Cambodia Episode 2: Reversal Of Fortune

The old schoolers on Ta Keo are left to pick up the pieces after being on the wrong side of the vote. Varner lets Spencer and Shirin know he's proved his loyalty to them, which they accept - but he's also talking to Terry about flipping the script and taking out a real threat.

Joe is making hammocks for the rest of his tribe to enjoy, hoping that they'll see him as an asset. It doesn't fool Stephen though, who says that being so good at everything is gonna get Joe voted out after the merge. Stephen meanwhile will be lucky to make it that far.

Peih-Gee plays nice

No sooner after talking about turning over a new leaf, Abi is causing drama and being a paranoid nuisance. First butting into Peih-Gee and Spencer's conversation to ask what's up, and then walking over to interrupt a Woo, Terry and Varner huddle. Varner calls Abi his "Brazilian soap opera" and whilst most of the tribe are sick of her, to him she's his ticket to the million dollars.

Savage tells the story of how he met his wife, the beautiful South African supermodel, which causes him to break down. Jeremy is emotional too, as he's also missing his wife. Stephen casually suggests Jeremy's absence is due to looking for the idol, and Savage sees that as an indication of morally corrupt character. Whoa, ok dude. Savage lets Jeremy know what Stephen said and now the target on Stephen's back gets even bigger.

Family man alliance

Abi's guardian angel

Peih-Gee and Shirin are complaining about Abi, when Abi walks up to them in the dark and tells them she heard it all. This starts a big fight that ends with Abi alone on the beach and Peih-Gee laughing in the shelter with everyone else. Abi is sad, and feels especially hurt by Shirin. But then Terry of all people comes in to comfort her, and it looks like a new alliance is forming. Varner puts the work in too, telling her he's ready to make a move on Spencer and Shirin. Just that like that, the game has flipped!

That's gonna leave a bruise

The immunity challenge requires the tribes to run over triangular ramps, pull a crate across a track, and then solve a puzzle at the end. Both tribes make it over the triangles, with some difficulty - Varner in particular taking a huge hit. Bayon have a lead going into the puzzle, and task Kass and Kimmi (?) with it. Jeremy and Joe switch out, and take on Shirin and Spencer, who are starting to panic. Ta Keo almost get it, but it's not quite there...allowing Bayon to snatch the win from them. As they leave, evil Varner gives a confessional about how he loves that the two people who lost the puzzle are now the ones in trouble.

Back at camp, Spencer obviously still feels secure with his alliance as he talks about how it's nice to not be on the bottom this time. Varner is getting Peih-Gee and Kelley on board for breaking up the power couple, who both don't really want to do it, but are forced to due to the numbers. Shirin tries to make up with Abi, but Abi doesn't play around - she lets her know straight up that she's voting for her or her buddy.

This is Cagayan all over again

Shirin and Spencer now know it's looking bleak for them and make a last-ditch effort to sway Woo's vote. But Woo surprisingly stands up for himself and lets them know that he's not gonna help them when they so blatantly didn't give a shit about him until now. Spencer cries at the thought of having to screw over Shirin, but he knows it's either him or her at this point.

At tribal council, Shirin makes sure to tell Probst how much fun she's NOT having, as Abi details how excluded she felt. Probst notes the irony of how Abi's situation mirrors Shirin's on Worlds Apart. Terry feels good about his position after his talk with Abi, as Spencer pleads for his life and promises to change up his game to a more old school way.

The vote ends up between Spencer and Shirin, and it comes down to the very last vote. Shirin is sent packing, and she feels the regret of how fast her game collapsed. The fact that we got a power shift just 2 episodes in tells me this cast is crazy and that there's a lot more awesomeness to come.

STAR OF THE WEEK: JEFF VARNER

I'm not surprised to see Varner thriving on this season, it sounds like he's been chomping at the bit to get back out there and really play. He's making big power plays already, but he's getting what he wants and everybody seems to like him.