Survivor: Micronesia, 5/8 recap: Gullible, Giving and Gone

[Lucy]

So I usually watch Survivor online the day after the show, because my social life is just that exciting and I’m often not home on Thursday nights. (ok, also because it’s easier to take notes by typing). Last night, though, I happened to be near a TV around 8:50 at night and flipped over to Survivor, just in time for the end of tribal council. And I saw everyone laughing their heads off while Erik got the boot (yes, there, I just spoiled the end of the recap for you) and was utterly confused, because I totally expected Erik to be voted out, so why was everyone else so shocked? And so it is totally a tribute to how good Survivor has been for the past few weeks that I couldn’t want to get online and see just how these women executed another blindside this time, since clearly one had just gone down. Again. And if you didn’t see it, go to CBS and watch it, because it’s a thing of beauty to top even the past few blindsides. After you read this recap, of course. After!


Erik Overestimates His Options

Let’s rewind now to the last tribal council, where Amanda blindsided everyone (but Parvati) by whipping out the hidden immunity idol at the last moment, resulting in Alexis getting kicked out. Back at camp, Cirie says tribal council is getting dangerous, with all the idols floating around. But she gives Amanda credit, and says Amanda had her at the brink of making it a tie vote. She says Amanda needed to see that to know she could trust Cirie.

The next day. Erik tells Natalie that if Parvati and Cirie are smart, they’ll see that Amanda is popular with the jury and not take her. He’d like to see her gone. “At tribal council Amanda made me feel like a fool,” he tells us. He’s pissed off about it. Oh, waaaah.

Erik wants to get sent to Exile to find another idol. And Natalie suggests if he gets a chance, he send her to Exile. He wants her to send him. He says to us he might have to listen to Natalie, but right now he can’t 100 percent trust anyone. Uh, duh? He says he has to pick sides, and I’m wondering which side he thinks is an option. The one where women want an all-girl final, or the one where the women want an all-girl final?

Amanda says she doesn’t have a question about Cirie anymore, she tested her trust and Cirie was pretty much ready to pick rocks (i.e. choose a tie, for those of you not playing along at home). So she trusts their three-woman alliance. They say the challenge matters because they don’t want either Erik or Natalie getting an immunity idol. Cirie says Erik is about who gets to him first, so Amanda needs to go get in his head.

Amanda goes to try. She asks what his thoughts are. He says he’s looking to the reward and hopes to win it, he feels it’ll be food and is starving. She says if he’ll take her she’ll take him. He’s not sure whether to trust her, she’s a strategic player. She tells him they should team up as he’s the most physical player and she’s the most strategic, and they should fight. Such flattery clearly starts working in his head.

Amanda tells us that Erik is “very naïve, so I think I can manipulate his mind to send Parvati to Exile.” She tells him that of course Natalie wants him to go to Exile, because it’ll weaken him. She says Parvati wouldn’t even look for the idol if she was sent. Erik says Amanda and Natalie are both working him, and he feels he’s doing well at challenges and isn’t sure what to do.


Fanboy Chooses Sides (He Thinks)

At the reward challenge, Jeff says it’ll test how well they know the game’s past. He’s going to ask about favorite moments from past seasons. I’m thinking this challenge is made for Erik, the ultimate fanboy. First to four points wins reward, which is a helicopter flight over beautiful islands, land at a resort, get a massage, meal, and return in the morning. And Jeff confirms there is indeed another hidden idol on Exile.

First question: On which season did a castaway have a pet snake? Answer: Pearl Islands, where Rupert had one. Cirie and Erik get it right.

Second question: In which season did a shark bite a survivor and the survivor bit it back? Answer: All-Stars. Richard Hatch bit a shark. Natalie and Amanda get it right.

Third question: When did a tribe mate ask another to pee on their hand after being stung by a sea urchin? Answer: Marquesas. Erik is the only one to get it right.

Fourth question: When was one castaway evacuated after falling into fire? Answer: Australia. When Erik was 14, by the way. Erik’s got 3, he’s in the lead, Cirie has 2.

Fifth question: When did they first use four tribes? Answer: Panama. That was Cirie’s season. But Erik also gets it, and wins reward.

