-MAN: All right, Carolyn. You ready? -So I'm just, like, talking?
-Like... -Yeah, to me.
Just pretend we're just you and I shooting the bull.
About wh... Like, just saying who I am?
Yeah. "I'm Carolyn. I'm a drug counselor.
I'm from a suburb of the Twin Cities."
Whatever you want to say, however you want to phrase it.
-Make sense? -[exhales]
This is the easiest one.
[both laughing]
♪ ♪
CARSON: When I got the call that I was going to be onSurvivor
on August 13 at 04:56 p.m.,
I immediately started preparing. I've got, like,
spreadsheets and spreadsheets of Survivor data that I've taken.
I 3D printed a ton of puzzles.
I'm just so ready to see all my hard work
pay off.
CLAIRE: Being a venture capitalist,
I have to kind of judge people,
decide in less than 30 minutes whether I should
give them a million dollars
to build a company.
Uh, now I have to prove
to 17 random strangers
that I deserve a million dollars.
JAIME: I teach yoga and meditation,
and I've learned that
our word is our want.
You speak it into existence and it happens.
I am going to be the next Sole Survivor.
Bing. How are you gonna do it?
I am going to build personal, emotional connections.
Bing, bing, bing, bing.
YAM YAM: There's no way this is real. Like, this is amazing.
I'm so excited. I'm so excited. I can't wait to see Jeff.
I can't wait to not eat. [laughs]
Not shower, not brush my teeth.
Poop in the ocean. Bring it!
PROBST: These 18 strangers
will be abandoned in the islands of Fiji.
JOSH: I wasn't supposed to live past five years old, so
I'm not afraid of anything.
PROBST: They must learn to adapt
or they'll be voted out.
FRANNIE: This is, like, the ultimate test,
and I love taking tests.
PROBST: In the end, only one will remain to claim
the million-dollar prize.
BRUCE: I have so much excitement right now. Like,
I would love to explode and just jump through the camera.
Let's go!
Who will have what it takes
to outwit, outplay and outlast all the rest?
This is Survivor44.
♪ ♪
Come on in.
Ooh!
[laughs]
FRANNIE: I kept telling myself,
"This isn't going to feel real
until your feet hit the sand."
And I'm looking down and my feet are hitting
the sand, and I'm like...
"Oh, crap." Like, this is real.
Like, I actually have to do this now.
LAUREN: I'm looking around, analyzing everybody.
CLAIRE: Trying to size everyone up and down.
Just, like, game mode.
My heart just starts pounding.
I've been dreaming of this day for so long.
Whoa...
-Oh, my God. -Oh, my God.
-Oh, my God! -Wow.
-Aah! -Aah! -Aah!
[laughs] We're here!
Welcome to
Survivor44.
[cheering, whooping]
You're here.
For 22 years,
Survivor has been exploring the idea
of group dynamics
and interpersonal relationships in a really unique way.
You take a group of strangers,
strip them of everything.
PROBST: You abandon them,
force them to create a new society
while relying on each other.
-That's the group dynamic. -Aah!
PROBST: Then you put this game on top of it
where you have to vote players out.
-Michaela. -What?!
PROBST: And in the end, the last player left
wins a million dollars.
That's the interpersonal part.
To win Survivor,
you have to be excellent at both.
And what makes it so tricky is you can
never predict what is going to happen
because it's always new players,
so it's always a new game,
which is why you are constantly assessing
and adapting, which is what you're doing right now
with first impressions.
Guy in the front, what's your name?
-Hi, I'm Yam Yam. -PROBST: Yam Yam. You've got
a group of people you've never met.
-You're going to rely on each other quickly -Yeah.
to live in this jungle. What do you want to see
-from a tribe member? -I want to see someone
that's just gonna give it all,
'cause we're here to win and we need each other.
If you have to puke out everything you have inside,
if you have to sweat every tear, we are family here, so
bring it. I'll grab your puke bag,
I'll wipe up your tears, you know?
Woman in the front right here-- what's your name?
-Frannie. -PROBST: Frannie. Interesting
what Yam Yam just said. He said "We are a family." He's been
standing next to these people for less than a minute,
and they are family. Is it because of the Buff?
Is it because you're divided? What gives someone a sense that
"we're family"?
Uh, as soon as we jumped off these boats together,
we were all bonded together. I don't know.
We're just standing here, it's something about this color.
We're breathing each other's bad breath already.
Like, the bonds are forming quickly
and I think they're gonna be really tight.
Guy on the end--
-the beard-- what's your name? -Matthew.
PROBST: Matthew. Any fear right now
of anything?
I'm just trying to figure out what's going on right now.
I don't even know. I mean, the anxiety is so high. So,
I mean, I'm sure I should be fearful,
but I'm not there right now.
I just try to take deep breaths and try to hold it all in
because if I don't, I feel like my heart's just gonna
plop right out here and just make a mess
out of everybody in the front row.
-[Survivors laughing] -So I'm just trying to hold it in right now
and maybe refocus that into the challenge ahead of us.
All right, let's get into it.
-[whooping] -Tribe names.
Wearing orange: Ratu.
-ALL: Ratu! -[cheering]
In the middle, in green: Soka.
ALL: Soka!
[whooping]
PROBST: And on the end, in purple: Tika.
ALL: Tika!
Tika, yeah!
All right, we are gonna birth you into this game right now
with your first reward challenge. Here's how it works.
One pair from each tribe is gonna race down the beach
under a series of obstacles,
grab a puzzle piece and head back.
Then the next pair goes. You're gonna do that
until every player has retrieved
one puzzle piece.
Once you have all the pieces,
two players will use them
to assemble a puzzle.
Once the puzzle's done,
three different players will race
to release the rings from a very tall pole.
The first tribe to finish earns their camp supplies.
Pot, machete, flint.
It is not much,
but out here it is literally everything.
It gives you a big head start.
The two losing tribes will have to go to
their camp and try to earn it another way.
The second tribe to finish will get to choose
whether they want to do the sweat task
-or the savvy task, -Oh.
and the last tribe to finish will get
what's left. Big stakes.
First decision you need to make:
who are your pairs?
I'll give you a minute to figure that out.
♪ ♪
Here we go. Survivor44 is about to get underway.
Survivors ready.
Go! First pairs
-out of the gate. -[cheering, whooping]
PROBST: Got to get under that first beam,
then through the mud.
Brandon hits the mud first.
There goes Matt.
[Bruce groans]
-[high-pitched ringing] -[sound distorts]
♪ ♪
[normal sound]: Go, go, go, go, go. [coughs]
PROBST: Matt's through,
Kane is through, Brandon's through.
[cheering continuing]
There you go, Brandon. That's how you do it.
Now you're back in the mud.
Nothing is easy on Survivor.
Bruce bleeding already.
[whooping, cheering]
Got to drop 'em on the table.
Kane coming back.
You're good, go!
MATT: Hey, we got to get in the middle.
PROBST: You're good, Soka!
HELEN: Come on, Tika!
You're good, Tika.
Bruce, you let me know if we need to stop.
PROBST: Carson heading out now. He's muddy.
Here comes Frannie. Carolyn has a puzzle piece.
Here goes Lauren.
[cheering, clamoring continue]
PROBST: Here comes Frannie.
Here comes Lauren. You're good, go!
Let's go!
Here comes Heidi.
You're good, go!
[exclaims]
You're good, Tika.
Tika last out of the gate for those last two puzzle pieces.
Bruce, are you okay?
I'm good.
PROBST: Here comes Josh.
Here comes Matthew heading back for Ratu.
♪ ♪
Here comes Helen and Yam Yam.
Here comes Josh. Here comes Danny.
[cheering]
Soka, you're good. Get on the puzzle.
All right, let's go.
PROBST: There's Maddy. You're good.
Start working on your puzzle.
Helen back for Tika.
You're good, Tika. Start working on the puzzle.
Everybody covered in mud and sand.
That looks way better. Put it on these.
PROBST: We have Yam Yam and Carson for Tika.
Matt and Claire for Soka.
Lauren and Jaime for Ratu.
Your first Survivorpuzzle out of the gate.
You've got to finish this and then you have to do the rings.
Everybody, stop!
Medical. Medical, come in.
Bruce, how are you feeling?
-You're feeling light-headed? -PROBST: Can we get an umbrella?
-MEDIC: Get him onto his back. -WILL: Can you sit back?
Thank you.
Just gonna lie you on your back.
So, can I get some monitoring on him?
Let's get the, um, Tempus out.
