Survivor: Tocantins - Week 4

Now I was definitely not a big fan of Sandy, at ALL, but I actually felt pretty bad for her last night. Although you pretty much knew the outcome, I think the vote last night will be one of the most crucial turning points of the game. Sandy really had the unfortunate luck of not just being on a tribe that was young, but really a season where everybody seems young. That had to be a tough vote for the group. Sandy really helped a lot in the challenges and Sydney will be one of those contestants that might ride some coattails. During tribal council, she didn't necessarily come off that she was really playing hard or cared. But when somebody annoys you, especially the way Sandy's personality was, it's hard to keep her. And you know, she could've been a REALLY wild card in the future.

It's always nice to see things even out. Even though it is so much easier to like the orange tribe, when things go back and forth, it just makes the whole season more interesting all around. It's so hard to even think of the last season where the challenges have been so close. Having the weight challenge come down to just the girls and then the puzzle challenge basically ending as close as it could had to be a producer's dream. Like I mentioned in the last email, the right people are getting voted out early which will provide for more and more drama as the season goes along.

As soon as I say how great the secret alliance is, the show teases that Tyson catches on to it and that Taj rubs her tribemates the wrong way. So I don't know how valid these next comments will be... but how lucky was it that Sierra picked Taj? And was it that hard for Brendan to find time to talk to Sierra? He almost blew that whole thing. Speaking of Sierra... when Taj basically gave her an invitation to win the game, her reaction was basically as if Taj said, "Sierra, guess what? You breathe air!" Even if this thing falls apart, I think Stephen is in the best place because you can always rely on your fishing buddy to pull you through (I'm referring to JT of course).

I think JT is going to be a dangerous player. I think he's definitely playing that "good ol' boy" card but I bet he can be just as ruthless as Tyson. Well, maybe not as much as Tyson. I love Tyson's sarcasm, although I bet some don't at all. He is a professional cyclist and as Whitney pointed out, you can tell that he wants to win, but I bet he doesn't need the cash. Which makes him a threat because I bet he will play hard just for the heck of it and being a competitor, he won't want to lose just based on principle.

So, now for your thoughts... will the secret alliance hold up? Are you relieved that Sandy is gone or do you like Sydney's coy ways? Have you been more entertained by the challenges this season? And who do you think has the best chance to win: Brendan? Taj? JT? Tyson? I think there are still a lot of possibilities out there, so it'll be interesting to see how it plays out.