Survivor 45 | Ep. 10
DAKUWAQA - NIGHT 17
The Kendra vote happened and the fallout at camp seems pretty minimal. Jake is pumping himself full of artificial confidence and flipping the script from being a punk to being a player. I love this look for Jake. No BS Jake is much better than sad puppy looking for a friend Jake.
The other ripple effect is the talk targeting good ole Uncle Bruce. Emily and Drew are talking about how Bruce simply went along with voting out Kendra even though she was old BELO. Plus, Drew sets up the episode’s major conflict at the top - the conundrum that is Bruce + Immunity Challenge wins + Bruce having a Hidden Immunity Idol = Operation Bruce cannot win anymore challenges so he will play his idol and then we can finally vote him out.
Something tells me at least one piece of that math equation will be seen in this episode.
DAKUWAQA - DAY 18
In a sudden turn of affairs we are thrust into the inner thoughts of Mama Julie. She is being deceitful aka someone she is not in her actual life. The game is forcing her to be someone she is not. The other people that she has allied with are forcing her to be someone that she is not. Authenticity is in 4K right now and with only 8 remaining, hers shines through. The flashbacks to the Kellie and Kendra blindsides and the reality that they couldn’t even look at Julie pierces through her Survivor armor to challenge her more than I think we as viewers realized. To this point she has been on the successful REBA tribe in the first phase of the game and avoided Tribals and drawing lines in the sand. That has led to being on the right side of the blindside votes, the deceit, and the inauthentic actual Julie. And all of that I think is about to give way to the attacking/blindsiding her own and I don’t think she’s ready for it because it’s not who she actually is.
Then, next to her is Drew. I don’t think he is an emotional support to many people. His cry and emotional support matches his awkwardly tall, glasses, and lenky exterior image.
Then, there’s the rest of the tribe.
Emily, Bruce, Katurah, and Jake. They are the other 4. Katurah and Bruce are officially back to working together and I love it. I love it for one reason and that reason is Bruce. Dear old Uncle Bruce is back and better than ever. He’s playing with my emotions early in episode 10 when he decides to send his first major lie out into the water supply of game using a new era strategy move of saying that he was nervous about the Knowledge is Power Advantage being in play so he gave his idol to Kellie. Then Kellie was voted out and so was his idol.
Until it wasn’t.
Tricky, tricky, tricky Bruce. I think Bruce learned something from not being on 44 and the new era in general. Then he plays this game with Katurah but then tells her what he’s doing and asks her to assess his lie/acting skills.
HUH?
I think Bruce is trying to control whatever he can, as Bruce would, while also connect with Katurah or maybe repair his relationship with her, so he’s sharing his best play with her so she is an insider as he lies to the rest of the tribe in hopes to use the strategy to eliminate a REBA. Now, the only issue is that Katurah hates Bruce and I don’t think is near his level of gameplay. Like, she didn’t understand what he was proposing to her because she hates him and is reluctant to play with Bruce even though it’s her best option.
Now, TMZ Bruce is leaking info to Jake knowing that he will leak it to REBA. It’s a good plan because Jake will do anything to continue to see how many lives he can have in the game and try to get a leg up on someone. Ultimately, if nothing else, Bruce is a strategic player and he is shooting his shot. It’s down to the final 8, he knows he’s a target, he knows the idol is a weapon, and he is going to use his weapon and see what happens. I’m rooting for it.
REWARD CHALLENGE
REWARD - The Sanctuary for turkey, mashed potatoes, apple pie, beer, sodas, juice, and a night with pillows, blankets, and some Survivor luxury.
CHALLENGE
Clear three hurdles - over, over, under
Untie knots, crawl under netting through sand
Ball maze
The first two parts of the challenge are essentially useless. This challenge is only about the octagon maze puzzle and navigating the ball into the middle and winning the reward.
Winner Winner turkey dinner for Emily. The LULUloser is finally feeling a bit of a winner. She hasn’t been to the sanctuary until today.
But, wait there’s more.
You knew that it wouldn’t be that easy. Jeff spices things up by adding some love from home via letters from loved ones to be waiting for Emily AND she wouldn’t be there alone. Emily is given the ability to pick not 1, not 2, but 3 people to join her at the sanctuary for a night of food and comfort.
Her choices?
1st - Julie - Struggling with neck pain, missing home.
2nd - Katurah - Didn’t expect it.
3rd - Dee - Cue up Kool & the Gang, it’s Ladies Night and the feeling is right!
Well…maybe.
SANCTUARY - DAY 18
The ladies sanctuary is poisoned by Katurah’s short sighted endless attack on Bruce. She made her decision to hate Bruce early at BELO and she is not budging. Where I think Kellie realized that nobody would vote in the end for Bruce and that had value, Katurah is blinded by seeking revenge and eliminating him. She blows up his spot on the plan for his lie, whether it was a good plan or not, I’m not sure what her gameplan is here. Is it to be in the end with two REBA members and hope the jury respects her game of seeking revenge on Bruce? I’m not seeing it.
BOYS HANGOUT
Cue up the food talk, action movie convos, muscle flexing, flatulence, and my personal favorite, the Top Gun classic “Hanging with the Boys” by none other than the one the only Kenny Loggins. Thank you to the editing department and sound department for that memorable 45 montage.
The boys night also has some Bruce talk. Jake is happy to divulge the story that Bruce shared with him about Kellie having his idol and it going home with her. Bruce’s plan feels like it would have worked if either
A - he never told Katurah.
B - he hadn’t pissed everyone off to the point that they don’t care that he won’t win and they just can’t take being around him anymore.
