While the challenge involves a canoe race to Boney Island, the key conflict revolves around picking up a small Tiki doll from the forbidden island as a souvenir. According to show lore, anyone who takes an object from Boney Island brings a curse upon their team. This "piece" is later blamed for the Screaming Gophers' string of bad luck and eventual losses in subsequent episodes until it is returned.

In the episode (Season 1, Episode 8 of Total Drama Island ), the "piece" or item central to the plot is the cursed Tiki idol .