Adios, Ami

Ami, the self-righteous coffee house clerk from Colorado, was booted off the island on Thursday's "Survivor: Vanuatu" when she misplaced her trust in the doe eyes of Eliza, the episode's linchpin.

Night 30 for the Alinta Tribe and directly after the previous Tribal Council, Chris found himself in a new position, "I'm livin' with five wildcats right now, it's gonna be good."

It is clear that not only did the femme-faction crumble, but Ami had been targeted by Twila and Scout. Twila put it forth as though it were something of a class war; the proletariat rising up against bourgeois Ami.

Their chance to act on that was during the reward challenge that would grant the winners a clean hotel, food and a shower. Scout wanted Eliza to win the challenge, pointing out how skinny she's become. Eliza showed the audience her back and treated them to something that looked like a flapping bone butterfly. She'd become skinny enough that there was no fat on her.

Imagine a doggie obstacle course for people floating on water. Each contestant had to run across a series of out riggers, then dive underwater and retrieve a flag. Three flags top win.

Eliza, surpassing Ami just barely and taking first place, won a Pontiac G6.

Ami and Chris, coming in second and third, were allowed to accompany Eliza and share in the cleanliness.

At the hotel, there was an inkling of a new alliance between the challenge winners. Whether or not it is human nature or simply these people's drive to succeed that leads them to break their word and pass the blame cannot be said.

Ami tried to endear herself to Eliza and Chris, suggesting that breaking up Scout and Twila would be the most strategically beneficial move. It did not work with Chris. But Eliza, her mental and emotional state akin to that of a dumb puppy, fell for it.

When the winners came back from their hotel hideaway, the losers spent a good chunk of their time smelling them. Afterall, none of them had been clean in a month.

Scout and Twila realized immediately that Ami had been working on turning Eliza to her side. The battle lines were drawn, with the women all stabbing and attacking each other. Chris, the sole male member, watched happily from the sidelines, no longer under fire.

The Immunity Challenge was Survivor shuffleboard. Contestants were to roll their pucks onto different parts of the Vanuatu map. The player with the most pucks touching to most parts of the islands won. Ami, in an astonishingly bone-headed move, knocked herself out of the running and allowed Chris to win.

As always, there was the last minute scramble to turn the tables, to make a new and unexpected alliance, or to twist knives firmly planted in others' backs.

Eliza became the linchpin on which the game would turn.

Twila spent her time before the night's Tribal council trying to convince Eliza to vote Ami off. She wanted desperately to undue what Ami had accomplished during the overnight reward.

After her Twila-time, Eliza was being tempted and twisted by Julie and Ami. Ami overdid the faux friendships and an overbearing righteous 'morality' that wouldn't carry her beyond the game.

Ami will be on Friday's The Early Show.

By William Vitka