Kat is very emotional about getting voted out, and at the Redemption Island Truel, she makes Hayden hug her as soon as she walks in. Hayden says their relationship is more important than the game and Probst sounds surprised, like every other person wouldn't say the same thing. He challenges Hayden to take Kat's spot, like how desperate are the producers for someone to take them up on that twist after it turned out SO GREAT for Rupert? Kat is amenable to a switch because she doesn't think she can win the truel, but Hayden thankfully talks her into letting him stay because she has no chance at winning and he does. He doesn't exactly say that, but it's true.
The challenge involves untying knots to release a machete, and then using the machete to chop a rope which will release a bag of puzzle pieces. Then they have to assemble a puzzle. John finishes his first. Kat struggles at first, but actually works her way back into it. Laura looks at John's finished puzzle, which Kat thinks is cheating (it's not). Kat lets the heat and pressure get to her, I think, and just stumbles about halfway through and can't get any more pieces in. So Kat's done. John gives the clue to Monica, who burns it.
Back at camp, Aras leaves to meditate and Tyson takes the opportunity to point out to his tribemates that Aras keeps talking about Vytas, and will put Vytas ahead of any of them. Meanwhile, Vytas is working it hard over at Galang but the women realize that they need to vote him off if they go to Tribal Council.
The Immunity Challenge is different. The tribes are bound together at the angles and have to navigate a ropes course while stopping at intersections to untie bags. The intersections allow a trailing Galang to delay Tadhana so that they get to the final segment at the same time. Tina for Galang and Tyson for Tadhana have to use the pieces from the bags to assemble bolos and then toss them at a rack, trying to land three. It's close, but Tyson pulls it off for his tribe.
After the challenge, Tadhana pigs out on picnic food, while Laura B. immediately tells Vytas that they're voting him out while the rest of her tribe is like, "WTF?" Ugh, Laura B. You are the second worst after your husband. Her tribe is taken aback and doesn't like that she made that decision on her own, and Vytas talks to them about keeping him and voting out Laura B. Even though it seems like a terrible idea for their long-term gameplay, they vote out Laura B. and I can't say I'm sad to see her go.
Just after being voted out, Kat interviews that Monica and Laura B. were both feeling on the outs in their tribe, so they decided they couldn't trust Kat. Interesting that Laura B. was involved; I don't think we saw her so much as speak about voting for Kat. Anyway, Kat tells Laura M. and John that Monica is an overstrategizer, Laura B. is a "social fucking witch" (?), Tina is a million-dollar winner and Katie is a tagalong. I think Kat still doesn't understand why she got voted out, and who is to blame (Vytas). Kat vows to do whatever it takes to make it back into the game and then worries aloud that Hayden will dump her because she didn't make the merge. If he would do that, does she really want to be with him? Like should she date someone who predicated his relationship feelings on her success on a reality show?
The morning, Kat sits on the beach alone and cries. She's just now figuring out that she didn't do a great job playing the game. She still doesn't know that there was a huge alliance on her tribe, and she wasn't on it, right? Anyway, she's also worried that she brought shame to Hayden, and that he won't like her anymore. I know she's young, but she's not twelve, right? She should be more embarrassed about her behavior right now than being voted out.
Everyone heads to the Redemption Island truel. When Kat enters, she begs Hayden to give her a hug, which he does. I can't read Hayden's face, though. Is he mad that her tribemates voted her out? Sad for Kat, who is crying? Tough to say. Probst asks Kat where this emotion is coming from, and Kat says she's worried that she disappointed Hayden by getting voted out. Look, the odds were hugely in favor of at least one of you getting voted out before the finals. You had a good run! Hayden says that, obviously, this doesn't change his feelings for Kat, and their relationship comes ahead of everything, including the game. Probst sounds surprised, like is there anyone there who would say that the game was more important than their relationship?
Probst uses that admission as a lever to try to get someone, anyone to take the producers up on their stupid "switch places" twist. I can almost understand doing it when Rupert did, but to do it now? And give up your spot in your tribe? Unless you are about 99% sure that you will be the one voted out, it makes absolutely no sense. Probst tries to push the, "You said you loved her!" angle. Kat, because she's dumb, looks hopeful that Hayden will actually take her spot.
