Blood Vs Water Episode 6: Let's Twist Again

At Galang camp, Aras knows that Laura Morett is gonna blame him for her elimination and is starting to feel the pressure of being in charge. Tyson has definitely noticed how much power he has and is starting to think getting rid of Aras next might be the best

Gervase and Tyson plot treason against King Aras

move as he's worried that Aras could make a move on him should he join up with Vytas at the merge. He talks it over with Gervase, who seems to be on the same page. He's looking to make a big move, because he knows he didn't make any in Borneo.

Laura makes light work of the duel

Laura is raring to go at the duel, which is to collect bags of numbered tiles and put them in order. She tears through the course and it isn't even close. The race for second place is a little more interesting, as John seems to be struggling with staying on the beam, whereas Brad slows down whenever sorting his tiles. As we saw in the first episode, numbers prove to be Brad's downfall, and he bows out, meaning John stays alive. Now Monica knows she has to go it alone. Laura gets to give away the clue and chooses to put the target on Vytas. She's not making the same mistake Candice made. Vytas follows Jeff down and burns the clue immediately. Will anyone ever be able to take it now?

Before they leave the arena, Jeff pulls a surprise tribe swap on them and has everyone pick a new buff. Normally both tribes get their own plate but this one was a free-for-all for some reason. Tyson requests to pick last as he wants fate to decide. Aras, Gervase and Tyson swap places with Vytas and Katie going in the other direction. That leaves Vytas on a tribe full of women and Ciera on a tribe full of men.

Tyson can be a giver as well as a taker

New Tadhana get back to camp, and the veterans immediately start pumping the newbies for information. They get a lot of dirt, Caleb even giving up the idol clue that he heard secondhand from Brad. Hayden is not really enjoying the invasion as Tyson is making a point to deliberately eat all of their food. He's also very deliberately trying to make the target on Aras' back bigger, just with small comments here and there. Smart, subtle gameplay that might just end up paying off.

Over on Galang, Tina is obviously the happiest with her new tribe. She's not only in a safe position, but has her daughter alongside her at last. Vytas is very aware of the fact that he's the only guy on the tribe...as well as the only Tadhana without a loved one connection. That may leave him up shit creek, especially if the tribe hold to Monica's wishes of the old Galang sticking together. Vytas hopes that showing his emotional side will endear the women to him. And it seems to work.

Family love Vytas

The immunity challenge involves swimming out to retrieve fish traps from behind a gate. Unfortunately Tina and Laura seem to forget this very important second step and lose significant time to the other tribe when they have to go back. Freakin' Gervase ends up beating them. Gervase! In water! The other two pairs do what they can to make it up, but it's Tadhana's challenge to lose going into the puzzle. Tyson and Aras start to struggle, meaning Tina and Monica come back into it. Twice Galang think they have it...but they don't. Tadhana do get it right and win immunity.

Watch out Kat, you're about to get run over by a bus

Back at camp, Tina apologises for screwing up the challenge and Vytas has to play down his frustration because he's the odd (or only) man out. But Kat thinks Monica might be a better target, as her overstrategizing makes her nervous. Tina doesn't really take kindly to the suggestion, and goes back to Monica to rat Kat out. Damn, it's easy to forget how ruthless this woman can be sometimes. Monica confronts Kat and she denies it, so Monica decides to make it her mission to get Kat out.

At tribal council, Kat sounds like the kid who got caught with their hand in the cookie jar, and tearfully pleads for her life. Vytas is disparaging of her arguments, and points out he hasn't done anything to make himself untrustworthy. The vote is between the two of them, and it's Kat that ends up going home.

It seems like Kat's biggest problem with getting voted out is...she's worried Hayden won't want to date someone who didn't make the merge. Finally I'm beginning to remember why I'll miss this girl. She still has a chance to get there, but she'll have to beat some pretty tough competition.

STAR OF THE WEEK: MONICA CULPEPPER

Monica's stock can only go up from here with Brad out of the game. Kat was a personal threat to her and she took care of that quickly, showing that all that strategy talk isn't for nothing.

Blood Vs Water Episode 5: A New Hope

Tadhana return from a whirlwind tribal council where Caleb reveals his move wasn't planned at all. This makes Ciera hopeful she can get him to side with the girls, and Hayden is worried about that too. Meanwhile, Candice is relishing Brad being on Redemption Island. Even though he comes in peace, she still wants to take him out of the game for good.

