Author: Shane

With no time to waste, we start off right away with an immunity challenge. They will race to collect puzzle steps, which they will use to build a staircase, then they will complete a slide puzzle when they reach the top. Spencer is in the lead on the stair building the entire time, but Kelley and Jeremy are right behind him. Everybody eventually joins in on the puzzle, but it’s between Spencer and Kelley. Spencer wins immunity.

Kelley wants to piece together her own alliance of outcasts because they are screwed if Spencer, Tasha, and Jeremy go any further.

Kimmi goes off to get water with Keith, which causes immediate suspicion from Spencer, only getting worse after Kelley goes to join them. Kimmi’s target is Jeremy.

Then she returns to try to talk the others into a split vote. Spencer may not trust her, but Jeremy does.

When they get to Tribal Council, Spencer warns the others that he, Jeremy, and Tasha are voting the same way and not splitting the vote. He has deliberately excluded Kimmi from this decision, and either someone joins them or they go to rocks. But don’t worry, Kimmi, you’re still in the alliance.

Kelley plays her hidden immunity idol. Jeremy plays his, too.

Votes
Kelley (does not count)
Jeremy (does not count)
Kelley (does not count)
Jeremy (does not count)
Kelley (does not count)
Jeremy (does not count)

Because everybody voted for someone who used an idol, none of the votes count. Now they have to revote for somebody who is not immune. Jeff gives them some time to talk. Jeremy needs to confirm who voted for him. Really?

Votes
Tasha
Kimmi
Tasha
Kimmi
Tasha
Kimmi

It is tied again. They will not revote because Jeff confirms that none of them are willing to change their votes. Here’s where things change from the usual rock drawing. Either the others come to a unanimous decision, or Keith goes home by default because the two with votes are safe in that situation and everybody else has immunity. Kelley agrees to change her vote, and Kimmi has been voted off the island.

For the immunity challenge, they will race to six stations and collect puzzle pieces to solve a puzzle. Jeremy gets a bit of a lead over the rest of the pack, but Kelley manages to pull ahead. Spencer and Tasha fall behind the others, but everyone is still theoretically in it because it all comes down to the puzzle. Kelley wins immunity.

Since the other three are so tight, Keith realizes he’s probably at the top of the chopping block. He may not have any ideas, but Kelley makes a fake hidden immunity idol for him.

Jeremy’s not willing to take a chance that one of them has an idol. He tells Keith to vote for Spencer.

So the question is how does Keith let them know he has an idol without being obvious about it? He is subtle. So subtle that it’s lost on everyone.

Votes
Spencer
Keith
Spencer
Keith
Keith

With 3 votes, Keith is voted off the island. His idol may have worked, but he didn’t do anything with it.

For the final immunity challenge, they must keep balls in play as the balls spin around a maze, with more being added at regular intervals, up to a total of six. Seems kind of lame for a final immunity, but this one could be anyone’s game. Kelley is the first eliminated. Tasha follows. Then Spencer, all before they have even added the sixth ball. Jeremy wins immunity.

Like Keith before her, Kelley assumes she is gone. Perhaps she should have saved the hidden idol for herself because Keith wasted it. Her last ditch effort is to convince Jeremy what he already demonstrated concern about: Spencer is his biggest threat.

Spencer repeatedly threatens his allies that he will do whatever it takes to make sure they lose if they get rid of him. I don’t think I’ve seen this tactic so strongly employed before or understand why he keeps getting so aggressive in front of the jury.

Votes
Spencer
Kelley
Kelley
Kelley

With 3 votes, Kelley has been voted off the island.

Andrew blasts Spencer about his arrogance, specifically how he threatened his allies at the last Tribal Council. Spencer’s response is that may be so, but he’s better than he was in his last season. Then he uses the word arrogant again, calling out Jeremy for how he acted when voting out Kimmi.

Stephen asks Tasha about how she is viewed, as the person who did Jeremy’s dirty work. Then he asks Spencer to defend jumping between voting blocks, which he was far from alone in doing.

Ciera basically has that same question for all of them, this from the person who kept telling everyone they had to make big moves.

Keith asks Spencer and Jeremy to convince him why he should vote for the other person. I guess he’s not voting for Tasha then.

