Despite kicking off with a three-hour season premiere that featured the elimination of the only original player and a medevac of one of the most recent winners, episode 3 of Survivor 50 has definitely been the most twist-filled so far in the anniversary season.
“Did You Vote for a Tribe Swap?” started with an allusive tree mail—which we rarely see anymore in the edit—hinting at a tribe swap that had some of the Cila tribe panicking about strategic planning should they get split up. Specifically, Christian Hubicki and Rick Devens felt they needed a plan after their Tribal Council heist.
But an even more pressing issue was whether or not to tell their other two Cila alliance members—Cirie Fields and Emily Flippen—about the Billie Eilish Boomerang Idol that was gifted to Aubry Bracco. Ultimately, they chose it was best to loop the two strategists in just in case either of them ended up on a tribe with her, they’d be able to bring her into the alliance.
However, there was one part of the story they changed just a little bit that could end up having a huge impact on how the game unfolds.
Christian pitched that they tell Cirie and Emily it was Devens who found the idol, not him.
There are a few different reasons he lists why this plan will work: Devens is known as the idol guy, and he also has a pre-existing relationship with Aubry. So of course, Devens agrees it’s a good idea, and they act like it’s the first time Christian’s hearing about it when Devens tells Cirie. But there are also a few things that weren’t mentioned—making it an even more genius plan, on Christian’s part, than fans might believe.
Keeps Christian a minimal threat: During his time on Survivor: David vs. Goliath, Christian found an immunity idol, so everyone knows he is capable of it. But if he actually found one on Survivor 50, it would show everyone that he’s really here to play. By removing himself from the story, he allows himself to stay hidden in plain sight.
Secures the right kind of false trust: Cirie and Emily—after a little fumble of a communication issue with the latter—now implicitly trust Devens and Christian, feeling bonded in their alliance through this piece of information, which means, including Aubry, Christian has ears on all three beaches right now who will be loyal to him come the merge. Information is power in this game, and he didn’t have to give up his power to guarantee he would continue to earn more in the future.
Moves the target: Should Aubry get voted out and the idol boomerangs back to the original owner, everyone who knows about the idol will believe that it is Devens, which puts a target on his back—essentially making him Christian’s fall guy. It also means it could be easier to navigate a potential blindside of their alliance, as they can predict who the votes might be falling to—Devens.
Next Time on Survivor…
As for how this will affect the relationship between Christian and Devens throughout the rest of the season, it’s clear now more than ever that there will come a time when our two besties in mischief will have to go against each other. Whether at Final Tribal Council or before then, both are extremely invested players who—in both their original season and this one—clearly came to play.
And we’ll see what their next move is when Survivor 50 continues this Wednesday, March 18 at 8 p.m. ET on CBS and Paramount+.