Author: Shane

Following a wacky Tribal Council with a very early use of a hidden immunity idol, Lucy found herself going home in Survivor: Millennials Vs. Gen X Episode 4 despite having only received two votes.

After the vote, David realizes that he just saved somebody that nobody wants to work with.

Having realized way too late that Ken was trying to help her, Jessica wants to build trust with him. So she tells him that she has an advantage, which she would have given to him if she got eliminated.

Because the idol is out of play, everybody goes searching for it, and they are not hiding that fact this time. Once again, David finds it. This time, Sunday and CeCe are walking right near him and pass by it. He waits for them to disappear and has another hidden immunity idol. Perhaps that wasn’t such a waste after all.

Whatever has happened so far is about to get tossed into the wind. They can drop their buffs. In another twist, they are going from two tribes to three. The green tribe will have to go to a completely new place and start over, but they will have one more tribe member. These are very small tribes, two of which are odd numbered, immediately serving as a numbers advantage for someone.

Vanua (Orange): CeCe, Chris, David, Zeke, Michelle
Takali (Purple): Taylor, Figgy, Adam, Jessica, Ken
Ikabula (Green): Michaela, Hannah, Jay, Will, Sunday, Bret

Takali consists of three Millennials (a couple and an outcast) and the newly rebonded Ken and Jessica.

Vanua has a Gen X advantage. CeCe and Dave perhaps just accidentally stumbled into having an upper hand, and maybe Zeke is no longer at the very bottom. As for Michelle, any powerful allies she had are on other tribes now.

The Millennials have the clearest advantage on the largest tribe at 4-2, but this new tribe is a strange mix of people who could easily comingle because none of them are on the same page.

Figgy warns Taylor that he probably shouldn’t hug her. That would be new, but it probably won’t last any longer than it did the first time.

It doesn’t take long for Adam to start spilling the beans to Ken. Taylor and Figgy are his worst nightmare, but he may trust the devil he knows better than the devil he doesn’t.

Zeke and Chris quickly bond over being Oklahoma boys and the fact that Zeke loves the championship football team Chris played for. This is Zeke’s chance because Chris has no loyalty to either CeCe or David and can just as soon turn on them as vote with them.

The immunity challenge requires them to retrieve buoys and then toss them into baskets, with the option of trying to hook the basket and pull it closer. Will sits out for Ikabula. Sunday eventually gives up on her dive, putting her tribe well behind. After CeCe takes a long time, her tribe drops back as well, and David is even worse. Ken quickly hooks the buoy to start shooting. Michaela eventually does the same and promptly scores two baskets to take the lead. Figuring they are out of it anyway, Vanua just starts shooting the long distance rather than trying to hook the basket, a strategy that puts them further behind. Michaela has five baskets by the time Ken has one, and Ikabula wins immunity. Ken also hits all the baskets to win immunity.

The conventional wisdom is that people will stick with their original tribes, but the odds of flipping are real here. Zeke pretty much worships Chris, and CeCe and David suck at challenges. That would let Michelle survive without having to do anything or really improving her position any. Her strategy is to at least try and convince CeCe that they should get rid of Dave, which is her only option, but has no chance of succeeding.

That could be important new information to David because Chris just got done suggesting to him that they should work with the Millennials, one of whom is already trying to get rid of him.

This open up David’s option of giving his idol away and getting rid of Michelle instead, but he declines.

Votes
Michelle
CeCe
CeCe
CeCe

With 3 votes, CeCe has been voted off the island. Time will tell whether that was a good move by David or not. It worked out well for everybody else, though.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of Survivor: Millennials Vs. Gen X Episode 6, which airs Wednesday at 8/7c on CBS.

Paul seemed to be at or near the top of his tribe, but after the women got spooked in Survivor: Millennials Vs. Gen X Episode 3, he was sent home.

After listening to Bret and Chris whine, there is concern that maybe they made a mistake getting rid of Paul. Lucy throws Jessica under the bus to them.

For the reward challenge, they will race out to grab rings and then back to a flag pole while the other tribe tries to stop them. Reward is food. Michelle sits out for Millennials. Chris ties up Jay and Adam, allowing David to take the 1-0 lead for Gen X. As the other tribe sort of hangs out, Figgy and Michaela tie the score. The Millennials think they are a lot more fit, but they are no match for Ken and Bret, who retake the lead 2-1. After Michaela takes her top off, she again drags the ring to tie the score. Chris and David are the odd couple but manage to score again to win reward.