You scratch my back...

Laura Morett gives Aras a backrub in the dark. He seems to be enjoying it, but he's not gonna change his alliance - he's perfectly happy with the five he's got. He thinks Laura knows she's on the outs, but that might be giving her too much credit. Incidentally, I think Laura might be the only grandmother that can get away with playing the flirt card on Survivor.

At the duel arena, Monica gets emotional and asks Brad if she can take his spot, but he doesn't let her. Just as well, because she has a much better chance of going far than he does. The three competitors have to race to assemble a bridge of planks. Candice gets

Redemption Island - now breaking marriages as well as dreams

off to the quickest start, but John completes his bridge first, as well as his puzzle. In a really close race for the final spot, the cheers Brad is getting from Galang obviously help him out, and he defeats John's spouse to stay alive. Candice says her goodbyes and tells her husband to stop crying. Once again, John gives the clue to Monica and she burns it.

Back at camp, Monica thanks the tribe for cheering on Brad...something she's used to, no doubt. The Culpepper wife is stepping up her game a little bit with her man in danger, but reassures Tina she still has her loyalty. Tina seems to think Brad has a good shot of getting back in, so she's a little wary of Monica now. Is she going to be an asset, or a threat?

Bug-bitten Ciera and toenailless Katie compare their injuries over at the other camp. Vytas tries to get Caleb back on his side and is a little wary of him becoming a loose cannon. "It's good to be the swing vote" brags Caleb, who is letting the power go to his head. Rule no.34 of Survivor editing: when someone declares themselves "the swing vote", they're usually about to get voted out for being flaky.

Tadhana hoping for good things on the horizon

The tribes arrive at the challenge to see what they're playing for, and today it's steaks that are at stake, which gets a big cheer. Kat demands to play in the challenge (possibly to finally get some screentime), meaning the two Lauras and Monica have to sit out. The task ahead of them is to go down a giant slide and complete a ring toss. Caleb gets Tadhana off to a good start by beating Gervase, and though Tyson levels it, Katie regains the lead by beating Kat. Vytas gains vengeance against his brother to make it 3-1, but Ciera loses out to Tina. Is there anything she can win? Caleb scores again against Tyson, before Hayden wraps it up. Tadhana finally have immunity.

Another awkward Laura moment

Laura Boneham is trying not to freak out when she gets back to camp, but her insecurity is clearly showing. She tries to stir something up by telling Kat the other girls were pissed she made them sit out, but Kat pretty much ignores her. Although they have an easy vote on the table and Morett appears to be down, Aras is considering making a different move. He tells Tyson that if they send Laura Morett to Redemption, she could possibly knock out Brad and leave Monica with nowhere else to go.

There can only be one

At tribal council, old-timers Gervase and Tina talk about how far the game has progressed since their days. Laura Boneham is quizzed on if she feels like she belongs, and she claims that she does. Other Laura points out that the first-timer hasn't felt the sting of having her torch snuffed yet, and as we get to the vote it appears she's trying to give her that honour. Both of them say "There's only room for one Laura", and it looks like the rest of the tribe shares that sentiment too. Everyone else votes for Laura, but we don't see which one. Turns out the veteran ends up snuffed out again in a blindside that sends Kat retreating into her hoodie. Should we have expected anything less?

"How the hell did you guys lose?" says Brad when greeting Laura on Redemption Island. A little bit of jealousy, perhaps? Laura realizes she screwed up by trusting Aras, but is now focused on the mission they sent her there for: to beat Brad Culpepper.

STAR OF THE WEEK: ARAS BASKAUSKAS

Aras shows he's a master of the game and appears to have everyone blindly trusting him for no reason. His dual-purpose move in taking out Laura appears to be working great. Proving he can own this game a second time should see him shoot up everyone's winner ranking.

Blood Vs Water Episode 4: Hostile Takeover

Candice is disappointed to see John on Redemption Island and berates him for being too trusting. Back at camp, Brad explains he voted out John because he wants to keep people in the game that have connections on the other side. Where does that leave Caleb then, the only one left who doesn't?

