Survivor S41

Susan1

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12,006
On a previous subject, Christian Siriano, the host on Project Runway, always refers to the group of male and female designers as just "guys", like "o.k. guys. It's time to go". I'm thinking I heard Heidi do that too. Or "how did you guys do?", stuff like that. It's just a general generic term for people.
 
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sk8pics

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12,561
I, too, was worried about the yellow team getting caught under that giant ball.

I hope Erica does change the past, just to see how people react. And I thought the bit between Shan and Ricard went on a long time. I can’t believe Shan doesn’t totally mistrust Ricard now. He said he would give the advantage back to her, then it was that he’d give it back to her after the tribal council, and then he still delayed giving it back to her. :rolleyes: I get why he did it, but I found it really annoying, and especially the way he kept asking her if she did’t trust him.:rolleyes: And Shan went on way too long explaining why she wanted it back; to me, she should have just said, “You promised you would give it back.” Eh.

Oh, and I thought it was great that Erica was able to make a fire and get herself set up by herself. Good for her.
 

tony

Throwing the (rule)book at them
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17,679
In 41 seasons, that was definitely one of the best episodes. Those twists and turns may be confusing, but it's blowing up the game with so many more layers. :rollin: I'm totally team Xander and maybe by extension Tiffany-- who would've known? But are probably huge targets now. The teaser suggests they aren't in trouble next week but it's not always the case (I always remember back to S37 and how the entire preview was about Dan, only to have an idol nullifier played for the first time and him getting sent home anyways).

No loss in getting rid of Sydney. She thinks very highly of herself in the little we saw of her in the game ;)

I, too, was worried about the yellow team getting caught under that giant ball.
I believe it was season 3 in Africa that had a similar challenge transporting a huge ball through the fields, and one of the teams definitely had an incident where it rolled right over some of the tribe mates. And yes, it was hilarious.
 
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smurfy

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6,086
Crazy episode! Funny how just not that many years ago surivivors first started getting up at TC and whispering to each other. It was so nuts. Team Xander - who would of thought. And Tiffany deferring to the owner of the idol - interesting move.
I think no loss in Syd leaving. I like DeShawn and Evvie is growing on me so glad they are both still here.
The threesome of Xander, Evvie and Tiffany will be targeted - that is a strong 3some.
Shan and Liana are starting to irk me.
A whole episode devoted to what is usually covered at most in 1/3 of the time - glad they showed us this.
Notice how Heather seemed to be doing nothing.
Nothing shown of any fallout for Ericka for flipping the game - wonder what we will see.
 

Jenny

From the Bloc
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21,824
Well that was fun! Let me start by :cheer2:Xander:cheer2:what a totally :encore:move. I love that it wasn't a last minute scramble - he had already made a fake idol (not at STICK :lol:), and spent time planting seeds everywhere that he was going to give his idol to Evvie, and Liana totally fell for it.

Every time they showed Liana considering what to do, I imagined the greats such as Sandra, Boston Rob and Tony at home on their couches screaming at the tv - "you're safe you idiot, just sit back and let it play out with your advantage firmly in your pocket!"

I too was amazed that Xander/Evvie/Tiffany are that tight. Am I remembering things wrong that Evvie and Tiffany have both seriously talked voting Xander out? Because this is sounding like they've been together from the beginning, particularly Xander and Evvie, and somehow I missed that. I had the impression he was pretty much on his own.

And now of course Shan's blabbing to Tiffany about Liana's advantage takes on even more significance, because it was Tiffany who seemed to be the one telling enough other people who then told everyone else (well maybe not Heather :lol:) about it. Funny how just days ago Shan seemed so in control of everything.

The vote breakdown, which is always interesting IMO:
  • Sydney (who? forgotten her already) - Shan, Liana, Heather, Erika, Naseer
  • Evvie - Danny, Ricard, Deshawn, Deshawn (he voted twice)
  • Deshawn - Xander, Evvie, Tiffany

Looks like no one has a problem with what Erika did (and really, at this stage they are all serious players who might not like what she did, but have to respect it), although there could be some blame game afterward. If the larger block was splitting the vote though, then why wasn't it more even? No one knew Deshawn had a second vote. Maybe they all just disliked Sydney as much as we did, I don't know.

