Welcome to MoreWhatnot.com, my personal blog where I’ll be posting “Survivor” episode recaps all season long. For exit interviews with all of the eliminated players and the RETURN of the “Survivor” Power Rankings with Owen Knight, be sure to check out my YouTube channel!
Last Week: Three contestants played team musical chairs, Soka split up into pairs, and Sarah was sent down the Tribal Council stairs…
39 26 Days, 18 People, 1 “Survivor” Blog
Let’s take a look at the tribes as they currently stand…
The Ratu Tribe (wearing orange)
Brandon, 30 – Security Specialist
Carson, 20 – NASA Engineering Student
Lauren, 31 – Elementary School Teacher
Kane, 25 – Law Student
Matthew, 43 – Barbershop Owner
The Soka Tribe (wearing green)
Danny 32 – Firefighter
Frannie, 23 – Research Coordinator
Heidi, 29 – Engineering Manager
Jaime, 35 – Yogi
Matt, 27 – Security Software Engineer
The Tika Tribe (wearing purple)
Carolyn, 35 – Drug Counselor
Josh, 34 – Surgical Podiatrist
Yam Yam, 36 – Salon Owner
Post-Tribal Wrap Up
Yam Yam is trying to pick up the pieces after a dumpster fire of a Tribal Council. Carolyn’s explanation is that she had two people telling her what to do, so she felt like a third wheel. Like one of those wobbly shopping cart wheels, I bet.
Carolyn says her heart tells her to work with Yam Yam, but her brain tells her that Josh is best for her game. What does your spleen tell you?
Yam Yam tries to smooth things over with Josh the next day, but he feels like Josh is taking the potential blindside personally. Eventually they make peace with each of them sharing their coming-out stories.
Josh has also been planting some seeds, telling Yam Yam that he has the Soka idol from their birdcage. He even goes so far as to fashion a fake idol out of some treemail beads.
See! Fashioned by someone in the game, the way the “Survivor” gods intended!
Josh isn’t sure which way he wants to go with the next vote, but he wants both Carolyn and Yam Yam to feel comfortable until he has to make a choice.
At Ratu Beach
Matthew is having a really tough time dealing with the pain from his fall. Carson and Kane are both very supportive of the emotional state that he is in.
We also learn that Carson and Kane are finally able to nerd out about “Lord of the Rings,” “Pokemon,” and “Star Wars.” Oh man, Danny’s gonna steal their lunch money.
At Soka Beach
We meet up with Danny teaching his tribe about his Brazilian Jiu Jitsu breathing techniques. He also tells us about how much he misses his four-month-old daughter. (OK, maybe he’s not the lunch-money-stealing type.)
Meanwhile, Jaime is making inroads in tribe with everyone except for Matt. She tries to work with him and he’s like, “Ah…meh…”
But, maybe Jaime isn’t as in-tune as she thinks. She hasn’t picked up that Matt and Frannie are an alliance.
And are in looooooove.
Immunity Challenge Time: The tribes will be tied together and race through a series of obstacles. They’ll fill a bucket with water and use the water to lower a bridge. From there, the first two tribes to successfully maneuver three balls through a table maze will win immunity. The first tribe will also get to decide which three people to send on a journey.
Sitting Out: Matthew, Lauren, Jaime, and Frannie
Result: Ratu claims first place, with Soka taking second. Ratu chooses Brandon, Danny, and Carolyn to go on the excursion.
Probst asks medical to take a look at Matthew and it appears the injury isn’t getting better. They do not pull him from the game, but it’s not looking good.
The Excursion
Instead of having to play a weirdo game of rock-paper-scissors, the players are taken to the Sanctuary where they are treated to a pre-merge-atory meal.
Carolyn tells the guys about Josh’s idol, which leads them to believe that Jaime and Carson have limited-time idols as well. Brandon and Danny also start laying the groundwork for a post-merge alliance.
And true to form, Carolyn immediately starts to feel left out as they bro-down. They tell her they want to work with her if she makes the merge. Which, she’s totally capable of doing since she’s still packing an idol.
The bro-down has Carolyn very wary of Josh as he was mentioned as someone that Danny wants in the alliance.
Pre-Tribal Politicking
While Carolyn is on the excursion, Josh tells Yam Yam that he doesn’t want to have to play idols in back-to-back Tribals. Not bad.
When Carolyn returns, she tries to signal to Yam Yam that they should work together again.
Then she flat out tells Josh that he’s in trouble because the guys want to alignwith him. This doesn’t bother Josh though because he has an “idol.” He produces his masterpiece and Yam Yam immediately recognizes the beads as having come from a treemail.
So, after everything that happened last week, Yam Yam ends up as the swing vote. “Survivor” is fun.
Uh-oh…Jeff shows up on a boat. I’m assuming he’s showing up to tell us that Matthew is out.
Sure enough, Matthew has decided to leave the game. But…did he do anything with his idol before he left?
Verdict: Hate to see Matthew go out like that. Especially because it was somewhat of his own doing. Hopefully he and Bruce get to lead tribes in an upcoming season.
Otherwise, less twisty, more personality…love it. Seeing Kane and Carson, and Jaime and Team Mannie, all good stuff.
