The recap offers a glimpse of what may be in store tonight. We already know there’s a merge coming (thanks CBS!) so we’re all wondering how Cops-R-Us will fare after Tony’s “Top 5” faux pas, Sarah’s swing vote status, and both hidden immunity idols still in play, so things could get VERY interesting at Tribal. I can’t wait to see how it all unfolds.
As Aparri returns to camp after Tribal (Night 16) there finally seems to be no post-tribal drama. Everyone knows a decision had to be made, and as Jeff warned, the remaining six had to bond together. With Alexis’s tearful exit (so sad…) the tribe is feeling like a cohesive unit, for once. Spencer is feeling reinvigorated, and considering how close HE was to going home a mere 3 episodes ago, I would agree he should feel good about his position in the game.
“We control the game. We have 6 and they have 5.” Hmmm, I wonder if it’ll be that easy…?
Before they turn in for the night, Aparri gathers for one more show of unity and promise each other (seriously?) that if nobody flips, they’re all going to Top 6. And as Kass quixotically states,
“The best laid plans often end up sprawled out on a murder scene floor.”
Not sure that’s the meaning Robert Burns or John Steinbeck intended, but when you have two cops on your season, it’s the closest thing we’re going to get to a literary reference…
And sure enough, Kass and Sarah are seen walking along the shore discussing what to do if/when a merge happens and who may flip. Kass, ever the diplomat, tells Sarah that either Jeremiah – or Sarah! – is the most likely.
Are you kidding me? You’re calling someone out when you just formed the Top 6 Bond of All Time! Once again, who put this woman on the Brains tribe? She did the same thing to X’XXX in episode 1 when she said, “I’m voting for you ‘cause you’re a lazy bi*ch…” I mean, you can THINK these things, but do you need to SAY them…? Something tells me Kass is not winning this season of Survivor…
Of course, Sarah is a tad offended at Kass’s supposition she might flip. And while Kass does a quick back-pedal, damage has been done. She just created the first crack in the Top 6 Liberty Bell. And having been accused, Sarah tells us she’ll widen that crack and jump ship if others are teetering on her. Because that’s how you play Survivor, right? You just make emotional decisions based on the last conversation you had…
So as these two quickly patch up any misunderstand and shake on it, Kass reveals in ITM that Sarah’s moves are all predicated on desperation and her trying to make a wise move. She tells us, if you really want to get on Kass’s good side, you need blood on your hands…from a former tribe mate… The gauntlet is laid…
Treemail arrives at Solana, who couldn’t be tighter than a nun’s chuff… Tony reads to everyone that they need to pack up their belongings, their movin’ on up…to the east side! (insert George Jefferson .gif here…)
Over at Aparri, they’re told to “tidy up the camp” because the other tribe is coming over and “some” of them may stay for 22 days. The word “merge” hasn’t been mentioned yet – something Spencer picks up on – so the tribe quickly reminds each other to be 6 strong, and all should go well.
The Solana 5 arrives via motorboat and everyone’s so freaking happy to be together. There’s fishing nets, pillows, a feast, new buffs and an important message to be read. The note reveals the tribes are merged! Whew, thank god that’s over. But, there’s one more thing to be revealed: aside from the two hidden immunity idols, there’s a third idol that’s been hidden around camp, one with “different powers.” Oooooooohhhhhhhhhhh! Tony hears that and nearly ( (Preview) ). He’s determined to find that one too since he’s so bored with everyone getting along. He needs drama, damn it, and he’ll create some on his own if he has to…
While feasting, Spencer tells us how crazy it is that he’s come around full circle since being on the bottom of the “worst tribe in Survivor history” (I was just saying that!) and then Jefra wants to know how Alexis was voted out. Jeremiah chimes in that “she turned on me so I voted her out” which may not have been the best way to phrase that, but he’s a “good ole’ boy,” and they ain’t particularly known for their eloquence and quick-thinkingnessatude…
Tony, realizing the Aparris may be a solid 6, knows he’s got one shot, and that’s to resolidify his old Cops-R-Us alliance and take the game over. Otherwise, his game could be over quicker than Juan Pablo’s celebrity…
While a few of the girls are doing Pilates on the beach, Tony and LJ are discussing who really runs the show now. LJ thinks it’s the Brains, and doing the math, Tony says he needs to pull Sarah back into his corner. He tries to do just that in the next clip as he explains to her – if you comes back with me – it’s a tight 4 (Tony, Sarah, Woo and Trish) plus they have LJ and Jefra as “remoras” (look it up!). That’ll be 6 against 5, and they can then run the table. In his haste, Tony asks Sarah to “swear on your badge” that she’ll vote against someone on the new Solana tribe. She’s not able to do that at that moment, which, if this were Boston Rob or Russell Hantz, I’m pretty sure she would have become a target, but it’s Tony, and he’s cool with her telling him (and swearing to him) later. And you know what; I kind of like the way Tony handled it.