If we could just get his head up a little bit.
Yeah. I'll hold him right here.
Hey, Bruce, you're doing okay. You're in good hands, okay?
WILL: Gonna get some oxygen on, get some access.
There you go. Breathe it.
[indistinct chatter]
PROBST: Great.
WILL: I think we've got time to just
-wait for a moment to see how he responds. -Okay. Okay.
So, Bruce, you just relax.
Now you're starting to get vital signs to show you what?
That's right. So, we just want to see his general condition.
So we'll work from top to toe.
So I'm happy with his airway.
What are his sats looking like?
MEDIC: Um, normal, and he's got a heart rate of 134,
which is a little bit high,
but still nothing too concerning.
-PROBST: Okay. So the vitals are good? -MEDIC: Vitals are good.
-WILL: Yeah. -PROBST: Okay.
Ah, Bruce, your eyes are open.
-Ah. Ah. -That's a good sign.
This is fantastic.
Boy, that made a tremendous difference.
WILL: What we're gonna try and do now is we're gonna sit him up
and see how he feels.
Bruce, are you ready for us to try and sit you up?
[cheering]
HELEN: Yes, Bruce!
[cheering, whistling]
PROBST: Wow.
There's the smile.
The intensity of being in this game
and the adrenaline going through his body
probably just caused his body to need a bit of time-out.
With a bit of basic treatment,
with some oxygen, a bit of time in the shade,
-this is all looking very reassuring, so far. Yeah. -Okay, great.
He's back in the game now, and I'm really pleased to...
to see him looking well.
-All right! -[cheering]
Love seeing that smile.
I'm glad you're back.
All right.
Bruce, you call us back in when Survivor'sready to go.
It's on you.
Survivors ready?
-Go! -PROBST: It's back on. -[cheering]
[indistinct chatter]
Now you got to get your head back into this game.
MATT: Finish this thing.
PROBST: You want to win this challenge.
You want those camp supplies.
[grunts]
PROBST: All this for your flint.
Exactly. Welcome to Survivor44, Claire.
-Keep playing with it! I love that energy! Let's go! -Yes. Yes, yes.
-PROBST: Yam Yam with another one. -[cheering]
[whooping]
Will it fit? It does. Is this right?
-Carson's smiling. -Let's go, let's go, let's go!
PROBST: Do they have it?
Got to get it in there.
Guys, come on!
-[cheering] -You're good. Let's go.
Here comes Carolyn.
Claire now looking over, trying to copy.
[indistinct chatter]
[shouts, groans]
-Carolyn trying with the first ring. -HELEN: Keep going! Keep going!
Here comes Lauren to take a look.
Claire's literally walking over
-to look at their puzzle. -[screaming]
Carolyn having fun like she's at an arcade.
MATT: No, no, no, no. This is good.
PROBST: Soka has it. They're good.
HEIDI: You got it. You got it.
Here comes Danny.
-Boom. That's the first. -[cheering]
Here comes Frannie.
It is now Soka in the lead.
Keep it parallel! Parallel!
PROBST: Carolyn continues to squander the lead her tribe gave her.
Pants are holding her back.
Couldn't get a full swing with it.
HELEN: You got this!
-PROBST: There you go. -[cheering]
You got to knock it off.
You got it! You got it!
[yells]
PROBST: It is Soka in the lead with one ring.
-[cheering] -There's two!
For the win, here comes Josh.
CLAIRE: Go, Josh.
Ah!
PROBST: Now Josh is stuck.
He's got to use a ring and knock it off.
-There it is for the win. -[cheering]
Soka's won their tribe supplies.
Keep going, Carolyn.
We are playing for one more. Keep going.
-Jaime and Lauren see the opportunity. -Okay, okay.
CARSON: Yeah. So close. So close.
Carolyn knocks it off and it falls back down.
And she is starting over.
MADDY: Yes!
-There you go. -[cheering]
And here comes Kane. It is now Kane and Carolyn.
-Why, why, why? [shouts] PROBST: We are dead even.
Playing for second place.
[groans]
Breathe. Slow.
-[cheering] -PROBST: Kane with the first for Ratu.
LAUREN: Yes! You did it!
PROBST: Here comes Brandon for the second.
-[cheering] -And Brandon has it with one toss.
Here comes Matthew for the win.
Aah!
-[cheering] -PROBST: There it is!
Ratu finishes second. Will choose Sweat versus Savvy,
leaving Tika with what is left.
It's okay.
-HELEN: It's okay, guys. PROBST: A tough start for the purple tribe--
an injury and a sound defeat.
-HELEN: It's okay. It's okay. -[Carolyn crying]
Nowhere to hide in this game.
♪ ♪
All right, Soka.
Map to your new home.
[cheering]
Well done.
Tribe supplies will be waiting for you back at your camp,
which means you get a big head start.
Ratu, second place.
[cheering]
Map to your new home.
Yay.
PROBST: When you get to your camp,
you're gonna have a choice between sweat or savvy.
Whichever task you don't choose
will be yours, Tika.
Map to your new home.
Thanks, Jeff.
-PROBST: Bruce. -Yes, sir.
The medical team is fine with you continuing.
They're gonna continue to monitor you.
Perfect.
PROBST: All right. Good luck. Head to camp.
-Thanks, Jeff. -Thank you.
Survivor44 is underway.
JAIME: Seeing Bruce was the moment
that everything became real. We are here
playing now. Challenge number one just amplified
this season ofSurvivor.
♪ ♪
-[Matt whoops] -[Frannie laughs]
MATT: I've been imagining playingSurvivor
for what feels like an eternity.
FRANNIE: We're here.
CLAIRE: Oh, my God.
Ah, yes.
But now it's not my imagination.
It is right in front of me.
So good to finally meet you.
MATT: I'm super stoked, but I'm also
terrified. I think that's real scary.
ALL: One, two, three, Soka! [whooping]
MATT: I recently got out of a relationship.
So trying to process a breakup and then,
all of a sudden, having to push myself
out here, all on my own
feels like when a mama bird
pushes her little bird out of the nest and
the wings open and they soar
or the bird goes splat.
Hopefully I do not go splat. [chuckles]
CLAIRE: Oh, look, our machete, flint.
Hell yes.
Who wants to hold the big, scary knife?
She-she goes, "I'll take it."
JOSH: Winning the first challenge and not having
to fight for getting our machete
or our pot-- that's amazing.
And I hope we can continue this momentum.
Do we want to say who we are? Like, where we're from?
FRANNIE: Oh, yeah.
-Do you want to kick it off? -I'll kick it off.
So, I'm Heidi. I already told you that.
I'm from Pittsburgh.
Although, I'm originally from Puerto Rico,
and I work in engineering.
All my family's from Pittsburgh.
Yes.
I'm Frannie, and I work at a mindfulness center.
-I could lead us through some, like, yoga and meditation. -CLAIRE: Yeah.
-HEIDI: I love that. -[overlapping chatter]
Nobody's too cool for school here.
-Yeah, absolutely. -We're off to a great start, dude.
Yeah.
My first impression of my tribe: everybody's
very, very friendly and warm and just
enjoying the journey.
I'm Danny. I'm 31 now.
I'm a firefighter, um, in the Bronx, New York.
-Ooh. Okay. Get it. -DANNY: I was really hoping
there were gonna be people who were,
like, not affable. Kind of like,
"All right, that's number one, you know?
Push comes to shove, get rid of this dude or that chick."
But everybody's super cool.
It's a double-edged sword, like,
as is the nature of this game.
JOSH: This is so exciting here.
FRANNIE: There's a lot of bamboo...
So, we can use this wood for fire.
-This looks like a lot of dry stuff. -Where is it?
♪ ♪
-Oh, what's this, guys? -[Frannie gasps]
JOSH: What is this?
There's a padlock.
FRANNIE: We're walking down this path, and we see
this strange birdcage
with this wrapped package and this rusty padlock on it.
It's something we've never seen before.
Just completely out in broad daylight.
It's immediately kind of ominous.
Like, we're all just standing there looking at it, like,
"What could this possibly be?"
So, we saw this really weird
birdcage that has, like, our insignia on it.
Yeah, well, I want to see the thing.
Clearly, like, something we want is in this cage.
-So there's a key. -There's a padlock.
-Presumably a key. -Wow.
CLAIRE: It's there. It's looming,
And all I'm thinking is, "Oh, my God.
This game is live, and it's public."
LAUREN: When we got to the beach,
we walked up to a sign, and
it's, like, I got goosebumps all over my body. Like,
the game is about to start.
