CANOE -- JAM! Television - TV Shows - Survivor 7 : Pearl Islands: Episode Eight: Savage end to Andrew

The Survivors learned a painful lesson last Thursday. Mistakes in the ever-changing game can come back to kick you in the ass. The consequences of losing the Mega Challenge were felt by both the Morgan and Drake tribes in part two of episode seven. For good and for bad, the unparalleled twist has unquestionably turned the game upside down as did the unexpected merger of both tribes last night.

Andrew Savage, the 40-year-old lawyer from Chicago, felt the wrath of ex-Morgan tribemate Lillian Morris when she was voted back into the game. Lillian paid Andrew back for not keeping his promise to warn her when Morgan voted her out by aligning herself with the Drake Alliance at the merged Balboa Tribe's first Tribal Council. The vote would've been a tie with Drake targeting Andrew and Morgan setting their sights on Jon. However, Lillian's ballot swayed the balance in Drake's favour. In siding with Drake, Lillian also betrayed the Morgan Tribe, which she claims had shunned her from the very start. No love lost there it would seem.

At the start of the broadcast, Outcast tribemates Lillian and Burton were resurrected at Tribal Council. The Outcasts (Burton, Michelle, Trish, Lillian, Nicole and Ryan S.) were permitted to state to the others why they deserved to have a second crack at winning the million dollar prize. The pathetic begging went something like this...

Nicole: "I think one of the most important reasons I should go back in is because I was voted out for being a bad apple. I think my mistake in the game was speaking my mind which is one of my bad traits. I think I will be able to bring that character back into the game because it turns both ways. I will be able to kick some ass with that same character. I think I will make you all proud."

Lillian: "I went out there and I gave it my all. I still want to prove to those son of a bitches that I am tough. I want to go back in, guys. I want to go back in hard. No matter what happens tonight, this is good. This is sweet revenge."

Trish: "The bottom line is through this whole game I never took my eye off of why I was here. I absolutely really want one of us to win the million dollars. So, put me back in the game and I will make sure that one of the Outcasts is the winner at the very end."

Michelle: "Alright fellas. This is what is comes down to. We all know we are all deserving. We've all been kicked in the face. I am telling you right now, there is no better way to kick those asses back in the face by putting the sweet little girl in there to do it for you. You put me in there and I will bring the Outcasts straight to the top where we should be."

Ryan S.: "You guys know how much I love this game and you know how much heart I have for the game. Give me a chance to carry the torch into the game and bring the victory to one of us."

Burton: "I am the most competitive person I know and when I heard that there was a chance that the two of us would go back in, I swear to God, there was nothing I wasn't going to do not to let that happen. I will also say that whoever else goes in there - if I am able to go in - you have my word in front of everyone here I will never lie to you in this game. Never."

The Outcasts then cast two votes each for who they thought should return. Host Jeff Probst read out the ballots indicating that Lillian and Burton were back in the hunt.

"I am a nice person!," said an overwhelmed Lillian after Probst broke the news.

In deciding which tribes they would go back to Lillian was instructed by Probst to reach into an urn of some sort and pulled out one of two buffs. Because she picked Morgan, Burton had to make his way back to Drake. The Outcasts' integration didn't last long as Morgan and Drake were merged before the start of the Immunity Challenge.

The remaining Survivors at the start of the broadcast were:

Drake Tribe
1. RUPERT BONEHAM: Troubled Teens Mentor.
2. JON DALTON: Art Consultant.
3. SANDRA DIAZ-TWINE: Office Assistant.
4. CHRISTA HASTIE: Computer Programmer.

Morgan Tribe
1. TIJUANA BRADLEY: Pharmaceutical Sales.
2. DARRAH JOHNSON: Mortician.
3. RYAN OPRAY: Electrician.
4. ANDREW SAVAGE: Attorney.

Drake Tribal Happenings (Night 19)

In the darkness, Drake tries to catch some shut-eye but thoughts of the Tribe of the Living Dead have them awake and chittering. If Burton returns, Sandra will be "pissed off". She believes Drake should tell the person to just go to bed and they will chat in the morning. Approaching the camp site, Burton is excited but does harbour some resentment. He wonders if both sides can make ammends. Burton is greeted with kind words all around. Jon immediately begins kissing up. "We're are so sorry," he snivels. Burton says to Drake that it is all "water under the bridge" now. Rupert 'Blackbeard' is impressed with Burton's ethusiasm and positive energy. Drake has definitely "traded up".

