First, here are a few notes from last week’s rewatch.

Last week’s Immunity Challenge largely swung on the spotlight roles in the middle of the challenge. Rachel, Rome and Tiyana took on the task of manipulating a handle through a maze on the other side of a gate. Rachel got through it the fastest, which gave her tribe much more time to learn how to manipulate the snake maze. Rome finished the gate maze when Tiyana was about halfway through, giving Lavo more time to learn the snake maze than Tuku.

But Tuku learned the snake maze very quickly. After Gata had won 1st place, Tuku was only one turn behind Lavo. We saw how frustrated TK got the first time Tuku’s ball fell off. Gabe and Kyle pulled while he was shouting for them to stop. But at the end, when they were close to catching Lavo, it was TK who pulled while again asking the others to stop. TK’s pull is what caused their ball to fall again, handing 2nd place to Lavo, yet TK glared at Gabe as if it was his fault.

Rachel’s attempted rice theft during the challenge was actually pretty sloppy. After she’d filled her pockets with rice, she didn’t notice that a lot of rice had stuck to the sweat on her arms. Even though she’d moved away from the bag of rice, it was pretty obvious she’d been handling the opened bag after Andy cut it open and found Gata’s ball for the maze.

In a Secret Scene, we see Gata returning from Tribal Council. Andy falls asleep and the rest of the tribe talks about him. Anika says “It’s literally the Bhanu story. He knows he’s at the bottom.” So since 1) Sam has an Idol and wants to play it for Andy, 2) Sierra says she wants to stick with Sam, and 3) Rachel believes Andy feels closer to her than anyone else, this isn’t good news for Anika. If Sam and Sierra ask Andy who he wants gone, he’ll probably pick Anika since she’s the one Andy wanted out in the first place.

On Lavo, since the whole tribe presumably knows Rome has an Idol, the foursome of Aysha, Teeny, Kishan and that guy who has barely spoken (Sol), will probably attempt to flush his Idol. If they think Rome will play his Idol, that likely means Genevieve is a goner.

And on Tuku? It’s probably a toss-up as to who’d leave between Tiyana and Kyle if they lose Immunity. Gabe, Sue and Caroline like their loyal threesome. It depends on what they value more – challenge strength or voting loyalty.

And away we go ....

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In the “Previously on ...” we see Rome saying he won’t be the first voted off. I can’t tell you how badly I want to see him blindsided while holding his Idol now.

Right off the bat, Gabe reminds us how this season’s cast all watched four people get blindsided while holding an Idol in 46, and how he wasn’t gonna let that happen to him. So, I guess he wasn’t playing it to protect himself from a rock draw.

Kyle says he suspected TK was going but wasn’t sure. Kyle: “I don’t know if it’s a mistake yet.” It will be if you don’t do damage control with everyone, starting with Sue.

Sue to Caroline: “We did it. Nobody else did it, we did it.” My opinion is that TK did it to himself, but it wouldn’t have happened without Gabe knowing how to work Tiyana into the plan. Sue and Caroline struck me as a little overconfident here. Sue doesn’t realize Kyle was going with the flow and wasn’t dead set against her. Sue was on the right side of the vote, but she’s not quite running the show yet. I don’t think Kyle will shoot himself in the foot like TK did.

Sam in confessional: “It feels like Anika wants to have control over everything that happens in camp life.” Sierra reflected that same sentiment when she labeled Anika a “leader” at their first Tribal Council.

Sam: “It needs to be more taut.” Anika “Well, that’s what I’m testing, Samuel.” Damn! Girlfriend used his full name. That’s like when your mother uses your middle name. Anika isn’t making suggestions, she’s giving orders.

Anika: “I’m just saying scientifically and mathematically, the weight will pull it in.” Even if she’s right, that was probably the most condescending way to send that message. That was like TK telling Sue how to start conversations ... or Bruce comparing Kaleb’s Survivor game to his son throwing an interception ... or Andrew Savage saying anything to anybody. Props to Sam on his self-control here.