Looks like we’re off to merge-atory next week. Where Carolyn is bound to set the bro-liance ablaze.
Power Rankings Result: Owen had Matthew in spot ten and I had him in spot seven. So, the current score is Team Holmes 30, Team Knight 40. Check out my YouTube channel for the full episodes!
Yam Yam – You managed to work your way from the bottom into a swing-vote position. Well done, sir.
Carson – He’s done a fantastic job making some strong bonds without having to tip his hand about how savvy he is. He doesn’t have to play his time-delayed idol and he’s about to be reunited with Yam Yam and Carolyn. Frannie – She’s just a star. Every time I see her I think she can win this whole thing. Just hope the showmance doesn’t take her down.
Kane – Hey! We finally got to see Kane do some strategy! And he has a buddy!
Danny and Brandon – I’m sure there was some editing trickery going on there, but it was obvious that these two were driving Carolyn up a wall. Kudos for setting up a post-merge alliance though. Shame if Carolyn wrecks it. Matt – You are so lucky to have Frannie. But best case for you is being Amber to her Boston Rob. (Which honestly isn’t a bad best-case scenario.)
Josh – He should have been the swing vote, but his real fake idol and Danny’s big mouth put him in a lot of trouble. Carolyn – It’d be fascinating to play poker with Carolyn, right? Would she just tell you what cards she has? Jaime – You aren’t wrong about being valuable, but you need to learn to read a room better. And with Matthew gone, you’re in big trouble.
Lauren and Heidi – I can’t grade you correctly if I don’t see your work.
Any Questions? Drop me a line on Twitter: @gordonholmes
Welcome to MoreWhatnot.com, my personal blog where I’ll be posting “Survivor” episode recaps all season long. For exit interviews with all of the eliminated players and the RETURN of the “Survivor” Power Rankings with Owen Knight, be sure to check out my YouTube channel!
Last Week: Matt and Jaime found idols with very little clout, Kane swung a sword while preparing for a bout, and after Tribal Council, Claire will permanently sit out.
39 26 Days, 18 People, 1 “Survivor” Blog
Let’s take a look at the tribes as they currently stand…
The Ratu Tribe (wearing orange)
Brandon, 30 – Security Specialist
Jaime, 35 – Yogi
Lauren, 31 – Elementary School Teacher
Kane, 25 – Law Student
Matthew, 43 – Barbershop Owner
The Soka Tribe (wearing green)
Danny 32 – Firefighter
Frannie, 23 – Research Coordinator
Heidi, 29 – Engineering Manager
Josh, 34 – Surgical Podiatrist
Matt, 27 – Security Software Engineer
The Tika Tribe (wearing purple)
Carolyn, 35 – Drug Counselor
Carson, 20 – NASA Engineering Student
Sarah, 27 – Management Consultant
Yam Yam, 36 – Salon Owner
Post-Tribal Wrap Up
We start off at the Soka tribe where Josh is clearly SO KAnfused. He thinks he’s close with both Team Mannie and Team Danny. Well, he’s half right.
Oh no, he’s not. Both couples are ready to boot him next.
At Tika Beach
The tribe is shocked, SHOCKED when they find a big red “X” made of sticks on the birdcage. Surely it must’ve been production, because who could possibly make an “X” out of sticks?
Nah, it was Carolyn. She hid the fake idol under a second “X.” Oh wow, Probst is so jealous he didn’t think of this first.
But wait, why the fake idol and not the key? Then what’s the point of the cage to begin with? Nevermind, this is Carolyn logic we’re talking about here.
Sure enough, Sarah finds the other red “X” and discovers the fake idol. And she buys it hook, line, and sinker.
Reward Challenge Time: Players will cross obstacles, then use a slingshot to hit targets. Each member of a tribe must hit a target. The first tribe to hit all of their targets gets a large tarp. The second team gets a smaller tarp. The winning tribe will also get to choose one player from each tribe to go on a journey.
Quick Aside: The losing tribe should receive a comically small tarp. Like a napkin.
Sitting Out: Frannie and Kane
Result: Soka takes first place easily, with Ratu taking second. Tika’s big problem seemed to be Carolyn-related.
Soka chooses Josh, Carson, and Jaime to go on the adventure.
At the Island of Excessive Advantages
The trio is quickly made to split up. They each receive an immunity idol that is good until all of the players are living on the same beach. (Note: It did not say “the merge.” You probably have to earn the merge again.) Also, the players will be going to a new tribe.
So, for those of you scoring at home, there are SIX immunity idols in the game right now.
Josh is going to Tika, Jaime is going to Soka, and Carson is now on Ratu.
At Tika Beach
Josh fills his new crew in on what happened. And he claims to be a physical trainer, which strikes Sarah as odd as he did the snake puzzle because of how steady his hands have to be in his profession.
Sarah and Yam Yam immediately pick this lie apart.
At Ratu Beach
Carson tells Ratu that he was probably the next to go and that Yam Yam is running the show over at Tika.
Matthew is bummed because he had done so much work to get Jaime on his side. He decides to share some knowledge with Carson to try to build a new bond. He tells Carson that Brandon played the idol at the first Tribal Council, and that Jaime found the idol when it was put back into circulation.