Adam stumbles upon a clue to the hidden immunity idol. Even without the clue, these don’t seem that difficult to find, so it is only a matter of time before he finds the idol. Then Hannah finds him and asks him how his idol search is going.

Now that she’s already got Bret and Chris onboard, Lucy aggressively tells Ken and David that they have to target Jessica, too, and warns them not to speak to anybody else.

The immunity challenge requires them to lift one team member on a chair to a giant board to gather numbered bags for a puzzle. Adam sits out for Millennials. Chris weighs a lot more than Figgy, but that doesn’t stop his tribe from opening up a lead. Ken and David keep going at that pace, but it will as usual come down to the puzzle. They’re still trying to solve it at the 20 minute mark. And at 45 minutes. Millennials eventually win immunity.

Ken wants to flip Lucy’s plan around specifically because of how she talked to them. Jessica should be easy to encourage, but they need a fifth. That makes Sunday the swing vote in his mind, but instead Jessica warns Lucy about Ken. That makes Jessica the easy vote. It’s not like they are dumb enough to get rid of Ken. That sort of stupidity has happened before, but it is rare.

And yet, David decides to play his idol to save Jessica. Nothing like protecting someone who just tried to blow up the plan of one of your closest allies.

Votes
Jessica (does not count)
Jessica (does not count)
Jessica (does not count)
Jessica (does not count)
Jessica (does not count)
CeCe
Lucy
Lucy

With 2 votes, Lucy has been voted off the island, and basically everybody in the tribe has been blindsided, including Ken who decided to side with Lucy. I’m not sure what to make of this weirdness. Perhaps Jessica will trust them now, but Ken has already been burned once.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of Survivor: Millennials Vs. Gen X Episode 5, which airs Wednesday at 8/7c on CBS.

With the rest of the tribe falling in line to keep the couples in power in Survivor: Millennials Vs. Gen X Episode 2, gamer Mari was the first person voted out of the Millennials tribe.

Hannah, who was both confused and not paying attention at Tribal Council, believed Michelle that they had the numbers and voted with them. That belief was correct, but it doesn’t help her make nice with Zeke and Adam in one of the oddest post-vote conversations.

Ken is baffled that he’s on the bottom because he doesn’t really see what those who are in power are offering, a fair complaint seeing as he is the tribe’s brawn and provider.

Treemail contains a bag of rocks. Whoever draws the orange rock will go for a summit with members of the other tribe. Taylor, Figgy, Will, and Jay go for the Millennials; CeCe, David, Paul, and Chris go for Gen X. Seems a little early for this. Sides have formed, but they have only voted out one person each. How the rock draw worked is different for both tribes, though. The Millennials send just about a whole alliance, while a pair of outcasts join a power pair for Gen X. That is a potential opportunity, if CeCe and David can survive long enough. Paul and Chris go for a swim and are outed as being in control.

For the immunity challenge, they must carry heavy bags under and over obstacles, cross a balance beam with the bags, knock down a puzzle, and then complete that puzzle. Millennials just make Taylor their ox on the balance beam, while Gen X want to all do their own work, arguably a parallel to the tribe generations, but the Millennials have the far more effective strategy, which Gen X eventually adopt after losing a lot of time. Zeke and Michelle are the first to start on the puzzle. Ken gains some ground on the throwing as Sunday and David take over on the puzzle, but it’s not enough. Millennials win immunity and comfort reward.

Jay has a request. He would like to switch comfort for fishing gear, which they passed up for chickens. Gen X is unwilling to agree to such a trade, a requirement that Jeff sets before he will allow it, so they will have to settle for the comfort items.

After her performance in the challenge, CeCe gets the blame, but it is just like the first challenge. Aside from Ken and Chris, the whole performance was poor, not just one scapegoat, though there is an argument to be made that CeCe should have just given up and let someone faster do it. It’s not like she will suddenly become strong in some other challenge anyway.

