The game of Survivor changed completely in its eighth episode. A new advantage gave one player the power to crash a rival’s Tribal Council, leading to a blindside that sent Michelle “MC” Chukwujekwu to the jury.
Fallout from a Major Blindside
The episode began with the merged Lewatu tribe dealing with the shock of Nate Moore’s elimination in the previous vote. Jawan Pitts celebrated pulling off what he called the “biggest move of Survivor 49 yet.” Steven Ramm noted that the vote clearly showed who was working together, explaining that Nate, Savannah, Rizo, and Soph had thought they were running the game. In response to the blindside, Sophi Balerdi started to create distance from her former allies, Savannah Louie and Rizo Velovic.
Meanwhile, MC faced suspicion from her own alliance. Her decision to play a Hidden Immunity Idol at the last Tribal Council, after being assured she was safe, made Jawan and Sage Ahrens-Nichols question her trustworthiness. With MC’s idol now gone, a new one was hidden at camp. Kristina Mills eventually found it and told Steven and Alex Moore she was willing to share it if they needed it.
The pressure of the game also led to an emotional moment for Savannah. During a conversation at the water well, she broke down, telling Sage and Soph that she felt like “the loser of the group and the pariah,” and that the situation mirrored a difficult experience she had faced at work.
A Divided Immunity Challenge
On Day 15, host Jeff Probst introduced a twist for the immunity challenge. The ten remaining castaways were randomly split into two teams of five. The winning team would all be safe, and the individual winner would also get a special advantage.
The teams were:
- Blue Team: Sage, Rizo, MC, Jawan, Sophie Segreti
- Yellow Team: Steven, Kristina, Sophi, Alex, Savannah
The challenge required players to brace themselves between two walls while standing on a platform that gradually shrank. The last person standing would win. After a long battle, the final two were Savannah from the Yellow Team and Sophie from the Blue Team. Savannah won, giving immunity to her entire Yellow Team. The Blue Team—Sage, Rizo, MC, Jawan, and Sophie—would all be going to Tribal Council.
Savannah’s Game-Changing Advantage
Savannah’s win came with more than just safety. Her advantage gave her a powerful choice: she could join the losing Blue Team at their Tribal Council and cast a vote, or she could save that extra vote for a future Tribal.
“Your advantage gives you the power at tonight’s Tribal Council in the form of a vote,” the advantage note read. “Use this vote tonight to ensure the result you want, or secretly save this vote for use at a future Tribal Council.”
Savannah saw this as her chance for payback after her ally Nate was voted out. She decided to join the losing tribe, dramatically arriving by boat at their camp. She told the group she had the power to vote but privately confided in her ally Rizo that she might not use it.
The Scramble Before Tribal Council
Before Savannah’s arrival, the Blue Team had already begun plotting. Sophie, Jawan, and Sage initially agreed to vote out Rizo. Because Rizo held a Hidden Immunity Idol, they planned to tell him the target was Sophie instead, hoping he wouldn’t play his idol.
However, Sophie was making her own backup plans. She told MC that if Rizo played his idol, she would vote for Jawan instead. MC then told Jawan about Sophie’s plan, which angered him and made him feel betrayed. This caused Jawan to shift his target from Rizo to Sophie.
When Savannah arrived with her advantage, the plans changed again. With Savannah’s potential vote on his side, Rizo felt secure enough to campaign for a new plan. He pushed for the vote to be flipped onto MC, arguing she was an easier target than Sophie. He successfully convinced the others to shift their focus.
A Live Tribal Council and MC’s Exit
The uncertainty from the camp carried into Tribal Council. Just before the vote, MC pulled Jawan aside for a last-minute plea, causing a flurry of whispers—the first “live Tribal” of the season.
When it came time to vote, Savannah ultimately decided to save her advantage for later and did not cast a vote. Rizo also chose not to play his Hidden Immunity Idol.
Jeff Probst read the votes: three for MC and one for Sophie. With that, MC was voted out and became the second member of the jury. Rizo, the original target, survived the vote without having to use his idol.
The episode left the game in a volatile state. With a new hidden immunity idol in play, Savannah holding an unused extra vote, and alliances in pieces, the path to the $1 million prize is more unpredictable than ever.
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