(Wink wink.)
At Soka Beach
Jaime feels super comfortable because she has two idols.
(Wink wink.)
Classic Soka is not thrilled because Josh was the next to go. They’re all cool with booting Jaime next as long as she doesn’t have an idol. Danny goes through her stuff and doesn’t find anything.
Immunity Challenge Time: One player at a time will dive into the water, climb a tower, and leap off to retrieve a key. From there they’ll race across a balance beam. The first two tribes to unlock and solve a manta ray puzzle will win immunity.
Sitting Out: Jaime and Matthew…aww…reunited…and it feels so good.
Results: Because Lauren couldn’t reach a key, Brandon had to go twice. Tika and Ratu were both hampered by Yam Yam and Kane’s inability to get across a balance beam. Soka easily claims first place, with Ratu taking second.
Pre-Tribal Politicking
Josh is an early favorite to send home, while Yam Yam is very nervous that he’ll be the target if Josh plays an idol. When Carolyn asks why he thinks he’s such a big target, he tells her it’s because nobody thinks she’s a threat.
Carolyn does not love that she’s the decoy vote.
Sarah and Yam Yam try to bring Josh on board for the ruse. But, Sarah is very worried that he’s going to play an idol.
Sure enough, Josh tells Carolyn that he can play his idol for her and then they can get out Yam Yam or Sarah.
What’s the song about idols, kids? “Don’t tell…don’t tell anyone…about your idollllllls.”
It seems like Carolyn is into this idea to get rid of Sarah. She hates that Yam Yam is telling her what to do.
Tribal Time
Yam Yam and Carolyn are getting into it, but it’s unclear how much of it is genuine. Josh isn’t quite sure what to believe.
Voting Time: No votes are shown.
JPro tallies and returns. He asks if anyone wants to play an advantage or an idol and…Josh does. He plays his idol for himself. Sarah does not play her “idol.”
We’ve got two votes for Josh, one vote for Sarah, and the fifth person eliminated from “Survivor 44” is Sarah.
Buh-bye, Inheritance Advantage.
Also buh-bye, fake idol.
Verdict: Wow, for as clueless as Josh seemed to be on Soka, he really sniffed out some trouble on Tika.
And holy advantage-ageddon. We’ve got five active idols in the game right now. Add to that the three fake idols, an extra vote, and all the remaining shots in the dark and this show has more crap in it than a Five Below.
Power Rankings Result: Owen nailed it this week, having Sarah in spot fourteen. I wasn’t too far behind with her in spot twelve. So, the current score is Team Holmes 23, Team Knight 30. Check out my YouTube channel for the full episodes!
Carson – I feel like he played things perfectly. Sit back and wait for others to come to you.
Matthew – The only thing keeping Matthew from getting an A is the fact that it’s probably a bad look that he’s buddying up to Carson so quickly.
Josh – I didn’t love how clueless he was about his standing with Soka or his telling Carolyn about his idol. But, he clearly did something right this week.
Jaime – Matthew got the best of you, but there’s no reason for him to blindside you. You seem like a good person to keep around. Carolyn – Did Carolyn turn on Yam Yam because of some deep strategy or because he hurt her feelings? That’s the magic of Carolyn. You never know…
Yam Yam – He did a terrible job of weighing Carolyn’s feelings and her…unique perspective.
Brandon, Lauren, Kane, Matt, Heidi, Frannie, and Danny – I can’t grade you correctly if I don’t see your work.
Any Questions? Drop me a line on Twitter: @gordonholmes
Welcome to MoreWhatnot.com, my personal blog where I’ll be posting “Survivor” episode recaps all season long. For exit interviews with all of the eliminated players and the RETURN of the “Survivor” Power Rankings with Owen Knight, be sure to check out my YouTube channel!
Last Week: Danny earned an idol and a fake, Carolyn found more than a snake, and Helen lost when her game was at stake.
39 26 Days, 18 People, 1 “Survivor” Blog
Let’s take a look at the tribes as they currently stand…
The Ratu Tribe (wearing orange)
Brandon, 30 – Security Specialist
Jaime, 35 – Yogi
Lauren, 31 – Elementary School Teacher
Kane, 25 – Law Student
Matthew, 43 – Barbershop Owner
The Soka Tribe (wearing green)
Claire, 25 – Tech Investor
Danny 32 – Firefighter
Frannie, 23 – Research Coordinator
Heidi, 29 – Engineering Manager
Josh, 34 – Surgical Podiatrist
Matt, 27 – Security Software Engineer
The Tika Tribe (wearing purple)
Carolyn, 35 – Drug Counselor
Carson, 20 – NASA Engineering Student
Sarah, 27 – Management Consultant
Yam Yam, 36 – Salon Owner
Post-Tribal Wrap Up
Carson is downright giddy to get his first blindside under his belt, while Sarah is doing her best to distance herself from Helen and pretend that she’s not upset at all. Yam Yam tries to her assure her that this was a “no shots fired” vote, but…c’mon. Outside of a unanimous vote, there’s no such thing.
