Survivor: Samoa

Template:Infobox Television Survivor Survivor: Samoa is the nineteenth season of the CBS competitive reality television series Survivor. The season premiered on Thursday, September 17, 2009.

Applications were due by January 14, 2009. Approximately 800 might have been invited to be interviewed in several states. Following this, approximately 48 semi-finalists were invited to Los Angeles in April 2009 for final interviews with the producers. From there, 20 finalists were selected to be contestants in the show, which was scheduled to occur between mid June and mid-July 2009 in Samoa. Similar to Survivor: Tocantins, the minimum age requirement for this season is 18 for most states.

In the end, Natalie White defeated Russell Hantz and Mick Trimming with a vote of 7-2-0. Hantz ended up winning the "Sprint Player of the Season" Award, earning the fans' vote over Shannon "Shambo" Waters and Brett Clouser.

Season summary

The twenty contestants were already assigned tribes at the start of the game, but, based only on appearances, the tribes were told to vote one of their own as a "leader", who, for the first half of the game, would make critical decisions at certain challenges, in particular, selecting one member of their tribe to spend the day after reward challenges with the other tribe through which they would receive a clue to the hidden immunity idol. Foa Foa selected Mick as theirs, while Galu picked Russell S. as theirs. Galu took a strong lead in the game, winning most of the reward and immunity challenges, leading to a relaxed state at the camp, a condition that Shambo resented. Meanwhile, Foa Foa's Russell H. attempted to make living conditions harsher for his tribe by dumping water out of canteens and burning socks. After winning a reward challenge, Russell S. opted to send Shambo over to Foa Foa for one night, where she found the tribe had a strong work ethic and welcomed her.

Prior to the merge, two players were removed from the game due to fatigue: Mike and Russell S.; Shambo was given Galu's leadership role following Russell's departure. The two tribes merged with twelve players left; Galu had the advantage of eight players over Foa Foa's four, though Shambo clearly showed favoritism towards Foa Foa. Natalie was able to convince Galu to vote off Erik along with the rest of Foa Foa. At this vote, Russell H. had played his hidden immunity idol, but was able to find the idol in its new location, again without clues, before the next tribal council. Russell H. played his new idol there, saving himself from being voted off as he was targeted by every Galu member, and eliminating Kelly. As Shambo began to shift sides to the former Foa Foa's, the next vote first ended in a tie, but John, worried about being eliminated from the game by the rock-pulling tiebreaker, switched his vote on the tiebreaker, eliminating Laura. With the tribes now 5-4, the remaining Foa Foa members continued to hold together for the rest of the game, systematically eliminating the former Galu members, one-by-one. Their plans were halted when Brett went on an immunity challenge winning streak, resulting in Foa Foa having to turn on each other with Shambo and Jaison being voted out, but Brett lost the final immunity challenge and was voted off leaving the Final Three as Russell H., Natalie, and Mick.

At the Final Tribal Council, Mick was ignored by the jury, considering his lack of leadership when assigned that role, and received no votes. Though Russell H. was confident that he had played the game well and that Natalie would be seen as a coattail rider, many of the jury disliked his brash attitude, and Natalie was ultimately named the sole survivor by a vote of 7-2-0.

Contestants

Contestant	Original Tribe	Merged Tribe	Finish	Total Votes
Marisa Calihan 26, Cincinnati, OH	Foa Foa		1st Voted Out Day 3	7
Mike Borassi 62, Marina del Rey, CA	Foa Foa		Removed Due to Injury Day 5	0
Betsy Bolan 48, Campton, NH	Foa Foa		2nd Voted Out Day 6	7
Ben Browning 28, Los Angeles, CA	Foa Foa		3rd Voted Out Day 8	7
Yasmin Giles 33, Los Angeles, CA	Galu		4th Voted Out Day 11	8
Ashley Trainer 22, Maple Grove, MN	Foa Foa		5th Voted Out Day 14	9
Russell Swan 42, Glenside, PA	Galu		Removed Due to Injury Day 15	0
Elizabeth "Liz" Kim 33, New York City, NY	Foa Foa		6th Voted Out Day 18	5
Erik Cardona 28, Ontario, CA	Galu	Aiga	7th Voted Out 1st Jury Member Day 21	10
Kelly Sharbaugh 25, West Hollywood, CA	Galu		8th Voted Out 2nd Jury Member Day 24	4
Laura Morett 39, Salem, OR	Galu		9th Voted Out 3rd Jury Member Day 27	51
John Fincher 25, Los Angeles, CA	Galu		10th Voted Out 4th Jury Member Day 30	7
Dave Ball 38, Los Angeles, CA	Galu		11th Voted Out 5th Jury Member Day 31	8
Monica Padilla 25, San Diego, CA	Galu		12th Voted Out 6th Jury Member Day 33	7
Shannon "Shambo" Waters 45, Renton, WA	Galu		13th Voted Out 7th Jury Member Day 36	6
Jaison Robinson 28, Chicago, IL	Foa Foa		14th Voted Out 8th Jury Member Day 37	7
Brett Clouser 23, Los Angeles, CA	Galu		15th Voted Out 9th Jury Member Day 38	3
Mick Trimming 33, Los Angeles, CA	Foa Foa		2nd Runner-Up	4
Russell Hantz 36, Dayton, TX	Foa Foa		Runner-Up	22
Natalie White 26, Van Buren, AR	Foa Foa		Sole Survivor	53

The Total Votes is the number of votes a castaway has received during Tribal Councils where the castaway is eligible to be voted out of the game. It does not include the votes received during the final Tribal Council.

^1 Five additional votes were cast against Laura during a tie-breaker vote.

^2 Because Russell H. played the Hidden Immunity Idol, seven votes against him did not count.

^3 Three additional votes were cast against Natalie during a tie-breaker vote.

The game

Episode Titles	First air date	Challenges		Observer	Eliminated	Vote	Finish
		Reward	Immunity
"The Puppet Master"	September 17, 2009	Foa Foa	Galu	None	Marisa	7-3	1st Voted Out Day 3
"Taking Candy From a Baby"	September 24, 2009	Galu		Yasmin	Mike	No vote	Removed Due to Injury Day 5
					Betsy	7-1	2nd Voted Out Day 6
"It's Called a Russell Seed"	October 1, 2009	Galu		Shambo	Ben	6-1	3rd Voted Out Day 8
"Hungry for a Win"	October 8, 2009	Galu	Foa Foa	None	Yasmin	8-2	4th Voted Out Day 11
"Walking on Thin Ice"	October 15, 2009	Galu	Galu	Shambo	Ashley	5-1	5th Voted Out Day 14
"This Is the Man Test"	October 22, 2009	Foa Foa	None	None	Russell S.	No vote	Removed Due to Injury Day 15
"Houdini Magic"	October 29, 2009	Galu	Galu	Laura	Liz	4-1	6th Voted Out Day 18
"All Hell Breaks Loose"	November 5, 2009	None3	John	None4	Erik	10-2	7th Voted Out Day 21
			Laura
"Tastes Like Chicken"	November 12, 2009	Dave, John, Kelly Monica, Shambo	Laura		Kelly	4-05	8th Voted Out Day 24
"The Day of Reckoning"	November 19, 2009	Brett, Dave, Laura Natalie, Russell H.	Mick		Laura	5-56	9th Voted Out Day 27
"The First 27 Days"	November 26, 2009	Recap Episode
"Off With Their Heads!"	December 3, 2009	Survivor Auction	Jaison	None4	John	7-1-1	10th Voted Out Day 30
"Damage Control"	December 10, 2009	None	Jaison		Dave	7-1	11th Voted Out Day 31
			Brett		Monica	5-2	12th Voted Out Day 33
"Two Brains Are Better Than One"	December 17, 2009	Jaison, Russell H., Shambo	Brett		Shambo	5-1	13th Voted Out Day 36
"This Game Ain't Over"	December 20, 2009	None	Brett		Jaison	4-1	14th Voted Out Day 37
			Russell H.		Brett	3-1	15th Voted Out Day 38
"The Reunion"	December 20, 2009	Jury vote			Mick	7-2-0	2nd Runner-Up
					Russell H.		Runner-Up
					Natalie		Sole Survivor

In the case of multiple tribes or castaways who win reward or immunity, they are listed in order of finish, or alphabetically where it was a team effort; where one castaway won and invited others, the invitees are in brackets.