At the Redemption Island arena, Tina and Laura smile when they see it was John voted out and not their daughters. But Candice is not smiling, and flips off Brad as she walks in. John and Candice both proceed to throw Brad under the bus, but he remains largely silent, only piping up to deny that he "shushed a woman".

(Don't) give us a clue

The duel is to get a key across a rope on an obstacle course, and use it to unlock a bag of puzzle pieces. All three get to the puzzle very quickly, with John and Marissa in a bit of a lead. John finishes the puzzle first, way ahead of the other two. Candice overtakes Marissa to stay alive and knock her out of the game. Knowing the idol clue has now become toxic, John decides to give it to Monica as a way of sticking it to Brad. But Monica takes the clue and throws it in the fire, claiming she doesn't need it. But if her husband continues to make himself such a target, maybe she will.

At least there's a silver lining

The Codys decide to make the most of their time together on Redemption Island, and Candice outfishes John. Over at Galang, Monica is fed up of her husband getting called out at every duel. Brad has noticed this too, and thinks taking out Caleb might be the best option to minimize the damage dealt.


Tyson's arm is still in a sling, but his injury is healing a lot faster than he lets on. At an opportune time, Tyson and Gervase sneak off to steal some coconuts, making holes in them with tools to disguise their activity. When Laura Boneham finds some of the evidence, Gervase worries the gig is up - until Monica provides him with an out by suggesting a crab was the culprit. Oh, what rascals!

Coconut bandits make a little mischief

The immunity challenge involves rowing a boat out into the water and diving down to collect crates. The crates will then become a staircase up to the puzzle platform, where they must complete the puzzle to find the combination to unlock their flag. Jeff is surprised that Tyson still wants to take part despite being injured.

How many chances is she gonna get?

We get in the water and it's clear that Galang's paddling hasn't improved. Laura Boneham does really well on the diving however (am I the only one shocked at how much she's kicking ass?), and so do Brad and Monica. Tadhana lose their lead when their boat tips over, and it's neck and neck going into the puzzle. Ciera is assigned the role of puzzlemaker again alongside Vytas and once again she sucks. Her mom takes it home for the other team and Galang wins immunity again.

Well, this losing streak is just embarrassing now. Caleb talks with the boys about getting rid of Ciera, but gets suspicious when Brad stays behind to talk to the girls. He has a right to be, because he was telling them to vote for Caleb, but Brad actually intends to vote for Ciera since that's what the boys have agreed. Pretty cut and dry, right?

At tribal council things get interesting when Caleb doesn't like an answer Brad gives about voting out people without loved ones. Figuring he's on the bottom, he decides to switch things up, and throws it out in the open to the girls that he's writing down Brad's name. Brad tries to backpedal, but Caleb isn't having it, and Vytas can only watch in astonishment.

Take your time, dude

After the initial vote ends in a rather unexpected tie between Brad and Ciera, the rest of the castaways are sent back up to revote. Hayden changes his mind several times and sits in the voting booth having no idea what he's going to do. How often does that happen? Amazingly, Brad is voted out after a last-minute flip from Vytas, and it's just as satisfying as I knew it would be. Brad isn't even mad at Caleb, but appreciates the gameplay. Now he has to go see Candice and John on Redemption Island, where he has a lot of explaining to do.

Well, Caleb's coup is just another reason this season rocks. I don't even know what's going on at Tadhana anymore, and I love it. Will Candice get the revenge she craves? Will Monica resist the urge to switch? (I fucking hope so!) And damn, this Ciera girl really does have nine lives.

STAR OF THE WEEK: CALEB BANKSTON

Caleb demonstrated tonight how he's not afraid to switch things up if he feels he needs to. He was probably smart to get Brad out before Brad got him. This soft-spoken Southerner has some fire after all. Don't mess with the bull!

Blood Vs Water Episode 3: Push Comes To Shove

The episode begins with Tyson's cupcake belt. Those are three words I wasn't expecting to ever write. Meanwhile, Colton is still frustrated because he feels like nobody wants to play with him. Which is obviously true, but Aras tries to give him some false hope.