Oh.
My gosh.
The one thing we also have to consider
is whatever we don't pick, we're giving to the other team.
And they're already kind of down one person.
Yeah, I don't think they're gonna... I don't think
they gonna finish "Sweat," to be honest.
Yeah. I don't think they're gonna do it.
-But at the same time, we don't want to screw ourselves. -Right.
15 minutes is tight.
BRANDON: It's a huge decision,
and I don't have faith in jumping into an unknown puzzle
on a time limit with only one guess
when we've already proven we can't do a simple puzzle.
I don't know how savvy are we or how confident.
Anybody that...
I'm more confident in my ability to pull things
-Me too. than my ability
-to do a puzzle I've never seen before. -MADDY: Right.
Nah, I'm definitely more comfortable with that.
I'm more comfortable. Yeah.
BRANDON: So ultimately, this tribe decided to do "Sweat."
I knew that I was gonna be the number one draft pick, but
we know we could pull some coconuts up and down the beach.
-Ready for this? -Let's do it. -You guys got it.
We got this.
MATTHEW: I stepped up
because I'm the oldest person on the tribe
and the smallest guy.
So I felt like that could put a target on my back.
So I needed to prove to everyone I'm not a detriment to my tribe.
Hey, good luck, guys.
-Yeah, no doubt. -BRANDON: So me and Matthew
flipped over the four-hour timer
and we get straight to work.
We put the first coconut in, drag it down.
We're feeling great.
This is easy. We're gonna push through it.
We'll be done, probably, in two hours.
HELEN: Complete one of the following tasks:
Sweat or Savvy.
-I thought it was already chosen. It's here--
-the decision. -CARSON: I'm so nervous.
-"You are doing Savvy." -YAM YAM: Ugh.
HELEN: In the past when we've seen these savvy challenges,
they're not easy, especially when you're trying
to make a good first impression.
You don't want to let your tribe down.
But I felt like if there was any point
for me to step up, this would have been it,
'cause I like brain teasers. I like
to do puzzles in my free time.
I can-I can do it.
Do you guys feel like you're...
either of you are really strong at brain teasers?
-I... I'm gonna say no. -[laughing]
I'm just gonna be real.
I'm willing, but I don't want to make a big mistake, or, like,
-cause us to not... -Here's the thing. We... -No, no.
-I think we should just... -All we can do is try our best. -Yeah.
-I think I love this confidence. You're for sure in. -Yeah.
YAM YAM: I think we should be okay with you guys.
-Okay. -Carson, we got this.
CARSON: Yes. I'm good at strategy stuff and puzzles.
However, I didn't want to be the guy who said,
"I'm great at puzzles. Let me do it."
Because I just did not want there
to be an unnecessary target on my back so early on.
So I didn't want to choose for myself.
I wanted the tribe to push me in there.
-Oh, gosh. -Okay.
Oh, God. I see. Okay.
CARSON: The puzzle is just all these rings that just start spinning,
which made it very difficult to count.
Okay. So...
-one, two... -CARSON: Oh, that's a great idea.
HELEN: Three, four.
HELEN: It was a complicated puzzle,
and if we fail, that's not a good look
in the first few hours that we're meeting each other.
Let's send all positive vibes to those guys.
-We need a machete and the flame. -Yes.
-Oh, my God. -Honestly.
Let's walk that way. Let's see what we see.
Yeah, we can scope out the... Yeah.
-It's gorgeous. -SARAH: Hey, this was awesome.
[Bruce speaking indistinctly]
Ugh!
YAM YAM: This cage-- obviously,
it has some kind of advantage, and we're like,
"Oh!
This is a new thing here."
You just want to touch it, though.
I just want to know how heavy it is.
[laughs, mutters]
[laughter]
There has to be a key somewhere
'cause that lock is not gonna open
with abracadabra, you know?
CAROLYN: Seeing what's dangling in there, it's like,
"Aah!" It's like this... just something you can't get to,
and you want it so bad.
And I'm thinking, like, all these sick thoughts in my head.
Like, how can I get in there without the key?
And be, like, just, like,
"Why am I thinking like that?"
Can you imagine one day, we're going to wake up,
and there's not gonna be anything there,
and everybody's gonna go, like,
"It's not me."
We're basically looking
at eight that are going, like, kind of vertically.
-Vertically, mm-hmm. -And then we have one horizontal
-around the equator, so, we're getting nine. -Yes. Yes.
-Nine. Mm-hmm. -And because of...
I think they-they look to be exactly the same.
They have to be the same. Yup, it's 18.
CARSON: The stakes are huge.
If we didn't have a machete, a pot and a flint,
I don't know how we would survive.
-Oh, God, I'm so nervous. -Me too.
-Yeah! -Aah!
At least some kindling.
YAM YAM: We need... we need to, uh...
-[distant cheering] -Yeah! -[cheering]
-Yes! Yes! -Yes!
CARSON: That team totally gave us a gift.
I don't know what they were thinking.
Did they not see the guy with glasses
and that we're not that strong,
so that probably means that we're gonna
make up for it in our intelligence?
I mean, that should have been a given.
You know what, guys?
The other tribe is still dragging coconuts.
[laughing, cheering]
[laughs]
-Damn, it's a lot of coconuts. -Yeah.
BRANDON: Ah.
Yeah, this is a little harder
than I was thinking it was gonna be,
-but you know what? -It's Survivor.Nothing's easy.
Yeah, I already knew that, but I'm-I'm willing
to bet on myself every time.
-Every single time. -I am, too.
-'Cause I knew I wasn't doing the Savvy. -No.
BRANDON: I think we both underestimated
how heavy those coconuts were and
how many coconuts there actually were sitting on the beach.
And around coconut 32, we realized
we got a challenge on our hands.
JAIME: We should get coconuts to crack open for them
-when they're done. -Oh, there's one there if you want.
'Cause they're bringing home the machetes,
we'll bring home the coconuts.
No, don't go towards it!
KANE: Ooh.
We make one turn,
and there's a fricking birdcage with, like,
a little bag hanging in it.
And presumably something of great value is in that bag.
Okay, so we know we're gonna build camp over there.
I'm real concerned about water.
-Let's find water and head back to start camp, I think. -Yeah.
Are we just gonna walk away or don't
-want to talk about it? Like... -KANE: I get that we
-want this thing, but I feel like... -MADDY: Yeah, we...
if they come back in four hours,
we have nothing to show for them,
-they're gonna be pissed. -Yeah, I agree.
-Fine. -KANE: Okay.
[grunting]
BRANDON: When there were 20 coconuts left,
this is where that bear jumped on our backs.
[panting]
The sun is beaming on us.
We're sweating like crazy.
And as we started feeling the fatigue of it, a lot of doubt
started creeping in.
The danger in taking breaks is
that clock is running.
That sand is not slowing down at all.
[grunting]
MATTHEW: It was
brutal.
At this point, we could only do inches at a time.
-[grunts] -Come on.
MATTHEW: I was the one that said I could do this.
They're gonna think that I was
the one dragging us down, so I had
to keep going.
[grunting]
[groaning]
MATTHEW: We were both starting to cramp up.
My calf was going out on me.
We were both exhausted.
And we're coming up on the four-hour mark.
We haven't talked any strategy out here...
-but after this, I definitely got your back. -Oh, yeah.
Trust and believe I got yours, too.
[both grunt]
BRANDON: We get down to the last two coconuts.
I'm exhausted, I'm cramping, I'm tired.
I mean, I played in the NFL,
and I never felt anything like this.
But I'm no quitter.
-One, two, three. -[both grunt]
One, two, three.
[both grunt]
MATTHEW: I looked over at the hourglass,
and there was just inches left. And I was like,
"You got to do this now.
You got to dig deep."
[both grunting]
One, two, three.
♪ ♪
MATTHEW: That challenge is just the appetizer
of what's coming.
[cheering]
MATTHEW: I bit off a lot,
but I know that if I can
succeed there,
I can succeed everywhere.
[laughing]
♪ ♪
[metal tapping]
Watch me fail really bad. [laughs]
Every Sunday, I go with my husband to the beach.
Oh, you do it on the beach.
-I do it on the beach. -That's smart. Okay.
Well, if you want to try, you're welcome to.
YAM YAM: Being from Puerto Rico, I think
I have something that other people
are not gonna have.
[others cheering]
Let's do it.
YAM YAM: I don't come from the States,
where it's cold or the humidity's gonna bother me.
It sucks, the humidity, but I'm used to it sucking.
