CANOE -- JAM! Television - TV Shows - Survivor3: Africa: Episode Two: Jessie gets cuffed

With the second episode of "Survivor: Africa" over and done with one thing is certain. Not only is the climate in Kenya very cruel so are the tribal politics. Gone are the days during which an ailing contestant like Ramona could garner sympathy and compassion from her tribe even though her weakened state hindered them in many ways. The message sent by this group of pitiless players is loud and clear: If you can't hack it or falter in a big way, you are out of Africa without so much as a hug goodbye. Mercy is as scarce as clean drinking water on "Survivor: Africa".

Jessie Camacho, the Deputy Sheriff of Orange County, Florida, made one mistake and it was her last. She got sick. Being dehydrated and infirm for a short period of time was all the reason her tribe needed to vote her out. Even though Kelly Goldsmith and Kim Johnson cost the feeble Boran Tribe the Immunity and Reward Challenges it was Camacho who was viewed as the proverbial weakest link. In the days leading up to the Immunity Challenge, Camacho told her fellow tribe members that she was feeling better and her energy was slowly coming back. Her words fell on deaf ears. Having lost three crucial challenges in a row, Boran couldn't stake their future on her claims and took her out of the game.

The remaining Survivors at the start of the broadcast were:

Samburu Tribe

Boran Tribe

Boran Tribal Happenings

After the first Tribal Council, Clarence "Pork and Beans" Black is breathing a sigh of relief back at Boran's camp. In full damage control mode he tells Jessie that Diane made him out to be a scapegoat. That's what he gets for being nice, he says. Jessie puts up with his pathetic groveling and whining for a while then she lays into him. It was a stupid move to make so early in the game, she scolds. Like a whipped school boy, Clarence takes his licks and doesn't talk back.

Samburu Tribal Happenings (Day Four)

Everyone is bitching about having to sleep on the ground. They can't get a good night's sleep. Whimper. Whine. Whine. Whimper. What? Did these dolts think "Survivor: Africa" was going to be a trip to Club Med? As a whole, Samburu thinks it would be a good idea if they actually finished their shelter as they were advised to do the first day they arrived in Africa.

Frank takes it upon himself to lead the charge and in doing so barks at everyone like a pit bull on Thunderbird. Lindsey can't stand the way Frank conducts himself. Carl tells us that he and Frank "work their buns off". According to Frank, he and Carl "do all the work" while the younger tribe members act like they are on "vacation". Frank praises Linda and Teresa too for always helping out when there is work to be done. Brandon feels the tribe is splitting off into alliances based on age. What's really happening is that the hard-working people are naturally coming together and unofficially ostracizing the lazy, useless goof-offs like Brandon. Frank already has in mind two people he wants gone. He doesn't name names.

Reward Challenge

The tribes must carry several long, wooden poles through a short obstacle course to a platform. Every tribe member must be across a finish line before they can lift the pole onto the platform and drop it in a hole before heading back for the next one. Once all the poles are in their respective holes, they form a staircase to higher platform. The first tribe to create their staircase and get one of their members on that higher platform wins.

Reward

Blankets, food and the items they left behind when they first made their trek to camp.

Result

Both tribes do fairly well until Boran's Kim Johnson stumbles and falls as they were about to finish their staircase. Samburu beats them to the top.

Winners: The Samburu Tribe.

Boran Tribal Happenings (Night Four)

Kim openly admits to everyone that she messed up badly. It was her day to screw-up. Tom soothes Kim. "Everyone has a boo boo," he intones. Kim takes Tom's down-home wisdom to heart but still feels that her bumbling has put her neck on the chopping block.

Boran Tribal Happenings (Day Five)

Jessie is sitting on her own shaking uncontrollably. Her lips are chapped and dry. She tells us the water tastes like tar and for that reason she can't drink much of it. Clarence stuns us all with a revelation. Everyone needs water to live and without it they can't compete in the challenges. Thanks for the info, Clarence Black "The Science Guy". Check back next episode as Clarence explains the value of oxygen. You will be astonished and amazed. Ethan checks on Jessie. She says she is okay but he ain't buying what she's selling. He believes she is far worse than she is letting on.

Samburu Tribal Happenings (Day Five)

Lindsey is as paranoid as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs. The Geritol Gang isn't fooling her. She knows they are forming an alliance against her and her fellow do-nothings. Carl and Frank convince Silas to go fetch some water with them. Once at the water hole they try to persuade him to join the alliance they have formed with Teresa and Linda. Silas asks if they can trust Linda. Frank replies that she is "so concrete she is buried at the bottom of Hoover Dam". Silas shakes hands with them saying it is a "done deal". Silas informs us that "nice guys finish last".

