Each week, Christine Pallon and Gia Worthy will round up the previous week of Survivor 51 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 latest episode.
Top 3 Moments
Merge Feast… With a Twist
Christine: Our castaways arrived at their next challenge to discover they were merging, and a merge feast was on the table. There was, of course, a catch: each had to eat a grub to earn a seat at the merge feast, and only the first ten players to finish would be able to eat. Kristin and Cristian forfeited their chance at the feast, leaving Sharonda as the third and final person to miss out. Meanwhile, Brady, like the freak he is, finished his grub quickly and even went back for seconds.
Kristin Comes Clean
Christine: Back at camp, Kristin decided to lay all her cards on the table for Sharonda in a big play to earn the latter’s trust. Kristin disclosed the full nature of the Tethered Idol and handed it over for safekeeping as a show of loyalty. While this move wasn’t really necessary (Sharonda already trusted Kristin a lot), I think it was still a smart social move on Kristin’s part. Given the idol’s built-in constraints, it makes more sense for a player like Kristin to use it as social capital to solidify a valuable ally who can help her survive this dangerous merge.
Toka Fractures
Gia: Listen, we all know that Toka wasn’t exactly the most stable of tribes… but I did think they would’ve tried a little harder to have a unified vote for the merge if nothing else. In reality, the people on the outs of the core alliance sniffed out their position pretty quickly, making the flip to the Savu players all too easy. Mike flipped almost immediately, knowing full well he likely would’ve been the boot this round had he not won immunity. Jelly and Devin may have still had some ties to Toka, but ultimately decided that their prospects with Savu (and the Helicopter alliance with Sharonda) looked more promising. And while everyone was debating the merits of keeping Brady over Eric and vice versa, the remaining Toka members learned at tribal council that they did not have the numbers to keep Brady. The bigger threat was ultimately voted out, with only Brady, Carter, Lewis, and Thien An voting for Eric.
Advantage Watch
Idols
Gia: Jelly and Carter both ended the merge episode with their regular idols still in play, and it didn’t seem like either of them was even considering using them at this vote. Meanwhile, Kristin told Sharonda the truth about their tethered idol and gave it to her to build further trust. Personally, I think this was a great decision for Kristin, especially since she was away from all her alliance members during the tribe swap. Sharonda also seemed to respond positively to Kristin’s confession, so I think the risk was worth it.
Extra Vote
Christine: Devin still has his Extra Vote, and while the episode didn’t mention it, it was the subject of a secret scene. In the unaired scene, Devin lies to his fellow castaways at the merge feast, saying Ori and Alexis voted together and that he used the Extra Vote to avoid a tie. It’s about as good a lie as you can tell in Survivor since two out of the three other people implicated are out of the game, and Jelly has no reason to sell Devin out just yet. We’re a long way from an Extra Vote being powerful in this large merge, so Devin will need to keep surviving and hold onto it long enough for it to make an impact on the outcome of a vote.
Top 3 Contestants
Mike
Christine: Mike was having a great episode for a minute there, as he set himself up to flip on his old tribe and secured a much-needed immunity. Everything fell apart when his attempt to save Kristin blew up in his face after he accidentally threatened her, which led his plan back to Brady. Mike still got his desired outcome: Kristin survived, and Brady is out of the game. But despite being immune and getting his desired outcome, Mike ended up in a potentially worse position than he started. He played the pre-immunity portion of this episode very well, but his interaction with Kristin about the vote really demonstrated why players like Thien An have been out to get him. I could see him weaseling his way out of trouble if he can sell himself as a valuable number to take out bigger targets in this early merge. Still, I could just as easily see him being an easy unanimous vote soon if he can’t turn around his perception.
Sharonda
Gia: I know we are still very early in the game, but Sharonda is my top contender for the win right now. Her edit is one of the most prominent of the season, and yet she appears to be doing an excellent job of managing her threat level. Most importantly, everyone wants to build trust with her and bring her into their plans. When I thought things couldn’t be going better for her, Kristin gives her the tethered idol to solidify their alliance. Even with being down in numbers going into this sizable merge, I’d say Sharonda is doing pretty well for herself. There is still so much game to be played and so many twists we can not yet account for, but I still feel pretty comfortable saying she is not just a winner contender; she is THE winner contender.
Devin
Gia: Before 51’s premiere, Jeff said that there is a contestant on the season that he thinks could replace him as host in the future. I had my suspicions for a while, but after this episode I’m more confident than ever that the player he was referring to was Devin. As a performer, Devin makes for a natural confessionalist and an entertaining player, but it’s his narrations at tribal council that have won Jeff (and me) over. He may have been hesitant to vote out Brady, but he ultimately sided with the Savu faction to take out one of his original allies. Brady leaving could make his target exponentially bigger, but with this cast, there’s no telling where they’ll look next. Personally, I think Devin will be here for the long haul.
Fallen Comrades
Brady
Christine: I was surprised to see Brady go so early in this merge, since he seems like the perfect meat shield you’d expect certain players to want to keep around for at least another vote or two. But Brady was just a little too abrasive and too clearly jockeying for control to keep around. He came into this merge very authentically himself, and he rubbed too many people the wrong way, especially during the merge feast. I think his mishandling of his relationship with Maggie, plus his antics during the merge feast, are key elements of his undoing.
Maggie held a lot of power in this vote and had plenty of reasons to keep Brady in the game for her own benefit. But by the time the tide turned against him, she had little incentive to stick her neck out for him. In another world where that relationship is better-managed, perhaps Brady has a better chance of surviving this vote, but he was never going to make it far as a bigger guy who likes to be in control. I’m not too sad to see him go, but he was good casting, and his big personality added some much-appreciated conflict and friction to the season.
Gia: While I am not surprised that Brady is leaving in the early merge, I am certainly surprised to see that he is the merge boot. Brady was one of the loudest voices we heard, and the merge boot is usually when a more expendable, less visible player is sacrificed under the facade of unity. Brady doesn’t fit that bill, but he does fit the bill of a player who was a little too comfortable with his position.
He wanted to stand out in the crowd, and he got his wish. Unfortunately for Brady, the merge is the worst time to be the star of the show. It’s why Eric and Brady were on the chopping block in the first place, and it’s why Brady couldn’t ultimately save himself when his name was finally brought up as an option. That said, he was definitely one of the bigger stars in the earliest episodes of this season, so he still has plenty to celebrate about his time in Fiji.
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