All right. You got it. Right there.
HELEN: Nice. Well done.
Oh, this is so exciting!
-[cheering] -SARAH: Go, Yam Yam!
YAM YAM: I'm used to the beach.
I'm used to the seawater, the waves,
the plants. It's very familiar to me.
Wait, should we go back to introductions?
-Yeah. -[overlapping agreement]
HELEN: Your Survivorstory-- why'd you start watching?
Oh. I've been watching since the beginning.
My family watched together.
YAM YAM: I remember watching Richard Hatch.
I was 13, and I kept watching ever since.
I love it, I love it, I love it.
CAROLYN: It's the same way with me. I'll watch with my son,
and he told me, "Don't be too silly, Mom."
-So, I mean, I'm just trying... -[laughs]
That's how I got here. [laughs]
-I'm gonna try. -[Yam Yam laughs]
So, are you guys single or married or...
I have a boyfriend.
BRUCE: Well, I've been married for 20 years.
-We've been together for 26 years. -HELEN: Wow.
Older than you.
Longer than you've been alive, sister.
-And you. -[Carolyn laughs]
No, I don't.
I've never dated anyone. [laughs]
-What? -CARSON: I'm the quirky little nerd.
-Who wants to date me? -CAROLYN: No, you're not.
-You're a good-looking young man. -[laughter]
Well, actually, I gained 30 pounds
to come out here in three months.
-What?! -SARAH: Shut up.
-HELEN: Good for you. - I was 115 in January.
-CAROLYN: What? -HELEN: Amazing.
CARSON: When I found out I was gonna be onSurvivor,
I had never been to the gym in my life.
I didn't even know what the gym really was. It was just, like,
this intimidating place where all the jocks
and, like, big buff people go.
And I was like, "That's not me." [laughs] So,
I'm hoping that weighing 145 pounds now allows me
to actually focus on the strategic part of the game
and not have to worry about being so hungry
or losing so much weight that I can barely move.
-Are people gonna do fire? -I saw a bunch this way.
If we want to boil water, it might be good.
FRANNIE: Let's just give it, like, a five-minute shot,
and then if we don't get it, then we keep moving.
Danny. [laughs]
Yeah, I was like, "Danny. Firefighter."
-Yeah. -Yeah, yeah, yeah.
-MATT: All right, cool. -Oh.
HEIDI: We got to have a little better nest here.
[tapping flint]
When people see me--
Latina, short, kind of small--
they underestimate me from the get-go.
I am an electrical engineer
working in the steelmaking business.
-How you doing over there? -HEIDI: We haven't done it yet.
FRANNIE: We haven't done it yet.
HEIDI: Engineering is about finding
solutions when there's a problem,
and I think that's exactly what
Survivoris all about.
-Thank you. -Oh...
MATT: Oh, there it is.
JOSH: Yeah, there you go.
Heidi!
DANNY: It's happening.
Bare hands. Take it.
CLAIRE: Oh, my God.
-JOSH: Oh, my God. -FRANNIE: Oh, my God!
[whooping]
Okay!
HEIDI: Nobody from my tribe showed up to make the fire,
so I just did it myself.
CLAIRE: Oh, my God. Okay, queen.
JOSH: Heidi knows.
HEIDI: There's a lot more coming.
I'm tiny, but mighty.
-Oh. -[Frannie chuckling]
I'm not really sure here.
I feel like the gaps are really big.
[both laugh]
There are definitely...
raindrops can fit through all those gaps.
MATT: So, right off the get-go,
I got really, really good vibes from Frannie.
-[laughs] -This is the most, like,
totally useless little patch of thing.
FRANNIE: Matt and I are definitely cut from the same cloth.
I think we're both a little awkward,
a little nerdy, and we're having a lot of fun
laughing together, which, honestly,
is really important for me and people that I want to work with.
Yes. Absolutely.
Matt and I
started to plant some seeds.
-Yes. -Okay.
Yeah. I think that he's somebody that I could
feel really comfortable with.
-Yeah, me, too. Me, too. -Yes. Okay, cool. Awesome.
♪ ♪
SARAH: After the challenge,
Bruce bounced back so quickly.
He seemed like he was good.
CARSON: All of a sudden, I look over, and Bruce is, like,
eyes closed and just becomes very quiet.
And that was kind of the moment where I was like,
"He's not well."
Hey, Bruce, talk to me.
That's happened quite suddenly.
Okay, I'm just gonna check your blood pressure a moment.
Bruce, can you look at my finger?
♪ ♪
MEDIC: I'm gonna take your blood pressure on this side, okay?
Dr. Serena's starting an IV on your right side.
All right, first pressure cycle.
156 over 110.
-So he's a bit hypertensive, as you said. -WILL: Yeah.
-MEDIC: Are you able to call back and check with medical... -Hi.
-Hi, Jeff. -PROBST: Hey, Will.
Hi, Bruce.
[indistinct chatter]
WILL: So, Jeff, here's the situation.
We had a period of observation at the tri camp, and for a time,
he was looking really good.
And then he suddenly took a turn.
So, we're obviously pulling him from the game.
You're preparing him right now.
Yeah. Yeah.
Bruce, you understand we have to get this looked at.
-Your safety is everything. -Yeah. Yes, sir.
I know it's hard to hear, but there's no doubt
that this is the only move to make.
I'm so sorry.
I'm genuinely heartbroken for you.
You are a shining light.
You are so positive. You are a leader.
But you understand why we're doing this, right?
Yes, sir.
-CARSON: Yes. -Yes.
Thank you, guys. I appreciate it.
HELEN: Love you.
Love you back.
One, two, three.
There you go. Perfect.
Lean your head back.
There you go.
You're gonna do great, my friend, okay?
-Serena, on your count. -SERENA: All right.
Ready, steady, go.
-SARAH: Bye, Bruce. -MEDIC: There we go.
-Bye, Bruce. -PROBST: Bye, Bruce.
HELEN: Take care of yourself. We love you.
YAM YAM: The fact that Bruce had to leave this game so early--
I felt so bad for him.
Like...
MEDIC: You're doing good, buddy.
SARAH: This experience gave our tribe this kind of,
like, rude awakening of how real it is out here.
MEDIC: You got it? Be careful.
SARAH: Without Bruce, we're going to
need to fight harder than anyone.
He's not only physically strong, he was a coach,
a leader, an organizer.
So this is devastating to all of us and
our tribe's success.
Like, we need to reevaluate how to succeed without him.
♪ ♪
-MADDY: Hell yeah, Matthew. -BRANDON: There we go.
-MADDY: Yeah, that's it. -LAUREN: Come on. Come on.
You got it.
JAIME: Matthew, Matthew, Matthew!
[cheering]
Nice.
I'm here for you guys.
MADDY: Of all the people at Ratu,
Matthew knows the most about
what all needs to come together
to make a camp.
Do one here, and then layer 'em this way,
so that, ideally, the water kind of runs.
-JAIME: Got it. -MADDY: Honestly, we'd be
sort of lost, at this point, without him.
Since all that's happening, I think I would like to start
-foraging for some food... -Yeah.
and see what I can turn up.
Just looking for, like, different leaf shapes and stuff,
'cause that will tell me what trees we're looking at.
I'm probably having more fun than anyone.
-Whoa, look at this. -This right here.
Whoa, that's so cool.
And that all comes from my sense of adventure. And I get that
from my mom. She was a camp director for the YMCA.
So as a kid,
my earliest memories are outside--
swimming in rivers, climbing trees,
like, you name it, that's what I did.
[Maddy squeals]
-I got him. I got him. Let's go. -Okay.
MATTHEW: Something for dinner.
As I enter into this new era of my life, my 40s,
I'm supposed to have a midlife crisis, but I said,
"No, I want a midlife challenge."
And so I wanted to step up.
I came out here for the journey and for the experience.
But back home, I left my four-year-old son Jasper
and my husband Dale.
I need to show them that every day is an adventure.
'Cause I went over by those rocks over there.
There are tons of crabs over there, like, about this big.
I just want to do everything.
MySurvivor bucket list
is off the bucket, on the floor,
rolling down the hill. So I want to take
as much time as I can to get everything off that list.
KANE: Go, Matt.
MADDY: You got it, Matthew.
I like Matt.
MADDY: Yeah.
♪ ♪
[gasps]
Oh, my God.
KANE: Is he okay?
LAUREN: Are you-are you okay?
MATTHEW: I grabbed on to a rock, and it just gave way,
and I fell.