At the Redemption Island duel, Tyson sees that Rachel has been voted out and he knows exactly why. Jeff asks Tyson if he wants to switch, and Tyson leaves it up to his girlfriend. Rachel tells him to stay put, as he has a better chance of winning this game than she does. But Tyson does fire a warning at Brad, and Marissa is mad at him too, for voting out strong people. "Fuck you, Brad Culpepper!" she yells, and ironically Gervase has to calm her down.

Colton does the impossible...makes himself even more hated

And then Colton cuts through the chaos to announce that he wants to quit. Probst puts Colton on blast, because he thinks he quit the first time too, and makes him aware that it's a really selfish move. Colton doesn't even deny that the reason he's quitting is because he's not getting his way, and Jeff unceremoniously sends him out, not even giving him the privilege (?) of burning his buff. Had it been anyone else, I bet Jeff would've tried harder to convince them to stay, but the host hasn't even tried to hide his distaste for Colton.

Marissa struggles with her stack

And now we get to the duel, as someone will be following Colton out of the game. The contestants are required to build a string of dominoes with tiles, but hidden tripwires make it difficult to run fast. Candice makes it look effortless as she stacks her tiles and releases her ball way before the other two girls. Now it's down to Rachel and Marissa, and both girls are starting to panic, hitting their tripwires and making several failed attempts. On the verge of passing out, Marissa gets her stack to work and stays alive. Rachel departs, but Tyson is satisfied knowing that she had fun.

John gets another idol clue from his wife, and this time he decides to share it with Brad. The clue mentions to "find the Serpent in the trees" and that it's on the way to the waterfall. John suggests they don't look for it together, which makes Brad wonder if he really can trust him or not.

Sharing is caring

The treemail hints at a physical challenge, and Aras is really looking forward to a chance to get back at his bully of a brother. The feeling is definitely mutual though, as Vytas is tired of watching Aras win everything, and wants to beat him at something for once.

The challenge takes place over the water, and it's a sumo-style brawl. The first matchup is Brad and Gervase - one we've been waiting for! Brad wins it and resists the urge to gloat. Laura Boneham beats Katie in the next one, but Tadhana regain the lead when John beats Aras. Kat ties it up when she manages to beat Ciera with one push. Hayden not only beats Tyson but injures his shoulder, too.

Oh, brother: there's much more at stake than immunity

Now the first set of loved ones go head-to-head, and Tina manages to beat her daughter Katie. Vytas and Aras proves to be quite a compelling matchup, when Vytas takes advantage of his brother and fights dirty. He still loses however, but is gracious about it. The final point comes when an emotional Laura beats her daughter and wins the challenge for Galang.

John blames the challenge loss on Ciera, who he can't believe lost to her mother. But Brad tells the guys he wants to flip the script and send John out. He's very threatened by the prospect of Candice coming back and reuniting with John, so he thinks it's time to split them up. He tells Ciera he might write her name down just so that John thinks he has an ally if he comes back, but Vytas isn't keen on that idea. Brad was the one who came up with this plan, why should he get to keep his hands clean?

Trust Hayden to make a Pandora's Box reference

Ciera tells Hayden she's worried about John playing the idol, so they toss around the idea of voting out Brad instead. Ciera's all for it if the guys sign off on it, she's in Sandra "anybody but me" mode. Vytas is in two minds about which guy is the bigger threat. "One thing's for sure - it's gonna be a big blindside" Hayden tells us.

Tadhana arrive at their third straight tribal council, and Jeff points out how it was only the men who scored points. Brad mentions how annoying it is that the people on Redemption Island keep calling him out as the leader. Talk turns to John's idol clues, and Hayden acts a little butthurt that he hasn't shared them with him.

When the votes come out, John is the recipient of the blindside. I wish it had been Brad, but watching him bulldoze his way through the tribe is kinda fun in a cringeworthy way, I guess. Now John gets to make out with his wife on Redemption Island, and quickly sees the upside.

So next week, we can expect even more people to direct their ire at Brad. Does it serve him right for burning a potential ally for no reason? Will he regret not taking out one of the girls, that clearly know they're on the outs? And how awesome is Brad's inevitable blindside going to be? I'm already expecting it to be my favorite of the season.

STAR OF THE WEEK: ARAS BASKAUSKAS

Good on him for getting one over on his brother, and becoming the second Baskauskas to win this award. Aras is probably loving the laid-back vibe of his tribe. He hasn't gone to tribal council yet and won't be in any danger once he does.

