Episode Report Card Kim: C | 2 USERS: C YOU GRADE IT Negotiation
By Kim | Season 25 | Episode 5 | Aired on 10.24.2012
In a hurry? Read the recaplet for a nutshell description! Finished? Click here to close.Some maneuvering: Katie tries to get Denise on her side against the men, revealing that Penner has the Idol. Also, most of the Tandang members are sick and tired of Skupin, who they claim he's been eating all of their rice and they're running low.
The Reward Challenge involves teams of three trying to push a giant ball through a mud pit into a giant soccer goal. It's not that interesting visually, as people spend the whole time keeping one another from moving and no one is able to move the ball. They are deadlocked for an hour and then there seems like there might be some movement, but things quickly get deadlocked again. Penner and Skupin negotiate a compromise: Kalabaw wins the reward of sandwiches and other goodies in exchange for giving up all their rice. Penner thinks he can fish for food so they don't need the rice. Somehow they get everyone to agree, though Artis is pretty vocal that he's just going along to be with the group and doesn't think they should take the deal.
At the Reward, the members of the Kalabaw tribe get letters from home along with their giant sandwiches and brownies. Meanwhile, Tandang realizes that the extra rice still won't be enough. But Penner isn't having much luck catching fish for Kalabaw, so neither team is happy with the deal they struck.
At the Immunity Challenge, the tribes use giant slingshots to launch balls into a field, where the other tribemates have to catch them in nets. We've seen this challenge before. As you'd expect, the guys do much of the catching and Probst spends time hectoring Katie some more. With the game tied, Carter asks Jeff Kent to sub in and guard Malcolm, who's been on a scoring tear, but Jeff Kent can't guard him either and Malcolm catches a ball for the winning point.
Kalabaw has a few options: they can vote out Denise because she's an outsider, they can vote out Katie because she's useless, or they can vote out Penner and try to blindside him before he can use the Idol. Jeff Kent and Carter are the swing votes and they seem to really struggle with either sticking to the idea of ditching Penner while they still can or ditching Katie because she's useless. Ultimately, the men stick together and vote out Katie.
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Want more? The full recap starts right below!Kalabaw returns from their first Tribal Council on Night 13 and talks about how they don't want to ever go back to Tribal. Katie interviews that she's screwed because she lost Dana to illness and Dawson to elimination, so she's got no alliance left. To add insult to injury, her tribe seems to be voting based on strength and she's at the bottom of that totem pole too.
The next morning, the guys are out in the water and Katie and Denise talk strategy. They agree that one of the guys has the Idol and it's probably Penner. Denise points out that it makes sense to wait to eliminate stronger players after the merge, but Katie adds that there's no guarantee of even making it to the merge -- or that there will be a merge -- so they should blindside Penner while they have the chance.
Tandang is discussing their food supplies. Abi points out that they don't have much rice left and shows everyone the mostly empty bag. Pete interviews that Skupin has been eating raw rice, thinking it cooks in your body. That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. Your stomach is not a cauldron of boiling water; it's full of acid and what doesn't break down will pass into your intestines. And a tiny bit of uncooked rice makes a lot of cooked rice that will fill you more. I would be so pissed. Anyway, Pete adds that Skupin is useless and I'm starting to agree with him. Abi wants to skip breakfast and save their limited rice supply for later, but Skupin pushes for just a cup of rice. Artis interviews that Skupin has eaten them "out of house and home" and now that they have Malcolm, Skupin is expendable.
The tribes report to the Reward Challenge. Probst explains that there is a giant ball in the middle of a mud field and it will be three-on-three, attempting to push the ball into a goal on the other end of the field. The first tribe to get three goals wins Reward, which is a lunch of sandwiches, soups, potato chips and cookies. That sounds great to both tribes. Tandang has to sit out one man and one woman, so they sit out RC and Artis. I guess now that they have Reward Challenges, they're enforcing the rule where no one can sit out two challenges in a row?
Lisa, Skupin and Pete are going up against Penner, Carter and Denise in the first round. They run to the ball and start rolling it around and tackling one another. Lisa does an especially admirable job against Denise, considering that Denise seems much stronger. For a while, it looks like Kalabaw is making some progress, but eventually they get deadlocked in the mud in very uncomfortable positions. For example, Penner is on the ground with his head almost under the ball and Skupin sitting on his back. They are all covered in mud. An hour passes and Penner and Skupin face off on opposing sides of the ball. They're exhausted.