Anika high fives everyone, misses Sam’s hand, then doesn’t go back for a redo. Even her gestures are dismissive.

And Rome? He’s being Rome. He’s setting a new standard for being annoying on Survivor. In preseason interviews, he said he watched all 45 seasons of Survivor in 4 months, including watching an entire season in one day. I speculated he’d have trouble retaining a lot of important information. He totally missed the importance of a strong social game. He spends most of his time either by himself, or alone with Genevieve. It just hasn’t hit him that the other four are discussing voting one of them out.

I actually don’t blame Rome for eating most of the fish he caught. But you don’t do it right in front of everyone. You take them aside and eat them in private like Jane did in Nicaragua. Rome probably missed that part in his hyper-speed binge watching.

Rachel: “Sam hasn’t tried the most basic ass foods.” I don’t want to eat any ass foods.

Andy offers to give his Shot in the Dark to Sierra as an example of trust? He really is emulating Emily’s game from 45. That was a short-term fix for Emily but it’s not a long-term solution. This was unnecessary. These people need to know you won’t blurt out something that exposes their strategy. Handing over your Shot in the Dark won’t do that.

Gabe tries to finesse Kyle into a position of trust. Gabe: “I could call in that guy to be my limousine driver.” Uhh Gabe, why would Kyle WANT to be your limo driver? More trust could be earned if Kyle believes you can give him something he wants or needs.

Gabe tries to convince Kyle to go after Tiyana. Kyle does the smart thing, and immediately says “yes” to the plan. Then he does the next smart thing and warns Tiyana about Gabe’s plan. That gets Kyle more trust from Tiyana, Sue and Caroline. But Sue does the wrong thing and shuts it down immediately. What does she think Kyle’s reaction is gonna be?

Everybody sees the boat coming. I’ll say it again: “Get on the boat, lose your vote.” Anika played it the worst by letting everyone know how badly she wanted to go. But it would be worse if Andy got to go. Kyle and Rome at least made it appear they were chosen by chance. Rome going on this Journey only increases the chances Genevieve is a goner.

I’m not sure what the move is when you want to prevent someone from going on a Journey unless you can rig a rock draw, or pulling sticks and making sure that person doesn’t get the right stick. I welcome any suggestions in the comments.

How ironic is it that Rome disliked TK because of his ego?

Wow, the first thing Anika says is that Sam and Sierra are partners??? Didn’t she just promise her tribe she wouldn’t give any information away?

Then Rome piles on by labeling Sol and Aysha the “leaders” of his tribe? I wonder if Kyle and Anika will take Rome seriously. I hate to say it, but this was a smart move on Rome’s part.

Everybody has to pick at least once. I don’t like this part. Why can’t they have the option of not making any picks? Or maybe solving a puzzle to earn the right not to pick?

Kyle and Anika both lost their vote. Dammit, now I’m thinking Rome is getting the Advantage.

I knew it! Rome gets to steal someone’s vote. But there could still be a tie vote unless Rome can swing someone to his side. I doubt he’ll be able to do that. He still can’t protect Genevieve, either.

Sol: “This could be his (Rome’s) Oscar moment right here.” They’re expecting him to lie. That’s another reason not to get on the boat.

Kyle tells his tribe that Sam and Sierra are “Head dogs” on Gata. Now Sam and Sierra have been labeled as “leaders.” Then he’s honest about losing his vote. That was probably a bad move, but I’m not sure what a believable lie would be.

Anika: “I chose to save my vote.” The silence that followed her statement told me nobody believed her, but she comes clean to everyone but Sam and Andy. I understand why she didn’t tell Andy, but why leave Sam out of the loop? Surely, she knows Sierra will tell Sam. Anika created another reason for Sam not to trust her.