Blood Vs Water Episode 2: National Lampoon's Horrible Vacation

Marissa is mad because she doesn't feel she deserves to be where she is. Candice tells her she thinks it's because she spoke out about Brad. In stark contrast to the hatefest on Redemption Island, Galang is becoming the peace and love tribe. And guess who hates it? The devil himself, Colton Cumbie.

This is a man's world

Rachel feels at risk in the game with the gender imbalance on the tribe, and decides that sticking close to the guys is the best way to remedy that. Ciera gets suspicious that Rachel is ignoring her, and thinks that John and Rachel have an alliance. With the first duel coming up, John is hoping to see Candice as he's searching for some form of validation that she's not mad at him for not switching out.

At the Redemption Island arena, Galang are very eager to see who was voted out. Marissa walks in and lets Gervase know that she's here because of him. Gervase vows that his trash talk will only get worse now, since he has nothing to lose. Candice greets her husband with a wink, and his guilt completely goes away.

Oh, how the mighty have fallen

The first duel involves maneuvering a set of wooden spools through a spring maze without knocking your stack over. Rupert tries to go through it quickly but this clumsy approach sees him lose his stack twice. Candice wins the duel and Marissa comes from behind to secure her safety too. Rupert seems visibly embarrassed at being the first one out, but he doesn't regret his sacrifice. As the winner of the duel, Candice gets to choose to give an immunity idol clue to whoever she wants. Despite Jeff claiming it's a tough decision, it really isn't, and she chooses her husband.

Back at camp, the Tadhana boys have a strategy pow-wow. Vytas thinks that voting out Rachel next is their best move, because of the possibility that she could switch with Tyson. John isn't keen on that idea because he doesn't want Candice to face stronger competition.

Mainly out of boredom, Colton is stirring shit up at camp, as everyone is refusing to talk strategy with him. When Kat warns him that Tina thinks he's overplaying, he decides to confront Tina about it in the middle of the night. The next day, Colton senses everyone is acting differently. He has a good reason to be worried - people are starting to get sick of his bullying and threats. Aras, Gervase, Tyson, Tina and Monica form a new alliance with the intent of taking out "the gay Russell Hantz". I'm really happy to see Monica get in the majority alliance this time. Colton has no idea, and is hoping his tribe loses the next challenge so they can go to tribal council. I am too, but for a different reason.

We won't be seeing Colton singing kumbaya
and doing trust falls any time soon

Roll out the barrel: Laura prepares to get dizzy

For the immunity challenge, three people will have to roll a teammate in a barrel up to posts, to collect bags. Then another tribemate will roll the balls from the bag into holes. The two people in the barrel are Katie and Laura Morett. Tyson, Aras and Monica are pushing Laura, whereas Vytas, Brad and John are pushing Katie. The returning players lead the way for most of it, but the newbies finish the course first. It all comes down to Hayden and Gervase on the ball section. Surprisingly, Gervase manages to beat Hayden and win the challenge. He dedicates the win to Marissa.

Back at camp, Brad is still pissed off about Gervase. Despite John's hesitance, the intended target is Rachel. Vytas lets Ciera know that he'll probably tell Rachel to vote for her and she freaks out, as she thinks it's so she'll be the fall guy if John uses the idol. Ciera and Katie decide to vote for John, and it's something the boys are considering too as they don't like his unwillingness to go along with the Rachel boot and how he's keeping the idol clue close to his chest. It's almost as if he's trying to play the game for himself.

Maybe we should've stuck to the plan

At tribal council, Jeff is quick to point out how the girls are dwindling in numbers, and Hayden doesn't exactly reassure them that they're safe. He also asks if John has a target on his back because of the idol clue, and Brad boldly declares that he might even have the actual thing. Jeff points out how there's so many layers to the votes this season, and that's his cue to start sending them up. John picks up two votes, Ciera picks up one, but it's Rachel that goes home.

Mellow and laid-back as always, Rachel takes her dismissal in her stride. And now Tyson is in a tough spot, because if he doesn't step up, his girlfriend runs the serious risk of going home. And how will Ciera and Katie be able to explain their rogue votes? Guess we'll find out next week.