Morgan Tribal Happenings (Night 19)

Lillian is met by her former...ummm...current...heck this is too confusing. Here we go. The people who kicked her sorry ass out in the first place...at the beach. There are shouts of "Welcome home!". Realizing he is in huge trouble, Lord Andrew reminds Lillian that Morgan always loved her. Pa-leeze. It "hurt" him to vote her out. It was like whacking a family member. Andrew confides in us. He doesn't think Lill trusts him. Well, duh. Lillian grumbles some more about Andrew not getting back to her on the vote that sunk her the first time around. Get over it Scout.

Drake Tribal Happenings (Day 20)

Rupert 'Blackbeard' and Burton are up before the others. Rupert pulls Burton aside. Making sure that Burton is "looking him in the eye", Rupert explains to him why he voted him out. Burton laughed at him. Burton called him a "big kid in a sandbox". He mocked his "dress". The comments hurt his feelings. Rupert then gets into some amateur psycho babble. He was picked on as a child and when The Dynamic Duo joked about him, he was rocketed back to his childhood. Methinks Rupert needs a session with Dr. Phil. Burton apologizes. He feels awful about it. If he knew Rupert felt that way, he would've put a stop to it. Yeah, right. Burton and Rupert shake hands.

With all that male bonding out of the way and not skipping a beat, the Burton - 'Blackbeard' meeting naturally turns to who they should vote out. "Jon's out," states Rupert plainly. The next time Drake goes to Tribal Council, he is scribbling down Jon's name. Rupert believes Drake is a stronger team now with Burton back into the fold.

Morgan Tribal Happenings (Day 20)

Bonhead Lillian still hasn't learned her lesson. First up, Lillian is back to her role of fetching firewood and water for a tribe who could care less about hard work. Even though she slept and ate better at wherever The Outcasts hung their hats, she can't believe the state of the Morgan Tribe. To her, they appear to have no energy and are "dead weight". Gee, I wonder why, Lill.

Lord Andrew wakes up grouchy. He spots Lillian toiling away and wonders if he's hallucinating. Sorry, Andrew. It ain't a bad dream. The evil Mark Burnett messed with the game making all the work that went into two evictions quite meaningless. Sorry, lawyer dude. Andrew welcomes the "curve balls". He will adjust his strategy. Lillian tells us she wants to stay in the game as long as she can. Wow. It is Day 20 and Lillian has finally figured out the goal of the 'Survivor' game. Good for her. I hazard to guess what she will do when she realizes the prize is one million dollars. Lord help us all. She might implode.

Drake Tribal Happenings (Day 21)

Burton, Christa and Rupert head off to gather some more lemons from a tree Drake found. Fruit is not the first thing on their minds though. Set a course for the Dalton quadrant. Warp 10, Mr. Sulu. Christa points out the obvious. Jon lies his fool head off and can't be trusted. Burton says that as far as he is concerned, the lying is over. If Drake screws each other, Morgan will win 'Survivor'. Christa is sure that when the tribes merge, Jon will be working a thousand deals like he has before. They gotta put a bullet in the back of his head soon.

Morgan Tribal Happenings (Day 21)

Have a box of tissues at the ready, folks. Morgan is cooking their last ration of rice. Lord Andrew says the food situation has gone from "critical" to "dire". He is not sure what to do. How about learning to fish, you moron. Andrew has nothing to fear though. The producers are keeping tabs on the situation. As in the past, they wouldn't let anyone starve to death on their show. If he knew his 'Survivor' history, he would understand that the first series grinded to a halt when the players demanded more food or they would walk and that some of the 'Survivor: Africa' players were given fluids interveniously so they wouldn't dehydrate. You just know that in reviewing Andrew's comments, the decision to immediately merge the tribes was a done deal for the producers.

Immunity Challenge

Probst asks Sandra about Drake's rations. According to Sandra, they are eating like hogs. She then details everything the ate yesterday in front of the starving Morgan Tribe. Good going, Sandra. Andrew claims his tribe is living off mussels, tree bark and sea weed. Probst announces that the tribes are merging. He hands out new black buffs and requests that Morgan and Drake ditch their old ones. As per usual, the players will have to come up with a crumby new name and paint a gaudy new flag. He also unveils the super duper, new and improved Immunity Idol. It is a sword and scabbard. Sweet.