Kat says that she would switch because she doesn't think she will do well in the truel "because it's a puzzle and [she] can't even spell." At least she knows her strengths and weaknesses. Hayden realizes he's in trouble, and he has to get Kat to both see why switching is a terrible idea and make it feel like it's her decision. He asks her what she thinks will be best for both of them, long-term, and Kat says that Hayden has a better chance at winning the game than she does. Then she goes on a rambling speech about how awesome Hayden is, which probably did nothing but put a huge target on him when he was doing a pretty good job of flying under the radar. So finally Kat says that she'll stay where she is and take her chances, which is what Hayden wanted all along. He IS good at this game. He just got Kat to feel like this was her decision.
On to the truel, which involves untying a machete, cutting a rope, and then assembling a puzzle. It's the same fire puzzle that Cochran assembled to win final immunity in his winning season. John gets his puzzle pieces out first, with Laura and Kat pretty much tied. Except Kat can't figure out how to work the drawstring holding the bag closed; Hayden literally has to tell her to make the opening wider so that she can get the puzzle pieces out. You guys, I think my dog could have figured that out. She is really sweet, but not bright.
They all start working the puzzle. John makes a lot of progress. Laura does okay, and keeps looking at John's puzzle for help. Kat calls her a cheater; Kat doesn't have one piece in place yet, despite Hayden coaching her from the sidelines. She finally gets one. Meanwhile, John is done so he wins first place. Now it's a battle for second. Kat actually makes some headway and seems closer to where Laura is, all of a sudden. Tina tells Kat to look at Laura's but Kat still think it's cheating. Both Tina and Probst clarify that it's not cheating; in the past, Probst has made fun of people for doing that, though. Gervase hollers out some help to Kat too. I think Kat has the right piece and she can't even figure out how it goes on, even though there are only about two possibilities. She is really, really bad at puzzles. Anyway, Laura finally gets her shit together and wins second place, so Kitty Kat is going home.
As the winner, John gets to give out a clue, and he gives it to Monica, and she dumps it in the fire. She's overly grateful about it. I guess she just figured out that John might be coming back in. Probst has to be so annoyed that this twist is not generating any interesting footage at all. Watching someone burn a clue is really boring. It's fascinating, really, when you think about how integral the Hidden Immunity Idol has been in the past few seasons. I do wonder if people are looking for the Idols even without the clues, and since they're not having success, it's not being shown. Or is everyone just pretending that the Idols don't exist?
When they return to camp, Tyson commiserates with Hayden, since he also knows what it's like to lose your girlfriend at Redemption Island. Hayden sniffles through an interview where he basically says Kat is kind of a dummy and he helps her out. I guess that's nice? Hayden is fine but if he's your intellectual guide, you might be in some trouble is all I'm saying. He feels guilty that he didn't switch places with Kat and then she went home. Everyone stands around and talks about how this is harder than they thought it would be, but they rally and says that they just need to win challenges and then wipe out the other side. Aras makes a comment about how he knows that Vytas will join force with them; he may want to clear that plan with everyone else, right? Hayden concludes his post-Kat interview by saying that the flip side is that now he can play more cutthroat and now everyone in his alliance is playing alone. Except for Aras.
Aras asks his tribemates if they want to "go for a little peaceful walk and meditation" and everyone is uniformly like, "UHHHHHHHH, no." Wow, that was awkward. How can Aras not be picking up on how much no one wants to hang out with him? Anyway, he goes out alone and meditates during sunset. He interviews that he thinks he has strong ties with Tyson and Gervase and obviously has a strong tie with Vytas. So Aras thinks he's in good shape.
Aras is not in good shape. Because while he's off meditating and imagining Probst announcing his name as the winner, Tyson is sitting down with Caleb, Hayden, and Ciera, and pointing out that Aras clearly wants to take Vytas to the end over any of them. Gervase points out that Aras and Vytas will take two of the final four slots unless they act soon. Did Gervase forget that Ciera is sitting there? Because there are five of them.
