Cagayan Episode 10: Know When To Hold 'Em

Back at camp, Kass brags about how she knew Spencer had an idol - because she's seen what Spencer looks like when he thinks he's going home. She also calls him a "selfish college boy", which I think officially makes them even for the trash he talked about her after her flip. Although he's lost protection and his closest ally, Spencer knows there'll be opportunities to win something back...and one of them is gonna come tomorrow.

Woo comes back from treemail to play a prank on Trish, where he reveals the wallets of money under his shirt. Everyone knows what it means...the Survivor auction, and for Trish that means precious food. Tony however has his eye on the challenge advantage, as he doesn't want Spencer or Tasha to have it.

The auction sees Trish come away with popcorn, Jefra with Guacamole and Kass with a steak sandwich. Woo is able to get a great deal on ribs due to so few bids and shares an intimate moment with Jeff as he takes it down. Trish wonders why the others aren't

Woo gets a bargain

bidding, but eventually they admit what they're waiting for. When the advantage comes up, Jeff tells them if they both bid the maximum, they'll draw rocks. Hold on - didn't it used to be first come, first served? Tony and Spencer both bid 500, whereas Tasha chickens out. Tony wins the rock draw, leaving Spencer empty-handed and empty-stomached.

This ain't just a pool party

When Tony opens up the advantage, he's shocked to see it's not a challenge advantage at all but a clue to another idol. Ugh, enough with the idols already. Tasha floats in the water with the women, right in front of Tony. At this point, she *wants* him to think they've got a girl alliance...just because it's something that might stir shit up. Tony talks to Spencer about it and Spencer does his part too, letting him know that Jefra was talking about voting him out. According to Spencer, Jefra wanted to flip with Trish to take him out and then flip back. "I hate people like that" says Tony. Hang on a minute...

Don't get crabby!

Tensions rise in camp and Tony gets mad at Jefra over a dead crab...of all things. He goes out looking for the idol and finds it pretty quickly this time - he certainly has enough experience. What's he gonna do with it? Well, the first thing is show it to everyone as a subtle way to intimidate them into not voting for him.

Another challenge requiring you to dig deep

The immunity challenge involves having to dig some bags out of the sand, and then using the balls inside them to run a table maze. The digging part proves too hard for Kass and especially Trish. Tasha gets to the maze first, but Tony, Woo and Spencer aren't far behind. Tony tries an aggressive strategy (does he have any other?) of flipping the table and it doesn't work. Tasha works on her balls, but Woo catches her up. Not fast enough though...Tasha wins immunity again!

So with Tasha immune again, it seems clear that Spencer is the next target. But Tony isn't happy about losing another guy, so turns his attention to Jefra. He talks to Woo, who seems to be on the same page. So then Tony goes to Spencer, who goes to Tasha and tells her another "Survivor miracle" is about to happen. Just to make extra sure, Spencer decides to go looking for the idol. But that might've backfired when Tony finds out, as he's now seeing Spencer as a bigger threat.

It's a boy/girl thing...

Tony wears his idol to tribal council and tries to suss out whether Jefra really was turning on him or not. Probst expresses surprise that such a fractured five has managed to stay together, and Spencer points out how the chaos (the buzzword of the season) is great for him.

Kass votes for Spencer, saying she isn't gonna save him again. But it looks like someone else steps up to the plate as Jefra is blindsided. Wow, Tony...you just cannot sit still huh? With three lives left and just as many tribal councils, it's looking pretty definite that the cop will be sitting at the end now - it's just a question of whether he's burned more jury votes than he can afford.

STAR OF THE WEEK: TASHA FOX

Tasha and Spencer both played a part this week in changing their fortunes, but Tasha getting her third immunity win in a row tips it in her favour. She's certainly become a force to be reckoned with and has shown a remarkable amount of staying power.

Cagayan Episode 9: Spy Hard

Jefra comes back from tribal wanting answers, and Tony doesn't do a good job of explaining to her. Trish isn't mad though and still wants to work with Tony. Though Tony's chaos benefited Spencer this time, he knows he can't count on him and actually wants to get him out.