LOVE
Emily once again is changing before our very eyes. She came into the game as one person and is leaving a new person with a brand new lease on life. She considers herself someone who would never be a “wife” or “get married”, yet a trip to the sanctuary and some love from her boyfriend back home has her reconsidering her pre-Survivor stances on love, marriage, and her future together with the man she loves and wants to spend the rest of her life with.
I said it in previous blogs this season and will say it again, if Emily gets to the end, she is going to win. Period the end. I think we as viewers are being led to believe that REBA is dominating the game and Dee is calling the shots, but I don’t think that would matter in a Final Tribal Vote if Emily is sitting there with her. Plus, she’s making moves to secure Drew that the Bruce lost his idol to Kellie is bogus and be upfront and genuine with Jake as he is going to be a member of the jury sooner than later. She’s transforming personally while also staying laser focused on the game. Stone cold killer.
IMMUNITY CHALLENGE - DAY 19
Heading into this challenge it’s clear that the vote will be for Bruce or Jake.
CHALLENGE IMPLICATIONS FOR TRIBAL
SOMEONE OTHER THAN JAKE or BRUCE WINS IMMUNITY - Bruce plays his idol and Jake is out.
BRUCE WINS IMMUNITY - Jake is out.
JAKE WINS IMMUNITY - (won’t happen) Bruce plays his idol for himself and we have the most interesting outcome.
On to the challenge.
This is a new challenge laying on an incline holding onto handles that get gradually smaller. Last person left, wins immunity and guaranteed final 7. The platform they are laying on is STEEP!!! I’m thinking Austin and Bruce have the advantage being physically the strongest.
FIRST HANDHOLD
Emily is too weak and slides out first.
Katurah apparently is afraid of the water to the point of tears, shaking, and taking herself out the challenge. Ridiculous.
SECOND HANDHOLD
Julie couldn’t hang and is quickly out.
THIRD HANDHOLD
Big change here is the smaller, knubby handholds, and your feet cannot be under you.
Dee is last to extend her legs out flat and that takes her out immediately.
Drew is super long and gangly and quickly drops
It’s down to Jake, Austin, and Bruce.
Jake is the former chubby guy and I give him credit for making it this far in the challenge. I think that was his deathblow.
Bruce does one final tricep pushup to re-adjust but it’s for nothing.
Bruce drops gracefully and Austin wins immunity.
Honestly, this challenge sucked. I mean I’m no expert but I was able to predict just a few moments ago that it would come down to Austin and Bruce because they are the physically strongest, which I like and think deserves to be an advantage at some point, but maybe the inevitability of everything surrounding this episode combined with the inevitability of the challenge just sucked the big one.
PRE-TRIBAL SCRAMBLE
Bruce knows that his plan to deceive with a Knowledge is Power play is a big nothing burger. He’s going to play his idol and be safe, if he’s not a total idiot. Jake is going to go home because Bruce has an idol. Katurah is prepping everyone for a possible Mama J vote and shares it with Emily. Emily shares the plan with Bruce and is hoping to fool Bruce. Emily is thinking that outsmarting Bruce and getting him to not play his idol
Bruce is who everyone wants out. He has the idol and
TRIBAL COUNCIL - NIGHT 19
Something is different and it’s Bruce not having immunity and Jake’s desperation has turned to him feeling dumb. Look, I could say a ton of things about Jake, but the guy isn’t dumb. He’s an attorney and a success. Like Jeff said, he’s not dumb but rather he’s playing a very difficult game where withholding information is a huge part. Ultimately, Jake’s game is influenced by aspects of the game that he has absolutely no control over and he has been simply out of the loop all game long.
It’s interesting that we see Jeff propose to Mama J if she would be surprised if it were her tonight and she says yes. Publicly sharing her answer to that question is a tough spot to be in, but the group seems solid on what the vote will be tonight.
VOTES
BRUCE - 4
JAKE - 3
JULIE - 1
“Christmas came early today” - Drew
Well, there ya have it. On the one hand Bruce plays his idol and is safe, Jake goes home, and Bruce has to win out every Immunity Challenge to win or he gets voted out anyway, or find a new idol and repeat the scenario I just laid out. On the other hand, the way in which he actually gets voted out, with the idol in his pocket, with a solo vote on Julie, and with everyone, including the jury, celebrating like the Jersey Shore cast out at Karma, sucks for Bruce because they got him in a way where he looks like a fool and a fool that nobody wanted around.
Maybe I was just rooting for my man Uncle Bruce and I wanted to think he was a better player than one that would go out like that. Or, maybe my strategic thinking was that if Bruce is so annoying to everyone that that was the exact reason to keep him around and to fight to keep in around. He was never going to win the game and getting rid of him because he’s intolerable or annoying, while I get it, is insanely frustrating from a strategy standpoint.
In his exit interview Bruce acknowledges that he was convinced of the Julie plan and he was outwitted by everyone. Ultimately, Bruce was a compelling player for better or worse. He was the most unique player coming into this season being that he was given a second chance after his 15 seconds on 44 ended with a medical evacuation from the game. He was immediately targeted at the marooning and as quick as he was out in 44 was as quick as we learned that Uncle Bruce wasn’t the funcle he wanted to be seen as. Instead, he was controlling and not anyone’s favorite person. People wanted him out of the game and would stop at nothing to do it and tonight they did.
Losing Bruce means we lose his story, his enemy of the state status at camp, his threat to win every Immunity Challenge and the thorn in everyone’s side. Bruce brought value to a season that was lacking it in comparison to other new era seasons and the season will not be the same without him.
Going forward the game only has one duck left and that’s Jake, but it has one lion and that’s Emily. She’s my frontrunner in the game and with the execution of making Bruce comfortable enough to not play his idol and then voting his ass out, is what winners look like.
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