Post by Amanda Kimmel on Nov 24, 2011 15:28:55 GMT -5
Sixteen new castaways began season seven arriving in Cappadocia, Turkey by means of three hot air balloons. They landed near a set of cave dwellings and introduced themselves as:
Episode One: “Pandora’s Box”
The sixteen castaways arrived at the cave dwellings to start the game. They had not been divided into tribes and many were curious as to why. Most were surprised to see Burton and Kelly B from Jiuzhaigou Valley return for a shot at redemption, and that the two veterans would be picking tribes from the group of newbies based solely on first impressions. Both would also get a one-use immunity good for the first two rounds of the game.
Burton picked for Kizilirmak, and he chose Papa Bear, Mikayla, Cochran, Shane, Elyse, Elisabeth, Mick, and Michelle T.
Kelly picked for Erciyes, and she went with Alex, Eliza, J.P., Stephen, Michelle C., Whitney, Jeff, and Christy
The two veterans led their tribes to their camps. At Kizilirmak, Papa Bear immediately started trying to scoop up allies, targeting Mikayla first and making a final two with her. Papa Bear then decided to try to get other people to come up with his idea to make them feel more in control when he could be in charge of an alliance of five. He went to Elisabeth, who was thinking of a final three with him and Mikayla and he asked Elisabeth to propose the idea to her. Elisabeth, although suspicious, did and joined an alliance. As he scouted, Papa Bear found Burton shady, Mick arrogant and anti-social, and Michelle T. to be weak. He decided to rope in Shane, Cochran, and Elyse and thought of himself as the link that kept the alliance strong. None of his alliance mates except for Mikayla knew of the cumulative whole, and Mikayla was the one person Papa Bear trusted the most. At Erciyes, Christy’s behavior was seen as unpredictable as many people could not understand what she was mumbling about. Whitney also did not contribute to helping around camp and many people saw her and Christy as easy first targets, though many were suspicious of a potential secret alliance between Alex and Kelly since she had picked him first. Jeff sought to align with them, which annoyed Whitney. Michelle C.’s over the top behavior, including nasty comments directed at the “other Michelle” on Kizilirmak, also got Alex’s attention and he sought to make the end with her despite having a pact with Kelly, but he was not afraid to betray it. At the challenge, the tribes were presented with a box that they could exchange immunity for; some wondered if there was a curse inside, many others didn’t. Kizilirmak won the challenge and chose to keep immunity, giving Erciyes the box. The box, in fact, contained rewards that the tribe would have to divide amongst themselves before going to Tribal. This led Papa Bear and Mikayla to think they should have taken the box since they had the numbers and could use the heat come the merge. Erciyes had no problem distributing rewards to the four most active people at the challenge. Eliza received an HII clue and shared it with Jeff, Kelly, and Michelle C. After much deciphering, Eliza was able to locate the idol and she kept it to herself. Whitney’s laziness around camp and in the challenge made her public enemy number one. Knowing she was the target, at Tribal Council Whitney tried to blame Kelly, who was immune, for the loss and was met with much opposition from Michelle C., Stephen, and Eliza, who all believed that the one person who’d done nothing for the tribe had no grounds to criticize the person who had picked it. In a move of desperation, Whitney tried to throw Eliza under the bus saying she’d said that Stephen was weak, but nobody believed her lies and she was voted out 8-1.
Episode Two: “Sniff Out and Eliminate”
Erciyes returned to camp united, feeling optimistic about the next challenge. Jeff and Kelly began to hit it off and develop a showmance, leading many of the others to wonder if they and Alex were a tight final three. Eliza showed Michelle C. her hidden immunity idol, and Michelle wanted her to plant a fake where she’d found it but Eliza refused saying that she’s not a dishonest person; however, she decided to keep it between herself and Michelle C. The two of them formed a final three alliance with Stephen due to their united resistance against Whitney the night prior. Many people on Erciyes began to distrust Alex since they found him sketchy, and Stephen decided to replace him with Michelle C. in a potential power alliance. Several different alliances formed and not many people could keep track of who had all made a promise to who, but it did not matter as Erciyes narrowly won immunity. The box contained the same rewards as last time. Kizilirmak argued over rewards and Michelle T.’s idea to give them to the top challenge performers, as Erciyes had done the prior round, was rejected by Papa Bear. Burton stayed out of the argument, saying he did not want a reward, and the distribution made it clear that there was a power alliance on the tribe. Michelle T. believed that Papa Bear was its leader and that he had Mikayla, Cochran, Elisabeth, and Elyse with him and that he was trying to rope in Shane. Cochran received an HII clue, Elisabeth and Shane got nullifiers, and Papa Bear took the double vote, increasing suspicions. Elyse, though aligned, began to question her alliance’s power structure when Papa Bear refused to let Burton in the alliance, making her begin to distrust him; she also disliked that he was going for someone who had been extremely active in the challenge. Papa Bear and Cochran decided to go after Mick because they saw him as anti-social; Mick also saw Papa Bear as anti-social because the former detective had made no effort to communicate. Sick of Mick’s apathy towards him, which ended after the challenge, Cochran began telling everyone else that the only name he’d heard was Mick, but told Mick that Michelle T. was the target. Papa Bear felt extremely comfortable, disturbing Michelle T. even more; although she knew the vote was for Mick, she decided that intimidating Papa Bear and exposing that he was the slimy leader would be the only way for his minions to realize that they need to betray him. At Tribal Council, Mick did not see the bomb coming and he was blindsided by a vote of 7-1-1; on his way out, he called Cochran a bastard and a liar in the vein of Lex from All-Stars.
Episode Three: “A Blessing in Disguise”
After Tribal Council, Papa Bear was fuming that he’d received a vote and lashed out at Michelle T. for voting for him. Michelle T. called him a baby and his tirade got Elyse and Mikayla to trust him less; Elyse wanted to take him out sooner, to split up him and Cochran since she did not trust Cochran after Mick’s exiting remarks. However, Cochran was able to locate a Hidden Immunity Idol at his camp, and he shared this information with his allies. At Erciyes, the tribe enjoyed a unity which was highlighted by Jeff and Kelly continuing their showmance. Knowing full well that they could obtain a good box sometime, they contemplated throwing a challenge to vote out Christy but decided to put it on hold while the tribe was still strong. At the challenge, J.P. and Eliza were able to lead Erciyes to a decisive win, sending a disorganized, uncommunicative Kizilirmak to Tribal Council for the second time in a row. Papa Bear and Cochran agreed that Michelle T. was a weak, anti-social player and deserved to be an easy boot, but Elyse, despite being ill, had other ideas. She approached Burton and Michelle about taking Papa Bear out of the picture, since she knew he was running the tribe and he needed to go. She also told Mikayla, but Mikayla ratted her out to Papa Bear and Cochran and they collectively decided that Elyse had to go since she was a snake and was getting sick. Elyse felt that Mikayla was a timid moron who was afraid to make a power play and stick with an alliance that would undoubtedly keep her until late in the game rather than one who would dump her at the first opportunity, like she believed Papa Bear and Cochran would; Mikayla, however, knew that taking them out later would be for the best. Mikayla went to Elisabeth against Papa Bear’s wishes, since he had pegged Elisabeth as tight with Elyse. The tribe opened their box to find a whopping nine rewards, which a dominant alliance of Papa Bear, Cochran, Mikayla, Shane, and Elisabeth shared, leaving Burton, Michelle T., and Elyse clearly on the outs. Papa Bear approached Burton about taking Elyse out since she was a snake, and a conflicted Burton felt more intimidated by Papa Bear and decided to side with him. Papa Bear grew increasingly paranoid as the night went on and used a double vote to ensure that Elyse would go home for targeting him. Michelle T. was the only person to stick with Elyse, who was voted out 7-2.