Creepin' in the bushes

Tony starts working on a second spyshack by the well as a means of finding out how much trouble the LJ blindside has put him in, and it proves to be a success when he overhears Trish and Jefra talking about him. Jefra says she's fine with getting Tony out, which lets Tony know he can't trust Jefra anymore.


The reward challenge is to row out in a boat and collect paddles, which are then used to spell out a word. Kass, Trish, Tony and Woo make up the orange team, with Tasha, Spencer, Jeremiah and Jefra on purple. The boats are huge, making it difficult for the teams to even get in at first. Both teams make mistakes...orange when Tony drops a paddle, and purple when they row past theirs. When it comes to the puzzle, Kass thinks she has it with "worth fighting for", but Tasha and Spencer figure out it's "worth playing for" and win reward.

The two Brains do it again!

Woo's cliffhanger impression doesn't go well

Tony is pretty concerned that Jefra has gone off with the enemy and might be flipped. But whilst Tony wants to strategize and idol hunt, Trish just wants to talk about papayas. Trish spots some that "look like Morgan's boobs" up a tree and gets Woo to shake it down...and he ends up falling. He's hurt, but it's not real bad. Kind of a letdown considering it was one of the main things in the preview.

A taste of home brings the tears

The winners get to check out an awesome cave, and then get letters from home as they sit down at their meal. Jefra cries just from seeing her mom's handwriting. The girl had been considering flipping, but now she's sold that she should after her letter gives her permission to play dirty. Man, this sure worked out conveniently for the minority three.

The immunity challenge requires some pretty intense multi-tasking, as contestants have to stand on a board and balance a ball on a pole at the same time. Jefra is first out. Trish, Tony and Kass are all out before they leave their starting spot. Woo, Tasha and Spencer are left and it looks like we're gonna have our first double winner. Coming down to Tasha and Spencer again, Tasha takes her second necklace in a row.

Safe at last

After the challenge, Tony makes another mad dash to find the idol. This time, he tries under a giant tree...and he gets it. Yep, it's the superidol, which means he can play it after the votes are read. And he might end up needing it tonight.

Trish hosts a pow-wow in the water between their alliance calling out Tony, to try and get Jefra back onto their side. So after Tony swears on everything he's still with them, they discuss the vote. Kass thinks Spencer has an idol, which has a huge bearing on their decision.

Now that it's official Jefra isn't flipping and he might be doomed, Jeremiah opens up to his allies and tells them...he's a fashion model. Wait, that was a secret? Spencer offers a secret of his own and tells them he has the immunity idol...but he's not sure yet if he's playing it on himself or on Jeremiah.

At tribal council, Spencer talks about the frustration of Jefra not flipping and throws Tony under the bus by saying he'll vote for him if he makes it to the end. When Jeff offers the two presumed targets the opportunity to speak, both of them make the case for why the other is more dangerous.

After voting for Woo with a mock surfer drawl, Spencer calls him out again as he gives his idol to Jeff. Tony not wanting to be upstaged, reveals his own idol for the second time. I have no idea why he did that. He also can't even get Jeremiah's name right, causing Morgan to ask "who's Jeremy?" from the jury. Anyway, Spencer ends up having to apologize to Jeremiah when he picks up the votes, but Jeremiah seems understanding.

Kudos to the editors this week for making a predictable boot seem unpredictable. With only Spencer and Tasha left in the minority alliance, they're gonna need to have to borrow something from Tony's bag of tricks if they want to stay. And getting Tony out has just got a hell of a lot more difficult.

STAR OF THE WEEK: JEFRA BLAND

Jefra does under-the-radar cutie very well, and it was nice to see her step up her game a little this week, even though it was kinda disappointing to see her go back to her original tribe after all. I feel I have also been neglecting Jefra's role in the eye candy department - she rocks that blue bikini well.

