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Hang onto your palm fronds. This is a 2-hour episode with two reward challenges, two immunity challenges and two torch snuffings.
Last week, an idol nullifer ended up sending Dan to the jury and left us with five former Davids and five former Goliaths, so there should be a lot of scheming going on this week.
The whole thing has given Carl delusions of grandeur, and angered Angelina, who got two votes from her alliance in an attempt to pretend that they — Alec and Alison — had played with the Davids. Angelina vows to blow them up.
The next morning, Nick and Davie are off looking for another hidden immunity idol while the others sleep. Nick finds a note that tells him to sneak out of camp that night, go to the farthest point of the island and look for a torch.
Reward Challenge
It’s a Survivor picnic for the winners. Divided into two groups of five, the players must swim to a rope bridge, cross it and swim to a platform. Then one player must swim to another platform and toss rungs onto a ladder.
Purple (Nick, Davie, Angelina, Carl and Kara) get an early lead, but the Orange team (Alison, Mike, Gabby, Alec and Christian) come from behind, thanks to Alec’s athletic prowess. Carl, who has yet to go on a reward challenge, grumbles that Alec has to go.
At the picnic, Alec turns on the charm and Alison says they are so over the Goliath Strong alliance. Gabby thinks it’s hilarious that the mighty Goliaths, who have been picking off Davids left and right, now are making nice with them.
The picnickers find letters from home and spend a few minutes reading and crying.
Back at camp, Carl is feeling hungry and low, but channels Nietzsche. What does not destroy him, makes him strong. Carl tells the others at camp that he thinks Alec has to go, even though Kara, Alec’s strongest ally, is sitting right there. When they ask if she’d go along with it, she says he is a threat, but is non-committal.
The others return from the reward, and Alec and Alison are sick because they ate too much.
When night comes, Nick heads out in search of the idol while Davie keeps an eye out. He finally finds it and returns back to camp in a celebratory mood.
Immunity Challenge
The challenge is one of endurance. They must stand on a small perch, back against a post, while holding onto a handle overhead. Fall off or lose your grip and you’re out.
If someone doesn’t want to participate, they can sit out and instead feast on nachos, margaritas and iced tea. Carl, Nick and Angelina pick food.
Mike is the first out, followed by Davie. After an hour, Kara drops out. The sun is beating down on them and their feet are aching. Another 35 minutes go by and Alison is out.
Gabby is hurting, partly because, she says, this is a challenge that she could win and wants to win, but she’s in so much pain. Alec keeps talking about how he’s going to win and appears to be whispering to Gabby that she’s going to lose. And she does, leaving Alec and Christian to outlast each other.
Christian decides to distract himself by telling stories about his research, Reuben sandwiches, beard growing and talking, apparently, non-stop. It’s a stream of consciousness. Alec is about to pass out, whether from the heat or Christian’s droning voice, we don’t know. Alec tells Christian that he’s safe and Alec isn’t. Christian says he hears him, but he wants to win, too. After almost six hours, Alec finally surrenders.
Christian says he won because he wanted it more than Alec, who would appear to be the obvious vote, but Tribal Council won’t be until the following day. When you have a whole day to sit around, Christian says, things can change.
Alec knows he’s in trouble, but he’s not giving up. Carl, however, is telling everyone that the vote will be simple, they should just do it and then come back to the beach and relax. Gabby is upset that Carl told Kara about it. Gabby said she felt stupid and is wondering why they trust Kara.
Carl tells her she’s being too emotional and paranoid. Gabby calls Carl a godfather, and not in a good way.
Alec and Alison, meanwhile, want to take Carl out. Mike suggests the same thing. They need to pull Christian and Gabby over to their side. Alec talks to Christian, who admits that Carl is hard to work with and that keeping Alec around is a shield for him.
