Edge Of Extinction Episode 5 & 6: Fijian Standoff

Rick talks about how hard Edge of Extinction is gonna be, especially having to live with people who hate him. Back in the game, the reward challenge is to run through ropes, retrieve bolos, them toss them...all to win sandwiches. The tribes tackle the ropes, with Julie out first. Julie and Victoria are hoisted up to do the untying, but Lesu struggle to lift

Same old story

David long enough. They send Lauren up instead, and she gets it. On the tossing, Gavin and Eric are the first to score. Ron and Joe also score to tie it up. Wendy gets Manu's 3rd, and Aurora gets one too. Julie gives Kama a win, as Lesu still have nothing. Victoria struggles, allowing Kelley and Wardog to get on the board. But there's no epic comeback, as Victoria gets it in the end.

Whilst celebrating Kama's win, Julia finally speaks and says she wants Joe out. Julie urges their three to take the shot now whilst he doesn't expect it but Ron is now the one who wants to keep him since he's such a provider.

Photobombed by poultry

The chickens are still the main topic at Manu, but Aubry just wants to start strategizing. Meanwhile Eric, Gavin and Victoria are all strategizing against her. saying they'd rather take her out over Wendy since she's a bigger threat. Victoria proposes she make a fake plan with Aubry to take out Eric in order to keep her comfortable, and she buys it.

David goes looking for the Lesu idol, as the rest of the tribe trash his challenge performances. Lauren feels comfortable with David as the next boot, but Wardog tells Kelley he wants them to go to the merge together, and that maybe they should just vote Lauren out now. Seems a bold suggestion, but Kelley doesn't outright dismiss it.

Don't start Tonying

On Extinction, Chris finds a box that gives them all a map with a cryptic clue. Rick figures out you have to fold it until the arrows point at two trees. They all agree to go together, but Keith sneaks off on his own. The others see it and are pissed, racing after him. Chris catches up and shoves him out of the way to get a tube that says "practice". For the return comp, no doubt. Rick finds the other tree and it's an extra vote that he can give to anyone who attends the next tribal council. Hmm, not sure I like eliminated players being allowed to mess with the game.

Free at last!

The immunity challenge is to dive into the water and pull a rod that releases puzzle pieces. Then they need to build a pyramid out of buoys. Eric gets the first set for Manu. Aurora and Aubry get stuck and pass. Kelley takes a long time and has to quit too, as Joe gets Kama's first. Gavin and Julia get the 2nd pieces for their tribe, meaning they can start their puzzle. Lauren comes up empty, so now it's Wardog's turn and he actually manages it. David's turn now...would be a hell of a story if he did it, but no, he leaves it for Lauren to go back and she makes it this time. Nice! So nobody has solved the puzzle yet, will they be able to catch up? Kama are the first to get it, winning immunity again. Aurora then starts giving hints to Manu - but Lesu have figured it out and managed to get it first. Absolute relief for David, Kelley, Lauren and Wardog...they get to take a tribal off at last.

The 4 old Kamas keep up the ruse that Wendy is an easy vote, as Aubry debates with Victoria on whether to vote Eric or not. They talk to Wendy but she says basically nothing. Aubry checks her bag and finds the extra vote there. Curious choice by Rick. Wonder if it will help her.

At tribal council, Gavin says the mood was pretty relaxed, but Aubry says there was talking. Wendy is grinning like an idiot when she's asked if she's an easy vote, acting even more aloof than usual. Aubry starts talking about black cats - alright, maybe she's not the only loon. Jeff asks Gavin for his take on Aubry and he says he doesn't see her as a returnee and appreciates her advice.

She gotcha good!

The votes come out and Aubry lets out a stunned gasp when it's her. She tips her hat to the rest of the tribe on the way out, calling them unbelievable players. With an idol in her pocket too...they must've done a great job of making her feel comfortable. She heads over to Extinction, and is still stung the next morning, calling it a "J.T.-level embarrassment". But climbing off rock bottom is what she does best, so don't rule her out yet.

