While Jeff made his opening comments, the camera showed us Lisa, Dana, Zane and Angie.

Then Kent had the opening confessional, complete with images from his MLB days: “…I’ve seen pressure. This will be a challenge, no doubt. I hope people won’t recognize me.”

He was immediately followed by our first boot, Zane, talking about his Frankenstein tatoo, using it as a metaphor for his dual personality.

Lisa had an introduction: “..I’m a huge fan of Survivor…I am not going to say I was on The Facts of Life…”

The introduction of the3 returning players was set by showing scenes of previous injuries to illustrate the dangers of the adventure.

Russell: “…Survivor smacked me in the chops. This time, I am smacking back. Either these people run with me or I am going to run them over.”

Jonathan: “I got injured in a challenge…Do you know how much fire I have to win this thing? Do you know how much I can taste it? 39 days from now, I’ll make a million dollars.”

Mike: “…The Australian Outback was an amazing adventure…I think the whole world saw that falling in the fire was my biggest failure but I didn’t see it that way. To dwell on what if would cheat what the adventure meant to me but I’m in love with the fact that I am able to come out here and do it again.”

Probst then asked: “Will the veterans have what it takes to be the Sole Survivor or will a new castaway emerge to claim the million dollar prize?”
The new castaways shown then were Artis, Katie and Carter.

Reaching the end of the introduction, we realize that it only featured the “stars” and Zane, the first boot. Is it already a sign that the others will be ignored or irrelevant? Hopefully not but, with Zane being shown right after Jeff first comments, I’d be worried for the unknowns that were shown at that time, namely Dana and Angie.

The three castaways featured when Probst asked if a newbie would emerge were nearly invisible characters in the premiere so should we assume that a veteran will win?

Of the 3 returning players, Russell and Jonathan sounded really arrogant while Mike talked more about simply enjoying the adventure. We know that Russell will soon find himself in hot waters with his tribe so, once more, arrogance isn’t a good thing. Maybe Jonathan’s quote will be seen as a winning one by many but I don’t think so.

For the introduction of a premiere, it was lacking the cultural connections that you’d expect in a new location, especially one with such a rich history as the Philippines. The fake shipwreck was fun but not new. When will they actually sink the ship, forcing them out for real instead of giving them a Probst countdown?

I would have titled the first episode:

Go With The Game

Jeff first talked to Kent who said having 3 tribes meant immediate panic: “We only got 5 team mates. If we go to tribal council there will be a lot of panic real quick.”
RC agreed.
Zane said he was happy with 3 tribes.

Lisa had another confessional about wanting to keep her identity a secret.

Jeff asked Roxanne about the scariest thing she’d seen on the show.
Without naming him, Roxanne told the story of Russell’s medevac.

Dawson had a confessional about the returning players: “As a huge fan of the show, I am thinking to myself: Are you dreaming?”

Jeff introduced the returning players as leaders with valuable experience.

Mike: “The yellow tribe caught my eye immediately. I recognized Lisa from a show that I watched when I was growing up. Her show name, Blair, almost came off my lips.”

(For once, it’s the returning player that is starstruck!)

Jeff turned to Skupin, asking how it felt and Mike simply said it felt like the first time, that it was amazing.

More evidence of Mike enjoying the adventure.

When Probst mentioned the hidden immunity idols, the camera switched to Dana and a sort of warning sound was heard. Let’s keep this in mind; it could mean that Dana either finds or falls victim to the idol.

During the scramble, we heard Jonathan saying: “Get the Chicken” which is funny if we think back on his first episode in the Cook Islands and considering that Tandang is the word for rooster in the Philippines. Will Jonathan regret not getting the Tandang buff?

Kent: “We’re in the game with players returning from injury and, 3 minutes in, I hear my knee pop…If my team mates smell blood, they’ll kick me out real fast.”

Matsing - Tribe 1

(Really? We need numbers to identify tribes now? Or is it an indication that Matsing was first to go to TC?!)

Rusell: “I’m thrilled to be here, I’m blessed. The last time I…was in the leadership role but this time the leadership ain’t going to happen…There’s always some guy that’s an idiot who says “I think I should be the leader…Just watch him crash and burn. Dummy!”

He proceeded telling his tribe that they were all one team yet, immediately, Russell was shown leading the tribe, an editor’s kiss of death. Russell was shown as being the idiot.

To make sure the audience knew Russell was the Matsing idiot, we heard Malcolm talking to Angie: “What’s Russell wants to do is kind of how today is going.”

Angie: “Russell keeps telling us that he’s not the leader but he’s the one sitting there saying (what we should do) We do need a leader but we should work together, not for him.”

