A new episode of Survivor airs tonight on CBS — here’s a live recap of the key moves, alliances and the vote at tonight’s tribal council.
The episode opens with the tribe returning to camp after a blindsiding at tribal. Sam calls the result “horrible” after he and Rachel were surprised by Sierra’s elimination. Sam sums it up bluntly: “Gata got got.” The former Lavo members — led by Andy — flipped on the original Gata trio of Rachel, Sam and Sierra. Back at camp Rachel urges Sam to keep the peace and play it cool. In confessional she reveals she used her Shot in the Dark to determine whether she needed to play an idol; she guessed correctly that she didn’t, but still feels vulnerable and hopes new opportunities arise.
Andy explains his flip as taking control of his own fate. He felt expendable on his original tribe, so flipping gave him agency. He tells Sam he preferred Sam staying over Sierra and believes he shifted votes toward Sierra at the last council.
The next morning Andy apologizes to Rachel and offers to rebuild their relationship. Despite a history of leaving one another out of plans, Rachel is cautiously open to starting fresh and working together. They immediately begin game talk, with Andy suggesting Kyle as a possible target. Rachel adds that Sue and Caroline also want Kyle gone.
Meanwhile Sam meets with Teeny, Sol and Genevieve. Teeny apologizes to Sam and explains that he and Sierra were seen as a power duo that needed splitting. Sam plays agreeable, but in confessional admits he wants revenge and plans to target a former Lavo member. The group debates voting out Gabe at the next tribal.
Tree mail reveals the next challenge will be played in pairs. The announced pairs are Sam & Andy, Kyle & Gabe, Teeny & Sol, Sue & Genevieve, and Caroline & Rachel. The multi-stage challenge requires pairs to crawl through a narrow tunnel to retrieve planks, use those planks to build steps, cross a balance beam, then finish with an endurance round on narrow footholds. There’s an added twist: the first two pairs knocked out will lose their votes, but they’ll get a chance to win them back on a journey.
During the challenge everyone scrambles for their steps. Sam & Andy and Caroline & Rachel fail to retrieve theirs and therefore lose their votes. Genevieve & Sue lead into the balance beam stage, but Kyle & Gabe catch up and finish with Sol & Teeny close behind. Genevieve & Sue are eliminated, leaving individuals to compete for immunity. Teeny and Sol fall early, then Kyle drops, leaving Gabe as the last one standing — Gabe wins immunity.
At the picnic reward, Kyle, Gabe, Teeny and Sol talk strategy and discuss voting out Sam. Sol confesses in confessional he doesn’t want Sam gone; Kyle is uneasy because this is his first moment of real vulnerability after winning multiple immunities earlier in the season. Back at camp Sue says she wants Kyle out, but Genevieve reveals that Gabe is actually Sol’s target. To protect her own game, Sue pivots and says she wants to blindside Sol instead. They agree to try to rally the votes to make that happen.
When Kyle, Gabe, Teeny and Sol return to camp they join Genevieve and Sue and initially talk about voting Sam out, though Genevieve and Sue have already committed to Sol. Genevieve tells Gabe that Sol and Teeny have been mentioning Gabe as a target, so Gabe agrees to vote out Sol. Kyle comes on board too, hoping the plan will keep him safe. Genevieve notes they still need one more vote and that the missing vote will likely be decided by the journey.
At the journey, Sam, Andy, Rachel and Caroline compete in a card-stacking game. They take turns building a tower of triangular stacks; the player whose turn causes the tower to fall will lose their vote at tribal. The tower tumbles on Caroline’s turn, so Caroline will not vote tonight. Sam, Andy and Rachel regain their votes and, before returning to camp, the three agree they want Kyle ousted.
Back at camp the shifting alliances produce confusion. Teeny believes Sam or Kyle is the target, but Genevieve privately tells Andy the plan is to vote Sol out now. Andy contemplates whether Sol should be kept a bit longer, but Genevieve pushes for action while the coalition is confident. Rachel wants to assure potential new allies of her trustworthiness without burning bridges with Sam; she tells Sam he’s not the target. Sam then immediately reveals the plan to Sol, pitching instead that he and Sol should vote out Sue. He tries to recruit Genevieve, Andy and Teeny to that plan and also suggests to Andy they dismantle the Tuku alliance by voting Sue. Word spreads and multiple competing plans — Sue, Sol, Kyle — circulate right before tribal.
At tribal council the atmosphere is tense and whisper-filled. Jeff Probst asks whether they can maintain camaraderie while playing such a brutal game. With so many last-minute conversations, players are uncertain who to trust. No one plays an idol or advantage before the votes are cast.
When the votes are read the tally comes in as: Sol, Sue, Sol, Sol, Sol, Sol. Sol is the majority vote. Sol is the ninth person voted out and will become the second member of the jury.
That concludes tonight’s episode of Survivor. The vote shifts and fractured alliances left several players exposed, and with Sol now on the jury the strategic landscape will change heading into next week’s episode. Thanks for reading this recap — check back next week for more coverage.