After Rick blew up almost every player’s game at the last Tribal Council, going into this episode, he was target No. 1, especially for Joe, who has wanted the master of idols out since the start of the game. The third-placer in Survivor 48 is lokey disgusted at Rick’s game, and the way he “dogwalked” his ally in Stephenie, and Cirie -- viewed as the mother (Happy Mother’s Day!) of the Tribe, is sick and tired of babysitting Joe. 

Meanwhile, with the letters from home still fresh in the minds of these exhausted players, we see an emotional moment with Rick and Ozzy where Ozzy talks about wanting to play a different game this time and that he was playing for his now deceased father, who was named Oscar, just like him. We see a flashback of Ozzy talking about his relationship with his father in a previous season, and in a confessional, Ozzy talks about a dream he had the previous night where he woke up next to Coach and Stephenie at Pondorosa, asking him why he didn’t play his idol.

More on this later, as to the immunity challenge we go, and it’s the challenge Jonathan won during Season 42 where players have to stand on a platform in the water and balance. On Season 42, it was a blustery day, and the challenge ended in three minutes. That was not the case this time, and Jeff Probst makes it clear there is an advantage at Tribal Council on the line.

Initially, Tiffany is declared the winner once everybody fell off the platform with one foot in the air, but the producers call Probst over to look at video. It turns out Tiffany did not lift one leg when instructed, making her the loser and Jonathan the winner at this challenge once again.

Here’s the twist: The players will be randomly divided into two groups of four on separate sides of the beach. Each group will go to Tribal Council separately. As the winner of the immunity challenge, Jonathan can bounce back and forth between each group and go to each Tribal.

The groups are:

  1. Tiffany, Cirie, Emily, and Rick
  2. Ozzy, Rizo, Aubry, and Joe

In the first group, Emily is worried she is going to be the target, as Rick has his idol, and nobody wants Cirie and Tiffany out yet. In a confessional, we see Emily express that she was voted out on Day 21 during Survivor 45 and like when Tiffany won immunity last episode, Ms. Flippin doesn’t want to go home in the same spot. She pitches to Jonathan (who wants Rick out), Cirie, and Tiffany that she could convince Rick to play the idol on her. Meanwhile, her and Rick, who have been together since Day 1 and have been played even closer together since Christian’s elimination, develops a plan to where if everybody votes Rick, and he plays the idol for himself, they are the only two votes that count, and they can send Cirie home. Cirie starts to question why Rick would play his idol for Emily and if she should use her extra vote she has from Ozzy.

At the other camp, the vote seems pretty easy to Ozzy: Aubry. Ozzy even goes to her and divulges his whole game to her for jury management, including his relationship with Cirie. The move is eerily similar to what Andy did with Rachel in Survivor 47, and we all know how that ended for Andy. Aubry then tells Joe, Rizo, and Jonathan all the details. 

Joe still isn’t sure about pulling off a blindside, and Jonathan is frustrated. He’s looking for help, so he goes to the other side of the beach and confronts Tiffany and Cirie about the plan. Cirie tells Jonathan to let Joe talk to Rizo, hoping Rizo will send the signal to Ozzy to play his idol. Before we go to the two Tribal Councils, we see in a confessional Rizo is questioning if Ozzy detailed too much information to Aubry and even if Cirie wants him to save Ozzy, is it good for his game?

At the first Tribal, Rick plays his idol for himself, and Cirie plays the extra vote. The vote is a three-way tie between Emily (Cirie’s two votes), Rick (Jonathan and Tiffany), and Cirie (Emily and Rick). In real time, Rick tells Emily it was fun playing the game with her, as they realize there was an extra vote, and with the re-vote rules of only being able to vote for her or Cirie due to Rick’s idol, she knows she’s good as a goner, and that’s exactly what happened with a 4-2 vote.

The second Tribal is a straight forward vote. Ozzy does not play the idol and votes for Aubry. Everybody else puts their votes on Ozzy, and he heads to the jury an emotional wreck, eliminated the same way he was the previous times: By referring back to Ozzy instead of playing like Oscar. 

As we head into the Final 7, my winner pick has completely changed. I think the remaining players know if Cirie makes it to the end, she wins, and based off the edit she’s been getting lately, I am leaning towards Aubry winning the now $2 million prize. For the rest of the season, I’m not sure if we are going to be down to six or five players for the finale, but I believe Cirie, Rick, and Tiffany will be the next three to go in some order, and Aubry will survive the boys of Rizo, Jonathan, and Joe to win the game, with Jonathan the only one out of those three with any shot to win. 

I’m sad to see two of my favorite players go home, but the gameplay this season has been the best gameplay I have ever seen on a Survivor season.

Grade: A-