Rome claims he lost his vote, and Sol immediately calls his bluff by asking if he has the note. I don’t think anybody believed Rome.

Then Rome totally blows up his lie by coming clean about his Steal-A-Vote to Teeny ... the same Teeny who just showed Kishan where Rome’s Beware Advantage box was hidden. This guy is begging to be blindsided.

But Teeny seems to be buying into Rome’s play. This is an interesting development. I still think Teeny has the power here because she can choose to warn Aysha and Sol if she wants to. Even if Rome steals Sol’s vote and uses it to put votes on Sol, Teeny can still warn Sol and Aysha. That way, whoever stays between Sol and Aysha would want to stick with Teeny and Kishan and outnumber Rome and Genevieve at the next vote. Teeny absolutely should clue Sol and Aysha in on what Rome has, then get rid of Rome or Genevieve at the next vote. Teeny has a better chance of influencing how Sol or Aysha votes than she does with Rome. Rome only listens to Rome.

Ok, the same Immunity Challenge setup that’s been used in almost every New Era season. But the Seahorse puzzle is new. Sue and Aysha sat out the last challenge and have to participate in this one.

Probst prompting Kishan to tell his story about just recently learning how to swim felt forced. He knew he was gonna turn it into a Survivor recruiting moment.

Rome to Sol: “I’m gonna be mad if you mess it up.” Good lord, Rome is totally clueless about the social game. I like that we got to see some of the tribe's challenge strategy sessions. That’s been a rarity lately. Rome’s tribe seems to know he’s gonna fuck it up. But Sol didn’t play it very well either. They needed to decide as a group not to put Rome in a key position before they even left for the challenge.

Kyle, Rome and Andy take the initial spotlight roles.

Of course Genevieve is searching the sitout bench. Good move, girl. Nobody’s eyes are on you at this moment.

Bhanu set his tribe back when he didn’t climb over the crates. He had to go back and do it again. This should be fresh in the minds of this season’s players. Andy’s struggles on the balance beam puts him in the Bhanu position ... again.

I wonder if Kishan was lying about being afraid of heights and deep water? If he was, that was pretty smart.

From where I’m sitting, Sue killed it in this challenge. Unless something was edited out, she didn’t slow her tribe down at all. TK was totally wrong about her.

Gabe and Caroline take the puzzle spotlight roles, as do Anika and Rachel, and Kishan and Aysha.

If I’m Rome, Kishan, or Aysha, I’m watching every piece Gata and Tuku are placing on their puzzles so I can catch up ASAP. Lavo has the advantage of being in the middle where they can see everyone’s progress.

Gata and Tuku win Immunity, sending Lavo to Tribal Council. This should be interesting. I still say Teeny has the power to come out of this vote in the best position. She can disarm Rome of all of his trinkets and emerge with the most trust. They’d just have to make sure Rome doesn’t find a new Idol.

Rome is laying it on too thick with his “I don’t have a vote” lie. And right on cue Sol says in confessional “I think he’s lying.”

Teeny in confessional: “I have to decide and try to hurt as little people as possible so I can keep this position I’m in, which is pretty good.” Just read a couple of paragraphs above, Teeny.

Teeny to Aysha: “I don’t want it to be you.” I think Teeny is sincere here, but why should Aysha believe Teeny’s not gonna say the exact same thing to Sol? Teeny should tell them both about Rome’s Steal-A-Vote.

Good job on Teeny convincing Rome to change his target from Aysha to Sol. That’s top-level manipulation right there.

Rome’s attempt to convince Sol he doesn’t have a vote is about as convincing as his attempt to conceal his Idol hunting.

Sol sees right through Rome’s lie (of course), but then blows it by telling Rome he knows he’s lying.

I haven’t compiled a list of the worst Survivor liars, but if I did, Rome would at least be in the top 10.