And I think I dislocated my shoulder,
but I got it to pop back in,
but, ah, man, does it hurt.
Look at all that.
I sliced myself up pretty good.
-Oh, my God, Matt. -Yeah.
I immediately saw my hands were cut up,
and I was like, "Okay, that's all right."
But I was walking through the sand.
I started feeling, like, a burning in my foot.
That's not good.
Oh, that's a lot of blood.
MATTHEW: It was just, like, free-flowing.
And that was the first time I got scared.
I want so much from this journey,
and I don't want my own stupidity to take me out.
And I know better.
[sighs] I just got ahead of myself.
No, this was not on my bucket list.
I just don't want this to be the end for me.
I've literally been dreaming this my whole life.
And I've been working for three and a half years
to get here and work on my fitness,
at being strong,
so I could show my tribe that I have worth.
It has gone back into joint, which is good news,
but we've got to limit
any load-bearing exercises on the shoulder.
MATTHEW: Doctor's orders with my shoulder was put it in a sling.
So I need to be very, very careful.
The one thing I'm really, really worried about is we got
a challenge that's probably coming tomorrow. And...
I'm damaged goods at this point.
Made a little sling action. I got to just take it easy.
-I'm gonna need help putting my sock on. I can't... -Yeah, yeah, yeah.
KANE: Matthew's got to chill out. Like, we got priorities.
What kind of tribe strength is that
if he's gonna be banged and bruised
from his own adventures out here?
Appreciate all your concern. It means a lot to me.
KANE: Yesterday, Bruce hit his head.
Day two, Matthew's on the rocks. Unprecedented
body damage for day two Survivor,and...
It's crazy. Like, you know, well,
who's gonna down on day three?
♪ ♪
Yeah.
HELEN: I think with Sarah and Carson, I feel good.
I feel like the three of us are on the same page.
I think we work well
together. So, to have the three of us
make a quick connection was relieving.
If you're the one person that no one is talking to,
that sets off alarm bells.
I keep finding myself
wanting to, like, run over there.
But I can't be that person. I'm just like,
"What's going on over here?"
I feel like nobody is talking to me, and I don't
want to be that person who is chasing
everybody to every water well walk.
But I don't want to let the game pass me by.
Do I wait for people to come to me?
What if they never come to me?!
I haven't really, either.
The only person I've talked to was Bruce.
Okay, got you.
[laughs] And so,
you know, you want to, like, be in with people
-Yeah. -but, like, not follow them around.
-Yeah. -But nobody has come to me and been like, "Hey," you know?
And I get good vibes from you.
-I think you're... -Yeah. I think you're great.
It's just, I'm always, like, the weird one or the odd one.
-So I'm like... -No.
Well, typically.
-[laughs] -CAROLYN: My entire life,
people are constantly saying, "Carolyn's kind of loud.
Carolyn's a little bit crazy. Carolyn's a little emotional."
But I am coming out here as somebody
who loves and accepts myself.
[yells]
With the point of view that it's okay to be different,
it's okay to be a little bit loud.
[screams]
[shrieks]
Aah!
So, that's my battle right now.
I want to play this game as my authentic self,
but I can't be too aggressive. Maybe
I need to just work on my strategy.
I can't be so like, "Nobody's talking to me."
That's annoying. I know that.
YAM YAM: We have a boat, guys.
-What? -Uh-oh.
CARSON: I don't like this. [laughs]
YAM YAM: Is that for Tika?
Yeah.
CARSON: I'm nervous.
-SARAH: Are we ready? -HELEN: Yeah. -CARSON: No. [laughs]
Then I'll just, uh, get on my boat then.
SARAH: Yeah.
Come on down.
Carolyn is like, "I'm going. I'm going."
And I was like, "I love you, girl, but I want to go, too."
-Crazy. -CAROLYN: Oh!
I'm excited.
-HELEN: Yeah? -CAROLYN: My tribe was not
supposed to want to go.
I wanted that opportunity.
[groans] I'm pissed. Like, I'm not...
And so like, "Bye!"
-Rock it, Sarah! -[whoops]
-MATT: All right, ready? -HEIDI: Three, two,
-one. -MATT: Go.
Wait.
-HEIDI: No, Matt... -MATT: Is it me?
-Okay. -HEIDI: You got it, Matt.
-Aw... -Aw...
[laughs]
I get the short straw.
[sighs]
No.
I do not want this to be me.
Leaving the tribe so early--
when everyone is still forming relationships--
is terrible.
MADDY: Let's draw rocks.
KANE: Ready?
-Ratu. -Ratu.
LAUREN: [chuckles] I picked up the rocks
to put in the bag,
so I knew which rocks were which.
And so, magically, I picked the gray rock.
MATTHEW: Good luck.
Let y'all know what happens.
KANE: Yeah, please do.
LAUREN: If I'm gonna play this game,
and if I'm gonna have something to show for it
in the end, I can't just be here at camp.
There's nothing in this game that I'm not gonna do. I'm here
to play Survivor.
KANE: Yeah.
Are we gonna look for the key at all?
-I think we should. -Yeah, I think we should, too.
Yeah, we can look for the key now, if you want.
MATTHEW: Right now the cage is on the top of everybody's mind,
because inside that birdcage is a hook with a bag on it.
But the cage is locked up with this giant lock.
And so we all decided that we needed to go look for that key.
JAIME: Ready?
Okay.
MATTHEW: So I pulled a trick out of the oldSurvivor bag and said,
"Let's split up and go in groups."
And that way, regardless of who found it,
no one can hide it from anyone.
When I see a bag in a cage, I think
there's something good in there.
And I don't think it's rice.
MADDY: What if we show up to the challenge, and they're like,
"There was an advantage in the cage."
And it just dawned on me: what if
the purpose of the cage is to cause paranoia?
That is the reason the cage is there.
BRANDON: It's scary 'cause we don't know what's inside that cage.
Hopefully there's something that benefits us all.
JAIME: Because it's such a public cage,
we can see when somebody opens it.
Can we, though?
What if somebody found the key already?
I just don't want us to get bamboozled, is what I'm saying.
If I find that key,
I'm not opening... [chuckles] the cage.
If you're a good player, you keep it secret.
BRANDON: The sweat challenge really showed me that
nothing on this journey is gonna be easy.
My body's still exhausted, but if you want it bad enough,
you're gonna have to work for it.
♪ ♪
And I see this little package.
Oh, my gosh. Is this the key, or is this an idol?
Like, what is this? Uh, it-it's something.
I'm trying to hide it from Maddy because
I don't want anybody to know that I found it.
So I'm trying to act cool.
Like nothing had happened.
MADDY: Brandon does something weird,
and from the back, it, like, kind of looks like
he, like, put something in his pants,
which is odd.
Maddy's very close to me, so she can see
everything I'm doing.
My head is racing, my adrenaline's going.
I'm like, "I can't believe I just found this."
I'll check over here.
If she saw me,
she's gonna go tell everybody else that I found it
and didn't say anything about it.
I didn't want to build that distrust
with the rest of the tribe
so early on in the game.
Yo. Come here.
MADDY: You're kidding.
MADDY: Wait.
That's what I'm saying.
InSurvivor, you have to think outside
of the cage.
Maybe the two of us open it
so we know what's in there.
And it would be good,
'cause then he's more bonded to me.
Can we play it off like...
-Yeah. -BRANDON: I do want to keep it a secret,
but the fact that Maddy was telling me that
she wanted to keep it a secret made me super nervous.
I just knew I can't tr... I can't trust Maddy.
Yo!
-We found it. -They found it.
MADDY: In my mind, it would have been good
for me and Brandon to keep the key for ourselves, but
sometimes you're at the mercy
of other people's moves and, obviously, he doesn't
want to work with me.
[Matthew speaks indistinctly]
-JAIME: Oh, my God. -MATTHEW: Figure out what it is.
KANE: Yeah. [laughs]
-Now, that's pretty cool. -That was nice.
MATTHEW: It's not only an immunity idol but it has a separate
dummy idol. So there's a lot of power in there.
But since we all knew about it, that power
-kind of wanes. -Congratul...
-Is that the idol? -Hey. -Oh!
BRANDON: I just messed up.
I just put the biggest target on my back
without even realizing it.
Now it's public knowledge. I have a idol
and that scares people.
I should have kept this a secret.
♪ ♪
MATT: This is a huge, scary moment.
I have to take a deep breath and gather myself.
My anxiety-- it's
overwhelming.
And it bogs me down.
It-It's paralyzing.
