Castaways get the biggest reward of the season with surprise letters from home. Then, balance and dexterity are tested at a crucial immunity challenge to guarantee a spot in the final six.
Tonight, I am on top of the world, because Kyle is now gone. The longer he was here, the more annoying he became. He walked around calling Caroline and I 'Tweedleydee and Tweedleydum.' And tonight, we got sweet, sweet, sweet revenge.
Having Kyle was a really, really useful shield, but there's really nothing I could have done. I was kind of powerless tonight, because there is a posse of five players: Andy, Teeny, Rachel, Sue and Caroline, picking off the big threats one at a time. Genevieve and I are in a really tight spot, but this game is not over for us yet. And as long as I'm on this island, I'm gonna fight.
Really, at this point, no one is as close as Sue and I. I wonder if sometimes she sees her daughter in me in terms of if her daughter was playing, maybe she imagines this is what her daughter would be playing like.
As a duo, we have all of the tools and all of the roles that we need to make it to the end. I'm a planner, I'm a strategist, but I feel like Sue is my provider, and she's most willing to, like, put her neck out there and do the dirty work. She is the one who's crawling through the mud, searching for idols. She's, like, literally crawling on, like, you know, hands and knees, getting dirtier, dirtier every single day. We all know getting to the end on Survivor is complex and messy and crazy, but I could not think of a better alliance to go to the end with.
I've sort of been branded as someone who is just calculated and strategic and doesn't really care about people. And in this game, if everyone is afraid that I'm too big, too much, I think the best thing for my game is to shrink.
I would love to be, like, the big, bad wolf, still, but that is going to end my time quicker than playing possum. And at this point, I will play possum. I will play sad puppy dog with tail between its legs. I'll play giraffe, elephant, whatever I need to play to stay in this game a little longer. I'm really not that dangerous, you know. You've-you've taken off my claws and teeth, and now I'm just a house cat. There are folks on this beach that are the bigger threat than I am right now.
Genevieve doesn't respect my game. She doesn't think I can beat Rachel. And I'm insulted by her words. Genevieve is desperate, trying to cause some chaos, and I'm not falling into that trap because Sam and Genevieve are both on the bottom. They're people who have hurt me in the past, they're people who bothered me in this game. At this point in our coalition of underdogs, we're sick of Genevieve and Sam. We're scared of Genevieve and Sam. One of them is going home, and there's nothing they can do about it.
I found out this morning that Sam and Genevieve are actively trying to target me and giving all these reasons why I'm going to win. It is scary, but I also feel pretty secure in the people that I have my trust in. I think that, no matter how scary they make me out to be, they're always going to be more scary than me. But also, I do have this idol that nobody knows about, and I do have a Block-a-Vote advantage, and the alliance of five knows about it. So, I feel good. And I'm loaded. Locked and loaded.
Loved ones letters is always contentious. People get pissed. It's like choosing bridesmaids. Like, you just don't want to do it. And so, as hard as it was to lose that challenge, Sam doing this and just, like, pissing off so many people is a pretty good thing for my game and my alliance. It's going to make us tighter.
Can't win immunity to save my life, but boy, can I win reward. Third time at the sanctuary. I feel like a seasoned vet showing a couple of rookies the lay of the land. Probably not a big shocker that I've never had tiramisu, but this is not just Italian food. This is an overnight reward with blankets, and the cherry on top: Loved ones letters, something that every Survivor player dreams of getting.
There are probably four people at camp that are not thrilled with me right now, but I knew I was gonna choose Andy before the challenge even started because I feel like I do owe Andy a little bit. And Genevieve and I have felt like we are on the bottom. So, giving her the emotional support of letters from home… easy no-brainer.
This girl has learned keeping everybody at arm's length makes it easier to vote them out, but it makes it easier for them to vote you out, too. And so, what I need to focus on now is to let everyone in a little bit… Even though it's awkward and uncomfortable and vulnerable and I hate it. My dad was telling me, 'you can do this. We love you, and I'm sure you have so many friends.' And I have no friends out here. And it's my fault. Like, I chose - I chose to have no friends. Who does that? Who does that? But my husband says, 'if you have a bad day, try to slow down. Remember that mistakes can be fixed, especially in Survivor. No matter what happens out there, you are coming home to the same amazing life you left.'
My brother wrote, 'I know some days you probably want to get on a plane and fly home, but I want you to know that I'm proud of you. I've always admired your sense of adventure and your willingness to do something scary because it might be fun.' It gives me a lot of confidence in who I am as a person, and it's what I needed to remind myself. My loyalty is to the people writing these letters.
