The season finale of Survivor: Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers airs tonight on CBS. Read a live recap and join the discussion here.
After an introduction from Jeff Probst in the live studio, we get a recap of the season. The castaways were divided into three tribes of Heroes, Healers, and Hustlers. We see clips of secrets being shared, as well as secrets being used against one another. In addition, we see replays of the many advantages and hidden immunity idols. A Jeff Probst voice-over gives a rundown of the Final 5. He says Ben is a bold player, but has no more allies. Mike is the only Healer left in the game, but he has managed to survive despite being excluded from nearly every vote. Devon hustled and managed to orchestrate several votes. Ryan is a superfan that has stayed in the game due to his social game and loyalty to Chrissy. Chrissy seized early control of the game, and she is the only woman left in the game. Tonight, one of these five will be crowned the winner of Survivor: Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers.
The episode picks up where last week left off. Chrissy is glad Ashley is gone, but she is determined to take Ben out at the next vote. Mike calls Ben a villain that keeps coming back to life. Ben is aware he’s everyone’s target, but he still plans on looking for another hidden immunity idol to save himself. He says Survivor is more than a game to him; he says it’s a mission. The next morning, we see Ben find another hidden immunity idol. He’s beside himself with glee knowing he’ll be safe at the upcoming vote.
Later in the day, we see Chrissy approach Ben. She acknowledges how they were friends early in the game, yet they’ve become bitter rivals. The two of them make amends, but Chrissy admits in a confessional that this was all just for game. She’s doing what she can to assure she gets a spot in the Final 3. However, in his confessional, Ben says Chrissy is barking up the wrong tree. He has no interest in playing with Chrissy, and he plans to get her out of the game next.
It’s time for the immunity challenge. They must swim to a platform, climb up some crates, and then grasp a bag of keys as they leap out into ocean. Afterwards, they must go across a balance beam to get another bag of keys. They must then walk to a puzzle board and unlock it. They must then use the balls on the board to solve a color-coded puzzle. Along with immunity, the winner will get a feast as a reward. The challenge begins, and they all manage to get through the obstacles without much trouble. Devon and Ben are the first to reach their puzzle boards. Chrissy is the next to get there, and Ryan and Mike are the last two to reach the puzzle. Everyone is working on the puzzle at the same time, and it is Chrissy who solves it first. Chrissy wins immunity! She is allowed to bring two people on the reward with her, and she chooses Mike and Devon.
We see Chrissy, Mike, and Devon at the reward. Mike wants them to search for a clue to the hidden immunity idol, but there doesn’t seem to be a clue there. The three of them agree that Ben needs to go next, but Chrissy wonders if Ben could play another hidden immunity idol. She mentions her expired hidden immunity idol necklace, and Mike suggests using it to dissuade Ben from looking for another idol. However, unbeknownst to them, Ben already has a hidden immunity idol. After the reward, Chrissy shows Ben her necklace. She tells him to don’t waste his energy looking for an idol since she found it. However, Ben walks off and laughs to himself. He knows he has a legitimate hidden immunity idol in his possession, so he’s not concerned. He also believes he will cast the deciding vote tonight, and he’s torn between Mike and Devon. Later on, Devon starts to get suspicious of Ben’s behavior. Devon knows Ben isn’t the type to just give up, so he’s wondering if Ben did find another idol after all. Devon is now considering voting for Mike to ensure his own safety.
It’s time for tribal council. They talk about the craziness of the previous tribal council and how Ben is still the common enemy. Jeff asks why isn’t anyone keeping an eye on Ben to prevent him from looking for idols if he really is all alone, and Chrissy says no one can babysit him 24/7. Chrissy also pulls out her expired hidden immunity idol and places it around her neck. She comes up with a story about how she found a clue to this idol at the reward. She says she’ll give this idol to one of the guys sitting next to her (except for Ben). Ben remarks how he already knew about Chrissy’s idol. He calls it a heartbreaker, clearly hiding the fact he has an idol of his own. Ben also accuses Chrissy of gloating before accusing the other four of crushing his dream. Afterwards, it’s time for the vote.