Malcolm said he lived in Micronesia for a year and knew how to make fire.

Malcolm: “I can do the fire, do palm fronds, chop coconuts, things like that…(we saw him teaching Russell how to make fire) “

Zane: “We made fire in the first 45 minutes we were here.”

Malcolm: “Day 1, we got the fire. Russell made it which worked out well because he wants to be the leader so bad! A target went off my back because I am not a threat to him.”

Kalabaw – Tribe 2

(will they be next to attend TC?)

Kent: “I think I left my knee on the boat… I don’t want to let anybody know I’m hurt so I’ll play it out the best I can for now.”

Jonathan: “This is a marathon because there are so many crazy twists to the game.. This is so much fun for me…It’s moving to be doing this again.”

This confessional felt much better than Jonathan’s first one, much less arrogant. The next scene would put Jonathan in danger which could be could for his development… if he survives!

With Jonathan alone in the ocean, Kent gathered the tribe and said: “If anyone’s going to win this game, it ought to be one of us. Do you want a veteran to win or one of us to win?”

Dana: “Not that Jonathan isn’t a good guy but it’s his third time so I’d like to see one of us win it. So, he’s out as soon as we can get him out.”

Tandang – Tribe 3

Mike: “When I looked at the 3 different tribes, my tribe is the one I would have picked. We have a good mix of brains and brawn. A lot of people have said you shouldn’t play again because now you’re opening yourself up to the legend of what I was to what I am today. It’s a huge risk but it’s what drives me.”

Immediately, Abi and RC went into the jungle together.

RC: “I definitely am all or nothing type girl and I’m here to play the game no matter what. I click with certain people and Abi is one of them. I trust her. I know you’re not supposed to trust anyone but you have to trust someone at certain times. I’m telling everyone that I am an executive assistant because I don’t want them to know that I am a banker. There is such a negative connotation about bankers and Wall street but, to be a great investment banker, you need the killer instincts because you always have to be on your toes in New York…If I can handle Wall Street, I can certainly handle Survivor.”

The two women talked about forming an alliance.
RC said she liked Skupin.
Abi added Peter because: “He is strong but a little bit dumb.”

RC: “Abi and I connected on a good level so hopefully that will help me in the game but who knows how long it will last.”

It’s nice to be able to eliminate someone so early. Peter may go far but with an introduction like this, he will not be our winner! I will however suggest that we should keep an eye on RC! Personal development, alliance formation and a positive connection to a returning player spells a possible end game story.

Abi: “I came to the United States 12 years ago, I have this very strong Brazillian accent. Hopefully, I can use it as a flirtatious tool.”

Peter: “Abi keeps staring at me and I think that’s going to be a big advantage. I think she’s ready to play some evil games. Pretty hot! She could definitely do some damage.”

It was RC that talked to Peter about an alliance.

RC: “It’s me, Abi and Peter. We already have an alliance and I think it’s a pretty solid alliance but I am looking for a strong four so that we have the majority.”

She grabbed Skupin, telling him she was a fan of the show and that they can’t lose with him on their team. Mike agreed to the 4 person alliance.

Mike: “My strategy coming in to this was make sure that you go with the game. If your tribe is moving slow, move slow with them, don’t jump out in the lead… The three younger people move fast so I feel that I have to move fast with them or I’m in big trouble.”

The next segment was all about the Celebrities:

Kalabaw – Day 1

The scene started with centipedes going in every directions

Dana and Kent talked about being from the South.

Dana: “Looking at the group…I don’t see any other punks with spiky hair. I like Jeff…I would fight any boy that would challenge me. Maybe me and Jeff can pull some southern roots and bond on that.”

Kent: “Being a baseball player could be a disadvantage to me…This game isn’t about…who needs the money. I’ve been a fan of the show and I want to play the game…I love to compete. I don’t need the million bucks but I’d sure like to be the Sole Survivor.”

As this was being heard, we saw Jonathan giving Kent the thumbs up on his shelter work which could be a hint that Jeff does well in his quest if not for...

Dawson: “…I know who Jeff Kent is. There’s been no mention of him being a former professional athlete…I don’t think the other tribe members know and I think Jeff likes it that way. I will tell him that I know as soon as it becomes valuable to me.”

This could be the start of a Hogeboom-Danni story but Dawson seems much more blunt about what she will do, especially considering that her confessional ended with a shot of her eating the coconut that Jeff had just opened and she had his machete in hand!

Tandang

Note that our trip over to Tandang was accompanied by 3 dolphins swimming together. It looked like a sign of unity

RC, Abi and Lisa were in the ocean together.