So now, let us inventory idols and advantages.
  • Assuming Tiffany gives it back (and btw, why was Xander so sure Evvie was safe?), Xander has 1 idol and 1 extra vote (they must not have been serious about getting Deshawn out or they might have played the extra vote sensing a split)
  • Shan has 1 idol
  • Naseer has 1 idol
Am I missing anything? And everyone knows about all three idols since it was so public, but maybe then only Evvie and Tiffany know about Xander's extra vote?

Oh I'm having so much fun watching this season!
 

Susan1

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Looks like no one has a problem with what Erika did (and really, at this stage they are all serious players who might not like what she did, but have to respect it), although there could be some blame game afterward. If the larger block was splitting the vote though, then why wasn't it more even? No one knew Deshawn had a second vote. Maybe they all just disliked Sydney as much as we did, I don't know.
I don't pay close enough attention to know who people's names are or who has what, but I was thinking last night that the people who won in the first place got to have a feast. Then they were the ones up for elimination. The ones who got switched to being safe didn't get the feast. And neither did Erika, who is now safe. I wonder if being able to get some food will help half of them in the next challenge. I must have been hungry to notice that.
 

BaileyCatts

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9,333
All I can say is .. :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:!!!!!! That Tribal was hysterical. I don't think I would have thought that plan all the way through, from making the fake idol, to waving it around at Tribal trying to force her to use her Advantage to ask you, and then, 'nope but you can have this fake one', and Xander giving it to Tiffany in case she asked Evvie the question. :rofl:

I don't really have any favorites I'm rooting for yet, but Xander just pulled into the lead for that move.

And Sydney wasn't bitter at all, was she. :drama: :lol:
 

Jenny

From the Bloc
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21,824
My goodness that is one bitter, self-impressed girl - especially considering this all happened what months ago.

I see where Danny was unhappy (and it wasn't some big secret, we saw as much of it last night, just not the part where Jeff apparently asked how they could do better) because he's a rules guy. But this isn't professional sports, and they were warned. Danny was on the first summit, he knows first hand that there are risks and decisions to be made that will affect you and others. I'm not saying I loved that twist, but it's not a lot different than say earning an idol fair and square only to have someone else have the opportunity to steal it from you.

The twists I never liked are the ones where someone who is voted out gets opportunities to get back in the game. That's where I draw the line.

On another note, I like how they are making use of flashbacks. Might not be new, but I don't recall it in the past - letting us be surprised and then going back and showing us how it happened. I feel like in the past there was so much that was not explained, like you'd be "where did THAT come from?" so now at least even if we didn't see the lead up, they're giving us the backstory right away.
 

Spikefan

Rooting for that middle-aged team
Messages
4,553
I don’t get why Liana played her advantage, she knew that Tiffany told Xander about it and he would have had time to pull some stunt. Of course on the other hand everyone now knew she had it so advantages could always be moved around. Hope she wakes up and realizes Shian did her dirty by blurting it out to Tiffany.

It was definitely the most exciting episode in a long time.
 

genevieve

drinky typo pbp, closet hugger (she/her)
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Whee! That was satisfying :inavoid:

The whole time Xander and Evvie were talking about the vote I was like, dude! Give the idol to Tiffany!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1!!!!ponies!!!!!

By the time Xander made such a big show of shoving it down his pants in front of Liana and then especially taking it out at TC, I was like, ok, does he have a 2nd idol? I can't remember and it is literally impossible that he is risking the idol like this. So thrilled that my yelling magically worked and Tiff had the idol. But dayum I really thought Evvie was going to get the boot tonight.

I'm a little sad, because I've really enjoyed Liana up to now. I mean, she's still in a good alliance, but Evvie thanking her was some good snark - followed up immediately by DeShawn almost blowing up the Evvie/Xander connection. There are some really smart players in this game. One thing - we saw Liana realize that everyone knew about her advantage but she didn't complain that Shan caused that mess in the first place.