Episode Four: “A Welcoming Family”
Michelle T. knew she was on the outs, and the rest of Kizilirmak hardly paid attention to her knowing that she’d be an easy vote at the next Tribal Council. At Erciyes, the tribe also rested easy knowing that Christy would be an easy vote, although many were worried that Kizilirmak might be stockpiling rewards and that they might have to throw a challenge. Alex also felt like an outcast from the rest of the tribe and prayed for a swap, which many people were expecting; however, Amanda announced a double Tribal Council and an immunity challenge that would show loyalty within a tribe. The winner from each tribe would also witness the other tribe’s Tribal Council. Predictably, Christy and Michelle T. were out first, and in the end, Mikayla prevailed for Kizilirmak and Eliza won for Erciyes. Both also were given a box; each contained two 1x nullifiers, a double vote, and an HII clue for one person. They both had the opportunity to give up immunity and the visit for up to two rewards; Mikayla declined, but Eliza gave Michelle C. her immunity in exchange for a double vote. Papa Bear, Elisabeth, J.P., and Kelly all got 1x nullifiers; Shane and Stephen got HII clues, and Papa Bear got the Kizilirmak double vote. Amanda then stunned everyone else by offering mutiny to the first person to step off each tribe mat. Michelle T. didn’t hesitate and immediately joined Erciyes; nobody from Erciyes took up the offer. Kizilirmak was shocked, but Erciyes, including Michelle C., who had made nasty comments earlier, welcomed their new member with open arms. Immediately when they returned to camp, Michelle T. spilled everything, saying that Cochran and Papa Bear were in charge, that Shane (who nobody remembered) was their slave, that Burton was the next to go, and that only the alliance of five had hoarded prizes. She informed Erciyes of their entire stock. Back at Kizilirmak camp, Burton knew that Michelle T.’s immediate mutiny was his undoing, and that he knew that he need not try to scramble because it would disunite his tribe. At Tribal Council, Burton chose to vote for himself to keep the other five strong and left the game with a 5-0 vote. At Erciyes, Alex was the only one unsure about keeping Michelle T. around, but everyone else on the tribe outed Christy as a weak link. Christy found some beer from production and stumbled into Tribal Council drunk, and she was unable to vote and thus left 9-0.
Episode Five: “Nobody Does It Better”
Kizilirmak was bummed to have lost two members in one fell swoop, and the fact that they were down three members was even more discouraging. The four bonded together and realized they had to win the next challenge, which ended up being a reward for a box. Erciyes won narrowly and was able to up their arsenal, with Eliza taking a 2x nullifier, Stephen and Kelly each a double vote, and Alex and Michelle T. getting 1x nullifiers. The loss left Kizilirmak even in further shatters, and they knew that they needed to win immunity or they were finished. At Erciyes, Alex was upset at no tribe swap and continued to make himself an outcast; Jeff and Kelly continued a showmance that annoyed some of their tribemates. However, Erciyes pulled out another win at the challenge, sending Kizilirmak to yet another Tribal Council, only this time without a box. The three men collectively decided that Elisabeth’s uneasiness about voting Elyse off made her the least trustworthy, and therefore she was to be voted out. They told Mikayla, who hated doing it, but Mikayla told Elisabeth anyway that Cochran was trying to gun for her but that he was the target. Elisabeth nullified Cochran’s vote, but in the end she was sent packing by a 3-1 decision.
Episode Six: “Revenge”
Kizilirmak regrouped and knew they had to win the next challenge in order to have a chance in hell at the merge. Erciyes’ tight family bonds started falling apart when Jeff began acting shady, prompting Michelle C. to want to vote him out instead of Alex out of fear that Jeff would flip at the merge. She concocted a plan to fake that Michelle T. had an idol to encourage a split vote, when herself, Michelle T., Eliza, and Stephen would blindside Jeff. Everything fell apart at the challenge, however, when the six people voted out marched into the game ready for revenge. If the Outcasts beat either tribe at the immunity challenge, the Outcasts would vote someone out of the tribe. If both tribes beat the Outcasts, both tribes would go to Tribal Council and each vote someone out; if two people were voted out, they would duel against each other and one would return to the game. Erciyes amassed another early lead, while the struggling Kizilirmak group couldn’t get it together and were eventually passed by the Outcasts. Erciyes won the challenge and the Outcasts beat Kizilirmak, granting Erciyes a special Crystal Box which allowed each member to pick a reward of their choice (they all chose Triple Votes, except for Eliza who went with a Reward Reverser). The Outcasts returned to their camp, and Elyse immediately wanted to finish what she had started and end Papa Bear, since he was the one who orchestrated the vote for her. Mick was indifferent on whether Papa Bear or Cochran should go since they clearly ran the tribe into the ground together, so he went along with Elyse. Burton wanted to vote for the less deserving Mikayla, but everyone else went along with the plan. Papa Bear tried to gather his rewards together, getting a 2x nullifier from Shane, figuring that at least one person would be on his side. Mikayla got suspicious of him and prepared her rewards as well, ready to multiply one person’s vote by six. At Tribal Council, Papa Bear gathered that Burton was going to vote Mikayla, so he pled for Elyse to do so since Mikayla was the one who ratted her out and orchestrated his rewards to ensure Mikayla was booted; however, Mikayla’s 6x on Whitney crushed any hope Papa Bear had and he became the last member of pre-jury by a 7-3 vote that had exhausted nearly every reward Kizilirmak had.
Episode Seven: “White Supremacy”
Mikayla was unhappy that Papa Bear had the boys’ support to get her out, and she regretted not siding with Elyse early on. Knowing she was the bottom rung, she prayed for a merge to avoid being targeted. Her prayers were answered as the two tribes merged into Hattusa, named after the ancient Hittite capital. Kelly won the inaugural individual immunity challenge by lasting nearly four hours; Cochran refused to participate, netting him a self-vote. Back at camp, Kelly found an HII clue in her necklace but was unable to decipher it. Highly paranoid that Cochran had an HII, the Erciyes members gathered together and decided to flush it out and take out Shane instead, since Mikayla admitted having no loyalty to Kizilirmak and confirmed that Cochran did indeed have the idol. Shane knew that he had to play what rewards he had left and that by giving his 2x nullifier to Papa Bear, he had completely screwed any chance Kizilirmak had. Though Mikayla expressed interest in teaming up with Erciyes, they decided she couldn’t be trusted and nullified her vote anyway. As the day wore on, Eliza grew increasingly paranoid that Cochran was targeting her. At Tribal Council, Shane played all of his rewards left, a semi-drunk Cochran accidentally tripled Stephen’s vote, and Cochran played his Hidden Immunity Idol to save himself; Eliza surprised everyone by playing hers as well, leading some Erciyes members to question her loyalty. In the end, Eliza received no votes, and Shane received 9, which was enough to make him the first member of the jury.
Episode Eight: “Kindergarten Lesson Plans”
Immediately upon returning to camp, Michelle C. blew up at Eliza for wasting her Hidden Immunity Idol, finding it hard to believe just how paranoid Eliza had been. Eliza admitted regretting it, and although Michelle C. had less confidence in her ally, the two rekindled and knew they had to stick together. The Erciyes majority knew another easy vote was nigh, but when Mikayla won immunity and Jeff won a bonus, things became slightly more difficult. Mikayla found an HII clue in the immunity necklace once again and shared it with J.P. and Michelle C. to gain their trust; Michelle C. shared it with Eliza, who was able to find another immunity idol to replace the one she’d wasted. She told Michelle C. about it, and Michelle C. was angry that Eliza was stealing the glory. Also, in order to get Kelly and Jeff to trust her, she showed it to them too. Knowing it was extremely safe to vote Cochran since he’d burned his HII, the group gathered together and made a decision. At Tribal Council, the cocky ginger was voted out 9-0, with Alex and J.P. both nullifying his vote.
