just LICK the chocolate off their teammate’s hands. I cannot believe that. I really cannot. Couldn’t you just wait nine more days for chocolate? I can’t even go into the depth of my emotions over the licking of the chocolate off of the hands of people who have been living in filth for 30 days…the power of chocolate.
Later Peih-Gee was still stewing over Denise not picking her. Todd and Amanda were floating in the river with their sisters and he said that there really was a miscarriage. See!! I told you!! I mean come on people. Just because Todd asked in front of everyone doesn’t mean it was strategy. Think about it! You know in those reward challenges that if Todd didn’t win or if he didn’t get picked to go on the reward he had like zero time with his sister so of course as they hug each other he’s going to ask her a few quick questions. In past Survivor seasons sometimes they didn’t even get a hug or a word in edgewise. I didn’t think it was game play at all that he was concerned about his family and asked her right then and there. That might have been his only chance to talk to his sister at all. Todd admitted to Amanda that he was afraid people were going to think he was lying but he wasn’t. Then they strategized and Todd and Amanda felt like they were the best final two. They would vote out Denise and then Courtney because if they went up against Denise she would win the million.
The next day the loved ones had to leave. Denise said goodbye to her hubby who told her that he thought she could win it and I laughed as he told her she smelled soooo bad. It all was so emotional as they said goodbye. After their family had left Todd shared that you had to keep yourself on your toes or you were going to get screwed. You had to always, always play the game. Then Denise talked to Peih-Gee about not picking her for the reward. She talked about feeling vulnerable with her group so she felt she had to pick them and not her. It was hard for Peih-Gee but she appreciated the talk from Denise.
Finally it was time for the immunity challenge. It would be both physical and mental. The survivors would be attached to a rope and then they had to go through a course maneuvering with the rope to the end. Then at the end there was a box with two statements about China. One was true and one was false and both answers had keys. They had to pick the true statement. The true statement had the right key to open the box. They had to get three statements correct to get the three correct keys to open the box and raise a flag to win immunity. I’m sure the challenge took quite awhile. They had to maneuver through the course to get to the statements and then grab the key and maneuver back to try the key in the box. It wasn’t long before they all looked beat. Todd at first had a big lead but Peih-Gee caught up and it was between them. It came down to the last key and statement and Todd picked the wrong one and Peih-Gee picked the right one winning herself immunity again and man did she NEED it big time. It was the second time in a row that she won immunity. Peih-Gee was determined to stay alive and stay alive she did. That meant Erik would probably go home unless Peih-Gee made some type of power play to swing Denise and Courtney over to her and Erik’s side.
Back at camp we found a very emotional Peih-Gee. She couldn’t believe that she had won. She always expected to go home. Every single tribal council she expected to see her name written down. Her winning immunity was probably the proudest moment of her entire life. The game for her was mentally and physically exhausting.
As the survivors strategized we knew that Todd was obviously voting for Erik. To Todd with his alliance it was an obvious vote. Erik then shared with Amanda that he didn’t trust Todd and Erik knew nobody else did either but nobody ever voted for Todd. Peih-Gee then went to work on Denise and told her that she would be in 4th place with Todd, Amanda, and Courtney but with her and Erik she would be in 3rd with a guaranteed shot at a million. Denise felt stuck in a rock and a hard place and really she was. If she voted for Todd it would force a tie between him and Erik and maybe Erik would win and maybe Todd would win. Should she gamble and side with Peih-Gee and Erik? It wasn’t like her vote would send Todd to the jury. Her vote MIGHT send Todd to the jury. Plus, if she stuck with her original alliance and she made it to the top four who was to say that Denise wouldn’t win a challenge and secure herself immunity? There were so many variables for Denise to consider.
At this point in the game nobody was going to want to take Denise to the finals with them. She hadn’t betrayed anyone and she was a hard worker and a super nice lady. All of the strategizing that day was starting to make Todd paranoid. Todd knew Peih-Gee and Erik were trying to sway Denise so later Todd intervened. Oh Todd was so good. He told Denise he knew they would be working on her to sway her but he trusted her. Beautiful manipulation Todd, beautiful! What was Denise going to do? Would Denise swap alliances this late in the game?
At tribal council the jury paraded in and James didn’t look happy. I’m sure the producers tell them to look all ticked. They must! Denise shared that she always felt like she was at the bottom of the barrel. They all showed their cards about strategy and Peih-Gee wasn’t quiet about how instead of four and two (Meaning Todd, Amanda, Courtney, and Denise versus Erik and Peih-Gee) there could be three and three and a shot at one million dollars for Denise. Denise really was the swing vote and would either send Erik packing or make it a tie and maybe send Todd or Erik packing. Frankly, I think that was too big of a gamble. Her vote would force a tie and MAYBE send Todd home? No way. Now if her vote would send Todd home than that was different. So, Denise cast her vote and said it may have been the biggest mistake she made in the game and she sent Erik home.
And then there was one. Peih-Gee now was all that was left of the former Zhan Hu. For now in some ways she possessed the coveted title of “Lone Survivor”. Things would be lonely back at camp and her strategy and game play would be even more important for the remaining six days. Would Peih-Gee win immunity again? She has proven that she can do it both mentally and physically. When backed into a corner her deepest survival skills have come out. I think that Todd and Amanda had better be careful. Peih-Gee the once annoying player who got on people’s nerves has redeemed herself by smart game play, hard work, and persistent strategy. Plus, she has nothing to lose but one million dollars. There are no alliances she has to worry about. There is no being careful around her tribemates. There is no potential backstabbing. All Peih-Gee needs to do is play with reckless abandonment and win immunity and she has a guaranteed spot in the final four. If she can make it into the final three she may and most likely will be the one who will walk away from China with one million dollars.
© Copyright 2007 Blindigo Magazine | Article written by Niki Tschirgi
