Release Date:  10 April 2019

**Spoilers for This Episode Ahead**

One of the key parts of Survivor is Tribal Council, which is full of manipulation, lies and betrayal. Some of the most interesting Tribals are live Tribal Councils, which is when castaways start whispering and strategizing during Tribal. This episode contains one of the most outrageous and fascinating live Tribal Councils in the history of the show.

NIGHT 22

After voting differently at the last Tribal, David and Devens reconcile. They believe that they have to work together until, at least, the halved immunity idol is gone. They decide that they should try to rope in Ron and Julie, who feel like they are at the bottom after the others in their alliance blindsided Eric, one of their closest allies.

Gavin is thrilled that he now has a major blindside on his resume. He believes that the Kama-trio (Julia, Victoria and himself) and the Lesu-trio (Wardog, Lauren and Wentworth) should ally and form a powerful voting block. He shares this with Wardog, who seems on board.

DAY 23

We cut to the Edge of Extinction, where its newest inhabitant, Eric, is taking the loss hard. He contemplates raising the white flag and leaving the game for good but eventually decides to keep fighting the temptation. I’m glad because I think that Eric is one of the most interesting castaways in the game. He has the drive to win but isn’t as headstrong as some of the other competitors.

Back at camp, Devens tries to sooth Julie and Ron. He had voted with them at the last Tribal Council, so they are inclined to trust him. Devens, David, Julie and Ron meet at the well and discuss forming an alliance. I am not the biggest fan of this alliance because I don’t like Ron and am unsure about Julie. Devens and David are great players and I worry that if they use Julie and Ron as votes, it might come back to bite them later.

Julia and Gavin discuss this possible new alliance of the Kama-trio and the Lesu-trio. They know the Lesu-trio could be valuable assets in voting about major threats like David and Ron. However, Wentworth and Wardog are also big threats, and the Lesu-trio are inseparable. They wonder whether they should target Wentworth instead.

This episode’s immunity challenge is focused on balance and concentration. David competed in this challenge in his first season, and this experience helps him this time. The competition comes down to David and Gavin, and Gavin wins immunity.

Everyone returns to the camp and immediately scatters to discuss strategy. The Lesu-trio and the Kama-trio disagree about who to vote out. The members of the Lesu-trio would like to vote Ron out, as Ron is a strategic threat and an ex-Kama member. The Kama-trio would like to vote David out, as David is a strategic returning player and an ex-Lesu member.

Before Tribal Council, all of the ex-Kama members (Ron, Julie, Aurora, Victoria, Gavin and Julia) meet and discuss taking out ex-Lesu members. Some think David is a bigger threat and some think Wentworth is a bigger threat.  

The group is somewhat uncomfortable, as they hadn’t voted together in the previous Tribal. I don’t think that working together as one unit again is Kama’s best idea. It’s an individual game now, and if they try to stick together, they’ll have to vote for one another eventually.

TRIBAL #9 (NIGHT 23)

This Tribal Council starts like any other. The Lesu-trio feel uneasy about their possible alliance with the Kama-trio, as the Kama-trio waited so long to discuss their strategy that they didn’t have enough time to finalize the vote before Tribal.

Aurora complains that all five of the ex-Lesu members (Devens, David, Wardog, Lauren and Wentworth) are casting mistrust and sarcastically mentions that they should work together. Devens agrees and states that the ex-Lesu members along with Ron and Julie can take power away from the ex-Kama members.

Tribal erupts into chaos. Everyone breaks up into groups, some whispering strategy and some talking in full volume like they do not care if their target hears them. Two major groups form.  Wentworth talks with Aurora, Gavin and Julia. The other four ex-Lesu discuss aligning with Ron and Julie to take out Aurora. Victoria listens in on this conversation and considers jumping ship.

This Tribal is incredible. Watching, I’m unsure of who I want to win, of who I want to go to Extinction Island, of who is working in each alliance. It feels like a completely new game. Live Tribals normally don’t occur, but when they do, they are fascinating to watch. The jury, especially Aubry, is shocked by the live Tribal Council as well.

Julie turns on Julia and admits how uncomfortable she feels in the ex-Kama alliance. Julia snaps at Julie, unsure of why Julie wants to throw away the Kama control. Julie retorts that she doesn’t feel involved with the Kama control and that she wants to jump ship.  Julia is outraged and starts snapping at everyone. Eventually, all of the castaways finish their strategic discussions and are ready to vote.

“One of the single craziest Tribals I’ve even been a witness to,” host Jeff Probst says. “I cannot wait to see what comes of it.”