Before Jeff reads the vote, Ben plays his hidden immunity idol.
The first vote is for…
Ben
Ben
Ben
Mike
Devon
It’s a tie. Ben, Chrissy, and Ryan must now revote.
The first vote is for…
Devon
Mike
Mike
Mike is voted out and the seventh member of the jury. Before the commercial break, Jeff talks to Mike in the live studio about the vote and how big of a Survivor fan Mike is.
The Final 4 return to camp after tribal council. Devon had a feeling Ben might’ve had an idol, so he listened to his gut and wrote down Mike’s name. Devon says it was a million dollar move. Elsewhere, Ben is aware there are no more hidden immunity idols in the game. He says he has to win the challenge to get a place in the Final 3. Chrissy, Devon, and Ryan all agree they must vote out Ben next.
It’s time for the final immunity challenge. They must stack blocks to spell out “Heroes Healers Hustlers” on a precarious structure. However, there is a twist with immunity. The winner will get a secret advantage too. The challenge begins, and Ryan takes an early lead as Devon and Chrissy’s blocks fall to the ground. Ben catches up to Ryan, but Devon and Chrissy keep struggling with their blocks. Ben gets very close to completing the puzzle. He gets all his letters on the structure, but he has a letter upside down. Ben asks for a check from Jeff, but Jeff says it’s no good. Before Ben can fix his mistake, all his letters drop to the ground. Everyone is getting close, but their blocks fall too. The challenge essentially resets as it’s anyone’s game now. Ben is the first to get all his letters on the structure, but half of the blocks fall to the ground again. This now opens to door for Chrissy, and she places all her letters on the structure without any dropping. Chrissy wins immunity!
The Final 4 return to camp after the immunity challenge. Ben knew he had to win to stay in the game, but a mistake in the challenge cost him the million dollars. He approaches Chrissy with a chance of staying in the game, and she tells him she will hear him out at tribal council. She doesn’t want to shut him out, but she admits in a confessional that Ben is definitely leaving next. However, Chrissy reads her secret advantage, and she learns about the twist. Chrissy will cast the sole vote tonight – she will vote for whom she wants to bring to the Final 3 with her. The other two will battle it out in a fire making challenge. Chrissy lets Devon and Ryan know about the advantage, and she wants Devon to be the one to go against Ben. She wants Devon to practice making fire, which he does away from camp. The flint breaks, and Devon is taking that as a sign that he needs to conserve his energy. He’s hoping he will be the one to take Ben out of the game once and for all.
It’s time for tribal council. Jeff brings up how Chrissy has tied the record for the most individual immunity wins by a woman in a single season. Chrissy says it’s a great feeling to know she will be in the Final 3. Jeff asks Ben his thoughts, and Ben says that upside down ‘U’ will haunt him for the rest of his life. Jeff also brings up the secret advantage, and asks if Chrissy shared it with anyone or kept it a secret. She admits she shared it with Devon and Ryan. She pulls out the advantage, and reads what’s written on the parchment. She lets Jeff know her decision is to bring Ryan to the Final 3 with her. Ben and Devon will now battle it out in a fire making challenge. Ben is excited for this second chance.
The fire making challenge begins. The first to build a fire that will burn through the cord will win a seat in the Final 3. Both of them are striking their magnesium with a knife, and Ben is the first to create fire. His fire continues to rise before Devon gets a flame. Ben’s fire burns through the cord. Ben wins the fire making challenge. Devon is the eighth and final jury member. Before the commercial break, Jeff talks to Devon in the live studio. Devon says he appreciates the positive feedback from fans, and he says he feels blessed to have gotten to play the game.
It’s the morning of Day 39, and the Final 3 is very excited to reach the end of the game. Ryan considers himself the underdog, but he thinks he still has a chance. Chrissy wants to inspire moms to believe in themselves. Ben says he needs to go to the Final 3 humble and confident.