Lisa: “I always wanted to be on Survivor…I won’t volonteer that I was on a television series because…people will think that I already had my 15 minutes of fame. I don’t know if I have what it takes to play the game in a cut-throat way so I’m trying to play to my strength: I’m trying to connect with each person on a one-on-one basis...I’m excited about the game…but I’m more excited about what’s going to change inside of me.”

With that, Lisa has been sent on a Journey edit. Her story will be more about personal changes than a quest for the title. We will see that her journey will be challenged early as others plot against her so it could be a short story.

Lisa stayed behind to tend camp while the others took a walk.

RC: “Lisa…doesn’t hang out with us…So I think it’s hard to trust Lisa and it’s easy to make her a scape goat.”

RC said so to Abi, Pete and Mike and that led to Mike’s confessional: “Lisa is famous…She should be playing that trump card because young, impressionable people might be like wow! I’m a little wowed. Maybe her show is so old that they wouldn’t know who she was. I don’t know her strategy fully for not revealing who she is but I want to.”

That confessional was heard over images of the four reafferming their alliance and a shot of Lisa with Artis in the background, an indication that, if Lisa does wow the young crowd then we know who is the alternate target!

That night, Mike told Lisa he was a fan. He asked if she thought it would help to let others know.
She replied that it would be hurtful.

Mike: “I love Lisa. From an age standpoint, I fit with her more and I’m waiting for her to start playing, to start bonding. If her name comes up in a discussion about who should be voted out first, I don’t want it to be her but, if I want to be with the team that’s playing the game, I got to go with the game as opposed to your heart.”

Another Hogeboom-Danni story and Mike seems very smart about it. The audience has already been given a reason why he would vote her out if he had to but we also are prepared to see him help her get her footing in the game. Just like Gary’s fame became moreof a story for Danni, it seems that Lisa’s fame is more important to Mike’s story. He’s the one that got the confessional to explain their night time discussion.

Matsing

They were pictured by a lone Monkey

Denise was talking with the guy that I will always remember as inZane.

Denise: “I’m a licensed sex therapist so, being a therapist, I’m really curious about Zane…This guy has some story.”

The two made an alliance.

Zane: “All the jobs I had gave me a chance to interact with everybody. The jobs make me the perfect Survivor player.”

InZane proceeded to make alliances with Roxanne then with Angie and finally with the 2 other guys. Roxy had a confessional about Zane.
InZane even told the two guys that he had an alliance with all the others. (!!)

InZane told us he was a superstar! He was convinced that it was up to him to pick them apart.

Malcolm went to Denise, telling her that Zane said he had an alliance with everybody.

Malcolm: “Zane walked up and said: “Listen, I already made an alliance with everybody on this beach”!! Thanks for coming to me last. Denise is a therapist in real life and she is practiced at keeping her emotions out and drawing them out of others. She’s a good person to have teamed up with. It could very well turn out to be an alliance that I end up staying in a real long time.”

Denise asked about the long term but Malcolm would only comment on the immediate and not wanting to keep Russell around too long.

Denise: “I have this gut instinct about Malcolm. He’s young but he’s wise and instantly we just clicked…As long as my alliance with Malcolm holds true, I’m good.”

Tandang – Day 2

Mike: “I’m not happy with our progress so far…So I knew I had to take on a real strong leadership role right now and say let’s get on this.”

That’s when he first cut his finger.

RC, after telling Mike “We need you” had a confessional: “I think Skupin gives 110% constantly but, doing that, he misses the little things like the twigs or the bamboo shoot that’s going to hit you in the head. I think it’s more understandable what happened in the Outback and falling in the fire now! He doesn’t worry about injuries. He thinks he’s Superman…but maybe we need to take the machete away from him.”

Sure enough, Skupin cut his head and then his foot which looked the worst.
(I was expecting Varner to appear between two trees saying: “Mike’s an idiot” but alas…)

Mike: “…It’s the way I go through life: Act first, think second. But nothing is anywhere near an issue. I’m still good.”

Note that, after telling us who she was as a person and showing what she can do as a player, RC also narrated this little segment of tribal life. That’s rather a great start for a non-star.

Peter seeing Mike cut his finger, had a confessional: “Mike’s a complete mess. It’s not funny that he gets hurt but it’s funny that it happens over and over again. We haven’t gotten into a situation where he can really get injured but we’ll see when we get fire!”

Kalabaw

Now the little monkey was over at this camp where Jonathan set his sights on finding the idol. The monkey seems to indicate foolish behavior because everyone in camp knew what Jonathan was up to.

