Like last week, I didn’t pick up a lot of notes after rewatching the episode. For a moment, I thought it would be a good idea to compare Jake’s departure to Dana’s from S25: Philippines. But Jake wasn’t given the choice of staying in the game like Dana was. I guess the Survivor Gods were telling Jake he never should have left his expectant wife in the first place. But at least Jake’s father got to see him on Survivor for a few episodes.

This is pretty ticky-tack, but during the challenge, Probst wouldn’t let Jason and Kristina jump into the water until Steven got his feet on to the finish platform. But when Savannah reached the ladder, Probst told Nate and Sage to go before Savannah climbed up. Savannah probably crossed that obstacle course faster than anyone, but her brain fart of stepping off the teeter-totter before untying her key caused her to fall behind. My point is Savannah is gonna be strong in the individual Immunity Challenges. I don’t think anybody has noticed her challenge talent yet.

We’ve only had 3 tribe swaps in the New Era. All of them seemed pretty random and not even designed to guarantee a gender balance. In S45 and S48, Probst pulled out one tray full of buffs (instead of one tray for each gender). In S44, three people were chosen to go on a Journey (Joshua, Carson and Jamie) and found out on the Journey that they’d be joining a new tribe. They were also given a limited-time Idol. Swaps are often a good test of who can earn trust quickly. I’m thinking Savannah, Sophi B., Alex, MC and Steven will all pass this test easily.

And away we go ....

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I wonder what would happen if MC and Rizo end up on the same tribe and they lose Immunity? Does that mean two Idols will be hidden in the same camp? MC would be digging by the boat and Rizo at the Water Well.

Sophi B. played it well. She was totally planning on booting Alex, but now he trusts her more than anyone else. I don’t like her chances of winning, but Sophi B. is good at this game.

So, naturally, she loses a shoe. In S10: Palau, Ian lost a shoe during the first challenge. He ran an obstacle course with one shoe, and found it after the win. In S24: One World, Bill lost a shoe in a challenge after bouncing off a net. He got his back too. In S21: Nicaragua, a frustrated Holly got mad at Dan and threw his alligator shoes in the water. But the only other person to lose their shoes in the ocean was Jacob Derwin in S36: Ghost Island. He took his shoes off near the water, washed his face and didn’t see his shoes being washed away. Jacob made it on to my Worst Players list. At least Sophie B, was asleep when it happened to her.

Last season they did a swap as the players arrived for what looked like a Reward challenge. They’re doing the same thing this season.

Come on, two tribes of seven, come on two tribes of seven…

I wonder why Sophi B. is so happy about the swap. It’s only good for her if she gets swapped with Alex.

Ok, one tray of buffs for everyone, and Hina gets to draw first. Alex takes the last one. Tyson always liked to take the last one. This swap looks pretty clean.

Interesting. They eliminated the Uli camp. Kele still has nothing. This reminds me of the S14: Fiji “haves vs. have nots” twist that most fans hated.

MC and Rizo are separated. Somebody’s getting an Idol tonight.

It seems like a no-brainer for Sophi B. to pitch the four Uli on joining them. That’s bad news for Matt and Jason.

Alex needs to suck up to the four Hina on his tribe. Shannon and Sage might have to consider throwing each other under the bus.

Steven: “Sage is an odd duck, but I mean that in a nice way because I’m a weird duck too.” Dude, Survivor 101 says get rid of the vote you can’t control. If you connect with Sage to the point where you can influence her vote, get rid of Flower Child. But if you can influence Flower Child, boot Sage.

Sophie S. seems like the most normal, centered one on this tribe (Ok, maybe MC is too). Sophie S. might be in trouble if she doesn’t learn how to speak the oddball language that Steven, Kristina, Sage and Shannon are fluent in. MC and Steven are already super close, and Kristina is less of a threat than she is.

Sophi B. immediately starts working on joining up with the Uli 4. That’s a smart plan, but don’t lay it on too thick. She’s in the same position Emily was in at the S45 swap, but Sophi B. hasn’t put her foot in her mouth like Emily did.

Savannah: “I feel like this girl’s (Sophi B.) gonna be my girl.” Yeah, Sophi B. is good at this game.

If Alex and Sophi B. play it right and both make it to the merge, they could be the two best informed players in the game.

Alex, Steven and MC do NOT look like they’re into Flower Child, err, Shannon’s chanting/meditation thing.

Steven: “Shannon is a shark in a spiritual guru’s body.” Steven is already on to Flower Child’s game. He seems annoyed that she’s a motormouth too.

Nate: “Sophi is an incredibly loyal, family person, and she’s fun to be around. She’s gonna be an asset to us.” Yeah, Sophi B. is good at this game.

Jason is talking to the other members, and Matt is pulling an Ozzy and spending his time fishing. But Jason telling Savannah “My bonds on Hina are very strong ... I can steer the Hina bullets away from y’all.” That wasn’t smart at all. That was equal to saying “I think I’m in charge on Hina and I can save you.” Dude, you’re NOT in a power position right now!

Matt reveals he was a Branch Manager for a brokerage firm. Dude, you’re NOT in a power position. Why tell them how smart you are now? If they think you’re a goofball, act like a goofball!

