Survivor China - Episode 8

Survivor China, Episode 8 just aired and Jean Robert now joins the jury panel with Jaime. Congrats are in order for Jeff Probst who probably edited many hours of tape to provide a suspenseful finale for this episode.

Survivor China, Episode 8 was one of the more intriguing episodes because the the audience was led to believe that James, the grave-digger might not use his immunity idol and consequently be eliminated from the game. He did not use his immunity idol and only the last name revealed at tribal council let the audience know that he had escaped elimination.

Here are a few unholy and tactless observations about the final eight.

James the grave-digger has to be the fan favorite. He has proven to be mentally and physically strong and a real game player. One has to worry that he is not keeping a low enough profile, but how can he remain anonymous like some of the others? Certainly at this point he is going to have to use his immunity to escape elimination after such an apparent close call in episode 8.

Perhaps there is much about Survivor China, as with the other Survivor shows, that reveals the inner workings of our psyche.

Lets examine a few Survivor "rules" that seem to ring true in life.

Rule #1 - the fat kid always gets picked last. Denise, the school lunch lady, did not have a chance to participate in the reward challenge because no one had any faith in her ability to respond to a physical challenge. She stated that it had happened to her in the past. Duh, Denise - hopefully the weight you lose during the game will serve you well in the future.

Rule #2 - it's the blond thing! Courtney has not done anything to disprove the perception that blonds are just a little slower than the rest of the crowd. To her benefit she did demonstrate that being skinny will probably aid one's balance on a barrel subject to rolling. Speaking about rolling - is it possible that Frosty and Courtney may be enjoying a friendly "roll" if they can escape the cameras and the other Survivor competitors?

Rule #3 - those that claim to have the most knowledge usually are deficient. Jean Robert, the poker player who was going to use his ability to "read" others planned to exploit his knowledge and come up a winner. While there are many poker analogies that compare life and poker, they are all wrong. Sorry Jean Robert - no final table for you!

Rule #4 - only the strong survive. James is obviously the strongest, both mentally as well as physically. Sometimes in Survivor this is a handicap. We'll see if this rule holds true when we arrive at the finale. Do you really believe he is a grave digger - oh, I see he owns the franchise. No surprise there. Bet he receives a lot of marriage proposals at the end of the series.

Rule #5 - maintaining a low profile and keeping one's "threat quotient" small will help a competitor make it to the final four. This seems to have been true in the past (unless immunity is repeatedly won) and so far Survivor China seems to be following that pattern. Eric, Amanda and Frosty will be battling each other to keep their "threat quotient" low.

Rule #6 - "girly men" experience the monthlies. Todd appears to be the worm in the apple slithering around and pretending to have gathered the knowledge that will prove "fruit' full. He'd be great for the final two as he is no threat to any contestant.

Well that concludes my evaluation. Have I gone wrong anywhere? I'm not ready yet to select any final winner although like most of America I'm hoping James will prevail. See you next week.