Following Last Week’s Vote…
Wiglesworth’s blindside last week required some major damage control when the tribe returned to camp. First, Jeremy took Tasha aside to apologize for not keeping her in the loop. While Tasha understood why the deed had to be done, she said it was the only time she would be this understanding. Meanwhile poor Joe struggled to remain calm following the loss of his closest ally. He confirmed with the others that their next move would be to break up Abi, Ciera and Wentworth, but with this special 2-hour edition, it was anyone’s guess what would happen. In classic Survivor fashion, it was in fact an unforgettable night!
Reward Challenge #1…
Survivor’s version of basketball is always hilarious to watch, and tonight’s was no different. Playing for a chance to take shelter from the elements, warm up with blankets and eat while watching a Cambodian circus of sorts, Abi, Ciera, Joe, Spencer and Tasha faced off against Fishbach, Jeremy, Keith, Kimmi and Wentworth. Desperate to get dry from the unrelenting rain, the castaways literally fought to win, kicking, pulling, pushing, etc. Also, chivalry was very much dead as everyone tossed each other around in the water.
Abi, Ciera, Joe, Spencer and Tasha emerged victorious and spent their outing strategizing. After she promised to work with Fishbach last week, Ciera threw him under the bus that afternoon, arguing that his unknown advantage and his knowledge of the game made him a huge threat. Joe was definitely excited about the plan to get rid of Fishbach, but he didn’t let on, mostly because he didn’t trust they would follow through.
Back at camp Fishbach, Jeremy, Keith, Kimmi and Wentworth tried (unsuccessfully) to escape the monsoon. But Fishbach was more concerned with advancing his own agenda. He seized the chance to get everyone to agree that they should vote out Joe if he ever lost immunity.
Immunity Challenge #1…
No words can really describe the misery the contestants experienced during this period of unrelenting rain. Drenched, hungry and ill (you couldn’t help but feel for Fishbach and his stomach issues) it was hard to watch everyone fight through the pain in time for the immunity challenge.
Probst began by asking them to each take a black and white rock and consider putting the needs of the team ahead of their own. Their choice: give up immunity in exchange for a construction crew to waterproof the shelter or play for immunity. At least five people needed to forfeit immunity for the deal to go through and the response was overwhelming. Everyone except for Joe and Keith decided to do what was best for the team. Most people rolled their eyes when they saw Joe’s decision, but the guy’s no fool. Giving up immunity in his case would be a million-dollar mistake with so many people out to get him the minute he became vulnerable. As an ardent Joe fan, his winning streak thankfully continued, much to everyone else’s annoyance.
The Scramble Back At Camp Leads To A Tribal Council Shocker…
The team was divided into two camps (no pun intended). Fishbach, Jeremy and Kimmi felt strongly that Ciera should go home, while everyone else agreed that Fishbach was the biggest threat. It didn’t sit well with Tasha and Spencer that Ciera was calling the shots on their side, and everyone followed her blindly, but Jeremy was really bothered that everyone wanted to vote out his ally Fishbach. No one listened when he told them they were making a big mistake.
Jeremy felt so strongly about his position though that he pulled out one of his two hidden immunity idols at tribal council to save Fishbach. Fishbach was visibly stunned by what Jeremy did for him, but even more so when the votes were read and he had been this close to going home. In the end, it was Ciera’s turn to get blindsided instead.
Returning From Tribal Council. Again…
Jeremy tried to reassure Spencer that nothing had changed between them and that he still had Spencer’s back. However, Spencer didn’t trust what Jeremy was saying especially after his use of the idol, so he began to seriously consider jumping ship.
It became even more obvious that there was no room in Jeremy and Fishbach’s alliance for Spencer when Fishbach chose Jeremy and Tasha to go on the reward trip he had won. Therefore, Spencer wasted no time back at camp telling everyone that it was in their best interest to get rid of Fishbach.
Also wasting no time was Wentworth who had found a clue to the hidden immunity idol during that very same reward challenge. Unfortunately, it was hidden somewhere in the shelter. After a comical segment of trying to get everyone out of camp so she could find it, she finally did.
Immunity Challenge #2 Leads To Major Drama…
In the second immunity challenge of the night, the contestants had to build a tower of blocks with a flag in the middle using only their feet. It was definitely a nail biter, coming down between Spencer and Joe. Unfortunately, Joe’s winning streak ended, something the rest of the tribe had looked forward to, especially Fishbach.
Back at camp, Fishbach rounded up the troops and re-confirmed the plan to get Joe out. However, Wentworth wasn’t having it and told everyone except Jeremy, Kimmi, and Tasha that the plan was still on to get rid of Fishbach. But after weeks of staying quiet on the sidelines, Abi decided this was the perfect time to get paranoid and threaten to blow both plans sky-high. Fishbach told her she should vote Joe, but Wentworth said Fishbach was the smarter choice. However, after seeing Joe speaking with Jeremy and Fishbach, Abi jumped to the conclusion that it would be her going home instead.
Knowing what a handful they were dealing with, Wentworth strongly considered using the hidden immunity idol to make sure her plan followed through, while Fishbach decided it would be wise to use his advantage and steal someone’s vote.
Tribal Council #2…
To Probst and the jury, it seemed pretty obvious that with Joe lacking the immunity necklace, it meant he would be going home. Fishbach then poured more salt in the wound by announcing that he would use his advantage and take Joe’s vote away, meaning Fishbach would be casting two votes. To his credit, Joe took the news gracefully, saying he was at peace with whatever happened that night because he couldn’t have done anything differently.
Fishbach thought himself pretty clever as he cast his own vote for Abi and cast Joe’s vote for Joe. Having waited all this time to get Joe out, Fishbach sat in front of the voting booth camera and said he would savor the moment.
As did Joe’s fans because of what happened next. For once, a majority of people stuck with the plan and Fishbach was voted out of the game. (PS - Thank you Abi!) He was clearly impressed by the blindside, but he’ll probably be rethinking every move from this second chance season for a long time.
Until Next Week...
With clear lines still not having been drawn and people only voting based on what benefits them in the short-term, there are still more exciting weeks of competition to come!
What did everyone think about this week’s episode?