Survivor Season 49, Episode 12
"The Die is Cast"
Host: Jeff Probst
Cast: Sage Ahrens-Nichols, Sophi Balerdi, Savannah Louie, Kristina Mills, Steven Ramm, Rizo Velovic
The theme of this season might be “that was pretty fun, even though the end result was disappointing”. Such is the case with Episode 12, where despite putting all the pieces together, Steven gets voted out anyway.
The tribe returns from Tribal Council and are all pretty happy. Considering they all voted together, there’s no ill-will between the players tonight. However, they all know the good vibes won’t last long. It seems obvious that it’s a battle between Savannah, Sophi and Rizo against Steven, Kristina and Sage.
They wake up on Day 22 and it’s a rainy, miserable day. Even confined to the shelter, Sophi begins to plant the seeds for getting rid of Rizo or Savannah. She knows she can’t beat either of them, so she wants to set-up a big move. With a Knowledge Is Power advantage in her pocket, she could even swipe Rizo’s idol.
At the Reward Challenge, the players must traverse an obstacle course, then throw a sandbag onto a large pole. The first person to win will head to the Sanctuary for the night where they will get food in the form of tacos and some love via letters from home. Savannah pulls out the win and takes Rizo & Sophi with her.
Back at camp, Steven shares that he has a Block-A-Vote and that the other trio might think they are in control, when in reality, their taco feast might be their Last Supper. This feels like it would be true, considering Sophi has thoughts of turning on her allies. But being taken on the trip, Sophi begins to wonder if she should be sticking it out with her friends. She reveals her hidden advantage and begin to plot to take Steven’s Block-A-Vote.
Rizo continues to try to gauge out Steven. He asks who the latter is thinking of voting. It will come down to who wins Immunity, but he all but admits that Savannah is the likeliest target. However, she can’t be voted out if she has immunity.
And that’s just what happens. While Sage puts up a valiant effort and tries to coax Savannah into letting her win, she can’t pull out the victory. Savannah wins her third individual immunity (one shy of tying the women’s record).
Back at camp, Savannah is relieved that by winning immunity, it narrows the targets on their side from three to two. Plus, Rizo has an idol he could play and Sophi could use her Knowledge is Power. That’s a lot of protection for the trio.
Rizo tries to swing Steven in the direction of voting out Sophi, though the scene feels a bit like a phony act from either side. Rizo is hoping he’s built up the lie of this being the last tribal he can use his idol so that he won’t get any votes, therefore saving his idol for the next round. It’s actually pretty smart, though there’s no indication whether anyone else believes that or not.
Rizo tries to convince Sage that Steven is the correct vote. She actually does think it’s worth considering since Savannah won Immunity and Rizo has an idol. She tells this to Kristina, who has no intention of voting out Steven. But hilariously, it’s Kristina who most spooks Steven through a clumsy interaction the two have. Steven runs to Sage to inquire about whether he’s on the hot seat, but Sage assures him he’s not. Before he leaves for Tribal Council, Steven plays his Block-A-Vote on Savannah.
Before they all leave for Tribal Council, Sophi feels conflicted about her decision. She could either steal Steven’s advantage, but she might get voted out anyway. Her other option would be to steal Rizo’s idol and ensure her safety. She tries to think about what her grandmother would tell her to do. At Tribal Council, she ultimately sticks with the people she knows longer and tries to steal Steven’s advantage. Too bad! He’s already played it. It’s a pretty devastating moment for Sophi and a rather fun to see moment for everyone else.
Rizo decides that if it’s between him or Sophi, he’d rather risk that he didn’t get votes and saves his idol. It’s basically confirmation that Sophi should have stolen his idol! There’s a chance this move backfires on Rizo, though he’ll definitely be safe next round because he was able to save his idol.
The votes come out and there’s just one vote for Sophi. The others all fall on Steven. Sage admits that she voted him out and apparently Kristina joined her. It’s rather shocking and a move that even the jury seems rather shocked by.
Ultimately, Steven’s vote out came during a very fun episode. While it feels like Sophi made the wrong decision at Tribal Council, it ultimately didn’t cost her the game. She’s still alive. It does feel like it removes the win equity she was building up. Meanwhile, Sage might have bumped her stock up a bit, but it still feels like a long shot when she’ll have to go against a challenge beast in Savannah and an idol held by Rizo. I felt like last week’s lack, Kristina was never mentioned as a target once Steven had immunity and therefore, must also been seen as drawing pretty close to dead in a final Tribal Council. And so therefore, while the episode was fun, it seems to have been that way in spite of the result we were given.
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