Next morning, the 3 losers get their version of Treemail and we learn that today’s winner will re-enter the game and the other 2 will go home. John tells us he’s been training for this day “for the past 12 days,” and that Candice would be disappointed in him if he fails. Then he cries… Maybe not openly but you could tell he was on the verge… Then it’s Laura M.’s turn to cry, because she promised Ciera that she’d get back in the game. Laura B. doesn’t cry, because she’s wasted all her tears on Vytas. Does he even know she was crushing that hard? Does Rupert know…?
At Redemption Island arena, we see the totem poles that we’ve been shown all week in the previews. We know the competitors are going to have to cling on for dear life, so I’m thinking initially that with such a physical challenge, John has a leg up. But there’s always a chance that his weight may make it tougher for him to stay on the pole, but since neither of the Lauras are..how you say…petite, maybe he’ll do just fine.
Everyone enters the arena and we “learn” that the winner goes back in the game. No s**t, Sherlock… And the challenge is on! Once the competitors are on the poles, I’m noticing that John’s big feet may be a problem for him. Sure, they’re great for Candice (oh, no I did not go there!) but they may be too big to keep pinned into those tiny grooves in the pole. We’ll see…
Not a few seconds into the challenge and Laura B. is already having trouble. She lasts about 5 seconds at the top groove before she slips down to the second one. Please tell me she just keeps slipping down the pole and falls into some quicksand at the bottom.
But she’s not the one having issues now, John is. As he starts to slip a bit, he decides to kick off his shoes so he can use his toes to get a grip. This works for a short time, but they’ve been on the pole for over 20 minutes, so you know his socks must have absorbed some perspiration, and you can see that they’re slipping too. Shortly after, John drops to the sand. John is pissed…
So it’s a battle between Mrs. Puzzle and the Dummy. God, I really hope Laura M. wins… And after a few tenuous moments where Laura M. decides to remove one arm from the pole, Laura B’s downward spiral ends as her feet touch the sand. Laura M. does her best “flag pole” move and then gives everyone a 2-for-1 dance… But I digress…
Ciera rushes over to congratulate her mom, which is odd, because just a couple minutes ago, she was telling us that her mom coming back in the game may totally screw up her game. But…let’s see what Jeff has in store for everyone…
And we’re merged! Drop your buffs.
As before, as the winner of the challenge, Laura gets to decide who gets a hidden Immunity Idol clue, but the twist is that this time, she can keep it, since she’s back in the game. She does the first thing anyone would do and takes it for herself, but then, a little surprisingly, she dumps it into the fire like Monica had done before..
Now we’ve talked about this a few times before. And while it did make sense earlier (because you don’t want a target on your back BEFORE the merge), I think at this stage in the game, you got to get power where you can find it. Perhaps she thinks it’s the one thing she can do to cull some favor with the people who voted her out before, but isn’t the possibility of finding something as powerful as a Hidden Immunity Idol outweigh the possible target that could be on her back? We’ll never know, since Laura M. is just a lemming and will make no individual decisions this season.
And just before we head to the break, Aras tells us his plan is the keep the original Galang (the returning players) alliance, with a couple add-ons and roll through the rest of the game. Hmmm…the best laid plans of mice and men…
Upon returning to the new Merged Tribe beach (previously belonging to Tadhana), of course there’s a big feast awaiting the players. Again, there’s no Hidden Immunity clue hidden in a balut egg, so everyone just gets to eat and enjoy a few minutes without having to play the game.
Until Ciera says she’s going to show her mom the “lay of the land,” at which point they head off down the beach together. Everyone knows they’re going to talk strategy, so Tyson tells Gervase to keep on eye on what may be developing between them. Ciera and Laura find a little nook to have a quiet chat and Ciera informs her that she’s in an alliance with “un-partnered” players (Hayden, Tyson, Gervase, Caleb and her) and Laura M. has a chance to join it, if she can keep her mouth shut. Not sure that’s possible in a merged tribe, since everyone needs to be talking to somebody at this point. But Laura’s an old-timer, so she knows that she MAY be in a bit of a power position now that she’s back from Redemption.
Back at camp, Tyson announces that he’s going for a walk, alone, which can only mean one thing. He’s not going for a walk. He’s, in fact, going to look for the Hidden Immunity clue (see, I told you in the opening of the show he would!) and he trudges off into the jungle. Just a man, with long flowing hair, and turquoise boxer briefs, walking through the jungle. Seems right…
He recalls that Hayden told him it’s near the “serpent tree” on the way to a waterfall, which Tyson knows exactly where it is. After a few moments of poking around, he finds the clue under a rock that he says he’s “stepped on 20 times” before. So, with this new power, and the wherewithal to say that he won’t tell anyone unless he has to, Tyson now looks to be in a better situation than anyone else.
And then… Aras and Vytas finally get some time to catch up and let us know their plans moving forward. Vytas tells him that Tina, Katie and Monica are on board with him, and Aras says that Gervase and Tyson (!) are down with him. Not sure why Aras is so far up Tyson’s ass, but let’s just see how it plays out. Who knows what other things are being discussed that we’re not shown. Maybe we’re just getting all the bad Tyson stuff and he’s actually pretty solid with Aras . It’s easy to say one thing for the camera and do something else. And I think Tyson is smart enough to know how to maximize his on screen time on Survivor.
Vytas is actually a bit hesitant to make Tyson part of The Seven, but Aras is convinced that he’s solid so Vytas agrees. They walk away, arm-in-arm, like a young couple walking through the gardens of Paris .
That night, Monica and Tyson head off for a little late-night confabulation. And if you think that’s sexual, it ain’t… They want to share with each other the lay of the land, as they’ve been split up for a while after being in an early alliance (remember The Five?). Well Monica is up to her old tricks and pissing someone off by running her mouth. Tyson is doing everything he can to not strangle her (truthfully, there are dozens of places to hide the body if the cameraman helps you…) but hallelujah, Tyson keeps his cool and let’s her know to play it cool and it’ll be final 3 for her, with Tyson and Gervase.