More Whatnot

QUICK NOTE: XFINITY.com is the place to be for all of your bug-eatin’, back-stabbin’, “Survivor” coverage. During the season we’ll have insightful weekly Power Rankings with Aubry Bracco, exit interviews, and full episode recaps. Follow me on Twitter (@gordonholmes) for up-to-the-minute updates.

Last Week: The merge feast participants got hammered, the advantage clue was nailed, and Jessica got the axe.

39 Days, 18 People, 1 “Survivor” Blog

Alright, let’s take a closer look at the tribe…

The Solewa Tribe – Wearing Purple
Ashley, 26 – Lifeguard
Ben, 34 – Marine
Chrissy, 46 – Financial Analyst
Cole, 24 – Wilderness Survival Guide
Desiree, 27 – Physical Therapist
Devon, 23 – Surf Instructor
Joe, 34 – Probation Officer
JP, 28 – Firefighter
Lauren, 35 – Fisherman
Mike, 43 – Urologist*
Ryan, 23 – Bellhop

*Has an Immunity Idol

Post Tribal Shenanigans

Joe goes the modern route when addressing the blindside by congratulating the blindside…ers? But, he also has to get his dig in by saying they now have to play with the devil.

That’s a very Russell Hantz thing to do. Go back and look at how crapily (not a word) Russell treated Rupert after Russell clearly had the numbers in “Heroes vs. Villains.” How does that help you? Sometimes it’s best to just stop talking.

Nailed It

The next morning, Lauren finds the advantage clue that was hidden in the nails. Apparently, she can forfeit her vote at the next Tribal Council and get an extra vote for down the line. Luckily for her, the extra vote has never backfired.

Ahem…

Also, she’ll need to slip the advantage into the voting urn and keep a piece of parchment. She’d better hope it’s a blowout vote and Probst doesn’t have to read all of them.

Reward Challenge Time: The tribe will be split into two teams of five. They’ll race through an obstacle course, then use a slingshot to knock down targets. The first team to hit all five targets will receive a pasta dinner.

The odd person out gets to enjoy the reward no matter who wins.

Quick Aside: Darnit, Probst! Make that person bet on the winner!

Result: JP, Chrissy, Cole, Ryan, and Devon pull off the win. Joe gets to tag along.

Before they head off to the reward, Probst tells them that there’s only one big meal and they’ll have to eat it alone, one person at a time. Joe will get to pick the eating batting order.

Ugh…so somebody is going to get to eat off of a dish after five other filthy people have had their fill? Sloppy sixths?

Carbs and Clues

Joe doesn’t want to be accused of eating too much, so he chooses to eat last. He lets Devon go first, then JP, Cole, Chrissy, and Ryan. I like this plan. Devon and JP are the most likely to eat enough to annoy the other players.

As more and more pasta is eaten, we can see that there’s some kind of clue on the plate. Cole is the first person to notice this. He learns that there is an idol buried underneath the tribe flag.

Cole tries to hide it by putting all of the pasta on an apron, then putting the apron on the plate.

Creative…but weird. I would’ve just tossed the plate. Also, kudos to Cole for not immediately telling everyone about the clue.

Sure enough, Chrissy realizes something is up during her turn and sees the clue too.

Ryan sees it as well. However, he goes the extra mile by actually taking the plate and hiding it in the forest. Smart boy. #PlateGate

Beach Brawl

Back at SoLeNaWaPa beach, Ryan sneaks away to try to claim the idol while Cole is off relieving himself.

Ryan digs it up and quickly sneaks it into his pants. As this happens, Chrissy walks by and Ryan tells her that he has it and to cover up the hole. As she’s doing this, Cole returns and springs into action, diving toward the hole. This commotion draws everyone’s attention. Chrissy is frantically telling JP to help her. Ben leaps in. Even the tribe flag falls in the ensuing scuffle. Meanwhile, Ryan looks on in shock with an idol in his shorts.

Amazing. Moment of the season.

When it’s all said and done, everyone thinks Cole has the idol.

Quick Aside: Chrissy was defending the hole with everything she had. Maybe she didn’t hear Ryan say he had the idol?

Immunity Challenge Time: The players will stand on a balance beam while holding up an statue with a pole. Last person standing wins immunity.

Result: Cole wins immunity.

Pre-Tribal Politicking

It looks like the Hustleroes are going to split the vote between Joe and Desi in case Joe has an idol.

None of the Healers are discussing using Mike’s idol, so it’s probably safe to assume that they don’t know that he has it.

Joe lets Ryan and Devon know that they can’t beat Ben in the end. In a great moment, Ben can be seen lurking in the background during this conversation.

Ben confronts Joe with this and Joe floats the lie that Ben has been swearing on his service as a Marine. This…sets…Ben…off. Joe is clearly baiting Ben and Ben is falling for it.

Later, Lauren lets Ben know that she can’t use her vote because of the secret advantage. This screws up their whole numbers game and forces them to approach Mike to vote with them.

Tribal Time

Joe points out that Ben is running the show. However, Ben claims they make decisions as a group.

Both Chrissy and Ashley get into it with Joe while discussing if Ben was using his Marine status to get ahead.

Finally, Devon says the game has turned him into a zombie, whereas he’s usually a “bright, beautiful light.”

Heh…adorable.

In the Voting Booth: Lauren uses her advantage and keeps a piece of parchment.

Voting Time: We’ve got one vote for Ben, one vote for Lauren, one vote for Desi, one vote for Joe, one vote for Desi, one vote for Joe, one vote for Desi, one vote for Joe, one vote for Desi and…one vote for Joe. A tie!

Note: Nobody mentions the weird number of votes, but a few people seemed confused.

Voting Time Part Deux: We’ve got four votes for Desi and the eighth person voted out of “Survivor: Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers” and the first member of the jury is…Desi.

Verdict: OK, so Cole and Mike both voted with her Hustleroes. But, why would they get rid of Desi when everyone is annoyed with Joe? Is someone hoping to take him to the end? Ryan? Chrissy?

Very interesting, but I don’t think we have enough of the pieces to make sense of the vote. That’s super annoying.

 

	Ryan – That idol moment was hilarious. You snagged it, nobody saw it and Cole took the heat. And, you have something else to tie you to Chrissy who seems to be playing a 3rd-place game. Doctor Mike – They’re gonna need swing votes and you’re still packing an idol. Well done.
	Lauren – Good job locking down that extra vote. But, your closest ally can probably beat you in front of a jury.
	Joe – Why wasn’t it you, Joe? What don’t we know?
	Chrissy – I worry that getting into it with potential future jurors Joe and Cole is gonna cost you. Cole – Tackling a woman who’s older than you is not a good look. But, you did vote with the majority.
	Ben – You let Joe bait you and all of this Marine talk is putting a big target on your back.
	Ashley, JP, and Devon – I can’t give you full credit if you don’t show your work.

Power Rankings Results: Aubry Bracco had Desi in spot nine, I had her in spot five. The current score is Team Bracco 74, Team Holmes 80.

Any Questions? Drop me a line on Twitter: @gordonholmes

Tags: survivor, survivor heroes vs. healers vs. hustlers

This entry was posted on November 15, 2017 at 9:02 pm and is filed under RealityTV, survivor, TV News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.