Devens decides to play the halved immunity idol for David, just in case. The live Tribal Council has a major impact on the vote. David receives one vote from Aurora (which does not count due to the immunity idol) and Wentworth receives one vote from Julia, but the nine other votes are directed at Julia, and she is voted out. If she hadn’t been so angry at everyone during Tribal, she probably would have been safe.

Julia chooses to go to the Edge of Extinction, and the episode ends with five ex-Lesu and five ex-Kama, though these tribal lines are now blurred. I had thought that the previous Tribal Council would change the game, but I could have never predicted this. This season is shaping up to be even more incredible than I ever could have hoped.

Release Date:  3 April 2019

**Spoilers for This Episode Ahead**

Anyone who’s seen a season of Survivor knows that in order to win the game, you need to make big moves that distinguish you from other players. One of the key questions to consider is how early to makes these big moves. If you wait too long, you might have an empty “Survivor Resume” to show the jury and if you do it too soon, the others might get spooked and vote you out. The key to making big moves in Survivor is timing, and in this episode, the debate isn’t just whether to make a big move, it’s what big move to make.

DAY 20

Day 20 starts with a reward challenge. The castaways are divided into two groups, and the winning group wins the reward of Chinese takeout and cold water back at camp. The challenge is very close, but in the end, the blue team (Wardog, Eric, Julia, Victoria, Aurora, and Devens) triumphs against the yellow team (Gavin, Wentworth, Lauren, David, Julie, and Ron).

Wentworth tells David about Wardog’s plan to take out one of the ‘Kama six’. David thinks it’s a good idea, and so do I, but Devens does not. He doesn’t trust any of the ex-Lesu members (except for David) and wants to work with the ‘Kama six’.  David thinks that Devens is being emotional, and this causes a rift in their relationship.

DAY 21

For those who have forgotten, the four people currently on Extinction Island are Reem, Chris, Aubry and Joe. Four bottles wash up on the shore of the island, telling them of an advantage hidden on the island. All four search and Aubry finds a key and a clue. This clue leads her to a hidden clearing that contains an advantage for the next Extinction duel, as well as a note. The note contains an extra-vote advantage that Aubry must send to someone currently in the game.

DAY 22

This episode’s individual immunity challenge focuses on balance and endurance. When there are three castaways left in the challenge, Lauren blacks out and falls face-first into the sand. The emergency medical team is immediately called in and bring her to consciousness within a few minutes. They report that she is okay, just dehydrated. Lauren waves off Jeff’s questions and claims that she is embarrassed, but okay.

This leaves Aurora and Victoria in the immunity challenge. Aurora pleads to Victoria for the immunity, since she doesn’t feel safe in their alliance, but Victoria doesn’t relent until she unintentionally loses. Aurora wins immunity, and when the castaways return to camp, she finds Aubry’s extra-vote advantage hidden in her bag. This gives Aurora much more power than she had previously.

At the beginning of the season, I didn’t think much of Aurora.  She had allied with the two returning players on her tribe rather than solidify bonds with the other new players, which I think wasn’t a wise decision.  Now, I think she is an interesting character, and I am excited to see her shake up this season in upcoming episodes.

All seven of the ex-Kama members gather publicly on the beach to discuss strategy.   They decide to split votes between Wentworth and Lauren. This public setup, probably made by either Ron or Eric, shows a lot of arrogance and confidence in their numbers.

What they fail to think of is that when castaways feel like they are on the bottom, they can cause a lot of trouble, because they have nothing to lose.

Wardog looks for cracks in the ex-Kama majority alliance. He tells Julia and Gavin that they are on the bottom of their alliance and that some of the more dominant members of the alliance are just using them for numbers. This strikes a chord with both castaways, especially Julia.

Julia decides to test her relationship with Eric by asking him if they can vote for Devens or David instead of Wentworth and Lauren. Eric doesn’t listen to her, and Julia realizes that she isn’t as important in her alliance as she thought she was.

Gavin, Julia and Victoria discuss voting with the ex-Lesu members. They realize that they have to make a big move at some point to shake up their “Survivor Resumes”, but are unsure if this is the best time to make a big move, and which of the ex-Kama members they should target. When Tribal Council starts, it isn’t clear who will be voted out.

TRIBAL #8 (NIGHT 22)

At Tribal, the ex-Kama members talk about their beach strategy session openly, and overall act as one confident unit. David and Wardog try to manipulate them by explaining the importance of a “Survivor Resume” and big moves. This is especially compelling coming from David, someone who has played Survivor before.

