Alabamians survive again

al.com: TV

Thursday, March 17, 2005
By MIKE BRANTLEY
TV & Media Editor

CBS promised the 10th edition of its most popular reality show franchise would be the season of surprises, and the fifth episode of "Survivor: Palau" delivered a doozie: not one, but two Tribal Council meetings.

The episode also took viewers -- particularly those in Alabama who were watching closely to learn how the contest's trio of Alabama players did -- on a suspense ride that lasted until the final minutes. It seemed for all the world that 27-year-old Ibrehem Rahman of Birmingham would be voted out of the game by the surviving members of his Ulong tribe, which included James Miller, 33, of Mobile, and Bobby John Drinkard, 27, of Troy.

But Rahman won immunity from being booted off the island when he received three votes of confidence from fellow players -- more than given to any of the other Ulong members.

The game has divided its competitors into two camps -- the Koror and Ulong tribes, with the Alabama players by chance all winding up as Ulong members.

The suspense continued until the installment's very last seconds, as Drinkard and another Gulf Coast castaway, 24-year-old Angie Jacusz of New Orleans, were tied in tribal votes to be eliminated from the show. In a tie-breaking vote, however, it was Jacusz who left the island.

Also taken out of the game was Willard Smith, 57, of Bellevue, Wash. Smith was a member of the Koror tribe, which had gone to no previous Tribal Council meeting since "Survivor: Palau" debuted Feb. 17.

As regular viewers know, Tribal Councils are the events at which the show's Pacific island castaways vote fellow players off the island -- and out of the show's competition for a $1 million prize to be awarded to the player who outlasts the rest. Usually, one meeting boots one player off the island per episode, as whichever of the game's two competing tribes that has lost that week's Immunity Challenge goes to Tribal Council.

On this week's episode, which aired a day early because of tonight's network coverage of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament, there was no tribal immunity to be won.

There was a reward challenge, however, and it was Koror that won the chance to eat a meal of stew, bread and root beer while attending the Tribal Council meeting of the tired, hungry and beaten Ulong members.

Rahman received some bitter words from his fellow Ulong members after his poor showing in the challenge that lost Ulong the hot meal and cool beverages.

"At the challenge, we had it in the bag, then Ibrehem," said an angry Miller in the episode. "We lost because of him. He gave up. His heart was not in it."

The game's setting is one of the 83 Paluan islands just north of the equator in the Pacific Ocean. The island is populated with palm trees, rats and relics from World War II. A sunken Japanese vessel just off the shore was the site of this week's reward challenge. Members of each tribe had to race to the wreck and retrieve Saki bottles that were planted by the TV crew, and the first tribe to retrieve six bottles won the stew and the opportunity to watch the other tribe's Tribal Council.

"The winning tribe will leave council with full bellies and some potential vital information that will help them later in the game," series host Jeff Probst advised the

players.

Koror won the challenge, and his fellow Ulong players blamed Rahman because he wasted valuable time in unfruitful attempts to dive below the water for Saki bottles. He retrieved none, and Koror was the first tribe to bring back six bottles.

"I pretty much lost it for the whole team," Rahman admitted. "I guess I panicked a little bit."

Drinkard indicated he would vote to expel Rahman. "It's fair to vote Ibrehem tonight," he said.

But Rahman won immunity for at least this episode, and the Ulongs had another target to consider.

About the ill-fated Jacusz, Mobile's Miller had some harsh words earlier in the episode, when his tribe had become lost in the jungle while seeking shelter from a storm: "Angie wanted to quit," he said. "She is one of those folks who says, 'I can't do this. We are never going to find it.' Never say never."

Miller told his fellow Ulongs, "We cannot quit. Do not falter. Y'all want to win? Do not quit."

Ulong ended the episode diminished to four members -- three being from Alabama. Koror is stronger, with eight members going into the sixth episode, which next week will also air Wednesday night because of next Thursday's basketball preemption of regular programming on CBS.

The Koror tribesmen who sided against Smith said they did so because he was their weakest member. Tom Westman, 41, of Sayville, N.Y., was particularly annoyed when Smith would not stay awake during one night to tend the camp's fire.

"Survivor" continues to be the top reality show for CBS, consistently ranking in the Top 10 among all prime-time television programs. The March 10 episode was the sixth-most-watched program of last week, netting 21.8 million viewers, according to the ratings firm Nielsen Media Research.