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Survivor Finale: "The chickens were never the same after Chet left!"
Four women were left standing for the first time in Survivor history.
There was beautiful Amanda, physically strong and feeling secure in her alliance.
Cirie, the no nonsense nurse, wife and mom who got very close to the million in her original season and who engineered a lot of what happened in this edition of Survivor from under the radar, was maybe the strongest strategic player.
Parvati, the former flirt who tried everything to keep her original alliance together while making a secondary alliance that helped keep the women strong, was possibly the most secure.
And then there was Natalie, the last standing “Fan,” who was trying to show what a “bad girl” she could be, her ego a little over inflated.
All four were thrilled to be together at the end having outlasted, outwitted and outplayed the men but now they would have to fight against one another and two of them were finding that difficult.
Cirie felt unsure of her standing with Parvati and Amanda. From the beginning, no matter how the alliances fell, Cirie was always the bottom of the barrel (a fact that caused a few angry words between her and Amanda).
When it had been James/Parvati and Amanda/Ozzy, Cirie had been the fifth wheel…the first to go of that group. Now she could only hope that she would get to the final three and that Natalie would be the expendable one…but she wasn’t sure.
Parvati was close to Natalie. She had brought her into the alliance. And Parvati and Amanda were close and if she wanted to engineer a vote that would keep Natalie into the final three, Cirie didn’t like her chances.
For the first time Cirie showed some emotion over her status. She wanted and even needed the money. But while she had managed to maneuver a lot of the big blindsides in the game, her own fate was out of her hands at this point. She had to depend on the whims of the younger women.
There wasn’t a lot of strategy talk at the camp. Natalie decided that if she tried to campaign too heavily for votes that she would look needy and desperate. So with only a few muttered words with Parvati, we really didn’t see much on camera discussion.
The Immunity Challenge involved standing on a platform in the ocean, emptying leaky buckets of water into a cylinder that raised a set of keys, then swimming the keys back to shore. Once there, a set of ladder rungs were unlocked. These only fit into the ladders one way and the girls had to complete that puzzle, climb the ladder and lift their flags to win.
Amanda took the prize and won herself a spot in the final 3. Cirie and Natalie were then left to wonder which of them would make it to the end. Parvati was a lock.
It was left unclear who would be voted off to the jury. Cirie voted for Natalie and Natalie voted for Cirie, but in the end, Parvati and Amanda chose to remain loyal to their original alliance and they sent Natalie packing. Being a big fan of Cirie, I was thrilled.
The ladies returned to camp hoping for the usual feast for the final group. But there was no food. They began to discuss little hints that Dimples had dropped during tribal. Would there be a final two instead of three? Would there be another immunity?
They tried to wipe it from their minds but Amanda started to break down. Having come to Micronesia just a few weeks after completing Survivor China had started to take a toll.
And when morning came and they found that there was, indeed, another Immunity Challenge, all three ladies were in tears. They had bonded. They had wanted the jury to decide. Now, there would be one more Tribal Council and one more vote.
But first, they had to do the ritual DEAD SURVIVOR ROAST where the old torches are gathered and the finalists reflect on those who went before.
One thing became clear as they began the ritual. As good as this Survivor edition has been, the show did a lousy job letting the audience get to know the “Fans.” I barely remembered most of them.
Only Tracy, Chet and Cathy remained current in my mind. Tracy had been the “Fans” version of Cirie, manipulating from behind the scenes. Cathy had suffered from being ostracized and added to the unrelenting rain that kept her wet for days on end, she fell apart emotionally and asked to leave. Chet looked like he might just drop dead at any moment, especially after Joel dragged him around the obstacle course on a rope, banging his head against posts as he went…and yet Chet lasted longer than the bully.
“The chickens were never the same after Chet left,” Parvati said as they gathered his torch.
The Last Immunity Challenge was endurance. There was a small silver ball that rolled in a grooved piece of wood. This piece of wood would be held between two separate handles for five minutes. If the ball didn’t drop, then two other pieces of wood would be put on each side of the main piece and the handles would be outside those pieces. Every five minutes more wood would be added, making it harder to keep everything together.
Parvati was the first to drop out. Cirie, knowing that this would probably be her only chance, concentrated hard. She and Amanda struggled until the end when they had reached the last extension and it was just a wait and see game until someone lost their ball. Cirie’s fell apart first and Amanda won the last immunity.
