User blog:Sulola/Survivor: Taveuni EP. 3: He's a Sitting Hippopotamus

PREVIOUSLY ON SURVIVOR…
Fireworks exploded on Kocoma after the first Tribal Council between Gunpei and Valerie. Meanwhile, the rift between the cool kids and the rest of the tribe began to deepen on Bouma, and Lori-Ann and Zia made an alliance. Meanwhile, Jackey was caught idol hunting on Navaka. Rochelle, meanwhile, made a strong alliance with Terry and found the first idol of the season on Vidawa. On Laucala, Mikayla and Jared realized they had mutual friends and grew closer, while Sid and Colleen felt like outsiders.

Navaka lost Immunity; Norbert immediately targeted Jackey for falling off of the balance beam in the challenge and for idol hunting, but Jackey fired back, targeting Norbert for being the weakest and one of the ruder members of the tribe. In the end, more people sided with Jackey, voting out Norbert, making him the 2nd person voted off. Joseph threw a vote at Jerica since he did not know how to vote.

48 remain, who will be voted off tonight?

NAVAKA
When the Navaka tribe returns to camp from Tribal Council, there is much tension in the air. In confessional, Joseph talks about how Tribal was crazy for him. Aia and Bella had hinted that the votes might be going Norbert’s way to him earlier, and not wanting to vote for either Jackey or Norbert, he threw his vote onto Jerica. He hopes that it won’t come back to bite him, and he also knows it’ll be hard to hide so he plans to own up to it.

The tribe gathers around the fire, and Turem immediately angrily asks what has happened. Aia decides to answer, saying she and the rest of the women thought that Jackey would be more useful for the tribe. Annoyed with this, Turem rolls his eyes and walks off. In confessional, he says he knows he won’t get anything else out of them, and is annoyed and doesn’t want to hear the girls’ blabbering. Kokoro watches him leave and giggles, saying in confessional she knew Turem would be a whiny baby about being blindsided, and she thinks it’s funny.

With the rest of the tribe still around the fire, Jerica nervously asks who voted for her, obviously very paranoid and stressed about it. Joseph clears his throat and admitted he did it, because he felt like Norbert was leaving but didn’t want to vote for him. He tells Jerica that he just felt she was sketchy before Tribal because she wouldn’t give him a clear name, but Jerica waves him off and tells him to leave her alone, and that voting for her was uncalled for. Shocked by her reaction, Joseph says sorry, but Jerica too leaves the campfire, unable to deal with the stress.

Sitting alone on the beach, Jerica sobs into her hands, unable to reign in her emotions. In confessional, Jerica sobs that she knows she is not playing well but she is just so stressed out and paranoid. She says she has never been in this difficult of a position, and she’s upset she can’t get herself to stop overthinking everything. She says she hopes things will improve, but she doubts they will.

LAUCALA
Riding high off of their first place Immunity win the day previous, the Laucala tribe continues to be a generally united tribe, with little conflict or drama. In confessional, Cleo can be seen sitting on the beach and talking about how generally uneventful the tribe has been so far, and how it’s getting under her skin quite frankly.

The scene shifts to Cleo walking in the jungle with Axel, who she says is her closest ally. He reminds her of her younger brother when they were in their 20s, and Axel says he thinks Cleo is hilarious and intelligent, and a strong ally to have in this game. The two talk about the state of the tribe thus far; while they both agree they have assimilated well into the group, they also do not feel in control at all.

The screen flashes a scene of Ethan, Elena, Mikayla, and Jared all sitting around the fire and telling stories of their wildest college parties with grins on their faces. Cleo and Axel both agree those four are tight, with Gavin as a close ally to them as well, and Cleo and Axel are on the next level outside of that, just based on how things are coming along socially. They agree they need to make sure that they keep their position strong, and they talk about how they both like Sid and hope they don’t lose anytime soon since they think he will be a useful ally later in the game.

Cleo and Axel’s worst fears are beginning to be realized later that day; Elena pulls aside Ethan and Jared, and proposes creating a five person alliance of the three of them as well as Mikayla and Gavin that would take control of the tribe. Both guys are down for it wholeheartedly. In confessional, Elena says that no one knows who she is and she feels like she has a solid grip on the game. She wants to form this alliance to gain even more control. Meanwhile, Ethan says he is excited that he has found a group of hard workers he is vibing with, and he’s ready to move forward with them.

