"Survivor 47" Finale Recap - Part One - Let's Talk About Six
A Tale of Idols...Real and Otherwise...
Every Wednesday after the “Survivor” episode airs you’ll find a full recap along with individual player grades right here. The next day I’ll have an exit interview with the latest castaway on my YouTube Channel.
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Last Week: A country shaped like a boot, provided the inspiration to give Caroline the boot.
39 26 Days, 18 People, 1 “Survivor” Blog…
Alright, let’s check out the tribe as it currently stands…
The Beka Tribe (wearing purple)
Andy, 31 - AI Research Assistant
Genevieve, 33 - Corporate Lawyer
Rachel, 34 - Graphic Designer
Sam, 24 - Sports Reporter
Sue, 59 - Flight School Owner
Teeny, 24 - Freelance Writer
Post-Tribal Shenanigans
Quick Note: Before we get into the episode, Jeff gives us a full two-minute breakdown of the season which is all done in one shot. That was wildly impressive.
Sue is super bummed now that Tweedle Dee is out of the game. And, she’s placing the blame on Andy’s shoulders.
(Or Tweedle Dum, I’m not assuming which is which.)
Genevieve assures Andy that Operation Italy was 100% his move and she’s going to tell everyone that. Yeah, I would too if I had the threat level that Genevieve has.
When Andy eventually explains it to Teeny, he claims that he thought of the whole thing on the way to Tribal and that Sam and Genevieve had no idea what he was going to do.
Interesting…
Sam backs this lie in an attempt to get Teeny to come to their side in the hopes that she thinks what happened at Tribal was some kind of grand lucky accident.
I’m listening…
It sounds like Teeny is on board with working with the Italian Connection to get Rachel out next, seeing as she’s such a big jury threat and apparently good at making fire.
Meanwhile, Rachel sneaks down to the beach and is able to hear everything the quartet is talking about. This includes the fact that Teeny still thinks Genevieve’s idol is real and Teeny doesn’t think Rachel has an idol.
OK, you need to win this thing, Rachel.
The next morning, Rachel finds Sue desperately digging for an idol. Rachel tells her she can stop because she already has it. However, Sue does not return the favor by telling Rachel about her idol.
Immunity Challenge Time: The players will leap into the ocean, then swim to a platform. They’ll maneuver a buoy through a series of obstacles. The first person to complete the “Survivor” logo puzzle at the end will win immunity and a trip to The Sanctuary™where steak and other things happen.
Another Quick Aside: Surely this is all building toward Probst launching a chain of “Sanctuary” themed restaurants, right? I’d go.
Result: It comes down to Rachel and Genevieve with Genevieve picking up the victory. She gets to take people on the reward and Sam asks her not to choose him. She goes with Sue and Teeny.
At the Sanctuary
Genevieve and Rachel immediately discuss voting for Rachel, and Sue keeps quiet about Rachel’s idol.
And, due to having a little too much wine, Teeny accidentally outs Genevieve’s idol to Sue. Teeny feels terrible, but Genevieve doesn’t care because it’s fake.
Back at camp, Rachel is reading Andy and Sam the riot act because she doesn’t think any of them can beat Genevieve. Sam says it’s because Rachel seemed like she wanted to work with others and never locked in with him.
Oh, and nobody berates Genevieve for not taking them on reward.
Also, Rachel is doing a great job acting like someone who is going home after Tribal.
She plays into Andy’s insecurities about how people see his game perfectly, saying that he can’t beat Sam at the end.
When the Sanctuary crew returns, Rachel tells Andy that she will be voting for Sam and blocking his vote at Tribal. It ends up being Rachel, Sue, and Andy discussing a final three with Rachel and Sue both vowing not to vote for Andy at the next Tribal.
Andy thinks it over then confesses that it’s best for his game to vote Rachel out. He then asks her to keep an open mind about what he’s done when she’s on the jury.
Oh wow. How much fun must it be to be Rachel listening to this speech while she has an idol in her pocket.
All of this leads her to believe that he’s a bigger threat than she had previously thought. This actually encourages her to consider voting for Andy instead of Sam.
Tribal Time
Teeny pushes the narrative that Caroline’s elimination was some kind of accident. But Rachel calls (expletive deleted) and says that Andy flipped. Simple as that.
Andy eventually admits that he flipped and the jury does not seem happy about this.