Tribal Council
There’s lot of talk about the challenge and how hard it was. Jeff Probst also brings up Nick, Carl and Angelina sitting out to eat nachos. Kara and Alison are pretty harsh about the decision. Carl says he hasn’t had any food reward all game. Angelina blathers on, and Alison says she doesn’t really care to hear what Angelina has to say. We sort of agree.
Alison says it’s a shame that the one who stayed on the beam for almost six hours is the one getting voted off. Alec maintains that he’s strong, but the social game is just as important and Christian is a bigger threat in that regard.
The votes are cast and Alec is the newest member of the jury.
Nick and the other Davids are thrilled that they finally have the numbers advantage. Alison breaks down and cries on Christian’s shoulder. She tells him she’s been wanting to work with him and Gabby for the longest time.
Alison, a doctor, says it’s like being at the hospital and knowing you can’t save them all. She couldn’t save Alec, and now she worried that she may have waited too long to join forces with the Davids.
Second Reward Challenge
The challenge involves two teams of four — one player (Christian) can’t participate. They must swim out to a platform, climb a ladder and jump off into the water, then swim over to a ring where buoys are tethered below. There are several buoys, but five are marked . The players then have to leap off a platform and sink the marked buoys in baskets.
The team of Davie, Mike, Kara and Carl win the reward: a boat ride to a secluded beach, fried chicken, cheesecake and cold beverages, including beer.
Kara and Mike are trying their best to be best buds with Carl and Davie. Carl, knocking back the brews, tells Kara that Alison is next to go. Oh you bet, Kara says at the time; later, she says Carl has to be crazy to think she’d be happy about voting off another Goliath.
Carl gets drunk on beer and confidence, which Kara says is great news for her game.
Back at camp, Gabby wants to get rid of Carl because people think he’s the leader and that Gabby and Christian are just going along with him. Christian agrees. Gabby goes to Alison and tells her of the plan. The time feels right, Alison says, to join forces.
Meanwhile, Carl thinks his game is going well. He tells the others they have to vote off Alison and not do any scrambling. He tells Angelina that she has taken Gabby’s place in the alliance, and he tells Christian to tell Gabby that they’re all voting for Angelina.
Carl’s attitude is upsetting everyone. Mike becomes the swing vote. He can get rid of the godfather or Wonder Woman. Either one is a win-win for him.
Meanwhile, the rice supply is low and Angelina wants to start negotiating with Probst. She’s got everything counted out and knows what to offer. She’s being annoying, Mike says, but right.
Second Tribal Council
Today, they’ll be climbing over an obstacle, spinning a turnstile and crossing a balance beam (while dizzy), collecting blocks along the way. The 13 blocks have letters on them that must be used to spell out an 11-letter word.
Before getting started, Angelina opens up negotiations. She lists all the things they’d be willing to give up, and Probst counters that if someone wants to give up their chance at winning immunity, he’ll give them a rationed portion of rice. Angelina volunteers, and she’s not being completely altruistic. She thinks it’s good for her “Survivor” resume, although we don’t think that sort of self-serving sacrifice has ever worked before.
Carl is the first to spell a word — perceptions — but that’s not the word Probst is looking for. Apparently that gives Alison and Davie an idea and they both start furiously rearranging their letters. Davie gets it first, spelling “perspective.”
Angelina is happy. She sacrificed herself for the good of the tribe, a member of her alliance won immunity and Alison didn’t.
Second Tribal Council
Probst asks about Alec’s unanimous (other than his own) vote, and Kara said that was a sign from the Goliaths that they wanted to work with the Davids. Angelina says camp life is jovial, but at council, they become gladiators. Mike agrees.
Carl says camp didn’t feel any different, and that if anybody wants to talk to him, they know where they can find him. Probst says it sounds like Carl is awarding audiences to those who feel insecure.
Angelina brings up her sacrifice for rice, like we knew she would.
Votes are cast, no hidden immunity idols are played, and Godfather Carl is voted out, 5-4. Alison and Gabby are happy, and Nick is confused.
Next time: Time for the family visit, and Gabby appears to turn on Christian.
