Survivor Tocantins: The competition heats up

MANILA, Philippines - The battle for the million and the title of Sole Survivor gets more interesting as tribes Timbira and Jalapao came into a merge last Friday on Q-11’s Survivor Tocantins.

It seemed at first that another intense Reward Challenge was in store as Jalapao (J.T., Stephen, Joe, and Taj) and Timbira (Coach, Tyson, Brendan, Debbie, Sierra, and Erinn) received a clue to a feast as reward. But when members of both tribes found sumptuous food, thirst quenchers, green bands, plus a note waiting for them at a hut, it came to them that the whole thing marked the start of the merge. To make it more official, the castaways came up with Forza, which is Portuguese for strength, as the new tribe’s name.

The possibility of new alliances was confirmed at the merge. As soon as former Jalapao members transferred to their new home at Timbira camp, Coach and J.T. came to an agreement to always keep things real between them and to bring Tyson and Stephen in. Coach disclosed the plan to Tyson, who in turn talked to Stephen and Debbie.

Meanwhile, the Exile Alliance seemed to be on a weak standing. Taj was worried with Brendan’s silence as he had not said any word to her, Stephen, or Sierra about their alliance since the beginning of the merge. Brendan, on the other hand, intended to lay low so as not to give away any more hints about the alliance.

At the Immunity Challenge, Tyson was awarded the first Individual Immunity for outlasting everyone in hanging on to a pole with feet off the ground. There, host Jeff Probst noticed Joe’s infected leg and asked the show’s medic to attend to him. Joe was then forced to leave Survivor for a thorough medical examination.

In preparation for Tribal Council, Coach and his allies agreed to plot Brendanís exit through a blind side. Their goal was to keep him from playing his Immunity Idol. However, Jeff announced Joe’s evacuation, which in effect cancelled the day’s Tribal Council.

Catch Survivor Tocantins Fridays, via satellite at 2 p.m., with primetime telecast at 7:25 p.m.