Anyway, Tyson preaches that the merge is going to happen soon, so they need to stick together and take out Aras, or Vytas, or both. Ciera interviews that she was shocked when Tyson proposed ditching Aras, but she understands what he's saying about how none of them have a partner left. Well, Ciera's mom is still technically in the game; I guess she doesn't think Laura M. will beat John and return to the tribe. Tyson nails down everyone's agreement and then interviews that Aras has gotten too comfortable in his alliance and won't see Tyson coming. I think Tyson might be right.
Galang. Morning. Tina greets Vytas and Katie, who apparently slept on the beach together. Tina interviews that, even though he's not part of their alliance, she really likes Vytas. Then Tina goes off on this weird tangent about how she wouldn't mind if Vytas and Katie got together, but Katie is a terrible flirt, and if my mom were pimping me out like that on national television, I'd be horrified. Well, I'd be shocked because my mom is no longer living, and then I'd be horrified. Tina, that's gross. Just stop.
The women all sit around Vytas and listen to him tell self-deprecating stories about how trusting and open he is, and I can't believe they are all falling for his bullshit. I mean, I would probably enjoy spending time with Vytas too, but I wouldn't throw over my alliance for him. The one thing that saves Vytas as a character on the show is that, in his interviews, he totally admits that his whole persona is calculated to earn the trust of the women on his tribe. So at least he's not fooling himself. Laura B. is really falling for his BS, but she interviews that as much as she likes Vytas, she's also trying to keep her heart out of it because she knows that she may have to vote him out soon.
Katie and Tina show up with treemail and learn that they're going to be chained together during the challenge. Vytas interviews that he's the only dude on a tribe of women, and they'll be competing against a bunch of strong dudes and a young woman, so he doesn't have high hopes if it's a physical challenge. Once Vytas strolls off to do whatever, the women discuss how they will have to vote Vytas out if they lose. Laura B. actually starts crying about it while the rest of them are stone-faced. Monica suggests that they win the challenge and then they don't have to worry about it. There's an idea. Do that!
Immunity Challenge! Four tribe members will be chained together at the ankle, side-by-side. The outer two will have their wrists tethered to a coil. Those two have to unwind their wrist strap, and then all four will proceed through an obstacle course together, gathering bags along the way. The fifth tribe member will empty the bags and use the pieces inside to assemble bolos, which he or she will then toss at a rack, trying to hang them. The first tribe to get three bolos hanging on the rack wins immunity and a fried chicken feast.
Tadhana takes a quick lead but it doesn't matter because once they enter the obstacle course, the two teams need to cross paths in order to proceed, so that's just a clusterfuck. Both teams break free and head for the obstacle, where they get all tied up again. Vytas and Monica, in particular, keep Aras tied up so that he can't leave the obstacle, and thus his team can't leave the obstacle. It's a smart strategy and I'm surprised no one tried it at the first obstacle. As a result, Tyson and Tina get all the bags at about the same time, and start untying them and assembling bolos.
Tyson shoots first and scores with his first throw. Tina gets one . Then Tyson gets his second, so he only needs one more. But then Tina gets her second, so now the one to score wins. This is exciting! After they each have another miss, Tyson finally connects with his third bolo and wins immunity for his tribe. Galang has to go to Tribal Council again. Will Vytas be able to sweet talk his way out of this one?
Tadhana sprints down the beach to get to their food. Someone mutters that they got really lucky in the tribe swap and Tyson adds, "YOU GUY got lucky." He's not wrong, even if he is obnoxious. Hayden interviews that he started the game with a four-challenge losing streak but now Tadhana is on a roll and things actually look bright for the first time in a while. Tyson "jokes" some more about how he's eating all of the food and then interviews that he hasn't been hungry once on the island, and he's somehow convinced everyone that eating maximum amounts of rice is the way to go. I don't know that he's wrong; in the past, when tribes have run out of rice, the producers have found a way for them to get more, through a trade or a reward. Tyson asks his tribemates what they think is going on with the other tribe, since the Kat vote baffled him. No one knows, but Aras thinks Vytas is safe. Not sure why, since Vytas is the obvious person to be voted out.