^2 Russell S. collapsed during the challenge; Jeff cancelled the challenge with neither tribe winning the reward.

^3 There was no Reward Challenge due to the tribal merge.

^4 The observer rule was no longer applicable after the tribal merge, as there was only one tribe.

^5 Russell H. played the Hidden Immunity Idol, therefore the seven votes against him did not count.

^6 Laura was voted out after the first Tribal Council vote resulted in a tie.

Episode 1: "The Puppet Master"

• Reward Challenge: A designated swimmer would swim out into the ocean to retrieve a key and swim back. The swimmer would hand the key to the designated strong person to unlock a chain around two bundles of heavy logs. The logs would have to be carried to the next station where a designated agile person would use the log bundles to climb on top of a balance beam. The agile person would need to pull a second key along a rope twisted around the balance beam while remaining on top of the balance beam. At the final stage, a designated smart person would use the second key to unlock a bag of puzzle pieces and use them to assemble a statue. The first tribe to assemble their statue would win.
  • Reward: Flint
• Immunity Challenge: Six members from each tribe would race across a series of three wooden A-frames carrying three coils of rope. At the end of the course, the six would use the rope to pull a heavy wooden crate across a ramp and up to the finish platform. The four remaining tribe members would disassemble the crate to use as puzzle pieces. The first tribe to solve the puzzle would win.

The castaways rowed ashore on four longboats in silence already divided into tribes called Foa Foa and Galu. Jeff instructed the tribes that they would elect a leader of their tribe without speaking to one another, handing out a parchment and pen to each castaway to record their vote. Galu elected Russell S. Foa Foa elected Mick. Mick and Russell S. came forward to make their first leadership decision by selecting participants in the first Reward Challenge. Jeff told the leaders to select their tribe's best swimmer, Jaison and John; the strongest person, Russell H. and Erik; the most agile, Marisa and Yasmin; and the smartest person, Liz and Shambo. Jaison gave Foa Foa a huge lead during the swimming leg of the challenge and they never lost the lead, though Shambo made up a lot of ground during the puzzle assembly. Dave and Erik were very disappointed in John's performance during the swim leg. Jeff gave the tribes maps to their new homes and sent them on their way. At Foa Foa, Mick ceded leadership of setting up their camp to Ben. Russell H. quickly made secret alliances with Ashley, Betsy, Marisa, and Natalie, though Betsy was suspicious and didn't trust him. At Galu, Russell S. kept going in his leadership role and took charge of setting up camp. John wanting to talk over how to build their shelter annoyed Shambo. Back on Foa Foa, Russell H. told a completely fabricated story to the tribe that he was a fireman, a survivor of Hurricane Katrina in Template:City-state and that he lost his German Shepherd in the storm in order to get their sympathy. In the middle of the night, Russell H. emptied all of the water in everybody's canteens and burned Jaison's socks in order to make the rest of the castaways miserable, thinking that if he could control how his tribe felt, he could control how they think, and further himself in the game. His strategy seemed to work when Ben and Marisa argued the next morning. Galu avenged their loss at the Reward Challenge and won the first Immunity Challenge. In addition to winning Tribal Immunity, Jeff also gave Galu a flint. Mike talked to others in his tribe that they should vote out the physically weakest, who he thought was Ashley. Marisa suspected Russell H. was up to something and she told him that she was uncomfortable with him, so he immediately targeted her for elimination. Betsy told Natalie that she didn't trust Russell H. At the Tribal Council, Russell H.'s plan to eliminate Marisa came together and she was voted out 7-3.

Episode 2: "Taking Candy From a Baby"

• Reward/Immunity Challenge: In a walled off arena, three members of each tribe would battle for control of three balls. Once a castaway gets control of a ball, they would pass the ball to three other tribe members standing on a platform who would attempt to throw the ball through the opposing tribe's basket at the other end of the arena. One point would be scored when a ball is made in the basket. After every point, the tribes would change who was in the arena and on the platform. The first tribe to score three points would win.
  • Reward: Fishing gear

The day after Tribal Council, Betsy and Russell H. agreed that they didn't trust each other. Jaison and Russell H. formed an alliance. Russell H. told Jaison that he was assuming that there was a Hidden Immunity Idol around the camp and went searching for it without any clues or knowing that it existed. While his tribemates stood around watching him look for the Idol, Russell H. located the Idol hidden in the roots of a tree. He removed the Idol from its hiding place and hid it in his underwear without anybody noticing. Russel H. then became the first in Survivor history to have found a hidden immunity idol without a clue. Later, he showed the Idol to Jaison. At the Reward/Immunity Challenge, Jeff announced that there was a surprise twist to be read after the Challenge. After two very physical points and the score tied 1-1, Jeff called a pause to the game and announced that the tribes were "right on the line of getting ugly," that there would be no more warnings of being too physical, and that he would remove anybody from the challenge that he deemed made a cheap shot such as a head butt, choking, or a slap to the face. During the very next round, Jeff removed Ben from the challenge for tripping Russell S., forcing Foa Foa to play the round shorthanded by one. Galu took advantage and scored the next point. Galu scored again during the next round to win the Reward/Immunity Challenge by a score of 3-1. Ben was the first castaway ever to be removed from a Challenge by discretion, but he shrugged it off claiming he was an "outlaw" when questioned about it by Jeff. After handing over the Immunity Idol to Galu, Jeff announced that the twist would be that Russell S., as leader of the Galu tribe, would select one member of his tribe to accompany Foa Foa back to their camp and observe them through the next Tribal Council, returning back to Galu afterwards. Russell S. selected Yasmin. Jeff gave Yasmin a note that she would read in private after getting to Foa Foa's camp. After Galu departed the Challenge area, Jeff told Mike to stay so that the Survivor Medical Team could look at him as Mike had taken several hard hits during the Challenge. After examining Mike, the Survivor Medical Team determined that he would be unable to continue and was pulled from the game. Jeff announced that Foa Foa would still be going to Tribal Council. Over at Galu, Shambo said that spearfishing was her thing, but when she came back with no fish and having lost the mouthpiece to the swim mask, Laura felt that Shambo had "signed her own death warrant." At Foa Foa's camp site, after introducing herself, Yasmin announced to Foa Foa that she would help Foa Foa strategize for the rest of the game because she wanted to see a "fair fight" for the rest of the game and didn't want to "take candy from a baby" or be "a cake walk" over a weak Foa Foa tribe. This did not go over well at all with Jaison and Russell H. stated that Yasmin would pay for the disrespect she showed the tribe. The private note for Yasmin gave her a clue to the Hidden Immunity Idol at Foa Foa's camp. Yasmin wanted a private conference with Ben about his "cheap shot" against her when he tackled her during the Challenge. The conference turned into a shouting match and continued on in front of the rest of Foa Foa, which Ashley and Russell H. thought made Ben look stupid and the rest of tribe not like him, respectively. Ben's conversation with Yasmin also involved racial controversy as Ben made references to negative stereotypes regarding Yasmin's African American heritage. Ben annoyed his entire tribe by chopping wood in the middle of a night while the tribe tried to sleep. Knowing that she was the next target for being voted out since she the oldest member of the tribe and perceived as the weakest in Challenges, Betsy lobbied for Ben to be voted off as he was disruptive to the tribe and his removal from the last Challenge cost them the win. At Tribal Council, the topics of Yasmin's visit and put down of the Foa Foa tribe and Ben's personality and actions during the Challenge were discussed. Betsy continued to lobby to vote out Ben. Yasmin left the Tribal Council area before the voting started. Betsy's lobbying proved ineffective and she was voted out 7-1.

