LAST EDITED ON 05-06-04 AT 08:53 AM (EST)

Hi there everyone, it’s time for Episode 14's State of the Spoiling. It's also another first time SOTSer trying to tackle the ropes here so be gentle. But, hey, if you don’t like it, don't worry...since the Finale is Sunday, Bebo will be around to do an even better one in just a few short days.

Wrap-Up of E13

If you need a recap of last week, I would advise to laugh along with anotherkim and her summary. But all you really need to know is that Shii Ann got voted out. Not much of spoiler value in either her chat or her Early Show appearance, although Shii Ann’s comments have led some to speculate that Rupert will share at least some time with her in Loser Lodge and that she thinks Amber and Rob are the two playing the best game and the two she would most likely vote for on the jury.

On to E14

On to the previews for this Thursday. On the CBS Website, we learn that :
Rupert and Jenna are shocked to realize Rob is standing right behind them during a private strategy session.
One All-Star (believed to be Rob) fuels a fiery fight between two tribemates (believed to be Tom and Rupert).
As Tribal Council looms, the five remaining All-Stars feel targets on their backs. Who will be voted off, and who will make it to the Final Four?

The CBS Press Release contains basically the same information but is more focused on Jenna. One line in particular

Although Jenna embraces her role as the tribe’s self-appointed cheerleader, the others have fun mocking and mimicking her when she is away from camp.

has drawn some attention. It is possible that Jenna is “away from camp” as a result of winning or sharing a reward challenge.

The Vidcaps & The Challenges

This week’s Vidcaps are mostly focused on a fight between Tom and Rupert, rumored to be instigated by Rob. There’s not much going on in this thread because the real focus is on the Web Preview where we get pictures of only one challenge. This appears to be the traditional F5 “combo challenge,” including a bamboo crawl, some sort of puzzle, and a balance beam plus the traditional zip sail to the end. It is almost certainly being played for a reward, including a car (the Chevy Equinox). Historically, the men have had a great deal of success with this challenge, fueling some speculation that Rob will win the RC. However, this picture

which shows Amber going down the zipline at the end of a challenge has led a lot of people to conclude that Amber in fact wins the RC and takes Jenna with her. This would leave Rob at camp to instigate trouble between Tom and Rupert. OTOH, some argue that Amber may just have won one “heat” of the challenge and that she will face off against (and due to the misdirection likely lose) the finals of the RC to Rob. Most people are speculating that the winner gets to pick somebody else to win a car, as that is about the only explanation in which Jenna could do well in this event.

There are no separate pics from an IC. Some have speculated (mostly in the Web preview thread above) that this means that the RC is actually a combination challenge and the winner will also win IC. Others think that the IC is simply a non-photogenic challenge. Some have speculated that Rob must win the IC to stick around, but others doubt this.

The Boot

The vote thread has yet to appear and there is a real dearth of speculation about who is going, although based on the persistent rumors from Snewser that the F3 are Romber and Jenna it would seem that either Tom or Rupert must go next. The most speculation is on the CBS Website and Vidcaps threads above. Basically, the Tom/Rupert clash referred to and seen in the previews will probably lead to one or the other getting the boot after Rob finds out about the plan. I guess we’ll find out who the masses around here really lean to when the vote thread appears (at which time I promise it will be duly linked!) ETA: The vote thread is now up here

E15: The Finale

Since the finale is on Sunday, there is already lots of speculation about the F4, F3, and F2. Much of the F4 discussion is consumed with the speculation that if Tom is booted there is a chance of a 2-2 deadlock between Romber and Rupenna, which might even lead to a reprise of the dreaded purple rock. Others though think that Jenna would have no problem stabbing Rupert in the back. That would seem to be consistent with the editing. And if you want even more on the editing of the remaining players I would refer you to VerucaSalt’s long-running and always entertaining read on the editing of the players which can be found here

That would bring us to the F3 and the Final IC. Shakes the Clown has been leading the discussion on this for quite some time. As volsfan noted last week, Shakes first announced that based on the editing, Rob cannot finish second which fueled a good bit of disagreement. Now, Shakes has gotten even bolder with has guarantee that Amber will win the final vote over Jenna, most likely by taking the Final immunity and stabbing Rob in the back. There are some calls in the wilderness, notably from mavsfan, who predicts an Amber/Rupert Final 2, but the overwhelming board sentiment right now seems to be behind shakes. Hey, he of all people should be able to pick out a stabbed-in-the-back third place finisher! (And wouldn’t it be ironic if Amber proves to have the most fine A*S*S* performance??)

That’s all I got folks. Happy spoiling and enjoy the penultimate A*S*S*!

SOTS is provided by SurvivorBlows.com as a service to our readers. The purpose of this post is to consolidate the threads in the Spoiler Forum pertaining to this week's episode. Feel free to reply to this post if you feel that a theory you support was not adequately represented in this message... Please use this thread for unified discussion of all topics as we approach the next episode.

• RE: State of the Spoiling, Episode 14,bdemoney, 05:24 PM, 05-04-04
• GUESS IT ROCKS,emydi, 05:29 PM, 05-04-04
• RE: State of the Spoiling, Episode 14,Lucille, 05:42 PM, 05-04-04
• RE: State of the Spoiling, Episode 14,Magic Fingers, 05:47 PM, 05-04-04
• RE: State of the Spoiling, Episode 14,Brownroach, 06:06 PM, 05-04-04
• RE: State of the Spoiling, Episode 14,strid333, 00:35 AM, 05-05-04
• RE: State of the Spoiling, Episode 14,Flowerpower, 07:37 AM, 05-05-04
• RE: State of the Spoiling, Episode 14,macamrox, 09:10 AM, 05-05-04
  • RE: State of the Spoiling, Episode 14,leogirl_21, 01:54 PM, 05-05-04
    • RE: State of the Spoiling, Episode 14,butthunder, 01:59 PM, 05-05-04
• one correction,shakes the clown, 02:47 PM, 05-05-04
  • RE: one correction,GuessItRains, 08:56 AM, 05-06-04
  • To shakes the clown,Desbloq, 00:53 AM, 05-07-04
• RE: State of the Spoiling, Episode 14,TenPin, 02:58 PM, 05-05-04
• RE: State of the Spoiling, Episode 14,Alchemist, 03:01 PM, 05-05-04
• RE: State of the Spoiling, Episode 14,Tinman, 03:12 PM, 05-05-04
• RE: State of the Spoiling, Episode 14,samboohoo, 03:58 PM, 05-05-04
• Great job,Get Bent, 04:09 PM, 05-05-04

Way to tie everything together GuessItRains! Great SOTS!

Great SOTS!!!!! You and volsfan...too good to be your first SOTS!!

emydi

Great first SOTS, GuessItRains!!!!!!!!!

Are you sure this is your first time?? Great job and so easy to follow. I hope you write one next season also.
Thanks

Great job on the SOTS, Rains.