So now he’s got to decide who to send to Exile. Remember, he promised Natalie he’d send her, and told Amanda he’d send Parvati. He chooses Parvati, and takes Amanda with him on reward. She tells him he totally redeemed himself for keeping his word. Natalie looks pissed.


Everyone But Natalie Has Fun

Back at camp, Natalie tells Cirie that was a doozy. She says she’s upset. If Erik seriously wanted to get Amanda out, he would have sent her to Exile. Cirie agrees, telling Natalie Erik’s a weasel. Cirie tells us she was yanking Natalie around a little bit, which is fun because Natalie thinks she has Erik in her pocket. She tells Natalie she can’t see any argument for Erik taking Amanda on the reward if he really wants to vote her out. “Maybe that’s a new tactic that I don’t know about. Let me make you as strong as possible so I can vote you out,” she tells Natalie. She tells us watching Natalie stress is the only joy she’s getting out of not being on the reward.

They wave at the helicopter, which Erik looks like he’s about to fall out of. In the helicopter, he and Amanda rave over the view. Erik tells her he’s glad she came with him. He tells us if Natalie had come there would be no relaxation. He wants to spend time with Amanda and get to know her as a friend again. He tells her he wants to enjoy this and he’s thinking about the game too much. She says they should just get out of the game for the day.

At the resort, they get their massages, foot treatments – and someone’s got some nasty feet. Erik says he’s never been to a spa in his life. That night at dinner, he says people keep asking him about decisions, and he says he doesn’t want to make decisions about people. He’s just not used to it. He thinks he needs to step it up.

On Exile, Parvati is sunbathing, although why she wants a tan when she’s been living outside for a month and should have one by now is beyond me. She says it’s like her own private vacation, and she may or may not look for the idol. She’s there to prevent others from getting the idol, but it doesn’t matter if she finds it because she, Amanda and Cirie have the numbers. Uh, I’m thinking having the idol still couldn’t hurt, dingbat.


A Guilt Trip Of A Thousand Miles Starts With The First Step

Natalie is bitter about Erik’s promise, as he and Amanda return. Cirie tells them not to try to look pitiful, she knows it was wonderful because she won that challenge in her season. Natalie’s pouting by pounding on a husk with a machete, and if I were Erik I would be extremely wary at this point. I wouldn’t put it past her to spin around and pound the machete on him. “It’s no longer sunshine and happiness,” Erik says, adding that Natalie won’t talk to him or look at him.

Cirie goes to Erik and says he has to take her on a reward next time. He says Natalie’s mad and Cirie explains that Natalie feels he made a promise to her. Erik starts talking about how he, Cirie and Parvati could go to the end. He says Natalie and Amanda are the biggest jury vote threats. Cirie makes noncommittal noises, but what Erik doesn’t know is that Natalie has happened to walk up behind the little shelter where he’s laying, and she can hear everything he says.

“I could have literally bitch-slapped him,” Natalie says. “Smacked him like his mother.” Always with the violence, that one.

So Natalie goes to Amanda and Cirie to explain the conversation she heard. Amanda says Erik is telling everyone the same thing. She says the problem with Erik’s strategy is that there are five people left, and four are women, and when you go to each woman and tell them the same thing, they talk.

Erik spots them talking, and says he may have screwed up quite a bit, now that he sees them talking to each other. “I’m definitely worried,” he says. And he should be. He just gave them ammunition for a guilt trip.

Erik tells Amanda he thinks all the women think he’s full of crap. Amanda reminds him that women talk. She tells him she’s hearing from everyone else he still wants to vote her out after she thought they were friends. She lays it on fairly thick, and Erik fears he’s the next to go.


Fishing For Fools

First, of course, there’s the immunity challenge. Jeff explains they’ll solve puzzles using pictures as coordinates to string two ropes across each other, then dig for puzzle pieces where the ropes intersect. First one to solve three of the puzzles wins immunity.
Erik’s digging first and finds his first bag first. The women are all still digging. Cirie gets her bag, then Amanda. But Erik has already solved his first puzzle. He digs as Cirie lays her second ropes. Erik’s looking for his third and final set of puzzle pieces. Parvati has just now found her first bag. But Erik gets his third bag. He has a huge lead. And, of course he wins. The final puzzle says “Guaranteed final four.” Is it, though?

