The 115 Funniest Things to Ever Happen on Survivor

#36. Bobby Jon versus Jamie
Guatemala - Multiple Episodes


This was one of my favorite Survivor feuds of all time. Bobby Jon against Jamie. Southern gentleman against Southern gentleman. The pride of Georgia against the pride of Alabama... in a no-holds-barred fight to the very end.

Bobby Jon Drinkard (L) and Jamie Newton (R)

The funniest thing about the Bobby Jon/Jamie feud was the fact that you had two normally calm and reserved people going absolutely apeshit and getting in each other's face every single chance they could. They hated one another with a passion, they went out of their way to antagonize and show up one another on the battlefield, and personally I thought the whole thing was just hilarious. I mean, these guys were so similar and so quiet for the most part, but when it came to challenges they turned into absolute pitbulls. And they did it week after week after week! I loved it!

Overall, I'd have to say that the most satisfying aspect of "Bobby Jon versus Jamie" was that the feud actually lasted half a season. Unlike other Survivor feuds, this one was actually part of the storyline, and it actually factored into the plot of the season. It wasn't over in one episode or one tiny little moment. Like Colby Donaldson, this feud actually had some teeth to it.

I can't tell you how much I enjoyed the inevitable Bobby Jon/Jamie showdown each week. For me, it literally was the highlight of the Guatemala season. In fact I don't think I've ever enjoyed a Survivor moment as much as their face-off/shout-off/spit-off during the giant rock challenge. That was absolutely a thing of beauty. Because here you have two guys who normally mumble every other word when they talk (and even say "yes ma'am" or "yes sir" when answering questions). Yet during the rock challenge they're shouting spit-filled epithets at one another from half a centimeter away. It was awesome!

So anyway, here's the summary of my favorite Survivor feud of all time, the epic struggle between (mean and insane) Jamie Newton and (intense and insane) Bobby Jon Drinkard. Here is the recap from start to finish, including my unofficial scorecard for each successive round.