Sarah and Carson go for a little stroll where he makes the case for them working together again. But, she makes the point that his word carries a little less weight these days…unlike his body.
At Soka Beach
Team Mannie is planning a road trip while everyone else is planning on sending them on the pre-jury trip.
Meanwhile, Danny takes the powerless coin, wraps it in his idol instructions, and places it back in the birdcage. Then he hides the key. Yup, I’m sure this is the exact scenario production was hoping would happen.
Sure enough, Matt finds the key. Aww…hasn’t he been through enough?
He retrieves his prize and buys into it hook, line, and sinker.
Then, because this scenario can actually get funnier; Danny calls out Matt for finding something, which he denies. However, he eventually fesses up to it.
But, this complicates thing. Now Josh is more likely to want to work with Matt and Frannie.
At Ratu Beach
The tribe starts off the morning with Kane singing a rendition of “O’ Canada.” From there, he takes the immunity idol sword and goes all LARPer on us. OK, we see you, Celebrimbor.
Later, Brandon walks us through his laundry list of impressive skills including…magic tricks?! Well, he certainly made that idol disappear quickly.
Speaking of that idol, Jaime and Matthew find the new key while hunting for worms. Jaime retrieves the idol and is super psyched.
Buuut…she’s holding the fake idol because Matthew found the real idol earlier and lured her into doing the ol’ switcheroo.
At Tika Beach
Carolyn calls out Yam Yam for his snoring, which concerns him because he doesn’t want to get voted out over it. She assures him that she’d never vote him out over snoring. Which is good, because my wife would have voted me out years ago.
Sarah is very worried about the next challenge because her little tribe has very specific skills. Meanwhile, Challenge Producer John Kirhoffer is scrambling to create a snoring competition.
Immunity Challenge Time: Players will dive into the ocean and swim to a large cube. They’ll roll the cube toward the beach while retrieving keys. Once they arrive at the beach they’ll dig under a log and unlock a puzzle platform. The first two tribes to complete a cube puzzle will win immunity. The first tribe gets a large “Survivor” tool kit and fruit. Second tribe gets less tools and less fruit. The losing tribe get a date with Jeff.
Sitting Out: Lauren, Claire, and Heidi. This is Claire’s third sit-out. Isn’t there a rule against that?
Result: Ratu wins the challenge while Tika claims second place. As Jeff is giving Kane the sword, he asks Jeff to knight him. Jeff obliges and somewhere Coach is super jealous.
Pre-Tribal Politicking
Danny is throwing around Claire’s name early on with Matt being a decoy. Frannie is against this because she wants to work with Claire. She pitches getting rid of Josh because she thinks he’s “cagey.”
Word gets back to Claire that she’s the actual target, so it looks like we have voteless Matt, Frannie, and Claire against Josh and Danny with Heidi as the swing vote.
Tribal Time
Claire does a fantastic job arguing that tribe strength isn’t always challenge based. Saying that she sat out for the tribe. With Frannie saying they need to focus on the whole game and not just the challenges.
Claire asks Heidi if she’s still in the place they were before Tribal. Heidi responds by saying, “I think so.” I tell ya, as a former copywriter that non-committal response would drive me nuts.
Voting Time: No votes are shown.
JPro tallies and returns. He asks if anyone wants to play an idol or an advantage and…Claire plays her shot in the dark. Claire is…not safe.
Alright, we’ve got two votes for Claire and the fourth person eliminated from “Survivor 44” is…Claire.
Hey! It was unanimous!
Verdict: I think the keys and the cage and the fake idols are all interesting, but I don’t need them taking up 90% of my screen time.
Also, it’s a little weird that these fake idols are provided by production. They should look like a face carved into a stick.
Power Rankings Result: We did much better this week as I had Claire in spot eight while Owen had her in spot fourteen. So, the current score is Team Holmes 11, Team Knight 16. Check out my YouTube channel for the full episodes!
Matthew – He had a plan, he set it in motion, and it worked out perfectly. He now has the real idol and control of the person who has the fake idol. Well done. Danny – Danny’s in the same boat as Matthew. However, it’s very interesting that he knows where the fake idol is, but he can’t tell anyone how he knows it’s a fake.
Frannie – There is no doubt that Frannie is the brains of the Mannie Alliance. Claire went home despite her best efforts. But she was able to avoid voting for someone who was sticking around.
Sarah – Yeah, the Tika tribe isn’t going to blow anyone away challenge-wise. But, that’s OK. I think Sarah has some room to maneuver and Carson probably wants to get back in her good graces.
Heidi – Your deception needs some work. You said so many non-committal things to Claire, that there’s no wonder why she rolled her die. Jaime – Matthew got the best of you, but there’s no reason for him to blindside you. You seem like a good person to keep around. Kane – It seems like the early Tribal shenanigans may have blown over.
Josh – Wow, Josh is rubbing a lot of people the wrong way on his tribe. We would have known that if most of the earlier episodes weren’t spent on keys. Matt – It’s really rough watching Matthew play you like a fiddle. Carson – Sarah said it best; his word doesn’t hold as much weight. I think it’s a just matter of time until he’s viewed as a mega threat.