Back at camp, Natalie tells the women to just tell her if she’s going to be the one they vote for Cirie says the way it’s looking, probably. They fill in Parvati on how Erik was trying to play all of them. The someone muses that if Erik didn’t have that necklace he’d be gone. There’s some silence as lightbulbs go off in heads. Cirie wonders idly if he’d give Natalie that necklace. Amanda and Parvati leap on the idea. “Nat, work your magic,” Cirie says. “You can convince him to give you the necklace.”

It’s too far-fetched even for Natalie to buy. “Who would fall for that?” she says. “I feel stupid listening to you guys right now.” But Parvati says Erik belongs in the trio of James, Ozzy and Jason. I.e., he IS that stupid. Natalie is a smooth-talker, they say, and she might be able to convince him. Cirie tells Natalie to tell Erik that Cirie has to see him save Natalie before she would be convinced he’d vote for Amanda.

So Natalie goes to Erik and says she has a harebrained scheme. She and Amanda are his biggest threats. What if she, him and Cirie vote Amanda, she proposes. Then she springs the twist. “This is where it gets funny and tricky,” she says. “You give me your necklace.”

Erik says he won’t consider it. But Natalie tells him to hear her out. She says Cirie needs to see that to trust him. She says he’d redeem himself with the jury and it would be a huge pivotal move for him, which he needs if he wants a jury vote. Erik does think he doesn’t have a lot of jury votes.

So he goes to talk to Cirie. He wants to know why he can’t keep immunity and still vote Amanda. She says she doesn’t completely trust him because he screwed it up talking to everyone. “I know it’s hard to ask somebody to give up immunity, but if you were to save Nat, I would believe you and that would cue me that we’re all going to vote Amanda,” Cirie says.

Cirie thinks he’s nibbling the line. “If Erik takes that necklace off his torch would be snuffed so quick I don’t think he’d have time to blink his eyes,” she cackles. But he’s a smart guy, so she’s not sure he’s taken the bait completely.

Erik’s afraid of the hidden immunity idol, though, he fears Parvati found it and will give it to Amanda. He wants to know what the chances are they’d vote Parvati with him. Natalie tells him if it’s that important, they could go with it. She asks him to go out on a limb. He says he doesn’t know what to do.

Natalie tells Cirie the decoy is now Parvati. “We’ve got him on the hook, we’ve just got to reel him in,” Cirie says. “It would be the ultimate Jedi mind trick.”


James and Jason and Ozzy Feel Less Stupid Now

At tribal council, Jeff asks Erik why he would take Amanda on reward after she “completely worked you” at the last tribal council? Erik says he thought it would be a nice gesture to bury the hatchet. Parvati says Exile was like a nice mini-vacation. Then she got back and heard about Erik making alliances with everyone. She was glad to have missed it.

Erik says the women all talked to each other, and says his attempt to work an alliance with each of them was “stupid, it was just a mistake.” He feels like he needs to come here and ask for forgiveness. Amanda tells him he only took her on reward to get her jury vote. She tells him it’s too late for him to apologize. Parvati says he lost a lot of respect among the women.

Poor Erik says game aside he hopes there’s some sense of forgiveness. Parvati tells him he can’t put the game aside. He continues to apologize. My god, the poor boy. They are playing him like a fiddle. He’s young, naïve, essentially good and no match for four women determined to make him feel guilty.

And it’s working so beautifully. Jeff asks Erik how he can win this game. He says he doesn’t see any friendly faces on the jury and needs some redemption.

Turning the screws a bit more, when Cirie is asked if apologies and redemption matter, she says of course it does. Ultimately the game lies in the hands of the jury, she says, so it’s important to redeem oneself if you’ve been discredited. It’s actions, not words, that count, she says. Erik hasn’t got a prayer.

