Survivor: China

Okay, so it looks like I'm going to watch this season of Survivor. For a while I was watching every season. I loved the first and second installments, and then kept a diligent eye on the show every year, right up to the All-Star season. The show appeals to my fascination with any sort of story-telling where one person after another gets picked off (which is why I don't care for shows like the Real World, where the behavior is everything).

I didn't get to watch a season for the first time a few years ago, because of my job at the movie theater (that was the one that Tom the fireman won). I did watch the season that the tribes were mixed by race, and thought that was pretty good, but the last one, set in Fiji, I gave up on. It seemed like the show was getting tired, and trying to add new wrinkles to make it interesting but failing. I guess I'm not the only one who thought so, because even host Jeff Probst said he didn't like that season.

I think I'm going to watch this time, though. For one thing, NBC has graciously moved The Office, my favorite TV comedy, to nine o'clock, so I have no conflict. And, after watching the premiere episode last night, I think this one has some promise. It's not overly populated with mactors (model/actors), and has a generous portion of real people. Of course there is eye candy for both men and women: a WWE wrestler, Ashley Massaro, posed for Playboy this year, and a Louisiana gravedigger named James has one of the most impressive physiques I've ever seen. He looks as if he were drawn by a superhero comic-book artist.

Ashley almost went first, because she got sick for a day. I would imagine the two rings in her lips and her absurdly inflated breasts won't endear her to everyone on her tribe. But she dodged a bullet because Chicken, a farmer from Virginia, was the first to be booted. It's kind of a shame, because he was a real character, as if played by Walter Brennan. He got caught in a classic Survivor bind, though. He knew how to live in the woods, but was reluctant to throw his weight around. Then, when his input was needed, he was afraid he'd be seen as a leader and demurred. He was probably in a no-win situation. Also, he was quite a bit older than anyone on his tribe, and old folks have a tendency of being immediately removed.

As for the rest, many contestants didn't get any face time. I did acquire a quick loathing for Courtney, a New York City waitress who was rolling her eyes at everyone else, and Leslie is on shaky ground with me. She's a Christian radio host who didn't have the courtesy to go through a Buddhist ceremony. She said she's not religious, but at the same time said she has a personal relationship with Jesus. Uh huh. I don't have a favorite yet, though Jaime the student who did not wear a bra could be, as well as the grave digger, who is worried about his lack of social skills. I guess in that job you don't really need them.