Episode 3: "It's Called a Russell Seed"

• Reward/Immunity Challenge: A pair of castaways from each tribe would swim out into the ocean to retrieve one of four crates. Between the beach and where the crates are located would be a "battle zone" marked off by four flags. Within this zone, an opposing tribe member would try to prevent the two castaways from crossing the zone and reaching the crate. Once the two castaways crossed the zone, they would bring a crate back to the beach and a second pair of castaways would go out to retrieve another crate. Once all four crates were retrieved, the crates would need to be stacked to solve a puzzle. The first tribe to complete the puzzle would win.
  • Reward: Comfort items of pillows, candles, mats, beach towels, and a hammock

The day after Tribal Council, Jaison talked to Mick about wanting to vote out Ben next because of racist comments he made about Yasmin when she visited the Foa Foa campsite and at the last Tribal Council. Russell H. told Ben that Ashley was trying to get rid of Ben, because Russell H. felt that he needed to keep Ben in the game and he wanted Ashley out. Ben confronted Ashley about Russell's story that she first brought up his name to be voted out before the last Tribal Council. Ben told Ashley that somebody told him about Ashley's plot, but he would not say who that somebody was except that it wasn't Russell H. Ashley went to verify the story with Natalie, who denied she told Ben. Over at Galu, Shambo felt alienated from her tribe. At the Reward/Immunity Challenge, Galu never lost the lead and won their third consecutive Challenge. After the challenge was over, Jeff gave Russell S., as leader of the Galu tribe, an option of trading the comfort items for more functional items such as fishing gear, a pot, a lantern, and a tarp. Russell S. chose the comfort items because he knew it would make the women of the tribe happier even though he also knew the men would disagree with his choice. Russell S. was also given the decision on who to send to Foa Foa's camp to observe them through the next Tribal Council. This time, he chose Shambo. Shambo's visit with Foa Foa went well with them and she felt more comfortable with them than her own tribe. Shambo was excited about the two clues to the Hidden Immunity Idol, but she did not know that Russell H. had already found it. Back over at Galu, Russell S. defended his decision about taking the comfort items because he said that he was the type of man who believes he is supposed to take care of his women. His defense did not go over well with John and Erik. Jaison gave Ashley and Natalie an ultimatum that either Ben would be voted out at the next Tribal Council or he would quit, though he was not serious about quitting. Russell H., Liz, and Ben wanted to vote out Ashley, but Mick was unsure if he wanted to vote for her or Ben. Russell H. made an agreement with Mick that as long as Mick would not vote for Russell H., Ben would be next voted out after Ashley. To try to gain Mick's trust, Russell H. showed the Hidden Immunity Idol to Mick. Mick and Russell H. tried to convince Jaison to vote off Ashley using the threat of an all girl alliance that would vote out the Foa Foa men. At Tribal Council, Jaison and Ben argued over Ben's racist statements. In the end, the tribe decided to vote against Ben and he was voted out 6-1.

Episode 4: "Hungry for a Win"

• Reward Challenge: Three castaways from each tribe would play a game similar to bocce. A flag would be placed in the center of a circle. The castaways would take turns tossing three balls each at the flag. The tribe who throws a ball closest to the flag would win.
  • Reward: Three chickens
• Immunity Challenge: The castaways would race across a net run carrying wooden blocks to a platform. When all of the blocks were at the platform, they would need to be stacked into a tower. The castways would then cross a rope bridge to a second platform where two nets would be tied together holding more wooden blocks. After the nets were untied, the blocks would have to be stacked into another tower. The first tribe to stack both towers would win.

When Shambo returned to Galu, she wasn't happy as she felt more appreciated over at Foa Foa. At Foa Foa, Jaison felt as though he made a bad choice to apply for Survivor because he and the rest of his tribe were cold and wet and hungry. Erik talked to Shambo about the Hidden Immunity Idol clues she had received and she shared the clues with both him and John. The Tree Mail told the tribe leaders that they needed to select two castaways to join them at the next Reward Challenge. Mick chose Russell H. and Natalie. Russell S. took Shambo and Dave. When the six arrived at the challenge site, Jeff was nowhere to be seen and the castaways did not know what to do. After some hesitation, the tribes made a scramble towards a treasure chest and the cage of chickens. When they opened the treasure chest, they discovered instructions telling them that they were on their own to do the challenge. The challenge came down to Dave's last toss where he had to place his last ball or knock another Galu ball closest to the flag. Dave made the ricochet shot and Galu took home the four chickens. While his three Galu tribemates were at the Reward Challenge and the others were sleeping, Erik went looking for the Hidden Immunity Idol at his campsite and found it. When the victorious trio returned to Galu with the chickens, Russell S. assigned Shambo the job of taking care of them. Over at Foa Foa, Russell H. had doubts about Jaison's resolve to stay in the game, so he thought about changing his alliance to take Natalie all the way to the final two. On the morning of day 10, Shambo let one of the chickens escape. Kelly was upset at Yasmin for doing nothing around camp. Foa Foa broke Galu's challenge win streak at four when they came from behind at the second tower stacking stage to win the Immunity Challenge. Russell S. talked to Erik about voting out Monica due to her being slow during the rope bridge stage of the Immunity Challenge. Brett brought up Yasmin's name for doing nothing around camp. Shambo and Yasmin wanted to vote out Monica because of the challenge. When Russell S. was told that the rest of the tribe was leaning towards voting out Yasmin, he was upset that the tribe was not following his lead. However, at Tribal Council, he followed the majority and Yasmin was voted out 8-2.

Episode 5: "Walking on Thin Ice"

• Reward Challenge: A food eating challenge. Two castaways would face off against each other by spinning a roulette-like wheel with various food items on it that would be blended together and have to be drunk by the castaways. The castaway would score one point if they were able to drink the whole glass. The challenge would not be a race and there was no time limit on getting the food item down. The first tribe to score five points would win. The draw of the castaways and food items were:

Shambo	Jaison	Giant clam, Jeff's choice: octopus, sea snail, noni juice, seaweed
Russell S.	Russell H.	Jellyfish, milk
Brett	Mick	Giant clam, sea cucumber, milk
Monica	Liz	Sea urchin, sea noodle
Dave	Ashley	Sea slug guts, water

• Reward: Steaks, sausages, and onions

• Immunity Challenge: One man and one woman from each tribe would hold on to a rope that would suspend a net. The castaways from the other tribe would attempt to toss coconuts into the net which would weigh it down. The castaway who held on to the rope the longest without letting the net touch the ground would win for their tribe.