Cagayan Episode 8: Opportunity Knocks

A bromance about to be broken

Picking up votes at the last tribal council puts Tony into scramble mode almost immediately, as he wonders why they're always targeting him. Trying to get the target onto someone else, Tony baits LJ into saying he wants Woo out by repeatedly stating his fear that Woo has found the idol. He's gonna "lead the horse to water, and also make him drink". Very fitting analogy.

The castaways learn they can win a spa day if they win the next challenge, which is hooking down sandbags to throw through a net, which then need to be bounced into the appropriate holes. The three teams are LJ/Jefra/Trish, Tasha/Kass/Woo and Spencer/Tony/Jeremiah. Jeremiah gives his team an early lead by getting their sandbags early, and LJ is not far behind them. Woo is left bringing up the rear. Eventually it's a throwing contest between Tony and LJ, and Tony wins the challenge to get the boys a reward.

LJ's staying the course

Back at camp, LJ and Trish talk about Tony's paranoia and both agree they need to calm him down - because the last thing they want is Tasha, Spencer or Jeremiah slipping through the cracks. But Tony is using the spa day as a chance to make a move. Telling Jeremiah and Spencer he wants to work something out with them somewhere down the road, it doesn't quite have the effect he wants as both treat him with a healthy skepticism.

Tasha is trying to make some moves of her own, and approaches LJ about blindsiding Tony. But LJ trusts Tony and doesn't want to go along with her plan, deciding to leave her hanging as she goes off to meet him at another part of the beach.

Once again, Tasha is denied a side conversation

Misty, water-colored memories

The immunity challenge is a simple test of memory - well, simple for people who haven't been roughing it for 25 days. Trish and Woo both screw up early. We're soon left with a final 3 of Tony, Tasha and LJ, who all pick different colors. Tony knows he's blown it before Jeff even reveals the answer and thinks LJ has won. He's right on the first part but wrong on the second...Tasha wins immunity!

So now LJ want to split the vote between Jeremiah and Spencer, thinking nobody is gonna flip. Even chaos Kass thinks it's too soon! But chaos cop starts turning Woo against LJ, by spinning things so that he was the one after Woo. He then tells Spencer that the hit on LJ is a-go, and he fills in the rest of his allies. Tony is still stirring shit up when he talks to Trish, but she's already been told by LJ that Tony was actually the one trying to break up the six, so doesn't really believe him. Alienating Trish might be the dealbreaker that causes Tony not to go through with his plan.

Spencer hopes luck is on his side

At tribal council, Jeff probes to see if any of the majority are thinking about flipping, and Tony says he's pulling out his bag of tricks. That's not really enough to tip off LJ, who still thinks everyone is going to stay loyal tonight. If anyone is still going to tribal council feeling safe at this stage, they haven't been paying attention.

After the votes are read, LJ gets a horrible wake-up call and is voted out. And thus ends the pseudo-feud between LJ and Tasha that didn't even exist before tonight. He can't even muster up any enthusiasm after getting blindsided, droning on in his final words about how he waited too long to make a move or something. Can't say I'll miss LJ with so many more interesting players left, and it's good to see they haven't lost their knack for big moves.

STAR OF THE WEEK: TONY VLACHOS

Tony never lets the game stay dull for long so of course he was the first one of the Solana alliance to make a move. Was it a good move? Probably not, but at least he brought the season back to life. Using reward challenges for their strategic value is a lost art.

Cagayan Episode 7: Give Us A Clue

After getting back from the best tribal council ever, Spencer is mad that they flushed two idols for nothing and accuses Kass of playing like an idiot. Kass however is happy that she got her target out and is hoping the people she betrayed "get over it" soon. Not likely.

Jealousy gets you nowhere

Kass passive-aggressively tells Morgan to get water, but she doesn't go since she asked rudely. Kass claims Morgan started the rudeness, but Morgan clarifies that she wasn't being rude to Kass, she was just ignoring her. Okay then. The best part of the scene however is seeing LJ cheering in the background.

