Underground Assassin Pulling The Strings

 is the final episode of.

Challenges
Immunity Challenge: Timed Combination. Castaways were given five images with a minute to count all of the items in the image. At the end of each round, the castaway furthest from the actual count would be eliminated. The last castaway standing would win immunity and a one in four shot at the title of Sole Survivor.

Winner: Cali.

Voting Confessionals
"njano"

- I can’t just take out the bottom of the totem pole when I’m the next in line for it, gotta have someone left to beat in the end. So sorry buddy this kills me inside

"njano"

- this was.. quite the choice by me but hey a decision is a decision and if i got blindsided then LMAO good job to all of yall that was great and i respect all of u for it.

otherwise.. yeah wowie im gonna have a lot of explaining to do if this works out

"njano"

- the Ultimate Hope, u really are. Fighting til the end. If ur plan to get me out works, wow u'd be great !

"njano"

- I lowkey want ur idol to be real if that was the case that would honestly be great but I also lowkey dont Idk this is gonna be fun and I see a path for me either way

"njano"

- It's time for a stepback 3 at the buzzer so Nicole, I really hope you play your idol on me and we fight to the end of this game togehter. As for the person I'm voting, wheather this works or not it'd be a downright joke if I didn't get to cast this at least once before leaving this forsaken island -- so Nora, this is how your justice ends.

Final Words
"njano"

- This has been the most intense season ive ever played so i wanna thank the hosts so much for that. It was also a pleasure meeting every player. But again THANK YOU HOSTS ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

Challenges
Immunity Challenge: Hold the Idol. Castaways were tasked with holding onto an idol by posting a message at incremental periods for twelve hours. The last castaway standing would win immunity and a one in three shot at the title of Sole Survivor.

Winner: Evan.

Voting Confessionals
"njano"

- I have zeor intent on breaking my bond with Nicole and if the vote is going to tie no matter what, then I'm gonna vote who I think Nicole could beat in the tiebreaker. So Cali, while you've been awesome to me for these past 37 days wheather it be with or aganist me, you also have a few too many votes confirmed on the other side for my liking. AND GRATS ON THE DAYS RECORD BUT IF I'M FORCED BACK INTO THIS SHITHOLE I'M STEALING IT FROM U.

"njano"

- vc in a sec dont yell

"njano"

- I adore you so much ❤ I pray that it’s you and not me but you are a star never forget that and you will never stop shining

"njano"

- shouldn’t have idoled Evan! I can’t beat you, as much as I want to be in f2 with you. Sinai forever

Final Words
"njano"

- I always have a feeling gratitude going into, and leaving any survivor season.

But this one...this one was different. I learned about my self a lot here. Learned about my strengths, my darkest flaws, and even some of my deepest insecurities that haven’t been tapped into since I played on Sardinia.

I know following this season people are going to say I’m not deserving of the amount of days I’ve played on the Main. And if you had asked me several days ago, I would have agreed with them.

But I know my worth, I know that I’ve busted my ass every single one of those days to stay in this game, and yes I came up short all the times, I am leaving this season a fighter and an overcomer.

Challenges
Final Immunity Challenge: Nakuru Trials. Castaways were given three trials with point values in accordance to their placement. The castaway with the most points would win immunity and a spot at the Final Tribal Council to plead for the title of Sole Survivor.

Winner: Evan.

Voting Confessionals
"njano"

- Putting the finishing touches on this season and looking back with no regret. Farewell my fellow str8 bro, FTC was a war but now it's onto Day 39 and chasing Adam Bongo's throne.

Final Words
"njano"

- I came into this game thinking I was a predator, and the game taught me I was a prey. But I overcame all the negativity to play a game I’m proud of, a game that could’ve won. One day short, but I finished what I started in Sinai. I’m satisfied now

Voting Confessionals
"njano"

- This is what u deserve. Keep the hope alive.

"njano"

- You're reaping the reward that comes with aligning with me, winning as I get taken out as usual. Congratulations.

"njano"

- the ultimate prize, for the ultimate hope. Nothing was the same

"njano"

- you pick the right person to the end but I swear if it is a different person I would prefer voting them rather than you. Congrats Evan. But trust me next time we play I won't give the same trust I gave you like before. Just please be humble and Adam is still the best 2 time winner.