After returning to camp from Tribal Council, Shambo felt more alienated from her tribe as she was the only one besides Yasmin who voted for Monica. Monica felt slighted by Shambo because of that vote and wanted to vote her out next. Over at Foa Foa, Russell H. thought that Liz was trying to manipulate the next vote and he targeted her for the next vote as he wanted to be the only one manipulating the tribe. At the Reward Challenge, the first four pairs of castaways all succeeded in downing their glasses and the challenge came down to Dave and Ashley. Dave got his glass down while making various vomiting-like noises, which disturbed Ashley. After some taunting by the Galu bench, Ashley quit from the challenge before she could finish her glass and lost the challenge for Foa Foa. Russell S. had to choose an observer to go the Foa Foa campsite and he chose Shambo for the second time, which made her very unhappy. Russell S. stated to the rest of the tribe that Shambo had to pay for the loss of the chicken, but after this, the slate would be clean. While trying to start the fire to cook up their challenge winnings, Russell S. had trouble and argued with Dave about when Dave should step in to help with the fire. After a while, Dave stepped in and got the fire started. At Foa Foa, Shambo shared all of the clues to the Hidden Immunity Idol with Foa Foa. Liz thought that either Ben or Russell H. had the Idol and since Ben did not play it when he was voted out, that Russell H. had to have had it. She confronted him about it, he denied he had it, and then threatened Liz for confronting him. The rain started to pour during the night of day 13 and continued into day 14. At the Immunity Challenge, Foa Foa selected Liz and Russell H. to hold the ropes, while Galu selected Laura and Russell S. Foa Foa had trouble tossing the coconuts into the nets while Galu was able to add many to Russell H. and Liz's nets. Russell H. was the first to drop his net. Liz dropped her net next, losing the challenge for Foa Foa. Back at camp, the rain was still coming down, forcing Foa Foa to huddle under their shelter and they could not strategize or scramble as normal before a Tribal Council. Russell H. originally wanted Liz out because she had confronted him (like Marisa and Betsy), but had second thoughts after seeing her strength in the immunity challenge. He also knew that Ashley was clearly the weakest link in the tribe. At Tribal Council, Russell H. put aside his vendetta and went with the rest of the tribe to vote out Ashley 5-1.

Episode 6: "This Is the Man Test"

• Reward Challenge: One castaway would be strapped into a wooden spherical cage and would have to guide two blindfolded castaways in rolling the cage through a maze through the forest. At the end of the maze would be a labyrinth-like table maze. The castaway inside the cage would then have to guide four blindfolded castaways in solving the table maze. The first tribe to finish the table maze would win.
  • Reward: Pizza while observing the losing tribe at Tribal Council.

The rain continued for the fifth straight day and the two Russells continued to work around their campsites while the other castaways tried to stay out of the rain. The rain finally broke on the morning of day 15. At the Reward Challenge, after Jeff described the rules of the challenge, he announced that both tribes would be going to Tribal Council that night to vote somebody out of the game. Galu sat out Dave, Kelly, Monica, and Shambo. Foa Foa selected Liz to be the guide with Jaison and Russell H. pushing the cage. Galu selected Laura to be the guide and Eric and Russell S. pushing the cage. Towards the end of the cage pushing stage, Russell S. became disoriented and struggled to make it to the puzzle table. Jeff noticed that Russell S. collapsed at his station on the puzzle table, called for a halt, and for the Survivor Medical Team to immediately tend to Russell S. The Survivor Medical Team reported that Russell S. had blood pressure even lower than Mike. Jeff made the call that the challenge was over, neither tribe would win, both tribes would go to Tribal Council, the medical team would tend to Russell S. and, if he was better, he would be at Tribal Council. The Survivor Medical Team made the decision that Russell S. was not fit to continue and he was pulled out of the game. Over at Foa Foa, Liz and Natalie knew that one of them was to be voted out and they each tried to lobby the men in voting the other out. At Galu, Laura plotted to vote out Shambo for being a potential threat to flip to the other tribe post-merger. Monica wanted to vote for Shambo in retaliation for Shambo's votes against her. The Galu men were thinking about voting for Monica instead of Shambo as Monica was seen at the weakest link. When the tribes arrived at the Tribal Council site, Jeff announced that Russell S. was pulled from the game but doing fine. The castaways discussed Russell S.'s departure, the hardships of playing Survivor, and perceptions about how the game was going. Jeff made a final announcement that due to the unprecedented circumstances of not completing a challenge, there would be no Tribal Council votes and nobody would be going home. Jeff told Galu that they would need to select a new tribe leader.

Episode 7: "Houdini Magic"

• Reward Challenge: The castaways would play a variation of Concentration with 13 pairs of survival items plus four unpaired dummy items hidden under covers. One tribe member at a time would uncover two items. If the items matched, they would score one point for their tribe. However, the tribe leaders would have the option of forfeiting the point and taking the uncovered pair. The tribe with the most points at the end of the challenge would win.
  • Reward: A sailing trip aboard a three-masted barque and lunch
• Immunity Challenge: The tribes would paddle out into the ocean to retrieve six sets of fish-shaped puzzle pieces. Once back on the beach, three tribe members would have to assemble the puzzle pieces. The first tribe to assemble their puzzle would win.

The men of Galu conspired to vote Shambo in as the new leader of the tribe to secure her loyalty to them, but kept her in the dark about their plans. At the Reward Challenge, Dave, Kelly, and Shambo sat out the Challenge. Shambo had to delegate her power of taking the matched pairs and announced that Erik would make the decisions, but Dave quickly made her change her mind and delegate Brett. Laura scored the first point of the Challenge by finding a fire starting kit, but Brett decided to keep the kit that was wrapped in a large tarp and forfeited the point. The remaining matched pairs were kept for points and Galu won the challenge by a score of 7-4. Shambo chose Laura to miss the reward and observe Foa Foa because Shambo wanted to "keep her guys strong for a challenge tomorrow". Kelly and Monica thought Shambo's promotion to tribe leader was going to her head and were not happy about the choice of Laura, and Laura thought she was sent because Shambo didn't like her. While at Foa Foa, Russell H. tried to make an alliance with Laura to go with to the final two. He also lied to Laura that the clue she received to the Hidden Immunity Idol was worthless as Ben had already found it, didn't play it when he was voted out, and was hidden at some unknown spot around camp. The Immunity Challenge was won by Galu when Brett, Dave, and Kelly came from behind during the puzzle assembly stage. Jaison's poor performance during the challenge made Russell H. consider voting him out instead of Liz. Liz thought she was safe when Russell H. told her that the two options at Tribal Council were to vote out Natalie or Jaison, but Liz was voted off 4-1.

Episode 8: "All Hell Breaks Loose"

• Immunity Challenge: The castaways would play a variation of tee ball with the men competing against the men and the women against the women. The playing field would be divided into sections with different point values. Each castaway would take one swing at the ball. Wherever the ball comes to a stop would be that castaway's score. The two castaways, one from each gender, with the highest score would win immunity.

Laura and Shambo had an argument over Laura's missing canteen that devolved into an argument about how they treat each other at camp. The treemail for day 19 sounded like a Reward Challenge announcement, but when the tribes arrived at the challenge site, Jeff was not there and only a closed treasure chest was on the beach. When the castaways opened the chest, they saw new blue buffs and supplies to create a new tribe flag. The note stated that the new merged tribe would move to the old Galu campsite and there was a feast down the beach for them. When the castaways returned back to their new campsite, they settled on a tribe name of Aiga which meant "extended family" in Samoan according to Brett. Russell H. showed Laura his Hidden Immunity Idol and told her that if she could take him to the top seven that he would give it to her. He told her nobody else knew that he had the idol and that the deal was contingent on two rules: the former Galu could get rid of any of the former Foa Foa members anytime they wanted, but that the first person to go had to be one of the former Galu men. Laura didn't go for the deal as she thought that Russell H. was working from a weak position. Turned away, Russell H. changed his plans to target Laura for elimination and offered the same Hidden Immunity Idol deal to Monica. Russell H. then moved to make the same deal with John and pushed to vote out Laura. Russell H. continued his strategizing by working on Shambo and her dislike for Laura. After explaining the Immunity Challenge, Jeff announced that there would be two Individual Immunity necklaces for this challenge with the men competing for one and the women competing for the other. John won for the men and Laura for the women. With Laura's win, Russell H. and Shambo's plan to vote out Laura collapsed. Laura told Erik that Russell H. showed her the Hidden Immunity Idol and he spread the news to John. Erik wanted to flush out Russell H.'s Hidden Immunity Idol. John wanted to break up the Laura/Monica alliance by voting out Monica told Erik that he should side with Laura and vote for Jaison as a ruse to distract her. The two then went to Brett and Dave about their plan. Erik then approached Jaison, Mick, and Natalie about voting for Monica, but to keep their vote a secret from Russell H. and to make him think he is the one being voted out so that he would play his idol. Jaison wanted to turn the tables on Erik and vote for him. Natalie told Laura about Erik's proposal and talked to her and Kelly about voting out Erik. Kelly told Monica about the plan to vote out Erik. Kelly and Laura told Dave that Erik couldn't be trusted and he had to go. Russell H. was concerned that the girls' story about voting for Erik was a ruse and that he was the actual target. At Tribal Council, Erik disparaged the former Foa Foa members. Before the votes were read, Russell H. played his Hidden Immunity Idol, however, not a single vote was cast against him. The girls' plan against Erik came to fruition. Erik did not see the blindside coming, so he did not play his Hidden Immunity Idol. Unknown to the rest of the tribe, the second Hidden Immunity Idol also left the game when Erik was voted out 10-2.

