Playing the Trump Card

• Nov 9, 2007 03:21 AM ET
• by Rhoda Charles

Episode Recap: "High School Friend Contest"

Good evening, Survivorites. Nina Hämmerling Smith here; I'll be your blogger tonight while Rhoda's away.

It was quite an episode, wasn't it? I lost track of the number of times the strategy shifted and lies were told and uncovered. It all began with James, a good provider and obviously a tremendous physical threat, and his insight that the Fei Long'ers may all be opposites, but they have the strength of numbers, whereas the Zhan Hu'ers were trying to win a "high school friend contest."

His comment proved prophetic when the reward challenge involved a school-yard pick of teams, and poor Denise was left out and became ineligible to enjoy the reward, a feast at an ancient village. The challenge involved sinking the opponent's boat, and Peih-Gee's red team picked Courtney as a captain because she weighs next to nothing - but, hello, she's also got the strength of a weak kitten (mew!). Jean-Robert, Todd, James and Amanda won easily, with a combination of brawn and brains.

It led to a delightfully awkward encounter between JR and three of his supposed "allies," all of whom handled an idol at one point but were feigning surprise at the news of its existence. The scene also provided one of the funniest lines of the night, courtesy of a tipsy Jean-Robert: "I did not know there was an American Immunity Idol." Ha! I guess we should all consider ourselves lucky that he didn't break out into song.

Meanwhile, the challenge losers - Peih-Gee, Erik, Frosti, Courtney and a rightly pissed-off Denise - started strategizing back at camp, led by Miss Conniving herself, aka Peih-Gee. She suggested that they pick off Jean-Robert next, certainly an appealing prospect to most of them.

Todd, meanwhile, was pissed that James hadn't offered him one of the idols when he returned to the fold, and decided with his inner circle that they would blind-side James.

Back at camp, Jean-Robert woke up early the next morning to look for the immunity idol and seemed to think he'd discovered something when he tore off the remaining plaques on the pagodas. I'm confused - he was at tribal council last time, wasn't he? Jaime played something she thought was the idol, Jeff threw it in the fire... and Jean-Robert thinks he has a trump card in his pocket because he has three things that look exactly like Jaime's kindling? He told Erik he had the idol, and Erik broke the news to him that - oops - James had not one but both of them. Of course JR couldn't keep the info to himself; he went blabbing to James that he knew he had them both, claiming he "figured it out" all on his own. Uh-huh. And then he went and told Todd, as well, who was royally bothered by the fact that he came up with the same idea of blind-siding James, enough so that he decided to change the things up yet again and vote Jean-Robert out instead. Seemed like a solid plan, but, as Courtney - who won individual immunity by proving that balance was one area where she actually surpassed James - pointed out, "He's become the Susan Lucci of tribal council; his name is always up there, but he never quite gets voted out."

Going in to the council meeting, I honestly didn't know whether it would be James or Jean-Robert going home tonight. And it did come down to the wire. Erik and Peih-Gee were the only ones who brought their stuff with them, but Peih-Gee only received one vote (from Denise, who apparently wasn't in on anybody's plan); James, meanwhile, looked genuinely stricken as Jeff read the votes against him. But just like at the '99 Emmys, every streak must come to an end, and Jean-Robert was finally sent home. I'm looking forward to talking to him (check out my Q&As with the Survivor cast-offs) to find out what he really thinks of his former tribemates.

A couple of things to look out for in the weeks to come: What will become of Courtney, now that her nemesis is out of the game? Which way will she sway? If the snuggling is any indication, she and Frosti are becoming close; where does he stand with the tribe? And what about Denise, who could become an important swing vote? Stay tuned!

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