She was the saddest winner I’d ever seen. She couldn’t stop crying. She didn’t want the responsibility of picking who she would take to the final. Cirie HAD wanted it and now she felt fatalistic…and with reason. In the end, sobbing (which caused laughter and eye rolls on the jury), Amanda took her buddy, Parvati to the end.
Our house felt it was a mistake and the expression on Ozzy’s face showed that he agreed. Why? Because while Cirie and Parvati had both done a lot of damage to the jury, Parvati was responsible for bringing Natalie and Alexis into the women’s alliance and they were almost sure votes.
Back at camp the two girls finally got their feast reward and they mostly sat and talked, waiting for….
FINAL TRIBAL COUNCIL
There were occasional hard words. Ozzy really went after Parvati in a rant that made me like him even less. The man was seriously deluded, continuing to talk about loyalty and telling the truth. Was the girl supposed to sit back and let him win? To hear him talk, it appeared that way. But then he declared that he might be falling in love with Amanda.
One vote for Amanda!
Young Erik made sure that Amanda knew his feelings were hurt because he had looked up to her but like his hero, Ozzy, he seemed to miss the point of the game. As a FAN he should have known how this stuff goes down. Still, it looked like Parvati might have had a point.
Natalie asked some inane question of Parvati, wanting to know how flirting translated into her sex life. Then she corrected herself a bit and tried to rephrase the question. In the end it made no sense whatsoever and I’m not even sure what Parvati answered.
Cirie wanted to know why Parvati deserved to be there more than her and why she should have been there instead of Parvati. It was obvious that she was still hurt even though she asked nicely.
By the end, it was hard to tell who was voting for whom, but there was a feeling here at the house that Parvati had the votes.
We were shown four: Erik voted for Amanda (willing to forgive and forget)
Alexis voted for Parvati
Natalie voted for Parvati
Ozzy voted for Amanda
Then we were off to New York and the reveal. The vote tied at 3 each and we began to wonder what would happen if there was a tie (anyone know?) But it was Parvati who pulled it out, 5 to 3.
***
REUNION SHOW:
A few things came out at the reunion show.
Ozzy & Amanda are still an item.
Ozzy has forgiven Parvati but he still acted and sounded like a jerk when he was asked if he and Amanda were still together. After taking a dig at Dimples (who is with an ex-Survivor himself) and then pretending that he had to leave his job and couldn’t get work (which was a slap at the lunch lady from the last series and she got caught)…I just found him really tacky. Dimples finally asked Amanda and she confirmed that they were still a couple.
Amanda was really breaking down after 70+ days doing Survivor with only a little break between.
Joel is a jerk in real life too.
Dimples can’t stand Jonny Fairplay.
James is just really popular and he won the fan votes for the second series in a row, receiving $100,000.
James’ dad is a cutie too.
Dimples made it clear that Kathy really suffered before she left and he respected her decision.
The Fans were at a disadvantage from the beginning and never really stood a chance.
***
The next Survivor will be in Gabon, Africa. I have a lot of memories of one of the last Survivors in Africa. I remember them trying to get water out of elephant footprints. It was so hard that finally there was a reward challenge and they were all given water. I remember someone eating precious beans while the others were away from camp. They had to have a fence around the camp because of lions. And there was a horrible schism between the young people who wanted to sleep all the time and the older people.
Ethan Zohn won that Suvivor, I believe, but I don’t think I enjoyed that edition very much. Let’s hope they can keep it up and we have another good series to look forward to this fall.
***
Anyone else disappointed that Amanda or Cirie didn’t win?
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May 12, 2008 8:42 AM
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Well Amanda completely proved that she sucks at tribal council. I really like Amanda, however, both times I felt like she just got trampled by her competitors. Why didn't she harp on the fact that she had won more immunities? By the end of it, Parv did deserve it compared to Amanda. Though not quite as strong physically, she played an excellent strategic game, and it was her that was responsible for Ozzy leaving, which is what really opened up the game for her.
As for Ozzy being an extremely poor loser, wow. "You put a price on our friendship" It's Survivor, no one doesn't want the million dollars. You don't play it because you're self-less.
As a side note, Nat pinged my gaydar long ago, and after that weird flirting question with Parvarti, did anyone else's go off?
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May 12, 2008 10:59 AM
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Great blog Vickie!
I was rooting for Amanda - again to be disappointed! I'm still not sure why Parvoti got the extra vote needed. It seems like some of the fans sill felt that Amanda wasn't for real. I had really wanted her to win, again!
It was so good to see James win another $100K. I have to believe that the James we saw on 2 Survivors is no different than the James of real life. No nonsense, no frills James! I think that of all the Survivors of all of the seasons, James is my favorite.