Episode 9: "Tastes Like Chicken"

• Reward Challenge: The tribe would split into two teams of five, with one castaway sitting out the challenge. Two castaways at a time, the teams would race out into a field to collect a series of poles with black and white colored coconuts. The poles would have to be arranged so that the white coconuts form a four digit number. One blindfolded team member would then have to use their sense of touch to unlock a multiple-dial combination lock using the four digit number. The first team to unlock their lock would win.
  • Reward: A trip to a waterfall rock slide and a picnic lunch
• Immunity Challenge: The castaways would have to toss a grappling hook to retrieve two bags with a wooden peg in each bag. The first three castaways to retrieve their bags would move on to the final puzzle round. In the final round, the castaways would untie the bags and try to insert one of the uniquely shaped pegs into board, which would release another peg. That peg would fit into another hole, which releases another peg, and so on until the board was completely full. The first castaway to complete their puzzle would win.

Back at camp after Tribal Council, Russell H. was worried that he was going to be voted out next and was looking for a miracle while Laura gloated over how the girls' plan worked out and Russell H.'s use of the Hidden Immunity Idol. The day after Tribal Council, Natalie caught a rat to eat, much to the surprise of her tribemates. At the Reward Challenge, the teams were selected by random draw. Natalie was the odd one out and did not participate in the challenge. However, she was told that she could select which team she thought would win the challenge and, if she guessed correctly, she would join them on their reward. She selected the yellow team of Brett, Jaison, Laura, Mick, and Russell H. who faced off against the purple team of Dave, John, Kelly, Monica, and Shambo. The yellow team held the lead throughout the pole retrieval stage, but the purple team caught up during the puzzle stage. Monica unlocked the combination lock, before Laura could, and the purple team took the win. While the purple team was eating their picnic lunch, they received a clue to a new Hidden Immunity Idol. The winning group, which consisted of five of the seven remaining Galu members, decided to keep the knowledge of a new Idol to themselves, Brett, and Laura, and secret from the former Foa Foa members. When the five discussed which former Foa Foa member to vote out next, Shambo's defense of Russell H. made Kelly suspicious of her loyalties. Back at camp, Russell H. remarkably found his second Hidden Immunity Idol without the help of a clue. On day 24, Russell H. showed his second Idol to Shambo in order to secure her loyalty to the former Foa Foa. She told him about the plotting against him. They planned to let the former Galu vote for Russell H., who would use the Idol, while the former Foa Foa would vote against Laura. Just in case Laura won the Individual Immunity, they planned to vote Kelly out. At the Immunity Challenge, Russell H. and Shambo's fear came true when Laura won immunity for the second time in a row by beating Mick and Shambo in the final stage. Russell H. and Shambo switched to their plan B. Russell H. told Jaison that he found his second Idol and told him to vote for Kelly. Jaison told Mick and Natalie and the old Foa Foa focused on getting the former Galu to vote against Russell H. During a discussion with Dave, John, and Laura, Monica brought up the possibility that one of the old Foa Foa might have a second Hidden Immunity Idol and they should compensate for that during their vote, but Dave and Laura didn't think any of them would have gotten lucky enough a second time. At Tribal Council, Dave and Kelly talked about why they voted out Erik, who was visibly upset by the comments. The former Foa Foa tribe's plan went perfectly when Russell H. pulled out his second Hidden Immunity Idol, negating any votes against him. The seven former Galu votes against him didn't count, leaving the former Foa Foa votes as the only ones that counted. As planned, they all voted against Kelly and she was blindsided by a vote of 4-0. The Hidden Immunity Idol went back into the game.

Episode 10: "The Day of Reckoning"

• Reward Challenge: The tribe would be split into two teams. One castaway from each tribe would be hoisted aloft in a cradle held up by four ropes controlled by the other team members. The castaway in the cradle would have to be maneuvered around the playing field to collect 15 numbered flags in order and placed into a slot in a log. The first team to collect all 15 flags would win.
  • Reward: A plane trip to Savai'i and a picnic lunch at a waterfall
• Immunity Challenge: Each castaway would throw one stone at a set of three hanging tiles. For each tile broken, they would earn one spear to be used in the next round. The castaways would use a crossbow to shoot the spears they earned at a target. The castaway that shoots their spear closet to the center of the target would win.

When the tribe returned back to their campsite, Russell H. and Shambo gloated about how the last Tribal Council vote played out. The next day, Russell H. went searching for his third Hidden Immunity Idol. Shambo approached John about joining her alliance with the former Foa Foa and voting out Laura. John figured that only he knew that Shambo had flipped allegiances, but was unsure what he would do with that knowledge and told her that he would not tell anybody about her proposal. At the Reward Challenge, the yellow team of Jaison, John, Mick, Monica, and Shambo lost to the purple team of Brett, Dave, Laura, Natalie, and Russell H. The winning team was given a Palm Pre to use during their reward. While flipping through the phone's photo gallery, Russell H. discovered a series of text, photo and video clues to the Hidden Immunity Idol hidden under a rock which he shared with the rest of the winning team. Back at camp while the purple team was off on their reward, Jaison approached Monica about joining the Foa Foa alliance of five without telling her that Shambo was the fifth alliance member. Monica said that in order to get her vote, she wanted John to be voted out. Monica suspected that Shambo was the secret fifth vote. Back from the reward, Russell H. shared the clues to the Hidden Immunity Idol with Jaison and Mick. When Russell H. and Jaison went looking for the idol, Dave and Laura followed him. Russell H. thought he recognized the rock from the video clue, but with Dave on his tail, he had to run through the forest to ditch Dave. He succeeded in ditching Dave, returned to the spot, and found his third idol. Monica talked with Laura about the former Foa Foa's proposal, but told Laura there were two people on board with them instead of the single person Jaison and Mick told her. Monica told Laura that she thought it was John and Shambo who had flipped sides. The Immunity Challenge was won by Mick. Back at camp, Shambo told Brett that she was going to vote against Laura no matter what and that she would have in the past two Tribal Councils if Laura had not had immunity those two times. Dave and Laura wanted to vote Russell H. to flush out the Hidden Immunity Idol if he had one, but John said that it would be better to vote Natalie because she did not go looking for the idol and was the least likely to have it. Monica came up with a plan to save Laura where she would tell the former Foa Foa members that she would be voting for John to get them to vote John, but she would actually vote for Natalie, hoping to have the vote five against Natalie, four against John, and one against Laura. Monica told Mick and Russell H. her story, but they were unsure if she was truly changing sides or telling them a story. When Brett told John about Monica's plan, he was not happy about being used as bait without being told first and was not going to save Laura at the expense of him getting votes. Russell H. told John that he thought the former Foa Foa members were being swindled into voting for John and would vote for Laura instead. John told Russell H. that if he were to switch his vote to Laura after a tie that the next person voted out must be a former Foa Foa. John's first instinct was to let the Tribal Council vote to go through two tie votes and then hope that one of the former Foa Foa loses in the stone picking tie breaker. At Tribal Council, Shambo said that the unity of the former Galu was broken when Erik was voted out. Laura disagreed and said that the former Galu was still strong, but Jeff pointed out that if Shambo was on the fence, Laura couldn't say that the former Galu was still strong. The votes were cast and Jeff tallied the vote to a 5-5 tie between Laura and Natalie. Per the rules, a second vote was held where Laura and Natalie would not vote and the remaining eight castaways had to vote for one of them. The second votes were cast, John changed his vote, and Laura was voted out 5-3.