Katie: “I already don’t like the shady stuff that’s going on with Jonathan. We all stick together, we are like a family and he’s just off doing his thing and I don’t feel like that’s unity. He’s dangerous.”

Jonathan: “I have been looking for the immunity idol…Nowhere…Then I remember that we had a…big box with rice. It’s in the rice! I found the clue. It’s there, it’s waiting for me. I just need to find the thing.”

(With the clue saying that the idol is right under their nose, I think the idol is the square plaque that decorates the box’s cover that was shown when Jonathan said “it’s there”)

Matsing

Now we saw a snake which fits for a tribe about to blindside one of its members. The snake made it seem like Russell would be the target though.

Russell after finding the clue hidden in their bag of rice, had a confessional: “I go to cook the rice and there’s a piece of paper in there. That’s the clue, I’m good. Sheer luck!”

Russell noticed that Zane had seen him reading the clue.

Zane: “I asked Russell if he had been looking for the idol. He’s like: No, No, No. We are team mates; if I see someone looking for the idol, I’m voting them out. He’s so calm and charismatic, I kinda believe he’s already got it. If we lose the first round, we are going to get rid of Russell.”

The Challenge

The castaways appeared with war paint but we didn’t see the scenes of body painting. Another little thing that was missing from the premiere.

The strategy for the challenge seemed clearly decided by the 3 returning players although RC was heard saying that Mike and Peter should do the paddling because they were the strongest.
In Matsing, it was a horrible display by Russell who imposed his will.

During the first leg of the challenge, I noticed that a lot of blame was placed on inZane for slowing down even if they were well ahead of Dana and Katie. The two girls were still being encouraged by their tribe even if they were last. Not hearing anything negative about the pair is a good sign.

For the paddling, Carter and Kent caught up to Malcolm and Denise but there weren’t any praises for the Kalabaw pair even if they were the reason their tribe eventually won. There wasn’t any negative comments heard about Malcolm and Denise even if they were the ones that lost it. That’s good for them.

When Matsing’s box finally made it to shore, it appeared that Angie really wanted to show Russell he had been wrong by not putting her in the first leg. She was, by far, the first to come to Malcolm and Denise’s help.

Jonathan and Dawson were faster than Lisa and Abi on the final leg, winning the reward for Kalabaw. Angie took one more shot at Russell: “I told you I’m not good at puzzles.”
Russell told Jeff that he messed up but added: “There’s always a next time.”
Jeff disagreed: “There’s a next time for 5 of you. There’s not a next time for all 6 of you.”

Malcolm: “Russell Swan took over and didn’t listen to a single word anybody said so I got to see tribal on night 3.”

Matsingsanity

Zane told everyone that he didn’t have what it takes to play these challenges.
That’s pretty much all that needs to be written about this segment except to note that despite this, Russell was still on the chopping block! Zane told us he was trying to fool them, give them some honesty so that they rally around him and convince him to stay. That tactic may very well have worked on a tribe of 9 that had one extra guy but not on a tribe of 6. If he was playing chess, he should learn that you can’t sacrifice your king!

Angie: “I’m a former Miss Utah…I don’t like to lose. I am so annoyed because Russell keeps saying he’s not the leader but in the challenge he made those calls…I like Zane, he’s so funny…I’d like to keep him around.”

Just when Zane’s move started gaining momentum, he told Malcolm that he thought Russell had the idol, assuring himself that the vote had to go 5-1 against him!!!

Malcolm: “Zane is already going home but the thing is that we think Russell has the idol. The funny part is that the information comes from Zane of all people. If we vote out Russell, we are already down muscle wise…”

Denise: “The feeling is that Russell has an idol so Zane has a shot at staying but, nothing against Zane but this isn’t the point where you can have weak players. It sucks having to make those decisions.”

It’s always good to be presented as the one having a moral dilemma about the vote. Denise’s concern in such a clear cut decision is something to remember.

Russell: “I think I’m Ok but I made my first mistake today. I clicked into this chief mode if you will and thought I had to make this call. I didn’t have to.”

Tribal Council

Besides Zane’s onion, one thing that came out of Tribal Council was Denise saying that returning players are an asset, expecially with the bad weather.
We also learned that Roxy has a military background and she used it to follow orders while Angie ran track in addition to being a beauty queen.

Zane was genuinely surprised to be voted out!

The Story

Two themes stood out for me:
- Kent’s comment about the smell of blood being a reason to get booted accompanied by shots of sharks infesting the waters and the way Zane was dispatched tells me that one of this season’s theme could center around the dangers of Survivor and how people eliminate themselves from the game.
- Mike’s comment about following the pace of the game holds even more promise with players shown not playing the game yet, others going too fast too soon and others cruising at just the right speed.