Sarah then tells us that she’s the sway vote and that she will decide the fate of the game. Oh yeah, things are getting interesting…
We then witness a wonderful little scene where Sarah, Kass and Jeremiah are discussing what to do. Their first concern is who may have a hidden immunity idol (they believe LJ does) and they discuss who needs to be voted out first. When Jeremiah suggests Jefra going first, Sarah disagrees and says it has to be LJ or Woo. She wants a power player out. The notion of LJ is poo-poo’d since he may have the idol, so Kass switches it to Woo or Trish. Sarah really doesn’t want to take out one of the weaker players, and is starting to get pissed at Kass. So when Kass asks, “What if Woo wins immunity?” Sarah suggests that it could be Tony (that caught me by surprise). But I think at this point, she doesn’t care what she says. She knows she’s running this game so damnit; just don’t piss off the cop! Sarah then accuses Kass of trying to bully her, which is more salt in this wound. Kass tells us she’s still not trusting “the cop” so those fractures in the bell are getting deeper.
Jeremiah tries his best to put a salve on the wound and suggests, “Let’s figure this out tomorrow,” but the damage has been done. This is what makes Survivor great. Tribes imploding on themselves because people can’t stick to a plan, and players thinking themselves more powerful than they are…
The next morning (Day 19) with Trish waking up in the Spy Shack, Sarah just wants to sit by the fire with Kass and Tash and not have a conversation about who to vote for. In perfect attorney a**hole-speak, Kass says, “I’ll stop talking to you.” So you know this feud is not going away. This is all wonderful for Trish to hear, because now she knows the Top 6 Aparri are not as tight as they seem. She’s going to sit back and watch them implode…
Tash decides she can’t let this happen to her peeps so she takes Sarah and Kass aside to find out what’s up. They both present their arguments (Kass is an attorney so I think she should be able to win this debate) but Tash seems to be siding with Sarah. This further upsets Kass, who feels like her original tribe mate is now turning on her too. Tash seems to want to avoid any drama, but the other two have Jets vs. Sharks written all over their faces. Nothing is going to repair this… I think they need to work out their aggression at an Immunity Challenge!
It’s another challenge we’ve seen before. You may recall this from Survivor: Caramoan where player have to stand on an A-frame doghouse out in the ocean. Brenda and Andrea fought for over 3 hours before they had to change it up and try to balance on one foot on the top perch. Andrea took that challenge, so let’s see which woman (obviously!) will win today… Although, I’m guessing the girls who are – shall we say, top heavy – may have a disadvantage. After the first two stages of footholds, 15 minutes each, no one has dropped out. Not surprising… So we’re heading to the final position where everyone will need to balance on the top perch. Perhaps Woo’s martial arts balance will pay off here…?
And the transition to the top position proves costly as one after the next falls in the water. When the dust settles, it’s Tony, Coconuts (disproving my theory!) and Woo. Within 30 seconds of being on the top rung, Morgan falls in; causing a minor tsunami along the beach that takes out a small fishing village. Let’s hope everyone got to higher ground.
So we’re down to Tony and Woo. Tony’s going with the “spread your feet wide approach” and Woo is relying on his aqua shoes to keep his grip. A huge gust of wind almost blows both men off their perch, however, they both survive…just long enough for Tony to bid adieu to Woo as he falls into the water. Woo wins! Oh no, what is Aparri going to do now?
As Jeff places the immunity necklace around Woo and tells the tribe that “someone will be voted out tonight” the camera (actually, it’s the edit) pans across to Sarah, and it makes me wonder (after having reviewed over 430 episodes) if the Survivor editors have little “tells” up their sleeves; like revealing who is going home before we get to tribal. Maybe not, but it would be interesting, right?
Hey now Brian, what’s with all the lawyer hating. Some of us aren’t all that bad! While I know nothing about Kass (and still can’t figure out if she bugs me or not), she may be loaded, but not all attys are rich. Yes, she could work for a big firm or corporation and be well off. Or she could be a public sector lawyer and really not make more than the average college grad. Plus, lots of those people on the show don’t seem rich (though I agree some are). The cops aren’t rich, the hair dresser certainly can’t be (just look at her hair-haha). A rich yoga teacher??? As an attorney, I feel it necessary to point out the counter argument (throat clearing sound) that you could also say losers go on the show bc they have no job to go back to???? Anyway, you get my point.
But here’s what really bugs me….Woo and the shoes? Did that seem fair? I noticed they hardly showed his feet yet Jeff never addressed it. I guess they all could have worn their sneakers? Yet in the demo shots, everyone was bare foot. And then, the one guy with special shoes wins. Something seemed out of sync for me. What do you think?
Finally, back to Kass. I am not 100% sure that we can disparage her vote for Sara. Again, I’m not nec. a Kass fan but you could argue (haha) that she knew Sara didn’t like her and that was prob. not going to change. If she didn’t get sara out, Sara would have been gunning for her (possibly) at some point down the road. In addition, Sarah wasn’t too savvy in her assessments about idols. She swore LJ and Tony didn’t have them. Hillbilly pretty boy Jethro was totally right in fact. Finally, by voting Sarah out, she now makes allies in the other half of the tribe and beats her dorky brains to the punch. Totally agree with you about Spencer-I’ve really started liking him until that bitchy comment at the end.