I really loved this season and without your blogs I wouldnt have had the same experience!
I hope all is well now with your health and I will still see you on HK!
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May 12, 2008 11:11 AM
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I didn't really watch survivor this year.. but I followed along. I thought Cirie definitely should have won. Her game was amazing, and the best part was she did the same as last year, kept low and mostly below the radar (from what I could tell).
I watched most of the questions and answers last night and thought Natalie's question was so bizarre, even Jeff had to ask her what she was talking about. I think she should have come straight out and asked if Parv was gay or bisexual or whatever.
I love James he is so cute! Apparently Johnny Fairplay is a dating one of the girls from America's next top model?
I am really looking forward to the next African Survivor. I really enjoyed the the first round they had there with Ethan and everybody else. I think those guys were the worst off weren't they? I know Jeff gave them water, but didn't he also give them rice too?
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May 12, 2008 12:22 PM
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Thanks for the great recap, Vickie, as always.
As a very new fan of Survivor (Cook Islands was my first season to watch), I am always moved by the tribute to the fallen players at the end. My first season I was actually weeping by the time they had collected all of the torches. As for the final immunity challenge, I was so hoping for Amanda to win, but part of me was pulling for Cirie a little. Imagine, after having won no challenges the whole time, winning the most important one, maybe would have been another Survivor first. Anyway, our home gave a loud cheer when Amanda won it. After the Tribal Council we were fairly certain that Amanda had the votes, and were greatly disappointed that she didn't win - again.
Someone at the CBS.com blog thought it would be great to have Survivor all-stars on a season of Big Brother, and vice versa. Interesting concept, no?
Can't wait for the next season, although they will have a hard time topping this one for surprises, good and bad.
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May 12, 2008 12:23 PM
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Morning Vickie!
GRRRRRRRRR. Amanda did what I predicted she would do- she shot herself in the foot again at tribal. That girl does not know how to close a deal to save her life. It is all about promotion and fast thinking at the end folks, that's how you sway the people like Eliza and Jason, who don't really care which one wins because it means they didn't! She was a little less wooden this time as opposed to China, but she needed to do what Parvati did- shoot straight from the hip, anticipate the questions, answer quickly and with some humor and expression, and play herself and her game up: she won challenges! she found and played a HII! she was loyal to her alliances! she was a team player! She also needed to point out Parvati's weaknesses in the game, but she let friendship get in the way of winning, and it cost her $900,000. However, she does seem to have Ozzy (whom I still love- sorry V!), so she comes out a winner in my book. I noticed that most of the other players seemed to really stay away from her at the reunion- why do most of them seem to dislike her so much? It's a mystery, other than jealousy, that I can't quite seem to figure out. I'm glad James won, although I would have liked Cirie to get something this time around. Hopefully, that is the end of Johny Fairplay's 15 minutes of fame!!
Sadly, I don't see how the next Survivor can come even slightly close to being this good- it could be a letdown of epic proportions. What will keep it entertaining will be your blogs, Vickie, so rest up and get ready for Survivor Gabon- we need you!
Hope your son's wedding was wonderful and that you are recuperating nicely!
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May 12, 2008 12:38 PM
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Good Morning, Vickie! I hope your recovery is continuing well. Thanks so much for a delightful blogging season of Survivor! I agree with Ranger - it just wouldn't be the same without your wonderful recaps!
I was surprised that Amanda didn't win. I totally thought she would. I was thrilled for James. I love him! He was stunned to have won the $100,000. I hated that he had to go out for an injury. I'm sure the women would have taken him out at some point, but who knows, he may have been able to win the immunity until the end. I don't know if he'll ever get asked to do another all stars, but he's one I'd sure enjoy seeing again.
I didn't get Natalie's question either, and thought it was beyond bizarre! It was funny to see the quizzical looks on everyone's faces. I knew I wasn't alone.
I was disappointed in Ozzy - "How could you do that to me?" Uh, for a million bucks, and it's a game!!! If you can't take being lied to and manipulated, don't play Survivor!
Again, thank you Vickie. I'll see you at Hell's Kitchen!
P.S. How was the wedding??
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May 12, 2008 12:51 PM
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Well Amanda completely proved that she sucks at tribal council.
But, should that matter?
They should win or lose based on merit. I had the final three in order of most deserving to least as Amanda, Cirie, THEN Parv.