Aysha doesn’t get it. Since she now knows Rome has an Idol, voting for Sol is really her best play. The only other option is fooling Rome into thinking he doesn’t need to play his Idol for himself and trying to blindside him. But again, after everyone just watched 5 Idol holders from 46 getting blindsided, they’d have to think Rome would be selfish and use his Idol on himself.

Kishan made an excellent point about Aysha. If she’s so inflexible when she doesn’t have any power, she’ll be worse when/if she does have power. Did Aysha just talk herself out of the game?

Teeny: “She (Aysha) was not hearing us. She’s digging her own grave.” Teeny got the cliché right this week! Gabe totally fumbled it last week.

Why didn’t Teeny tell Aysha and Sol about Rome’s Steal-A-Vote? Information is power in Survivor, probably the greatest power. Why not use it when you really need to?

Rome was superstitious about sitting in the front middle seat? Last season the far right seat was a death seat for a while. Seven straight players got voted out while seated closest to Probst.

I’m getting a little lost in the discussion tonight. My gut says Zeke was right when he said, “Tribal Council is theater” in Game Changers. Every answer they give to Probst is posturing BS. But some of it feels real tonight. Why are Aysha and Sol glancing at each other? Do they have a plan?

They go to vote, and I’m thinking Aysha is a goner. That could be why Teeny didn’t tell her about Rome’s Steal-A-Vote.

But Rome doesn’t use his Steal-A-Vote! That means they can go after Genevieve. Could Aysha’s 11th hour plea save her and Sol?

If Teeny forces a tie, they can easily boot Genevieve in a revote. Teeny and Kishan should know this is an option now that Rome didn’t use his Steal-A-Vote. This is another reason Teeny should have told Sol and Aysha about Rome’s Advantage.

Rome didn’t actually say he was playing his Idol for himself, but that could have been edited out. His lie about not having a vote is about to be revealed too. Why would anybody believe any word he says after tonight?

Aysha leaves with 3 of the 6 votes. That’s a curious vote split. Somebody miscommunicated somewhere.

Aysha: “Was it you too, Sol?” Sol: “No.” I think Aysha just told everyone Teeny voted for her.

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Recap

I thought Teeny swung this vote, but she voted for Sol. So, this leads me to believe Aysha got herself voted out by being so inflexible around Kishan. By refusing to vote for Sol, Kishan and Teeny realized it may be tougher to work with Aysha down the line than they thought. Maybe Teeny knew Aysha was gone, and just couldn’t bring herself to vote against the Podcaster she admired so much.

Aysha made some earlier mistakes too. She never should have gone on that initial Journey with TK. She needed that time to bond with her tribe and get into an early alliance. Aysha caught a break when Rome’s sloppy play made him a more attractive target, but Aysha didn’t take advantage of that.

Aysha really needed more time with Genevieve. She could have gotten that in those first few hours and bonded with her instead of Rome. That could have made the difference for her. As an RHAP Podcaster, she should have known better.

So, the two who got on the first boat are already gone now. And two of the three who got on the second boat have lost their votes. When will these people listen to me?

There’s some sloppy play on every tribe. Sue is proving to be pretty inflexible too, and Anika is well on the path to talking herself out of the game. But I like the fact that all 3 tribes have gone to Tribal Council in the first 3 votes. That levels the playing field. This makes me hope there won’t be a swap. Nobody has full control on any of the tribes yet, there’s no need for a swap yet.

Last week, I said I liked the way Teeny, Sierra, Rachel and Tiyana were playing. I’ll add Kishan to that list. He’s also getting information brought to him on a consistent basis. I think he made the right call on removing Aysha. But I also think he and Teeny should have tried to fool Rome into playing his Steal-A-Vote. Now it’ll be tougher to disarm him at the next vote.

What do you think? Did Teeny and Kishan miss a major opportunity by not revealing Rome’s Steal-A-Vote? What’s the best way to stop someone from going on a Journey? What’s a good lie when you’ve lost your vote? Let me know in the comments.