Survivor China - Episode 6

Survivor China, episode 6 was freakin’ classic, with more twists than an Elmore Leonard novel. The producers must have rubbed their hands in glee at the outcome of the luxury challenge and wet their pants when the immunity challenge was done.

Let’s start with a quick re-cap of last week’s strategy moves. If you’ll remember, 2 members from each tribe were forced to switch camps. This resulted in Zhan Hu’s alignment becoming 3 original members (Erik, Jamie, PG) plus former Fei Long leaders and the game’s 2 strongest physical players, Aaron and James. PG convinced Jamie to go in with her on an audacious, risky plan: “If we throw these next two [immunity challenges], not only have we gotten rid of the two biggest individual immunity threats; we will be going into a merge with 5 original Zhan Hu.” The key to the plan is the continued loyalty of Sherea and Frostie, the 2 Zhan Hu members now on Fei Long. (Been meaning to ask: if he was a Top Gun fighter pilot, would Frostie be called Snowman?) Zhan Hu threw the challenge and evicted Aaron, as planned. Jamie revealed the plan in full at tribal council. So we start episode 6 with James fully aware he has been checkmated: there is nothing he can do to stop Zhan Hu from throwing the next immunity challenge, dragging his ripped but powerless self to tribal council and sending him home by a vote of 3 to 1.

Here’s how it played out.

Todd tells Amanda about the hidden immunity idol. His reason for revealing his most valuable secret is that, despite having all 3 of the clues given out so far, he can’t find the idol. He’s desperate and has decided that bringing in a fresh pair of eyes is his only hope. He also tells the camera that he assumes the winner of the luxury challenge will be allowed to kidnap a member of the losing tribe, as has happened at all but the first luxury challenge, and that the hostage will bring with them the next hidden immunity idol clue. His plan is that Fei Long wins the luxury challenge and kidnaps either Aaron or James, either of whom will give Todd the next clue.

Yeah, I know: if he’s in such a good position to get the next clue, why let Amanda in on the secret now? For all he knows, clue 4 will tell him all he needs to know.

At the luxury challenge:
1. Todd’s jaw drops when Fei Long learns Aaron has been evicted.
2. Frosti and Sherea avoid eye contact with their former tribe.
2. The challenge is for tribe members to race, one at a time, into an abandoned building and bring back planks with lettering on them. Once all 8 planks have been gathered they are used to solve a word puzzle. Winner gets to kidnap a member of the other tribe till the immunity challenge. Winner will also visit a tea house for a bath and refreshments.
3. In the you-learn-something-new-everyday department, evidently buildings on Survivor are not like crying in baseball, despite what many of us have come to take as an article of faith.
4. PG smartly takes her turn when Sherea is in the building for Fei Long. This allows her total privacy in which to tell her former tribe-mate, “Now we’re all good. We’re still with you guys. Were still here for you guys. Tell Frosti, okay?”
5. Sherea’s response is stony silence.
6. Fei Long wins and kidnaps James.
7. Before joining Fei Long, James is given the tube holding the next immunity idol clue.

The tea house is not like any tea house I’ve ever seen, but then I’ve never seen one all by itself on one of the thousand mountain tops that rise from the depths of the Lake of a Thousand Island. JR calls the tea house “A sweet spot in the middle of nowhere.” Frosti calls their visit, “The best day ever.”

While 6 of Fei Long’s 7 members soak in tubs and admire James’ naked butt as he avails himself of the facilities at the Tea House of the Open Shower, Zhan Hu comes to terms with their miscalculation of Sherea and Frosti’s loyalty. Their conclusion is that they must win immunity. This means they must hope to forge an alliance with James. Fat chance.

Back at Fei Long, Todd tells James there is something in the tube that, if James gives it to him, will allow Todd to save James’ life. James opens the tube in private and learns about the hidden immunity idol and the clue that he must hand over to someone in Fei Long. He quickly concludes that Todd is his only hope.

Todd reads the clue and knows immediately that the idol is the carved emblem on the cross piece of the ceremonial gate at the entrance to their camp. (I told you to wait, Todd!)

Todd and Amanda are so obvious in their efforts to get the emblem down that they all but send out invitations for others to participate. Frosti joins in and winds up being brought in on the plan to use the idol to save James. Todd gives James the idol and explains the plan:
James throws the immunity challenge.
When PG, Jamie and Eric vote to evict him, he pulls out the idol, meaning the person with the next most votes compared to James is out, meaning whoever James has voted for is gone.

This also means James now knows the location of Zhan Hu hidden immunity idol.

Todd tells Courtney and Denise about the plan so that they know to do their best to prevent Zhan Hu from screwing things up by winning immunity.

The challenge is a gross-food eating competition, first to 4 wins. With Zhan Hu ahead 2-1, James (who is supposed to throw the competition, remember) squares off with devoted friend Denise over plates of raw, full term duck fetuses. Denise can’t do it. She tries, but winds up puking into her plate before finishing and cannot bring herself to eat her own vomit. What does James do? He finishes the competition. What’s with that? All he had to do was concede before Denise did. But in the end, it didn’t matter. Erik beat Frosti in the next face off and Fei Long lost, 4-1.

A series of cuts show Todd and James and other Fei Long members all confused about what happens now that their plan has gone awry. Have to admit, I don’t see what the big deal is. James isn’t vulnerable till the next eviction and he’s sitting on (presumably) 2 secret immunity idols. So he should be laughing, not moping. And Todd heads a devoted alliance of himself, Amanda, Courtney and Denise, to say nothing of James, who owes his life to Todd and, in all likelihood, has immunity enough to get to the merger.

Is there something we don’t know about going on? But no, at tribal council Sherea gets voted out Todd’s hand looks, to me at least, stronger than ever.