‘Survivor Caramoan: Fans vs. Favorites’ preview: The merge (and nasty food) arrive

Sometimes, Jeff Probst and the folks over at “Survivor” do a pretty great job at reading our mind. We were just starting to feel as though it had been a while since we had seen a food challenge on the show, and Wednesday night’s new “Fans vs. Favorites” episode is going to have that. Not only that, but we are also set to see something else that is always a blast to watch: a merge. This is especially great news for the miserable group of people that made up Bikal, who were probably sure to lose Michael next if things continued to go their way.

But is the game truly reset now that the two tribes are together? It’s a good question, but one that will likely take a little bit of time in order to answer. We are sure that there will probably be some within the Stealth R Us organization that want to get back together, but there are some problems with that. For one, Corinne and Phillip hate each other, and eventually the thought of living together for a while longer will probably end up driving one of them to insanity. Also, there is the issue known as Malcolm’s all-guy alliance with Eddie, Reynold, and Erik.

The way in which these castaways vote is also something that is going to definitely shift. Players like Cochran and Sherri are now likely to go far, while all of the strong, physical guys become threats. The biggest person to watch here, though, could be Dawn, who has shown some craftiness this season in between some of her frequent tears.

Be sure to check back tomorrow for all of our “Survivor” rankings (which will be daily from here on out). Meanwhile, you can also read our interview with the recently-eliminated Julia Landauer here.

Photo: CBS