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Hello good people and thank you for joining me for the second in my 3-part series previewing the 35th season of Survivor. In case you missed it, you should really go back and check out Part 1 of my preview - an in depth look at the Hero Tribe!

Ok, now that we're all on the same page, I'm here today to talk about the Healers tribe, called Soko. They will be wearing the yellow buffs to start the season. Everyone on this tribe has a job that in some way, benefits other people. Whether it's the extremely obvious, like a urologist and nurse practitioner, or physical and/or mental therapist or the more abstract wilderness therapy guide and probation officer - one thing that can be said about all 6 members of this tribe, they spend a large bulk of their time putting other people first. They work with other people to make their lives better. Until now - now, they're taking time for themselves and don't let their giving nature in real life fool you. This group won't have any problem doing what it takes to come home a new millionaire. As always, we'll preview players in alphabetical order.

Cole Medders (24 - Wilderness Therapy Guide) - Oh boy. Watch out Malcolm. Step aside Joey Amazing. Cole is in town. And if you're to believe all of the other players, Cole has basically been sent down from Olympus to participate on Survivor. A chiseled Greek God, of sorts, with muscles on his muscles. Everyone is already crushing on Cole. And then you find out that his job, what he does for a living is he takes troubled kids out into the woods and helps them live and thrive without the comforts of home and helps them work through all sorts of mental and emotional trauma. The only way he could be more perfect is if he ran a no kill rescue shelter on the side. I have to say, in everything I've seen and read about Cole, he is pretty much the perfect example of a Survivor player too. He definitely has winner upside. Normally, I would think him the perfect merge boot, but unless he turns into a complete asshole on the island, everyone wants to play with this kid, so even when the tribes merge, I'd expect people to be climbing all over themselves to be his #2. I'm not sure he'll be my winner pick, but he's in the discussion. Cole is also a Season 1 Survivor fan, so he understands the game. Having to deal with troubled teens who are always out to manipulate him, he feels that he'll be able to suss out the BS and know when people are lying to him. My only worry for Cole is that he might fall under the spell of one of the ladies in the cast. He strikes me as a guy who just might blow his game over a cute girl.



Desiree "Desi" Williams (27 - Physical Therapist) - Speaking of the cute girls, Cole is gonna have his work cut out for him within his own tribe. Temptation - thy name is Desi. Desi has a background in the pageant world and according to everyone else is in incredible shape. And, if you sleep on her because you think she's the pretty girl who doesn't pay attention to anything, then you are in for a major surprise. Desi is a recruit, meaning that someone in casting saw her and invited her to try out for the show. But, in preparation for playing the game, she did binge as many seasons as she could and she feels like she has a pretty solid handle on things. And considering all of the other players are intrigued by her (in a good way) - she's in for a long run on the show. Like Cole, everyone wants to work with her, hangout with her and be her friend. That bodes well for Desi. Her fear is that she's used to being in control of things. She's a physical therapist and her job is to make people do things they don't want to do or think they can't do. You can't be a pushover in that kind of job. She's worried that if she gets out there and starts bossing people around, she could find herself in trouble quick. Given the fact that she recognizes this, I think she'll be ok in that regard. My fear is that the rest of the cast may decide that she is too well rounded and too much of a threat and that they'll send her home because of it. That's my fear, though, not what I think will happen. She's going far.

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