“In these challenges I am going to kick ass because puzzles lay down for me like lovers,” Berks County resident Debbie Wanner says during the opening sequence of Survivor: Kaôh Rōng . Perhaps the most memorable quote of the night, Debbie’s confidence appears to hold weight. After winning the first immunity challenge of season, her tribe successfully evaded the dreaded first tribal council and secured themselves a hefty fire making kit.
Returning to a twist introduced in the Philippines, this season of Survivor has divided its contestants into three tribes: Brains vs. Beauty vs. Brawn. A local Kutztown University graduate and chemist, Debbie was cast in the Brains tribe, Chanloh. However, before the season’s premier, she revealed that the casting had surprised her.
“I was completely expecting to go to Brawn,” she says, thinking of her athleticism and service in the Air Force Auxiliary. “I was flattered to be called a brain, but quite frankly, it’s a lofty moniker to have to live up to.”
Despite initial doubts, by the end of the episode it is clear Debbie would not have been better off on the Brawn tribe, Totang. Unable to gain a foothold in the game, Totang struggled from the beginning. Before the challenge, Jennifer Lanzetti is brought to tears after an insect burrows into her ear during the night. Bleeding and unable to sleep, there is nothing she can do but wait. Her tribe worries she will have to be medically evacuated from the game, crippling them from the start.
Fortunately, she recovers. But just as your skin stops crawling, Darnell Hamilton loses Totang’s only pair of goggles in an underwater challenge. Despite significant efforts to make up for lost time, the tribe ultimately finishes in last place. They join host Jeff Probst at tribal council, where Darnell Hamilton is the first person voted off Survivor: Kaôh Rōng. He leaves his tribe divided after an initially tied vote.
Tune into CBS Wednesday, Feb. 24 at 8pm for episode two and check back with Berks County Living online for weekly recaps with Debbie Wanner. An ominous warning from Jeff Probst reveals Debbie may not be fitting in with her tribe. Will this make her time on Survivor short lived? Find out next week.
