The episode opens with the cast returning form the elimination. Turbo is depressed from seeing JP leave, who seemed to be the one person in the house he connected with. Nany apologizes for not explaining the cutthroat parts of the game to him and vows to do better. Turbo says he is afraid to ask too many questions and Nany tells him not to worry.

Nany and Turbo talking about JP leaving.

This takes us to the mission for the episode. The mission for this episode is called Tired Out. It entails the pairs being chained up and running across the desert to acquire a tire. They then have to run back to their spot and stack a tire pyramid. Once all fourteen tires are stacked, they are done.

“What is this slow pace you speak of?” — Turbo

The mission opens, and Paulie and Ninja get out to a bit of a lead. Hunter really struggles to open this mission and seems to lack motivation for some reason. Georgia is ready to go, and Hunter is lagging behind by a bit. The two shout back and forth and Hunter seems to get frustrated and essentially give up.

Hunter and Georgia trying to lift the tire.

Da’Vonne/Bear are really the team of chaos here though, which starts with Da’Vonne getting her hand stuck under a tire and Bear having to help her pull it out. Bear starts shouting at Da’Vonne, and eventually unhooks himself from the chain and just quits. Bear is freaking out, and Da’Vonne continues without him. Props to Da’Vonne, as Bear was massively immature here and it took a lot to continue.

Nany and Turbo putting on a tire.

Paulie and Ninja still hold a slight lead and end up grabbing the win. Nany and Turbo are right behind and get second. It comes down to Cara Maria and Theo vs. Jenna and Gus for third, and Theo is able to put the last tire away and grab the final tribunal spot. This leaves the tribunal as Paulie/Ninja, Nany/Turbo, and Cara Maria/Theo. Bear starts screaming like a petulant child who lost a game of Capture the Flag, and I honestly can’t even make out most of what he is saying. TJ is not pleased with his performance either, and the rest of the cast seems annoyed with his antics.

Da’Vonne and Bear after the mission.

The tribunal opens, and the cast gets to talking. Immediately Da’Vonne/Bear, Zach/Zahida, and Kam/Cain are all brought up. Theo is not pleased with this, as he has alliances with all of these teams. With the way this season is structured, there are dozens of cross-alliances; and Cara Maria/Theo may have more than anybody. Eventually, the group settles on Da’Vonne/Bear, Zach/Zahida, and Jenna/Gus. The ceremony opens, and Jenna/Gus are first up. They are only there for about four seconds before we move on to Zach/Zahida. Zach and Cara shout at each other for a while about their dissolved friendship but nothing much comes out of it. Da’Vonne/Bear come in next, and Ninja opens by telling Bear that what he did was disgusting and he responds by insulting her dress sense. He also says that Ninja only won because Paulie is her partner and once Nany joins in he tells her to stop flirting with him. Cara joins in too saying Bear is being misogynistic, and eventually, he just leaves Da’Vonne by himself. After he leaves, Da’Vonne pleads with the tribunal to remember she has to be put through whatever Bear is and then the ceremony ends.

Zach ranting about Cara.

After the tribunal, Zach is ranting to some of his allies about Cara. He says that the show is her life and she has nothing outside of it and also claims that whenever she is with Paulie she is visualizing Kyle. The room claps after this rant, which I just found annoying more than anything. Zahida goes outside and starts crying from being overwhelmed. Mattie comes to comfort her, and she says being paired with Zach has just made her a massive target. While it is true that Zach and Zahida have been on the chopping block often, I think has more to do with them not winning than anything. Pretty much every alumnus has enemies, Zach and Zahida have just been targeted because it has been their enemies who have been winning.

This is one Bear that does not need much poking.

A group of challengers (Wes, Cara Maria, Turbo, Dee, Shaleen, Josh, and Paulie) get together to play poker. Kam, Theo, and Ninja appear to be on the side watching. Zahida and Bear are outside smoking when Kyle and Amanda come to convince Bear to cause some trouble as if he is yet to do that already. Kyle is aiming to get all the attention on Bear and off of Zach, and eventually, he succeeds in poking Bear. Bear runs up the steps and dives on the table, causing it to break. Ninja and Dee start barking at him afterward, and Bear is of course not one to back down.

Zach and Zahida trying to figure out who to take in elimination.