Boran Tribal Happenings (Day Five)

Prissy Kelly, the behavior research analyst, actually admits that she isn't used to "working" for her water and food. Jessie and Kim chat on their own. They believe that the men are plotting against them. "We can't let the guys win," says Kim. Lex confers with Ethan. Lex lets Ethan know that he and Tom have formed an alliance and have sworn on their children that they will never betray each other. They want Ethan to join them. Ethan agrees but wonders if he can really trust Lex. Nice shot of a sand cyclone in the distance. What could it all mean?

Samburu Tribal Happenings (Day Five)

When Silas, Carl and Frank arrive back from their meeting, Linda cryptically asks Silas...How was the water? He replies that it was good. She claps him on the shoulder. Frank and Silas chat. Frank informs Silas that he wants Brandon out. Lindsey walks by and hears everything. Silas warns Frank about revealing their plans to the others. Lindsey corners Silas and gives him the what-for. Naive Lindsey tells us that she thought "Survivor: Africa" would be a "camping trip" but now she doesn't trust anyone. One wonders if she even watched an episode of the series before applying. Duh. Teresa is questioned by Lindsey too. Mother Teresa can't tell a lie and babbles all to her. Lindsey speaks with Silas again. Lindsey says to Silas that they should vote Frank out. Silas tells her again and again to trust him. Carl is sure that Silas is in their alliance. Silas says to us that he "will do what it takes to win".

Boran Tribal Happenings (Day Six)

In their tree mail, the tribe learns of the Immunity Challenge that awaits them. Kelly says there is nothing she won't eat. She would even gobble some testicles if she had to.(I could but I ain't touching that comment with a ten foot pole.) Jessie looks concerned. Clarence feels that he will be voted out if Boran doesn't win so he is prepared to eat everything. He would eat dirt if asked to. Is there nothing this guy won't eat?

Immunity Challenge

Our host Jeff Probst informs the players that they will be feasting like the tribes of the region. Two African tribe members bring in a cow. One of them shoots it in a neck with an arrow as the other fills up a container with the blood that is spurting from the wound. Once patched up, Bessie is sent on her way. Probst assures the contestants that the cow has been properly tested so there are no worries about taking part in the challenge. The cow's blood is mixed with milk and poured into shot glasses. In pairs, the contestants belly up to the bar and must drink the concoction. Since Boran is missing a person, Lex must drink twice.

Reward

Immunity from Tribal Council.

Result

Even though Clarence the human trash-compactor is around the challenge goes off without hitch. The round ends in a tie as nobody refused to down their drink. Probst calls for a tie-breaker round and asks each tribe to select who they think is the weakest from the opposing tribe. Kelly and Linda square off. Both aren't shy about gulping down the brew. Linda just happens to chug it faster.

Winners: The Samburu Tribe.

Boran Pre-Tribal Council Happenings

A shocked Tom can't believe his team always falters in big situations. Lex thinks it sucks that they have to vote another person out. Kelly calls herself a "big loser". She couldn't chug a beer in college so there is no way she could've done so with the blood-milk drink. Clarence has another revelation that he passes onto Tom. He thinks that in the end it is always the Samburu women who are defeating their tribe. In his mind, the Boran women are the "weak links".

Tribal Council

Our host, Jeff Probst, asks Jessie how she is feeling. She replies that she feels great but never expected survival to be this hard. Lex is asked about trust. He says it is the biggest issue his tribe is dealing with. Tom says that Clarence has done better since his mistake the other day and has proven himself. Clarence believes his tribe has put the situation behind them. Kim feels that her "splat" did her in. She thinks she is extremely vulnerable now. Kelly expresses her remorse over losing the challenge. "I couldn't be more bummed," she says.

Jessie votes for Clarence as that is who she was set to cast her ballot for during the first Tribal Council. Kim chooses Jessie as she is not sure the cop has the strength to make it to the end of the game. Tom says he has forgiven Clarence but he hasn't forgotten what he did. He votes for Clarence again as another reminder to him that he has to fly straight.

Final Voting

Parting Comments

"I know why the guys made the decision they made. Obviously they felt that they needed Clarence to stay in the challenges. He's a little bit stronger than me anyway. That's the decision they made. I am okay with that. I just want to tell Tom that I love him." - Jessie Camacho.

Episode Rating: A+.

Powell's Comments

Next week it looks like Boran is visited by a lion and the tribe doffs their duds for some reason. It appears that Lindsey's rumoured demise from the game could also be featured on the third episode. She is shown groaning and moaning in the tribe's shelter as Linda surmises that she is always pushing herself too hard. Again, the "Survivor" gossip mill has been saying for months that Lindsey was forced to leave the game because of injury or illness much like Michael did last season. As the players shuffle through forming their alliances, it is still too soon to predict a winner though master schemers like Lex, Tom, Frank and Silas are flexing their brain cells early. Silas seems to be a serious threat considering he isn't simple-minded, knows he is being manipulated and seems to lead his team in the physical challenges. He would be better off siding with the younger crowd in his tribe and getting rid of future rivals for the upcoming individual Immunity Challenges.