Survivor: Caramoan...Crackpots R Us

So...It seems that crazy is contagious. What else would explain the continued support of the non compos mentis self-appointed leader of the Bikal tribe by its members? His "leadership" is not wanted and his fantasy role play is mocked, yet his instructions are followed, losses are suffered, and his reign continues. Phillip thinks he can pretend to be Boston Rob and win this game. Do his subordinates really think that they can play Phillip the way that Boston Rob did and win this game? If so, then dysfunctional thinking is communicable, and these people will be lucky to survive the Merge.

Except Cochran. He seems to be the only member of the Bikal tribe playing his own game rather than bumbling along as a pale imitation of Boston Rob. It may be true that Cochran pulls Phillip's strings on occasion, but he does it with a subtlety and humanity that Boston Rob lacked, making Cochran's only similarity to him easy to forgive.

The most irritatingly bothersome of Phillip's inferiors is Dawn, vying for Andrea's title of Biggest Blabbermouth. She reported directly to Phillip after Julia told her in strictest confidence that she had been assigned a top secret double agent mission and ordered not to discuss it with anyone. Julia may have been the boring one of the group, but she demonstrated her immunity to the Boston Rob Syndrome rampaging the Bikal camp when she challenged Dawn's delusions by proxy, questioning the tribe's subservience to an obvious headcase. Nothing, not even the use of the word 'bully', triggered Dawn's ability to think for herself, but was enough to put Julia in Phillip's cross-hairs when Dawn blabbed to him.

Which brings us to the Immunity Challenge that Phillip "confessed" to Cochran he threw to ensure that the tribe would go into the Merge with one less "fan" to threaten their numbers. He lied. He either blew the challenge and his pride wouldn't allow him to admit it because of the debacle his "leadership" created of the Reward Challenge, or he did indeed let Reynold beat him at Grappling Hook Toss, but it was not for the good of the tribe as he claimed, but to punish Julia for her insubordination.

Dissension in the ranks almost led to a reprieve for Julia when Corinne dared to defy Phillip and refused to split the "favorites" votes between Julia and Michael, outing her alliance with Michael and causing Phillip to target Michael because that is what the crazy in his head was telling him Boston Rob would do. But sanity (Cochran?) managed to prevail at Tribal Council, the tie that Corinne had not wanted forcing a second vote that unanimously booted the sixth "fan" from the game.

I hope that Boston Rob is proud of the travesty his disciples have made of this season.

Survivor: Caramoan...Don't Talk To Me

Guess what. Shamar has a No Talking List. I kid you not. Gota's most obnoxious resident has created a list of fellow tribe members that are not allowed to talk to him. At the tippy top of said list is Reynold, who is (according to Shamar) a disgusting human being that won't share critical eye-wear during challenges, and Eddie, who is a loyal follower of Reynold and, therefore, persona non grata. I'm not sure which is more ludicrous...the existence of this list or the self-righteous indignation of Shamar whenever Reynold dares to violate it just to agitate him.

Not on Shamar's No Talking List is Hope, who benefits from his diarrhea of the mouth disorder when he blabs that she and Eddie better pack up before the next Tribal Council because one of them is going home. She uses this information to create chaos in the opposing alliance by blabbing to Julia, who proves the contagiousness of the disorder by blabbing Shamar's misdeed to everyone else. Too bad for Hope (and her ever diminishing clique) that all that running off at the mouth didn't accomplish anything, unless handing Jeff ammunition for Tribal Council counts as an accomplishment.

Speaking of Jeff...How easy is his job this season? Between the varying degrees of crazy loose in both tribes, the escalating acts of incompetence (like Reynold "hiding" his immunity idol in his girly pants), and the shocking willingness of all those motormouths to spill their guts with very little provocation, there is no shortage of fodder for our favorite reality show referee to choose from during quality sharing time, otherwise known as Tribal Council. The only real difficulty that he faces this season is making these people seem likable or competent, which is not possible as long as they are allowed to continue to speak.

There's a lot of talking going on over at the Bikal camp too, mostly by resident loonies Phillip, who, in addition to his prodigious abilities in the field of federal law enforcement, also possesses mad skills on the basketball court, and Brandon, who is ready to defile his tribe's supply of beans in retaliation for any wrong (real or perceived) committed against him. We also shouldn't overlook Andrea, who is operating solely on paranoia (jealousy?) and is targeting Corinne for being too close to Malcolm. Should Crazy R Us make it to the merge, I predict that they find themselves on Shamar's No Talking List.

Guess what. I have a No Talking List too. Shut up Shamar.