Survivor is back!… and so are we.

Contestants are dressed for interviews but instead dropped off in the middle of the fields of Africa.  The first task is to pick teams - the eldest of the group are captains and teams are picked.  There is the Fong Tribe (Red) - Gillian, Crystal, Susie, Matty, Randy, Dan, Danny (CG), Ken, Michelle and the Kota Tribe (Yellow) - Bob, Ace, Jessica (Sugar), Marcus, Charlie, Paloma, Kelly, Jacue, Corrine.

The first challenge is for each tribe to race up a hill (a steep hill) - first from each tribe to get there can grab an immunity idol which saves the person from the first tribal council, first tribe where all people reach the mat win extra food.  Individual greed vs. team prospering - what is each person going for.  Marcus and GC go for the idols and Matty helps his team up the hill.  In the end Fong wins the extra food.

Back at camp we start to learn about the players how the teams are interacting and what Africa has in store for all of them.  We get our first “call to the medical team” after Randy hits his head entering the shelter.  He stays in the game after getting stitches and bandages.

The first immunity challenge calls for the tribe to work together and also have spacial thinking - six players are tied together and go through a course and get puzzle pieces which they use to solve a puzzle.  Kota wins!  The debate of who to vote out is Michelle, the non-team player who is miserable, vs. Gillian, who isn’t strong at the challenges.  By majority vote Michelle is the first contestant voted off Survivor-Gabon.

The next challenge is one where the teams push a huge bolder through gates, gather keys, unlock gates and push the boulder to the finish.  Both teams are strong but Kota wins again!  They win immunity, fishing gear, and send Dan off to Exile Island.

Exile Island is different than Survivors past.  This season one can choose Comfort or Clue - Dan chooses clue but cannot crack the code and in the end leaves frustrated and without the immunity idol.

Fong goes to tribal council again and this time it is between Dan, who they think has the hidden idol, Ken, who isn’t blending with the tribe, and Gillian, who isn’t adding to the challenges.  Gillian is off and she leaves with a well-worded good-bye, “Bummer”.

Topics:

• Do they need a leader?

Picks:

Love talking about Survivor?  Come join the live chat as we are recording the podcast - we meet right after the show (and some are even on the chat during the show).  Also, please post your comments on the blog - we love hearing what you have to say.Thank you for joining us for Survivor - Gabon.

Music:  “Sick of Chicks” from “Album of the Year” by Brother Love

Podcast:  AS20080926.mp3

It’s that time of year again and Marji and Mike are back with some new features for the show:

New URL:  www.ArmchairSurvivor.com

New e-Mail Addresses (make proper substitutions):

• show [at] armchairsurvivor.com
• marji [at] armchairsurvivor.com
• mike [at] armchairsurvivor.com

New Telephone Comment Line:  234-525-1549

Also, we may be adding a new community feature but we don’t have it nailed down yet — but it may include prizes.

Of course, we’ll still be recording live over UStream — just go to http://armchairsurvivor.com/liveshow/ to join the live recording and chat.  We’ll also try to do some mid-week shows so everyone can be involved.

Enjoy and comment below early and often.

Podcast:  AS20080910.mp3