Lauren, Brandon, Yam Yam, and Carolyn – I can’t grade you correctly if I don’t see your work.
Any Questions? Drop me a line on Twitter: @gordonholmes
Welcome to MoreWhatnot.com, my personal blog where I’ll be posting “Survivor” episode recaps all season long. For exit interviews with all of the eliminated players and the RETURN of the “Survivor” Power Rankings with Owen Knight, be sure to check out my YouTube channel!
Last Week: Bruce was taken from the game in a medical boat, Lauren was outed by her lack of a note, and Maddy was eliminated by a single vote.
39 26 Days, 18 People, 1 “Survivor” Blog
Let’s take a look at the tribes as they currently stand…
The Ratu Tribe (wearing orange)
Brandon, 30 – Security Specialist
Jaime, 35 – Yogi
Lauren, 31 – Elementary School Teacher
Kane, 25 – Law Student
Matthew, 43 – Barbershop Owner
The Soka Tribe (wearing green)
Claire, 25 – Tech Investor
Danny 32 – Firefighter
Frannie, 23 – Research Coordinator
Heidi, 29 – Engineering Manager
Josh, 34 – Surgical Podiatrist
Matt, 27 – Security Software Engineer
The Tika Tribe (wearing purple)
Carolyn, 35 – Drug Counselor
Carson, 20 – NASA Engineering Student
Helen, 29 – Project Manager
Sarah, 27 – Management Consultant
Yam Yam, 36 – Salon Owner
Post-Tribal Wrap Up
Matthew is very excited with how things went last week. He wanted Brandon to stay, but lose his idol. And, he wanted Maddy to go home, but he didn’t want to have to cast a vote in either direction. All for the low, low price of one Shot in the Dark die.
Lauren admits to the tribe that she has an extra vote. Which doesn’t seem like a terrible idea in such a small group, because it’ll probably pull people to her side.
Brandon calls out Kane for voting for him. Which Kane does a good job of playing off, saying it wasn’t personal. He claims that Brandon was the last name he was told. Brandon acts like he’s cool with it, but he clearly is not.
At Soka Beach
Matt tells the tribe about his recent breakup where apparently not only did his ex pull the trigger, but she also kept the dog?! Monster.
CUT TO: A montage of Matt and Frannie being adorable together.
Well, finding a new girlfriend on national television might be decent revenge.
And apparently they’re close enough that he can tell her that he lost his vote for the next two Tribals. Frannie lurves that he trusts her enough to make that confession, but she is wary that they may seem like a couple.
The duo makes a decision to separate for the rest of the day. And then proceeds to not do that.
Later on, Danny finds the key to his tribe’s cage. He cracks it open and claims the idol. He then leaves the bag in the cage so nobody knows he has it.
He swears to keep this idol a secret, which might make him the smartest man in the show’s history.
At Tika Beach
The quintet decides that it’s time to find their cage key. During the hunt, Carolyn climbs a tree and comes face to face with a snake. Yikes.
She recovers and tells us a story about how her son swallowed his first loose tooth, so she dug through his poop to find it.
National TV, Carolyn. Those big cameras following you around will take that footage to editors who will put the things you say on national TV.
But, that poop-level persistence pays off and Carolyn manages to find her tribe’s key.
Fun Fact: If I was a producer, I’d absolutely hide the key under the cage. I used to hide my sister’s Christmas gifts under her bed.
Carolyn retrieves her idol and runs away with the bag without checking to see what’s inside. She eventually thinks better of this strategy and returns the bag. The rest of the tribe visits the cage and it’s clear to all of them that something is different. However, none of them really seem to suspect Carolyn.
Immunity Challenge Time: Players will race over an obstacle and then empty sandbags until they find a ball. They’ll then lift a ladder, climb up to a platform, then raise and cross a bridge. They’ll slide off of the platform, then one member will need to use the ball to complete a snake maze. The first two tribes to complete the maze will win immunity. The first tribe will receive fishing gear, the second will receive slightly less fishing gear. The last tribe? Heartbreak.
Sitting Out: Claire, again.
Result: Matthew pulls off the come-from-behind win for Ratu as he absolutely dominated the maze. And Josh claims second place for Soka.
After the challenge, we learn that Matthew had built a replica of the maze in his backyard back home.
Another note to future players: Don’t tell everyone that you’ve practiced the challenges.
Pre-Tribal Politicking
Back at camp, Helen asks, “How are we supposed to beat a guy who has one of these built in his backyard?” Off the top of my head? Build one of your own.
Sure enough, we cut to Carson showing us the puzzles he 3-D printed back home.
Early discussions focus on if it’s better to keep Yam Yam’s strength vs. Carolyn’s…spirit?
Anywho, everyone except Carolyn seems like they’re on the same page, so it won’t matter that Sarah doesn’t have a vote.
Buuut…Yam Yam is loyal to Carolyn, He tells her what’s up and they decide to target Helen. They also had a hilarious method of deciding who to vote for without saying a name. They turned away from each other and made a letter with their hands. Ridiculous.