My mom is an absolute super fan of this game. When she first learned that I might be going out here, it became, like, the light of her life. This is the proudest she's ever been. It's so meaningful to hear from her right now. This game is intense. I've had tough times. Nothing's been perfect. It hasn't been easy, but I persevered. It's been completely life-changing, and these letters are exactly what I needed. There's less than a week left to go, right? And my decisions will dictate what my fate is and, dare I say, my Survivor legacy. All I have to do is just go all frigging out until the very, very, very bitter end. I'm more than fueled for the rest of this game.
It's so idiotic to me. You'd think just maybe, just maybe, he would try a Hail Mary, to pick me, somebody he could pull over. Sam wants to be the hero. He is just this honorable, strong, just smart guy. So he picks the only other guy out here… Andy, his boy.
I'm also jealous. I want to be there. I'm not gonna lie about that. I want the food, I want the loved-one letter. But Sam left the four of us girls here to basically plan his demise, which will be coming imminently, and will be something I take great joy in.
I'm liking this four a lot, so I'm hoping to use some, like, morale, Kumbaya, 'we're four final women, we got this, let's go.' We are gonna be the final four women. So, we're really solidifying how is it we're gonna get rid of Sam, then how are we gonna get rid of Genevieve, and then how are we gonna get rid of Andy. This is the four who are going to run this show to the very friggin' end. I'll be honest. I can see the million dollars. I can see the final tribal. I can see my pitch. I can see myself winning this game, and it's intoxicating, and it's so exciting.
I don't conduct much business in beanbag chairs, but Andy calls a meeting and, like the last couple days, I have been on this slow march to death in this game. I'm all ears. Talk to me, Andy. What is your plan?
It really is high time for me to go for broke. The way I started this game built an initial perception that I was a goat This is my opportunity to make my mark and finish this game off in a way where I can get first place. We have to milk the time that we have on the sanctuary to put together a very difficult mission. This is not simple. It's going to require thorough planning, a lot of stealth and just pure execution. This is the biggest heist of season 47 of Survivor, and we're calling it 'Operation: Italy'.
Step one of 'Operation: Italy' is to channel all of my theater experience. I'm laying it on thick. I'm apologizing. I'm kind of going right back to the playing-dead Sam that I was before this plan. And I'll do anything to live another day in this game.
If this works, there's gonna have to be a couple Oscars handed out to Genevieve, Andy and myself. It's gonna take that level of performance to, like, really nail this thing down. But I'm feeling pretty confident.
'Operation: Italy' depends on a split vote, and the only reason people would split a vote is if they're worried you have something. At the sanctuary, Sam gave me his original idol from Gata, which is expired. He also gave me two bracelets from Tree Mail that I'm going to craft together to try and make an idol. I love this plan, but for Operation: Italy to have any hope, everybody's story has to paint a picture for the broader group, and it has to all seem like it's making sense… Until the moment people realize it doesn't. And that moment has to be when the votes are read.
My role for 'Operation: Italy' is to re-ingratiate myself with my Underdog Alliance of five because I had been away for a really long time. I need them to feel that I am still trustworthy and that I am still a number for them.
This fake information that Genevieve has a Hidden Immunity Idol is going to cause paranoia, insecurity, and that will help me convince my alliance to split the vote.
'Operation: Italy' has been executed to perfection. My underdog Underdog Alliance of five has no idea what I'm cooking. It's time to strike. It's time to pull the trigger on the juiciest target left in the game. And the target is Rachel.
Rachel… she wins a challenge, she dominates, and now she has immunity. And… that's a setback. It's a setback for 'Operation: Italy' 'cause she was the target. She was the hit. Now that Rachel's off the table, the real big question is who is the new target?
The hit was out on Rachel, and she wins the challenge. Of course. Not great for me. Not great for 'Operation: Italy'. But 'Operation: Italy' was designed to be flexible.
Pretty good, I think. And so, my plan with this is to ensure there is a vote split tonight because we need the vote split. We need Andy in the majority side of the vote so that he can flip, and that is the recipe to success for 'Operation: Italy'.
I still want 'Operation: Italy' to really succeed tonight. And so, I'm like, 'here's what we should do. We should split the vote. We should split the vote. Then we should flush out Genevieve's idol.' The only hiccup here is that Teeny, Teeny, Teeny has her own agenda.
My preference to go home tonight is definitely Sam. But we also want to flush this hypothetical, mysterious idol that we think. Genevieve has. I'm scared, if Genevieve doesn't have an idol, and we stack the votes on her, she's gonna walk out the door and Sam's still gonna be here.
