Each week, Christine Pallon and Gia Worthy will round up the previous week of Survivor 46 as they list their top moments in various important categories. This includes the most essential information, the stand-out castaways, and the key moments from the week.
Here, Christine and Gia break down all the action from the season premiere.
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Top 3 Moments
Teeny Tells a Secret
Gia: Rome was hoping to use his idol to gain favor with some tribemates, but it’s safe to say that the results were not what he was hoping for. He told Teeny about his beware advantage, only for Teeny to immediately spill this information to Kishan. To add insult to injury, Rome walked in on them finding the advantage he rehid! Was it one of Lavo’s finer moments? Probably not, but it was definitely hilarious to see unfold.
Andy Finds the Beware Advantage… and Leaves It
Christine: While Andy did his best to recover from his public meltdown at last week’s immunity challenge, his tribemates were still wary of him. Sam got put on Andy babysitting duty, but left to go to the bathroom and leave him unattended for but a moment. Andy, of course, went advantage hunting and found his tribe’s Beware Advantage. He, rightfully, in my opinion, hesitated to take it and instead took the time to weigh whether or not it was worth the risk. However, Andy waited a bit too long and left the advantage in the tree for Sam to find with Anika. Andy had the right instinct to reflect before putting more of a target on his back, but in the New Era, you have to assume someone else will beat you to the punch.
Rachel Steals Some Rice
Gia: Just when you think you’ve seen everything on Survivor, someone thinks of a new way to shake things up. Rachel, the icon that she is, decided to pocket some rice from the bags used in the immunity challenge. Unfortunately, she was caught and made to empty her pockets before they went back to camp. Personally, I think she should’ve been allowed to keep the rice for the creativity alone. Rachel for Game Changers 2 anyone?
Tribe Breakdown
Tuku
Gia: Tuku were undeniably the stars of the episode for many reasons. At the center of everything was TK, who built an alliance comprised of the physically strongest members: himself, Kyle, Tiyana, and Gabe. Gabe, sensing he was being pushed out of the fold, created his own faction with Sue and Caroline. Just when we thought this battle between the trios might go to rocks, TK’s harsh words at the immunity challenge turned Tiyana against him. She ended up voting with the opposing side, blindsiding TK out of the game.
Lavo
Christine: Lavo has a bit of a quandary: Rome is on the outs, but he has an idol he’s guaranteed to play at the next tribal council. He’s rubbing everyone the wrong way, but he’s basically untouchable for the near future. Teeny really fumbled when they got caught showing the idol box to Kishan, but Rome didn’t indicate that this was a deal-breaker for their relationship. Sol and Genevieve are presumably in trouble if this group goes, but Rome’s long-term survival after an idol play isn’t looking too great.
Gata
Gia: Gata is currently an explosion waiting to happen. Andy is on the outs and missed his one opportunity for some power by leaving behind the Beware Advantage. Sam ended up being the one to find the idol, and now everyone in the tribe except Andy knows about it. This may seem like their next tribal council will result in Andy’s ousting, but Sam (and, by proxy, Sierra) is considering siding with Andy to vote out either Anika or Rachel. From the audience’s perspective, Gata going to tribal council again appears to be a near certainty. Now the question isn’t so much “When is Andy going?” and more so “Who will Sam side with?”
Top 3 Players
Sam
Christine: This was mostly a fantastic episode for Sam. He got an idol, solidified his bond with Andy, and stayed on top of his relationships with the women by revealing his idol to Rachel and Sierra when he realized Anika would certainly do it for him. His one misstep was so quickly telling Sierra he was thinking about playing it on And. He effectively told her he was willing to limit her options to work with the women moving forward. They seem to have a good enough relationship for that not to push Sierra away, but it was a risky move on his part to push that idea so quickly.
Rome
Christine: Rome found an idol this week and made the call to keep it only good for one tribal. This was a really smart move on his part: with Kishan and Teeny knowing his idol is only good for one tribal, they’re not going to blindside him with it in his pocket, and he guarantees himself safety for at least the first vote. And if his tribe only goes to tribal once pre-merge, he’s in a good spot.
But Rome’s long-term survival on Lavo isn’t looking great if they go to repeated tribals due to his idol-hunting antics and the way he’s annoyed his tribemates. He has a relationship with Teeny and Kishan now, but that’s more of a hostage situation since they can’t do anything about him until his idol is gone. Rome needs to do a serious 180 socially in the next episode if he wants to survive much further beyond his idol’s expiration date.
Gabe
Gia: Gabe’s game did a complete 180 over the course of one episode. As TK was beginning to push him out of the alliance, Gabe acted accordingly and created his own trio comprised of himself, Sue, and Caroline. It was this core group that was able to persuade Tiyana to vote with them and oust TK. Even though his idol did not cancel out any votes, he used it to build trust with Caroline and protect himself in the event of a rock draw. Safe to say it was an impressive week for Gabe, and I’m excited to see if his game continues this uphill trajectory.
Fallen Comrades
TK
Christine: On paper, TK seemed poised to at least make the merge. He’s a strong, charming guy who’s an asset in challenges. But for the second time this season, we had some post-challenge mat drama that put him in the crosshairs at Tuku’s first tribal council. Had he not commented on his tribe smiling after the challenge and turned Tiyana against him, we very well could have seen Sue go home here. But his comment sent Tiyana into the loving arms of Gabe, Sue, and Caroline, drawing a line in the sand on Tuku and solidifying a majority. There’s been a lot of talk about smaller tribe sizes favoring challenge strength as a factor behind votes, but TK’s ouster proves this trend isn’t set in stone by any means.
Gia: TK going as early as he did is perhaps one of the most shocking vote-outs in the history of Survivor’s pre-merge. In most seasons, TK’s strength and clear physical presence would keep him safe until right before jury at the very least. Unfortunately for him, his strong personality and blunt approach to the game rubbed almost everyone on Tuku the wrong way. While I can’t help but feel for TK in this shocking exit, I can’t help but be excited at the idea that this could set a precedent that the perceived challenge beasts aren’t guaranteed de facto immunity in the earliest phases of the game. Here’s to many more surprises coming our way in the new era of the show.
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