Survivor Quebec | Blonde domination!

Sorry, Andre the Retiree, aka the Firebender, but the second season of Survivor Quebec was dominated from first to 42^e day by two blonde comets, powerful and enduring, namely the web editor Kassandre, 33 years old, and the real estate entrepreneur Ghyslain, 30 years old.

It was logical and expected that Kass or Ghys would win, Sunday evening, during the grand final of Survivor on the airwaves of Noovo. I was still surprised that Kassandre Bastarache, from Trois-Rivières, did not receive any votes from the jury, which unanimously crowned Ghyslain Octeau Piché, father of three young children, from Vaudreuil-Dorion.

Yes, Ghyslain, says Flash, has been impressive and consistent this spring. But Kassandre too. She was one of the rare players who beat Ghyslain in physical events. In addition, Kassandre had found a real immunity necklace, while Ghyslain had made one, a maneuver that paid off in the end.

With his orange sweater turned brown and his dark cap, stained with sweat, Ghyslain established himself as the most formidable competitor of this second vintage of Survivor. He never lost in challenges. He excelled to the point where his head – bearded and thinned – was put at a price during the merger of the Bayani and Nawa tribes, mid-term.

This was also the plan of Audrey Morissette, 36 years old, from Blainville: to take out Ghyslain or force him to draw his immunity, because no one had a chance of winning against him at the very end. Ghyslain survived all the votes in the blind spot (the blindsides) and he pocketed the ultimate prize of $100,000.

Unlike the confused Chris Tie Dye last year, Ghyslain was eloquent in pleading his case in front of the eight members of the jury of Survivor. And the fact that he brought Kassandre directly to the final made him accumulate several points. Because Ghyslain could have drafted Nabil and sent Kassandre to the test by fire, hoping that she would lose against André, 65 years old, one of the oldest candidates of all the franchises of Survivor in the world to make it this far in the game, said host Patrice Bélanger.

But no. Ghyslain has been loyal in favoring his partner and rival, with whom he has been strategizing since the establishment of the Nawa encampment. They complemented each other really well, Ghyslain and Kassandre. Nabil and André had no chance of knocking them off the podium.

Moreover, the retired André, who crushed Nabil in four minutes in the fire competition, insisted a lot on the strength of his “alliances of the heart” (no longer capable of hearing this expression!) and on the quantity of work that he invested in the camp. We agree: collecting wood, cleaning dishes or raking on the beach is good, but it doesn’t add to a champion’s CV.

Also, talking about yourself in the third person singular, as André did, is weird and disconnected from reality. In short, André, the last of the Bayani, was not my favorite. He should never have dumped Marilou and Florence.

Ghyslain’s biggest mistake was to celebrate the second eviction of the ugly Audrey a little too loudly. This outburst of misdirected joy did not tarnish his record, however, because Audrey voted for him on her last scroll.

Psychologist Jean-Michel Robichaud, 32, left too quickly. I would have liked to see him progress more. Audrey could have gone much further by being more subtle and less direct in her actions. His paranoia was his downfall.

Compared to the first, this second edition of Survivor Quebec was more exciting to follow. There was no school of fish or guru to hypnotize them into always voting on the same side. Thanks for that.

Céline in a breeze

It’s hard to go after NBC, CBC, the magazine People and the BBC. Above all, it’s very ungrateful. What new could Celine Dion reveal in the short 20-minute interview she gave to TVA’s Jean-Philippe Dion?

The host is not to blame here. Because 20 minutes to talk about such a serious illness for a singer is so little. In this special broadcast entitled Céline breaks the silence, relayed on Sunday evening, the Charlemagne diva recalled that she has suffered from vocal spasms for almost 17 years. The images of a show she gave in Ottawa in October 2019 showed it clearly: Céline was losing control of her instrument. The reason: stiff person syndrome.

Read “A documentary on Celine Dion’s fight against illness”

The 56-year-old superstar has tried everything to relax his neck muscles and vocal cords: steam, eucalyptus, anti-inflammatories, nothing. The Valium “and more” worked for a while. “I went to the maximum and beyond the acceptable dose, I could have stopped breathing, I could have died,” she confided.

The question I ask myself now is: who is this doctor who prescribed so many medications to Celine Dion knowing full well that she might never have woken up? This is unacceptable and irresponsible.

Celine Dion no longer wants to lie or “play hidden” about her state of health. She is doing physiotherapy and vocal training to get back on stage. Where and when ? That remains to be determined.

There are limits to operating like a robot and proclaiming that the “show must go on,” Céline told Jean-Philippe Dion. “It wasn’t right, I should have grieved,” she admitted in her interview with TVA.

In short, Céline rebuilds herself, she takes care of herself and while waiting for her steps, we put the music on mute, very low.