Previously: Tyson, the only person in Survivor who seems to be thinking, has steadily been taking out the “couples.” Maybe he’d be playing different if the Tadhana tribe hadn’t voted out his girl.
Now: A snake slithers across the beach as Tyson apologizes to Katie for voting out Tina. There’s not much Katie can do but accept the apology. She’s well aware that Tyson’s got a seven-person alliance and she’s the eighth person on the tribe. Basically, she needs a miracle to survive the next tribal council.
We get some exposition from Laura and Ciera in the guise of strategy talk. Laura thinks Monica or Katie should go next, while Ciera advises her mother not to talk strategy with anyone but her. Laura calls this a role reversal, and will expound on this theme for the rest of the hour.
The tribe arrives at the arena, where Aras, Vytas, and Tina are marched in to fight to the death for their amusement. This time, the gladiators are handed dangerous-looking grappling hooks. However, instead of gouging each other’s hearts out, they are instructed to snag three bags with the hooks and pull them over to their feet. Once the three bags are properly pulled, they get to open one bag and retrieve a small ball. The ball must then be navigated through a table maze, around hazard holes, and balanced on a divot in the middle of the maze.
Tina takes an early lead, getting all three bags in only four throws. Aras is second to get his ball, but Tina is already half-way through her maze. Unfortunately, she hits a hole just at the end and has to start again. Vyta, meantime, has gotten his ball and started on the maze. Tina works her maze faster the second time and manages to get her ball balanced first. Vytas accomplishes it second, and Aras is thrown off Redemption Island right into… the jury!
Before he leaves, Jeff urges the brothers to speak about their rivalry. Vytas says all the right things about healing and how he’ll never pull a sneaky trick during a one-on-one fight on a floating platform on his brother again. Aras reluctantly concedes that their relationship is getting better, and he hopes that that will continue.
The only other business is that Vytas gets to award the Hidden Immunity Idol clue to someone. He says Katie probably needs it the most, so he gifts it to her. She keeps it (and the producers quietly rejoice).
Bugs crawl on the Kasama flag as the tribe members return to their beach. Kate is thrilled that Tina is still in the game, but well aware of her own endangered status. She tells the tribe that she’s going to the bathroom. “Go read your clue!” Laura calls after her.
The “clue” turns out to be explicit instructions on exactly where to dig, including an illustration with a big, red arrow pointing to the spot. I don’t know why the producers would be so desperate to have her find the idol, since Tyson’s already got it. Or do they want her to not find it, and thus figure out that somebody already has? Ummm… I’m not sure Katie’s smart enough to reach that conclusion.
Laura and Ciera scheme to hide any digging tools, and/or dig right next to Katie. Meanwhile, Tyson decides he needs to be the bad guy by voting Laura out next. He tells his plan to Caleb and Hayden as they chill in the water. Hayden is pleased, noting that Tyson has his back. Tyson also provides some eye-candy by removing his shirt at camp.
Realizing that they are both targets, Ciera has a hard conversation with Laura. Which she likens to that time she had to tell her mother that she was pregnant. Ciera tells Laura that it’s not realistic for them both to the final three and that, unless she is willing to vote Laura out, she will be the next one to go. Laura interviews that their relationship is “morphing.” Previously, she was the one who was always giving advice, and now Ciera is the one with the courage to be honest. There are confessional tears on both sides.
What I don’t understand is why the women don’t hatch some plan to get rid of the men. There is no man with any reason to vote with the women right now, and the numbers are matched. I guess Monica won’t switch? Maybe she thinks she can take the men at the challenges. (Spoiler Alert: Turns out she can.)
Night time. A snake lurks around the camp. Katie rises with the sun to search for the Idol. As soon as she’s gone, Laura springs up to follow her. They meet in the jungle, where Katie tries to mislead Laura by digging in all the wrong places.
The other Kasamans, more secure in the tribe, rise later, eat coconuts, and laugh at them. Tyson tells Ciera the bad news that Caleb and Hayden are voting her mom out. She tells him she’s okay, but confesses that she’s not sure what she’ll do at this point.
It’s the Immunity Challenge! Jeff instructs the players to stand on a small, teetering platform hanging off a pier. Each person must hold on to a knotted rope. Every few minutes, they must move down a knot, putting themselves more and more off-balance until they fall into the water. The reward is an all-you-can-eat picnic of cheeseburgers, hotdogs, fries, and soda.
Hayden and Caleb are the first two out. After the players move to the second knot, Gervase and Ciera fall in, then Katie and Laura, leaving the final duel between Tyson and Monica. Monica has the zen look of a winner. Tyson grits his teeth and shifts his grip. Tyson finally falls, giving Monica her second individual immunity win.
Jeff tells Monica to invite one of the others to join her feast. She asks instead if she can sit out and let everyone else eat. Jeff agrees, but asks the tribe if they think it’s a genuine gesture, or a calculated move. How rude do you want them to be, Jeff? Caleb graciously opines that Monica is first and foremost a mother, and thus wants to nurture her tribe mates.
They do seem grateful. Is this enough to give her a chance in the final three? These sort of gestures tend to get one booted before then, but Monica might be able to win her way to the end. Go Culpepper.
Day time. That same snake. The camp seems to have a mascot, since it’s not like most of the random animal footage on Survivor. The tribe actually sees it wiggling around their hut. They might as well name it. I suggest “Richard Hatch.”
Tyson breaks the bad news to Ciera that Hayden and Caleb will be voting for Laura. She assures him that she’s okay with it, but confesses privately that she doesn’t know what she’ll do.
What she ends up doing is pulling a little con of her own. She confides to Katie that “everyone” is voting for Laura. Then she tricks Katie into letting slip that she (Katie) doesn’t have the idol by pretending that she (Ciera) has already found it.
As the menfolk squint at a coincidentally gathering storm, Ciera rushes up to tell them Katie doesn’t have the idol. She suggests they vote Katie out. This worries Tyson slightly (how uppity of Ciera to make her own moves in the game!). He touches base with his people, making sure they stick to the original plan.
At Tribal Council, Aras comes in grinning. He takes his lone jury seat.
Jeff asks Katie if she feels targeted since Tina was voted out. Katie clings to the silver lining of getting the HII clue. Jeff mentions that Laura and Ciera are the only loved-ones pair left in the game. When Tyson agrees that it’s a concern, Ciera looks worried. Caleb, ever gallant, says that both Laura and Ciera are competitors and both are smart enough to run over the other if necessary. Hayden agrees that they are cut-throat but thinks that a blood bond might be stronger.
Laura, making a case for herself, claims that her bond with Ciera makes them a “two for one” deal. Ciera looks mortified. Laura then brings up a really interesting point. She says that voting out a loved one means the person left has an effective lobbyist in the jury pool. (Which puts a target on both Katie and Ciera’s back now.)
Finally, Caleb notes that there are eight tribe members and that it’s very evenly balanced. Four men, four women, four members each of the original Tadhana and Galang tribes. Which is utter poppycock, because all that matters is the alliance Tyson’s got going right now.
We don’t see any pre-count votes, which means that the producers can’t even manufacture suspense on this. Sure enough, Laura is out, and the only drama to be wrung out of it is that Ciera cast one of the super-majority votes. She hugs her mother and starts crying.
“It’s okay,” Laura tells her. “I’ll come back for you.” With that, she douses her torch and leaves for Redemption Island.
Jeff notes that there are no more pairs in the tribe.
Next week: Hayden and Caleb finally wake up to the fact that Tyson’s running the show. Are they too late to blindside him?
