Episode Report Card Sara M: B- | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT A Lost Puppy Dog
By Sara M | Season 16 | Episode 8 | Aired on 04.03.2008
Eliza and Jason will be running the course for Airai, leaving Natalie and James to throw sandbags. Amanda and Erik will be running the course for Airai, leaving the Crab Warriors to swing the bags. Jason and Erik go first, and we see that the obstacle course only has one balance beam. So if one person is on it, the other player has to wait until he gets all the way across before he can go. This is stupid. I'm guessing/hoping this was a last-minute way to play catch-up with all the unexpected player losses and they just didn't have time to build two balance beams. It's either that, or the brains behind the challenge that almost killed Jonathan have worked their magic once again. The race starts, and while Jason walks across the rope bridge, Erik chooses to jump across it. He makes it, although not very gracefully, and gets to the spinning balance beam section before Jason, so Jason has to stand around waiting for Erik to get across. Despite this, they're just about neck-and-neck as they roll through a net to grab their flags. They make their back to the beginning, with Erik nearly falling through the rope bridge, then managing to stop himself by swinging his legs out and grabbing both ropes without touching the ground. Meanwhile, Amanda probably got a faceful of penis. Jason catches up and Eliza sets out, but quickly falls through the rope bridge. Just as she's turning to go back, Amanda comes flying through the frame as she also falls. She did not look pleased about that fall one bit. It probably hurt. Jason gets across first and Erik catches up to him with another leap across the bridge. They both get their flags back to the beginning, with Airai in the lead. Eliza makes it across the rope bridge this time, as does Amanda, although she almost falls through again. While Amanda slowly gets across the bridge, Eliza is knocked off the balance beam by Ami's well-placed sandbag. By the time Amanda gets to the balance beam, Jason's right behind her. They get to the rope bridge, and Jason makes up for lost time and takes the lead.
Eliza is pretty far along the rope bridge when Erik leaps across his. Somehow, even though it looks like Erik got to the spinning balance beam first, I guess Eliza touched it with her hand first, and that's what counts? Because Probst lets her go first and makes Erik wait. She gets the flag first, and on her return trip is wary of Ami's bag-throwing skills. They play chicken for a while, with Eliza trying to fake Ami out and make her throw the bag early, but in the end, Eliza is able to make it past the bags and across the bridge. Also, she can be cautious since Erik is behind her, so he can't move until she does. Again, a second balance beam wouldn't have been a bad idea here. Erik also makes it across, and then I guess he's allowed to go again instead of Amanda, because he does. He tries to leap across the rope bridge again, but this time he's not so lucky. He hits the opposite platform chest-first. I assumed he was, like, dead, but Probst just tells him to go back to start. And he's moving, so I guess he's okay. But damn, that looked painful. While Jason easily gets across the course, Amanda falls through the bridge so it's Erik's turn again. Yet AGAIN, even though there's really no point this time as Jason is about to win and even if Jason did fall at the last second, leaping across the gap wouldn't make much of a difference for Malakal, Erik jumps for it. He gets across, although lands badly on one of his feet. It doesn't seem to bother him, though. Nor does it matter; Jason makes it back with the flag. Before he can put it in the bucket, though, he has to scream "PIZZA AND BEER!" It would have been funny if he'd fallen off the platform and dropped the flag, giving Malakal the win. He manages to stay upright and get the flag in the bucket, though, so Airai celebrates and Malakal sulks. Especially Erik.