We’re seeing a lot of this game from Savannah’s perspective. She’s gonna drive some votes.

Kristina to Flower Child: “You’re not going home. I will see to that.” Does Kristina think she was the decision maker on Hina? I wonder if Steven, Sophie S. and MC have picked up on this? This is the downside of not going to Tribal Council before a merge or swap. Your read on where you stand could be catastrophically bad.

Sage is picking up on Flower Child’s routine. It sounds like she’s ready to throw some flowers under the bus.

Hmm, another water obstacle course. I wonder what they’re gonna do with those cubes?

Kristina finds and returns Sophi B.’s shoe. I remember in S13: Cook Islands, Yul returned Penner’s hat. That gesture might have been part of the reason Penner gave his Jury vote to Yul. Yul won by one vote.

Interesting, Probst removed the Male Immunity Idol. I’d have figured the alpha male-loving Probst would keep the masculine Idol in play. Could he be turning over a new leaf?

Sophie S. trashes the food Reward? Bad move. Food is food. I’m allergic to most fresh fruits, but I’d still be happy to have what little I could eat. Sophie S. is appearing ungrateful. People don’t want to give money to ungrateful finalists.

Rizo rides in the boat instead of the smaller/lighter Savannah? They might regret that.

MC and Matt take spotlight roles carrying the blocks over the balance beam. So far, nobody has identified MC as a challenge beast either.

They used this block stacking challenge in S19: Samoa and S32: Kaoh Rong, but the balance beam part is a nice addition.

Kele wins Immunity. These challenges are a lot more interesting when the tribes are evenly matched. This time, it was fun to watch. Last week, not so much.

Rizo is getting an Idol, and I think Savannah is gonna push the vote towards Matt. There’s nothing to be gained by going after Sophi B.

It’s 9:00. We’re gonna get a lot of pre-tribal scrambling. That makes me happy.

Rizo tells Sophi B. about his Beware Advantage. It was smart to bring her in. She may end up feeling closer to Rizo than anyone else on Uli, but why isn’t he digging for his Idol?

Savannah is on top of things. She makes sure they get that Idol and Rizo gets his vote back.

If I’m Rizo, I’m worried about stepping on one of those sea snakes. Whycome he didn’t have to carry a ball and chain like Alex did?

Both Jason and Matt created a reason for the majority to want them out. Who shot off a toe, and who shot off their entire foot? Jason has already been pimped by Probst as the puzzle master.

Damn, a commercial break at 9:04? Are they gonna jam the last half hour full of ads?

Jason tells the Uli members he’s gonna play his Shot in the Dark. Another bad move, dude. Why not just say out loud “I don’t trust you people at all?”

Matt pitches Jawan on booting Nate. If I’m Jawan, I use that info to get rid of Matt. Jawan should know there’s no way any other Uli will go for that.

And that’s exactly what he does. Good job, Jawan.

I really don’t know who’s leaving. Both original Hina members shot off both of their feet.

I wonder how many insects flew into Jawan’s mouth as he entered Tribal Council?

Jason: “I’ve been holding on to dear life with Matt.” That an absolutely horrible opening line, Jason.

Nate: “Somebody threw out my name today.” Now Matt knows his plan has blown up.

Jason: “Hopefully I said the right things to be on the right side tonight.” Dude, you didn’t say anything right, but you could get lucky.

Wow, Jason looks terrified. He’s just now realizing how badly he played this swap. Does he realize he has to vote for Matt now?

Matt doesn’t realize he has to vote for Jason.

Bye Matt. It’s clear he was overconfident. He didn’t even bring his things to Tribal Council.

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Recap

I don’t know if I’ve ever seen two people who fell on the wrong side of a swap play it so badly. Matt opens by telling everyone he’s a lot smarter than he appeared to be, and Jason opens by telling everyone how loyal he is to people on the other tribe. They were both asking to be voted out.

The smarter play by far is to lie and say, “I was on the bottom at Hina,” and hope they buy it. This cast had a chance to see that work so well for Kamilla last season. For whatever reason, both Jason and Matt seemed to think they were still in power positions and had the ability to influence how their new tribemates were voting.

Another move would be to immediately search for the Idol. Granted, we don’t know if MC and Steven shared the Beware Advantage info, so they may not have known to search by the boat. But they both should have realized tribes with even numbers will take a shot at each other first. It didn’t appear that Matt even tried talking to Nate or Rizo to find out where their heads were at.

I don’t think Flower Child or Sage played it very well either. Flower at least tried to work her way in with the majority on her tribe, but she was pushing too hard. Sage seems to know what to do but she’s too hesitant to put anything into motion. That’s also why she didn’t secure an alliance.

I’m thinking Jason, Sage and Flower Child don’t have what it takes to win this game. They just don’t know how to earn trust quickly.

What do you think? Who played this swap well, and who didn’t? What move would you make if you fell into the majority or the minority in a swap? How is it fair that Alex had to carry a ball and chain and Rizo didn’t? Was Savannah smart for not trying to change the vote from Matt to Jason? Let me know in the comments.