Or is he? Who might give us some insight into what's going on? Oh, Laura B. As soon as they get back from the challenge, Laura B. takes it upon herself to give Vytas a little speech about how sad they are to have to vote him out, but that's what's happening. Now what was the point of that? Laura just gave Vytas all the motivation he needs to spend the afternoon scrambling for votes. If they really wanted to vote him out, they shouldn't have told him until right before the vote, if at all. Vytas looks bemused by the whole thing, if not slightly annoyed, and everyone else just looks super uncomfortable. No one jumps in to back Laura B. up, and you'd think that might clue her in to what's really going on here. She interviews that she tried to take a leadership position and she thinks it will gain her respect from the other women. Yeah, they definitely weren't meeting your eyes out of respect.
Monica and Katie go for water and both of them are basically like, "WHAT THE FUCK JUST HAPPENED?!?" Monica thinks that you should discuss revealing a vote before saying anything, and it's a matter of trust. So now Monica doesn't trust Laura B. anymore. Tina interviews that their plan was to get rid of Vytas, but now she feels like Laura B. is unpredictable.
Here's the thing. They should vote out Vytas. They KNOW he is going to align with Aras after the merge, and they know the merge is coming up soon. And Vytas is also a threat when competing for individual immunity in a way that Laura B. is not. While they can hope that Vytas and Aras will join the women, they don't know that for sure. They don't know who's coming back from Redemption Island. They don't know if Tyson and Gervase will rejoin their alliance. They have three people: Tina, Katie, Monica, and Laura B. And if they are nice to Laura B. and make her feel included, she will be incredibly loyal to them. She's Rupert's wife! Rupert was all about loyalty. The rub is that Laura B. is annoying and Vytas isn't, and they would rather keep Vytas. I get that. But it's not the right move, strategically.
Tina and Vytas go for a swim and Tina assures Vytas that he's not going home. Vytas interviews that he feels pretty good about his chances at staying, and then compares their tribe to a pride of lions, where they need to keep one alpha male around. I liked Vytas a lot more before he was surrounded by women. His smugness is off-putting.
Tina tells Katie that she's still not sure how to vote, because there are repercussions either way. Katie interviews that she thinks they should get rid of Vytas (guess Tina's not getting those grandbabies she was hoping for) because it's the smart move long-term, but she understands why people are talking about voting out Laura B.
Tribal Council. Probst asks what happened when they got back to camp after losing the challenge, and Laura B. says that she let Vytas know that he was going home. Vytas says it was discouraging to hear because he's tried to be trustworthy and open with his tribe members. Monica says that revealing a vote beforehand is risky, and it should be discussed among the alliance. Katie agrees that Laura B. should have talked to them before speaking for the group.
Probst sums up what he thinks he's hearing: Vytas is going home unless he can convince the others that Laura B. spoke out of turn, and that makes her untrustworthy. That sounds great, but it's just window dressing. They want to get rid of Laura B. because she's annoying. Vytas says that Kat went home for being untrustworthy, and he hopes the other women remember that. Tina says that Vytas and Aras are a lot alike in that they "reek" of honesty and sincerity, though it could be a front. I love how Tina gave that backhanded compliment; they REEK of it.
Probst clearly wants Vytas to stay, as he gives him some more opportunity to win hearts and minds. Vytas says that he hopes to move forward with this tribe, and he hopes to continue to heal his relationship with his brother. No one mentions that they could do that just as easily outside the game. Laura B. points out that Vytas's bond with Aras is what makes him a threat. She adds that she has struggled to let her guard down and be herself, but she knows that Rupert will be proud of her for playing on her own merits. Then she breaks into a chorus of Kelly Clarkson's "Breakaway." She doesn't, but wouldn't that be awesome?
Tina breaks the principal rule of reality television and says that she does come there to make friends and learn about people. Vytas agrees that they're all amazing and unique, but he's going to vote based on who is trustworthy. Vytas has very good message discipline. He should go into political advising.
They vote. Probst tallies. Vytas gets one vote and the rest go to Laura B., who doesn't seem surprised. Maybe they clued her in on the way there, like you're supposed to? Vytas looks a little too self-congratulatory for my purposes. I'm turning on him.
When Laura B. gets to Redemption Island, she says that her tribe didn't stick to the plan, and if she gets back in the game, she won't be rejoining the girls' alliance. If such a thing still exists.