Abi doesn’t care about big moves. She asks about subtle moves. Tasha points to her relationship with Spencer. Spencer says he shifted blame toward Joe. And Jeremy, he played an idol, which is… subtle?

Kimmi is not even worth listening to. She has silently been a baby while the others spoke, and now she gets her chance to lash out.

Kelly Wiglesworth asks them to pick a number between 1 and 10. Over the course of 15 years, the best she’s managed to do is come up with the same question she was asked. With answers of 2, 3, and 4, if she really does use this question to decide, Spencer has a 70% chance of getting her vote.

Kass wants to complain about Spencer calling her a dumbass for the last two years, which she was. Her chaos bit was not a path to victory.

Kelley Wentworth asks about their second chance story. Oh, like we haven’t heard this episode after episode. Jeremy tugs at the jury with a story about how he’s going to have a baby, which he apparently didn’t want to reveal until right before the final vote.

Votes
Jeremy
Jeremy
Jeremy
Jeremy
Jeremy
Jeremy

The Survivor: Second Chance winner is Jeremy Collins. This is silly. Jeremy may have played a good game, but not convincing enough to win in a clean sweep. It’s pretty clear that the other two made a really stupid choice, though. Spencer had the chance go to the end with people like Abi and Keith but chose to go down what he knew was a worse path. In the end, he did a great job… of getting Jeremy the end. As did Tasha, who the jury apparently views as someone who did Jeremy’s dirty work, for which they give her blame rather than credit.

Survivor will of course be back again in February. The season is dubbed Brains, Braun, & Beauty. Oh. This again? Last time the Brains tribe was one of the dumbest and most inept ever, although interestingly, two of them are sitting next to each other in the final three tonight, with no votes to show for it.

The women overzealously made it known they wanted to get rid of Joe in Survivor: Second Chance Episode 12, and despite knowledge of a looming all female alliance, the guys went along with them.

The reward challenge will require them to unspool rope to which they are attached, build a bridge, and toss some sandbags. Reward is a trip to temples at Siam Reap. Keith won this the first time it was done, and with Joe gone, he may be the biggest challenge threat. Keith is leading the whole time. He has enough rope, which Jeremy and Spencer lack, allowing Keith to run away with the challenge. He chooses Kelley and Spencer to go with him. He picks Kelley to return the favor for her choosing him last time, and then he rambles about why he picked Spencer in a way that he knows doesn’t make much sense.

The girls predictably want to get rid of another guy, this time Keith. But trust them. They’re not trying to form an alliance based on gender. Their logic is sound. They’re trying to get rid of challenge threats, logic that can just as easily apply to Spencer and then Jeremy.

Spencer, Keith, and Kelley form a final three, which doesn’t seem particularly serious. Their target is Tasha.

Tasha asks Abi if she can speak with Jeremy alone, which again provides the opportunity for them to see that Abi has a tendency to cause drama. It’s a weird and unusual request, to which Abi responds about as can be expected. Now Tasha wants to get rid of Abi instead.

For the immunity challenge, they will race to the water, cross a series of obstacles, and return to solve a puzzle. In a very physical start to the challenge, Jeremy and Spencer start with a lead. The others look like they may make it back to the beach in time to catch up on the puzzle, but then Spencer solves the puzzle in under 15 seconds. Before he can be crowned victor, Tasha needs to be rescued by medical as she struggles in the water, but their presence is brief.

Spencer’s torn between two options, either the weaker group of outcasts or the stronger group who he doesn’t really want to be sitting next to in the finals.

Votes
Abi
Tasha
Abi
Tasha
Abi
Keith
Abi

With 4 votes, Abi has been voted off the island. Not a bad choice. She’s hardly a threat and would be great to take to the end, but she’s so volatile and unpredictable that it would be tough to actually make it that far with her.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of Survivor: Second Chance Episode 14, where we will find out who the Survivor: Second chance winner is, which airs Wednesday at 8/7c on CBS.

Despite his arguably too powerful advantage coming into play in Survivor: Second Chance Episode 11, Stephen still fell victim to the minority after he and his allies split the vote.