Episode Nine: “Boom Blam Kaboom”
Getting bored of the uneventful merge, Michelle C. decided it was time to stage a coup. After being pressured by Mikayla wanting to save herself, she gathered Eliza, Stephen, Michelle T., Alex, and Mikayla to separate Kelly and Jeff, who were far too close for the others’ comfort and were both social threats come endgame. The others agreed that Kelly was a bigger threat and that she’d be leaving despite being in the core five of Erciyes, but she won immunity which focused the shift to Jeff. At the challenge, Eliza won an HII clue to the HII she already possessed, and she decided to tell Stephen about it. Stephen loved this news and felt safe in going through with the plan. Michelle T. was uneasy, and told Mikayla that she would be voting for her so she could be the last original Kizilirmak remaining. This made Mikayla uneasy, but Kelly, Jeff, and J.P. were confident that Mikayla would be leaving since their alliance assured them that Mikayla was the target; however, the lack of strategy led Jeff to get slightly uneasy. Jeff’s uneasiness proved true, and Michelle C. nullified his vote and Alex tripled his own to send the former host packing in an 8-2 decision, blindsiding him and Kelly royally. A bitter Jeff made a homophobic slur as he left, prompting Michelle C. to lash out at him.
Episode Ten: “The Stakes Get Higher”
Upon returning to camp, Kelly was furious about her showmance’s blindside, and realized she couldn’t trust anyone. Eliza and Michelle C. knew Kelly was an easy next target and her erratic behavior and increasing need to lie further ensured the numbers against her, though Michelle T. questioned the number of conspirators because it made her feel like an even bigger outcast. Eliza and Michelle C. also began plotting what kind of stunt they could pull with Eliza’s HII, and considered conserving it to blindside Mikayla or Michelle T. at the right time to get the others to trust them more. Kelly tried to align with Mikayla knowing that Eliza and Michelle C. saw her as expendable, but Mikayla refused to accept it. At the immunity challenge, J.P. edged out Kelly which further rendered her doomed. Kelly made a last ditch effort to save herself, convincing Alex that the others found him shady. She knew J.P. had voted with her last round an tried to get him on board to target Eliza. In her desperation, she was able to get through to Mikayla, who admitted she knew she was a fifth wheel and didn’t care, which further enraged the already livid Kelly. Kelly pressed making a move, but it all fell on deaf ears except for Mikayla’s, and Kelly was sent to join her showmance at the jury house by an 8-1 vote, with Eliza reversing Kelly’s doubled AND tripled vote and Stephen expending his triple.
Episode Eleven: “Lying Has Become Such a Habit”
Mikayla returned to camp knowing she was doomed for having been the only person to vote with Kelly, and that she was the last member of Kizilirmak standing. Mikayla knew her only out would be winning immunity, in which case the alliance of Michelle C., Stephen, and Eliza planned to target Alex. As luck would have it, at the challenge, the final round came down to Mikayla and Alex, and Alex edged out Mikayla in the final round to win immunity. At camp, Mikayla knew she was in trouble, but Michelle T. and Alex, both feeling like Outcasts from the larger Erciyes group, decided that now would be the right time to make a move. Although Eliza’s name was mentioned, Michelle T. refused to vote for her feeling as if she owed her for her earlier protection. Michelle C. hopped on board the plan and discovered that J.P. had become the target, so she went to Eliza and told her to play the Hidden Immunity Idol on J.P. as the two had previously schemed, and that Mikayla would be leaving. Feeling insecure, J.P. readied his triple and Michelle T. readied a nullifier, neither of them expecting a rocket to be fired when Eliza gave her HII to J.P. in front of everyone to send an already vulnerable Mikayla packing 4-Ø.
Episode Twelve: “It Never Stops”
Eliza, Michelle C., and Stephen were in full control of the tribe after another successful blindside, but the two ladies struggled to determine a pecking order for the other three. Eliza insisted that they kill Alex since he was shady and should have been gone several rounds before, while Michelle C. thought of J.P. as a bigger all-around threat given his likability and immunity win. The two continually bickered over strategy, unbeknownst to their tribemates, and Michelle C. began to dislike her ally. To compromise, the two agreed that Michelle T. would leave first unless she won the challenge. Michelle C. happened to win it, and she was the only person to go over two hours so she was able to pick up a double vote to compliment her triple, giving her complete control over the final five vote. At camp, Alex knew he had to vote for J.P. to ensure his own survival, but Eliza, Michelle C., and Stephen had stockpiled enough rewards to blindside a completely unsuspecting Michelle T. at Tribal and send her to the jury 5-0, with an insecure J.P. doubling his vote and Eliza using her 2x nullifier.
Episode Thirteen: “Not Gonna Lie”
Michelle C. had a double and triple vote, and everyone knew it. They all knew that she was guaranteed to get her way this round, as it was the last time to play rewards, and nobody questioned her. Michelle C. decided that Eliza was the biggest threat to her, so Eliza would be leaving. However, when Eliza won immunity, Michelle C. focused her attention on J.P. Out of respect for his kindness, she outright told him that she would be voting him, and Eliza joined the conversation to say that she would as well. J.P. knew his fate, and like Burton before him, decided to vote himself out. The final vote was 10-0, and J.P. was on the jury.
Episode Fourteen (finale): “Bring It On”
Alex was surprised to still be around, but he knew he had to pull out an immunity win to potentially make the end. Knowing it was a final two, he feared he’d be unable to win and the threesome against him would pick him off easily. Michelle C. still wanted to vote Eliza off since she was the last big threat to the million dollars remaining, but Eliza managed to win the challenge. The others informed Alex that he was a sitting duck and he was voted off 3-1.
Eliza, Michelle C., and Stephen celebrated that their final three alliance had been a full success. Knowing that the final immunity was looming, they all prepared to fight for their spot in the finals. They went along the rite of passage – Eliza paid her respects, and Stephen echoed many things she said, but Michelle C. was rude regarding several contestants. After the final three performed disastrously at the final immunity challenge, Stephen came out on top. Weighing his options, he saw that Eliza and Michelle C. had both been his longtime allies and regardless voting one of them out would be difficult. Both pleaded their cases to him, and in the end Stephen agreed with Michelle C. that Eliza was the biggest jury threat and he voted her out.
After enjoying a breakfast, Stephen and Michelle C. went to the Final Tribal Council to be confronted by the jury of nine. Stephen declined to make much of an opening statement, saying that the juror’s questions would cover his bases. Michelle C. defended making a strong alliance at the beginning with the loyal Stephen and likable Eliza, and that she’d never went back on her allegiance to them. She defended her social game, and that because of it the only person who had written her name down on parchment was Whitney at the first Tribal Council. She encouraged the jury to bring it on and looked forward to answering questions.
J.P. went first. He told Stephen that the jury saw him as an obnoxious villain, and that he would have no shot to win unless he lived up to that moniker. Stephen said he thought he was perceived as arrogant because Kizilirmak had called him arrogant and he decided to act arrogant to give them what they wanted. He also mentioned that he didn’t talk to people before he wrote their name down, and that he could be seen as a coward. J.P. asked him to tear Michelle C.’s game apart, and Stephen said that he didn’t lie unnecessarily like Michelle had and that she had, unlike him, set out to lie and backstab people. J.P. asked Michelle C. about the round Eliza gave him the idol, and that he felt like he was disposable to her despite having a final two alliance because she’d called him a moron. Michelle apologized for her comments and said that their relationship had become strained and since she had a solid final three, she no longer had a reason to be loyal to J.P. He also wanted to know why Michelle was a deserving winner, and she highlighted her alliances and the fact that she wanted everyone to bring her to the finals, and it worked.
Mikayla was second. She wanted to know why Michelle C. brought the biggest jury threat (Eliza) to the final three. Michelle replied that she had considered blindsiding Eliza in the two rounds she was immune, but the immunity made the plans fall through. Michelle also said that the heart she did have couldn’t bring her to betray her partner in crime, and that she had covered up Eliza’s idol to get the others trusting her. Mikayla first asked Stephen if he wanted to play as a Hero or Villain, and he said Hero but he inadvertently became a Villain. Mikayla pressed what he did strategically, and he highlighted his social game which helped him avoid being targeted by his Erciyes tribemates.