It’s time for the Final Tribal Council. They will discuss the three portions of the game: “outwit, outplay, and outlast.” Desi leads the discussion first, and she says Ryan is in the Final 3 because everyone feels like they can beat him. She asks Ryan to explain why he deserves to win. Ryan says he built social relationships with people, and that’s what carried him. Ashley asks Ryan why didn’t he ever have a strategic relationship with her if his game is about relationships. Ryan says he didn’t have to since he knew what Ashley was doing through Devon. With the discussion of social games, Joe brings up the fact that Ben had a horrible social game. Even though Ben found idols, he neglected the most important part: the social element. Ben said he yelled at Joe because Joe tried to use the Marine Corps against him. Chrissy speaks up for herself, and she says she tried to get to know everyone individually. Joe asks what does Chrissy know about him, and Chrissy says Joe’s parents were divorced and that’s why he doesn’t want to get married. Cole asks Ben why did Ben paint Cole as a thief and a villain, and Ben says it was just a strategic move. However, Ryan says Ben had a personal vendetta against Cole and it was not just game play. Chrissy says she got to know everyone, but Ryan says she’s just throwing out random facts about everyone. Chrissy and Ryan bicker and talk over each other before Desi tells them to take a step back and realize it’s just a game.
The second part of the discussion is about the “outplay” portion of the game (shelter, challenges, etc.). Cole says he respects Chrissy for winning several immunity challenges. He asks Ryan about his lack of contribution to camp life, and Ryan says it was not his strength since he never went camping before. Desi brings up how she never went camping either, but she at least tried. Lauren backs up Desi’s argument, and she says Ryan should have still tried to help out instead of doing nothing. The talk turns to the challenges, and Ashley gives Chrissy credit on winning immunity when she needed to. Next, they discuss Ben’s hidden immunity idols. Desi asks how did four people let Ben find that many idols, and Chrissy admits it was a flaw in their game.
The third part of the discussion is the “outplay” portion. Ryan says Chrissy and Ben are getting a lot of credit, but he says he built social bonds and was not dragged to the end. Mike asks Ryan what did he learn in the game, and he says he learned to value “the simplicities of life.” Ben says that everyone was simply a hurdle and he placed them on the jury since that’s what he needed. Ben says he got himself to the end, and he wants to inspire others who got PTSD like he did. As for Chrissy, she says she underestimated herself and got to the end by making connections with everyone. She discusses her role as a mom, and she says moms are not only heroes, but healers and hustlers too. She says she has applied to be on Survivor for 16 years, and how that’s a good example to show why people should never give up. She thinks she would be a good representative as the winner of the season.
It’s now time to vote. We see Lauren vote for Ben, Devon vote for Ryan, and Ashley vote for Chrissy. Who will win?
We’re back in the live studio for the reading of the votes. Jeff congratulates them on a great season before he starts counting the votes.
The first vote is for…
Ben
Ryan
Chrissy
Chrissy
Ben
Ben
Ben
BEN DRIEBERGEN WINS SURVIVOR: HEROES VS. HEALERS VS. HUSTLERS.
We see a clip of Ben’s game throughout the season before Jeff asks Ben about searching for idols. Ben says the early bird gets the worm.
It’s time for the reunion show. Jeff gives Chrissy kudos on a hard fought game. She says it was a dream to be on the show, even though she lost her job. It was a dream come true for Ryan too. Even though he came up short, he enjoyed his time on the show. Next, Jeff invites some of Ben’s old Marine Corps buddies up on the stage and they discuss how open Ben was about his PTSD. They believe Ben being open about that has helped so many other people going through the same thing.
We next see a montage of all the secrets being revealed throughout the game. Afterwards, Jeff shows the shell that Mike threw in the fire and asks Lauren if she regrets giving it to him. She admits that she does. Jeff then pulls out a hidden immunity idol from Survivor: China, and he says that hidden immunity idol and the shell are clues to the next season of Survivor. It’s all part of a theme in regards to past mistakes. Afterwards, we see a preview of Survivor: Ghost Island, the next season that will air in a couple of months.
And that wraps up tonight’s season finale of Survivor. Thanks for reading, post your thoughts in the comment section below, and come back in February for Survivor: Ghost Island.