It's up to you to decide who actually won in the end.

~~~ DRINKARD v. NEWTON, Fight Recap ~~~

Round 1: One of Bobby Jon Drinkard's most endearing traits is the fact that he tends to be an absolute maniac in challenges. He screams, he spits, he loses all semblance of rational behavior, and it's like he turns into an entirely different person.

But the thing that really stands out about Bobby Jon is the way he celebrates when his tribe wins. Because when Bobby Jon is celebrating, he doesn't just celebrate like a normal person. No, when Bobby Jon celebrates... he CELEBRATES. And we see this when Nakum wins the "tent build" challenge in episode three. Nakum wins the challenge, Nakum wins reward, and Bobby Jon is so excited that he starts jumping up and down like a maniac. He literally gets about four feet of air because he is jumping so high, and this over-exuberant celebration is fairly typical of a Bobby Jon victory reaction. It's the sort of thing that makes for great TV, but it's also the sort of thing that really gets under the skin of the opposing tribe. Especially if they're already upset over the fact that they lost...

Round 1 scorecard: Drinkard 10, Newton 9

One minute before Bobby Jon goes into psycho mode

Bobby Jon hurtles past them with his legs spread in the air, and this is really too much for Jamie and the Nakums to take. Stephenie later describes Bobby Jon as "cheering like a freaking girl" and says "he gets so gay I can't stand it." And Jamie agrees. Jamie says that he's going to imitate Bobby Jon the next time that Nakum wins a challenge...

The stage is now set for the actual fighting to begin.

Round 2 scorecard: Drinkard 10, Newton 9

Round 4: Alright, now the feud is really intensifying. We've officially reached a Bloods-and-Crips level of retribution and now the two combatants are just trying to to outdo one another. And in episode six we finally cross the line of no return.

It's the "giant ball" reward challenge and Yaxha and Nakum are facing off in an attempt to roll the ball over the opposing tribe. And when Jamie defeats Bobby Jon in round two, this is where the shit really starts to hit the fan. Jamie wins, Jamie cheers loudly and obnoxiously in an exaggerated impression of Bobby Jon, and... well... that's when the fun begins. See below:

Jamie cheers wildly and loudly, and Bobby Jon decides he's not going to take it anymore.

So he confronts him.

And a screaming match ensues.

Bobby Jon and Jamie start screaming at one another from point-blank range like alley cats. They bump chests, saliva flies everywhere, and it's very hard to pick out an intelligible word during the entire exchange (although Bobby Jon appears to say "That's what I like!" at some point.) But it's just a wonderful moment of insane testosterone that leaves the rest of the players stunned into silence. No one knows what to say once Bobby Jon and Jamie peel themselves apart. The look on Brian Corridan's face is especially priceless. He has no idea what he's supposed to think about all of this.

Brian's first glimpse into red-state testosterone

By the way, I can't say enough about this scene. It's an A+ comedic scene all around, from start to finish, and it's one of my favorite scenes of the Guatemala season. The whole screaming fit/chest-bumping scene is so beautiful it almost brings a tear to my eye, even to this day. *sniff*

Round 4 scorecard: Drinkard 10, Newton 10 (a draw)

Round 5: This is the round-between-the-rounds, and it consists of Bobby Jon and Jamie discussing what just happened with their tribesmates. This round consists solely of a war of words. This one is more like the Cold War.

~~Nakum Post-fight Comments:~~

* JAMIE: "Bobby Jon hit a new nut level. It's like he hit a flip switch."

* STEPHENIE: "But he's always like that!"
RAFE: "It was almost like...(long thoughtful pause) Is Bobby Jon crazy?"
STEPHENIE: "Yeah."

* JAMIE: "I thought it was about to go to blows, you know? Just Southern people. We're crazy and we know it."

~~Yaxha Post-fight Comments:~~

* BOBBY JON: "Jamie's kind of cocky and arrogant. And there's a line you cross with me. And, um, he crossed it today. And I just went over and I put him in his place."

* BOBBY JON (to Brandon): "You want to buck up, that's fine. But... um... there's another bear out in the woods too."

Round 5 scorecard: Drinkard 10, Newton 10

Round 6: This is where things start to change a bit. Because this is where Jamie stops trying to get a reaction from Bobby Jon and just starts trying to be a dick.

It's episode eight and the two tribes have just merged. The merge takes place in the middle of the night, right after Tribal Council. Bobby Jon and his fellow Yaxhas just show up at the enemy camp one night and inform the Nakums that they are now all part of the same tribe.

Jamie's reaction to this shocking bit of news? He tells Bobby Jon that there's no room in the shelter and he'll have to go sleep outside in the cold.

Bobby Jon's reaction to this comment is somewhat predictable:

"Dude, you gonna say one more thing to me, I'm gonna knock every one of your teeth slam out of ya head."

Score one for Jamie.

Round 6 scorecard: Newton 10, Drinkard 9

Round 7: This is the moment in the game where Jamie really starts to cross the line of good taste. And he just flat out crosses over into the asshole zone.

It's the episode eight immunity challenge and Jamie's Nakums have chosen to sit this one out. Since they hold a six-four advantage in the game, the Nakums are able to sit and enjoy a feast while the Yaxhas struggle to balance a pot on their heads for immunity. Jamie sits there, eating, while obviously enjoying the sight of Bobby Jon battling for his Survivor life right in front of him. And Jamie just can't resist taunting the guy a little bit during the process...

JAMIE: "How you doin' Bobby Jon? Good?"

Jamie teases Bobby Jon all throughout the immunity challenge, and this draws a fair bit of ire from Jamie's own teammates on Nakum. They can't believe he is actually doing this. And while Jamie technically wins this round (via knockdown), this scene also leads to a fair amount of backlash against him later in the game. People just don't like Jamie very much after the way he treats Bobby Jon during this immunity challenge.

Later in the episode, Bobby Jon gives a great quote in response to the way that Jamie was taunting him: "What if I stepped off this platform with this bucket on my head and just smashed it over his head?"

Round 7 scorecard: Newton 10, Drinkard 8

So anyway, the whole Bobby Jon/Jamie feud ends with a Napoleon Dynamite reference. And that's really the only way it could have ended. Because once you invoke the Dynamite, there's really nowhere else you can go but down. Especially when Jeff Probst reacts with a slow, exasperated shaking of his head in response. A perfect ending to a perfect feud. Just an A+ effort by everybody involved.

Round 8 scorecard: Drinkard 10, Newton 8 (Not only did BJ do a Napoleon Dynamite, he also completely turned the momentum against Jamie in one fell swoop. Jamie was never again in control of this game after the way he treated Bobby Jon in episode eight).

Overall Results: Bobby Jon Drinkard wins via split decision. The judges' scorecard ended up being 76-76, but they wound up ruling in favor of Bobby Jon due to the sabotage effect this whole feud had on Jamie's chances in the game.

Bobby Jon moves on to face Ahmed "Babyface" Kaddour in round two.

POSTSCRIPT: This was one of the best (and most heated) feuds in Survivor history, mainly because the two combatants honestly and truly didn't like one another. But the most amazing thing about the whole storyline (and it truly was amazing) was the fact that Bobby Jon and Jamie were able to put aside their differences and actually become friends later in the jury. They were actually friends by the end of the game!

Why did they end up being friends?

Simple. Because Jamie was voted off right after Bobby Jon, and the two of them had plenty of time to sit there on the jury and bond while stewing about the players (Stephenie) left in the game. They were able to unite behind the spirit of hating Stephenie, they laughed whenever Stephenie said something cocky or stupid during Tribal Council, and this common bond led to arguably the most unlikely unification in Survivor history.

And to think it all came about because Stephenie sucked.

Bobby Jon and Jamie. Friends to the end. Thanks Steph.