KOCOMA
On the Kocoma tribe, their strong win at the second challenge has calmed the fears that they would be a weaker, frequently losing tribe. Lewis, Scott, and Osprey can be seen working around camp, laughing and smiling. In confessional, Lewis talks about how he is very happy with the game so far; at their first Tribal, they cut dead weight for challenges and it has paid off, and things are starting to improve around camp despite some animosity still present.

Valerie and Gunpei still are not on speaking terms; Valerie says in confessional that the issue is too tender for her, while Gunpei says he isn’t going to be speaking to Valerie anytime soon, even if she attempted to apologize for her actions. No one really tries to cause a resolution between the two; in confessional, Casey shares that while she hopes Valerie gets over the drama for both of their sakes, she’s not going to tell the florist how to feel.

An unlikely duo has been getting along recently; ending up both agreeing to fill up canteens in the morning, Shel and Jordan have found themselves talking much of the day, finding they have a shared obsession with the show Star Trek, and they geek out about it for a while. The two talk about how they are happy to still be building new relationships in the game even after the initial couple days, and Shel says a good bond with Jordan could benefit her position in the tribe immensely, since he has an in with the rest of the men.

After Shel and Jordan talk for a while in the jungle, Shel returns to camp with the full canteens, while Jordan walks in another direction in order to keep suspicion down. As he walks, he quietly begins to poke around the dirt trail, absentmindedly searching for the idol. He’s surprised when, under a rotted log, he spots a flash of orange. Grinning, he reaches through the worm eaten wood to fetch the idol. Reading the note after he has untied it, Jordan smiles exuberantly. In confessional, he says that while he felt like he got off to an uneasy start, he feels like he is settling into a good rhythm now in the game.

BOUMA
As the sun rises on the Bouma tribe, Conen and Daisy can be seen sitting on the beach, watching the sunrise. Conen scoots closer to her, and puts his arm around her shoulders, and she leans against him with a contented smile on her face. In confessional, Conen says he’s never met a girl as beautiful and fun as Daisy, and Daisy says that Conen is smoking hot and she can’t resist a little island romance. Daisy is shown kissing Conen on the cheek, but then they can hear people coming and try to separate.

Mena and Rowlan are coming down to the beach to collect driftwood from the fire. Seeing how close Daisy and Conen are, both are immediately suspicious. Conen and Daisy get up and walk back to camp without really saying hello, which annoys Rowlan, and he rants about their lack of manners. In confessional, Rowlan says that Daisy and Conen are getting on his nerves, but Lane is doing just as good of a job of pissing him off.

The scene shifts to later in the day, where Lane can be seen still huddled in the shelter, lazing around half asleep. Mark and Rowlan watch him from the fire with annoyed looks; the muscular Asian man refuses to socialize with anyone much besides Daisy, Conen, and Faustina, and lays in the shelter 24/7. Mark says that Lane looks like he could be a beast in challenges but he’s wasting it all right now, and he’s disappointed and frustrated. He says he likes Faustina the most of the cool kids, but she doesn’t seem to notice how her friends are being perceived.

However, despite the cool kids getting on people’s nerves, others are struggling as well. Elmer is shown throwing up in a bush while Lori-Ann pats his back. In confessional, a sniffling Elmer admits that the elements are getting to him, and he’s having a really hard time. Lane scoffs in confessional, saying that Elmer is by far the weakest link on the tribe and he should be voted off ASAP due to his struggles in the elements. Meanwhile, Lori-Ann says in confessional that she likes Elmer, and is worried if he leaves, her and Zia will be right behind him as the next nerdiest and physically weakest.

VIDAWA
In the morning, Keyson and Navab can be seen walking to the well with their canteens to get water. Most of the rest of the tribe is still asleep, giving the two muscular men a chance to talk about the game. They agree that they feel closest to each other, and that moving forward they need to focus on keeping the tribe strong. They both want to work closely with Peter and Mindy, who they feel are the other strong people on the tribe, and how they find purple-haired Cassie pretty funny. They consider Rochelle and Terry to be really smart and helpful on puzzles. They also talk about who they consider the weakest members: Paolina, Rigoberto, and Rogue, agreeing that one of those three probably needs to leave first.

While the two men are near the well, discussing the state of the game, Rigoberto, Cassie, and Paolina can be found walking around another part of the jungle, talking about their experiences from high school. They all find they experienced some form of bullying. Paolina was bullied for being an immigrant from Slovenia and her protruding nose; Cassie faced bullying for her crazy hair colors and digital obsessions, and Rigoberto said he never fit in as a gay kid from a rural town. The three seem to bond strongly over this, and in confessional Cassie says she has gotten along with her whole tribe, but on a personal level she finds Rigoberto and Paolina the most relatable, and hopes they aren’t targeted in the future.