STAR OF THE WEEK: GERVASE PETERSON

After a terrible start, Gervase managed a complete redemption this week, and all it took was a little motivation. Majority alliance and a challenge-winning performance, looks like he's not going to skate by with minimum effort after all.

Blood Vs Water Episode 1: The Hard Goodbye

Tyson, literally carrying his family on his back

Ten pairs of castaways are dropped off in Luzon, each at a separate location. Marissa, Katie and Vytas in particular are all looking to beat their loved one, but for Kat, it's her that feels inferior since her boyfriend is already a reality show winner. The castaways then learn they're expected to spend the night together with just the two of them, and Gervase's bravado about being a veteran quickly disappears.

The following morning, the Bonehams are the first to emerge on the beach to greet Jeff in their matching tie-dye, and the other couples soon follow. They're all smiles right now, but when Jeff tells them they will be competing against eachother, the mood drops. Asked for his reaction to the split, Brad (who Jeff is calling "Culpepper" for some reason) shoots himself in the foot right away by saying he would let his wife have a tarp if he felt she needed it.

With the tribes now set, Jeff drops another bomb on them...both tribes are voting somebody out right away. Colton thinks his reputation precedes him and it's going to be him for sure. We get to the newbies votes first, and the tribe swiftly declare Laura the weak link. That wasn't unexpected. On the returnees side, Candice has voted for her Laura, and so have Tyson and Rupert. But the votes of Tina, Kat, Colton, Monica and Laura are enough to ensure that Candice is the one taking a walk. As a late addition to the cast, she really was dead on arrival.

Candice and John debate what to do

Then Jeff gives them some good news for a change - they're not out of the game. Redemption Island is in play, and that's where they're going next. He then offers Rupert an interesting proposal - does he want to make the heroic sacrifice and switch places with his wife? Despite Tina telling him not to, he does, saying his wife deserves a chance to play. John is given the same option, but Candice thinks she can beat Rupert, so he declines. Candice and Rupert walk off to Redemption Island, and a teary-eyed John explains how difficult it was to watch. But he's also feeling rage, and wants to "show those dumbasses what a mistake they made".

Aras coaches the rookie through the coconut chop

The veterans arrive at their camp, and Mrs Rupert feels very out of place. Trying to prove her worth, she chops a coconut and almost cuts her fingers off. Tyson turns out to be the firestarter in the end, allowing them boiled water and rice. Monica tries to make up with Colton, but is wary because she doesn't want to get backstabbed by him again.

Was he this reckless in the NFL?

The Tadhana camp is a lot more disorganized, as no-one really knows what they're doing. Brad apologises for his comments back at the beach and tries to form an all-guys alliance to keep the tribe strong. John and Caleb are pretty wary of him, and he may end up overplaying himself out of the game if he keeps trying to take charge. Seeing him struggling to count to five in his confessional explaining his plan really said a lot.

Well, the tribe doesn't have fire, so it's time for Ciera and Vytas to swap life stories. Ciera disgraced her mother by getting pregnant as a teenager, but that's nothing compared to some of the stuff Vytas admits to - drug addiction, theft and doing time. He's hoping opening up will help people trust him, rather than show people what an asshole he is. Colton is also pouring his heart out over on the other tribe, trying to explain why he is the way he is. He's not taking being separated from Caleb well.

Colton gets a rare sympathetic moment

Time to check in on the odd couple to end all odd couples at Redemption Island. Candice is chopping up a coconut, and naming a person who voted her out with each chop. Rupert is...actually not doing anything, which infuriates Candice. But he has a strategic reason for it - he wants to conserve his energy so that he has a better shot at beating Candice in the duel.

The tribes meet up at the immunity challenge and Tyson reveals his firestarting heroics. Not wanting to be upstaged, Brad and Vytas pretend that they have fire too. Haha. Anyway, the immunity challenge is to race out into the water and bring back a boat containing a box. The box contains a ship's wheel puzzle that tribemates will have to assemble. At stake is not just immunity, but flint too - so the newbies really need to win.

13 years on, Gervase still hasn't learned to swim

The newbies get off to a pretty solid start, particularly when Gervase struggles in the water and tires out. Both tribes get in their boats and Galang's paddling is terrible - Colton even threatens to give Kat a paddling of her own. The comeback doesn't begin until the puzzle segment. Katie and Ciera take on their mothers, and it's the veterans that win out and win the challenge. Gervase celebrates obnoxiously. C'mon dude, you had nothing to do with that win.

