'Survivor' (CBS)
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Ah…tribe swaps. One minute your on top of a team of beauties and the next you’re sent packing by a bunch of brains.
It seems unfair, but if it happens in the fifth episode of every three-tribe season isn’t it just part of the game?
I spoke with the latest victim of the buff droppin’ the morning after her elimination and asked her this question. During this chat we also discussed the ladies’ alliance, lying tells, and more…
Gordon Holmes: Why?!
Anna Khait: (Laughs) I’m in tears crying!
Holmes: I don’t understand!
Khait: It’s such a bummer. I was out of the game sitting here thinking, “This is brutal!” Ugh…
Holmes: Once you realized that Julia was going to join the tribe that lost, did you realize that the Beauties were in trouble? Because it was the same story on both tribes.
Khait: Oh yeah. I knew right away. We had the twist where we drop our buffs and I realized that the girls were all separated and I don’t have the numbers anymore. Two Beauty, Three Brains, and One Brawn. And then there’s the twist of Julia replacing the person who gets eliminated. That twist put a huge target on my back. It really sucked. It made it really obvious.
Holmes: I’ve always felt that swaps are unfair. But lately the fifth episode of three-tribe seasons have been having swaps. Did you expect it?
Khait: The thing is, at that time there were thirteen people so it didn’t cross my mind. I knew that it was coming soon. I know that Jeff throws in tribe swaps pretty early in the game. And I knew that Brawn had three people so it was a good time to do it. But, the numbers didn’t make sense. It’s an odd number of people. Obviously Jeff had his awesome twist. Jeff and his twists…
Holmes: He’s the worst.
Holmes: Do you think the Brains threw the challenge?
Khait: I don’t think so. Honestly, I was watching everyone. Everyone was hustling and working. Peter and I got a hang of the puzzle, but it took a good minute. And it seemed like Neal and Debbie had done that puzzle before. They killed that puzzle, the completely blew us out of the water. I’d understand why they would throw it, but I don’t think they did. Neal and Debbie just really kicked our butts. Even Jeff said so.
Holmes: Aubry and Peter seem to be at odds. Were there any cracks there you could work with?
Khait: Yes, I tried to work it. Peter told me, “Joe doesn’t strategize, don’t worry about him.” And the first thing Joe says is, “Oh, Peter is on the bottom. He’s out.” And I thought this is a great place to start. I tried to throw Peter under the bus for a long time, but I knew the Brains were smart. I knew they didn’t want to lose their numbers. And what really solidified that they weren’t going to vote him out was when their body language told me they were not voting for him.
Holmes: Ah…the poker tells. What are some examples of that?
Khait: I was aware that Peter wrote Aubry’s name down at the Tribal where Liz got eliminated. So, I knew that Aubry did not like Peter. She was so frazzled about the fact that he wrote her name down. So, when her body language wasn’t as excited as I expected it to be and then Joe wasn’t looking me in the eyes I thought, “This isn’t good. Let’s try something else. Let’s try Tai.” I knew Peter was against me, so I wasn’t sure if I should go to him and try to get Aubry out. I was worried that he’d go back to them and I’d be really screwed. So, Tai is injured, he can’t perform in challenges that well. I thought I could try to get him out. I told people that he was sneaky and was looking for the idol. I genuinely adore Tai. In the game I didn’t trust him, but I liked him. I knew I could align with him, but he’d cut me at any minute. He knows what he’s doing. I think in retrospect it was the best plan, but I had a huge target on my back with Julia coming back in.
Holmes: Alright, word association. Let’s start with Michele.
Khait: Super sweet. Funny, goofy, and really fun to hang out with. I’m sorry, I’m babbling.
Holmes: There are no rules here, Anna. You say what you wanna say. Let’s try Scot.
Khait: Super tall. I like his vibe out there. He was definitely paying attention to the game. I think he understood that he’d be a big threat after the merge. He’s aware of the fact that athletes get picked off post-merge. He was trying his hardest to make sure that he had loyal people around him. And my first impressions of watching the Brawn tribe crumble and pick on Alecia…we saw from the side. It was hard to watch. But my first impression was this guy is not very nice. He’s probably going to pick on me. But he was cool when I met him. I had no problem with him out there.
Holmes: Aubry?
Khait: A smart player. I told the camera that I think Aubry can go really far because she’s likable, she’s playing, and she’s unsuspecting…unsuspectful…crap…I know the word I’m looking for. (Laughs)
Holmes: (Laughs) I know the word you’re looking for, but it’s escaping me too.
Khait: (Laughs) I thought she was a big threat. She’d fly under the radar.
Holmes: Joe?
Khait: Super sweet. Reminded me of Rudy from earlier seasons. Lovable, loyal, he’s honest. And once he put his eyes down I knew that he was lying to me. It’s really easy to read him. I enjoyed my time with him.
Holmes: Caleb?
Khait: Beast mode! Monster, this guy gave it his all. Really fun person to play with. Super loyal. Takes a long time to get to his core. He really wasn’t giving off too much information about himself. That shows me that he’s loyal. He’s strong. And he’s a beast in challenges. It was crazy to watch. We wouldn’t have won that first challenge without him.
Holmes: Tai?
Khait: Adorable, animal lover, sweetheart, huge heart. I connected with him off the bat because of that. I’m a huge animal lover myself. I rescue dogs in my spare time. Seeing how much he respected nature. He ate everything he could in terms of on the fish…he’d eat the eyes, every little piece of chicken, all the yucky stuff. He doesn’t waste stuff. I fell in love with him out there, but in the game he is a threat.
Holmes: Nick?
Khait: He seemed narcissistic out there. He kind of rubbed me the wrong way. I didn’t trust him. I felt like he was giving me a look that I’ve had many times of “Hey, are we good? Are we good?” I knew he was playing the game. I knew Nick would be coming after me the most. He was alert to the fact that I was playing the game and I was getting the girls together. He figured it out. He tried to come after me even after we won immunity. I was dead right on what I thought of him. He was a big target for me because he knew to come after me.
Holmes: Julia?
Khait: Sweetheart, loyal, amazing. My first instinct before we even spoke on that boat was, “I want to work with her.” I was really happy to know that she wanted to work with me too. Her age worked too because if she tried to lie to me I’d be able to see right through it. Such a sweetheart, completely loyal. She was the one person in the game who I did not lie to. It’s important to have that person that you consider loyal.
Holmes: Let’s finish with Peter.
Khait: I didn’t like him when I first met him. Also seemed narcissistic to me. I knew he was playing the game. To me he seemed pompous out there. I knew he was on the bottom, but he was still very cocky. I don’t really get along with cocky people too much.
Holmes: Longest word association ever. We’re out of time. You have to play again so we can talk again.
Khait: (Laughs) Sounds good!
Any Questions? Drop me a line on Twitter: @gordonholmes
Tags: survivor, survivor kaoh rong
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