Michelle T. was third. Like many other jury members, she was disappointed that Eliza had not made the finals, so her vote was up in the air. She blasted Michelle C. for blindsiding her after apologizing and trying to make up for nasty comments since the two shared names. She asked Michelle C. if she’d have made the end if she didn’t behave erratically and lie excessively, which Michelle C. said was highly unlikely, and asked the finalist if there was anyone on the jury she hadn’t done that to, and it was only Shane and Cochran – the first two jurors, both Kizilirmak. Michelle T. asked Stephen if there were any moves he was responsible for making, and Stephen claimed that the fivesome alliance of himself, Eliza, Michelle C., Kelly, and J.P. was his idea, as was his final three with Eliza and Michelle C. He also claimed that blindsiding Jeff was his idea because Jeff tried to take his place in the alliance of five. Satisfied, Michelle T. said down.
Kelly went next. She called Michelle C. one of the most over-the-top people she’d ever met, and wanted to know if she was that crazy outside of the game, which Michelle said she was opinionated, but people either loved her or hated her. After, Kelly asked both finalists why she should vote for them. Stephen went first and said that he and Michelle C. made the same strategic moves, but he didn’t stab backs to the extent that she did because he felt it unnecessary to step on people’s toes. Michelle C. replied to that, saying that Stephen wasn’t very social so he couldn’t stab backs to the same extent. Michelle defended her social game and connections, saying she worked her butt off to make the end and had a lot of moves and decisions to show for it, including the plan with Eliza’s second idol and that she’d risked conserving her double and triple to have complete control over the final five vote. Kelly remarked that she’d made her decision and went back to the jury bench.
Next was Jeff. He wanted to know Stephen’s defining moment, which he said was forming the five-some alliance. Jeff also asked if Stephen could survive Kizilirmak, and he said no because of the sketchy ship that Papa Bear and Cochran had been running. Jeff asked Michelle C. what happened the round he left, and Michelle admitted to lying that Jeff was trying to weasel his way into the five-some to replace Stephen so Stephen would go after him, and that she’d secured Mikayla’s vote for that very blindside the round prior. She also roped in Alex, the low man on the Erciyes totem pole, and Michelle T. to make the blindside a success. Jeff further asked her what lies she didn’t need to tell, and the first one to come to mind was not telling Michelle T. she was getting votes. She also said that she told Eliza that she’d take her to the final two but wasn’t sure if that was a promise to be kept.
Eliza took the stage next, and she was angry. She asked Stephen what his greatest accomplishment in the game was now that he knew that Michelle C. had lied about Jeff’s intentions, and he again pushed forming the five-some alliance. Stephen said he was surprised by how much Michelle C. and Eliza had kept from him, and that he had been loyal to them. Eliza challenged him, saying that he had kept her in the dark that he was taking Michelle to the finals with him, and that she’d shown her first idol to several other people before him and that her true allegiance had been a final two deal with Michelle C., which made him upset. Eliza then went on to bash Michelle C.’s excessive lying, which made the trust between the two of them slip. Michelle claimed she was always loyal to Eliza, and that Eliza had benefitted from the double-dealing even more than she had. Michelle C. also mentioned that the only reason she’d ever lied to Eliza was because she was the biggest threat with the jury, as was evident by some of the others’ indecisions. Eliza continued saying that Michelle was being fake to several of the jurors, and she denied it, saying that if she were being a fake bitch she’d have been in Whitney’s shoes; although she didn’t intend to be a bitch, that’s just part of who she was and that she was trying to be nice to the jury for once. She apologized for the times she’d crossed the line, which satisfied Eliza.
Alex was seventh. He trashed Michelle C. for using him as an expendable pawn, and that he was ashamed that he’d wanted to be friends with her because she was dehumanizing. He then ripped Stephen for being a completely worthless third wheel to a powerful final two alliance, and that the only thing he’d actually done was win the final immunity challenge. He then started asking a slew of random, irrelevant questions, which they refused to answer because they knew such trivialities were not allowed. Alex called them pansies and insulted them, at which point Amanda forced him to take a seat.
Shane followed Alex, and neither the final two nor Shane remembered conversing too much. Shane asked for interesting facts about both finalists, and Michelle C. surprised everyone saying that her mother language was Italian. Stephen claimed to be a concert violinist of five different European heritages, and Michelle C. said she was a environmental advocate. Shane further asked both of the finalists whether their opponent was a Hero or Villain, and neither hesitated to call their ally a Villain.
Cochran closed things out, and he said he was still undecided after a long Final Tribal. He asked Michelle C. what she’d do different in HvV to avoid being labeled a target for her excessive lying. She said she came into the game without a preset strategy and ended up being a Villain. Cochran further asked her about why he was such a threat when he really wasn’t, and Michelle said that perceptions are important and since Cochran had the idol and was clearly with Papa Bear that Erciyes had thought he was calling the shots, and therefore he had to go. Cochran asked Stephen if they’d have worked together if they had been on the same tribe, and Stephen said he’d have loved to.
The jury cast their votes, and at the finale in Los Angeles, the power cut out and nobody knew who won.
Seven players were named to Heroes vs. Villains:
Stephen Fishbach, The Instigator. Stayed loyal to a solid alliance, but in the process did not hesitate to initiate arguments and make enemies. Although the jury hated him, he still made it to face them!
Eliza Orlins, The Answer. Asked a lot of questions, but did so to ensure her great position in the game. Played loyal to her allies and somewhat villainous to her enemies, but was well-liked by the jury and would have won in a final two.
Alex Angarita, The Weasel. A very shady battery salesman type who weaseled his way through various loops and survived to the final four despite nobody trusting him.
Michelle Tesauro, The Analyst. Made a game-changing mutiny which let her improve nine places, and took all situations into account to determine her best moves. Thus, she needed to be blindsided, and thus, she gets another chance.
Mikayla Wingle, The Escapist. Stayed true to an alliance that wasn't staying the truest to her, and when a disadvantageous merge put her in a bind she did whatever she could to make it to the next round.
Kelly Bruno, The Avenger. Came back to avenge her placement in the prior season and didn't mess around. Played a stellar social game and stayed loyal to her closest ally, and then tried to make a huge move when he was blindsided. Although she failed, she still have more vengeance to exact.
Mark "Papa Bear" Caruso, The Wrecker. A polarizing player who took full control of his tribe and voted out those he wasn't aligned with, but his questionable methods ran the tribe into the ground and a twist let the people he booted get their revenge.
*Note: Michelle C. would have been in HvV as a Villain, but she was put into a coma after a drunken bar fight. It is unknown when she will awaken.
Turkey was an unpredictable ride led by a strong cast, crazy twists, and bold moves that worked together to produce a memorable season. A huge improvement upon the season before, this host has strong hopes for season eight!
- Mark aka “Papa Bear,” a recently retired NYPD detective
- Mikayla, a lingerie football player
- Stephen, a corporate consultant
- Mick, a doctor
- J.P., a model
- Alex, a freelance attorney
- Whitney, a country music artist
- Jeff, a former network TV host
- Michelle T., a political advocate
- Cochran, a Harvard law student going by his last name
- Eliza, an international law student
- Elisabeth, a talk show hostess
- Elyse, a dance team instructor
- Michelle C., a music producer
- Shane, a branding company executive
- Christy, a deaf charity organizer
Episode One: “Pandora’s Box”
Immunity Challenge: Castaways would score points for their tribe by placing weights in a bin once an hour. Points would be awarded based on the number of tribemates who did it successfully every hour and bonus points would be awarded for simultaneous donations. The tribe with the most points would win the challenge.
The sixteen castaways arrived at the cave dwellings to start the game. They had not been divided into tribes and many were curious as to why. Most were surprised to see Burton and Kelly B from Jiuzhaigou Valley return for a shot at redemption, and that the two veterans would be picking tribes from the group of newbies based solely on first impressions. Both would also get a one-use immunity good for the first two rounds of the game.
Burton picked for Kizilirmak, and he chose Papa Bear, Mikayla, Cochran, Shane, Elyse, Elisabeth, Mick, and Michelle T.
