Survivor China: Episode 7

Jaime played her trump card at Tribal Council, but ended up looking like a joker.

The episode began with the teams lounging at their respective camps. When the rest of the Zhan Hu tribe went down to the lake, James took advantage of being momentarily left alone at to pry a hidden Immunity Idol off of their archway. There were actually two plaques nailed to the archway, and he had to pry both of them off before he could tell which one had "Congratulations" written on the back of it. That plaque was the Idol; the other one was worthless.

James took the real Immunity Idol, wrapped it in his extra pair of pants, and hid the bundle in his bag alongside the Idol he'd gotten from Todd last episode. He left the worthless plaque on the ground next to the archway, presumably to make it look as if the plaque had fallen off by itself.

Later, Jaime and Erik noticed the blank spots on the archway where the plaques had been, and noticed the dummy plaque laying on the ground. They were correct in guessing that James had probably pried both plaques off the archway. However, they were way wrong in assuming that both plaques were Immunity Idols, and that James had accidentally dropped one when he heard the rest of the tribe returning to camp.

Jaime grabbed the dummy idol and hid it in her bag.

When James and Peih-Gee went frog hunting after dark, Jaime checked inside James' bag to see if the other plaque was in there. She unrolled the bundle of pants, felt both of the real Idols hidden inside the pant legs, but never took them out to look at them. She had no idea that there was anything written on those plaques verifying their Idol status, and she just assumed that there were three Immunity Idols in play.

Early the next morning, James noticed that the blank plaque wasn't where he'd left it, and he figured Jaime had stashed it away. The mere idea made him gleeful: "The thought of this woman having a blank one -- I would not be able to take it. I would pass out in pure joy. Please, let that happen. Please. That would be the best thing ever!" In his interview, James fell over from laughing so hard.

Later that day, the tribes arrived at what they thought would be the scene of a Reward Challenge. Instead, Jeff Probst handed out new, black buffs and the two tribes merged into one.

Jeff told them they'd be partaking in a traditional feast and watching some cultural performances, but he warned that the game never stops. The Survivors noted that warning briefly, but forgot it once the booze started to flow.

Firecrackers were lit, drums were beaten, dancers danced, acrobats balanced, and some cool dudes climbed a tall pole with swords for handholds. And all the while, the contestants drank beer and chowed on sweet and spicy pork.

They returned to their permanent home at Fei Long's campsite and lazily decided on a new tribe name: Hae Da Fung, meaning "Black Fighting Wind." As they painted their new tribal flag, a guest arrived onshore. It took a while for the tipsy Survivors to realize that the guy who looked exactly like Jeff Probst who was walking up to their camp carrying a large bag was... Jeff Probst!

Jeff informed everyone that it was time for the season's first individual Immunity Challenge, and it would be one that tested their recall of things they'd just experienced at the merge feast. The Survivors collectively groaned as they realized that's what Probst had meant when he said the game never ends.

Jeff got through just a handful of questions -- How many times were fireworks lit? What color was the giant pole with the swords on it? -- before the field was reduced to Frosti and Jaime. Frosti correctly remembered that the dancing girls weren't wearing anything on their feet, and he became the first to win individual Immunity.

With the challenge over, it was time to figure out who to vote out. Todd and Amanda planned for all of the original Fei Long members to vote for Jaime. They had their work cut out for them trying to convince Courtney not to vote for Jean-Robert -- and trying to convince Jean-Robert not to go rogue and vote for Peih-Gee. John Robert said he wanted to get rid of Peih-Gee now, because he liked her, and he was afraid that he would like her too much to vote her out in a few days.

To give them extra incentive to make their plan work, James told Todd and Amanda that he suspected Jaime of thinking her blank plaque was an Immunity Idol. Todd got confirmation of this when Jaime pulled him aside and promised to reveal the names of the two people who possessed Immunity Idols -- but only if he kept her around for another few days. Todd kept a straight face while listening to her, but later said, "Wow, does she have to catch up."

Jaime and Erik were actually feeling pretty good, since they thought they had an Immunity Idol on their side. They and Peih-Gee were planning on voting for Jean-Robert, and they filled Frosti in on the plan. For some reason, they also thought that James had switched over to their side.

But incredibly, even though Peih-Gee told Jaime that Courtney had voted for Jean-Robert at the last Tribal Council, they never approached Courtney about joining with them. Idol fever must have addled Jaime's brain as she bragged, "If Todd sees me play that hidden Immunity Idol tonight, he's definitely going to be floored when he sees it come out. Everyone's going to be shocked, even Jeff."

Jaime was absolutely right, but for the wrong reasons. After the votes were cast (but before they were announced), Jaime presented the plaque to Jeff, sending Jean-Robert into a panic. Jeff explained the rules regarding what happens when an Immunity Idol is played, and then stated, "This, however, is not an Immunity Idol," and chucked the plaque into the fire. Jean Robert bowed his head in relief.

Jaime lost to Jean-Robert 7 votes to 3, and she became the first member of the jury.

Next week, Peih-Gee tries to save herself, and Todd loses the support of his followers when he targets James.