Edge Of Extinction Episode 9: Sharks Among Minnows

Do I get a detention?

After the vote, Ron pulls Gavin aside like he's sending him to the headmaster's office and asks for an explanation, and he says he felt it was important to make the first strike. Rick and David discuss coming back together for the sake of the shared idol, starting with winning over Ron and Julie. Gavin sits down with Kelley, Lauren and Wardog and tells them he wants to move forward with them, plus Victoria and Julia.

Eric talks about how much the game slows down on Edge of Extinction, and seems to be contemplating quitting. But seeing Chris come back with a stingray gives him an epiphany (for some reason), where he realizes he needs to teach a lesson to his children about not giving up.

Living on the Edge, battling boredom

Rick tries to build some trust with Ron and Julie, saying they should stick together along with David...but they're not sure who else to bring in, and consider Wardog. Julie thinks Julia is running the show. Well if that's true, we certainly haven't seen it. Gavin tells Julia that David is his next target, but Julia is keeping her eye on the Kelley/Lauren/Wardog trio too.

No, you can't kick it

We get to the next challenge and it's for immunity. David knows this one well...it's keeping a ball balanced on top of a bow. Gavin and Rick combat early movement, but Wardog is first out. Julie leaves right before the final stage, and then Ron and Rick don't last long. 5 girls and 2 guys now, but the girls all then quickly leave one-by-one to set up a Gavin vs David showdown. Gavin prevails and wins immunity.

Paranoia, paranoia...

After the challenge, the scrambling starts immediately when people go off to talk. But who's left in the shelter provides opportunity for strategy too, as Rick and David get a chance to plead their case to Julia. They tell Gavin and Victoria also that they want to break up the trio. The trio meanwhile are trying to switch the vote to Ron in case Kama come back together, making Julia suspicious that Manu are still together. She then plots with Kama to target Kelley, but Ron and Julie are still upset. Gavin disagrees with the switch in target, calling David a "challenge beast" (LOL at that). They all sit around in a very awkward silence, which leaves Kelley a little spooked. David plots with Rick to use the idol, as Kelley considers the same.

It's a live one

Jeff opens up tribal council talking about blindsides, as Wardog wonders if they were just used for one vote and Kelley brings up the weird vibes. David tells a story about sharks and minnows, to which Jeff skeptically asks "did that really happen?". Julie cries mid-answer and wonders if she's getting blindsided, causing Kelley to seek reassurance from Julia. Julia explains what she was doing to Jeff, and that doesn't sit well with Rick. Aurora talks about how the dysfunctional Lesu could still come back together. Rick then proposes just that right out in the open, as Julia insults him by calling a passenger. Wardog asks Ron if they want to do Aurora, as Ron even tells Victoria to her face that he's willing to vote her out. Kelley doesn't join in the huddle until David gets involved, and she admits to him he was the original plan. Julia tries to reason with Julie and then she openly yells out that she's ready to jump ship. Whoa, this is chaos...and the jury are loving it. Julia tells Wardog to shut up right before the vote - it's getting heated.

Before the votes are read, David and Rick decide to combine their idol and play it on David. It cancels one vote, which comes as a surprise for Kelley. Kelley gets a vote too, but the rest are for Julia. Wow, her game really unraveled over the course of that tribal in a way I'm not sure we've ever seen before. She leaves surprisingly graciously, and heads to the Edge of Extinction. Another big shake-up and a Lesu truce...but for how long?

STAR OF THE WEEK: RICK DEVENS

Rick redeemed himself this week by learning from his mistakes and showing himself to be flexible. By taking a gamble and speaking up at tribal, he may have just changed the course of the game.