Survivor's Erik Tells All
Erik Reichenbach by Monty Brinton/CBS
Erik Reichenbach made a million-dollar blunder when he gave away the immunity that guaranteed him a spot in
Survivor: Micronesia's final four. Tricked by the remaining women on his tribe, Erik believed that he would earn goodwill on the jury by saving Natalie Bolton. Unfortunately for this 22-year-old ice cream scooper from Hell, Michigan, the ladies had another idea and Erik found himself joining the same jury whose vote he had been seeking. In this season of unprecedented blindsides, TV Guide.com spoke with Erik about his exit and why he too didn't see it coming.
Rhoda Charles
TV Guide.com: Erik, you made your mark in Survivor history when you gave away immunity. Can you talk us through your downfall?
Erik Reichanbach: I was on the island with all girls and at first I thought it was a good thing, but then slowly it turned into something completely different. I think one of the major things that happened was that I had played the game pretty passively. I was behind Joel pretty much for a third of the game and then I hid behind Ozzy for the next part of it. Then at the end it was time for me to be aggressive, time for me to step up and I just had trouble shifting gears and I started to make a lot of mistakes.
TV Guide.com: Having seen the blindsides that these women have pulled off against Ozzy and Jason, why didn't you see the play to get the immunity necklace for what it was?
Erik: You would think I would! Basically Natalie and Cirie got together and said, "What would be the most attractive thing for Erik right now? What would he definitely buy into?" and it was winning over some jury votes. One of my concerns had been making it to the end sitting next to two girls. I figured that because there would be more girls on the jury that they would vote for the women over me. I also thought that I could possibly get the guys' vote because I was a physical competitor and had won all those immunities, but that the girls wouldn't [vote for me] because I hadn't really played the game. I had floated all the way to the end.
TV Guide.com: Did you notice the jury's reactions during tribal council? Did that concern you at all?
Erik: It should have concerned me, but I didn't because I was more concerned with making this decision [on my own and not letting] anybody else's expression change it. I didn't look at anybody when I made that decision. I just looked down into the fire and I did it.
TV Guide.com: Had Amanda's accusations in the previous Tribal Council gotten to you?
Erik: They definitely did. Amanda played me very well. One day she was my best friend and the next day she hated my guts. When you have nobody out there - I mean you have no friends out there. Something I've never experienced before - that affected me a lot.
TV Guide.com: Do you have any hard feelings toward the women who played you?
Erik: I have a few hard feelings - mild hard feelings - Nothing that's unresolvable. I can still love them and talk to them. We're all good friends still.
TV Guide.com: How much flack have you gotten from your friends and family over your decision to give up immunity?
Erik: Quite a bit! My Dad thinks it's unforgivable. It's pretty funny, though, we just make fun of him for it.
TV Guide.com: If you had kept the immunity necklace, we can assume that Natalie would have gone home. Who then would you have wanted to go up against in the final three?
Erik: I probably would have wanted to go up against Amanda and Parvati. I don't think so much Cirie because at the time I didn't know that Cirie was doing so much damage. She was really good at hiding the way she acted out there, unless it was just editing, but she did very well at manipulating everybody and not letting anybody know it.
TV Guide.com: But it seems as if everybody on the jury loves Amanda. I'd be nervous going up against her.
Erik: At that time I thought Cirie was more lovable than Amanda.
TV Guide.com: You came across as one of the nicest people that has ever played Survivor. How hard was it for you to get tough and plot against the friends that you'd made on the show?
Erik: That was very tough. Early on I had no trouble with it because I didn't know the people in the first blindsides, but by the end I felt sick coming back from tribal council. I'd never really done that with anyone before and I hope I never have to. It's very rare that a "good guy" lasts that long into the game having to make those decisions.
TV Guide.com: Let's talk about your relationships with some of the other Survivors. Starting with Ozzy, you seemed to idolize him a bit.
Erik: Yeah, a bit, but we're good friends.
TV Guide.com: What about Ami?
Erik: We were really good friends out there, but then when push came to shove I got scared and it made sense to just turn her in. That one hurt a lot. There's no question, this game is hell.
TV Guide.com: How about Natalie?
Erik: We're friends, but there's still some hostility there.
TV Guide.com: Having been such a fan, what was the most surprising thing about the show?
Erik: What people are willing to do for money. That's crazy.
TV Guide.com: At the end of the show Jeff Probst made a comment about you having learned a life lesson. What have you taken away from your Survivor experience?
Erik: There's so much I can take away from this, it's just crazy. First of all, I don't travel much at all and the world is so big, there's so much awesome stuff out there and some awesome people. In terms of just learning to trust people, learning to know people sometimes you have to second-guess what people really want.