Episode 11: "Off With Their Heads!"

• Reward Challenge: Instead of a Reward Challenge, a Survivor Auction was held. Items won were:

Contestants	Item(s)
Brett	Nothing
Dave	Nothing
Jaison	A sealed container with a note that will help him at the next Immunity Challenge
John	Clue to the Hidden Immunity Idol, slice of apple pie
Mick	Cheeseburger, french fries, and a beer
Monica	Whole roasted chicken (Mystery item)
Natalie	Peanut butter and jelly sandwich, a shower
Russell H.	Nothing
Shambo	Sea noodles and sea slug guts with grated parmesan cheese (Mystery item)

• Immunity Challenge: With one hand, the castaways would hang on to a rope with several knots tied into it. The rope would be tied to one end of a heavy log. The other end of the log would be connected to a pivot point on a platform that the castaways would stand on. The castaways would start at the knot closest to the end of the log. Every three minutes, they would change hands and move one knot further down the rope. This would increase the angle of the log at the pivot point and increase the weight that the castaways would have to hold. The castaway who held on to the rope the longest would win.

The tree mail for day 28 contained envelopes full of $500, signaling a Survivor Auction instead of a Reward Challenge, much to the delight of the castaways. Unlike previous Survivor Auctions, money and food could not be shared. Jaison outbid everybody for the sealed container as he wanted to make sure that none of the former Galu members received help at the Immunity Challenge. When John won the bidding for the slice of apple pie, Jeff gave John the option to give up his slice of pie and instead give four other members of the tribe a piece of pie, he declined it stating that he hoped the tribe would understand. Russell H. thought the move was a strategic mistake, adding that he would had given the pie to his Foa Foa tribemates and Shambo if he had won the pie item. When the tribe returned to camp, John followed the clue he won for the Hidden Immunity Idol, found the correct spot, but not the Idol. This raised his suspicion that Russell H. might have already found the Idol. After the rules of the Immunity Challenge were stated by Jeff, Jaison opened the sealed container which he had won at the Survivor Auction. The note inside stated that at any time during the challenge, Jaison may move back two knots on the rope, giving him an advantage as there would be less weight for him to hold compared to the others. The Immunity Challenge came down to Jaison and Dave. Jaison had used his Survivor Auction advantage early in the challenge and was holding onto the rope two knots from the end while Dave was hanging on to bare rope. Dave tried to hold out, but the rope slipped and Jaison took Individual Immunity, justifying his decision to use all his money to buy the advantage item at the Survivor Auction. Back at camp, the tribe decided to eat the chickens that they had won at the fourth Reward Challenge, which made Shambo depressed as she had been the chickens' caretaker. Shambo took full control on cooking of the chickens and would brook no objections from any of the tribe on her method of boiling the chickens. Since he had won the chickens, Dave thought he was entitled to comment on how the chickens were being cooked, which upset Shambo and she immediately wanted him to be voted out next. That night, Shambo had what she called "a clairvoyant dream", in which the tribe had voted out Dave. She told Russell H. about the dream and he went along with her wish. John talked to Russell H. about their previous deal that one of the former Foa Foa had to go next and Russell H. suggested Mick. John then confronted Russell H. about the missing Hidden Immunity Idol and Russell H. told him that he had it. Russell H. realized later that he had made a mistake in telling John about the Idol and that he needed to get rid of John to cover up the mistake. Russell H. told Dave that he could save him from the next vote if Dave voted for John. Dave agreed and said he would talk to Monica about voting for John. Russell H. then went to talk to Mick about his plan who agreed with the plan, but was concerned that Shambo would not be happy that the former Foa Foa was not following her lead. Mick told Jaison about Russell H.'s plan and Jaison was also very concerned about how Shambo would react, but told Mick he did not understand why John should go. John did not see through the Foa Foa pact,and actually voted for Mick, knowing Russell had told him about the immunity idol. But at Tribal Council, Russell H.'s plan came together, stunning Shambo in the process, and blindsiding John by a vote of 7-1-1.

Episode 12: "Damage Control"

• Immunity Challenge: The castaways would compete in a bowling tournament. The castaways would be randomly matched against another castaway and given two rolls. The castaway who knocks down the most pins moves on to the next round. The remaining castways would compete in another round and so forth until a winner is determined.

After returning to camp from Tribal Council, Shambo was stunned about the vote going against John. Russell H. started his damage control by lying to Shambo that John was upset at her, he wanted to get rid of her, and that Russell H. was trying to protect Shambo from breaking her promise to John. She bought the lie and told Russell H. that Dave still had to go next. Jaison decided to change strategies in the game by focusing on potential jury votes by discussing the jury with Brett and Monica. Jaison also told them that Russell H. told Mick that he made $1.7 million last year in his job. Brett thought the conversation with Jaison showed that there were cracks forming in the Foa Foa alliance. When the tribe arrived at the challenge site, Jeff announced they would be playing for immunity, not the expected reward. The bowling tournament results were:

	First Round					Second Round					Final Round
	Natalie		5
	Shambo		9
						Shambo		5
						Russell H.		4
	Brett		0
	Russell H.		4
											Shambo		0
											Jaison		2
	Jaison		6
	Monica		1
						Jaison		7
						Dave		0
	Mick		7
	Dave		10(X)

Jaison took his second immunity win in a row, while Shambo reaffirmed her statement that Dave was going home at the next Tribal Council. After the challenge, Dave knew that he was the lowest man on the totem pole in the tribe. Russell H. told Mick and Natalie that Dave was the vote as Shambo wanted him to go next. Russell H. also told Monica that Dave was next and she tried to lobby for voting out Shambo as she would be his biggest threat with the jury. Russell H. thought about keeping Dave around as he thought he could win in the final vote against him, so he went to talk to Dave about voting against Shambo. Dave would have to get Brett and Monica to vote for Shambo. At Tribal Council, Shambo got her wish and Dave was voted out 7-1.

• Immunity Challenge: The castaways would swim out into the ocean to retrieve one of three bags. They would then swim back and have to launch the bag up into a basket on top of a tower by jumping on a plank setup like a seesaw. The first castaways to get their three bags into the basket would win.

