After a disappointing fifth week, it wouldn’t have taken much for Australian Survivor to get back in our good graces. And the show immediately bounced back to the highs we’d gotten used to. Plurality votes, blindsides, great strategic moves, this week had it all.
Episode 16
After Hayley’s unexpected return back to the game, the remaining Brawns gather and agree Hayley should be the consensus next target. But as we’ve seen so far this season, the “obvious” choice is far from a guarantee. Even in a season that’s not as chaotic as this one has been, Hayley has multiple avenues to get herself back in the game. She’s an incredibly smart player, so if I’m seeing those paths, she for sure does too, as well as probably some that I’m not seeing.
Hayley gets right to work, trying to wiggle her way back in with the Brains. She’s saying all the right things, but whether or not she’s making any actual making any headway remains to be seen. If the Brains can trust her, they have an immediate majority – if George and Cara come back to their side. Once again, those two very well may determine the outcome of the next vote.
Reward Challenge
The reward challenge divides the tribe into two teams of five. One on one, they race to a pontoon, where they memorize sequence of symbols. They race back to shore and recreate the sequence. First team to two wins. Playing for a trip to the Survivor Outback Pub (as in the Australian Outback, not the Americanized version of Australian food, Outback Steakhouse), where a KFC feasts awaits.
Green Team: Gerald, Flick, Laura, Dani, Wai
White Team: Andrew, Cara, Emmett, Hayley, George
Hayley wins the first point, but Green takes the next two to win reward.
Reward
On reward, Dani pitches the idea of forming a new alliance with this group of five. She states the obvious, calling Emmett a serious physical threat. This is a bold move. While true, it doesn’t appear she discussed this plan with Gerald and Flick ahead of time. That’s risky. And we see an immediate confessional from Flick questioning this little bit of strategy. Flick doesn’t like the move, at least not now. It could be how it was presented more so than that it was presented; or, maybe most likely, a combination of both. And back at camp, Flick immediately tells Emmett about Dani’s plan, because duh.
Immunity Challenge
Using their feet, the players hold up a weighted disk, pushing against a block of wood. Both feet must remain on the disk at all times. Emmett’s streak of immunity wins ends at three, dropping out, leaving Andrew and Flick to battle it out. Andrew ultimately outlasts Flick, and I love this result. Even though he’s part of the minority alliance, you’ve never really felt he was in any immediate danger. It leaves all possible targets on the table, potentially making for a more dramatic vote.
Pre-Tribal
Dani starts petitioning to move ahead with the Emmett vote. Dani tells Emmett the plan is still Hayley, but he knows that’s bogus. Emmett then talks to Gerald about voting Dani. To help cement his plan, he asks Flick to play her idol for him. This would make a 5-5 tie, with Cara and George voting with Emmett, Gerald, and Flick. But George, of course, sees an opportunity.
He starts to work on bringing the Brains together. He suggests Gerald, thinking no one would suspect that move. For those keeping track at home, George is involved in every single plan. My man is putting in work. I seem to think it at least once every episode, but it’s simply unbelievable and awesome to see George do what he’s been able to do, given how incredibly rough of a start he had.
Tribal Council
Flick plays her idol for Emmett. But it proves to be a waste, as only Dani voted for him. Gerald is voted out 5-4. But why wasn’t the vote 6-3? Well, Cara voted for Dani, that’s why. But why? I…honestly don’t know. Could it be another mistake? She has already voted incorrectly at a previous vote, could it have happened again? Maybe. But it could have been intentional, allow her some plausible deniability with Emmett and Flick. But that would be hard to pull off. Everyone knows how tight George and Cara have been all season. Would they really believe they split right now? Doubtful. Whatever the reason, I hope we get some more information in the next episode.
And how about King George, huh? Yet again, he has hands all over this vote. Everyone thought he was in on their plan, and with so many different ones out there, the fact he was able to manage these so smoothly is truly something special. I don’t know how much longer this can last, but I’m going to enjoy every possible second.
But on the flip side, poor Gerald. We saw very little of him all season. But by all accounts, he was a key part of the Brawn alliance. He also seemed like a genuinely nice and fun person to be around. I wish I could say more about his strategic acumen, but we just didn’t see much, if any, of that from him. Maybe that is all the proof we need. If he was a stronger strategic player, that would have shown through, right? Or maybe he just wasn’t great in his confessionals, and there wasn’t much to show. Whatever the reason, I don’t really care. I just wish we had gotten more from the lumberjack champ.
Episode 17
Episode 17 starts off on a hugely – and unexpected – emotional level. Flick tells the tribe about her mom suffering from early onset dementia for the last six years. It’s gotten to the point where she has to live in a home. Flick and the rest of her family even had to get together before she left for Survivor to discuss care plans and the like. It’s an incredibly emotional opening minutes. Survivor strips you to your core, and can be extremely difficult even under the best circumstances. But to come out to a game like this with something like that hanging over you? The amount of strength that takes is unfathomable.
George (of course it’s George) finds a clue to some sort of hidden power. It ends up being a key to unlock an immunity idol hidden at Tribal Council, in the voting hut. The bigger twist is that it can be played in secret. He just has to write the person’s name he is playing it for on the idol and place it in the urn. I like this! It’s essentially just a regular idol, with a little bit extra shiftiness for flavor.