Since her primary ally is gone, Kimmi is forced to come up with a new plan, all women.

It’s time for the loved ones visit and challenge. Their task is to race and dig up bags attached to rope in the sand, spin around a post, cross a balance beam, and solve a word puzzle. Reward is a BBQ with their loved ones. Kimmi gets out to the early lead, not what I was expecting. Keith takes the lead as they hit the balance beams and is first to the puzzle, but I don’t think anyone is concerned about him being a puzzle challenge threat. Kelley is not far behind him and looks pretty solid considering all the spinning she just did. Kelley wins reward. She chooses Keith, Abi, and Kimmi to share in the reward, then she adds Joe as the fourth, leaving Tasha, Spencer, and Jeremy out.

The three who are left to themselves start talking strategy. Spencer proposes a final three with Jeremy and Tasha. The groups may not be the same, but the target is. Everybody wants to get rid of Joe. Little does Spencer know he’s playing right into their hands, but he’s right to fear Joe.

For the immunity challenge, they will balance a statue on a pole. The first man and the first woman will win. Every 5 minutes, a section of pole is added. After 20 minutes, everybody is still standing.

Kimmi is the first to drop, and Abi is right behind her. At the 25 minute transition, Tasha drops. Kelley wins immunity because all the other women have dropped. There’s no way to know how well she would have done if she had to go further, but it doesn’t really matter because the challenge is not about who the two best are, only the two best by gender.

Almost immediately after that, Spencer is the first man to fall, and Jeremy can’t survive the transition either. That leaves us with Keith and Joe again. The final section of pole is added at 30 minutes. It becomes pretty obvious who the strongest two are, as both are still standing at 1 hour and 20 minutes. I would think fatigue or at least the wind would have gotten to them by now. Unlike the others who just let their statues drop, Joe collapses. Keith wins immunity.

The immediate and vocal celebration by Kelley, Abi, and Kimmi quickly fades, as Jeff goes to check on Joe and call in medical. This turns out to be the most minor visit from medical ever, though, as he just blacked out after his blood sugar dropped.

Even in losing, Joe still shows up just about everybody, surviving 3-4 times longer than almost everybody else. Nobody else is going to be able to push themselves to the point of passing out.

Joe’s target is a rather odd one. Abi. She’s dangerous because she’s so… Abi. Jeremy says she’s easy money at the end, which Joe’s concern, that she’ll just keep getting dragged along and end up taking up someone else’s spot at the end.

Tasha blows up the all girl alliance by telling Spencer and Jeremy about the plan. She’d rather tell them than have them find out from someone else. In doing so, she has created trust and fear, but she still pushes to get rid of Joe.

Votes
Joe
Abi
Tasha
Joe
Joe
Joe

With 4 votes, Joe has been voted off the island. Hard to blame them because he is such a challenge threat, but it’s questionable whether the guys just shot themselves in the feet. The left field Tasha vote came from where you might expect, Keith.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of Survivor: Second Chance Episode 13, which airs Wednesday at 8/7c on CBS.

Stephen was clueless about his impending doom in Survivor: Second Chance Episode 10, but Jeremy knew enough to give him a hidden immunity idol and save him.

Jeremy insists that Spencer should still trust him, but should he really?

For an individual reward challenge, Jeff will tell them a story about Cambodian history, which they must remember as they run to stations and answer questions. Reward is a helicopter trip to a hotel. Abi is not missing anything, but she’s going slowly. Spencer and Stephen are with her in the lead. Spencer takes too long to untie his final bag, allowing Spencer to win reward.

Rather than taking the person who was right behind him, he chooses Tasha and then Jeremy to partake in the reward along with him. Playing favorites in a case like this is playing with fire. Spencer doesn’t need any more reason to flip. Joe and the two girls who remain should be pretty easy, but they’ll need someone else. That would be Keith, someone who’s a lot less dangerous than Tasha and Jeremy to share a plan with, as long as he remembers not to say “stick to the plan” at Tribal Council.

Abi protests. She’s not sure she can trust Joe and Spencer. Oh boy.

To prove his trustworthiness, Stephen reveals to Jeremy and Tasha what his advantage is.