Kelly picked for Erciyes, and she went with Alex, Eliza, J.P., Stephen, Michelle C., Whitney, Jeff, and Christy
The two veterans led their tribes to their camps. At Kizilirmak, Papa Bear immediately started trying to scoop up allies, targeting Mikayla first and making a final two with her. Papa Bear then decided to try to get other people to come up with his idea to make them feel more in control when he could be in charge of an alliance of five. He went to Elisabeth, who was thinking of a final three with him and Mikayla and he asked Elisabeth to propose the idea to her. Elisabeth, although suspicious, did and joined an alliance. As he scouted, Papa Bear found Burton shady, Mick arrogant and anti-social, and Michelle T. to be weak. He decided to rope in Shane, Cochran, and Elyse and thought of himself as the link that kept the alliance strong. None of his alliance mates except for Mikayla knew of the cumulative whole, and Mikayla was the one person Papa Bear trusted the most. At Erciyes, Christy’s behavior was seen as unpredictable as many people could not understand what she was mumbling about. Whitney also did not contribute to helping around camp and many people saw her and Christy as easy first targets, though many were suspicious of a potential secret alliance between Alex and Kelly since she had picked him first. Jeff sought to align with them, which annoyed Whitney. Michelle C.’s over the top behavior, including nasty comments directed at the “other Michelle” on Kizilirmak, also got Alex’s attention and he sought to make the end with her despite having a pact with Kelly, but he was not afraid to betray it. At the challenge, the tribes were presented with a box that they could exchange immunity for; some wondered if there was a curse inside, many others didn’t. Kizilirmak won the challenge and chose to keep immunity, giving Erciyes the box. The box, in fact, contained rewards that the tribe would have to divide amongst themselves before going to Tribal. This led Papa Bear and Mikayla to think they should have taken the box since they had the numbers and could use the heat come the merge. Erciyes had no problem distributing rewards to the four most active people at the challenge. Eliza received an HII clue and shared it with Jeff, Kelly, and Michelle C. After much deciphering, Eliza was able to locate the idol and she kept it to herself. Whitney’s laziness around camp and in the challenge made her public enemy number one. Knowing she was the target, at Tribal Council Whitney tried to blame Kelly, who was immune, for the loss and was met with much opposition from Michelle C., Stephen, and Eliza, who all believed that the one person who’d done nothing for the tribe had no grounds to criticize the person who had picked it. In a move of desperation, Whitney tried to throw Eliza under the bus saying she’d said that Stephen was weak, but nobody believed her lies and she was voted out 8-1.
Episode Two: “Sniff Out and Eliminate”
Immunity Challenge: Castaways would be assigned to one of seven events in a matchup against someone from the other tribe. The tribe that wins the most out of seven heats wins immunity or the choice of the box.
Erciyes returned to camp united, feeling optimistic about the next challenge. Jeff and Kelly began to hit it off and develop a showmance, leading many of the others to wonder if they and Alex were a tight final three. Eliza showed Michelle C. her hidden immunity idol, and Michelle wanted her to plant a fake where she’d found it but Eliza refused saying that she’s not a dishonest person; however, she decided to keep it between herself and Michelle C. The two of them formed a final three alliance with Stephen due to their united resistance against Whitney the night prior. Many people on Erciyes began to distrust Alex since they found him sketchy, and Stephen decided to replace him with Michelle C. in a potential power alliance. Several different alliances formed and not many people could keep track of who had all made a promise to who, but it did not matter as Erciyes narrowly won immunity. The box contained the same rewards as last time. Kizilirmak argued over rewards and Michelle T.’s idea to give them to the top challenge performers, as Erciyes had done the prior round, was rejected by Papa Bear. Burton stayed out of the argument, saying he did not want a reward, and the distribution made it clear that there was a power alliance on the tribe. Michelle T. believed that Papa Bear was its leader and that he had Mikayla, Cochran, Elisabeth, and Elyse with him and that he was trying to rope in Shane. Cochran received an HII clue, Elisabeth and Shane got nullifiers, and Papa Bear took the double vote, increasing suspicions. Elyse, though aligned, began to question her alliance’s power structure when Papa Bear refused to let Burton in the alliance, making her begin to distrust him; she also disliked that he was going for someone who had been extremely active in the challenge. Papa Bear and Cochran decided to go after Mick because they saw him as anti-social; Mick also saw Papa Bear as anti-social because the former detective had made no effort to communicate. Sick of Mick’s apathy towards him, which ended after the challenge, Cochran began telling everyone else that the only name he’d heard was Mick, but told Mick that Michelle T. was the target. Papa Bear felt extremely comfortable, disturbing Michelle T. even more; although she knew the vote was for Mick, she decided that intimidating Papa Bear and exposing that he was the slimy leader would be the only way for his minions to realize that they need to betray him. At Tribal Council, Mick did not see the bomb coming and he was blindsided by a vote of 7-1-1; on his way out, he called Cochran a bastard and a liar in the vein of Lex from All-Stars.
Episode Three: “A Blessing in Disguise”
Immunity Challenge: Castaways would attempt to steal jewels from the other tribe’s box while they weren’t looking. If they were caught, they would be captured; the tribe with the most jewels or the first tribe to capture the entire other tribe would win the challenge.
After Tribal Council, Papa Bear was fuming that he’d received a vote and lashed out at Michelle T. for voting for him. Michelle T. called him a baby and his tirade got Elyse and Mikayla to trust him less; Elyse wanted to take him out sooner, to split up him and Cochran since she did not trust Cochran after Mick’s exiting remarks. However, Cochran was able to locate a Hidden Immunity Idol at his camp, and he shared this information with his allies. At Erciyes, the tribe enjoyed a unity which was highlighted by Jeff and Kelly continuing their showmance. Knowing full well that they could obtain a good box sometime, they contemplated throwing a challenge to vote out Christy but decided to put it on hold while the tribe was still strong. At the challenge, J.P. and Eliza were able to lead Erciyes to a decisive win, sending a disorganized, uncommunicative Kizilirmak to Tribal Council for the second time in a row. Papa Bear and Cochran agreed that Michelle T. was a weak, anti-social player and deserved to be an easy boot, but Elyse, despite being ill, had other ideas. She approached Burton and Michelle about taking Papa Bear out of the picture, since she knew he was running the tribe and he needed to go. She also told Mikayla, but Mikayla ratted her out to Papa Bear and Cochran and they collectively decided that Elyse had to go since she was a snake and was getting sick. Elyse felt that Mikayla was a timid moron who was afraid to make a power play and stick with an alliance that would undoubtedly keep her until late in the game rather than one who would dump her at the first opportunity, like she believed Papa Bear and Cochran would; Mikayla, however, knew that taking them out later would be for the best. Mikayla went to Elisabeth against Papa Bear’s wishes, since he had pegged Elisabeth as tight with Elyse. The tribe opened their box to find a whopping nine rewards, which a dominant alliance of Papa Bear, Cochran, Mikayla, Shane, and Elisabeth shared, leaving Burton, Michelle T., and Elyse clearly on the outs. Papa Bear approached Burton about taking Elyse out since she was a snake, and a conflicted Burton felt more intimidated by Papa Bear and decided to side with him. Papa Bear grew increasingly paranoid as the night went on and used a double vote to ensure that Elyse would go home for targeting him. Michelle T. was the only person to stick with Elyse, who was voted out 7-2.
Episode Four: “A Welcoming Family”
Immunity Challenge: Castaways would compete individually against members of their own tribe, destroying each other’s tiles using various attacks. The last tribe member with tiles standing would win immunity.
