Survivor 42 episode 7 sees a majority alliance lead the way

After last week’s hourglass twist where immunity was taken away from half the players, Survivor 42 episode 7 brings us back to an old-school feel where a majority leads the way. Another great part of this episode is continuing to see wonderful bonds of friendship being formed in the middle of such a cutthroat game.

There have already been several great personal moments this year, so it’s not surprising to see Mike Turner and Omar Zaheer connect. It’s truly an incredible moment to see Mike’s interest in Omar’s religion and his daily prayers. Despite the game’s inherent distrust players must have with each other, Survivor 42 episode 7 highlights how connecting with people is a great way to advance one’s game while also building lifelong bonds.

“We all ain’t that different,” says Mike in a private interview during the game. Survivor always presents the difficulty of “Who do you trust?” Sharing such intimate details of their lives leaves them open to betrayal, but tonight’s episode gives us two people learning to embrace the differences and it continues to be one of the best parts of this show.

Survivor 42 episode 7 provides emotion, paranoia, and a majority vote out

Every Survivor player wants to be a part of the majority. There are times when you can maneuver around being outside of a big alliance. Players have gone on individual immunity runs to save themselves. Playing a hidden immunity idol correctly provides security, albeit temporary. If you’re unable to win challenges or have an individual immunity idol, having a solid social game like Omar or four advantages like Drea Wheeler might be just enough power to get to the final tribal council.

Omar has already proven his ability to navigate within the majority alliance, while also being a solid friend to everyone else. He has his eyes and ears available to seemingly everyone and it is paying off so far. His social game seems to be the most impactful to this point. On the other hand, Drea is in the majority alliance as well, but she comes packing a ton of advantages she’s earned along the way. This includes the “Knowledge is Power” advantage she found this week, which grants her the ability to take another player’s advantage or idol.

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It’s safe to say both Omar and Drea are in power positions at the moment. While Maryanne Oketch is not in a power position, which she admitted to as well, it doesn’t mean she can’t make it to the end. She used “being on the bottom” as a way to (hopefully) leverage feelings with the other castaways and keep her in the game longer. Before the individual immunity challenge ran, rice for the entire tribe was offered as a reward if enough people stepped out of the challenge.

Host Jeff Probst agreed to give away the rice if four people gave up their spot to compete in the immunity challenge. Maryanne stepped up and begged for others to do the same through tears. She did not go home tonight, so perhaps her emotional response kept her in the game. If you ask her, it’s all part of her plan. Her normal happy demeanor changed to sadness in that moment at the challenge, but she later admitted to “using emotions as a weapon.”

Survivor 42 episode 7 proves you can never sleep on any one player. This season is full of amazing individuals who are willing to do what it takes to make it to the end. Omar is seemingly making himself available to everyone on the tribe. Drea also sits in the majority, doesn’t get sent home and has four advantages (that we know of). Maryanne is willing to shed some tears to further her game, and let’s not forget that she also has a hidden immunity idol.

Where does this leave us at the end of Survivor 42 episode 7? The vote came down to two players where Chanelle Howell and Romeo Escobar were the main targets. Chanelle presented a very calm presence in camp, while Romeo shared his concern over that calmness. He expressed his doubts to multiple people in the tribe, which then led to people questioning whether to keep him or not.

The discussions at tribal council did seem to revolve around Romeo’s paranoia around camp, which made this seem like a perfect misdirect. They were talking about one player and then the other one received the boot. Although Chanelle did get voted out, she will be the first member of the jury, which means she’ll have a say in who wins the million-dollar prize at the end.

What did you think of Survivor 42 episode 7? Will this majority alliance make it through until there aren’t any other targets to vote out? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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