More challenges should use see saws

The reward challenge involves going over a see saw, climbing a rope, pulling a chest up and doing a puzzle. Beauty tribe plus Spencer make up the orange team, the others are on purple. Woo slows his team down over the water section, but makes it up by flying up the rope the quickest. Purple team get their players up to the top first but the LJ and Spencer combination on the puzzle (mostly LJ) proves too good for Kass and Woo meaning orange team win. They go off to enjoy an Outback steakhouse, and the other team go back to camp.

Back at camp, Tony worries if Kass is truly with him or not. After outright declaring herself a free agent, it's clear the answer is she's with no-one. Clearly she's modelling her game after Sandra. Speaking of which, we all know Sandra would've loved the steakhouse. The reward winners have a great meal, Morgan in particular enjoying the bacon. Spencer saves his napkin until the end of the meal and finds it has a clue inside - table manners pay off, kids!

Kass with her weapon of choice

Arriving back at camp in the rain, Spencer decides to go and hunt for the idol right away, since the steaks have never been higher (sorry). Woo suspects that's what he's doing and decides to follow him. Ninja stealth mode is activated! Spencer walks off and leaves his pants on the riverbed when he crosses paths with Woo. When trying to give Spencer his pants back, Woo finds the clue and takes it for himself. Spencer realizes what has happened far too late and now all Hell is about to break loose.

The stress gets to Spencer as he digs deep

Woo takes the clue back to camp to show his allies, and now the search is on! Everybody is scrambling, running around to look for it - even Morgan, much to Tony's surprise. Spencer starts to get real frustrated and now he's being watched by Kass, who is rubbing it in by saying that Woo stealing his clue was "karma". Kass doesn't prove a very effective watchdog though and Spencer manages to subtly claim the idol right under her nose when she turns away. Opening up the instructions, it appears to be a normal idol...meaning the superidol is still out there!

Good job we went to charm school

The immunity challenge is to balance a block of wood onto a ceiling above them using their head. Kass is first out, with Jeremiah and Trish not far behind. Having to stand on tiptoes is making this challenge very painful. LJ, Spencer and Trish are the last three left, with the latter two going over 90 minutes. Spencer beats Tasha to win immunity and fights off the pain to walk over and collect his necklace.

Even though Tasha is the biggest threat, Tony thinks Morgan might be a better vote just in case someone on Aparri has an idol. Tony also thinks she doesn't deserve to be there because she's lazy. The other group decide who they're voting for and Spencer vetoes Morgan's suggestion of Kass as she's the only one that would consider flipping back. He wants to vote for Tony and hope that he says something really stupid at tribal council (definitely a possibility).

Probst points out that the power has shifted a lot since the last tribal council and Kass takes ownership as the one who facilitated it. Morgan, trying not to get voted out, lists all the reasons she sucks...and Trish chimes in and adds some more. When Probst tries to get to the bottom of her laziness, Morgan admits she's used to getting what she wants in life because of her looks. Jefra denies that anyone is on the bottom of the alliance, which Spencer claims is ridiculous.

It's time to vote. Solana do a good job of hiding who they voted for and it pays off as "Queen Morgan" is sent out successfully and with little fuss. I guess every episode can't be amazing...but I'm hoping for some big moves again next week.

STAR OF THE WEEK: WOO HWANG

You're probably thinking "why not Spencer?" - but Woo using his ninja skills was the funniest part of the episode for me. The martial arts master is an adorable under-the-radar character, and the Sonic reference sealed it. Woo could be very tough to beat in a final 2...he's likeable, kicking ass in challenges and hasn't stepped on any toes.

Cagayan Episode 6: Chaos Theory

See the fire in her eyes

Aparri are back from tribal council and already planning for who to pick off if they merge. They reaffirm the plan to go to the top six but Kass remains skeptical. Typically honest, she even tells Sarah to her face she has concerns about her, leaving Sarah offended. Kass does have a point, though...she hasn't proved her loyalty yet, she's just done what anyone would do in her position.

