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| Will Natalie and Nadiya be #twinning by the end of the night? |
Probst flies above the 9 pairs in a helicopter, as we get our first look at who can cut it and who can't. Perfect couple Jon and Jaclyn are the first we see in all their flawlessness. We then see Baylor and Missy, about to be attacked by monkeys. Drew and Alec start a fire and argue over who gets credit for it. Keith and Wes fail to get anything after breaking their flint. D'oh!
The couples all walk into the arena, where Jeff asks who was able to make fire, and Keith details his numerous blunders. He also gives Nadiya an opportunity to bury herself, but she doesn't take the bait. Nice try! The teams divide up into tribes from a "random" draw (yeah right, I'm sure it's coincidence they're already wearing their tribe colors) ahead of their first challenge.
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| All's fair in love and war |
The reward challenge is a one-on-one duel to untangle hooks from a cube and use them to grab platforms and drag them back. Jeremy is chosen as the representative of the blue tribe and Probst tells him he's competing against his wife - funny, as they were trash-talking eachother just a few minutes ago. Jeremy has an easier time getting through the cube when Val can't jump quite as well. Val holds her own, but the firefighter pulls it out and wins the challenge. So now he has to deal with the guilt of sending his wife to Exile Island, but he does at least get to choose a partner for her...he picks Keith, saying he knows how to start fire (didn't he just prove the opposite?).
Hunahpu arrive back at camp, where Jeremy is hailed the hero for winning their loot, and is winning their sympathy as well. He starts building alliances quick, talking first of all to Kelley before bringing in Natalie and Missy too. On the other tribe, it's clear very quickly that Dale is the odd one out because of his age. But it's not all bad, as he goes to the well and finds an idol....like thing. He then breaks his glasses to try and start a fire, and manages to beat the young kids to the punch.
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| Dale, the instant outsider |
Keith and Val are sent to Exile, where Keith bemoans missing out on the fun. When you think about it, it does seem unfair that the first Exile is practically a death sentence. The two of them pick urns in the hopes of an idol clue and Keith comes up the loser again. He gets some consolation when Val tells him that her husband is a firefighter like him, which might be something to use when he gets back to camp.
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Sports star trying to keep his identity hidden?
That storyline's a little played out now |
Drew is the shelter builder for Hunahpu, but Julie is unimpressed with his arrogance. And she knows arrogance - look who she's dating. Speak of the Devil, John appears to have been rumbled by sports fan Wes...his father pinned him earlier too, calling him an "ass". Wes sees it as a chance to bond, but John sees it as a liability and now wants him out. Josh is struggling with a rash on his eye, and suspects it is coming from the foliage on the shelter...forcing the whole tribe to take it apart and start again.
Jon has fun imitating the monkeys, entertaining the tribe with his goofball antics. But in confessional we see a more serious side as he talks about how his dad back home is dying. It's an oddly-timed scene that makes me think we might end up with a Jenna Morasca situation down the road.
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| Head and shoulders above the rest |
The tribes arrive at the first immunity challenge which is to run under an obstacle, untie bags and make your way up three slopes to get to a Mayan calender puzzle at the top. The castaways all crawl under the course with Wes and Jon being the first ones out. Baylor collects the bags for Coyopa, whilst the other tribe split the work between Natalie, Julie and Kelley. John gives his tribe the lead by getting his rope hooked to climb the first slope, and the pegs prove no obstacle for the second. John also does most of the work in getting his tribe up the last section by acting as a human pyramid, and then it's on to the puzzle. Now the puzzle is a tricky motherfucker, where sometimes you can't tell you're wrong until you're on your last piece. Hunahpu get it first, sending Coyopa to tribal council.
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| Josh is already the go-to guy |
Back at camp, Dale campaigns for Nadiya to get voted out, since she's already proved herself ruthless on
The Amazing Race. Val is another early target, but leads the charge for a girls alliance that most seem on board for. With the girls targeting Dale and the guys targeting Nadiya, Josh ends up as the swing vote and Baylor is willing to tag along with him.
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| She survived the race, but this is a whole different ballgame |
It's the first tribal council, and John talks about how there's not really an obvious "first boot". Josh is singled out as the man in power and Nadiya ends up offending him by comparing him to a girl. Big mistake! The vote is more split than usual, with even a Baylor vote thrown in there, but Nadiya does end up voted out. First boot once again! But fear not Nadiya fans, there's still another twinnie to go around.
STAR OF THE WEEK: JEREMY COLLINS
Likeable to his tribemates and to the audience as well, Jeremy has assumed the leadership position and it seems like he can pick and choose his options right now. You might just want to make it a little less obvious you're running the show though, buddy.