In an effort to assure the women in his alliance that there is no plan for the boys to get together, Paul tells them not to worry that has happened because he would tell them they are on their own if that were the case. Well, I didn’t believe there was any merit to this Paul vote, but he is not helping his case by suggesting to the women that he would drop them if the others thought it was a good idea. Given that he is the oldest and has already had a medical emergency, his potential to be a strong contributor is not so high that they can’t afford to lose him.

Votes
Paul
CeCe
Paul
CeCe
Paul
CeCe
Paul
Paul

With 5 votes, Paul has been voted off the island. Chris and Bret are surprised to find out they are not in control like they thought.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of Survivor: Millennials Vs. Gen X Episode 4, which airs Wednesday at 8/7c on CBS.

Gen X screwed up the first challenge in Survivor: Millennials Vs. Gen X Episode 1 and had to find a scapegoat to blame, leading to Rachel’s elimination.

It’s day 5, and Gen X still haven’t managed to make fire. Don’t you have flint and the torches you carried back with you when you got rid of someone? Dave manages to finally start fire for them, which doesn’t convince people that he shouldn’t be going home. Knowing he’s on the chopping block, he continues searching for an idol, and this time he is not only less obvious about it but actually finds it.

Figgy and Taylor are already making out and cuddling. This has to be a record. Jay warns him that couples never, ever last. Other than that time that Rob & Amber made it to the finals, although I don’t think they were kissing in the second episode. Eventually, this turns into drama with Michaela, as even when she is not saying anything, she is screaming with her facial expressions.

You wouldn’t think it by looking at him, but Ken says he is socially awkward and can relate to the very neurotic Dave, who to build more trust reveals that he has an idol.

Ken and CeCe are plotting to take out Paul, but they may not need to. He lays down on the ground as medical approaches. They think he may have had a heart attack, but he is ultimately cleared to continue.

The immunity challenge requires them to swim to cargo nets to jump and retrieve keys, dive for rings, and then complete a ring toss. Hannah sits out for Millennials. It’s close for a while, but Dave struggles and gives Millennials a big lead. CeCe’s inability to get a ring puts them even further behind, but Mari takes a long time to get hers and brings them about even again. The tossing seems to be unusually easy. After not very many tosses, Gen X wins immunity and reward, tarps.

The pretty duos thought they had things under control, but they can’t do that if they can’t convince some of the other six people to join them. Figgy has painted an easy target on her back by being so blatant about her relationship while also not being that much of a problem to lose. Their plan: pretend that Michaela is the next target after them. The girl you have been fighting with is your best hope? Then they try to pull in Will as well. Not done there, during Tribal Council while everybody else is involved in another conversation, Michelle whispers to Hannah that she is voting for Mari, but she won’t provide a reason to help convince her.

Votes
Figgy
Mari
Figgy
Mari
Figgy
Mari
Mari
Mari
Mari

With 6 votes, Mari has been voted off the island. Perhaps the thing she did wrong was letting everybody know she is a gamer, which carries with it a target when you are playing a game. Zeke and Adam remain the two left out of the loop. They even managed to sway Michaela, which to me just seemed absurd to even try.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of Survivor: Millennials Vs. Gen X Episode 3, which airs Wednesday at 8/7c on CBS.

This season in Fiji has been divided along generational lines. I’m not sure either side really has an advantage, but I’m sure they are going to deliberately try to poke people and force viewers to pick a side early, with the risk of it getting old. The cast of 20 contestants includes:

Adam Klein
25
San Francisco
Homeless Shelter Manager

Bret LaBelle
42
Dedham, Mass.
Police Sergeant

Chris Hammons
38
Moore, Okla.
Trial Lawyer

Ciandre “CeCe” Taylor
39
Granada Hills, Calif. via Buffalo, N.Y.
Insurance Adjuster

David Wright
42
Sherman Oaks, Calif. via Philadelphia, Penn.
Television Writer

Hannah Shapiro
24
West Hollywood, Calif. via Brookline, Mass.
Barista

Jessica “Figgy” Figueroa
23
Nashville, Tenn. via Indianapolis, Ind.
Bartender

Jessica Lewis
37
Voorheesville, N.Y.
Assistant District Attorney

Justin “Jay” Starrett
27
Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Real Estate Agent