Back at camp, the tribe gets bored and Rogue offers to sing a song. Miming playing the guitar, Rogue sings a slow, languid ballad in her rough, raspy voice that she wrote herself that earns some applause. She then begins to sing some well known pop tunes from the Beatles and Billy Joel, making the rest of the tribe hum or sing along happily. In confessional, Rogue says she is happy to share her talents, while Mindy says that while Rogue isn’t the strongest member of the tribe, she definitely provides a lot of entertainment and keeps morale up.

Peter can be seen talking with Rochelle, Terry, and Mindy a bit after Rogue’s singing performance. The four stride along one of the dirt paths in the jungle as they talk about the game and the tribe. They all agree they love the tribe, but they are worried about what would happen if the tribe went to Tribal Council. Terry looks over at Rochelle and then floats the idea the two of them talked about last episode, of an alliance of the four talking plus Navab and Keyson. Everyone seems down, and in confessional Terry beams with pride over the fact that a majority alliance is coming together, while Peter says he thinks this group will be greatly beneficial to keeping the tribe strong and keeping him in a good position.

NAVAKA
On Navaka, things are still rocky after the last Tribal Council. Pheonix talks about in confessional how he is worried about the tribe, and also about his position in the game. He thinks there is a lot of conflict and drama that is going to hurt this already weaker tribe, and he is also worried about being a possible target if they go to Tribal Council again after voting in the minority with Norbert and Turem against Jackey. He says he needs to try to fix things with people, and he also needs to talk to Joseph.

Joseph and Pheonix walk along the beach, and Joseph apologizes for not voting with them, saying his thrown vote at Jerica was a last minute decision. Pheonix accepts his apology, saying he was shocked but he understands the vote. Joseph says he’s worried about their spot on the tribe, especially after Turem blew up at everyone and is now being dismissive of everyone this morning too. Pheonix agrees that they need to work hard to find a spot in the game again, but that he’s happy that him and Joseph are on the same page at least.

Meanwhile, in the shelter, Aia, Bella, Jackey, and Kokoro relax, talking about the game. They all agree that they need to stick together and look out for each other moving forward. In confessional, Jackey is ecstatic to be forming an alliance, happy to be finally finding his footing in the game after being in danger last Tribal Council. Aia in confessional talks about how the only person she truly trusts on the tribe is Bella, but she thought it was smart to lock in a close alliance of four with the people she felt most comfortable with to ensure she stays safe if the tribe goes to Tribal Council again.

Elizabreath walks past the shelter where the four can be seen chatting and laughing, and she sighs and rolls her eyes. In confessional, Elizabreath talks about her tough life. Her father was never in the picture, and she had a neglectful mother who was a drug addict. Always having to do everything for herself, she developed a tough, confident personality to combat the struggles of her life. She admits while she is proud of who she is and how far she has come in her life, she says that sometimes in life it’s hard for a person to her to fit in, and she’s finding it hard to fit in in this game as well. Her closest ally in Jerica is too paranoid for her to handle and is shutting herself off from her, and Elizabreath feels alone. She says she just can’t stand rude people as well, and says she is at her wit’s end with people like Turem on the tribe. However, Elizabreath says she’s been through worse and will definitely make it through this tribe, and she’s determined to push to the end of the whole game.

IMMUNITY AND REWARD CHALLENGE
The five tribes gather for their next challenge. When Navaka is the last to come in, no one seems surprised to see the obviously older and weaker Norbert voted off. In confessional, Colleen sighs and says she’s disappointed in seeing all of these older people getting voted out and hopes that she isn’t going to follow in their path any time soon. Su tells them that for reward this time, the top four tribes will receive a tarp to help keep them dry, which excites everyone.

For this challenge, all nine competing castaways must work together to get through an obstacle course of two ramps, running up them and sliding down, collecting a key at the top of each ramp. Then they must all dig in the sand to go under a wooden pole. Once everyone is under the pole, they can use the two keys from the ramps to unlock their chest of sandbags. Two of the runners will work together to throw the sandbags at three targets; the first four tribes to knock down all three of their targets win Immunity and Reward of tarps.