I was surprised Danny didn't speak out against that turn back time twist in TC - it makes sense that he did (and also that they didn't air it). I am still curious how they skirted the rules of game shows.

Glad it ended up being Sydney - before IC, I wanted either Evvie or Ricard to win, but didn't want the one who didn't win to be eliminated. Also didn't want DeShawn to go. And Sydney's delusional post-boot interview is just :lol:

During the TC scrambling, I saw Heather get up and scoot around to talk to someone and was like, why girl? You are barely in this game and just got out of doing yet another challenge!

Shan is so crafty - she was sooooooooooooo happy for Ricard and his immunity win and you know she'd have cut him in an instant if he didn't have that necklace.
 

smurfy

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6,086
Comments to the recent posts:
Yes I was surprised how Tiffany Evvie and Xander seem bonded. It is probably an Us vs Them.
Pre TC - I did wonder - Xander - give the idol to Tiffany - as Liana is going to ask either Xander or Evvie - and then I thought - not a good idea, Tiffany is a wildcard. But now backed in a corner??

Xander's insta - lol - and Wendell responded!
He is becoming a fav for me too. Xander is experiencing Survivor and enjoying it.

Syd - she does think highly of herself doesn't she :confused:

Erika and the folks she saved - should demand food!

Yes - there are many players and smart too! They are playing and so far not taking stuff 'personally'.

Heather - hope she does not get dragged to the end. Keep the people who are playing around!
 

smurfy

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6,086
Another thing I have been thinking. I have watched every season since the beginning.
(Note - funny story how I started watching. I did not start season 1 when it began, but a friend of mine that literally never watches tv (one time I was at her house when they were painting and the 1 tv was in the corner, unplugged, was still there 3 months later). She was raving about this show. And the show was a huge summer hit, lots of people talking about it, so several weeks before the finale, they started reairing the episodes and I decided to watch. My friend only watched that 1 season and I tease her I am still there in season 41)

I do wonder if someone has never watched the show - and started with this season (or a recent one) - it would be confusing. There is so much history, layers and even language that would be so hard to explain to a newbie.
 

Jenny

From the Bloc
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21,824
@smurfy me too! A coworker was on about this new show, I think I might have tuned in at some point and then when they reaired the entire thing (I think it was every night!) I watched it. Interesting to remember that they started airing that one while the game was still being played - so much for crafty editing! There was a book about it, sort of a production diary written as it was happening that was also interesting - the game was so simple back then, it's sure come a loooong way.
 

genevieve

drinky typo pbp, closet hugger (she/her)
Staff member
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@smurfy me too! A coworker was on about this new show, I think I might have tuned in at some point and then when they reaired the entire thing (I think it was every night!) I watched it. Interesting to remember that they started airing that one while the game was still being played - so much for crafty editing! There was a book about it, sort of a production diary written as it was happening that was also interesting - the game was so simple back then, it's sure come a loooong way.
One of the late rewards in S1 was to take the winner to a "bar" (not a real bar I'm sure) and watch the premiere being aired!
 

smurfy

Well-Known Member
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6,086
One of the late rewards in S1 was to take the winner to a "bar" (not a real bar I'm sure) and watch the premiere being aired!
And remember how they gave a car away as a reward and that person did not win the game.
 

Prancer

Chitarrista
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One of the late rewards in S1 was to take the winner to a "bar" (not a real bar I'm sure) and watch the premiere being aired!
There's a great S1 story there, with a cast mutiny and a mad scramble by production.

 

Jenny

From the Bloc
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21,824
I remember reading about the beer challenge, maybe it was the book I mentioned above, but this has so much more detail - the fact that the sponsors were on site! Also, a little fun fact tucked in there, the original crew was about 85 people, and now it's 645 :eek:
 

Jenny

From the Bloc
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21,824
Well well well. Maybe it's me because I missed a few seasons, but I feel like we are seeing some very advanced gameplay here. Are any of them recruits? Because they all really seem to know the game. Some more than others of course, but every episode seems to bring some new way of thinking.