Back at camp, it seems pretty clear the guys will stick together after all. Caleb wants to vote out Katie for blowing the challenge, but Brad thinks sending out Marissa would be a nice message to Gervase not to be so cocky.

Tadhana arrive at tribal council, which is a really cool set this year. Ciera admits that the experience isn't quite what her mom advertised. Jeff asks Brad about the tribe's struggles and calls him Culpepper once again. Knock it off, Probst! He's not even the only Culpepper on this season. John cries again when Jeff revisits the Candice situation. Marissa starts to get worried when Vytas brings up Gervase, and tells the tribe she wants to be judged on her own merits.

The first cut is the deepest

By a unanimous vote, Marissa is voted out first and it's a completely silent goodbye from all parties. She definitely wasn't happy about it, but now she's joining a pissed-off Rupert and Candice on Redemption Island to make it a bitter party of three. Perhaps unsurprisingly, this season has got very emotional very quickly.

STAR OF THE WEEK: VYTAS BASKAUSKAS

The Yoga dude got some great character development and I think he's probably in the best position on his tribe right now. Everyone trusts him and he showed he was willing to cover all his bases by keeping his connections with the girls open.

Blood Vs Water ultimate preview

Survivor is back on September 18th with its most bold and convoluted variation on the formula yet. Will it be more hit or miss? Here's my verdict:

The good:

• Splitting up the pairs was the smartest thing they could've done. It gives the tribes an interconnectivity and should lead to conflicting loyalties and people playing individual games...but I bet somehow it won't.
• I quite like the trading places idea. I'm not expecting many people to take advantage of it, but it adds a nice layer of clusterfuckery.
• Mixing fourth timers with newbies, winners with pre-merge boots, and season 1 castmembers with recent players, no-one can say the cast doesn't have variety.
• The 0.001% chance that someone votes out a loved one. Who will it be, if anyone? I would say the most likely candidates are Vytas, Gervase, Marissa or Tina in that order.

The bad:

• Redemption Island, aka the worst twist ever, is back. And with a 20-person cast, it's now more bloated than ever.
• Lots of these cast members are clearly only on because of their partner. Who wants to see Rupert's wife play Survivor?
• The returnee factor. Seasons with past players always fall victim to politics and prior history clouding the gameplay.
• Colton might be more trouble than he's worth and will likely see a lot of people tuning out. He wasn't even entertaining, just unlikeable. That said, One World did get boring after he left.

Meet the pairs:

ARAS & VYTAS
The returnee: The laid-back Yoga dude from Exile Island
The loved one: His brother

Aras is quite an underrated winner. He was overshadowed on his season because he wasn't a big character, but he has a keen understanding of the game. He's athletic and social enough to go far, regardless of the target on his back.

Vytas is smart and claims to know the game just as well as his brother, but he comes off kind of shady. He definitely seems like the bad apple of the family which was confirmed when he mentioned a former heroin addiction. He has the alpha male competitiveness and really wants to outlast Aras, so it'll be interesting to see if sibling rivalry affects the game.

TYSON & RACHEL
The returnee: The mean mormon from Tocantins
The loved one: His girlfriend

Tyson's Survivor record is pretty underwhelming, but he actually has a lot going for him. He's charismatic enough to always be in the main alliance, and in terms of challenge strength I'd put him in the top 5 all-time physical players. Very odd choice for a third-timer but I'm happy to see him back, he's never short on witty confessionals.

I'm very intrigued by Rachel just to see what type of girls Tyson dates. You know she's gotta have an awesome sense of humour and I'm sure she'll be a lot of fun to watch. It looks like she's going to have a tough time with the elements though.

KAT & HAYDEN
The returnee: The goofy blonde from One World
The loved one: Her boyfriend

I love Kat and I'm super stoked to see her back. Nobody is going to view Kat as a threat, and that could take her pretty far. Her biggest problem is, will the jury want to give her the win? She's as dumb as a box of rocks and would no doubt be viewed as too immature to handle the money.