Russell H. thought that Brett was the biggest threat to him remaining as he was well liked by the jury, so he started to work on voting out Brett. Mick told Russell H. that he was concerned about whom Russell H. was taking to the final vote, which made Russell H. concerned that Mick would flip and vote him out as that was what he would have done if he were in Mick's place. At the Immunity Challenge, Brett edged out Mick to win Individual Immunity. Brett's win made Jaison concerned that Brett could win immunity again, forcing the Foa Foa alliance to vote out one of their own before they eliminated all of the former Galu members. Russell H. told the Foa Foa alliance that Monica was to be voted out next. Brett talked to Mick and Monica about Russell H.'s plans for the final three. Mick thought about making a big move against Russell H. since Mick thought Russell H. would take Natalie and Shambo to the final three, since Natalie would be easy to beat, and Russell H. thought that Shambo would not get jury votes. Mick talked to Jaison about Russell H.'s final three plans. Monica tried to stir the pot with Russell H. by focusing on him keeping big threats around like Jaison as he was just waiting for Russell H. to play the idol and then he would vote against him. She also told Russell H. that Natalie told her about him being a multi-millionaire. She corrected herself and said that was not Natalie, but Jaison who told this info. Monica said she would be casting her jury vote on need, not how the person played the game. Monica's ploy worked and Russell H. went off to confront his alliance member about Monica's story. He first confronted Natalie, who denied everything. Then he and Natalie went to Brett, who said Jaison told him everything. Russell H. finally confronted Jaison about Monica's story and he denied it because he had forgotten he told Brett and Monica those stories. Jaison was nervous that Russell H. would target him so he went to talk to Mick and Natalie about when to vote out Russell H. Feeling a potential threat from Jaison, Russell H. stated that he would play the Hidden Immunity Idol if he felt any heat. At Tribal Council, before the discussion started, Russell H. pulled out the Hidden Immunity Idol and put it around his neck. Russell H. flaunted the power of the idol. Monica commented that she was busy stirring up the tribe after the Immunity Challenge and Russell H. was fuming about her pushing his buttons and upsetting him. Russell H. countered that her spreading the stories earned her a trip home and she was sent home by a vote of 5-2.

Episode 13: "Two Brains Are Better Than One"

• Reward Challenge: Coconuts would be suspended in the air by intertwined ropes on a frame. The castaways would be split into two teams. One at a time, a castaway would select a rope to remove, which would cause coconuts to be released and drop to the ground. The first team that causes 100 coconuts to drop would lose.
  • Reward: A trip to a local village with a feast and overnight stay.
• Immunity Challenge: The castaways would run out into a field to six different stations to count the number of objects (pigs, crabs, rocks, coconuts, octopi, and fish) at each station. The count of the objects would be used to unlock a combination lock. The first castaway to open his/her lock and break the tile wins.

Brett and Natalie felt a connection through their shared interest in religion. At the Reward Challenge, the castaways drew stones to be team captains. The captains were Russell H. and Natalie. The two played rock-paper-scissors to choose first in a schoolyard pick to select their teammates, with Natalie winning with paper covering rock. Natalie selected Brett and Mick. Russell H. selected Jaison and Shambo. While the challenge was going on, Russell H. noticed Natalie and Brett joining hands for a prayer as "prayer warriors" to help them through the challenge. He commented to Shambo that he suspected that there was a possible alliance going on with Brett and Natalie and that they needed to break it up. The challenge was won by the team of Jaison, Russell H., and Shambo. While on their reward, Jaison told Russell H. agreed to go to the top three together. The winning trio also discussed the possibility of a Natalie/Brett alliance and that they had to put a stop to it immediately by voting out Brett or Mick next. Back at camp, Brett suggested three from the losing team create their own reward by spending the day at the beach hunting for snails. When Russell H. returned back to camp after the reward, he talked with Natalie about her picking of Brett at the Reward Challenge and she reassured him that their alliance from early in the game to go to the final two was still strong. Russell H. was extremely confident in his standing in the game and that he could beat Brett in any challenge, allowing the former Foa Foa to eliminate the last Galu member. Russell H.'s confidence faded when Brett won his second Immunity Challenge in a row. Jaison told Russell H. that Shambo needed to be voted out next because she was not good at challenges and the former Foa Foa needed to be at their best in order to prevent Brett from winning any further Immunity Challenges. Jaison quickly walked away without comment when Shambo approached. Russell H. told Shambo that Jaison was upset, that he wanted to vote out Mick, and that Russell H. agreed with the vote. However, Shambo was suspicious that Jaison was hiding something. Russell H. told Mick that Shambo was getting on his nerves and that it was time to vote her out. Mick was surprised at the sudden change in Russell H., but was still suspicious about Russell H.'s motives. At the Tribal Council, Russell H. once again openly wore his Hidden Immunity Idol, but did not use it during his final chance to cash it in. Shambo was voted out 5-1.

Episode 14: "This Game Ain't Over"

• Immunity Challenge: The castaways would race across a rope net and a balance beam to retrieve a bag of puzzle pieces. Once back with the bag, they would climb up a steep wall to a platform where they would assemble the puzzle pieces. The first castaway to assemble their puzzle would win.

The remaining Foa Foa concentrated on getting rid of Brett, feeling that he shouldn't be there. Russell H. talked to Natalie about how they could keep her in the game should Brett win the next Immunity Challenge as Russell H. thought the men would stick together and vote her out in order to try to beat Brett at the following Immunity Challenge. Russell H. was again extremely confident going into the Immunity Challenge, but while he had an early lead, Brett came from behind during the puzzle assembly stage and pulled off his third Immunity win in a row. Natalie and Russell H. again discussed what the plans were for Tribal Council. Russell H. wanted to keep Natalie around as he felt that she wouldn't get any jury votes as he felt she would be seen as riding his coattails. Russell H. told Jaison that in order for them to make it to the final three, they had to keep Natalie and get rid of Mick, which Jaison agreed with. Russell H. told Mick a different story in that Jaison could not beat Brett in anything and that only voting out Jaison gave the former Foa Foa a chance against Brett. Mick agreed with the plan as he felt that Jaison wasn't mentally in the game, while Natalie was. With the vote split Jaison agreeing to vote for Mick and vice versa, the power of who went home fell to Natalie and Russell H. They decided to vote against Jaison and he went home blindsided by a vote of 4-1.

• Immunity Challenge: The castaways would balance a wooden statue on top of a pole which they would have to keep upright holding the bottom of the pole. At regular intervals, an additional section would be added to the end of the pole, making the pole longer and harder to balance. The last castaway still holding the statue up would win.

Upon returning to camp, Brett knew that he had to win the next Immunity Challenge or he would be going home. Russell H. made a deal with Brett that should either of them win the next Immunity Challenge, that they would take each other to the final three. The final four took the traditional journey honoring the castaways voted out before heading to their final Immunity Challenge. The challenge came down to Brett and Russell H. With the poles at 7 feet (2.1 m) in length, Brett lost the balance on his pole and Russell H. won his first Individual Immunity. Brett figured that his only hope to remain in the game was the deal he made with Russell H. Russell H. gloated about his challenge win to Mick and Natalie and said that he thought he had a great shot at the million dollars and was already rehearsing his jury speech. Mick was concerned that Russell H. had some secret plan and that Mick was going home, but Natalie reassured him that the former Foa Foa would stick together. Russell H. told Brett that he had a problem because he had made a deal with everybody to take them to the final three. Russell H. told Brett that Brett was the kind of guy that Russell H. wanted his kids to marry and he wished he was like Brett when he was young. Russell H. told Brett that Mick and Natalie would be voting against him and asked if Brett could win a fire starting challenge if Russell H. joined Brett in voting for Mick, forcing a tie. At Tribal Council, Mick and Natalie stated that there was no doubt in their mind that Brett was going home. Jeff asked Russell H. if he could appreciate the competitor in Brett. Russell H. answered that he respected the game and that Brett deserved to be in the final three. Mick and Natalie emphasized that strategically, Russell H. had to vote out Brett. In the end, Russell H. voted against Brett and he became the final jury member by a vote of 3-1.