No idols or advantages are played. Wentworth and Lauren receive two votes each, but Eric is the one voted out with eight votes (from Wentworth, Lauren, Wardog, David, Julia, Gavin, Victoria, and Aurora).  Eric is shocked by the blindside.

I think this is a great move, especially for Julia, Gavin and Victoria, as none of them had done anything unique or recognizable before, but now they have upset the numbers and caused chaos, which will hopefully work in their favor.

Release Date:  27 March 2019

**Spoilers for This Episode Ahead**

There are always pivotal moments in Survivor, like the merge or a tribe swap.  However, Survivor is an unpredictable game, and pivotal moments happen at the drop of the hat.  That is what happened in this episode of Survivor when the castaways finally learn about the Edge of Extinction.

DAY 17

The episode starts with what appears to be an individual challenge.  The castaways enter, and Jeff Probst, the host, announces the merge. The ex-Kama members are especially thrilled by this announcement, as they appear to have the numbers.

Probst then asks the six from the Edge of Extinction to come in.  The reactions from the castaways are priceless. Everyone is shocked.  You can see the mix of excitement and worry in their eyes.

The six that come from the Edge of Extinction (Reem, Keith, Chris, Rick Devens, Aubry and Wendy) must compete in a challenge against each other for one spot back in the game.  Chris previously won an advantage that gave him the chance to practice one leg of the challenge. Keith previously won the chance to give someone else a disadvantage, which he decides to give to Chris.

The challenge is very close, but Devens wins.  I’m happy Devens won because I believe he has a good chance of winning this season.  He is very strategic but not physically threatening.

Jeff tells the castaways that Extinction Island is still in play, and sends them to their merge feast on the Manu beach.  Reem, Keith, Chris, Aubry and Wendy are left with Probst. They are all crying and devastated, but Probst gives them another opportunity to return to Extinction Island, which they all take.

The five return to Extinction Island, but Keith and Wendy decide to raise the white flag and exit the game for good.  I’m sad to see them go, especially Wendy, because they have distinct, interesting personalities. I have mixed feelings about letting the other three have another chance to rejoin the game since they’ve already had two chances to play the game.

Devens worries that since he came from Extinction Island, he might be the easy vote.

“There’s definitely a fear that you’ll be the easy vote,” he says in a confessional.

All of the girls gather together to discuss strategy, which gives Kelley Wentworth and Lauren a chance to work their way in with ex-Kama members, as the ex-Manu castaways are at a severe numbers disadvantage.  Wentworth suggests splitting votes between Devens and David, in case Devens has an immunity idol.

I am not sure this will benefit Wentworth, as she is an ex-Manu member and she suggests targeting two other ex-Manu members, but maybe this is the opportunity she and Lauren need to work their way into the majority alliance.

DAY 18

The producers of Survivor send Devens a hidden immunity idol with a twist since he earned his way into the game again.  It is broken in half, and Devens must give the second half to another player. If both players survive through this tribal, the broken necklace becomes a valid immunity idol.  Devens gives the second half to David, his closest ally from before he got voted out.

The individual immunity challenge is an endurance challenge.  It is a close battle between Julie, Joe and Lauren, but Julie wins.  As far as I can tell, Julie is safe this week, so this immunity win isn’t a game-changer.

DAY 19

Julie, who has bonded with Devens and doesn’t want to vote him out, suggests blindsiding Wentworth.  She suggests this because Wentworth is a threat physically and socially, as well as a returning player.

However, Ron has another plan.  He believes the ‘Kama six’ (Victoria, Julia, Eric, Gavin, Julie, and Ron) should vote out Joe.  Joe is an even bigger physical threat than Wentworth, and he doesn’t seem keen to strategize with the ‘Kama six’.

TRIBAL #7 (NIGHT 19)

I was shocked when Aubry, Reem and Chris were brought out as the first three jury members at Tribal Council.  The castaways weren’t aware that they were already voting out jury members, as in most seasons, voted off castaways start forming the jury around the merge.  This gives the castaways on Extinction Island an oppurtunity to understand the dynamic of the game, which might help them if they rejoin the game. In Survivor, information is power, and this gives players on Extinction Island more information.

No idols are played.  Devens receives two votes, Wentworth receives two votes, David receives three votes but in the end, Joe is voted off with five votes.  I’m not shocked. Joe is a big threat and everyone knows it. If he had gone to Tribal in the pre-merge portion of the season, he might have been voted off sooner.  Joe becomes the forth member of the jury and chooses to go to Extinction Island, which isn’t surprising.

This episode has many shocking twists like revealing Extinction Island and voting off one of the four original returning players.  This season has been incredibly fast-paced and there is never a dull moment. I cannot wait for next week!