Jeff asks if Erik wants to give up his necklace. He says it’s a very tough decision – the jury looks shocked – and he’s made mistakes and he knows actions speak louder than words, so he’s giving immunity to Natalie. Ozzy just shakes his head while the rest of the jury can barely contain themselves, and the girls in the tribe try to hide their amazement that their evil plan actually worked. Jeff tells Natalie she’s safe, and looks a bit grim about it, as if he knows the women just took candy from a baby and he disapproves. The women don’t even hide their amazed giggles.

Natalie votes Erik saying she doesn’t even know what to say, but thanks. Parvati votes Erik, saying, “You’re crazy! You will officially go down as the dumbest survivor ever in the history of survivors. Ever.”

Jeff reads the votes, and by the time he gets to the second one for Erik, the poor boy looks like he has just realized his mistake. “You guys drive me crazy,” he tells them as he’s voted out. James pipes up from the jury: “I’ve lost my reign as dumbest survivor ever.” Erik says he should have known better. The ladies wave goodbye to him, grinning.

“I think that is what you call a life lesson,” Jeff says.

Afterwards, Erik seems more rueful than mad. “Damn, damn, they got me,” he says. “I should have known better. Those damn girls.” He says it was one thing to survive the physical challenges of the game. “It’s another thing to be surviving four, sexy women.” And yet he’s still giddy to have been in the game with these idols of his and be treated like a real person.


Next time:

The finale! This Sunday! Frankly I think it will be almost anticlimactic after the string of gorgeous blindsides. But hey, somebody’s got to win.

[Google]

 

[dagwood]

Originally Posted by Lucy

He continues to apologize. My god, the poor boy. They are playing him like a fiddle. He’s young, naïve, essentially good and no match for four women determined to make him feel guilty.

You summed it up perfectly. I am glad he took it in a good light instead of being angry about it.

Excellent recap.

[Brooks]

He says he has to pick sides, and I’m wondering which side he thinks is an option. The one where women want an all-girl final, or the one where the women want an all-girl final?

[PWS]

Perfect recap! What an unbelievable show....and again I think I have to attribute that plan to Cirie even though everyone contributed to its playing out, from Nat opening the idea to the others nailing down the coffin at TC.
Incredible---you'd think he'd have caught on when the jury started gasping as soon as he started talking about giving it up... I really expected him to yank it back at the last second they were gasping and laughing so much.
And I also was very impressed with how he took it. Wonder when he realizes he's become one of the Survivor gods he loves so much... albeit not famous for the reasons he might like.

[Scrappymom]

She says Parvati wouldn’t even look for the idol if she was sent.

Well at least Amanda was truthful about something.

[RoyaltyBuff]

Originally Posted by PWS

Perfect recap! What an unbelievable show....and again I think I have to attribute that plan to Cirie even though everyone contributed to its playing out, from Nat opening the idea to the others nailing down the coffin at TC.
Incredible---you'd think he'd have caught on when the jury started gasping as soon as he started talking about giving it up... I really expected him to yank it back at the last second they were gasping and laughing so much.
And I also was very impressed with how he took it. Wonder when he realizes he's become one of the Survivor gods he loves so much... albeit not famous for the reasons he might like.

Great recap! I thought Cirie was the one that hatched the idea though, and then Nat went in for the smoke and mirrors....this is why I think Cirie has outwitted most. Her hand is in every blindside!

[PWS]

Originally Posted by RoyaltyBuff

Great recap! I thought Cirie was the one that hatched the idea though, and then Nat went in for the smoke and mirrors....this is why I think Cirie has outwitted most. Her hand is in every blindside!

Oh, I agree it was Cirie's idea-- I just meant Nat opened the idea to Eric, but definitely at Cirie's instigation. Didn't mean Nat came up with it--she thought it was nuts, understandably!

[iguanachocolate]

brilliant recap - you captured the show perfectly!

[gracie]

I'm still laughing over the way things went last night. It was just unbelievable that someone could be so duped.

Great recap!!!

[RBmumsie]

Ah - poor, sweet, innocent Erik. Yes, he was totally manipulated and blindsided, BUT, he was very good natured about it afterwards. Definitely a good sport. In my book, that counts for a lot. Sweetie, you got outplayed by three "masters" and a wannabe, but I think you enjoyed the experience and I enjoyed watching you.