-Hello. -Hello! -Hello.
-We need to get names. -MATT: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
-Yeah, okay. I'm Lauren. -Lauren. -Lauren.
-Matt. -Sarah.
MATT: Sarah.
MATT: Yeah.
There's a part of me that just wants
to curl up into a little ball
and let the other people go on their journey, but
I love Survivor.
I'm here to fulfill a dream
and also to conquer this anxiety.
-SARAH: It's, like, a dark area. -LAUREN: Yeah.
MATT: Yeah, this is an intimidating path.
There are opportunities
for people who can make it through
that dark sea.
SARAH: Oh, gosh.
-MATT: All right, here we go. -Bye, guys. -Bye.
MATT: Survivor is all about risk.
Putting yourself in a vulnerable position
to potentially put yourself in a very
strong position later on. If I want to make it
to the end, I have to make it
through the beginning. And so
it's time to play.
SARAH: We have to pick
at least one thing out of the bag.
If it's not the advantage, you can choose to draw again,
in which case
you're risking
losing your vote
at a sequential
tribal council.
So, I have
a two in three chance
of losing my vote.
Well, either way I'm drawing.
So we draw package one.
All right.
I know, in the bag right now,
there's a losing vote and an advantage.
So, for the second draw,
the odds are 50/50
that I am gonna get
the advantage.
"Congratulations!
It's a brand-new advantage. It gives me
the opportunity at one tribal council
to say "I'm playing the advantage" and then
I get every advantage or idol that was played
at that tribal council.
That's awesome.
I think that's totally worth losing one vote.
MATT: This is gonna be a scary one.
Here we go.
[exhales]
Yikes. No vote?
Ugh! Come on.
Now it gets complicated.
Your vote is your power in this game.
But I could not pass up this opportunity
to have an advantage in this game.
Got to pray to the Survivorgods.
Hope I get lucky.
[exhales]
Oh, no.
I can't vote for two tribal councils.
That makes me so worthless.
Oh, my God.
Okay.
Oh, my freaking gosh.
This is a win for me.
The Bank a Vote is definitely
gonna take some work, 'cause I'm gonna
have to know when to use it.
Lots to think about, especially about
how I'm gonna go back and tell this to my tribe.
FRANNIE: There he is.
Matt!
[Matt whoops]
Coming back,
there are so many thoughts in my head
about what story I'm going
to tell. How am I gonna spin this to my tribe?
It's a very precarious situation.
I brought it back. I want you all to, like,
-Oh, nice. -see the little clamshell.
You must grab one of these and open it.
-I lost my vote. -Oh!
I cannot vote at the next tribal council.
Wait, is it just one?
Um...
Yeah, so, I... I was like,
"Screw that, I'm out, like, I'm done." Um...
So I go with most of the truth,
90% of the truth.
SARAH: We get up there.
Instead of risk versus protect...
only one person winds up with it.
Absolutely no one's finding out
that I don't have a vote at the next tribal council.
I told my tribe that it works similarly
to what we've seen in the past-- that I risked my vote,
and I am not sure if I'm gonna have a vote
at the next tribal council.
So who did?
-YAM YAM: They don't know. -We don't know.
LAUREN: So we walked in... Well, I walked in
and there was a bag there for me to draw.
It's you lose your vote or
you can get a secret advantage,
which would be, like, an extra vote,
but you lose the vote at
any tribal council.
If you, like, give your vote away, then you gain one on...
-moving forward? Okay. -LAUREN: Right, right,
-Like a "bank your vote" kind of thing. -right. Right, right.
My first thought
was to tell them
And I lost my vote.
But in that moment,
something inside of me
was like, "No, you cannot tell them that you have
the advantage."
So, sorry.
I don't know if it's gonna come back to bite me, but
this is for me.
♪ ♪
Come on in.
Welcome.
How's it going, Ratu?
-All right. -We're doing good.
PROBST: All right. Welcome, Soka.
Ratu and Soka getting your first look
at the new Tika tribe.
Bruce no longer in the game.
Danny, saw a big reaction from you.
Yeah, uh, that's devastating. You don't...
you don't want to beat anybody or outlast anybody that way.
And, you know, I think we all admired him.
I hope I get to see him play another-another day.
All right, to give you the official update,
toward the end of the evening, our medical team
made the decision that he needed
further testing to be certain that he was okay.
So he was removed from the game, taken to a hospital.
Happy to report he's in great shape.
No danger, no damage.
All right, shall we get to your first immunity challenge?
-Yeah! -Yes!
[whoops]
All right, for today's challenge,
you're gonna push a boat into the water
and paddle out and around a buoy.
You'll then jump off of the boat and move a very heavy chest
to shore and put it on a track.
Then, using a long rope, you're gonna
pull that chest to the end of the track...
...and use the key inside to release
a giant slide puzzle.
The first two tribes
to solve their puzzle win immunity.
This is what you covet in the game.
[cheering]
YAM YAM: That looks awesome.
Because with either one of these...
[laughter]
...you're not going home!
-[whoops] -PROBST: Nobody's going to kill you
in this game.
Losers of this challenge--
-Tribal Council, where somebody -Oh, my God.
will be the second person out of this game.
And as a penalty for losing, I will take your flint.
All right, Ratu,
you have one extra person. Who are you gonna sit out?
I think I'm gonna sit out, Jeff.
PROBST: All right, Matthew gonna sit out.
Soka, one extra person. Who's it gonna be?
-I'm gonna. -PROBST: All right.
Sit-outs, take a spot on the bench.
Everybody else, give you a minute to strategize,
and we will get it on. Here we go.
[cheering]
♪ ♪
All right, here we go.
First immunity challenge of Survivor44.
Survivors ready?
-Go! -[cheering]
First, you got to get that boat in the water.
-That's not easy. -YAM YAM: One, two, three.
-We got it, we got it, we got it. Push. -YAM YAM: One, two, three.
Soka, Tika out to the early lead.
-Ratu right on their tail. -HEIDI: Keep going!
PROBST: Once you're in the water, start paddling.
-CARSON: Go left, go left. -Get in. Get in.
PROBST: Now you've got to paddle out to the buoy and around it.
[overlapping chatter]
We're in it. We're in it. Go.
Hard on right. Hard on the right. Row.
You're going all the way out
-to the far buoy. -One, two, stroke!
-PROBST: Got to paddle around the buoy and head back.
[overlapping chatter]
-[cheering] -Come on, Ratu!
DANNY: And row. And row.
Once you're there, you got to go around it.
Ratu's doing a nice job.
There's Tika.
We are still dead even right now.
Everybody is past their buoy.
You're good. Start heading back.
Good job, Ratu!
PROBST: Now you got to get to the platform.
Matt is off for Soka.
You're good. Get in the water.
-Yes! -[whoops]
PROBST: Helen is off for Tika.
You're good. Get in the water.
Maddy's got it for Ratu. Everybody get in the water.
♪ ♪
Now you are swimming to your ring
-where your chest is. -[cheering]
But you can't do anything until all five swimmers are there.
Lauren struggling for Ratu.
She's gonna get some help from Kane.
Once you've got your ring, you can start working on the chest.
Now you're good.
-MATTHEW: Go, Ratu! -PROBST: It's Soka in the lead.
Tika staying in this.
-Here comes Ratu. -HELEN: One, two, three!
PROBST: You can see the effort it takes by all three tribes.
You are already fatigued.
-These chests weigh a lot. -CLAIRE: Go, Soka!
You got to dig.
It is only day three of your 26-day adventure.
HELEN: One, two, three.
PROBST: Soka trying to use the water to help move their chest a little.
-Ratu in the same spot they've been in. -Two, three.
PROBST: You are trying to get it to your track.
Tika and Ratu are stuck in the sand.
Aah!
Giving a big opportunity to Soka to increase their lead.
-DANNY: One, two, three. -Teamwork, teamwork, teamwork.
PROBST: Got to get it in that track.
-DANNY: Three. -[all grunting]
PROBST: Then you attach the rope.
It is Soka in the big early lead,
but we're looking for the first two tribes to finish.
So, Tika and Ratu, you keep digging.
Go, Ratu! [cheering]
Two, three. All the way back.
All the way back.
There goes Soka starting to pull.
Keep digging, Ratu. Let's go!
Keep moving, Tika.
CLAIRE: Yay!
PROBST: Soka doing a nice job working together.
-[strains] -PROBST: Pulling a very heavy chest.
CLAIRE: Oh, baby!
PROBST: Here comes Tika. Here comes Ratu.
