Survivor: Cook Islands – Survivor Live, Episode 10

Well, perhaps… but next week the vote would be four-four and Jonathan would be trying to beat Yul in a fire-building tie-breaker contest. Very possibly, he would end up in eighth place instead of fifth or second.

Dalton says they could probably talk about this topic all day, and finally, there’s a statement no one can disagree with. But it’s time to move along.

Dalton next introduces the “Probst’s Thoughts” feature, where a message Jeff Probst recorded about the departing player is played. Jeff remembers when he first met Nate and says Nate had made it onto the show about five minutes after they met him. He hopes Nate stays in touch with him; he likes his spirit, and says he was a threat from day one on the show. Nate says Jeff “has a warm spirit” and made it somewhat easier to be out there, especially at Tribal Council. He promises he’ll keep in touch.

Dalton reminds us he was at the first Tribal Council, and tells us Nate’s humor and openness is exactly what they like to see. Nate says the Tribal Council was a very cool place.

Lindsay in California asks if Nate wants to go into the entertainment business like his brother. “Definitely so.” Jenna likes the “Daily Ten” show, on E! Channel.

Starting the final segment as usual is the “minus 10” feature, where Dalton reads ten rapid-fire categories for the guest to comment on, each in ten words or less. Few of the rambling responses were that short, so I’ve tried to focus on the gist of what he said. Here’s how it went:

• 10. Jonathan Penner – Whack, whack, whack, whack, and extra whack
• 9. The Survivor booze cruise – Fun, faded, full, gluttonous, enjoyable, exciting, and awesome, it was cool
• 8. Eli Manning – Disappointing, disappointing, disappointing, whack
• 7. Paddling – Hard, no unison, rough, whack
• 6. Parvati – Sweet, cute, va-va-voom, boxer, princess, that’s my home-girl
• 5. Mutiny – Death, virus, whack, snap, karma
• 4. Nancy-boy – That was a whack comment, my boy took it the wrong way. Love ya, Brad!
• 3. Harry Smith – Very cool
• 2. Manihiki – Heart, because it was rough in the beginning
• 1. Jenna’s footwear – (shakes his head) That’s gotta get a straight “snap”

After Nate has used the term several times, Jenna asks him to define “snap.” It can either be used for something good, or something bad.

Jenna asks about opening the bottle that told them they had to boot a second player. Nate says, “We knew it was a bottle of funk.”

Ross in Ohio is calling to ask what it is about the hidden immunity idol that makes players stupid. Nate says, “The idol is a shotgun. When you put it to someone’s head, they don’t think right because they fear (it).”

Expressing some thoughts that have been dying to get out since before the last segment ended, Jenna leaps into a rant. It’s about the hidden idol, and whether it’s “fair and necessary” that “you dig for an hour and you get to the final two.” Dalton says it’s fair, but the others disagree and it gets rather spirited.

Nate thinks everyone should be given a six-hour chance to find the hidden idol and calls it “luck of the draw” that some got to search while others didn’t. Jenna and Nate refer to going to Exile Island as “an opportunity.”

Dalton reminds us that neither Terry nor Gary (hidden idol finders from previous seasons) made it to final two.

Jenna next says, “The people that are finding it are ‘not the most exciting people,’ so it’s not like they would stand out without the idol.” Dalton asks her if she doesn’t feel Yul is standing out in this game and she clarifies, “Personality-wise.” She admits he stands out challenge-wise, but says personality-wise, he’s under the radar. Dalton disagrees with Jenna on this, too.

Nate thinks Yul would stand out because “he’s strong, and his strategy is amazing, and he knows numbers. He can always calculate numbers and possibilities.” Aren’t we talking about numbers like four and five here?

However, Nate feels Yul has had an easier ride because of the idol. I can’t really buy that either, as his team’s constant successes in challenges has had nothing to do with the hidden idol.

Dalton points out that people go to Exile Island because others send them as punishment; they don’t go by choice. Jenna says, “But not everyone gets to go there.”

Jenna continues by saying that although the hidden idol does make the show exciting, “As a person who has played the game, from that perspective, how is it fair for you to get past me when you only dug for an hour and I’ve done so much more work?”

Nate completely agrees, and then he and Jenna agree the game isn’t fair. Nate doesn’t think it’s fair that Ozzy, who has been feeding his tribe, may well go home first. This mess mercifully ends with Jenna and Nate agreeing that Survivor is not a fair game.

Having not played the game, I don’t agree with most of that. Beyond what Dalton said, these are my own rebuttal points:

• Ask Adam or Candice if Exile Island is “an opportunity” or hell on earth.
• It took a lot more than an hour of random physical labor to find the idol.
• Jenna did work that equates to an hour of heavy digging?
• Many different types of players have won the game, and that’s what makes it exciting. On day 39, no one cares who caught the most fish. The one with the best personality usually comes up short as well.

Here’s a counter-proposal of my own: Limit the power of the hidden immunity idol so it is only effective for a specific number of Tribal Councils. If not used, it must be forfeited and buried again in a new location. On the last season of Big Brother, Mike Boogie won a somewhat comparable power that was only effective for three votes. Three seems like a fair number for this game, too.