Stuck in The Parking Lot

We had very little from these players. It’s possible that one or two of them will soon find the right gear and get back in the race but, for now, their story seems lacking.

Artis didn’t have a single confessionnal and he was pictured as the alternate boot if Lisa manages to bond with the others.Being presented as an outcast in the tribe isn’t good when it isn’t part of an underdog story.

Carter is lucky he wasn’t in the Amazing Race because he looked like someone that couldn’t start his car’s engine.

Lisa, being a star, is difficult to assess. Unlike Artis and Carter, she certainly had a story revealed to us but was it significant? I put her in the parking lot because Mike said he’s still waiting for her game to start. She said she’s good at bonding with others but, except for a quick scene with RC and Abi in the ocean, she hasn’t been able to bond with the younger members of her tribe. Avoiding the first TC could enable her to find her footing which would give her a good cruising speed to go far. Still, Lisa seems more destined for a journey edit than a winning one.

Katie had one confessional but it only served to further Jonathan’s story, letting us know he has one more person targeting him.

Roxanne had more airtime simply because her tribe went to Tribal Council. The rest of her story was meaningless, the only good thing being that no one compared her to Cleopatra when the tribe’s raft first reached their beach.

Dawson had two confessionals including an important one about recognizing Kent but her story didn’t take off. Her confesionals were about the tribe’s stars.

Angie, the teenage beauty queen, showed some sparks but it was only to make us doubt the outcome of the vote. It’s good that we got to hear a bit of her personal story but it felt flat, the running track comment only serving to bash Russell.

Speed Kills

Their actions have been noted and these players could have made their moves too early and Zane was certainly the poster boy for that!

Russell was remembered as a team player in Galu but not a smart strategist. Here, it was amazing how quickly he was turned into a dumb player; his confessional about avoiding leadership being linked immediately to his actions as leader of the tribe. Actions speak louder than words!

Jeff had the first confessional and his story started very quickly. His injury could lead to his exit and we saw him leading the charge against Jonathan which could also come back to bite him, especially if Jonathan finds the idol. His desire to keep his identity a secret has already been busted but we don’t know how that will unfold. It doesn’t sound promising though.

Jonathan has always shown a gregarious personality so it was troubling to see him as a loner. His search for the idol could lead to his elimination but it could also signal the start of a come back story. It will be interesting to see how Kalabaw is portrayed when they go to TC: Will Jonathan and Kent continue to be the two targets or will one of the women find the hot seat?

Heading The Wrong Way?
These players had interesting starts but there was something in their story that’s cause for worry:

Dana wanted to bond with Kent. He could be the villain on Kalabaw so that could be bad for her. Like him, she led the charge against Jonathan which could prove to be her downfall.

Abi Maria was right there with RC every step of the way but, like with Chelsea with respect to Kim, there was an inferior quality to Abi’s portrayal. She was, at best, RC’s sidekick. More than that, we heard her mention her intentions of using her feminine assets as a weapon. The role of femme fatale has often been a death blow in Survivor

Pete is part of the main alliance of Tandang and we heard he was strong but mostly we heard that he was dumb. That wasn’t a promising introduction.

Cruise Control

Denise received personal development and we saw her forming an alliance. Malcolm also told us how her job could help her in this game. A very good start for someone that, demographically, could have been the tribe’s first target.

Malcolm was presented as a strong, wise, quiet player. He already has a very interesting alliance with Denise. It’s mostly interesting in that it is rare to see the young bond with the older players so quickly. He also told us how Denise could help his game by getting the others to expose their emotions. He appears to have a good read on his tribe mates but it’s a little troubling that his fire making skills weren’t mentioned at Tribal Council however.

Michael had a great opening and we saw that, for someone who had always left the old time viewers questioning his strategic abilities, he had a good perception of the game. Moving at the same speed as his tribe is one of the most eloquent explanation of how to play the first few days that we’ve ever had. Being accident prone gave the audience a chuckle but it never really came close to being an issue so he escapes the Dumb Player label (much to Varner’s chagrin!)

RC had a wonderful premiere where we got to know her as a person, why she is lying about her real job and how that job can help in the game. We saw how she plans to play, making a quick alliance for the majority and getting everyone on the same page…almost. Her only worry would be Mike’s crush on Lisa. Despite that, we also heard RC narrating with some humor the tribe’s story. One way or another, RC is going to be an important character this season.

With Mike talking about Tandang being the team he would have picked, RC saying that with Mike on their tribe they couldn’t lose then it seems reasonable to look for our Sole Survivor in Tandang first, with RC and Mike having the best start of the 6.