Heath Chick is back to recap episode eighteen of Australian Survivor.
With no Sunday episode this week, Australian Survivor fans had to wait a whole extra day for their Survivor fix with Episode 18 picking things up on night 37 and the final ten players, following the elimination of Nick at the last Tribal Council.
It seems that most of the castaways are pretty happy to see the back of Nick. Sam is still going around calling him a snake, and even Lee felt the need to get the relief of Nick’s elimination off his chest to the rest of the tribe.
However, the words of Nick are still ringing in the ears of many after he exposed the real hierarchy of the alliance. Matt seems to be the one most affected by it, as he starts to reflect on his position and the relationships he has formed. Matt and Jennah-Louise have a chat over the fire the next morning where both concede that there was a lot of truth in what Nick said.
In a rare moment of vulnerability, Matt speaks to camera about how he’s not sure where he fits in with the tribe, and that’s reflective of his experiences in real life. He says that he’s been through a lot in his life but has often struggled to know who his close friends really are. He realises that while he has been part of an alliance, there isn’t a single person left in the game that would call Matt their closest ally, and that’s upsetting for him.
Meanwhile, Flick is in damage control over Nick’s comments. She knows Matt is rattled and she tries to pull together numbers from elsewhere to remain in control of the game. Flick approaches Sue and tells her that she wants to move forward with those who she trusts the most, and apparently that includes Sue. The top six is Sue’s goal, and Flick says she can make it happen, but has Sue really bought that story?
“I knew all along what was going on,” defends Sue to camera. “Blind Freddy could see that the three girls are running the show.”
Sue goes on to say that she feels that Flick may have opened a door for her and although she wouldn’t normally follow orders from these girls, she realises her position in the game, so she’s willing to play “dead dog” for a while to progress herself further in the game. Nice work Sue!
Meanwhile, Brooke, El, and Flick are worried they will go from the hunter to the hunted, especially with Matt’s mood deteriorating. Flick thinks that Matt should be next to go ahead of Kylie, while Brooke still has a grudge for Kylie for holding onto that damn pole for six hours. It seems that Kylie is still optimistic about original Saanapu alliance, seemingly oblivious to the fact that she has been on the outer of that alliance from day dot.
Matt then talks about the mental side of Survivor. It’s been a lot tougher than he could’ve imagined. He speaks of how his fiancé told him that his biggest weakness in the game would be wanting everyone to like him. We then learn that being liked is one of the reasons why he became a Magician.
It’s time for this week’s immunity challenge with host Jonathan LaPaglia stirring the pot about the girls dominating the challenges so far. It’s a fact you can’t argue with. These girls have been surprisingly athletic and competitive, while the boys have struggled. Perhaps tonight will be their turn to shine!
The challenge involves three stages, with the last players at each stage dropping away until we get down to the final three who will compete for immunity. The first challenge is a balance beam using two blocks to step on all the way to the other side. JPL says that this is not a stage you want to be last in, with the bottom four to be eliminated from the challenge.
Kylie is again a dominant force as she is first across, followed by El and Brooke. Sam keeps the boys’ hopes alive, while JL and Kristie also make it. That leaves Matt, Sue, Lee and Flick on the outer as JPL reveals that their punishment will be to be sent to Exile Island and they won’t return until Tribal Council! Wow!
That seems like a great twist out of nowhere at a perfect time in the game. In previous US editions, one player might get isolated, but to send four out of the ten into exile is a great way to potentially shake up divisions in the tribe.
Back to the challenge and the next stage is to step across an unstable rope bridge. This time, it’s Brooke, El, and JL across first as they get the chance to compete in the final stage for immunity.
The final stage requires the girls to propel three balls into baskets using a giant pole. Imagine a giant game of snooker. The girls struggle with the pole, with Brooke looking most likely to succeed, but somehow JL flukes her three balls into the baskets for a come-from-behind victory!
Over at Exile, the four losers are greeted with a clue that tells them there’s an idol hidden on the island. They start a group search before Flick convinces everyone that it would just be best for them not to bother looking. Flick doesn’t want the target on her back since everyone who has had an idol so far in this game has been sent home.
Without being able to speak to her alliance, Flick speaks with Lee about removing Matt, but back at camp, it seems that Kylie and Sue are the names on the chopping block. It will be interesting to see how this pans out as they head to Tribal Council, to be greeted by a clean-shaven Nick as the first member of the jury.
The discussion starts with Flick trying to defend Nick’s allegations from last Tribal. She calls her relationships more a “friendship” than an “alliance,” but Nick just shakes his head. Again the chat moves to talking about honesty and believing in people. Zzzzzzz. Less honestly, more blindsides, please!
Flick talks about Exile Island and is hoping that everyone is on the same page when it comes to the vote, but Brooke reassures her by saying that the alliance has planned days ahead and she expects everything to go to plan. And indeed that’s the way it goes. Sue pulls three votes – from Matt and Sam who are clearly on the outer, and Kylie – while the remaining seven votes are flung at Kylie as she is the one eliminated.
Kylie was a great competitor and seems like a very genuine, likable person. She talked at times about enjoying people playing the game hard, but ultimately, her unwillingness to shift alliances cost her game. She was too loyal to an alliance that didn’t want her from the start and really, it was just a matter of time.
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