Survivor SA Island of Secrets episode 6: Three key takeaways

The sixth episode of Survivor SA: Island of Secrets sees alliances prepare for an upcoming war and good old camp life sabotage.

After a thrilling episode of Survivor SA last week, momentum continues to build for the upcoming merge. What’s nice about this episode is the balanced editing. Even though only one out of three tribes had to go to Tribal, we got to spend quality time with all three groups even after the Immunity Challenge.

If only US Survivor could have these long, 55 minute episodes! Those bonus scenes gave us more insight into tribal dynamics and social politics. Here are a few important takeaways from episode 6 of Island of Secrets.

1) The Amigos need the merge

This episode taught us a lot about the Amigos. In the early days of the Sa’ulo tribe, Rob, Nicole, Steffi, Nathan, and Seipei formed a tight alliance. After six eliminations, the Amigos’ alliance remains unscathed. Plus they now have two idols between themselves.

However, the pressure is starting to mount for this alliance. Nathan’s lack of positivity is getting on everyone’s nerves, and Rob and Nicole have been outsiders on their tribe. A swap or a merge will definitely help the Amigos, and if they can stay intact come merge time, then watch out.

It’s also interesting to note the dynamics within this alliance. For the longest time, I thought there was a tight four between Steffi, Nathan, Rob, and Nicole. This episode hinted at Steffi being on the outs of this alliance, as Nathan didn’t even share the news about the idol he found with her. He seems to be closer with Rob and Nicole despite being on the same tribe as Steffi.

2) Never tell Jacques a secret!

After revealing his idol to Ting Ting a little while ago, Jacques told his three new tribe members about his Extra Vote advantage that can be used at the merge. With Laumei continuing to bond after winning the Reward Challenge, Jacques grew even more comfortable with the group, showing them his second idol find. Was this a smart move?

Typically, the logical thought process is to keep idol and advantage finds a secret, but sometimes telling trusted allies can increase the item’s power. In Survivor: David vs. Goliath, the David tribe discussed their advantages together and were able to pull off some incredible blindsides, flipping the game upside down. We’ll have to wait and see if Jacques’ open attitude will cement his position in a strong alliance or blow up in his face.

3) Sabotaging camp life doesn’t work

I’ve never seen a season of Survivor with this much drama over flint. First, Paul screwed his tribe over by going home with the flint in his bag. Then, Rob had the flint at the swap, leaving the Sa’ula tribe without fire for a little while. Now Danté purposefully hid the flint to mess with Rob.

You have to ask this question when planning to sabotage camp life: is what I’m about to do going to help my game more than it will hurt it? Rob already made it clear in this episode that he wasn’t a fan of Danté. Although Rob is down because of the missing flint, he isn’t the type of person to crumble, especially with the knowledge of his alliance finding another idol.

Danté’s antics don’t seem to be having any meaningful rewards, and there’s still the risk that people figure out what he did, which would be detrimental to his game. The only person to make this strategy a legitimate success is Sandra Diaz-Twine, a two-time winner in US Survivor. I’m excited to see how the impending twist featured in the episode 7 promo will have an impact on the current social dynamics.