When we think about some of the best twists in “Survivor” history, what comes to mind? The Medallion of Power? The hourglass? The Haves and Have-Nots switcheroo on the original “Fiji” season?
Oh, relax. I’m kidding, people! But you know what I’m not kidding about? I really dug what MrBeast brought to Season 50 in Wednesday’s episode (and yes, I’m just as shocked by that as you are). Not only did the YouTuber’s Super Ultra Mega Beware Advantage cause an absolute riot at Tribal Council (more on that later), but the “Survivor 50” players had to scrape their jaws up from the floor because the twist he had in store upped the season’s prize money to a whopping $2 million. (Even Jeff Kent has to admit that’s a pretty sweet check for winning a reality show!)
Let’s break down the night’s biggest moments from the top.
Devens feels like he’s on the bottom and after two weeks of upholding a fake idol ruse, that’s probably a correct read. But guess what, other-players-who-might-be-annoyed-at-Devens, he loves playing from the bottom! In fact, he thrives on it. Knowing the jig is up, he comes clean about the idol being fake, and before we know it, we’re whisked away to the always fun “Survivor” auction!
The good news? No one is losing his or her vote today. (Phew!) The bad news? Each item may or may not come with a little bit of attached chaos. (Auction drinking game: Take a shot every time you hear the word “chaos” for some extra “Survivor” fun!)
Some of the more disgusting highlights: Aubry makes a meal of some large grubs in order to secure a big plate of cookies for herself and Rizo. (See? Chaos!) And Jonathan “falls on the sword” so that Ozzy can feast on fried chicken and potatoes. (The way Ozzy would’ve starved had that been me…) Grilled cheese, cake, onion rings, and more get bought and sold, until Jeff unleashes the big guns: If everyone chips in $20, he’ll hand over either the best comfort ever or the worst chaos imaginable! (Dramatic Jeff, but OK.) Everyone goes for the gamble and it’s… their letters from home! BUT IT COMES WITH A BIT OF CHAOS (naturally) in the form of MrBeast and a Super Beware Advantage, which the players won’t learn more about till they get to Tribal Council. Ominous!
The chaos continues at camp
After the grub (and grubs) is devoured, Jeff shuffles the castaways around the corner to their latest immunity challenge where Tiffany earns back the immunity necklace. Day 19 took her out in “Survivor 46,” but not this time! She’ll officially beat her record and wake up on the beach on Day 20. Lucky for her, because things are about to get bumpy!
The madness begins with Jonathan and his plan to get Ozzy out. But instead of going for the “easy” vote in Devens, Jonathan pulls him in to pitch the Ozzy vote. He then tells Stephenie that Ozzy was throwing her name around (though says he exaggerated that “truth”), and it’s enough to get her to sign on to the vote. Devens and Emily are down to clown too, since it puts the target on someone else. But once Joe learns about the Ozzy plan, he leaks it to Cirie, who wants to avoid shifting any power to Stephenie and Jonathan.
OK, stay with me here: Stephenie lies to Cirie, saying she heard of a plan to split the votes between Devens and Emily, but Cirie sees right through it. And some way, somehow, the narrative shifts to “Stephenie is coming for Ozzy.” Steph confronts Cirie about it, and now the two friends find themselves pitted against each other. The vote then changes to Cirie, then Devens, then back to Stephenie, then to Rizo, then to Aubry! Everyone’s name is in everyone else’s mouth, as the entire group scrambles to move the target off of them. Jeff said the auction would be chaotic, but this, THIS is chaos incarnate. The Super Beware Advantage looms, but… who is actually on the chopping block right now?!
MrBeast has spoken
Entering Tribal Council, Devens is armed with the game’s best weapon: information. And he plans on wielding it to ensure his safety. In true Devens form, he does not hold back. He treats Jeff to storytime as he reveals that Jonathan and Stephenie approached him and Aubry about cutting Ozzy. He also says that once Steph became the target, she pitched Devens on a Cirie vote. Then he spills the beans about Steph’s Steal-a-Vote! Steph then attempts to do something she’s admittedly not so great at: lie. She tries to say that Devens and Aubry approached her and Jonathan about voting Ozzy, but quickly walks it back to: they were all a part of the same conversation. Not exactly the same thing, is it?
Jeff gives the looming MrBeast twist a lot of credit for all of this gameplay, but that also needs to be walked back a whole bunch. Walk it aaaall the way back to Los Angeles, in fact! The cast is playing hard, and MrBeast’s presence had nothing to do with the strategy and social game that went down at camp. Regardless, it’s time to unveil the contents of Beast Man’s mysterious briefcase and found inside is: A gold coin. One side has the MrBeast logo on it (heads); the other, torches representing “Survivor” (tails). One person will flip that coin. If it lands on what he or she calls, they are safe at Tribal Council and will go back to camp with an idol. Oh, and the prize money increases to $2 million. But if the caller calls wrong, they’re immediately eliminated from the game.
Who flips the coin is up to the players. If they can’t agree on a flipper, they’ll go to rocks to decide. Devens wants to flip. He’s all over it. This SCREAMS “Rick Devens,” doesn’t it? After some discussion, no one but him steps up, so everyone else acquiesces. The tension builds as Rick picks “heads” and flicks the coin into the air. It lands on: HEADS. Boom! More money for the winner. An idol for Devens. And a vote that still needs to go down.
Stephenie steals Devens’ vote, so she puts pen to parchment twice. But when the results are tallied, an extra vote couldn’t save her. Steph takes the fall for Jonathan’s Ozzy plan, and becomes the fifth member of the jury.
Did you like what MrBeast brought to the show? Who do you think will walk away from “Survivor 50” with $2 million? Go Full Tilt Boogie in the comments section — and be sure to hit TVLine Thursday for our exit interview with Stephenie!