Mick, Natalie, and Russell H. celebrated with the traditional Day 39 breakfast. Russell H. pressed Natalie over what she was going to say to the jury and he continued to gloat over how he had locked up the necessary jury votes. The three then burned their encampment. At the final Tribal Council, the final three made their opening statements. Mick stated that he tried to play the game without overstepping his morals by trying not promise too much, overtly stomp on, lie, and mislead people, or treat them as pawns in the game. Natalie focused on how she came into the game wanting to gain the confidence in going outside her comfort zone and that she appreciated everybody on the jury. Russell H. went over many of his big strategic moves throughout the game and that he played the game better than Mick or Natalie. The time then came for the jury to ask their questions to the final three. Jaison was up first, asking the three to tell the members of the jury who they really were and if they didn't, that he would. All three told the jury what they did, but Jaison pointed out that both Natalie and Russell H. had made a lot of money before coming on Survivor, that Mick had the potential to make a lot of money, and that the jury should not focus who was broke, but on other criteria for their vote. Shambo took the opportunity to apologize to America for dismantling Galu and that she questioned that judgment call. She called Mick's overall game play "feckless", which Mick did not know the meaning of. She used the word "coattail" to describe Natalie, to which Natalie defended that she purposefully tried not to be aggressive in the game. Shambo then said that there was no way that Mick and Natalie would get her vote and said nothing to Russell H. Brett asked Mick what a "bro date" would be like with him to see to what level Mick invested in Brett as a human being. Brett asked nothing of Natalie or Russell H. Kelly started with Natalie, telling her that she thought she was never on the field in the game and that Kelly always saw Natalie asking for help in the challenges, to which Natalie said that while she might not have been good in the challenges, but she gave 100% and that she got better as the game progressed. She asked Russell H. if he lied, cheated, and stole in real life as he did in the game, to which Russell H. said that he did not and that "honor, integrity, and loyalty" was the most important thing to him, which she had a hard time believing. She said nothing to Mick. Next up was Monica, who asked Mick and Natalie why they felt the other two sitting beside them did not deserve to win. Mick said that Natalie rode out her alignment with Russell H. throughout the game and that Russell H. was willing to lie, pit people against each other, mislead, and had a giant ego. Russell H. interrupted Mick's answer by stating that both Natalie and Mick didn't mind when Russell H. was being a snake and was congratulating him all the way. Natalie never got the opportunity to answer Monica's question. Dave asked the three what they thought their chances were with the jury. Mick thought it was 20-25%, Natalie 30-40%, and Russell H. 55%. Laura asked Russell H. what he learned about her that enabled him to beat her and asked nothing of Natalie or Mick. John asked for Mick and Natalie for the "hard sell" for his vote. Mick repeated the theme of his opening statement that he was a stand up guy. Natalie said that she saw how the aggressive women in the game were getting voted out and that she adapted her game after that. John asked nothing of Russell H. Erik asked no questions of the final three and instead made statements to the three. He told Mick that he did nothing to deserve the title of being the tribe leader of Foa Foa. To Russell H. he said that he played an unethical game and wondered if Russell H. got to the right place by behaving the wrong way and that Russell H. was proud of doing that. Finally, Erik told Natalie that people would call her weak and undeserving but that "why are those characteristics any less "admirable" than lying, cheating and stealing", that she would call herself the less deserving of the title Sole Survivor, but that "maybe, just maybe, in an environment filled with 'arrogance' (pointing to Russell H.), 'delusional entitlement' (pointing to Mick), maybe the person who thinks she is the least deserving is probably the most" and that she had his vote and hoped she would get four more. The jury gave Natalie an additional six votes and she became the Sole Survivor over Russell H. by a vote of 7-2-0.

Voting history

	Original Tribes								Merged Tribe
Episode #:	1	2		3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10		11	12		13	14		Reunion
Eliminated:	Marisa 7/10 votes	Mike No vote6	Betsy 7/8 votes	Ben 6/7 votes	Yasmin 8/10 votes	Ashley 5/6 votes	Russell S. No vote7	Liz 4/5 votes	Erik 10/12 votes	Kelly 4/4 votes5	Tie8	Laura 5/8 votes8	John 7/9 votes	Dave 7/8 votes	Monica 5/7 votes	Shambo 5/6 votes	Jaison 4/5 votes	Brett 3/4 votes	Mick 0/9 votes	Russell H. 2/9 votes	Natalie 7/9 votes
Voter	Vote
Natalie	Marisa		Betsy	Ben		Ashley		Liz	Erik	Kelly	Laura	None9	John	Dave	Monica	Shambo	Jaison	Brett	Jury Vote
Russell H.	Marisa		Betsy	Ben		Ashley		Liz	Erik	Kelly	Laura	Laura	John	Dave	Monica	Shambo	Jaison	Brett
Mick	Ashley		Betsy	Ben		Ashley		Liz	Erik	Kelly	Laura	Laura	John	Dave	Monica	Shambo	Jaison	Brett
Brett					Yasmin				Erik	Russell H.	Natalie	Natalie	John	Dave	Russell H.	Shambo	Jaison	Mick			Natalie
Jaison	Marisa		Betsy	Ben		Ashley		Liz	Erik	Kelly	Laura	Laura	John	Dave	Monica	Shambo	Mick				Natalie
Shambo					Monica				Jaison	Russell H.	Laura	Laura	Dave	Dave	Monica	Mick				Russell H.
Monica					Yasmin				Erik	Russell H.	Natalie	Natalie	John	Dave	Russell H.						Natalie
Dave					Yasmin				Erik	Russell H.	Natalie	Natalie	John	Shambo							Natalie
John					Yasmin				Erik	Russell H.	Natalie	Laura	Mick							Russell H.
Laura					Yasmin				Erik	Russell H.	Natalie	None9									Natalie
Kelly					Yasmin				Erik	Russell H.											Natalie
Erik					Yasmin				Jaison												Natalie
Liz	Marisa		Betsy	Ben		Ashley		Jaison
Russell S.					Yasmin
Ashley	Marisa		Betsy	Ben		Liz
Yasmin					Monica
Ben	Marisa		Betsy	Ashley
Betsy	Ashley		Ben
Mike	Marisa
Marisa	Ashley

^6 Mike was evacuated due to medical reasons, therefore no vote occurred for his removal from the game.

^7 Russell S. was evacuated due to medical reasons, therefore no vote occurred for his removal from the game.

^8 The first Tribal Council Vote resulted in a tie. Per the rules, a second vote was held where the castaways involved in the tie would not vote and the remaining castaways could only vote for the two tied.

^9 Laura and Natalie were not eligible to vote in the second Tribal Council vote.

Ratings

U.S. Nielsen ratings

Episode	Rating	Share	Rating/Share (18-49)	Viewers (millions)	Weekly Rank
"The Puppet Master"	6.8	11	3.6/11	11.66	#12
"Taking Candy From a Baby"	6.7	11	3.7/11	11.66	#22
"It's Called a Russell Seed"	6.9	11	3.7/11	11.54	#22
"Hungry for a Win"	7.0	11	3.4/10	11.69	#19
"Walking on Thin Ice"	7.1	11	3.5/10	11.78	#19
"This Is the Man Test"	7.7	12	4.0/11	12.88	#17
"Houdini Magic"	6.9	11	3.7/10	12.19	#15
"All Hell Breaks Loose"	7.3	11	3.7/10	12.44	#20
"Tastes like Chicken"	7.5	12	4.0/11	12.94	#18
"The Day of Reckoning"	7.2	11	3.8/11	12.33	#19
"The First 27 Days"	5.3	11	3.1	9.94	#23
"Off With Their Heads!"	7.5	12	3.9/11	12.82	#7
"Damage Control"	7.6	12	4.2/12	13.25	#11
"Two Brains Are Better Than One"	7.3	12	3.9/12	12.46	#16
"This Game Ain't Over"	7.6	12	4.4/11	13.97	#12
"The Reunion"	6.4	11	3.8/10	11.68	#17

External links

• Official CBS Survivor: Samoa Website