Anyway, I loved your recap as always. 🙂
-KinBville Esq.
KinB! Thanks for writing. I always like a comment with a lot packed in it…
Firstly, I don’t mean to hate on attorneys. I have a few friends and family that are in the Legal industry and they are lovely people. I think I (and others, perhaps) have some notion that all attorneys are like the characters on LA Law (dating myself much…?). Sinister, vile, self absorbed people… But, we know that’s not the case.
A simple internet search showed me that Kass’s law firm is very…simple. So, while she may be giving off confrontational vibes, it could be for a variety of other reasons. I think she may also be somewhat of a big fish in a small pond at home (this is all speculation, mind you) which she’s exhibiting on the show. Who knows? What I do know is that she’s not playing a very smart game, IMHO, because she just sold old her super-strong alliance of 3, which is crazy to me…
Hard to say about how well off contestants are. Lindsey revealed in a post-show interview that she OWNED the salon, so she wasn’t JUST a hairstylist. The cops may not be rich, per se, but I think they’re comfortable enough. My perspective may be off, since I’m not rich, and hold deep seeded grudges against the wealthy… 😉
And while I get the feeling a LOT of the contestants are living comfortably, I know there are students, farmers, and every other profession under the sun. Truthfully, when I think of a cross-section of America, I think there’s a higher percentage of struggling families/individuals than those who aren’t. But, we don’t get to see those folks on Survivor. Sure, no one wants to see Martha, who’s on food stamps back home, play the game, because she’d be playing for blood. And we’d also hate to think who’s taking care of Mary’s kids back home while she’s away. What I have noticed is that there are lot more “interesting people” on the show now than before. We don’t get the “I’m a contestant in beauty pageant’s back home” girls. We get, “I am a former Miss Tennessee 2011 and I competed in the Miss America pageant.” I think this is one place that Survivor has to be careful. Fans of the show want to identify, somewhat, with the “characters” we see, and if everyone’s a rock star, we’ll soon tune out…
I get it, there’s a fine line these shows have to walk between casting interesting people and some possible trainwrecks. I think other shows lean more toward the trainwrecks than Survivor does, but you gotta think that SOMEONE on the show saw trainwreck potential in Brandon Hantz and didn’t raise a flag. Oops, that almost backfired… Personally, I don’t understand how some people haven’t snapped when some of that BS is pulled in camp. I would have thrown Colton in the fire for what he said to Christina…
RE: the shoes. I guess it may be as simple as the show says, “Do you wanna wear shoes or not?” and leaves it up to the contestants. I know there are a lot of challenges that would seem to favor shoes/no shoes, but it’s just one of those things that doesn’t make the edit. Since they had to swim out to their perches, maybe everyone chose to keep their shoes dry, except for Woo who was wearing the aqua-shoes…?
We’ll see how tomorrow’s episode affects Kass’s standing in the game. She either made a good move or a very bad one. I think it was a bad one, but who knows? I always say that playing Survivor is like a poker game. No two hands are similar. What worked one season has no bearing on another because the players are all different. One day I hope to go back and review how each winner did it, and come up with a formula for winning the game: if this happens, you do this, and you should do well. If THAT happens, you do something else. Again, there’s never a definable path because of the various twists, turns, flops, and blindsides. You just gotta take each day as it comes and stay active… Like life.
I wish someone who’s played the game successfully would chime in with some honest assessment of how they did it, and not just what they think we wanna hear…
Wow, that’s a long response…
Hey B,
I was really just teasing you about atty hating. I don’t mind the jokes and mostly agree with them. My husband and I met in law school and probably got along because we both agreed that most of our classmates were obnoxious dorks with an attitude. Don’t know why law school (and I’d say medical school as well) does that to people, but its true. Interesting about Kass. Often the big fish in little ponds are the worst! Its funny. She looks so much like an old neighbor of mine, a total separated at birth! I often wonder too about how these people walk away from jobs, whatever they are, to do this show. It would be an interesting question to ask all the contestants and if it had negative consequences after. I still think the thing with Woo’s shoes (haha I rhymed) is annoying. I wonder if more people will bring those type in later shows? Back to Kass’ vote….you are probably right that it won’t be the best decision. She def. broke the trust. Will be fun to see how it plays out. Looking forward to your next update too!
All I am reading is what a stupid decision that was for Kass . . . and it very well might be. I was wondering if she will go back to her original tribe (in the new one she is obviously at the bottom), tell them that she saw the writing on the wall with Sarah, but she is definitely ‘one of them’. I don’t think they will trust her – however, I have been surprised before at how easily things turn around. If she votes with them and helps eliminate the other group (Tony, et al) and ingratiates herself back in with Spencer and Tash, she may be able to survive. OR she just screwed herself royally – lol.
Kinbville – I noticed those shoes also. I thought it must be OK in the Survivor rules, but I also thought they gave him an advantage. And I think that Kass realized that Sarah would be after her – so she made it into a ‘who gets who first’ situation.