Parv is a charity organizer and a flirt. BOTH of those help her to "close the deal." Amanda is a design student. So, because Amanda doesn't communicate herself as well as Parv then all that she did was for naught?
As for Survivor:Gabon versus Survivor:Africa I think they know a LOT more about setting up Survivor for its 17th season than they did in its third season. What made Africa so tough to enjoy for us fans, and so hard on the contestants was the LACK of water. They were inland, with no water supplies around. It nearly killed the Survivor franchise, along with the contestants. Gabon is on the coast, and I'm sure they're setting them up somewhere along the coast so that they can have water challenges. The producers may have to supply a clean water well like they have had to do in the past, but rest assured, this will NOT be like Survivor:Africa.
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May 12, 2008 1:26 PM
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Hi Vickie Jean:
Thank you again for another great blog. Congratulations on receiving another Red Star.
I would also like to know how you're feeling? And please, we want details on Jeremy's wedding.
I think that Erik summed it up best as to possibly why Amanda lost. She is the big sister/cousin that you look up to. When she lies to you, it hurts more than when Parvati does it. It's because you expect Parvati to lie to you and to deceive you. It has also been pointed out that Ozzy's proclamation of love for Amanda didn't do her any favors. Especially since Ozzy's acted like a self-entitled @ss this time around. Plus, Amanda has that "deer in the headlights" look when someone asked her pointed questions. Eliza also stated that she wanted to "kill herself" whenever she saw Amanda crying. And did you see how long it took for Eliza to write down her vote?
I also got the feeling that Natalie was asking Parvati about her sexual habits, i.e. are you bi-sexual, because if you are, I'M INTERESTED!!
I read on Wikipedia that Dimples broke up with the ex-Survivor in March of this year.
I was happy to see James win Fan-Favorite again. But, I was sad for Cirie. She did the best that she could to win. But, it just wasn't meant to be.
As far as who is more deserving, I don't know how to answer that question. Since the power lies with the Jury, Parvati did a better job presenting herself than Amanda did. And Amanda had back-to-back tries with an opportunity to win this thing. I hope that she and Ozzy have a happy life together.
I am excited to see the next edition of Survivor. I hope they do a good job with casting.
Thank you again, Vickie Jean, for your Survivor blogs. Especially, since you were very sick during this season. I look forward to your other blogs. Take care.
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May 12, 2008 1:36 PM
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I was disappointed that Amanda didn't win and I agree, I think it was once again because she STINKS at the last Tribal Council. It WAS her opportunity to talk about WHY she deserved to win. Her loyalty, her ease in the challenges, the fact that she TRIED to play a decent game, and EVEN a thing or two AGAINST Parv. Parv had no problem comparing the two of them, and she was HONEST about how sneaky and manipulative she was, and I think they voted FOR that honesty. Because she said that's what she was there to do and she did it.
I thought too that Amanda should have said she brought Parvati along because she thought Parv had done the most lying and manipulation to all of the other survivors, and that she really didn't want to play that sort of game and thought that the survivors wouldn't want to vote for someone who'd tricked them so much. BUT - nada - I can't even remember what she DID say.
Felt bad for Cerie, but didn't Amanda feel Cerie would have won all the votes? Couldn't she have said that at Tribal Council so she'd show as a person she wasn't really stupid?
So many things I thought were lacking. And agree about Natalie. Said WHAT when she was going on (and Parv admitted she flirts with girls too "to get what I want"). Don't think that was the place for it but DID feel Natalie was really trying to find out whether she'd more than flirt.
Well it was a GOOD season, and I thank YOU Vickie Jean for your great blogs here and I too want to know HOW ARE YOU and HOW WAS THE WEDDING??
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May 12, 2008 2:08 PM
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Thanks for the great blog Vickie! Hope you are feeling well. Really appreciated all your great blogging of ALL the reality shows this season. I know it was a lot of work since there were sooo many of them all at once, and you weren't even feeling up to par! You are an amazing woman! 
I was really hoping Cirie would win this thing. She did such an awesome job of planting a little seed of thought in people's minds and then sitting back and watching it happen. Oh well.
Hated that Parvati won! It should have been Amanda over her!
I didn't watch the reunion, so i was curious, if Jeff asked the jury who they would have voted for if Amanda had taken Cirie?
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May 12, 2008 2:25 PM
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Hi Manda! Amanda DOES stink at Tribals. She SHOULD have pointed out how many wins she'd had. Oh well. Yes, my hubby saw some definite butt grabbage last night between Parv and Nat. Hmmmm! I thought Parv, Amanda or Cirie all deserved to win. I just really liked amanda best.