Tony gets treemail informing them of a merge, and he's excited to finally get the game going again. LJ and Tony both dig up their idols and make their way to the other camp by boat. When Aparri find out they're about to have company, Spencer really hammers it in to his troops that they have the numbers and have to stick together.

Solarrion's Christmas feast

Seeing Alexis gone is definitely a setback for Jefra, as she was hoping she'd be the easiest to flip. Tony still holds out hope he can get Sarah to come back with him, though. The merge note hints at a new idol entering the game with a different power. Great, this'll be the Yul superidol that could ruin the game, then.

Tony goes to Sarah to try and get her to break the Brains up, but he totally bungles the conversation and tries to rush her into swearing on her badge. Sarah goes back to Aparri to discuss the boot target with them, and likes the idea of knocking out LJ. However, Jeremiah and Kass both think LJ has the idol so decide to target Trish instead. But Sarah doesn't think Trish is a threat and refuses to go along with it. Safe to say Kass is pretty irritated by Sarah refusing to even entertain the notion and trying to force her will on the group.

Whilst LJ is out trying to catch starfish, Kass and Sarah start the day by taking shots at eachother once again. Trish notices the fight and watches with interest, as any crack in their alliance is good news for her. Tasha pulls the two girls aside and tries to repair the relationship - but Kass is disappointed to see Tasha take Sarah's side.

Tasha tries to mediate

The immunity challenge is to stand on a doghouse in the water like Andrea did in Caramoan. LJ struggles the most early on, but we don't see any real action until they get up to the final foothold. The transition proves too difficult for most of the players, and Spencer, Kass, LJ, Sarah and Jefra all fall off. A badly-timed gust of wind knocks even more players off and soon we are down to just Morgan, Tony and Woo. Woo beats Tony to win the first immunity. The ninja warrior was obviously a big favorite for this, but mad respect to Tony for hanging in there as long as he did.

Spencer and Tasha think voting for Jefra is the safest target, but Sarah wants a bigger threat out of the game. She guarantees everyone that Tony does not have an idol, and that they should vote for him. Man, Sarah's instincts have been terrible in this game, copdar notwithstanding. She throws her weight around, saying she's the swing vote and the one deciding who goes home. She even calls herself the President. Keep bragging, Sarah...you'll be hoisted by your own petard in no time.

How do we get out of this hole?

Solana are starting to sense they don't have Sarah, but Trish thinks there's potential to exploit the Sarah/Kass rift. Tony makes one last attempt to convince Sarah her chances are better with them, but doesn't get the feeling it's going to happen. After Kass tells Trish she feels she's being replaced, Trish offers her a deal to vote out Sarah...and now the rest of the group is ready to go along with Trish's plan B. Going off to tribal, Kass notes the irony that she has now replaced Sarah as the swing vote.

LJ opens up tribal council by sounding completely defeated. The Aparri members don't try to reassure him. Probst asks about idols, and LJ plays it coy. Tony declares matter-of-factly there are idols...because he has one. Spencer challenges him to show it, and he actually does. All of a sudden, Aparri scramble to flip the vote to "the other one". Jeff lets them get to the vote right then and there!

And the blindsides just keep coming

Everyone looks at Tony when Jeff asks for idols to see what he's gonna do. He plays the idol on LJ, thinking he's the one who needs it. LJ then interrupts Jeff as he reads the vote to give Tony his idol. Crazy! When the votes come up for Jefra, Solana figure they're screwed and Jefra is almost crying. But there's still time for another twist when Jeff flips the last vote and it's for Sarah, which is greeted with thunderous applause.

Aparri know pretty much instantly it was Kass that betrayed them and Spencer utters in frustration that Kass has "zero chance to win the game". I'm not even mad at her - that was, without hyperbole, the best tribal council of all time. Can this season get any better?

STAR OF THE WEEK: KASSANDRA MCQUILLEN

Chaos Kass is trolling her way through the game with zero fucks given, and has added a lot of drama to a potentially easy vote. Petty personal nonsense aside, a lot of her criticisms of Sarah were spot-on. People are just gonna keep taking Kass for granted until they see their name being read by Jeff.