What has happened to the Reward Challenge? Anyone hear anything to indicate that there won't be any Reward Challenges this year?

The thing I found most shocking at last night's episode is the disappearance of the RC. As the losing tribe walked to TC last night, I realized that there was no way they could oust there strongest body and felt stupid for picking Ken to go. However, no one even mentioned the loss of the RC during the episode. I found that to be very strange.

• RE: What has happened to the Reward Challenge? ,Devious Weasel, 03:55 PM, 11-08-02
  • RE: What has happened to the Reward Challenge? ,californiablonde, 04:35 PM, 11-08-02
• RE: What has happened to the Reward Challenge? ,Brownroach, 04:39 PM, 11-08-02
• RE: What has happened to the Reward Challenge? ,OceanSkater, 04:44 PM, 11-08-02
• RE: What has happened to the Reward Challenge? ,big idiot, 04:47 PM, 11-08-02

Personally, I figured the Reward Challenge was so boring they chose not to show it. Which considering how boring this season has been, means it must have been REALLY boring.

My best guess was that MB avoided the reward challenge to prevent reward sharing. If one team won a reward, they would probably end up sharing it with their "beach mates" out of political correctness.

Although, the reward could have been consumed at a different location, which blows this theory.

I would chalk up the (temporary) lack of a reward challenge to the logistics of their current living situation. There was no RC last week either, though they all got a ton of food when they moved in together. In this Ep, having to hang out together after the IC caused enough weird vibes that I don't think either tribe was even thinking about an RC.

Which just points all the more in the direction of a merge next week, IMO. The "news from home" is usually a reward thingie, no?

The RC was won by the audience. Our reward was that the show was kept under sixty minutes.

Esquire, great question, my curiosity also.

I don't think there is any spoiler value here, but trying to understand the editing of Survivor is always good practice.

I think the truth will be revealed in Erin's web chat, until then:

Possibilities:

1) Reward happened, but Survivors messed up somehow and so they clipped it. I doubt this, the producers love it when the survivors look like idiots.

2) No reward challenge. No reason to not schedule one. Or perhaps they could not assemble it in time, or it was preassembled and it blew down, or something of the ilk.

3) It was a boring challenge and not good tv, so they edited it out. <I fell out of my chair laughing while typing that...boring challenges has not stopped them before>

4) Jeff Probst got so angry during the challenge his prostate blew out and soiled his pants. Edited out to save face for Host.

Here is my favorite candidate:

5) Reward happened but the producers screwed up the logistics, so there was controversy over the rules/winner. It was edited out so the PRODUCERS don't look like idiots. Yeah, I like that one.