by Lia Haberman
E! Online

Just sit right back and you'll read a tale, a tale of a fateful trip that stranded 16 castaways on an isle in the Pacific.

CBS on Thursday announced its next batch of would-be Gilligans for Survivor: Pearl Islands. And per tradition, the Eye network threw a wrench into what viewers and contestants previously held to be true.

The twist in this seventh installment: CBS will maroon the castaways with only the clothes on their backs--previously contestants had been allowed a change of clothing, a bathing suit and a luxury item.

Could horny and ratings-hungry Eye execs be hoping the no-bathing-suits rule leads to increased skinny-dipping in this swashbuckling edition of Survivor? Who knows, but the castaways will surely feel the effects of their limited wardrobes as they're dumped onto a Pacific island during rainy season.

Having already stranded competitors in such far-flung locales as the island of Pulau Tiga in the South China Sea, the Australian Outback, Kenya's Shaba National Reserve, the Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia, the tropical jungles of Thailand and the Amazon, producers have settled on the Pearl Islands, an archipelago off the coast of Panama and previously home to pirates, sailors and bounty hunters.

Now, the islands will be home to 16 Americans as they play for the $1 million bounty and the sole Survivor title.

The area's cutthroat history will be reflected in the teams names, Drake and Morgan, inspired by two legendary pirates who looted extensively in the area.

And despite the success of last season's battle of the sexes the teams have gone back to coed status. But the trend toward younger and hotter buccaneers continues as the average age of the castaways is at least two years younger than those on Survivor: Amazon, which ranked eighth among network shows last season with average 20 million viewers.

The oldest castaway in this installment is a 51-year-old from Cincinnati who, despite her age on the traditionally youth-friendly series, brings some valuable skills to the campfire--she's a Scout leader, which should come in handy when trying to light a fire or build a shelter during a torrential downpour.

On the flip side, the two youngest castaways, both 22-years-old, include a mortician from Mississippi (should make for some interesting dinner conversation) and a student from New Jersey. In the middle are your average all-Americans: an attorney; a pharmaceutical sales rep and an electrician. Then there's a massage therapist from California who's bound to become popular among the aching castaways.

Here's a quick rundown of who will try to outwit, outlast and outplay:

Tijuana Bradley, 27, pharmaceutical sales rep from St. Louis
Nicole Delma, 25, massage therapist from Hermosa Beach, California
Darrah Johnson, 22, mortician from Liberty, Mississippi
Lillian Morris, 51, Scout troop leader from Cincinnati
Ryan Opray, 31, electrician from Los Gatos, California
Andrew Savage, 40, attorney from Chicago
Ryan Shoulders, 23, produce clerk from Clarksville, Tennessee
Osten Taylor, 27, equity trade manager from Boston
Rupert Boneham, 39, troubled teen mentor from Indianapolis
Shawn Cohen, 28, advertising sales rep from New York
Jon Dalton, 29, art consultant from Danville, Virginia
Sandra Diaz-Twine, 29, office assistant from Fort Lewis, Washington
Trish Dunn, 42, sales executive from Annapolis, Maryland
Christa Hastie, 24, computer programmer from Los Angeles
Burton Roberts, 31, marketing executive from San Francisco
Michelle Tesaurio, 22, student from Pittstown, New Jersey

The seventh season of sneaky alliances, restrictive rations, harsh elements and Jeff Probst premieres with a special 90-minute episode on September 18.