Still fighting.
You're good, Soka. Untie.
Tika and Ratu, both at the track.
You got to get it up in that track first.
That's another big obstacle.
You got to find your little bag.
Frannie has it. You're looking for a key.
There you go. Now attach the rope.
Come on, Ratu! You're still in this!
Come on! Come on!
PROBST: Now Tika has their rope attached.
-Okay. -Soka has their puzzle released.
Start working, Soka.
It's gonna to be Matt who is the caller.
You're gonna have to work together. That's super heavy.
One, two, three!
PROBST: Tika pulling their chest.
Ratu getting ready to pull their chest.
Soka already starting work on their puzzle.
-Nice job. Nice job. -PROBST: They've got Matt doing the calling.
-Move that side piece. -PROBST: It is Ratu and Tika side by side.
We are still dead even for second.
-[overlapping chatter] -[grunting]
Nice pull by Tika.
Nice. Now corner, in.
[grunting]
PROBST: It's now Ratu in this.
Brandon at the front, exhausted.
-Watch your feet. -CLAIRE: Good job, everyone!
There you go. Now you're good. Untie it.
[Carolyn shouts]
You're good, Tika. Untie.
YAM YAM: Knot, knot, knot.
PROBST: Exhaustion for everybody.
HEIDI: What's the next one?
That one into the corner.
It is Soka still in the lead.
-But slide puzzles are tricky. -All the way. Good job.
MATT: Yeah, that one.
LAUREN: Ready? Go.
PROBST: If you're wrong and you don't notice it,
it's a big setback later.
YAM YAM: Ready? One, two, three.
Yeah, move that up.
Helen's gonna be the caller for Tika.
Second one up, down.
PROBST: Jaime gonna be the caller for Ratu.
HELEN: Push it all the way over, push it all the way over.
PROBST: This is it right here--
your first big immunity test,
and you got to find something in the tank
-to get you to the end. -One, two, three.
[straining]
PROBST: Slide puzzles, a common part of Survivor,but rarely this big.
MATT: Uh, "Survivor" into the corner.
More hands. We need everyone on the same thing.
PROBST: Pieces are heavy.
It takes everybody just to move a piece.
Kane and Maddy, Lauren working hard. Brandon exhausted.
Come on, let's go, let's go, let's go!
-PROBST: This is full-on effort. -Dude.
-[whispers]: Excuse me. -[whispers]: Yeah?
So...
[gasps]
Come on, Brandon.
PROBST: Ratu is disintegrating.
Brandon's on fumes.
It is a very hot day in Fiji...
[grunts]
...which makes it that much more difficult.
-YAM YAM: Three. -PROBST: Everybody wiped.
♪ ♪
[groans]
Are you okay?
Brandon, you all right?
Okay. Hey, hold up. Everybody, hold up.
Medical. Let's pop in and take a look at Brandon.
You all just stay with your group.
-[Brandon groaning] -WILL: Brandon, talk to me. What's happening?
Yeah? You feel lightheaded?
I think you're really feeling the heat.
There's a lot of heat stress in this challenge.
So we're just gonna try and cool you down.
Okay.
So, I think he's-he's just very-very dehydrated.
-He's not looking too bad at this stage. -PROBST: Okay.
WILL: So he just needs time in the shade.
Okay.
-I think we've come in at the right time.
-PROBST: Okay. -Before things have gone further.
We'll get some more fluids into him.
Uh, by the time the challenge is concluded,
-I think Brandon will be in a good fit state to go. -Okay.
[exhales]
WILL: Just try and get that whole bottle down if you can, okay?
PROBST: All right, so here's the deal. Tribes are ready to go again.
You're good, you're gonna stay right here.
Okay. All right, we'll go get the challenge back on.
All right, thanks, Will.
All right. Let's resume this challenge.
Brandon is okay. He's in good hands.
He's cooling down.
All right. Survivors ready?
Go. This challenge is back on.
-[overlapping chatter] -We want to get this corner.
-PROBST: Got Brandon being looked after by medical. -MATT: Okay.
Now "ivor" up. Yeah.
PROBST: And we've got renewed energy
behind the three tribes, after a short
sit in the shade while we looked after Brandon.
It's anybody's game right now.
YAM YAM: One, two, three.
-HELEN: Now move these over. -JAIME: Go! Go!
-PROBST: Ratu having to do it one tribe member down. -[grunting]
And he's a big tribe member, and these are heavy pieces.
So that is a setback.
Good job. Good job. Good hustle.
"Surv" now.
So "Surv" in, torch up.
PROBST: Soka's had the lead for most of this challenge.
And if Matt is right, they're gonna
continue to the finish.
Out, in. This is it. Two more moves.
-We got this. -One, two, three.
Soka looking very close.
-MATT: Everything in. HEIDI: That's it?
Jeff, that's it. That's it.
Soka thinks they have it, and they do.
-[cheering, whooping] -Soka wins immunity.
They're safe. We're looking for one more.
Keep digging Tika. Keep digging, Ratu.
You're both in it.
It's gonna come down to teamwork,
how fast you can move these last pieces
and your caller being right.
Down. Push it down.
We got it, you guys. We got it.
PROBST: Ratu continues to fight...
-We got to move. We got to move this back. -Move this back.
...despite not having enough strength.
-Now we get anywhere really quick, guys. -Down, down, down.
-PROBST: Tika getting closer and closer. -Pull, pull. Now, pull!
-Yes, everything. -Yes.
-PROBST: Another move by Tika. -One, two, three.
Let's go, let's go!
-PROBST: Tika can sense it. -One, two, three. One, two,
-three. One, two, three. We did it! -There it is.
-Tika wins immunity, -[cheering]
safe from Tribal Council, sending Ratu,
where somebody will be voted out of this game.
[cheering, laughing]
-[laughter] -Oh, my.
Soka, congratulations.
[whooping]
-The sword is first place. -That's you, Matt.
-Matt, yes. -Nice job, Matt. -Aah!
-Tika, well earned. -[whooping] -Yay!
Nobody going home from your tribe.
All right, Tika, Soka, no Tribal Council tonight.
Nobody going home. Head out.
Enjoy the night off.
-Thank you. -Thank you, Jeff. -Thank you.
PROBST: All right, Ratu, it's Tribal Council tonight
where somebody will be voted out of this game.
Second person to leave.
Brandon is good to go with you now.
We just kept him in the shade so that he could get better faster,
but he's all good, been approved by medical.
So everybody's gonna go back to camp.
Before you go, there's a penalty for losing.
I got to take your flint. Sorry for you.
You'll have a chance to earn it back in your next challenge.
All right, Ratu,
grab your stuff, head out. See you tonight at Tribal.
BRANDON: The immunity challenge was rough.
My body just couldn't go anymore.
I was physically exhausted, dehydrated, like, all of it.
And, you know, it felt like I had let them down.
So, obviously, I'm happy to have my idol,
but at the same time, what I don't want to do is play it,
and then I get no votes on myself,
and I just wasted a whole idol.
I'm gonna have a lot to think about tonight.
♪ ♪
That's priority number one, I think.
LAUREN: Yeah.
-Yeah. -MATTHEW: That's what counts.
Yeah.
MATTHEW: Man, that immunity challenge was
really difficult for me to watch.
The Ratu tribe lost, and that means
we're going to Tribal Council tonight.
And at the challenge, I learned
some interesting information on that bench.
-What's going on, brother? -Hey.
Yeah.
I found out at the challenge that Matt lost his vote,
and he had a locket that said, "I lost my vote."
He showed it to his tribe.
So why didn't Lauren show that to us?
-I... -What?
-Oh, my God. -I was like, "Oh, really?"
-She's playing us. -She's playing us, too.
-She's ... playing us. -Yeah.
BRANDON: It looks like I was being lied to.
You know, initially, I didn't think
Lauren was much of a threat, but
once it was out there that she did have an advantage,
I started thinking,
"She's dangerous."
-Are you okay with that? -I'm okay with it.
-KANE: I want Lauren. -I want Lauren.
Okay.
He's playing you, he's playing me, he's playing everyone.
LAUREN: Mm-hmm.
-He's the most powerful person here right now. -Yeah.
He's like the godfather.
MADDY: There's only one person I really don't trust,
and that's Brandon.
We're not on the same page.
That's clear from the cage debacle.
He has
connections with everyone and he's got an idol.
Let's just make a big move.
He's not expecting it.
This is the only time that we can do this.
We have to get Jaime,
and then I can talk to Kane.