Rachel then says that everyone (outside of Sue) has told her that she’s going home tonight.
Quick Aside: This is so friggin’ brilliant. Rachel can sit there as everyone talks about how great she is and what a threat she is.
Sue admits that she will not be voting for Rachel.
Voting Time: Andy votes for Rachel, Genevieve votes for Rachel, Sam’s vote has been blocked, and the rest of the votes are secret.
JPro tallies and returns. He asks if anyone wants to play an idol or an advantage and…Rachel does.
Baller move.
Ok, we’ve got three votes for Rachel that do not count, one vote for Andy, and the thirteenth person voted out of “Survivor 47” and the sixth member of the jury is…Andy.
Wow, I like a final five with three very solid choices to win. That said, if Rachel goes out at five I’ll cry my face off.
Post-Tribal Shenanigans - Part Deux
Rachel is loving life…as she should. And she informs the others that she’ll tell them how she got her idol if Genevieve says how she got hers.
Genevieve says that she found a clue under a slice of pizza. During all of this, they make it sound like the season is going to come down to Genevieve vs. Rachel.
The next morning, Sam digs through Rachel’s bag while she’s out looking for idols. Genevieve follows Rachel around and it’s pretty hilarious how they bond over this awesome rivalry.
Genevieve and Rachel for “Amazing Race!”
Meanwhile, Sue is very proud that nobody knows she has an idol. Yeah…and Phillip Sheppard was very proud of getting to the end of Redemption Island. But, it wasn’t cause he was great at “Survivor.”
Also, Sam, Sue, and Teeny did not love how Genevieve and Rachel seemed to be discounting everyone else’s game during the previous night’s discussion.
Immunity Challenge Time: The players will race to the shore from the ocean, dig under a beam, then use a pole to stack balls and stands. The first person to complete their stack wins immunity and can’t be voted out of the game.
Result: It comes down to Rachel and Genevieve with Rachel picking up the win!
Pre-Tribal Politicking
Sam realizes that if everyone thinks Genevieve is safe, then his number is probably up. But, Sam knows the idol is fake. He takes this information to Teeny and she seems to believe him.
Teeny takes a moment to do all of the math and realizes that Genevieve has been making things happen all game long. And, she doesn’t buy the story that the idol clue was under a slice of pizza.
When Teeny takes this story to Rachel and Sue, they have some serious doubts.
So, Teeny flat out asks Genevieve if it’s real. Genevieve admits that it’s fake and she’s bummed out that Sam turned on her.
Buuut…what if that’s a ruse too! It’s an enigma, wrapped in a riddle, with a creamy nougat center!
Tribal Time…Once Again
Teeny brings up everything that came out about Genevieve’s supposed idol. Sam gets in a good dig saying if you want information to get out, you should tell Teeny.
Teeny then says that whatever she does tonight will either cost her the game or help her win the game. I’m not sure Teeny has a path to a win anymore.
A somewhat open Tribal breaks out with Rachel’s concern being that if the idol is real that Teeny will go home.
Voting Time: Sam votes for Genevieve, Genevieve votes for Sam, and Teeny takes a loooong time to vote. The rest of the votes are lost to the magic of editing.
JPro tallies and returns once again. He asks if anyone wants to play an idol or an advantage and…Genevieve admits that her idol is fake. Then, Sue plays the red-paint idol for herself.
That feels like a waste.
Alright, we’ve got one vote for Genevieve, one vote for Sam, one vote for Sam, one vote for Genevieve, and the fourteenth person eliminated from “Survivor 47” and the seventh member of the jury is…Genevieve.
Verdict: If Rachel manages to take out the Italian Connection in the next three votes, she doesn’t just deserve the win. She’s a legend in my book.
A: Rachel - Her goal was to get to that final four immunity. She’d done everything she can do to make that happen. I don’t think anyone can beat her if she gets to Final Tribal.
A-: Sam: There will be no shame in coming in second to Rachel. And if he can find a way to get her out at four, I think he takes the whole thing.
C: Teeny and Sue - I can’t envision a scenario where either one of you wins.
Welp, that’s it! Check out my exit interviews with Genevieve and Andy on YouTube this Thursdsay.
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And, be sure to check out the official “Survivor” podcast - “On Fire with Jeff Probst”
Rachel by far and then Sam have the best shot at winning. Is it weird that I think if it was a final two between the others that Sue would have a better shot than Teeny?