Michelle T. knew she was on the outs, and the rest of Kizilirmak hardly paid attention to her knowing that she’d be an easy vote at the next Tribal Council. At Erciyes, the tribe also rested easy knowing that Christy would be an easy vote, although many were worried that Kizilirmak might be stockpiling rewards and that they might have to throw a challenge. Alex also felt like an outcast from the rest of the tribe and prayed for a swap, which many people were expecting; however, Amanda announced a double Tribal Council and an immunity challenge that would show loyalty within a tribe. The winner from each tribe would also witness the other tribe’s Tribal Council. Predictably, Christy and Michelle T. were out first, and in the end, Mikayla prevailed for Kizilirmak and Eliza won for Erciyes. Both also were given a box; each contained two 1x nullifiers, a double vote, and an HII clue for one person. They both had the opportunity to give up immunity and the visit for up to two rewards; Mikayla declined, but Eliza gave Michelle C. her immunity in exchange for a double vote. Papa Bear, Elisabeth, J.P., and Kelly all got 1x nullifiers; Shane and Stephen got HII clues, and Papa Bear got the Kizilirmak double vote. Amanda then stunned everyone else by offering mutiny to the first person to step off each tribe mat. Michelle T. didn’t hesitate and immediately joined Erciyes; nobody from Erciyes took up the offer. Kizilirmak was shocked, but Erciyes, including Michelle C., who had made nasty comments earlier, welcomed their new member with open arms. Immediately when they returned to camp, Michelle T. spilled everything, saying that Cochran and Papa Bear were in charge, that Shane (who nobody remembered) was their slave, that Burton was the next to go, and that only the alliance of five had hoarded prizes. She informed Erciyes of their entire stock. Back at Kizilirmak camp, Burton knew that Michelle T.’s immediate mutiny was his undoing, and that he knew that he need not try to scramble because it would disunite his tribe. At Tribal Council, Burton chose to vote for himself to keep the other five strong and left the game with a 5-0 vote. At Erciyes, Alex was the only one unsure about keeping Michelle T. around, but everyone else on the tribe outed Christy as a weak link. Christy found some beer from production and stumbled into Tribal Council drunk, and she was unable to vote and thus left 9-0.
Episode Five: “Nobody Does It Better”
Reward Challenge: Castaways would scour a vast field for hidden puzzle pieces, then assemble the puzzle. The first tribe to complete the puzzle would win a box with five rewards.
Immunity Challenge: Castaways would watch a video from Amanda’s past and then each member of the tribe would be asked three random questions about it. The tribe who had the best collective time over 18 questions would win immunity.
Kizilirmak was bummed to have lost two members in one fell swoop, and the fact that they were down three members was even more discouraging. The four bonded together and realized they had to win the next challenge, which ended up being a reward for a box. Erciyes won narrowly and was able to up their arsenal, with Eliza taking a 2x nullifier, Stephen and Kelly each a double vote, and Alex and Michelle T. getting 1x nullifiers. The loss left Kizilirmak even in further shatters, and they knew that they needed to win immunity or they were finished. At Erciyes, Alex was upset at no tribe swap and continued to make himself an outcast; Jeff and Kelly continued a showmance that annoyed some of their tribemates. However, Erciyes pulled out another win at the challenge, sending Kizilirmak to yet another Tribal Council, only this time without a box. The three men collectively decided that Elisabeth’s uneasiness about voting Elyse off made her the least trustworthy, and therefore she was to be voted out. They told Mikayla, who hated doing it, but Mikayla told Elisabeth anyway that Cochran was trying to gun for her but that he was the target. Elisabeth nullified Cochran’s vote, but in the end she was sent packing by a 3-1 decision.
Episode Six: “Revenge”
Immunity Challenge: The castaways would stack as many plates as possible. The tribe that did the most would win.
Kizilirmak regrouped and knew they had to win the next challenge in order to have a chance in hell at the merge. Erciyes’ tight family bonds started falling apart when Jeff began acting shady, prompting Michelle C. to want to vote him out instead of Alex out of fear that Jeff would flip at the merge. She concocted a plan to fake that Michelle T. had an idol to encourage a split vote, when herself, Michelle T., Eliza, and Stephen would blindside Jeff. Everything fell apart at the challenge, however, when the six people voted out marched into the game ready for revenge. If the Outcasts beat either tribe at the immunity challenge, the Outcasts would vote someone out of the tribe. If both tribes beat the Outcasts, both tribes would go to Tribal Council and each vote someone out; if two people were voted out, they would duel against each other and one would return to the game. Erciyes amassed another early lead, while the struggling Kizilirmak group couldn’t get it together and were eventually passed by the Outcasts. Erciyes won the challenge and the Outcasts beat Kizilirmak, granting Erciyes a special Crystal Box which allowed each member to pick a reward of their choice (they all chose Triple Votes, except for Eliza who went with a Reward Reverser). The Outcasts returned to their camp, and Elyse immediately wanted to finish what she had started and end Papa Bear, since he was the one who orchestrated the vote for her. Mick was indifferent on whether Papa Bear or Cochran should go since they clearly ran the tribe into the ground together, so he went along with Elyse. Burton wanted to vote for the less deserving Mikayla, but everyone else went along with the plan. Papa Bear tried to gather his rewards together, getting a 2x nullifier from Shane, figuring that at least one person would be on his side. Mikayla got suspicious of him and prepared her rewards as well, ready to multiply one person’s vote by six. At Tribal Council, Papa Bear gathered that Burton was going to vote Mikayla, so he pled for Elyse to do so since Mikayla was the one who ratted her out and orchestrated his rewards to ensure Mikayla was booted; however, Mikayla’s 6x on Whitney crushed any hope Papa Bear had and he became the last member of pre-jury by a 7-3 vote that had exhausted nearly every reward Kizilirmak had.
Episode Seven: “White Supremacy”
Immunity Challenge: Castaways would hang onto a pole with conditions that would continually change. The last person remaining would win immunity.
Mikayla was unhappy that Papa Bear had the boys’ support to get her out, and she regretted not siding with Elyse early on. Knowing she was the bottom rung, she prayed for a merge to avoid being targeted. Her prayers were answered as the two tribes merged into Hattusa, named after the ancient Hittite capital. Kelly won the inaugural individual immunity challenge by lasting nearly four hours; Cochran refused to participate, netting him a self-vote. Back at camp, Kelly found an HII clue in her necklace but was unable to decipher it. Highly paranoid that Cochran had an HII, the Erciyes members gathered together and decided to flush it out and take out Shane instead, since Mikayla admitted having no loyalty to Kizilirmak and confirmed that Cochran did indeed have the idol. Shane knew that he had to play what rewards he had left and that by giving his 2x nullifier to Papa Bear, he had completely screwed any chance Kizilirmak had. Though Mikayla expressed interest in teaming up with Erciyes, they decided she couldn’t be trusted and nullified her vote anyway. As the day wore on, Eliza grew increasingly paranoid that Cochran was targeting her. At Tribal Council, Shane played all of his rewards left, a semi-drunk Cochran accidentally tripled Stephen’s vote, and Cochran played his Hidden Immunity Idol to save himself; Eliza surprised everyone by playing hers as well, leading some Erciyes members to question her loyalty. In the end, Eliza received no votes, and Shane received 9, which was enough to make him the first member of the jury.
Episode Eight: “Kindergarten Lesson Plans”
Immunity Challenge: Castaways would plan their own fictional season of Survivor. The one judged the best by the hosts and last season’s winner Parvati would win immunity.
Immediately upon returning to camp, Michelle C. blew up at Eliza for wasting her Hidden Immunity Idol, finding it hard to believe just how paranoid Eliza had been. Eliza admitted regretting it, and although Michelle C. had less confidence in her ally, the two rekindled and knew they had to stick together. The Erciyes majority knew another easy vote was nigh, but when Mikayla won immunity and Jeff won a bonus, things became slightly more difficult. Mikayla found an HII clue in the immunity necklace once again and shared it with J.P. and Michelle C. to gain their trust; Michelle C. shared it with Eliza, who was able to find another immunity idol to replace the one she’d wasted. She told Michelle C. about it, and Michelle C. was angry that Eliza was stealing the glory. Also, in order to get Kelly and Jeff to trust her, she showed it to them too. Knowing it was extremely safe to vote Cochran since he’d burned his HII, the group gathered together and made a decision. At Tribal Council, the cocky ginger was voted out 9-0, with Alex and J.P. both nullifying his vote.
Episode Nine: “Boom Blam Kaboom”
Immunity Challenge: Castaways would answer a series of questions about their tribemates, and then answer what they thought was in either the minority or majority, but would not know which until the quiz was over. The person who scored the highest would win immunity.