Obviously I'm :cheer2:Xander and I was disappointed he didn't find the bench advantage, but then when he said why he sat out, to be able to hang out with the losers when they are all emotional, just wow. (Also, is it worth all that exertion for what looked like a soggy and coagulated grill cheese and a few soggy chips?)

I love Evvie, she's a great player, but her enthusiasm is going to be her downfall. She should have saved the speech about learning that puzzle (which btw if you are at all into puzzles like that is a classic way beyond this game) for confessional, not for all to hear.

Here's how the votes broke down, not sure what to make of some of this, look forward to your thoughts:

Tiffany - Deshawn, Heather, Erika, Liana, Ricard, Shan
Heather (which, where did that TC display come from?!) - Evvie, Tiffany
Xander - Danny, Naseer
Naseer - Xander

So apparently Ricard and Shan are still working together? Not just the votes, but they were tag teaming to try and get Xander to play his idol at TC, which I actually thought was a surprisingly clumsy move. And what about Danny? Was his vote the back up in case Tiffany had an idol? But then why was Naseer the other one? It does seem as though the Black alliance is quite strong, but maybe Danny and Naseer are also working together? Danny's gotta respect his work ethic, maybe that's it, plus at one point (just days ago in the game) he seemed like he really wanted the men to work together. But then they voted for Xander? I feel like I really don't know Danny's game. As for Xander, I'm thinking maybe he threw that vote in just to keep everyone paranoid, because at this stage he can likely get away with no one knowing it was him.

And are we all tremendously disappointed that they haven't realized what we all know, that Shan totally blew it for Liana's advantage? I wonder if any of them are watching the show right now and :eek: :angryfire:argue::lynch:
 

PeterG

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13,624
...is it worth all that exertion for what looked like a soggy and coagulated grill cheese and a few soggy chips?)

Try eating only papaya for 16 days and then tell me how many grilled cheese you want. :D

...maybe Danny and Naseer are also working together?

When the scrambling began as to who should be voted out at tribal council, the first person to speak up was Danny. And his target was Nasser to go home.
 

genevieve

drinky typo pbp, closet hugger (she/her)
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And are we all tremendously disappointed that they haven't realized what we all know, that Shan totally blew it for Liana's advantage? I wonder if any of them are watching the show right now and :eek: :angryfire:argue::lynch:
I think it's that the game has moved so fast and so far beyond that moment it's not worth going back to it.

HEATHER SPEAKS and we realize why she's been kept on mute up to now.

I lol'd early in the ep when Heather went to get water with some others and the camera cut right as she opened her mouth. But then she got all weird at the IC about being on the bottom, when she should have been the most obvious person to step out. And she did strangely well - possibly because she's been saving her energy since this is like her 3rd challenge ever.

And then for absolutely no reason that we've been shown whatsoever, she tries to make a big move at TC, causing everyone to freak out??

I don't know, y'all. This whole episode felt extremely edited to me, because so much does not make sense. Given how many people stuck with the original voting plan - including Heather - I almost wonder if Heather's freakout was planned? I don't think Shan or DeShawn were faking their reactions, and I don't know who else would work with heather, but WTF was the point of all that?

Ricard begging Xander to use his idol when he name was not publicly being tossed around was hilarious. aside - but did anyone notice that Ricard had goggles in the water for the reward challenge? Also - the notion of people winning reward not coming and snarfing on the inferior food of the losers has come up many times throughout Survivor history. C'mon, dude. it's just not done.

Reward - before they drew rocks I was thinking I'd volunteer, citing a (nonexistent) dairy allergy or something, because every action has had another action this season. Xander is definitely a smarty pants. Interesting that we saw him unobtrusively looking for an advantage but we didn't hear him say anything about it. I'm guessing the social advantages of giving up his opportunity outweighed any advantage in that moment in his mind.

Very glad that Evvie managed to stick it out (for 4 minutes! I think even I could manage that - at least, on a full stomach) for immunity. I don't know where her opportunities are left in the game, but maybe with her strongest ally gone she will be seen as more of an opportunity to somebody.