Highlights
 * Kocoma and Laucala both start off strong on the ramps, with Kocoma pulling into an early lead with Laucala right behind.
 * Meanwhile, the other three tribes all struggle to get their members over the ramps. Zia, Lori-Ann, and Daisy all struggle for Bouma, while Jerica, Elizabreath, and Jackey struggle for Navaka and Rogue, Rigoberto, and Rochelle struggle for Vidawa.
 * Kocoma and Laucala get through the digging part neck and neck while the other three tribes are pretty even lagging behind.
 * Kocoma gets to the targets about fifteen seconds before Laucala, and this helps them be able to beat out Laucala by a slim margin despite Laucala’s good throwers, making Kocoma get first and Laucala second.
 * It’s tight between the other three tribes once they reach the targets; Vidawa pulls away into third due to Keyson and Navab’s strength. Eventually, a missed throw from an annoyed Mark gives Navaka an opening and they win, sending Bouma to Tribal Council.

PRE-TRIBAL
Losing seems to have set off an alarm in many of the players on Bouma. While people like Mark and Rowlan and Mena have noticed the danger the tribe was facing, many of the others are surprised by their loss. In confessional, Faustina admits she’s surprised they got beat and hopes that she is able to help keep the tribe strong and keep her friends in the game. She says in her opinion the vote should be a no brainer tonight: one of the nerds has to go.

Lane, Faustina, Daisy, and Conen can be seen sitting around the fire soon after the tribe returns from their loss at the challenge. The four discuss the vote, and agree that one of Zia, Elmer, or Lori-Ann has to go. Lane is blatant about his want for Elmer to leave the game, and no one seems to object. Conen is a very big proponent of the plan. He says that Elmer is easily the weakest member of the tribe, and that he’s sick of the constant vomiting and whining from the graduate student. Daisy says in confessional that she thinks Lori-Ann is the weirdest but if her snuggle buddy Conen is dead set on Elmer, then she is set on him too.

The cool kids agree that they need to get the votes of Mena, Mark, and Rowlan on their side tonight to gain a majority, and at that moment Rowlan and Mena walk past the fire. Faustina waves them over, and they squat beside the fire as Conen proposes voting out Elmer tonight. Mena and Rowlan both say they agree he is a liability in challenges, and agree to the plan, which puts a smile on the faces of the cool kids. Daisy giggles and puts her hand on Conen’s thigh, telling him he’s such a good planner. In confessional, Faustina says she thinks things are going to be set if Mena and Rowlan are down with the plan.

However, as Mena and Rowlan walk away from the fire, both seem unsure. In confessional, Rowlan says that the cool kids definitely offer more challenge strength than the nerds, but that they are infuriating to deal with in the game, especially the cocky Lane and the flirty Daisy, neither of whom do anything around camp. Mena groans as she talks about how Lane naps constantly. They also didn’t put their all into the challenge, especially Daisy who struggled almost as much as Zia or Lori-Ann. Then, Mark comes out of the jungle, and the three of them begin to discuss the vote in earnest, all realizing they aren’t sure what they should do yet.

Meanwhile, Zia, Lori-Ann, and Elmer can be seen walking down a path in the jungle as they talk about the vote. They all agree that they need to stick together for mutual protection, and that if one of them leaves, the other two will be right behind. They then talk about who to target, agreeing it is going to have to be one of the cool kids. They agree to talk to Mark, Rowlan, and Mena about it ASAP. Elmer then returns to camp to keep people from getting suspicious, leaving Zia and Lori-Ann to talk. They both agree that they will try to work with Elmer, but worst case they will try to vote him out if it comes to that. In confessional, Zia says that while it’s not good for her game for Elmer to go, she’s not going to sacrifice her game for him. Her true allegiance is to Lori-Ann, not him.

Later on in the day, Zia and Elmer can be seen walking down the beach with Mark and Rowlan, discussing the vote. They all agree that the cool kids have been insufferable as of late, ruining camp life and bringing the morale down. Zia and Elmer propose the idea of the four of them plus Lori-Ann and Mena voting out whichever of the cool kids Mark and Rowlan want. The two guys say they will definitely consider it, and in confessional Elmer says he hopes that he has done enough to avoid getting voted out. As a superfan, Elmer says he wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he was voted off so early.

Eventually, the castaways gather their bags and torches, preparing to leave for Tribal Council. Everyone seems confident or hopeful that their plan will be working out, while Mark, Rowlan, and Mena, who are sitting in the middle of the vote, do not give away anything about their plan as they walk off to Tribal.

