by Gina Scarpa

 

Last night, on Survivor, Stephanie arrived at Redemption Island to chew Matt's ear off. It seems that, no matter how the impending duel turns out, he'll just be happy to be free of her yammering! Before we can get to their challenge, we have some tribes to check in on...

 

At Zapatera, it's clear that there's no love lost between David and Sarita, following tribal council. He thinks she's weak, she doesn't trust him and the two will only work together for the sake of the tribe. It doesn't seem like a recipe for success and, is it just me, or has the tribe been in a downward spiral ever since they threw the challenge to oust Russell. Dumbest move ever?

 

Tree mail arrives for both tribes to decide who will be heading out to watch the duel. Phillip decides, at Ometepe, that it's his turn to go and Rob smartly jumps at the chance to go with him. The guy needs a babysitter 24/7, especially with the knowledge that Rob is holding on to an idol clue.

 

David and Ralph attend the duel to represent Zapatera and this week's challenge is a big ol' game of Memory... the tensest game of Memory you've ever seen. Matt gets off to an early lead but Stephanie catches up to him. A mistake opens the door for Matt to win his 5th duel in a row. This guy is unbelievable. Before Stephanie leaves, she tells Ralph not to get rid of David because he's their puzzle maker (I guess) and warns Boston Rob that Zapatera will be gunnin' for him at the merge.

 

Back at Ometepe, Phillip absolutely loses his mind when the girls refuse to give him some of the crispy rice at the bottom of the pot because it was Rob's. You may remember that in Kristina's interview with RealityWanted, she said that the rice had to be cooked to Rob's specifications. Perhaps Phillip was justified in being frustrated with the way people are starstruck by Rob and do whatever he says.

 

In this week's reward/immunity challenge, teams make their way through a giant obstacle course to retrieve bags of balls which they must then throw into a hoop 87 billion feet in the air. While Sarita begs, "Help me!" to her team through the course of the race, Rob lags back to literally push and pull Phillip through the obstacles. For a minute, I thought Rob might be trying to throw the challenge to get the special agent out of the game. If he was, he was no match for Grant, who is an absolute beast in challenges and wins it for the tribe. The guy basically won the last two for Ometepe himself! Grant vs. Matt showdown, anyone?

 

For their reward, Ometepe enjoys an awesome helicopter ride to an active volcano, where they enjoy a picnic lunch. Why doesn't anyone ever look for the clue besides Rob?! He finds it again and then tosses it into the volcano, saying he doesn't need it. Amazing. There's a reason why he's my favorite player of all time.

 

Heading into tribal council, the battle of David vs. Sarita continues. Honestly, it should be a no-brainer. You're going to be down in numbers, you've been steadily losing challenges, you need strength right now or you're in bigger trouble than you know at the merge. Who's going to help you - Phillip?! Sarita was so confident in her alliance that she didn't even pack her stuff. Big mistake. They turned their backs, sending her to Redemption Island, much to her surprise. This is a game for a million dollars, lady. Not a contest to make friends and be loyal.

 

Survivor: Redemption Island airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on CBS.

 

(Image courtesy of CBS)

 

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