Except when played as a last-ditch survival effort, an idol is usually played as a showcase move. Disrupt the status quo, flip the plan, put your name on a specific move. The secret idol makes it more difficult to do that. But there’s a positive too. If you’re in a position where your ally is the target, you can save them without getting the blood on your hands of blowing up someone else’s plan.
But then the real world kicks in again, as Flick receives the devastating news that her mother passed away. After having the chance to speak with her family, Flick decides to stay. I can’t even begin to imagine what Flick had to be going through here. Given the situation, whatever she had decided to do – stay or leave – would have been the right choice, and I’m beyond happy production gave her the chance to talk it through with her family. The whole situation is devastating. But at the same time, it’s so inspiring to see the rest of the tribe step up and be there to support her.
Immunity Challenge
The players race up a hill to collect puzzle pieces, one bundle at a time. Once they have all their pieces, they solve a vertical puzzle. But there’s a twist (why is there always a twist??). FIVE PLAYERS ARE IMMUNE!! Just a reminder, there are only nine players left. Which means more than half (!) the players are immune from the vote. It’s just unnecessary. Literally the previous episode proved that twists are simply not needed to create great drama. Can a well-executed twist help? Sure! But something like this completely restricts the gameplay. Sometimes we’ll see Survivor award immunity to one man and one woman, but there’s a a reason it’s only done at the beginning of the merge phase of the game.
Andrew, Hayley, Emmett, Flick, and George win immunity, meaning the vote is between Wai, Dani, Cara, and Laura.
Pre-Tribal
Cara becomes the consensus vote, which of course makes George uneasy. Now he has a real dilemma. George recognizes his game is stronger with Cara in the game. Does he sacrifice his idol to save his closest ally? Or does he keep it for himself to secure his place in the game? Making matters worse, Cara’s plan is to vote for Wai, another person George can count on. He wants Cara to switch her vote to Laura but, knowing how Cara plays the game, knows he can’t tell her before Tribal. He needs to find a way to communicate to Cara at Tribal to switch her vote to Cara.
Tribal Council
George does play the secret idol for Cara, while also casting his vote for her. Even though George denies it when Hayley asks if he played it, he has to be the obvious culprit. Who else would have made the choice to save Cara? It also doesn’t help that Cara stares George down basically the entire time. With George’s vote going to Cara, Cara’s vote becomes the only one that counts. And she did get George’s message, sending Laura to the jury.
Episode 18
George gives the hidden idol key to Cara, so she can play it off as her move. George still wants to Brawns to see him as an ally, and this helps push that narrative. But, as always with George, whether everyone believes it or not is the question. Andrew straight up asks George who played the idol, and he obviously answers Cara. Andrew counters, saying everything about how Cara was acting would suggest otherwise. It’s a bit of an awkward and tense moment.
After George leaves the group, Andrew, Hayley, Flick, and Emmett discuss. They finally put it out in the open that George and Cara have been working as a tight, single unit their entire time together. Andrew especially, as he was a close ally with Laura, is hell-bent on revenge. It’s shaping up to be 6-on-2 fight.
Reward Challenge
With one hand, they steady a balancing board while building a house of cards with their other hand. Playing for a new car, an Isuzu D-Max. After everyone sees their stacks build and fall over and over, Dani pulls out the win.
Of course there’s more to the reward than just the car. Dani gets to pick three people to accompany her on a mini road trip. She picks Flick, Emmett, and Andrew. The one thing they messed up on, though? JLP told Dani she could pick three people. It’s always better to go one at a time. Make them show what their hierarchy is. A small nitpick, yes, but still.
Reward
Back at camp, George reveals to Hayley and Wai that it was in fact he who found the secret idol. Hayley and Wai barely even react. Because duh.
After Dani’s choosing of Andrew to go on the reward, George fully realizes the precarious position he’s now in. He starts laying the groundwork to flip the game back to his advantage, starting with voting out Emmett.
Immunity Challenge
The players stand on narrow footholds while holding a rope. They move down to smaller footholds and regular intervals. Once it gets down to Hayley, Flick, and Emmett, the girls agree to Emmett’s idea of taking their hands off the rope. LOVE when players take it upon themselves to change the dynamics of a challenge. We saw it with Andrea and Brenda in Survivor: Caramoan and I loved it then too. Emmett steps down, followed by Flick, giving Hayley immunity.
Pre-Tribal
The group of six works to firm up their plan for the vote. They are going to split the vote, four on George and two on Cara. George and Cara do hold one card though: they know they’re the targets. There’s no way the majority of six can convince them otherwise, so they have nothing to focus on but working the vote back toward their side. They also know Hayley and Wai are their only possible lifeline. George pushes to make Emmett the target, sending arguably the biggest physical threat left.
Hayley and Wai debate the merits of the different plans. By going with George and Cara, they could form a majority, assuring them Final 5, maybe Final 4 depending on how the immunities turn out. But on the other hand, working with George and Cara…means you’re working with George and Cara. George is a massive strategic threat, and they know those two will never turn on each other. But if they vote with the rest of the majority, it’s possible Emmett, Dani, Flick, and Andrew form their own majority group. Feeling the heat, George and Cara go idol hunting, and what do you know, Cara finds an idol.
Tribal Council
Hayley and Wai stick with George, sending Emmett home. With George and Cara, they now – in theory – have a solid 4-3 majority. But if there’s anything this season has shown us, it’s that you literally cannot predict anything on Australian Survivor.
