Survivor 38 Recap and Live Blog: Edge Of Extinction Week 9

A new episode of Survivor: Edge of Extinction airs tonight on CBS. Read a live recap and join the discussion here.

The episode begins with the castaways returning to camp after tribal council. David is aware he wasted his idol, but he believes it was still the right move for him since tribal council was so chaotic. Meanwhile, Wardog proposes a new six person alliance with himself, Kelley, Lauren, Gavin, Julie, and Ron. He gets them in a group together, and they all seemingly agree to this plan. They also say they want Aurora to be the next one voted out. As for Aurora, she notices other groups getting closer and she feels alone in the game.

It’s time for the immunity challenge. It’s an endurance challenge that requires them to squat while balancing wooden bars on their shoulders. At the end of their bars is a pot. If the pot falls, then they are eliminated from the challenge. The castaways also have an option of sitting out of the challenge for pizza. Before the challenge begins, the castaways sitting out for pizza are Lauren, Victoria, Kelley, and Ron. The challenge begins, and Wardog is the first to drop his pot after a butterfly started hovering behind his ear. Gavin and Julie are the next two out, and they are followed by Rick. After 22 minutes, only David and Aurora remain in the challenge. David drops his pot. Aurora wins immunity!

The castaways return to camp after the challenge. In her confessional, Kelley says it was frustrating that Aurora won immunity; she wanted her gone. The new alliance of six people sit by the beach to come up with another plan. David’s name is thrown out as a possible target. Gavin especially wants David gone. The plan seems solid, but Wardog is still nervous since he hasn’t worked with Ron and Julie before. Meanwhile, David is hoping to vote out Wardog. He points out how Wardog, Kelley, and Lauren are a power trio that needs to be targeted. Rick proposes the Wardog pitch to Victoria, and David proposes the same plan to Aurora. Victoria and Aurora both seem open to the idea. David and Rick pitch this plan to Julie together, and she doesn’t know if the votes are there. David tells her that the numbers will be there if she and Ron join them in voting out Wardog. Julie realizes she and Ron are the swing votes, so she discusses options with Ron. Ron feels good working with Wardog’s group, but Julie is wondering if they’ll just be in the bottom with his group. Ron doesn’t trust Wardog fully, but he feels like David is very sneaky too. Ron seems torn on what to do, and Julie says that she and Ron must be on the same page.

It’s time for tribal council. David and Rick tell Jeff they feel like they are in trouble tonight, but they hope there will be people they can trust. Julie says she is glad she is no longer a passenger in someone else’s plan, and she feels like she now has some say. Rick says he hopes Julie will join him and David in tonight’s vote, but Wardog points out how he, Kelley, and Lauren have always voted together. He says they are the most trustworthy people in the game. Rick points out how they are an unbreakable trio. He says they will take each other to the Final 3, so they need to be split up. David says he’s a very loyal player, but Lauren disagrees after she points out how David voted for Lauren even though he said he never would’ve. Kelley says a new group was formed after the last tribal council, and she’s confident this group will stick together for this vote.

Jeff reads the votes. The first vote is for…

David

Wardog

David

Wardog

David

David

David

David

David is voted out and the seventh member of the jury. He walks down the pathway, grabs the torch, and heads to Extinction Island.

The next morning on Extinction Island, they get a message giving them a clue where a possible advantage could be hidden. Everyone scrambles around the island, but it is David who finds the advantage under a rock. He can give someone still in the game an advantage in the next immunity challenge.

It’s Day 27 and time for the next immunity challenge. They must balance a paddle on a stand and land five balls into the dimples on the paddle. Rick reveals David gave him an advantage for this challenge. Jeff informs him that he only needs to land four balls. The challenge begins, and Rick is the first person to land a ball on his paddle. Ron lands his first ball, and so does Aurora. Everyone else keeps dropping their balls. Rick lands his second ball, putting him further in the lead. Aurora and Ron land their second balls too, so they are not too far behind. Rick lands his third ball, meaning he only needs to land one more ball. However, his fourth ball hits another ball off the paddle. This is giving Aurora and Ron a chance to catch up, especially after Rick knocks off another ball again. However, Rick manages to recover and land four balls. Rick wins immunity!

The castaways return to camp after the immunity challenge. Rick is especially glad to have immunity, especially after losing his closest ally in the previous tribal council. The new alliance of six all agrees to vote out Aurora tonight. However, Wardog says in his confessional that he wants to make a bigger move tonight. He wants to take out the remaining returning player and vote out Kelley. He whispers this plan to Aurora, Rick, and Victoria individually. They all tell him they are on board. He later shares this plan to Ron down by the beach, but Ron is not happy to hear this. He thinks Wardog is too unpredictable; he may not be able to work with him. Meanwhile, Kelley is aware it only takes one person to throw out her name for her to be targeted. She’s glad to have a hidden immunity idol in her possession. Right before they leave for tribal council, Aurora gives Ron her extra vote advantage to build some trust with him. She expects to get it back after tribal council, and they both can agree how to use it next time. However, in his confessional, Ron admits he is tempted with the possibility of voting out Aurora and keeping the extra vote advantage for himself.

It’s time for tribal council. Jeff asks how do they all know if they are in on the plan tonight. Rick says if everything seems too easy, then they must be missing something. Victoria says she has been excluded from conversations the past few days. The topic turns to blindsides, and Kelley says sometimes blindsides are necessary. However, she doesn’t believe blindsides should happen every single time. Wardog points out how it wasn’t a blindside last time since David was fighting for his life at tribal council. Victoria adds that they are all thinking about whom they want to sit next to at the end of the game. Jeff asks Kelley her thoughts, and she says it comes down to trust. If they don’t trust the right people, then they may not make it to the Final 3 anyway. Ron says they need to relax when they can. It can be threatening if they come off too aggressive. Afterwards, it’s time for the vote.

Jeff reads the votes. The first vote is for…

Aurora

Kelley

Aurora

Aurora

Aurora

Kelley

Kelley

Kelley

Kelley

Kelley is voted out and the eighth member of the jury.

She is clearly blindsided. She says there is a lot of lying before getting her torch snuffed. She walks down the pathway, grabs the torch, and heads to Extinction Island.

And that wraps up tonight’s episode of Survivor. Thanks for reading, post your thoughts in the comment section below, and come back next week for another live recap.

About Steven Curtis 539 Articles
Steven is a graduate of the University of West Florida with a bachelor's degree in communication arts. He enjoys watching reality competition shows, such as American Idol, Survivor, Big Brother, and The Amazing Race.