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Cochran interviews that Andrea is right about making big moves, but the big move she wants to make isn’t one he agrees with. Especially as it involves booting Dawn, his closest ally. Doesn’t Andrea see that? In a confab with Dawn and Brenda, Brenda is saying that Eddie should be their next target, but Cochran says that Andrea doesn’t want to vote out Eddie. “She’s debating between both of you right now.” That is well-played by Cochran. “I’m completely loyal to my alliance and want to vote for Eddie next. But she wants to vote for one of you two!” And he’s even telling the truth.

So now Brenda is gung-ho about getting Andrea out of the game, and they count the numbers for a blind-side. The three of them, plus Sherri, plus Erik. “Is Erik cool with that?” asks Cochran. “Probably,” says Brenda. I’d say it’s more like 50-50, depending whether Erik’s lucky coin lands heads or tails. “The time to make a big move is rapidly approaching,” interviews Cochran.

After the break, Probst sighting! Immunity challenge. Andrea hands the immunity necklace back to Probst and it is now officially back up for grabs. This is one of those multi-stage challenges that is tedious to describe and to recap. Push a buoy along a rope through obstacles. “Rope management is key”. When you reach the finishing post, untie knots to release a key. Use the key to open a locked box. Inside are rungs for a ladder. Fit the rungs to the ladder frames and then run up to release your flag and win immunity. Ready?

The rope part of the challenge takes the longest. Erik is out first, and then Cochran, Dawn and Andrea. Followed by Brenda and Eddie. And Sherri in dead last.

Erik also gets through the knots first, followed by Andrea. Then Eddie and Brenda. Cochran is now in last, and by the time he arrives everyone else has their locked boxes open and is fixing ladder rungs. I was going to make a joke that with Erik in the lead and a puzzle ahead it is still anyone’s challenge, but after a slow start Erik goes on a ladder-building tear and has all nine rungs in place while Brenda only has four or five. “It is a blow-out!” exclaims Probst. Erik runs up his ladder and wins immunity.

Giving him the immunity necklace, Probst can’t help reminding Erik about how dumb he was to give it away last time he won immunity. Erik interviews that “I have learned from my mistakes in the past. This is not any moral decision for me to make, whether to give it to someone else or keep it. It is a security blanket to get me further in the game.” Ominous thunder. I’m sure it’s the editors just messing with me. Erik’s not giving up his idol. Is he? Surely not.

Andrea is still pushing for Brenda to go next and Eddie and Dawn and Cochran and Sherri are enough votes to ensure that. She interviews that “I feel bad for the kid (who is seven years older than Andrea) because going back to my first season, I felt completely comfortable and *blam* I was blind-sided”. But this time “my ducks are in a row.” Foreshadowing.

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