Survivor, or the one where I wanted to see Eric and Amanda fall in love

I find myself not having a whole lot to say about this episode. So why don't I just go through the players that are left.

Todd - he is still in control, though how much of that is because of him and how much of that is because no one on his alliance has challenged him yet, I'm not sure. He gets this smug look on his face sometimes that he needs to be careful no one else sees. But if I had to pick today, I'd probably choose him to win (as my favorite player, not as a prediction.)

James - Every time he opens his mouth I like him less. I admire his strength, but I just can't root for someone who talks that unintelligently. He is so condescending. Yes, PG is obnoxious, but talking louder than her doesn't make you right. I'm boggled that they aren't worried about his TWO IMMUNITY IDOLS. They are fast losing opportunities to get rid of him.

Denise - I like her, but pretty much only because of the hair, the accent, and the fact that I always love underdogs. Her and Courtney both are riding the coat-tails, I imagine at least one of them will make it to the very end, and then will get no votes from the jury.

Courtney - what i just said. Her "relationship" with Frosti was, at least, interesting, which is more than I can say about anything else she has said or done. But she is a self-proclaimed New York bitch, she will vote our her plaything just to prove she can.

Eric - Just a nice guy. He is dealing with a bad set of circumstances, so I can't really come down too hard on him, but all he is is nice. While I very much disagree that he would automatically win if he made it to the end, I do think the threat is real and he won't last much longer. Which is a shame, because I think he and Amanda would make beautiful babies together. (Sorry Jamie!)

PG - I'm not interested in her. She whines, she cries, she is overall annoying. I think they've been editing out her lameness for a long time (remember how annoying she was in the very beginning?) She might be a good pick to take to the end too. For someone who is smart though, she is sure playing a very dumb game. Maybe she had good reason to be mad at James when he basically gave up on the reward challenge, but what was she thinking when she said "I can't believe you ever accused me of throwing challenges!" Um, maybe he did that because you DID throw a challenge?

Amanda - I think I've decided she is my favorite. She has long been the sole voice of reason to Todd. Plus she is totally hot, and nice, plays well, and is overall very well put together. When she opted to play instead of eat I looked at David and declared her my favorite person of the season. I don't know if she'd be able to beat Todd or James in the end, but she is who I'd most want to have dinner with.

Frosti - I always liked him, though he must have been boring because the editors largely ignored him. Between him and Eric I think he was the bigger threat, so he is who I would have voted for tonight. His losing speech was lame and bitter, which I always always hate. Too bad, otherwise I might have remembered him with a lot more fondness. Also, he liked Courtney and is so messed up in the head he thinks he "isn't in her league". Poor, stupid kid.

I always love the "you can eat instead of compete" challenge, because it can really have consequences. Cockiness can always come back to haunt you. If Amanda makes it to the end the fact that she played when she was in no danger of going home could totally sway some undecided votes in her favor. And remember, though James has two idols, he didn't earn either, they were both given to him by Todd. I'm sure, or at least I hope, things get shaken up, but otherwise I do feel like we are heading towards a Todd/James showdown.

I'm not even going to speculate on what the undisclosed "twist" was at the very end. Lame that it was just a tease for two weeks in a row, I find that way more annoying than fun. I'll assume it isn't another tribal council though, because we see Eric and PG (didn't we?) in the scenes from next week. But as long as it doesn't involve members from the jury coming back, I'm sure I'll enjoy whatever it is.

Oh, and usually I don't pay attention to the opening credits, but this time they only included the people in the merged tribe plus the jury. Is that something new? I don't remember that in previous seasons. Not that I care at all, but that was a much better decision by the new editors than the fancy slow-mo action of the first few episodes. Heh.