Hey Ranger, I wouldn't MISS HK and I'm excited because the Mole is coming back on ABC here in a bit. I've only seen the two celebrity editions so I'm anxious to see a real one. We wanted amanda to win too although I was okay with Parv or Cirie getting the money. James just seems to be James and I think that's why I love him! Thanks so much!!!!! This was a great season. I hope they can do as well in the fall with Gabon.
Hi indy! I can't wait for Africa either (and hopefully the next amazing race!) Yeah, that first group in Africa really had it rough. That's why the guy eating a can of their beans got in such hot water. I had forgotten but I think you're right about the rice. I know they tried to make it look like a reward challenge but they HAD to give them water. But I think there they weren't anywhere near the shore. Here it looks like they're on the coast so it should go better!
Hi jamminjan, Thanks! I agree. This season will be hard to top! I think putting a group of Survivor contestants on Big Brother or Big Brothers on TAR would be fun. Not just one or two like they've done before but send an entire group. It could be fun to watch although I prefer "civilians!" I thought cirie, Amanda and Parv all played well enough to deserve the money and it's rare that I feel that way. So the best players really did make it to the end this time.
Hi Bookgirl, Thanks! The wedding was beautiful! And I was there and had a wonderful time! We were a bit frustrated with Amanda too. We wanted her to win but she just came across horribly at Tribal and she should have taken Cirie instead of Parv. I thought all three deserved to win, but Amanda is a particular fave. And I still like Ozzy. I'm happy for them and I hope they breed because they will have stunning children! LOL! Thank you so much and I"m looking forward to the next edition already! And TAR. And the Mole.
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May 12, 2008 3:39 PM
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HI Coug! Thank you so much! It's really beena pleasure this season. I'm doing very well. Get the staples out tomorrow! Can't wait. The wedding was gorgeous. I'll see if I can figure out how to post a picture or two later! I wanted amanda to win but as some of our friends here have noted, she can't seem to close the deal. And people don't seem to like her but I can't figure that out. She seems pleasant enough. James is an original and I love that he won more money!
Hey Darclyte, I agree that they should have voted based on play. I thought Cirie, Amanda and Parv all deserved to win but I just like Amanda more. I guess someone was just a bit too annoyed with her in the end. Yeah, I was just mentioning in another response that it looked like they were going to be on the coast so this should go much better. I'm already looking forward to it!
Hey LADY!!! Thank you so much! I'm feeling good but tired and a bit sore. Staples come out tomorrow and I"m being told everything from "a few of those might hurt coming out" to "it was nothing" to "chug a bottle of vicodin before you go"! LOL! So I don't know what to expect but that's okay. They're coming out.
The wedding was gorgeous. We had a lot of people there, around 300 showed up. The entire church had been invited so we had no clue. But the kids wanted it simple and it was and everyone was beautiful. I'm going to post a link for my album if I can figure it out. My sister took the official pictures but I took a bunch and I'll see if I can get my photoshop book up.
My hubby started humming the Jeopardy song waiting for Eliza to write down her vote. It was hilarious. Amanda came so close. She does seem to tick people off doesn't she? Yeah, my husband saw some butt grabbage between Parv and Nat last night. I guess there's some interest there? Did Dimples and Julie break up? That's too bad. He seemed so crazy about her. Yeah, I wish Ozzy and Amanda the best. They seem like a nice couple and they're so cute together! I'll be seeing you around. Thanks again!
HI Dorjean! Thanks! Yes, Amanda and Tribal don't work. LOL! I have a feeling Amanda couldn't have said anything that would have changed minds at Tribal. I believe most of them had decided their votes. Still, she didn't make good use of her time there. I'm feeling very well, thanks and I was able to enjoy the rehearsal, the dinner and the wedding. It was gorgeous and simple and I am very lucky to have gotten a sweet daughter for mother's day. I'll see if I can figure out how to post a picture or a link to a photo album on here.
Hi Shel, Thanks! All that blogging really helped keep me writing AND kept my mind off my illness here these last few weeks! Dimples didn't ask that question but I wish he had. I thought Cirie and Amanda both deserved to win but so did Parv. Still, I like Amanda nad Cirie better so I was disappointed. At least all the real players made it to the end this season and I'm already looking forward to next season!
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May 12, 2008 3:53 PM
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I can't look at the pictures - it says "Server Error". 
I don't know if it's my server here at work or yours. I'm going to try again at home. I'd love to see them!
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May 12, 2008 5:26 PM
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