Survivor can often count on a tribe swap to mix things up, create some drama, stir the pot a little bit. And through three episodes, season 49 was in desparate need of all of that. So this week’s swap came not a moment too soon. But even that couldn’t inject any real energy into the season. It feels like there are some fireworks simmering under the surface, and they have to go off at some point. But, save for last week’s medical emergency, we’ll still without much excitement.
Kele
The new tribe of two – Alex and Sophi – return to camp after arguably their most stressful day in the game so far (and that’s saying something with how terribly the start of the game has gone for Kele). Right now, they’re just relieved to still be in the game, knowing things can’t get much lower than they are now.
Tribe Swap
No other early time spent at camp life, as Survivor takes us right into the swap. Jeff confirms the obvious, that a tribe switch was always on the board at 14, but they just got there a little earlier than planned, with Jake’s medevac.
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Let’s take a look at the new tribe breakdowns:
New Hina
New Kele
Each tribe with a 4-2-1 split. Theoretically, it makes for an easy vote for the group of 4. But as we all know, Survivor is rarely that simple, so we’ll see what kind of maneuvering the groups of 2 and 1 can come up with.
Also, WHY SEND A TRIBE TO KELE?! Have we forgotten the lessons from Survivor: Fiji? The Haves vs Have Nots was a horrible twist, leading to the obvious domination of the Haves. Granted, that was an extreme example, with extraordinary-by-Survivor-standards furnishings, so I’m sure this won’t be as bad. But still, the general idea applies.
Hina
Rizo still doesn’t have his vote after finding the Beware Advantage, but is at least happy to be in the majority. Sophi is simply all smiles, finally living at a functional camp.
Sophi has a renewed energy, and she starts mapping out a new path for her game. With four original Uli members, that’s the easy move for her to make to start. She makes the rounds, and makes a good first impression, particularly with Savannah.
She starts to win over Nate as well, who sees her as an open book, a genuine person. He believes she can be a true asset to their group. But not to be left behind, Jason knows he has to make some moves too. He talks to Savannah, being open about how close he still feels with the other Hina members. He spins it that, come merge, he can convince them to keep the votes away from this new alliance.
Kele
Shannon continues her nonsense, leading her new tribe in the same morning breathing routine. I’m only watching the show, and this is driving me crazy. But hey, nobody has voiced any real annoyance with this, so sure, do your thing.
Steven, though, is worried about Shannon as a player. He thinks she’s more of a lion in sheep’s clothing, so he’s got to keep his eyes on her. And she tries to start making inroads with Kristina, and they form a quick bond.
And even Sage, who has been with Shannon from the beginning, is starting to worry about her. She’s noticed Shannon has been playing up the faith and religious angles a lot more on this new tribe, after noticing other players perk up when it came up early on. Sage thinks it’s more performative than genuine. And the edit (yes, we all know the edit can show whatever Survivor production wants), certainly seems to be lining up with Sage’s view of things.
Immunity Challenge
Five players drag a boat through the ocean with the remaining two players. They take them past a series of platforms, with the two in the boat collecting cubes. Once on shore, one player transports 10 smaller cubes across a balance beam. When that’s done, the remaining six move the large cubes. With all cubes across, they get stacked, in a single tower. They’re also playing for a big fruit platter reward.
When Jeff reveals the reward, Sophie starts complaining. “This is diet food. This is what I eat when I’m trying to lose weight.” I appreciate that she wasn’t afraid to give it to production a little bit, and voice her disappointment. But still, this is Survivor. When it comes to food, you take what you get when you get it.
But there’s also the broader optics of it. How does it look to everyone else to see someone complain that the food they might be winning isn’t good enough? In a game where emotions can rule the roost, and allegiances can change at the drop of a hat, you always have to think about how public comments like this might come across to everyone else.
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MC cruises through the smaller cubes, with Matt really struggling, giving Kele a huge lead. They keep the lead, and have a big start on their stacking. But Hina gets to stacking quickly, able to close some of that gap. But it’s not quite enough, as Kele is able to pull it out.
Pre-Tribal
This first post-swap vote is heading towards an Uli vs. Hina battle. They also have an idol to find for Rizo. Savannah, Jawan, and Nate start digging at the water well for him, and find the map and key to lead him to the idol. Rizo gets to work, and finds his idol, restoring his vote in the process.
Jason plans to play his Shot in the Dark, and tells Savannah. She’s a little disappointed, as she views it as him being resistant to working with Uli, trying to stay old Hina strong.
Matt knows he’s a possible target, and talks to Jawan about flipping the vote onto Nate. Jawan plays along convincingly, but wants no part of it. The Uli + Sophi contingent settles on a 3-2 vote split with Matt and Jason The side of 3 falls on Matt, but Rizo and Savannah want to flip that. Neither is particularly worried about Matt, while Jason is being a lot more cagey, and openly resistant to working with them.
I understand Jason’s mindset, but I have to question his approach. He’s in the minority, he doesn’t have an idol or advantage to fall back on. I just can’t see the vision here.
Tribal Council
Nate opens up Tribal by straight up saying they brought Sophi into their group right away. That appears to be a surprise to both Matt and Jason. Both should play their Shot in the Dark at this point. If they believe everything the Uli and Sophi group is saying, their votes do not matter. The other option would be for one to not play it, and vote for the other, hoping he plays his Shot in the Dark and it fails.
Neither plays their Shot, and Matt is voted out 4-2-1. Matt, my dude, why did you still vote for Nate?! At that point, play your stinking Shot in the Dark! In what possible scenario could a single vote for Nate make any difference? Jason saw it, he voted for Matt. He understood the assignment.
You can catch new episodes of Survivor 49 every Wednesday at 8pm ET/7pm CT on CBS, and new episodes are also available to stream on Thursdays on Paramount+.
