Survivor – Stop tripping over your capes!

Remember last week, when the Heroes were made complete fools of by the Villains tribe at the puzzle portion of the Immunity Challenge? There are two ways you can choose to respond when something like that happens. You can look inward, assess your weaknesses and work toward making improvements in yourself and your team.

Or you can look at everyone around you and assume it must be their fault, because you’re far too awesome for that. The Heroes tribe must have decided that it was all Sugar’s fault, because with her eliminated last week, everything was set to come up roses this time around.

How’d that work out for you?

Last week Rupert said that the loss showed them that they really needed to check their egos at the beach. Yes, they have been labeled “Heroes,” but this isn’t a comic book; so there’s no guarantee that they’re always going to come out on top. Unfortunately, the only thing that’s on top right now of the “Heroes” tribe is the size of their collective egos. They keep tripping over their own capes, rather than rallying together as a unified force for “good.”

They knew that puzzles were their weakness. This week, the Reward and Immunity Challenges were combined into one, and it was one that J.T. had seen before. As such, he stepped up and said he would lead the puzzle portion of it. It still had a strong physical component, but they’ve already proven themselves physically.

Once again, they dominated the physical opening salvo of the challenge, but when the puzzle came, J.T. tried to steer them in the right direction, but Stephenie and some of the others just couldn’t put their fate in someone else’s hands. I guess they’re natural-born leaders so they were bound and determined to lead.

Once that started, James started yelling at people to shut up, half of them were arguing over what to do, and J.T. was just too nice of a guy to tell them all to shut up and listen to him. A problem not faced by the “Villains” tribe, where Boston Rob had no problem shutting everyone up and leading them to another Challenge victory.

Rob had an interesting evening, suffering from the flu and a case of the crybabies, according to him, which culminated in him passing out and looking like last season’s other Russell when he passed out. Jerri was right in saying that if they lost Rob, the “Villains” tribe right now would spiral into an abyss of nothingness. They should be ever so grateful that he recovered, and apparently did so monumentally as he was hoisting a massive block single-handedly on his back during that challenge.

The “Heroes” are being made to look like fools, and James was ready to blame an unlucky pox that must surround Stephenie. After all, in her first season, every member of her tribe was eliminated, leaving her alone. Surely that means their bad luck is her fault.

James was not on the best display tonight, showing poor sportsmanship in losing. He was making good points about there needing to be “one voice” during the puzzle portions of the challenge — especially since J.T. agreed to be that voice, and had seen the challenge before — it was his approach that was a problem.

It reached a crescendo at the Tribal Council when he berated Stephenie before she was eliminated, and then told her to shut up when she tried to give them some bitter advice in parting.

I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen a tribe so fractured and contentious so early in the game. I guess because they all know one another, the timetable of Survivor has been accelerated to the plotting and scheming phase. There are still 18 people out there; they really need to be focusing on winning as a tribe, rather than deciding their alliances within the tribe as if they’re planning to go to Tribal Council every time.

If they don’t get their shit together, and soon, they will be.

Clacked by Jason Hughes
on Feb 18, 2010 @ 22:54 EST5EDT