They bring Carson into the fold and he seems to be into it…which makes Carolyn very nervous. She can’t figure out why Carson would work with her over Helen and Sarah. And that’s actually some impressive, next-level thinking. Color me impressed.
So, heading into Tribal it seems like Sarah and Helen are voting for Carolyn while Yam Yam and Carolyn are voting for Helen with Carson being the swing vote. However, Carson is the person that’s saying this. So, apparently he doesn’t know that Sarah doesn’t have a vote no matter what.
Tribal Time
Things are pretty vague with the only really interesting thing happening is Carolyn breaking down in tears while Carson is talking. Is that her tell? Tears?
Voting Time: Helen votes for Carolyn, Sarah gets no vote, and the rest of the votes are lost to the magic of editing.
JPro asks if anyone wants to play an idol and…nobody does. We’ve got one vote for Carolyn, two votes for Helen, and the third person eliminated from “Survivor 44” is…Helen.
Verdict: My goodness. There was no trip to the Island of Excessive Advantages, but half of the episode was spent focusing on keys and cages. Show me more relationships.
Other than that, talk about booting someone who didn’t do anything to deserve it. Her big flaw was not being more open with Carolyn last episode.
Power Rankings Result: Yikes…I had Helen in spot three while Owen Knight had her in spot two. So, the current score is Team Holmes 3, Team Knight 2. Check out my YouTube channel for the full episodes!
Danny – Hey, you’re the only person to pull off the idol switcharoo without being caught. Yam Yam – Good on you for realizing that you’d be the next to go if Carolyn got booted. Lauren – I’m usually against talking about your advantages, but I think this is the right move. An extra vote isn’t a game-wrecker like an idol. It’s just a way to ensure your alliance makes it through the next vote.
Carson – I’m not quite sure what your reasoning was for jumping, but it was probably the right move. I’m going to assume you figured out Carolyn has the idol. I do worry that you’re leaning on the things you learn in books too much. These are real people. Matthew – Big points for stepping up and winning that maze. Point deductions for letting everyone know how much you prepared. Josh – Maze winner! That’s all I’ve got.
Brandon – Keeping your cool after Tribal was the right thing to do. There’s no reason to start anything with Kane until you’re both headed to Tribal. Jaime – We didn’t see much of her, but it seems like she’s doing a better job buddying up with her tribe. Carolyn – I can’t believe I’m giving such a “meh” grade to someone who did so well this episode. It’s like she does the best possible things in the worst possible way.
Matt and Frannie – Oh, we know a showmance is a bad look. We should spend time apart. (Proceeds to not spend time apart.) Kane – Yeah, it’s probably not good news when you’re looking for idols instead of mending fences. Sarah – Hard to see this as anything other than a loss for you. And there’s no idol to save you next week.
Claire and Heidi – I can’t grade you correctly if I don’t see your work.
Any Questions? Drop me a line on Twitter: @gordonholmes
Welcome to MoreWhatnot.com, my personal blog where I’ll be posting “Survivor” episode recaps all season long. For exit interviews with all of the eliminated players and the RETURN of the “Survivor” Power Rankings, be sure to check out my YouTube channel!
Survivors, Ready?!
Holy cow, we kick things off with production trying to explain to Carolyn how testimonial interviews work. And…it’s…amazing.
From there, we’ve got three boats, filled with six people each (all wearing similar colors), speeding down the Fijian coast. First up, we get to meet…
Carson who describes the many spreadsheets that are going to help him…excel…in the game. (I hate myself for that.)
Claire who is used to giving people money as a venture capitalist. So…like a professional “Survivor” juror?
Jaime who believes in speaking things into existence. And uses a fun “Bing” noise to express this talent. OK…
Yam Yam who is so excited to see Jeff, not eat, not shower, and poop in the ocean. In that order?
Josh who wasn’t supposed to live through childhood. Yikes, tough testimonial to follow Yam Yam’s pooping.
Frannie who loves taking tests.
Bruce who is all energy.
Finally, Jeff Probst welcomes us to “Survivor 44.”
Aww…I miss the catchphrase.
39 26 Days, 18 People, 1 “Survivor” Blog
Let’s take a look at the tribes as they currently stand…
The Ratu Tribe (wearing orange)
Brandon, 30 – Security Specialist
Jaime, 35 – Yogi
Lauren, 31 – Elementary School Teacher
Kane, 25 – Law Student
Maddy, 28 – Charity Projects Manager
Matthew, 43 – Barbershop Owner
The Soka Tribe (wearing green)
Claire, 25 – Tech Investor
Danny 32 – Firefighter
Frannie, 23 – Research Coordinator
Heidi, 29 – Engineering Manager
Josh, 34 – Surgical Podiatrist
Matt, 27 – Security Software Engineer
The Tika Tribe (wearing purple)
Bruce, 46 – Insurance Agent
Carolyn, 35 – Drug Counselor
Carson, 20 – NASA Engineering Student
Helen, 29 – Project Manager
Sarah, 27 – Management Consultant
Yam Yam, 36 – Salon Owner
The trio finally reaches the beach where Probst welcomes them with a wonderful speech about “Survivor” and what it asks of its contestants.