Ken McNickle
33
Denver via Hana, Maui
Model

Lucy Huang
42
Diamond Bar, Calif.
Dietitian

Mari Takahashi
31
Los Angeles via San Francisco
Professional Gamer

Michaela Bradshaw
25
Fort Worth, Texas
Vacation Club Sales

Michelle Schubert
28
Yakima, Wash.
Missionary Recruiter

Paul Wachter
52
Sugarloaf Key, Fla. via Long Island
Boat Mechanic

Rachel Ako
37
Los Angeles. Originally from Honolulu, Hawaii.
Recruiting Director

Sunday Burquest
45
Otsego, Minn.
Youth Pastor

Taylor Lee Stocker
24
Postfalls, Idaho via Spokane, Wash.
Ski Instructor

Will Wahl
18
Long Valley, N.J.
High School Student

Zeke Smith
28
Brooklyn, N.Y.
Asset Manager

The tribes are divided into age groups between 18-31 and 33-52. This provides more older contestants, but on average, the cast is about the same age as it was last season.

Vanua (Orange/Millennials): Adam, Figgy, Hannah, Jay, Mari, Michaela, Michelle, Taylor, Will, Zeke
Takali (Purple/Gen X): Bret, Chris, CeCe, David, Jessica, Ken, Lucy, Paul, Rachel, Sunday

The youngest person is Will, the show’s first high school student.

Their first task is to choose and gather resources in two minutes. They must also start making decisions between two specific items. Jessica takes the time to grab an envelope. Both tribes pick the pot and utensils. Gen X goes for fishing gear, while Millennials take chickens, long-term versus short-term as Jeff calls it, a predictable result if you go by stereotypes.

Before they head to camp, Jeff warns them that this is the middle of cyclone season.

Zeke doesn’t consider himself or look like a Millenial and thinks he is on a tribe with children.

Jessica has found the Legacy Advantage, which can be used by someone still there on day 36. Okay, we seriously don’t need anyone to have an advantage 3 days before the show ends. If she is voted out, she must will it to another player.

Taylor and Jay are immediately drawn to each other, and they approach the girls they find attractive, Figgy and Michelle.

Dave hates everything about Survivor, except for the gameplay. He is already starting rumors that Paul and Ken found the idol because they have hands and possibly things in those hands.

Adam believes you don’t really have to try to get what you want in life. Your dreams can come true right now.

It’s day two, and it has already been raining most of the time. In a rare gesture, they are provided with tarps to help until the weather improves. That isn’t going to cut it. Later in the day, it turns out the weather forecast has been upgraded to cyclone, forcing them to evacuate overnight for the first time in 33 seasons. The next morning, what little shelter they did build has been destroyed.

Assuming he is probably the first target, Dave starts searching for an idol. He is very obvious about it.

Zeke feels out of place, but now he thinks he is becoming the leader. He is one of the few people who manages to make fire without flint.

Mari and Hannah see the cool, pretty people combining, and they want to form an outcast coalition to oust them.

The immunity challenge is an obstacle course in which they can choose whether to take shortcuts. Shortcuts will add 10 more pieces to the puzzle. Considering the history of puzzles in this show, I would say you don’t want the harder one. Gen X take the first shortcut, which doesn’t seem to provide them with much of an advantage. Gen X also take the second shortcut, and so do Millennials, which they determined before the challenge began. That means it’s a 70 piece puzzle against a 60 piece puzzle, and there is not much of a gap between the two tribes. Obviously, Millennials win immunity. I don’t know if the easier puzzle helped them because it wasn’t even close, but having the harder puzzle was not smart.

They blame Rachel for the puzzle, but they screwed themselves by choosing to take shortcuts. David’s paranoia makes him the other potential target. The plan is to split the vote. Already? Then leave four people (CeCe, Ken, Rachel, and David) out of it, so if they join together they can decide who goes, which seems unlikely.

Votes
David
Rachel
Sunday
CeCe
Rachel
CeCe
Rachel
CeCe
Rachel
Rachel

With 5 votes, Rachel has been voted off the island. What an odd vote with four different people receiving votes, but the person who went was probably not going to be of much benefit. CeCe voted for David, Rachel voted for Sunday. Jessica, Lucy, and Sunday voted for CeCe. So when they said split the vote, they meant split it for two people they don’t think have an idol, instead of David. This is just baffling. You can’t just randomly split every vote just because.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of Survivor: Millennials Vs. Gen X Episode 2, which airs Wednesday at 8/7c on CBS.