At the next challenge, Aubry's vote-out gets a big reaction...especially from the returnees. The challenge is to jump over tables to get to a lever they have to untie, release sandbags to throw at targets to release flags. All three tribes get to the lever around the same time and begin gathering their sandbags. Joe is the first to start throwing and does really well. Gavin gets a few hits, and Wardog starts tossing but way too low. Joe and Gavin both drop a flag as Lauren subs in for Wardog. Joe's tribe tell him "do it for Sierra" (ha, another random namedrop) and that proves the motivation he needs to get it done. Wardog then goes BACK IN for some reason, but Gavin soon finishes anyway, giving them 2nd place.

Riding high for now...but nothing lasts forever

Julie thanks Joe for winning the challenge for them, but he's worried he's gonna be a big target. Aubry leaving has set off the alarm bells, and now he's pushing hard for their 5 to stay together, making sure Julia knows that she's gonna be seen as a threat too.

On Lesu, Lauren cries due to lack of food and the crappy camp they have to live in. David goes out to fish and finds a clam. Kelley and Wardog tell David they want Lauren to go, but Kelley's target is actually shifting to Wardog, as she finds him domineering and sketchy.

Chris gets Reemed

The players on Extinction get a new map full of holes, and decide to split up to search. Rick thinks it's at the mast, since that's where all the holes line up to. Reem spots it in the water and points it out to Keith who goes over and grabs it. The advantage allows you to disadvantage a player of your choice in the return challenge...and Keith seems set on using it on Chris. Chris is mad at Reem for just letting him have it and Reem blows up on him.

The immunity challenge is to push a bag across to the end of a beam and then hook a release mechanism for their gate, before finishing with a slide puzzle. Jeff also lets them know there'll be two tribes at tribal council. Kama get the bag out first, then Manu, then Lesu. Joe does the tossing for Kama and hooks it with one try. Gavin gets it for Manu and Wardog for Lesu...despite being confused about where he had to stand to pull. On the puzzle, it's Joe and Julia vs Eric and Victoria vs David and Kelley. David seems like he has it figured out, but Joe gets there first to win immunity (Ok, he did have a headstart though.) So there we have it, Lesu and Manu will both be going to tribal, Game Changers style. And the numbers will be 4-4 this time, so who knows what will happen?

Girls with idols

Manu try to come up with a gameplan, knowing that it could be rocks. Wendy assures them David is sneaky and could potentially flip if they vote Lauren or Wardog. Eric and Gavin agree to go to rocks, but Victoria is secretly not willing to do it. Meanwhile, Wardog's plan is to vote Wendy, which annoys Kelley as she feels she didn't get a say. Wardog also goes off to look for the idol, digging his hole deeper. Kelley spots it just tied to a branch in plain sight and waits for Wardog to go before snagging it. Kelley tells Lauren, which leads to Lauren telling Kelley, but neither want to play it if they don't have to. They also both agree that they're not going to rocks for Wardog.

At tribal council, both tribes say they're staying united, with Wardog calling it a gunfight. Kelley extends an offer for anyone who wants to flip to their side, and Gavin does the same. Wendy mentions she has some insight into the other tribe, as David says they all love her...but Eric says that's not what he's heard. David points out he's gone to rocks before. but Victoria still doesn't believe he'll do it. David gets a private talk with Wendy right before the vote, but we don't hear what they say.

Hey, mind if I join?

The votes are cast, and Lauren is nervous when she sees her name, but Kelley assures her she'll be fine. It ties between Lauren and Wendy and now the side conversations start. In the end, they come to a conclusion and all send Wendy home, deemed an acceptable casualty by both sides. Welp, her luck finally ran out, and she exits adorably, almost getting lost on the path and talking about cheeseburgers (hey, wait a sec...). But she's not conflicted at all when she reaches the sign, and takes the road to Extinction quicker than anyone else so far.

Well this was a fun week of Survivor and it's about to ratchet up a notch again when the twist finally comes to fruition. We end with a boat arriving to tell the Extinction residents their chance to get back in the game is here. "Time for some payback" says Aubry. This is not to be missed. Who's your money on?

STAR OF THE WEEK: VICTORIA BAAMONDE

"Don't ever trust me, man" is right. The beanie-wearing redhead's ditzy persona masks a more than capable strategist that was able to get the better of a savvy veteran player. She's ruthless and emotionless. I didn't think it was possible at first, but...could Victoria actually win?