She didn’t win, but Kelley did find a clue to the hidden immunity idol. It’s right underneath their shelter. There’s a good chance nobody would have found that without a clue because they’re always looking elsewhere rather than right under their feet. After everyone else leaves, Kelley crawls under the shelter and grabs her idol.

For the immunity challenge, they will use their feet to stack blocks. There’s no telling who this challenge favors, but Joe is probably good at this, too. Joe’s close to winning, but being in the lead in this challenge doesn’t really matter, as he finds out when some of his blocks fall. This allows Spencer to catch up and take the lead. Joe is making a good showing here, but he’s not able to come back. Spencer wins immunity.

I’m not sure Spencer just did himself any favors. He’s unlikely to be a target, but he needs Joe for his plan to work. Joe is now a very compelling boot choice. It’s hard to predict which way Keith will swing. Both are dangerous. And then there’s Abi, who nobody can trust because she is completely unpredictable.

Abi’s got everybody freaking out, enough so that Stephen is willing to reveal his advantage to Spencer. He threatens to use it, but it seems really early to do so.

At Tribal Council, Stephen does indeed use his advantage, and he steals Joe’s vote, which he uses to vote for Joe. If nothing else, this now makes him a non-threat, so getting rid of him doesn’t seem so necessary any more, although it does split some key alliances demonstrated by his reward challenge choices.

Kelley’s got the idol and can flip this thing on its head, but she decides not to.

Votes
Joe
Abi
Stephen
Joe
Abi
Abi
Stephen
Stephen
Stephen

With 4 votes, Stephen has been voted off the island. In the end, what cost him was the assumption that Joe might have an idol. Stephen’s undoing is a split vote. Everything else, however interesting it made the episode, didn’t matter.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of Survivor: Second Chance Episode 12, which airs Wednesday at 8/7c on CBS.

Kelly Wiglesworth was voted out in Survivor: Second Chance Episode 9 because something about voting blocks or… something.

After flipping, Jeremy thinks everything is the same as it used to be, and they can still get rid of one of the girls. Tasha seems fine with it. She’s willing to give them a chance to fool her twice.

For the reward challenge, they will play basketball in the water. Kelley, Kimmi, Stephen, Jeremy, and Keith go against Tasha, Abi, Joe, Ciera, and Spencer. Jeremy scores to take the lead for the green team after Spencer misses. Joe beats down everyone to tie the game. Spencer redeems himself to give the purple team the lead. Tasha drags Kimmi to the basket to win reward for purple. Reward is food somewhere dry, which they desperately need after days of rain.

Ciera’s not doing very much at the reward challenges, but she seems to be getting the most reward. Once again, she is the one to bring up strategy. She wants to get rid of Stephen and his advantage, which is going to become increasingly problematic as the numbers dwindle.

The other group discusses how they want to get rid of Joe. Duh. They just need to beat him at something for a change.

Before the immunity challenge, Jeff passes out rocks. Then he describes the challenge. They will balance on one foot on a small block while balancing a ball on an overhanging piece of wood. The last endurance challenge, like every challenge, was won by Joe.

Now Jeff describes his offer. A construction crew can revamp their poorly constructed shelter. Abi asks what everyone is thinking: what does he want? If 5 people hold out white rocks and sit out the challenge, they get the better shelter. Joe and Keith are the only ones who are not willing to play along.

I think we already know what’s going to happen here, but it’s not like most of the people who are sitting out were going to win anyway. Joe beats Keith to win immunity.

Tasha and Jeremy are questioning the power Ciera is gaining. They really have no power, not now anyway, but they have a big enough group of three that they are useful for their numbers and in turn may prove dangerous. Spencer and Jeremy are both convinced the other is wrong.

I didn’t expect this, but before the votes are read, Jeremy speaks up. We know he has two idols, so he may as well burn one of them and save his ally. He gives Stephen an idol.

Votes
Stephen (does not count)
Stephen (does not count)
Stephen (does not count)
Stephen (does not count)
Stephen (does not count)
Ciera
Ciera
Kimmi
Kimmi
Ciera

With 3 votes, Ciera has been voted off the island. They shared their plan with one too many people.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of Survivor: Second Chance Episode 11, which airs next on CBS.