He then says he’s going to “birth” them into this game with the first reward challenge. Not sure how I feel about that terminology. But, it’s been 23 years, I figure Jeff has earned the right to get a little weird.
Reward Challenge Time: One pair from each tribe will run through obstacles and retrieve a pair of puzzle pieces. Then, the next pair will go until each player has retrieved one puzzle piece. From there, two people will complete the puzzle. Once the puzzle is completed, one player will race to toss rings off of a high pole.
The first tribe to complete these tasks will get a pot, a machete, and flint.
The second tribe gets to decide between the “sweat” and “savvy” tasks back at camp. The losing tribe gets what is left. I like that twist.
Result: There was a scary moment early on where Bruce busted his head open against one of the obstacles. Medical was called in, and fortunately he was able to stay in the game.
Once the game resumed, Yam Yam and Carson were the first to complete the puzzle for Tika. With Soka finishing it second. Jaime and Lauren had real problems, but eventually figured it out.
Weirdly, Carolyn did a terrible job with her tribe’s rings. She legitimately stopped to take off her pants at one point. Soka and Ratu are both able to pass her and claim first and second place respectively.
At Soka Beach
The green group seems to be the Kumbaya tribe early on with everyone declaring that none of them are “Too cool for school.” Danny thinks that’s a double-edged sword as there are no easy targets.
Later on, they discover a mysterious padlocked birdcage. The first assumption is that it must contain the Beware Advantage.
Everybody assumes Danny will be the fire maker, but Heidi manages to strike up a fire in no time. Also, why would you assume a fire fighter is good at starting fire? I’d think it’s the opposite.
In other news, Frankie and Matt seem to be bonding. Ooh…and he’s just out of a relationship. Rebound! They form an early alliance.
At Ratu Beach
The sextet is greeted by the choice between “Sweat” and “Savvy” to claim their supplies. “Sweat” is a process of systematically moving coconuts along the beach with the net they’re holding getting heavier and heavier at each station. They’re given four hours to make it happen.
“Savvy” is a brain teaser where they’ll only receive fifteen minutes and a single guess.
A good point is made that the other tribe is short a person due to Bruce’s injury. But, they’re more comfortable moving coconuts than they are completing a puzzle they’ve never seen before. So, “Sweat” it is!
Matthew and Brandon are assigned to complete this task. And it seems to be off to a good start. But as advertised, it keeps getting harder and harder. They manage to pull it off with just a little bit of time to spare.
At Tika Beach
Team Purple isn’t thrilled that they’re going to be doing the puzzle. But, Helen steps up because she enjoys brain teasers. Nobody wants to help her with this project, but Carson is kind of nominated against his will. It’s the glasses, right?
The puzzle involves counting rings in a sphere. The duo comes up with 18 and they are…correct!
While they’re figuring this out, the other four discover the mysterious birdcage. And, Carolyn thinks it makes her weird that she’s trying to figure out how to get the advantage without the key. I had the exact same thought. There must be a rule against it, or I’d be looking for a heavy boulder.
Oh no, Carolyn and I are having the same thoughts.
Later on, the tribe discusses their love lives and we learn that Carson has never been on a date before. Well, being hunky on national TV should fix that, buddy.
That night, Bruce is suffering from a severe headache. Medical is called in once again and the decision is made to pull him from the game.
Gah…hate to see that.
Matthew’s Moment
Oh boy…they’re going to follow a med-evac with the horrific fall we saw during the “Survivor 43” finale?!
We get to see Matthew leading his tribe and building a shelter. He tells us about his mother and his son and his husband.
And then we see him climbing a giant rock formation…
As foretold, he loses his grip and absolutely wipes out. He’s pretty sure he dislocated his shoulder and cut himself up. He pops his shoulder back into place, but he’s got a pretty severe cut on his foot.
Medical is brought in and they put him in a sling. Boy, medical has had more screen time this episode than Purple Kelly had in all of “Survivor: Nicaragua.”
The Tika Trio
With Bruce out of the game, it looks like Carson, Sarah, and Helen are working together.
And, nobody outside of Yam Yam is talking to Carolyn. Between her challenge performance and her…unique…personality, it’s pretty clear that she’s in trouble. Wow, there’s just nowhere to hide in a five-person tribe.
The First Excursion
All three of the tribes are given the chance to send a member away on a little outing. The Tika and Soka tribes draw straws with Sarah and Matt getting to go. While Ratu pays tribute to “Survivor” tradition and draws rocks. Lauren gets the nod, but she confesses that she put the rocks in the bag, so she knew which rock was which. Sneaky sneaky…
The trio arrives at an island where they have to split up to play the game. They’ll reach into a bag that has three packages. If they get an advantage, they get an advantage. If they lose their vote, they lose their vote. If they lose their vote, they can choose to pull again, but if they get the second lose your vote, they won’t be able to vote for the next two Tribal Councils.
They have to pull a package no matter what. They can’t opt out and just keep their vote.
Sarah loses her first vote. She draws again and gets the “Inheritance” advantage. When she plays this new twist, she will receive all of the advantages and idols that are played at that Tribal. Huh…that sounds powerful.