This challenge is for indivdual immunity. In heats, the Survivors swim laps under platform while holding onto a rope.

Reward

Immunity from Tribal Council.

Result

Jon, Rupert, Ryan and Burton are the finalists. They have to do five laps and collect coins. Burton mows down Rupert's lead and wins by a fraction of a second.

Winner: Burton.

Balboa Pre-Tribal Council Happenings (Day 21)

Lucky for us, the producers don't waste any time showing the players slopping together their new flag or airing how they came up with the lame name. As you would expect, Rupert 'Blackbeard' loves the tribe's name though and is thrilled to have new people around. Of course he is. That means more people to toss out. Tijuana is a bit wary. She ponders how truly united they will really be when it comes time to stab someone in the back. There is the traditional post merger feast where everyone is happy, happy, happy. Jon heads over to speak to Lillian. He begins smooth talking her into aligning with Drake. Burton pulls Lillian aside. If she sticks with him and Drake, they will both go far. Lillian isn't quite sure she can trust Burton. Andrew tries to pin down Lillian's vote. Lillian doesn't know which side she will choose. Andrew calls her "naive". Andrew asks Lillian to give him a heads up if he is the target at Tribal Council. Lillian reminds him that she asked the same of him and he never kept his end of the bargain. With the usual dazed and confused look in her eyes, Lillian tells us she feels like she is in the middle of a whirlwind. The Drakes chatter about lopping Morgan's "head" off.

Tribal Council Happenings

Tijuana was shocked at the merger. It could benifit and hurt everyone. Lillian was thrilled by it. She is glad to have a large family. Ryan doesn't know any of Drake well enough to make a case for writing down their names. They feasted together and now they must vote out someone. That sucks.

Since he already has Immunity, Burton hands the Sword of Immunity to Rupert because he came in second during the challenge. The players applaud.

Andrew votes for Jon. He talks too much smack. Jon writes down Andrew's name and does a whole 'Macho Man' Randy Savage routine. Christa votes for Andrew. He is the biggest threat in the game. Tijuana picks Jon. He is a troublemaker.

Final Voting

Tribal Council Victim: ANDREW SAVAGE.

Andrew tells Tijuana, Ryan and Darrah to stay strong as he leaves. Probst says that everyone who get the axe from this point on will join the 'Survivor: Pearl Islands' jury.

Parting Comments

"I am unbelivably proud to be part of the Morgan Tribe. We went through hell. We rallied from losing the first three Immunites to even the score to...five Morgans and five Drakes. It is a phenominal accomplishment. Cheers to Morgan. Ryno, 'D' and 'T'...stick it to Drake and show them what we are made of. Continue to make all of us proud." -- ANDREW SAVAGE.

Powell's Thoughts:

On the next 'Survivor', life after the merge is rocky. Christa: "I think the Morgan Tribe in general is very lazy." Tijuana: "They work hard when it is necessary." Tribal alliances fall apart. Burton: "Get Rupert out? We are crazy if we don't." Sandra: "What if we got rid of Burton and kept the two females around?" And the food bites back. Rupert and Ryan are shown wrasslin' a sting ray. Looks like Ryan got bit or stung.

Sad to see Andrew go but what a great run on the series. One of my favourite Survivors of all time to be sure. To the bitter end, he was loyal to Morgan but you just knew that sooner or later his leadership role would force others to target him as a threat at Tribal Council. Tragically, the same set of circumstances will befall Rupert eventually. My guess is that he wins Immunity next week and that saves his neck for the time being. As soon as he loses one though, he is dead to the world.

If you believe the word that is out there, Morgan loses another member next week but the bleeding stops after that with the eviction that the majority of fans fear. If we are to put faith in some of the predictions, something must happen that totally alters the alliances that Drake have with one another. It would seem that somehow along the way, they cannibalize each other or are forced to. There is a chance that a female alliance could be on the horizon. The Outcast Alliance has a good chance of moving ahead but one wonders if Burton alters his loyalties when it comes to supporting Drake to the end. Burton is my pick to be that "bearded man" who is rumoured to make the elite final four. The Big Lie we are all waiting for? Evidently, it is still waiting in the wings. A new theory has Lillian revealing that she really isn't a Scout Master. The get-up is just a prop to make others think she is more valuable. Not sure if I buy that one. Once again, another episode goes by with barely a mention of Darrah.