-That's fine, but... -I mean, I mean, I'm down
with whatever is gonna benefit me.
My first thought process
was go into this Tribal and not vote
because I have the Bank Your Vote Advantage,
which could gain an extra vote.
But Maddy presented me with the idea to vote Brandon out.
I do think it could be a good idea
because he has an idol.
He's so sus.
And if we get him out, we have the numbers.
JAIME: The guys are saying that it's Lauren,
but the girls want to go Brandon.
I have no idea what's going on.
Everybody has, like, a major poker face.
See, this is what it does.
My mind is just going crazy right now.
-Like... -Is Brandon gonna play his idol?
-No. -No. He doesn't know. He's so confident.
Wait. If I play my Shot in the Dark,
I don't get to vote, right?
-Right. -Right. Don't do it.
LAUREN: Jaime talked about
playing her Shot in the Dark just because
she was nervous, but it's only
a one in six chance of actually being safe,
and if she doesn't vote,
that can mess it up for us tonight.
-... -BRANDON: Jaime makes me feel nervous.
I'm not gonna lie.
-Maddy's... Maddy's sneaky. -Yeah.
BRANDON: I don't trust Maddy. She's here to play the game,
and there's no telling what she would do.
And Jaime's running around like a chicken with her head cut off.
So it's hard to figure out who I can trust.
KANE: Holy smokes. I think it's a little early
to take out Brandon,
but, hey, here's the thing.
I came here to play this game.
Brandon has an idol. We have to flush it out.
Yeah, I know. I-I understand what's going on.
I'm just curious if we have numbers.
Lauren and...
Okay.
Yeah.
I think that we can do it.
KANE: If Brandon whips an idol out,
I do not want to be on the wrong side of that.
So it's up to me to decide what's the best way forward.
We have one opportunity to flush the idol.
So it would be me, Jaime, Lauren
-and Kane. -MATTHEW: I mean,
we're losing our biggest guy.
-Just think about it. -Okay.
The big name that came up was Brandon, which is kind of scary.
I mean, he is my closest ally so far.
But if they have the numbers, I don't know if I have a choice.
Lauren's someone I know I cannot trust.
But honestly, I don't know how much I can trust Brandon
versus anybody else at this point
because it's only once names get written down is that
we'll know where people actually stand.
What's going on?
I need more water.
Everyone is concerned about being
on the right side of this vote.
Unfortunately, nobody really knows
where the right side of the vote is gonna be.
♪ ♪
Behind each of you is a torch. Go ahead and grab a torch,
dip it in and get fire.
This is part of the ritual
at Tribal Council because in this game,
fire represents your life.
And when your fire is gone, as you know, so are you.
Always tough at Tribal Council,
especially the first Tribal Council.
So, Jaime, give me the vibe of this six.
It's tense right now. The vibe is tense.
You know that choking feeling you get?
Like, am I the only one that has that? Because...
Yeah. Yeah.
JAIME: You think your mind moves fast.
The game moves faster, and it is if you can keep up,
then you'll be here tomorrow.
PROBST: Matthew, do you feel that same tension right now
or uncertainty?
Yes, absolutely. You get back from the challenge,
you know you're going to Tribal, and you know
that you have to make a decision.
And so, it's crazy because one name comes up, and everybody's
like, "Yeah, that's great. Easy vote. We'll do that."
And then, another comes up. So I don't know
if anybody up here is feeling comfortable.
-I know I'm certainly not. -PROBST: Brandon,
I've never seen an easy vote,
because there's no certainty.
Yeah, I mean, it seemed like a easy vote, but
you don't know what people are telling other people.
You don't know what is... what is lies, what's the truth.
But I think that also kind of navigates
the way the snake is going and who's going to get bit.
Wow. Lauren, what do you read into that?
Man, it makes me tense.
I mean, I definitely do have alliances with a few
of these people here, but to hear Brandon say that,
that makes me feel a little uncertain.
PROBST: And that's a big part of this game is you have
to decide, "I don't believe you" or "I do believe you."
So, Jaime, how much talk was there
amongst the group about advantages or idols?
JAIME: We do have an idol
that we found in a birdcage with the lock and the key.
Um, Brandon found it. Um...
So is it Brandon's idol
or is it whoever needs it can ask for it?
Because he found the key,
I think it was a tribe decision that it would be his idol.
I think it's definitely Brandon's idol.
[overlapping chatter]
MATTHEW: For sure. But that knowledge is power.
Because when you dilute
that information between the entire group,
it reduces the amount of power that that has,
versus if you don't know about the secret,
that's the snake that's gonna get you.
It's gonna pop out of the grass and bite you in the leg,
and you're not even gonna know it was there.
Let's also keep in mind we didn't know
it was an immunity idol in there.
-LAUREN: Right. -BRANDON: I was trying to, you know,
build the trust in my tribemates,
and turns out it was
a target painted on my back, you know?
PROBST: Kane, is it possible that tonight's
tribal, in a way, could be like therapy?
The five that go back will say, "Okay, now we're a group."
Yeah, I think it's more like registering for, like,
12 months of therapy.
Because it's like, I-I want to trust
the people that I'm working with, but
that's gonna be the way to know whether I can trust them.
Maddy, how will the vote change the tribe?
I think it'll be the same tribe, just stronger.
So, stronger by eliminating?
-Yeah. -PROBST: Brandon, does that idea
make sense-- that you could actually be
-a stronger five? -BRANDON: Yeah.
I mean, I think that
if all goes to plan, you know,
I think it will make us a stronger tribe.
Not saying that there's necessarily a weak link,
but there are weaker links.
PROBST: All right, so...
I was gonna say it's time to vote, but you look like you have
-something on your mind. -JAIME: Yeah. So, I want to be honest
and let everybody know,
because it might change the game...
that I'm playing my Shot in the Dark.
This is a numbers game,
and I'm trusting everyone that told me what they were gonna do.
So, withholding my vote
does not make a difference at all.
PROBST: Wow. Brandon, when you hear
somebody at the first tribal
tell you they're gonna play their Shot in the Dark,
what does it say about this group?
If she's saying that her vote wouldn't even matter,
I'm curious what was said to her.
PROBST: All right.
It is time to vote. Maddy, you're up.
♪ ♪
I am choosing to just bank my vote.
Okay, here we go.
If anybody has advantage
or an idol, and you want to play it--
Jaime, I see you have your scroll all ready.
-Yes. -PROBST: Okay.
Bring it up.
Thank you.
-Jeff. -PROBST: Yes.
-You played the Shot in the Dark. -Sure did.
Okay. This is Jaime's. This is yours.
All right. Just to remind everybody,
there are no votes in here from Jaime or Matthew.
They sacrificed their vote for a one in six
shot at safety tonight.
Matthew, if this says you are safe,
then any votes cast against you will not count.
Says you're not safe,
any votes cast against you will count.
Matthew, you are...
...not safe. Any votes
cast against you will still count.
Jaime, your Shot in the Dark--
same rules-- safe or not safe.
Jaime, you are...
-safe. -Oh, my God! [sobbing]
First time in Survivorhistory that a player is safe
as a result of using Shot in the Dark.
Any votes cast against you will not count.
-All right. -Actually, you know what, Jeff?
It may be dumb.
I might be using this prematurely, but this vote's
gonna say a lot about what's going on in the camp
and who I can and can't trust, so...
-It's not a secret anyways. -PROBST: All right.
This is a hidden immunity idol.
Any votes cast for Brandon will not count.
All right, I'll read the votes.
First vote:
Brandon. Does not count.
Second person voted out of Survivor44,
with one vote:
Maddy.
That's one. That's all there is. You need to bring me your torch.
Maddy, the tribe has spoken.
-JAIME: Love you, Maddy. -Good luck, you guys.
PROBST: Time for you to go.
Grab your torches. Head back to camp.
Good night.
Captioning sponsored by CBS
Captioned by Media Access Group at WGBH access.wgbh.org
CARSON: This game is like having an angel on one side,
a devil on the other, and they are constantly at war.
PROBST: Next time onSurvivor...
LAUREN: I'm the powerful one now.
MATT: I found an incredible connection
and I think she likes me, too.
[gasps]
I don't click well with them.
[shrieks]
Are you kidding me? No... Aah!
I put my money where my mouth is and I just came up short.
But it feels good to come out
and play really hard. It was a great run.
I had a lot of fun doing it the way I did it.
And I just wish I could have done it for longer.
But I know I was
walking a balance beam, and...
it went a little topsy-turvy. [chuckles]
[roars]