Shan, Shan, Shan... it's frustrating, because strategy-wise, she was right about Xander being the bigger immediate threat than Naseer. But in Survivor (as in life), women being bossy = women being bitches. I mean, Shan is definitely being Large and In Charge and pushy, and it's legit to feel a certain kind of way about it, but I think DeShawn would have reacted differently if that had come from another dude. (Wanted to note that Tiff also had a very good strategy comment in this ep that was not heeded, although I forget what it was - overall, women in Survivor who are great strategists without doing the feminine wiles thing a la Parvati are often dismissed or just eliminated bc people don't want to hear it). we'll see what happens next week - but I think Shan is overplaying big time and I would not be surprised if she ends up on the jury sooner than later.

Tiffany saying she would make an alliance with the crew, or a crab, or anyone willing to work with her, was hilarious. Would not have thought this based on first episode, but I'll miss her.
 

Sparks

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14,987

I mean, Shan is definitely being Large and In Charge and pushy, and it's legit to feel a certain kind of way about it, but I think DeShawn would have reacted differently if that had come from another dude.
From a friend:
The same people who are pissed at how Shan is playing say that Tony is the GOAT. They both play chaotic and messy asf games. Not comparing them in efficacy or strategy but messy players are often lauded unless they're women, and certainly unless they're women of color.
 

tony

Throwing the (rule)book at them
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17,679
Well well well. Maybe it's me because I missed a few seasons, but I feel like we are seeing some very advanced gameplay here. Are any of them recruits? Because they all really seem to know the game. Some more than others of course, but every episode seems to bring some new way of thinking.
I think the game has just gotten to that point, and two things: 1) We just went a year without Survivor, and two of the previous three seasons are amongst the biggest duds in all 40 editions. They needed a fanatic cast. 2) A lot of people 'found' Survivor during quarantine, and I think it's on a huge upswing all of a sudden. That's another reason to find people who are self-proclaimed lifelong fans for this season.
Here's how the votes broke down, not sure what to make of some of this, look forward to your thoughts:

Tiffany - Deshawn, Heather, Erika, Liana, Ricard, Shan
Heather (which, where did that TC display come from?!) - Evvie, Tiffany
Xander - Danny, Naseer
Naseer - Xander

So apparently Ricard and Shan are still working together? Not just the votes, but they were tag teaming to try and get Xander to play his idol at TC, which I actually thought was a surprisingly clumsy move. And what about Danny? Was his vote the back up in case Tiffany had an idol? But then why was Naseer the other one? It does seem as though the Black alliance is quite strong, but maybe Danny and Naseer are also working together? Danny's gotta respect his work ethic, maybe that's it, plus at one point (just days ago in the game) he seemed like he really wanted the men to work together. But then they voted for Xander? I feel like I really don't know Danny's game. As for Xander, I'm thinking maybe he threw that vote in just to keep everyone paranoid, because at this stage he can likely get away with no one knowing it was him.

And are we all tremendously disappointed that they haven't realized what we all know, that Shan totally blew it for Liana's advantage? I wonder if any of them are watching the show right now and :eek: :angryfire:argue::lynch:
I don't get why they aren't going after Xander at all honestly (last week more-so) and put all their focus into Evie or.... Tiffany. I don't really know where everyone sits but I still remember back to Shan telling Liana that if she went home several weeks ago that Ricard is a snake, and I think in general the amount of energy they've put into Shan's story that she's going out in some spectacular fashion. I know they teased clips for next week, but I don't think it'll happen yet. Liana may even be the mastermind behind getting rid of her, wouldn't surprise me.

I have no clue which direction this season is going but it's been great. Heather's TC antics remind me of Roark several seasons ago who got almost no screen time and then blew up at Council. Deshawn and Danny haven't had much screen time but they also just started going to tribal council. I can't figure out if the Naseer drama that they showed early on in camp will come back for some kind of storyline or if that's really the only thing they had to show for the otherwise boring Luvu tribe.
 

genevieve

drinky typo pbp, closet hugger (she/her)
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...I think in general the amount of energy they've put into Shan's story that she's going out in some spectacular fashion. I know they teased clips for next week, but I don't think it'll happen yet. Liana may even be the mastermind behind getting rid of her, wouldn't surprise me.
Maybe we'll see Liana talk more about Shan blowing her sekret advantage after all...
 

