A new episode of Survivor airs tonight on CBS. Read a live recap here.
The tribe returns to camp after voting out Gabe. Kyle calls Gabe his friend, but his threat level was too high. Kyle believes he needs to win every immunity challenge to stay safe in the game. Sue said tribal council “really sucked.” Everybody knew the plan except for Gabe and Sue. Sue can’t even trust Caroline anymore. She’s mostly upset Kyle is still in the game.
The next morning, Sue says her security blanket is gone. She feels like she’s alone in the game. Caroline admits she might have made a mistake blindsiding Sue. The two of them talk things out. Caroline says she cares about her relationship with Sue. She explains that she knew Gabe wanted to drag her to the Final 3, but she wanted to play her own game. Sue says she wants both her and Caroline to take control of this game. Later, they approach Andy, Rachel, and Teeny at the well. The five of them agree to solidify a Final 5 alliance. They call themselves the underdogs.
Kyle, Genevieve, and Sam talk among themselves while everyone else is at the well. They are concerned about the other five picking them off (which is exactly what they are talking about). Kyle says he wants to go to the end of the game with Sam and Genevieve. Genevieve is careful to not use the word alliance with them, but she’s open to voting with them. In her confessional, Genevieve says her perspective changed after blindsiding Kishan. She would rather be viewed as a distant villain than the best friend who crushes her friends’ dreams. Sam says he’s had to pivot his game after Sierra was voted out. Kyle says he has to remove emotions in order to play this game effectively.
A boat arrives. One person must board the boat and go on a Journey. They draw rocks to determine who will leave. Rachel draws the purple rock. She will go on the Journey and return later in the afternoon. Rachel is taken to a barge in the middle of the ocean. It’s a timed puzzle. She must arrange colored balls before all the weights tied to rope drop into the ocean. Rachel manages to complete the puzzle right before time ran out. Rachel wins a Block-a-Vote advantage.
Rachel returns to camp. She tells them about the puzzle. She lies and says she cannot vote at tribal council. However, she later tells the truth to Caroline and Sue. She just doesn’t want Sam, Genevieve, and Kyle to know about her advantage. In her confessional, Caroline is glad Rachel has an advantage since she can use Rachel as a shield later. Afterwards, Rachel tells Teeny and Andy about her Block-a-Vote advantage. Teeny says she feels good about her trio with Rachel and Andy.
Later, Genevieve asks Rachel her thoughts about the upcoming vote. If Kyle doesn’t win immunity, then would she be willing to vote out a person that’s being viewed as an easy person to sit next to at the Final 3, like Sue or Andy. Rachel hints she’s open to the idea, but she reveals in her confessional that this just makes Genevieve look more dangerous. Rachel later tells Andy what Genevieve said about him. Andy is annoyed and wants to vote for Genevieve at the next tribal council.
It’s time for the immunity challenge. They must use a rope to balance a wobbly table while stacking letter tiles. If their tiles fall, then they must start over. The first person to spell immunity wins. Sam, Genevieve, and Rachel are in the lead. However, they all drop their letter tiles. Kyle and Teeny are now in the lead, but they drop too. Sue and Andy drop their blocks too, essentially restarting the challenge. There are more struggles among everyone, but eventually Genevieve and Rachel are back in the lead. Genevieve drops her blocks before Rachel places her last letter. Rachel walks back slowly to the platform, which allows Kyle the chance to catch up. Kyle places his last letter tile too, but Rachel steps back on her platform before Kyle reaches his platform. Rachel wins immunity!
The tribe returns to camp. Rachel admits Kyle is the easy vote, but that may mean there’s a chance to make a bigger move. Sue has been waiting to vote out Kyle. She says nothing will bring her more pleasure than voting Kyle out of the game. In her confessional, Genevieve says Kyle would stay if she had her way. She admits she has no power to influence anyone though. Genevieve just hopes the target will stay on Kyle instead of shifting towards her. In his confessional, Sam says he needs Kyle to stay in the game. If Kyle is gone, then everyone else will look at him as the next physical threat. Genevieve and Sam pitch saving Kyle, but Teeny is not interested in keeping him.
Andy is also interested in keeping Kyle in the game. He would rather vote out Genevieve. Andy tells Caroline, Rachel, and Teeny they should vote out Genevieve instead. Genevieve has thrown their names out, and he doesn’t think Kyle will end up winning the rest of the immunity challenges anyway. Caroline disagrees with Andy. She doesn’t want to give Kyle the chance to win the rest of the immunity challenges. Rachel says she agrees with Andy. Teeny realizes that Rachel and Andy are more fearful of Genevieve than Kyle, which she admits is valid. However, Caroline wants them to stick to the plan and vote out Kyle.
It’s time for tribal council. Jeff asks what changes about the vote at this stage of the game. Sam says they want to vote out threats to their individual games. Rachel agrees that power players are being taken out. Kyle says he’s sitting in the hot seat. He knows he’s a target because of his prowess in the challenges. Kyle says he might not be that big of a threat since immunity challenge winners don’t often win the game. Andy says they have to just give themselves the best chance to win at the end. Teeny says Kyle is a big challenge threat, but more strategic players are threats too. Genevieve says she has heard her name a lot. She’s worried about people who are taking up seats at the end. Kyle says people are still hiding behind one another and making an obvious play. Kyle says they should consider different threats. Kyle says he’s optimistic that there will be a blindside against someone else. Sue believes everyone is making their own decisions. Sam adds that Kyle is an obvious target, but he has made good points. Rachel thinks people weighed their options today and didn’t just unanimously agreed Kyle will be voted out tonight. Genevieve predicts the votes will be split tonight. She doesn’t think Kyle will be getting every vote tonight. Genevieve hopes she’s not on an island alone though. Genevieve says it’s harder to separate “Genevieve the person” and “Genevieve the player.” Kyle says they should be willing to go against the majority and start making things happen for themselves. Afterwards, it’s time for the vote.
Jeff reads the votes.
The first vote is for…
Genevieve
Kyle
Teeny
Kyle
Kyle
Kyle
Kyle is the eleventh person voted out and the fourth member of the jury. He gives everyone a hug and thanks everyone before getting his torch snuffed.
And that wraps up tonight’s episode of Survivor. Thanks for reading and come back next week for another live recap.