TRIBAL COUNCIL
The Bouma tribe arrives at Tribal Council, dipping their torches into the fire for the first time. As they all sit down, Su begins to question them. He starts by asking Rowlan what he thinks the state of the tribe is. Rowlan replies by saying that while some people are pulling their weight, others are not, and it’s creating dysfunction for the group both in challenges and at camp. Mena and Mark can be seen nodding vigorously as Rowlan says this.

Su asks Mark what advice he can offer the tribe as an ex-NFL player to help them improve the tribe. Mark says that they just have to work together as a team, and work hard. He also says that sometimes there is just nothing you can do, some people don’t have the right skills for the game, and that’s why Tribal Council has to happen. Su then asks Faustina what she thinks the vote will be like tonight. She says she feels relatively safe, and thinks that the vote will strengthen the tribe. He then asks Lori-Ann the same question. She says she feels less secure than Faustina, but that she thinks she might survive the night, and that this vote will make the tribe more cohesive and hard working. Finally, Su asks who feels in danger. Zia, Lori-Ann, and Elmer are the only people who raise their hands, and Su says that he is surprised that so many people feel secure. Daisy said it makes sense since everyone else on the tribe can trust each other, eliciting some strong reactions from Elmer and Zia.

With that, the castaways go to vote. Lori-Ann is shown walking up to the urn, and then Conen is shown writing down Elmer’s name. He says, “All you are doing is dragging this tribe down. Get a tougher stomach and grow a pair before you try out Survivor again.” Mena can be seen uncapping the pen and staring at the blank parchment for a few moments, and then Elmer can be seen writing down a name. His vote is not shown as he gives his confessional. “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen you give more than 10% effort this entire game. Good riddance.” Rowlan is the last one to vote.

Once he returns to his seat, Su collects the urns and counts the votes. Then he asks if anyone would like to play an idol. Everyone looks around, but no one moves an inch, so Su begins to read the votes.

Elmer. Elmer pouts at seeing his name on the ballot, becoming even more worried.

Daisy. Daisy rolls her eyes and sighs noisily at seeing her name come up.

Elmer.

Daisy. That’s two votes Elmer, two votes Daisy, six votes left.

Elmur.

Daisy.

Elmer.

Daisy. That’s four votes Elmer, four votes Daisy, two votes left. Daisy looks alarmed to see a fourth vote to her name, looking in fear at Mark who sits next to her while squeezing Conen’s hand. Lane narrows his eyes in confusion at Rowlan, who ignores him.

Daisy. Daisy begins to sniffle, tears dribbling down her face as she becomes even more worried.

3rd person voted out of Survivor: Taveuni…

Daisy, that’s six, that’s enough. You need to bring me your torch.”

Daisy is overcome with emotion, crying profusely. She does her best to wipe her tears from her eyes, standing and giving a surprised and saddened Faustina a tight hug before bumping fists with a pissed off Lane and then giving a devastated Conen a peck on the lips. She ignores the rest of the tribe, grabbing her torch and setting it before Su as she holds back the rest of her tears. Some fall down her cheeks as her torch is snuffed.

“Daisy, the tribe has spoken. It’s time for you to go.”

Daisy turns to her tribe, and says through tears, “S-some of you are aw-awesome. The-the rest, are, like, r-really dumb. Scr-crew you gu-guys.” With that, she walks out of the Tribal Council area. Su turns to the rest of the tribe, telling them that there is obviously a lot of division in the tribe with a 6-4 vote, and if they want to get back on top of the game they need to get over those rifts and come together. The tribe departs after that, with Lane fuming, Conen shocked and upset, and Elmer looking relieved and happy to have survived his first Tribal Council.

NEXT TIME ON SURVIVOR
After Tribal Council, chaos breaks out at the Bouma tribe...

"@#%$ all of you!" Lane yells, slamming his torch onto the ground.

...and a Double Tribal Council makes Immunity more competitive than ever before.

"Only three Immunity Idols up for grab today!" Su shouts, and Casey can be seen gasping in shock.

TRIVIA
The episode title was said by Lane Coles, referring to how he believed Elmer Lemourex was going to be an easy vote. It is like the phrase, “a sitting duck”, but Lane uses the term “hippopotamus” instead as a rude joke about Elmer’s weight and also how easy it is to target him.

POLLS
Who would you have voted off at Bouma's Tribal Council? Daisy Elmer Lane Someone else Which tribe is going to be the last one with all of its members? Laucala Vidawa