"njano"

- Game respects game. I got what i needed from your responses. #LBJnAD

"njano"

- You may not have been the strongest or the most strategic, but you made it to the end and I really hope you're able to pull this off. Clown🤡

"njano"

- i wish i could vote twice to vote once for each finalist bc they both deserve. Whoever win will be a great winner. Evan played great and i still think that the f5 idolplay is a questionable choice but i decide to give you my vote bc of your overall impressive gameplay the whole season. Snakecole is the best snake !

"njano"

- if u dont reference zoe zanidakis in your final vote did you even cast a final vote

"njano"

- No voting confessional.

Episode Summary
After Chris was voted out of the tribe, he denounced the remaining castaways as undeserving of their spots in the game and placed the blame for his elimination upon Nicole. Initially, the castaways were affected but self-doubt was quickly replaced with reassurance as the tribe celebrated earning their spots in the finale. With Evan being seen as the last major threat in the game, the tribe consensus was Evan would leave in the event that he lost immunity. However, Cali’s increasingly growing support on the jury and Nicole’s control of the late game caused them both to be seen as threats. While Cali’s jury support had been a constant, the new spotlight on Nicole caused both her and castaways such as Jack to doubt whether she could make the end.

At the immunity challenge, the castaways were tasked with quickly identifying the number of items in a quick safari race. Cali promptly emerged the victor and won a one in four shot at the title of Sole Survivor, as well as her second Individual Immunity necklace of the season.

With immunity out of grasp, Evan believed he was dead in the water and at the bottom of the tribe. He identified two principal routes through which safety could be earned: reasoning with Nicole, whom he had built a personal bond to, or attempting to bargain with a fake Torrobo idol. On the note of idols, Nicole and Nora both revealed their hidden immunity idols to the tribe with the express intention of self-preservation. Nicole’s idol was real, but Nora was simply using a replica of Will’s now inactive Kikuyu idol to dodge any prospective votes.

Despite being on board with the plan to eliminate Evan, Nicole doubted Nora’s idol and fact-checked it by suggesting she throw a vote onto Nora to make them appear divided. Nora’s blunt rejection of this prospect eroded the mirage of an idol and Nicole quickly ascertained that it was likely not a real idol. Meanwhile, Evan started to campaign to Nicole and the two came to a consensus that if Evan left, Nicole and Cali would be the two threats needing to leave before FTC. Nicole would need to win every challenge to stay safe, but if she kept Evan, she would have a shield if he lost immunity and a vote to keep her if he won immunity, which meant she’d make the end of the game. After debating her options, Nicole officially flipped to Evan and decided to play her hidden immunity idol on him.

Meanwhile, Jack and Nora remained steadfast in their desire to eliminate Evan. The former felt it was objectively the best decision to up his odds in a him-Cali-Nora FTC while the latter wanted to end their rivalry and avenge Will. Due to Cali’s immunity and the prospect of Nora having an idol, Nicole and Evan resolved to split their votes between Jack and Nora for a 1-1-0 vote. Amidst this, Evan began to campaign to Cali and exposed Nora’s idol as a fake. Feeling that she would be the next to go if Evan left, Cali then contemplated flipping to Evan and Nicole while Nicole engaged in a double-bluff by exposing to Jack that Cali was considering flipping and she would feign a desire to flip in order to sabotage that plan. Amidst the newfound chaos, Jack then considered throwing a vote on Nicole. With virtually everyone but Nora’s vote up in the air, the vote was looking to be either a 1-1-1-0, a 1-1-0, a 2-1-0, or a 2-0 with the outcome fluctuating consistently. At the end of the day, Cali flipped to Evan, Jack remained steadfast with Nora, and Nicole played her idol on Evan, negating her own vote, and empowering Cali and Evan’s votes against Nora, sending her out of the game in a 2-0 vote.