We then cut to the next morning where Da’Vonne and Bear and Zach and Zahida discuss who they want to throw in. Da’Vonne really is pushing for Jenna and Gus, but they also mention Wes and Dee as an option. Zach and Zahida are a bit less sure though. Da’Vonne and Bear come up, but so do Amanda and Josh and Wes and Dee. Zahida is really unsure what to do and they resolve to just figure it out if and when they are called.

The cast at the elimination.

We head to the Killing Floor to find out who will be sent in. TJ asks the tribunal who they are voting for, starting with Cara Maria. Cara first goes on a rant saying how Zach treats women horribly at which point he is interrupted by Jenna. She then votes for Zach/Zahida, followed by Theo who votes for Jenna/Gus. Nany is next, who votes for Da’Vonne/Bear and Turbo follows suit. Paulie is next, and he votes for Zach/Zahida. It then comes down to Ninja, who goes with her partner and votes for Zach/Zahida getting them sent in.

The elimination at the start.

Zach/Zahida then have to figure out who they are going against. Zach initially wants Da’Vonne/Bear, but Zahida won’t do it. Zahida wants Amanda/Josh, but Zach says they are on their side now. They compromise and go with a shocking move of challenging Wes/Dee. TJ explains the mission, called Lights Out. The pairs have to work on a puzzle in a small hut, but after some time the lights will go out. One alternating member of the pair has to run out and flip the light switch. The first pair to finish and ring the bell wins.

Wes and Dee working on the puzzle.

The elimination starts, and both teams get working on the puzzle. It doesn’t seem to be very long before the lights go out and Wes and Zach run for the switches. Wes gets to the switch first, giving Dee a tad of an advantage. The next round, Dee beats Zahida to the bell easily and gets a big edge. The lights seem to only be on for about twelve seconds before going out. Zahida really seems to be getting out of breath after a few rounds. Eventually, Wes and Dee are able to finish the puzzle and grab the victory.

Cara congratulating Wes on the win.

A real change of tune from the last elimination. This time around, it is Paulie and Cara who are excited while the Kyle side of the house is dejected. Zach asks Kyle to take care of Jenna, and leaves. Paulie and Kyle trade a few barbs back and forth before Wes and Dee hug the house and the episode ends.

Eliminated

Zach/Zahida: Strange move to go after Wes and Dee, and they paid the price for it. Zach always seems to find himself stuck between alliances, and if he continues to be on the show it will be interesting to see how he and Kyle position themselves going forward.

Power Rankings

11) Da’Vonne/Bear: Bear really put a target on their backs this episode and moving forward I expect that target to stay there.

10) Leroy/Shaleen: Shaleen has only had one confessional so far, and they have yet to even be competitive in any of the missions.

9) Amanda/Josh: There’s an argument for them to be even higher, but they still seem likely to be called out by a lot of the teams.

8) Kyle/Mattie: I would favor them in a physical elimination against just about anybody, but as long as one of Paulie or Cara Maria keep winning they are going to stay in trouble.

7) Jenna/Gus: These two don’t seem to do much of anything, which keeps them under the radar. However, they also are one of the teams most likely to be called out.

6) Kam/Cain: They have had a few episodes now where they haven’t done all that much, but with Kam’s brains and Cain’s it is surprising they have been this quiet so far.

5) Cara Maria/Theo: I thought about pushing them up a spot, and while you could make the argument, they are the on-paper best team there is still something about them that gives me concern.

4) Hunter/Georgia: Not a great episode from Hunter, but Georgia is an absolute baller and she seems to be a part of the UK alliance without being a big target from the outsiders.

3) Nany/Turbo: Great episode, Nany has impressed this season and Turbo seems like an alien sent to earth to defend women and win challenges.

2) Paulie/Ninja: They’re my pick to win at this point, the only thing keeping them off the top spot is if the UK alliance gets power, they seem to be target number one.

1) Wes/Dee: You come at the king, you best not miss.

Extra Notes

· The Amanda incident has gone completely off the rails. Out of respect for the fact that I only know information from a third party, I won’t comment on it but it has become a massive issue that I expect the show to address in some fashion at this point. This Reddit thread has a lot of the details.

· Make sure to check out our survey of the top female competitors. Make your voice heard!

· Josh did an insightful interview with Challenge Mania earlier this week. Lots of great information, make sure to check it out!

· I appeared on A Pat Mayo Experience to talk about some takeaways from this episode and the season as a whole. It was a good time, so give it a listen!

Fantasy Scoring