Matt loses his first vote as well. He draws again and loses his second vote. Oof…
Lauren immediately gets the “Bank Your Vote” advantage, this allows her to secretly not vote at one Tribal and then keep the parchment to vote twice at a later Tribal. Meh…
Cagey Maneuver
As soon as Lauren leaves, her tribemates start hunting for the key…which Brandon finds! He tried to be nonchalant about it, but Maddy totally knows what happened. So, he lets her in on the secret.
They can’t really come to a consensus about what to do with the key, so they tell everyone about it. Maddy takes this as a sign that Brandon doesn’t want to work with her.
The quintet opens the cage to find a hidden immunity idol and a fake immunity idol.
Brandon immediately regrets this decision as it puts a target on his back.
Sharing the Stories
When Matt returns to his beach, he tells them he only lost his vote for one Tribal Council.
Sarah tells the tribe that it was similar to previous seasons, and she isn’t sure if she’ll have a vote at the next Tribal or not.
Lauren tells the truth about the bank your vote advantage, but tells them she lost and won’t be able to vote at the next Tribal.
Immunity Challenge Time: The tribes will row a boat around a buoy, then leave the boat and carry a heavy chest to shore. From there, they’ll pull it along a track. They’ll open the chest to find the keys that unlock a giant slide puzzle. The first two tribes to complete the puzzle will win immunity. The losing tribe will also forfeit their flint.
Before the challenge starts, Probst lets everyone know that Bruce has been checked out at a hospital and is fine.
Quick Aside: The immunity idols are a sword and a shield, and they’re pretty awesome.
Sitting Out: Matthew and Claire
Result: Holy cow, Medical was called in again to check on Brandon! And I get it, I’ve been on location, I’ve participated in these kinds of physical challenges. Hopefully it’s just a string of rough luck.
Anywho, the challenge is stopped. And once we’re sure that Brandon is going to be OK, they continue without him. Soka wins first place and Tika claims second.
Oh…and Matthew and Claire were chatting during the challenge. And during the conversation, Claire lets Matthew know that if Lauren had really lost her vote, she would have something to show them. Uh oh…
So, between Brandon having to bail on the challenge and Lauren clearly caught in a lie, we probably have an early look at the chopping block.
Pre-Tribal Politicking
Matthew immediately lets Brandon know the little tidbit he learned from Heidi. And once word gets around, Lauren becomes a popular target.
Maddy, however, isn’t quite ready to get over the fact that Brandon didn’t want to work with her. She wants to go for him and immediately flush that idol.
And during the back and forth, Jaime is already debating playing her Shot in the Dark, even though her name hasn’t come up. Yikes…that kind of paranoia cost us Lindsey last season.
Tribal Time
Before things get underway, there’s some business about fire representing your life.
And then…vague vague vague…
Until Jaime declares that she’s going to play her Shot in the Dark. Her belief is that it won’t matter if she does or not if the things she has been told are true.
What?! Who’s targeting Jaime? And why?
Voting Time: No votes are shown, but Kane thinks the voting booth is dope. Also, Lauren banks her vote and Jaime does indeed play her Shot in the Dark.
JPro tallies and returns. He asks if anyone wants to play an advantage and…both Matthew and Jaime have played their Shots in the Dark. So…there are only three active votes this Tribal?
Matthew is…not safe.
Jaime is…safe! Finally!
This encourages Brandon to play his idol. So…Jaime was the target? Possibly? Who knows?!
What a mess.
We’ve got two votes for Brandon, and the second person eliminated from “Survivor 44” is…Maddy.
Verdict: Alright, let’s start with that Tribal. What a mess. I totally get why Brandon was targeted, why Maddy was targeted, etc. But I have no idea why Jaime and Matthew felt the need to roll their dice? Just extreme paranoia?
And all that aside, I’m psyched. Love this cast.
So, I guess I need a winner pick…it’s gotta be Kane! (That’s for you wrestling fans.)
Kane – Looks like you’re coming out of that fiasco with the least amount of stink on you. Claire – Love the move of making inroads with the other tribe at the sit-out bench. Carson, Helen, and Sarah – A three-person alliance in the five-person tribe. Not bad.
Jaime – I don’t want to go too low with your grade, because I’m assuming there’s a lot we didn’t see. Yam Yam – He’s not in his tribe’s dominant alliance, but he has some room to maneuver. And he’s so friggin’ lovable.
Brandon – Good on you for using the idol correctly. But you’d have been in a much better position if you had just worked with Maddy. Now you’ve got no idol and your tribe is in shambles. Matthew – Not sure what you were thinking. But, you should know better than risking serious injury just for funsies.
Matt and Frannie – In this day and age a showmance seems like a terrible idea. Especially when one of you won’t be voting at the first two Tribals. Lauren – I like Lauren a lot, but I worry that she’s going too sneaky, too quickly. I have no idea what the fallout will be from tonight’s vote. But having Maddy gone won’t be good for her game. Carolyn – A bad performance in the first challenge, awkward exchanges around camp. You’re a tailor-made first boot.
Danny, Heidi and Josh – I can’t grade you correctly if I don’t see your work.
Any Questions? Drop me a line on Twitter: @gordonholmes
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