It's Thursday night...the greatest night ever for a reality tv addict...also known as "why Mark Burnett is a reality genius" night. And thanks to the magic that is tivo, I can watch them again and again. Sigh...

First, you have to understand that while I love reality tv, Survivor is my favorite. Not just my favorite reality show; my favorite of any show. So it's no surprise that I am sure happy it's Thursday. And since I heard through the grapevine that they were going to have to choose immunity over food tonight, I was more excited than usual.

The episode started with what really had to be the lamest merge ever. I'm sure that it seemed like a good idea to surprise the survivors with the merge. In fact, as I'm typing this, it seems like a really good idea...the kind that should make for good television. But it wasn't all they thought it would be. I think it had a lot to do with the fact that they woke up Nakum...I know how I am when someone wakes me up in the middle of the night (I was that person who needed to be woken up by my roomates in college if the fire alarm went off...I am that sound of a sleeper). But the more interesting thing was the talk by Bobby Jon on the way to Nakum...I knew he didn't like Jamie, but what about Steph? I thought they were friends. That was strange. (and then later he begs her to keep him around for the jury) I was also glad to see that the four of them were going to stick together strong.

Now, it's smart in the game of Survivor to stick together. But it is not smart to flaunt that "stickyness" to others. First, the old Yaxha goes off to fish together, allowing the others to plot against them. Did none of you watch any of the other seasons of the show? Really? Because you all should really know better.

The other stupid flaunting of "stickyness" (is that even a word?) was Jamie. Jamie Jamie Jamie. What on earth were you thinking? Remember in Marqueses when John's group of four pretty much laid out the pecking order? John went home next!!! Please tell me that you are not one of those players who didn't watch the other seasons. I am shocked that you lived to see another tribal council. Of course, that was a great immunity/reward challenge...nothing quite like choosing food over immunity. In the back of their heads, they have got to be thinking that they might be eating million dollar chicken wings.

Which leads me to my next question. Most reality shows have a clause in their contracts that the contestants sign about physical violence. Physical violence against another contestant generally gets you booted. On some shows, even threatening physical violence will get you out. So, I am wondering if Survivor has this type of clause. Because between Bobby Jon and Jaime, you know that something is bound to happen. I think that Jeff Probst is just hoping it doesn't happen when he is around (did you know that he is dating Julie from Vanuatu? really!). The look on his face at tribal council made me so thankful for tivo...i watched it over and over and over...

The other twist tonight I'm still not sure if I like the idea of the extra immunity idol. I wonder if Mark Burnett had already thought up this twist at the beginning of the show, or if he added it later (if you can't tell, Mark Burnett might be the person I would most like to have dinner with...I would just love to sit and talk Survivor with him). I wonder this about a lot of the twists, and I've never really gotten a good answer. It definitely plays with their minds, which adds a whole other dimension to the game.

I'm sad to see Brandon go...he really is a good guy. And they really could have voted Jamie off and still had the numbers advantage. I would pay good money to see the uncut version of tribal council (Mark Burnett...if you want to make more money, sell a subsrciption on the web, or show it on pay-per-view). I know that they edit it down to show us the best scenes, but I think with this group, watching the entire council straight through (they usually last upwards of an hour) would be excellent.

I can't believe I have to wait another week for a new episode...