Getting bored of the uneventful merge, Michelle C. decided it was time to stage a coup. After being pressured by Mikayla wanting to save herself, she gathered Eliza, Stephen, Michelle T., Alex, and Mikayla to separate Kelly and Jeff, who were far too close for the others’ comfort and were both social threats come endgame. The others agreed that Kelly was a bigger threat and that she’d be leaving despite being in the core five of Erciyes, but she won immunity which focused the shift to Jeff. At the challenge, Eliza won an HII clue to the HII she already possessed, and she decided to tell Stephen about it. Stephen loved this news and felt safe in going through with the plan. Michelle T. was uneasy, and told Mikayla that she would be voting for her so she could be the last original Kizilirmak remaining. This made Mikayla uneasy, but Kelly, Jeff, and J.P. were confident that Mikayla would be leaving since their alliance assured them that Mikayla was the target; however, the lack of strategy led Jeff to get slightly uneasy. Jeff’s uneasiness proved true, and Michelle C. nullified his vote and Alex tripled his own to send the former host packing in an 8-2 decision, blindsiding him and Kelly royally. A bitter Jeff made a homophobic slur as he left, prompting Michelle C. to lash out at him.
Episode Ten: “The Stakes Get Higher”
Immunity Challenge: Castaways would design a logo advertising either Turkey or the series, or one sucking up to Amanda. The one judged best by the hosts, Parvati, and graphics specialist Brett would win immunity.
Upon returning to camp, Kelly was furious about her showmance’s blindside, and realized she couldn’t trust anyone. Eliza and Michelle C. knew Kelly was an easy next target and her erratic behavior and increasing need to lie further ensured the numbers against her, though Michelle T. questioned the number of conspirators because it made her feel like an even bigger outcast. Eliza and Michelle C. also began plotting what kind of stunt they could pull with Eliza’s HII, and considered conserving it to blindside Mikayla or Michelle T. at the right time to get the others to trust them more. Kelly tried to align with Mikayla knowing that Eliza and Michelle C. saw her as expendable, but Mikayla refused to accept it. At the immunity challenge, J.P. edged out Kelly which further rendered her doomed. Kelly made a last ditch effort to save herself, convincing Alex that the others found him shady. She knew J.P. had voted with her last round an tried to get him on board to target Eliza. In her desperation, she was able to get through to Mikayla, who admitted she knew she was a fifth wheel and didn’t care, which further enraged the already livid Kelly. Kelly pressed making a move, but it all fell on deaf ears except for Mikayla’s, and Kelly was sent to join her showmance at the jury house by an 8-1 vote, with Eliza reversing Kelly’s doubled AND tripled vote and Stephen expending his triple.
Episode Eleven: “Lying Has Become Such a Habit”
Immunity Challenge: Castaways would compete in heats of various tasks, and the last person to finish each task would be eliminated from the challenge. The last person standing would win immunity.
Mikayla returned to camp knowing she was doomed for having been the only person to vote with Kelly, and that she was the last member of Kizilirmak standing. Mikayla knew her only out would be winning immunity, in which case the alliance of Michelle C., Stephen, and Eliza planned to target Alex. As luck would have it, at the challenge, the final round came down to Mikayla and Alex, and Alex edged out Mikayla in the final round to win immunity. At camp, Mikayla knew she was in trouble, but Michelle T. and Alex, both feeling like Outcasts from the larger Erciyes group, decided that now would be the right time to make a move. Although Eliza’s name was mentioned, Michelle T. refused to vote for her feeling as if she owed her for her earlier protection. Michelle C. hopped on board the plan and discovered that J.P. had become the target, so she went to Eliza and told her to play the Hidden Immunity Idol on J.P. as the two had previously schemed, and that Mikayla would be leaving. Feeling insecure, J.P. readied his triple and Michelle T. readied a nullifier, neither of them expecting a rocket to be fired when Eliza gave her HII to J.P. in front of everyone to send an already vulnerable Mikayla packing 4-Ø.
Episode Twelve: “It Never Stops”
Immunity Challenge: Castaways would balance two poles, one on either side, with the weight increasing with time. The last castaway standing would win immunity, and anyone who lasted for over two hours would get a prize from a box.
Eliza, Michelle C., and Stephen were in full control of the tribe after another successful blindside, but the two ladies struggled to determine a pecking order for the other three. Eliza insisted that they kill Alex since he was shady and should have been gone several rounds before, while Michelle C. thought of J.P. as a bigger all-around threat given his likability and immunity win. The two continually bickered over strategy, unbeknownst to their tribemates, and Michelle C. began to dislike her ally. To compromise, the two agreed that Michelle T. would leave first unless she won the challenge. Michelle C. happened to win it, and she was the only person to go over two hours so she was able to pick up a double vote to compliment her triple, giving her complete control over the final five vote. At camp, Alex knew he had to vote for J.P. to ensure his own survival, but Eliza, Michelle C., and Stephen had stockpiled enough rewards to blindside a completely unsuspecting Michelle T. at Tribal and send her to the jury 5-0, with an insecure J.P. doubling his vote and Eliza using her 2x nullifier.
Episode Thirteen: “Not Gonna Lie”
Immunity Challenge: Contestants would dig at different coordinates in their own sandpits, taking turns but being unable to see what the others were doing. The person who had the most of the 16 buried treasures after a certain amount of time would win immunity.
Michelle C. had a double and triple vote, and everyone knew it. They all knew that she was guaranteed to get her way this round, as it was the last time to play rewards, and nobody questioned her. Michelle C. decided that Eliza was the biggest threat to her, so Eliza would be leaving. However, when Eliza won immunity, Michelle C. focused her attention on J.P. Out of respect for his kindness, she outright told him that she would be voting him, and Eliza joined the conversation to say that she would as well. J.P. knew his fate, and like Burton before him, decided to vote himself out. The final vote was 10-0, and J.P. was on the jury.
Episode Fourteen (finale): “Bring It On”
Immunity Challenge: The final four would answer questions about the season at treemail. The person with the most correct would win a spot in the final three.
Alex was surprised to still be around, but he knew he had to pull out an immunity win to potentially make the end. Knowing it was a final two, he feared he’d be unable to win and the threesome against him would pick him off easily. Michelle C. still wanted to vote Eliza off since she was the last big threat to the million dollars remaining, but Eliza managed to win the challenge. The others informed Alex that he was a sitting duck and he was voted off 3-1.
Immunity Challenge: The final three would compete in an obstacle course involving breaking locks, finding ninja stars, and throwing them to obtain puzzle pieces. The first person to complete the puzzle would be in the final two and choose who sat next to them there.
Eliza, Michelle C., and Stephen celebrated that their final three alliance had been a full success. Knowing that the final immunity was looming, they all prepared to fight for their spot in the finals. They went along the rite of passage – Eliza paid her respects, and Stephen echoed many things she said, but Michelle C. was rude regarding several contestants. After the final three performed disastrously at the final immunity challenge, Stephen came out on top. Weighing his options, he saw that Eliza and Michelle C. had both been his longtime allies and regardless voting one of them out would be difficult. Both pleaded their cases to him, and in the end Stephen agreed with Michelle C. that Eliza was the biggest jury threat and he voted her out.
After enjoying a breakfast, Stephen and Michelle C. went to the Final Tribal Council to be confronted by the jury of nine. Stephen declined to make much of an opening statement, saying that the juror’s questions would cover his bases. Michelle C. defended making a strong alliance at the beginning with the loyal Stephen and likable Eliza, and that she’d never went back on her allegiance to them. She defended her social game, and that because of it the only person who had written her name down on parchment was Whitney at the first Tribal Council. She encouraged the jury to bring it on and looked forward to answering questions.