As Teeny walks up to Sam and I, now I'm nervous, because my fake idol is not perfect. It's fake, it's counterfeit; I know that. If she looks too closely, she may know that.
I need to show it to her to have her believe it, but I can't show it to her too long because then she'll know it's a fake. I flash this idol and then, thank god, Andy's coming around the corner. I jam it back in my pocket. And so I'm thinking I'm in the clear. I've given her, like, just a glimmer, and that should be good.
When Genevieve shows me that she has the idol, I'm relieved in a way, like it was written in the stars. I already wanted Sam to go. Now I know for a fact that Genevieve has an idol, I think I'm gonna sit on the information. I'm gonna know Genevieve's safe tonight. And now knowing that tonight's vote will go exactly how we think it will, it's just… chef's kiss, and I'll see Sam later.
I'm the mafia boss. I'm the architect of 'Operation: Italy'. The target has to be Caroline. She's got her number one: Sue. That little loyal, loyal, loyal bond, which makes her powerful in this game. And Caroline is the brains of that pair, and so, she's got to sleep with the fishes.
I have this optimistic feeling in my gut that we're gonna be able to pull this off. But the Underdog Alliance needs to believe that nothing has changed, and I'm still little old Sam just trying to survive another day.
I know that Genevieve is voting for me. It's actually gonna be the first time I've seen my name on parchment. And part of me is like, 'okay. This is actually giving a little bit of validation that I am a threat.' It's reminding the jury before I do, which is nice. But it's nerve-racking. The biggest concern is does Genevieve have an idol. I get to go through her bag, but what sucks is I don't think I'm gonna get any definitive answers, even from that. Granted, I trust my alliance, but it's just an unsettling feeling to know that there is a bit of a door open for you to go home.
Caroline being voted out is my worst-case scenario. I still have my idol. If I get a gut feeling, I'm whipping that thing out and saving Caroline. But as long as my group all stay strong, we can't go wrong. We can't go wrong.
I'm a little nervous about doing this split vote. The biggest concern with this alliance of five is just the idea that someone or… someone could flip. And then also, I could use this Block-a-Vote so that if there is any kind of shenanigans with an idol, we still get to decide who goes home between Sam and Genevieve.
In my heart, I hope it works. In my brain, I mean, how could it? There's so many ways it could go wrong. Let's run through all the ways 'Operation: Italy' is a bust. One: the split vote doesn't actually fall the way that we think it's gonna fall. Two: we need the stars to align, and Rachel not to play her Block-a-Vote. Three: what if Andy gets cold feet? I mean, Rachel was the hit. Is Caroline enough, or will he be tempted just to take out Sam and I and preserve his placement in the Underdogs? Beyond that, we need Caroline who knows her name is out there to not have anything as well, because if she's nervous, maybe she'll protect herself. In my head, I'm doing the math, and uh, it's grim, to say the least. There are more ways this can go wrong than ways it can go right.
Challenge:Matt Finish Castaways must race across a series of obstacles, collecting a bag of balls along the way. They must then attempt to land each ball on a narrow overhead perch, where one part of the perch is higher than the other. The first person to land two balls on the perch wins. Reward: Pizza, pasta, margaritas, letters from home, and an overnight stay at the Survivor Sanctuary Winner:Sam Phalen(shared with Andy Rueda and Genevieve Mushaluk)
Challenge:Wizard's Staff The castaways will first carry a ball on a pole over a teetering balance beam. They will then drop the pole and pick up a long pole with two blocks on each end; by maneuvering the pole through a wire maze, they will use the blocks to push two skulls across a long table. Once the skulls are free, the castaway will roll balls down to the end of a wooden board, attempting to land balls in any of five slots on the board. The first person to land three balls wins. Winner:Rachel LaMont
Tribal Council[]
Tribal Council 12: Beka
Voted Against
Voter
Caroline (3 votes)
Andy, Genevieve, Sam
Genevieve (2 votes)
Caroline, Rachel
Sam (2 votes)
Sue, Teeny
VOTED OUT: Caroline Vidmar
Voting Confessionals[]
Genevieve's vote was not shown during her confessional.
I have been thinking about the situation. I've been analyzing it and Andy flipped. He took me out and, I'll be honest, I think it was smart. I think I would've won at the end, but most importantly, I'm grateful beyond belief that I've made it this far and I've made it to the final seven. I feel like I didn't win the ultimate prize, but I was able to live my dream.