Having already won one CBS reality show, Hayden knows what it takes to win and should have a major advantage over his fellow newbies. He has a social game that can make him well-liked but still seem non-threatening, and the skills to be a beast in challenges. I could see him going all the way.

LAURA & CIERA
The returnee: Russell and Shambo's nemesis from Samoa
The loved one: Her daughter

Laura was probably the person most responsible for Russell not winning Samoa. But regardless of whether you think that's a good thing or not, Laura was viewed by many as a bitch. She's a very forceful personality that will want to take charge, which is great if it works, I'm just not sure her tribe will take to that.

I'd love to tell you my opinion on Ciera, but her pre-game interview, rather remarkably, left absolutely no impression on me whatsoever. As a mother and wife herself though, I'd expect Ciera will have a maturity beyond her years.

GERVASE & MARISSA
The returnee: A Survivor original from Borneo
The loved one: His niece

Gervase is probably the biggest wild card in the cast having played Survivor sooo long ago and it's going to be interesting to see how he copes with the modern-day game. When he last played the game, he was playing with people that didn't even realize alliances were a thing. His interview definitely way exceeded my expectations and I was surprised to hear he's been keeping up with the show, so he's one to watch.

Marissa seems to be syncing with Gervase well, and they'll be a pretty great team if they can get to the merge together. I like what I've seen of Marissa, she seems to have a good head on her shoulders, so I'm quietly optimistic she can do well.

CANDICE & JOHN
The returnee: The mutinous "hero" from Cook Islands
The loved one: Her husband

Candice is a notoriously flaky player and that's not a flattering reputation to have in a game that involves building trust. She's a big challenge asset though, probably one of the best female players ever in that regard. One potential roadblock for her may be Rupert, since they didn't exactly depart on good terms the last time they played together.

John has a real Captain America vibe going on - Doctor, Soldier, lover - but I didn't get much of a read on who he is. The Codys were last-minute replacements to fill in for RC, so are they as prepared as they should've been?

COLTON & CALEB
The returnee: The racist bully from One World
The loved one: His fiance

Could Colton do a Cochran? It's not out of the question, but the negative baggage Colton holds is a lot to overcome. He was despised during his season like no other villain before him. He knows the game well though, so I'm giving him an outside chance of going far.

The good cop to Colton's bad cop, Caleb definitely seems like the more reasonable one in the relationship. This good ol' Southern boy could've done alright in a regular season, but I think his partner is going to hold him back more than anything.

TINA & KATIE
The returnee: The motherly manipulator from Australia
The loved one: Her daughter

Tina is probably the most underwhelming returnee in the cast. Is she really going to offer anything new after her early exit in All-Stars? She does have two other older women around to shield her though, so I'm not ruling it out. Her best chance is being picked up by Aras as part of a winner's alliance.

Katie's going to be mostly a social player, according to her interview. Sounds like she knows she'll suck at challenges, then. Interestingly, her bio lists her occupation as "hedge fund support". What on Earth is that?

RUPERT & LAURA
The returnee: The shoe-stealing pirate from Pearl Islands
The loved one: His wife

Now on his 4th try, Rupert has done very well on Survivor in the past simply by being a big character that people are drawn to. He's never had much in the way of strategy though, and his lack of self-awareness means I'm expecting him to fall short again. His interview was brimming with overconfidence, thinking he's won the game already. Sorry Rupert, as much as I loved you on Pearl Islands, you're washed-up now.

Laura doesn't seem like someone who should be on reality TV and I'm not expecting much from her at all. She claims to be good at challenges but I doubt it. I'm sure she's nice, but if she makes it far it'll be by riding her husband's coattails.

MONICA & BRAD

The returnee: The athletic housewife from One World
The loved one: Her husband

Nobody would like Monica to do well more than me, she was an early favorite of mine on One World. But she was a pre-merge boot there and I'm almost positive she will be here too. She's just got too many things working against her - the age factor is gonna make it hard for her to fit in once again, plus the orchestrator of her demise (Colton) is back and will probably have her in his sights straight away.

I was glad to find no real hint of ego on Brad, in fact he seems to downplay his NFL achievements. That attitude could serve him well, but I'm still not fully convinced. It sounds like he's committed to playing for his wife, which is very chivalrous of him but once again I think it'll hold him back.