Survivor: Cook Islands- Survivor Live, Episode 2

The next caller is young Allie, skipping school in Maryland. I can’t hear her question clearly, but Dalton interprets it as “When did you know your team was throwing the challenge?” Billy says that when J.P. announced he would sit out, he had some suspicions, but when the others prevented him from trying to untie the clue answers from the poles, that cinched it.

After all three jokingly support truancy in Maryland, Dalton brings on the next caller, Harold from Michigan. He wants Billy to identify his most memorable and least favorite moments in the game. His most memorable moment was jumping off a 16th century ship. Billy says he and Candice didn’t puke on the ship, but several did. He stared at Candice for hours to keep his focus off what the others were doing.

His least favorite time was a segment not aired, where he and J.P., who were in an brief, early alliance together, got into a big argument about booting Cristina first if they lost a challenge. He says, “he literally got right in my grill,” and adds, “That was not my first experience of J.P. being a bully.” Billy goes on to relate that during this, Billy was sitting on the raft and J.P. “literally stood over me.” He concludes, “The game was not fun, and I just walked away because I didn’t want to get into a fistfight. Reality hit, that I’m stuck on this island with this jerk.”

Dalton asks about the physical toil the island took on Billy, informing us that when he saw Billy on day two or three he was dragging already. Billy says they did a poor job of boiling water, and he got some bad batch that really took it out of him. Initially he was active and social and participated in activities like hut-building, but when he got sick he had to adopt a less active strategy because he could not keep up.

Dalton tells us that after the press met with the contestants (pre-show), they decided that Billy was one of their favorites. They also agreed he would not go very far. Jenna adds, “He’s a sweet guy.”

Dalton next introduces “Probst’s Thoughts,” where Jeff Probst records a message to the departing player. Probst also found Billy an enjoyable guy who would be great on the show. He was amused he compared himself to Kirby Puckett, saying that his stomach was all muscle. Jeff didn’t really buy that argument, but he hopes Billy had fun.

Billy says that in this game, you can’t be too much of any one thing – too weak, too outgoing, or too quiet. He says he was “too non-Latino.”

Jenna is afraid all the interesting people will be gone before the jury is formed. I think that’s a definite possibility. Dalton says he’d refer to them as “outcasts,” but that name has a very negative connotation in Survivor. Billy thinks he’d have done better in a non-ethnic version of the show.

Jason from South Carolina notes Cristina told them she was a cop, so did Billy ever mentioned he was a Marine? Yes, but by then he was already an outsider and at that point J.P. and Ozzy didn’t listen to him, interrupted him, or just walked away when he talked. He didn’t even get to finish his story.

The next questioner is aimless (about Candice) and Dalton cuts it off to defend Billy, saying, “Emotions are so amplified,” and Jenna gives the example, “Heidi was my best friend in the world by day two.” Billy adds, “It’s so extreme that you can’t help but have big emotions.” Jenna says, “Those of us who have been there, we totally get it.”

The third segment begins with a new feature, called “minus 10,” complete with a graphic introduction. Dalton will read ten categories for Billy to comment on in less than ten words. Here’s how it played out”

1. Candice – surprise, love, and unexpected romance
2. Throwing challenges – disgraceful, unwarranted, uncalled for
3. David Lee Roth or Sammy Hagar – David Lee Roth (ding!)
4. Hispanic pride – not for me, I’m heavy metal
5. Satan – great soundtrack
6. Best Survivor player ever – Boston Rob (buzz!)
7. Bullies – jerks, unnecessary for society, get rid of them
8. Bandanas – can’t live without them
9. Your favorite Sith Lord – Darth Maul
10. Jenna’s crown necklace – gorgeous, it fits her personality. He said something else in the middle, but Jenna talked over it.

Dalton accuses him of throwing the “minus 10” challenge. Ha! Dalton then accidentally calls Billy “Ozzy.” Lightheartedly, Billy quickly sets him straight, saying, “Do NOT mistake me for HIM!”

Billy insists he would not have traded his experiences for anything. He played for the dream, not for the money. He’s wanted to do this for a long time, but he put the needs of his band first. Billy has seen every episode of every season, and his favorite is Survivor: Pearl Islands, because of the similar way they started out by jumping off a ship. He also liked Rupert stealing the shoes. Jenna mumbles something I cannot hear about it not being his idea – sorry, I can’t get it through these exquisite four-dollar speakers.

Maggie of New York asks Billy, why after resting up so he could save his strength, why did he initially volunteer to sit out the last challenge? Billy says he was “flushing out his suspicions” about possible sabotage. He calls J.P. “a coward” because he sent the women to do the dirty work of losing the challenge while he sat at the side.

Jenna talks of the Asian team dominating the game so far. They look solid in the challenges, united, and living in a good shelter. Billy saw them as “the tribe to beat.” When Billy’s tribe talked about it, it was very apparent Yul was the strongest member of the strongest tribe. Billy says, “He (Yul) is the total package – he was brains, brawns (sic), savvy… it was just apparent that he was the right guy to send (to Exile Island).”

Pre-show, Yul was Dalton’s pick to win the game. He was also the pick of every other RNO Roundtable writer but myself. I was going to choose Yul, but I changed my mind at the last minute or it would have been unanimous!

The clip is run of Yul finding the hidden immunity idol. Good on ya, mate! Dalton is impressed how Yul made finding it look so easy. Jenna calls him “the perfect Survivor,” admiring his strength and quiet leadership… and now he has the idol. Billy agrees that he’s very likeable. Jenna adds that he also has his hidden alliance with Becky.

Dalton notes that when Billy’s and Yul’s tribes were leading the challenge in the first episode, it fell apart at the puzzle. Billy says only Cecilia was trying to solve it while Billy was arguing with J.P. Billy calls the Asian tribe “a real team, in every sense of the word,” and Jenna calls them “a well-oiled machine.”

Jake from Texas asks Jenna and Billy about who their friends are from the show. Billy says, “We all know who I want to be friends with!” He adds that he really wants to keep in contact with Cristina, “The only one who stood by me when the chips were down.” He continues that she was not judgmental, which may have happened between a cop and a heavy-metal guy. For Jenna, it’s Rob C., Ethan, and Heidi. Jenna will be a bridesmaid at Heidi’s upcoming wedding at New Year’s. Jenna and Billy decide that they are friends now, too.