Prancer

Chitarrista
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56,079
Ricard begging Xander to use his idol when he name was not publicly being tossed around was hilarious.
Didn't Danny advise Xander to play it, too?
aside - but did anyone notice that Ricard had goggles in the water for the reward challenge?
They allow it for cast members who wear contacts.
Also - the notion of people winning reward not coming and snarfing on the inferior food of the losers has come up many times throughout Survivor history. C'mon, dude. it's just not done.

Reward - before they drew rocks I was thinking I'd volunteer, citing a (nonexistent) dairy allergy or something, because every action has had another action this season. Xander is definitely a smarty pants.
I dunno. Deshawn was practically rolling his eyes, so I don't think anyone was thinking that Xander is an altruist, and it put Xander's head up above again. If he makes it to the end, no one will be able to accuse him of playing under the radar.

This season is intense; I would've already crashed and burned from the daily stress.
 

Jenny

From the Bloc
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21,824
I don't know, y'all. This whole episode felt extremely edited to me, because so much does not make sense. Given how many people stuck with the original voting plan - including Heather - I almost wonder if Heather's freakout was planned? I don't think Shan or DeShawn were faking their reactions, and I don't know who else would work with heather, but WTF was the point of all that?
Starting to think it might have been somewhat planned too. It's like Heather was sitting there waiting for the moment when she was supposed to play her part. If that's the case, whoever got her to do it, well I want to know more.

Editing wise, it's not uncommon to put in reactions that were actually to something else. I'd like to think that Survivor doesn't do that, but then again with so much going on at once at TCs nowadays, a little slipsliding with the timelines is sometimes necessary to capture the overall story.
Ricard begging Xander to use his idol when he name was not publicly being tossed around was hilarious. aside - but did anyone notice that Ricard had goggles in the water for the reward challenge? Also - the notion of people winning reward not coming and snarfing on the inferior food of the losers has come up many times throughout Survivor history. C'mon, dude. it's just not done.
Yes the food thing was a surprising mistake for someone who I thought was much smarter than that. And thinking more on his pushing Xander, pretty sure Shan did too at one point, would it be crazy if that's all related to what Heather did?

Imagine this - enough of us know what we want, we'll get Tiffany out, but let's flush Xander's idol while we're at it. It begins with Heather causing an unnecessary scramble, in which Ricard's role was to push his paranoia over the top? I would think it would be easy to get Heather to do anything at this point.

And it does make a lot of sense that in a shortened, intense game like this with a lot of smart players that they are trying to achieve multiple objectives at once.

Tiffany saying she would make an alliance with the crew, or a crab, or anyone willing to work with her, was hilarious. Would not have thought this based on first episode, but I'll miss her.
YES! That was so funny.
I don't get why they aren't going after Xander at all honestly (last week more-so) and put all their focus into Evie or.... Tiffany. I don't really know where everyone sits but I still remember back to Shan telling Liana that if she went home several weeks ago that Ricard is a snake, and I think in general the amount of energy they've put into Shan's story that she's going out in some spectacular fashion. I know they teased clips for next week, but I don't think it'll happen yet. Liana may even be the mastermind behind getting rid of her, wouldn't surprise me.
I just figured the plan was to get rid of one of Xander's allies, since apparently many didn't believe them when they were saying they weren't that tight. Perhaps it was a multi prong approach - get rid of one of his allies, throw him a few votes in case he's given his idol to Tiffany, and try and get him to play it.

The other reason I thought Xander might have voluntarily sat out of two challenges, particularly the reward challenge where he had other ideas anyway, was to keep the spotlight away from his challenge ability. Obviously he's one of the more capable, but at the same time, every challenge reveals something new - Heather suddenly being in contention (I was thinking she must do yoga or something, the balance and concentration), Evvie puzzle solving and then her winning the very next challenge, Ricard doing really well the week before.

I did find it somewhat interesting that when they were parading back along the beach, Xander was at the end of the line, and he was carrying the heavy rice bag.
 

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