Following Nora’s elimination, Jack grew despondent over feeling his FTC plans were ruined. However, upon a lack of Rites of Passage, it became clear that the FTC would only have two rather than three contestants, which sparked him to commit himself to eliminating Evan and Nicole to compete against Cali at the end. Meanwhile, Evan expressed a significant amount of gratitude to Nicole and locked down that he would go to the end with her, which was not fully reciprocated by Nicole. The immunity challenge was then revealed to be a twelve hour endurance challenge. Evan and Cali quickly emerged as the frontrunners, but the former edged out the latter to complete the challenge first and win a one in three shot at the title of Sole Survivor.

Shortly thereafter, Evan and Nicole committed to voting together and debated which one of Jack or Cali to target. Feeling that Jack was the larger challenge threat and Cali was the larger jury threat, they ultimately decided to vote Cali so that in the event of a tiebreaker, Nicole had better odds. Nicole in particular noted this worked to her advantage because Jack would cut Evan during the next tribal if possible, which locked her spot at the end and increased her probability of sweeping a jury vote. Meanwhile, Jack contemplated whether to vote Cali or Nicole, feeling the former had more friends on the jury, but that the latter played a better game that he had less of a pitch against. Accordingly, at tribal council, Jack and Cali came together to vote for Nicole while Evan and Nicole voted for Cali, resulting in the season’s third tie vote.

During the revote period, Evan and Nicole both made efforts to appeal to Jack based on the threat that Cali posed due to her close bonds to Jino, Natalia, Trent, and Alex cementing her four locked jury votes at the end. While Jack felt both arguments were meritorious, he also noted that flipping at this junction would prevent a perception that he contained agency in the game and decided to leave it up to fate by allowing Cali and Nicole to go to fire. At firemaking, Nicole quickly took the lead and maintained, making fire first and sending Cali out of the game after breaking the record for most days played.

With only three castaways left, they attended the Rites of Passage and commemorated the fallen castaways. Shortly thereafter, the Final Immunity Challenge was revealed and encompassed three separate trials. For both Nicole and Jack, this challenge was determinative of the final vote as Evan’s vulnerability would spark both of them to vote him off. Nicole quickly fell behind in the challenge, causing it to be largely between Jack and Evan. At the end of the day, Evan won enough trials by a small enough margin to take home his third individual immunity of the season and lock his spot at the Final Tribal Council.

Back at camp, Evan weighed his options while Jack grew despondent. Nicole took a moment to celebrate the immense payoff of her idol play while Jack condemned said idol play, noting it threw out his odds of either making Day 39 or having a chance to win on Day 39. At the end of the day, Evan’s inner monologue between loyalty or a prospective clean sweep saw loyalty reign triumphant and he promptly voted Jack out as the final member of the jury.

On Day 39, Evan and Nicole both celebrated making it as far as they had. Evan noted that having such an inconsistent yet memorable four-season arc was a great experience and he was excited to see it come to a close with this tribal council while Nicole noted her awe at making the end, but felt nervous due to feeling inarticulate at a Final Tribal Council setting.

At Final Tribal Council, Evan and Nicole both made their cases to the jury. Evan laid out the principles behind his game and how he consistently combatted the weight that the titles of former winner and challenge beast placed upon his game. Nicole, on the other hand, did a round-by-round analysis of the game and her social-strategic contributions to the advancement thereof. At the outset of the discussion, the jurors felt strongly that Evan played a better game but also mismanaged several of his relationships and told unnecessary lies. Nicole, on the other hand, was seen as manipulated into making the season’s worst move in her idol play and as unkind about the minority alliance in Trent, Cali, and Natalia.

As the finalists responded to the jurors, Nicole began making advances on Evan’s lead and demonstrated that she controlled the late-game of the season with an iron fist while Evan was consistently grasping for straws after Will’s elimination due to the target on his back. After the discussion, the majority of the jury was thoroughly convinced that both finalists played comprehensive and high-impact strategic games and felt conflicted over where to put their votes. As the jurors’ votes were revealed, they went back and forth with one vote Nicole, one vote Evan until it was tied 4-4. The final vote was cast for Evan, making him the series’ second two-time winner and ending a rollercoaster of a four-season arc with a second title.

Trivia

 * The episode was named after Evan’s quote.