The Traitors Season 4, Episode 6
"Planning a Coup"
Host: Alan Cumming
Cast: Natalie Anderson, Yam Yam Arocho, Mark Ballas, Stephen Colletti, Candiace Dillard Bassett, Ron Funches, Maura Higgins, Kristen Kish, Tara Lipinski, Dorinda Medley, Eric Nam, Rob Rausch, Lisa Rinna, Colton Underwood, Johnny Weir
The Traitors reverted back to its normal ebb and flow this week after some heated moments last week. In Episode 6, “Planning a Coup,” we get our first real sense that the Traitors' run of success might be starting to veer off track. Luckily, they didn’t crash out just yet.
To begin the episode, every remaining contestant shows up at breakfast. There was no murder! Thanks to nobody going for a shield in the previous challenge, the Traitors do not get to eliminate anyone from the game. As I mentioned last week, I didn’t love this twist. A top tier part of the game is the Traitors murdering someone, and we’ve seemingly eliminated that for no real payoff.
Before they left, Monét X Change was throwing some shade on Lisa Rinna. Colton Underwood is now sniffing around this idea. He’s a little nervous since he went after Tiffany Mitchell and missed. He also “missed” on Michael Rapaport, but we’ll count that as a win. There’s a chance he goes for it again, this time against Lisa.
Meanwhile, Rob Rausch has started to feel a little bad for Ron Funches, a target since he got Porsha Williams eliminated at the first banishment. Ron has struggled to reintegrate himself back into the game since his misstep, unlike his fellow Faithfuls like Colton and Eric Nam. However, the majority of the cast seems set on eliminating Ron next.
The challenge is a spin on a The Traitors classic: head to an abandoned cabin in the woods where weird stuff will happen. This time, they’ll get clues to a name. Two people will head out to see if they can find the gravestone with the right name, all the while being able to instead look for a shield. While Candiace Dillard Bassett and Tara Lipinski guess wrong on the first clue, the rest of the task goes swimmingly. Nobody goes for a shield, and they add a lot of money to the pot. I wish there had been a little more excitement to this challenge, but it is what it is.
On the way back to the castle, Ron suggests that he’s likely to go home. Rob feels for him. He says he doesn’t have it in him. The problem is that the only other name on the chopping block is Colton. Rob also seems to get along with Colton, but also sees Colton as someone who is publicly wrong a lot. It is also likely that Rob sees Colton as a useful agent in his own game. If Colton fires after Lisa, and Rob can join in on the vote, then it will bode well for people assuming the Love Island contestant is a Faithful. It also would likely open the door for a recruitment, plus it breaks up the other two Traitors being Housewives.
Johnny Weir begins to try and rally the troops around a Colton vote. They believe he isn’t just wrong, he’s been leading the charge against Faithfuls as a Traitor. But they need votes. He rallies players like Stephen Colletti and Mark Ballas (a.k.a. the people I forgot were on the show). Kristen Kish and Maura Higgins are also looped in on the plan.
There is also a heavy push to get rid of Ron. This is what Candiace and Lisa are hoping will happen. But Rob starts publically saying that he doesn’t think Ron is a Traitor (much to the annoyance of the Housewife Traitors).
Colton tries to make one big swing. He approaches Lisa and says that if he protects her at the Roundtable, will she protect him in the turret? She feigns shock, though he suggests she just can’t say anything. Genuinely, Lisa doesn’t seem to bite on this alliance idea. It was worth a try!
So, the Roundtable becomes a discussion of Colton or Ron. However, Colton doesn’t think Ron is a Traitor, so other names need to be thrown out. He launches a rocket at Lisa, suggesting that her being willing to vote a Housewife out in the first banishment along with the lack of confidence and bravado she’d normally have has given him pause. Lisa fires back, showcasing the true fiery personality most people thought they hadn’t seen. Natalie Anderson seems to be on board with this idea, suggesting that she’s had suspicions of Lisa, too.
This puts Rob in a bind. He doesn’t want to vote out Ron or Colton, but the only other person who could be voted out is Lisa, a fellow Traitor. If he goes for it and misses, there might be Hell to pay in the turret. He does end up voting Lisa, but the six votes fall on Ron, enough to send him packing. He reveals himself as a Faithful on the way out the door.
Before the episode ends, there is one more twist. The night prior, the Traitors learned that they would have to kill in plain sight. This time, one of them would need to wear a brooch and have another player touch it during a fancy banquet. Lisa offers to wear it, feeling it’s something she’d most be able to pull off.
Lisa and Candiace do take a moment to scold Rob for his vote, trying to reunite their team. He tries to pin it on the fact that everyone knows he trusts Ron and Colton, but Candiace says it only took one vote for Lisa to be saved. Rob calls his move a play for longevity. He couldn’t have voted for someone he publicly said he trusted. Candiace throws a cookie at him. Things are icy amongst the Traitors!
The plan was to get rid of Colton. He even tells the Traitors to get rid of him or he’ll continually hunt shields in front of both Lisa and Candiace. However, Candiace is sure that Colton won’t get anywhere near Lisa, so they might have to change their plan. We’re set up for a fun set piece next week in the form of Alan’s banquet.
Ultimately, this episode felt like a cooldown, but maybe a necessary one. A lot of the more fierce personalities seemed to be missing from this episode. Yam Yam Arocho, Dorinda Medley and Maura Higgins all had rather light episodes. Colton continues to be a central figure, though the main character certainly seems to be Rob. Tonight seemed like the first misstep for the Traitors and for Rob, specifically. If you’re going to take a shot, you better not miss. Especially not if you’re shooting at Lisa Rinna.
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