J.P. went first. He told Stephen that the jury saw him as an obnoxious villain, and that he would have no shot to win unless he lived up to that moniker. Stephen said he thought he was perceived as arrogant because Kizilirmak had called him arrogant and he decided to act arrogant to give them what they wanted. He also mentioned that he didn’t talk to people before he wrote their name down, and that he could be seen as a coward. J.P. asked him to tear Michelle C.’s game apart, and Stephen said that he didn’t lie unnecessarily like Michelle had and that she had, unlike him, set out to lie and backstab people. J.P. asked Michelle C. about the round Eliza gave him the idol, and that he felt like he was disposable to her despite having a final two alliance because she’d called him a moron. Michelle apologized for her comments and said that their relationship had become strained and since she had a solid final three, she no longer had a reason to be loyal to J.P. He also wanted to know why Michelle was a deserving winner, and she highlighted her alliances and the fact that she wanted everyone to bring her to the finals, and it worked.
Mikayla was second. She wanted to know why Michelle C. brought the biggest jury threat (Eliza) to the final three. Michelle replied that she had considered blindsiding Eliza in the two rounds she was immune, but the immunity made the plans fall through. Michelle also said that the heart she did have couldn’t bring her to betray her partner in crime, and that she had covered up Eliza’s idol to get the others trusting her. Mikayla first asked Stephen if he wanted to play as a Hero or Villain, and he said Hero but he inadvertently became a Villain. Mikayla pressed what he did strategically, and he highlighted his social game which helped him avoid being targeted by his Erciyes tribemates.
Michelle T. was third. Like many other jury members, she was disappointed that Eliza had not made the finals, so her vote was up in the air. She blasted Michelle C. for blindsiding her after apologizing and trying to make up for nasty comments since the two shared names. She asked Michelle C. if she’d have made the end if she didn’t behave erratically and lie excessively, which Michelle C. said was highly unlikely, and asked the finalist if there was anyone on the jury she hadn’t done that to, and it was only Shane and Cochran – the first two jurors, both Kizilirmak. Michelle T. asked Stephen if there were any moves he was responsible for making, and Stephen claimed that the fivesome alliance of himself, Eliza, Michelle C., Kelly, and J.P. was his idea, as was his final three with Eliza and Michelle C. He also claimed that blindsiding Jeff was his idea because Jeff tried to take his place in the alliance of five. Satisfied, Michelle T. said down.
Kelly went next. She called Michelle C. one of the most over-the-top people she’d ever met, and wanted to know if she was that crazy outside of the game, which Michelle said she was opinionated, but people either loved her or hated her. After, Kelly asked both finalists why she should vote for them. Stephen went first and said that he and Michelle C. made the same strategic moves, but he didn’t stab backs to the extent that she did because he felt it unnecessary to step on people’s toes. Michelle C. replied to that, saying that Stephen wasn’t very social so he couldn’t stab backs to the same extent. Michelle defended her social game and connections, saying she worked her butt off to make the end and had a lot of moves and decisions to show for it, including the plan with Eliza’s second idol and that she’d risked conserving her double and triple to have complete control over the final five vote. Kelly remarked that she’d made her decision and went back to the jury bench.
Next was Jeff. He wanted to know Stephen’s defining moment, which he said was forming the five-some alliance. Jeff also asked if Stephen could survive Kizilirmak, and he said no because of the sketchy ship that Papa Bear and Cochran had been running. Jeff asked Michelle C. what happened the round he left, and Michelle admitted to lying that Jeff was trying to weasel his way into the five-some to replace Stephen so Stephen would go after him, and that she’d secured Mikayla’s vote for that very blindside the round prior. She also roped in Alex, the low man on the Erciyes totem pole, and Michelle T. to make the blindside a success. Jeff further asked her what lies she didn’t need to tell, and the first one to come to mind was not telling Michelle T. she was getting votes. She also said that she told Eliza that she’d take her to the final two but wasn’t sure if that was a promise to be kept.
Eliza took the stage next, and she was angry. She asked Stephen what his greatest accomplishment in the game was now that he knew that Michelle C. had lied about Jeff’s intentions, and he again pushed forming the five-some alliance. Stephen said he was surprised by how much Michelle C. and Eliza had kept from him, and that he had been loyal to them. Eliza challenged him, saying that he had kept her in the dark that he was taking Michelle to the finals with him, and that she’d shown her first idol to several other people before him and that her true allegiance had been a final two deal with Michelle C., which made him upset. Eliza then went on to bash Michelle C.’s excessive lying, which made the trust between the two of them slip. Michelle claimed she was always loyal to Eliza, and that Eliza had benefitted from the double-dealing even more than she had. Michelle C. also mentioned that the only reason she’d ever lied to Eliza was because she was the biggest threat with the jury, as was evident by some of the others’ indecisions. Eliza continued saying that Michelle was being fake to several of the jurors, and she denied it, saying that if she were being a fake bitch she’d have been in Whitney’s shoes; although she didn’t intend to be a bitch, that’s just part of who she was and that she was trying to be nice to the jury for once. She apologized for the times she’d crossed the line, which satisfied Eliza.
Alex was seventh. He trashed Michelle C. for using him as an expendable pawn, and that he was ashamed that he’d wanted to be friends with her because she was dehumanizing. He then ripped Stephen for being a completely worthless third wheel to a powerful final two alliance, and that the only thing he’d actually done was win the final immunity challenge. He then started asking a slew of random, irrelevant questions, which they refused to answer because they knew such trivialities were not allowed. Alex called them pansies and insulted them, at which point Amanda forced him to take a seat.
Shane followed Alex, and neither the final two nor Shane remembered conversing too much. Shane asked for interesting facts about both finalists, and Michelle C. surprised everyone saying that her mother language was Italian. Stephen claimed to be a concert violinist of five different European heritages, and Michelle C. said she was a environmental advocate. Shane further asked both of the finalists whether their opponent was a Hero or Villain, and neither hesitated to call their ally a Villain.
Cochran closed things out, and he said he was still undecided after a long Final Tribal. He asked Michelle C. what she’d do different in HvV to avoid being labeled a target for her excessive lying. She said she came into the game without a preset strategy and ended up being a Villain. Cochran further asked her about why he was such a threat when he really wasn’t, and Michelle said that perceptions are important and since Cochran had the idol and was clearly with Papa Bear that Erciyes had thought he was calling the shots, and therefore he had to go. Cochran asked Stephen if they’d have worked together if they had been on the same tribe, and Stephen said he’d have loved to.
The jury cast their votes, and at the finale in Los Angeles, the power cut out and nobody knew who won.
Seven players were named to Heroes vs. Villains:
Stephen Fishbach, The Instigator. Stayed loyal to a solid alliance, but in the process did not hesitate to initiate arguments and make enemies. Although the jury hated him, he still made it to face them!
Eliza Orlins, The Answer. Asked a lot of questions, but did so to ensure her great position in the game. Played loyal to her allies and somewhat villainous to her enemies, but was well-liked by the jury and would have won in a final two.
Alex Angarita, The Weasel. A very shady battery salesman type who weaseled his way through various loops and survived to the final four despite nobody trusting him.
Michelle Tesauro, The Analyst. Made a game-changing mutiny which let her improve nine places, and took all situations into account to determine her best moves. Thus, she needed to be blindsided, and thus, she gets another chance.
Mikayla Wingle, The Escapist. Stayed true to an alliance that wasn't staying the truest to her, and when a disadvantageous merge put her in a bind she did whatever she could to make it to the next round.
Kelly Bruno, The Avenger. Came back to avenge her placement in the prior season and didn't mess around. Played a stellar social game and stayed loyal to her closest ally, and then tried to make a huge move when he was blindsided. Although she failed, she still have more vengeance to exact.
Mark "Papa Bear" Caruso, The Wrecker. A polarizing player who took full control of his tribe and voted out those he wasn't aligned with, but his questionable methods ran the tribe into the ground and a twist let the people he booted get their revenge.
*Note: Michelle C. would have been in HvV as a Villain, but she was put into a coma after a drunken bar fight. It is unknown when she will awaken.
Turkey was an unpredictable ride led by a strong cast, crazy twists, and bold moves that worked together to produce a memorable season. A huge improvement upon the season before, this host has strong hopes for season eight!
© 2011 Amandy Productions LTD
