Survivor Panama Second Episode Thoughts

Well, that was a bit disappointing. Melinda was handed a golden opportunity to flip things and get rid of Shane, but seemed too absorbed in how "hopeless" her situation was. As much as I appreciate how it could feel to be ganged up on, it's still a shame that Melinda didn't even try.

Here's what I said about Melinda:
For some reason, when I saw her picture I thought of Belinda Carlisle. Sure enough, she's a professional singer. But I don't see her doing well. She has minimal skills to help her in the wild. That can wear on others. And she doesn't seem to be a physical threat, so she can't play that up to help her in the early going.

Ultimately, her survival will be based on her likeability. If she is well-liked, she will make it to the jury and be one of "tough" vote offs that nobody wants to do but know they have to in order to win.


What went unsaid there was that if she was unlikeable, she would be getting an early boot. I don't know if she was that unliked, but she didn't endear herself to anybody. And as soon as she found out that she was the target, she folded quicker than a cheap folding chair. She deserved to go.

With that said, I really hope that Shane's alliance is solid, because he's in danger of getting voted out and replaced by somebody like a Bruce who wants to be there, and likely isn't stupid enough to out their alliance before the first vote.

Meanwhile, Terry is proving to be a dominant physical player, and he has his wits about him when it comes to making an alliance. Teaming up with the young guys is a smart move - in the short term the strongest are less likely to get the boot, and in the long term it gives your alliance the best chance of getting individual immunity wins.

The short term storyline I'm looking forward to finishing is the who will Austin and Nick choose to side with. As I mentioned, Terry is the horse to ride to the finish, but for Nick and Austin, they might not be thinking with their big head.

And now, the return of the main list...

Most likely to win:

1. Terry
2. Misty
3. Bruce
4. Danielle
5. Courtney
6. Aras
7. Sally
8. Austin
9. Nick
10. Bobby
11. Ruth Marie
12. Dan
13. Cirie
14. Shane

So who goes next week? Dan or Cirie, depending on which tribe loses. Dan for all of the reasons I listed last week, and Cirie because it's going to take a miracle for her to get into the inside of the core alliance.