A huge tribal shakeup occurred on this week's episode of Survivor season 44, the ramifications of which directly affected all three tribes, but particularly player Sarah Wade.
After winning the Reward Challenge, the Soka tribe earned a key advantage: they got to choose one player from each of the three tribes who would be traveling to Journey Island. They selected Survivor 44 cast members Josh from Soka, Carson from Tika and Jaime from Ratu, who came to find that the big game advantage that they were hoping to find on the journey wasn't much of an advantage after all. Along with an immunity idol, the three players were given buffs of the new tribes they'd be joining.
Yes, all three players would be returning to a new camp and joining a new tribe: Carson to Ratu tribe, Jaime to Soka and Josh to Tika.
"When I see Josh, my heart sank, like I had no breath in me," said Tika tribe member Yam Yam. "It means that all of this relationship I've been building with Carson is no more."
Josh knew that his position in the group was precarious: "I'm walking into a lion's den." What the rest of Tika didn't know, though, was that Josh had that immunity idol in his pocket.
Things got even dicier for the Tika tribe after the Immunity Challenge, in which players had to dive into the water, climb to the top of a tall tower, retrieve a key, race over a balance beam and use said key to solve a puzzle. (We're tired just thinking about it.) Soka won first immunity and after a nail-biting scrimmage between Ratu and Tika, the former won, sending Tika yet again to the Tribal Council.
The vote should have been an easy one, with Josh the last one in and therefore the next one out, but Yam Yam's strategy rubbed former ally Carolyn the wrong way. "Josh is not Tika so we need to vote out Josh," said Yam Yam. "We're gonna say Carolyn's the next vote," he added, using her as a decoy so the rest of Tika can vote out Josh. However, Carolyn was tired of automatically being a decoy week after week. "I did not come out here to be told what every plan was," she said.
Carolyn thus strategized with Josh, who informed her of the immunity idol. "I need her to trust me so we can get Sarah out," Josh said. "It's my best option at this point."
"I just know I'm going to lose Yam Yam's trust... but why would I have loyalty to them right now?" Carolyn said of the move.
During Tribal Council, Josh used his hidden immunity idol in defense of himself, canceling out any votes he might have received. As planned, he and Carolyn both voted out Sarah, much to the jaw-dropping shock of Yam Yam and fans at home.
Fans react to the shocking exit of Sarah from Survivor:
Well I was 100% blindsided by that result. #survivor #survivor44 @Sarah_Wade_ pic.twitter.com/S4xSx6dijTMarch 23, 2023
So why did they target Sarah and not Jam Jam? Was it just to contribute to the back-to-back women going home? Thanks Felicia. #SurvivorMarch 23, 2023
Sarah went a home with a fake-idol in her pocket! That’s hilarious! #SurvivorMarch 23, 2023
survivor is trash now my poor sarahMarch 23, 2023
Tbh if there’s anything this season has taught me it’s that I will never apply for this show, and that’s legitimately sad to me, but if I got Sarah’d I feel like I would lose any love I still have for this game(show) and I’m not comfortable with that idea #Survivor #Survivor44March 23, 2023
Wow it truly truuuuuuly sucks to see all the young women dropping like flies BUT would be so fun to hang angrily at ponderosa with Claire, Sarah, Helen, and Maddy #SurvivorMarch 23, 2023
If your name is Sara/Sarah and if your last name isn’t Lacina and you go on Survivor, then you ain’t getting to the merge #Survivor44March 23, 2023
Sarah *might* have had a chance if #Survivor producers had condensed the tribes into two, but that would’ve required production to be critical thinkers. pic.twitter.com/1fEi7O3NH7March 23, 2023
Wait…imagine Sarah watching this episode and discovering live, along with the rest of us, that her idol was fake 😂 #Survivor #Survivor44 pic.twitter.com/CJEliWSGKeMarch 23, 2023
my faves are safe! byee sarahMarch 23, 2023
Honestly the fact that JamJam and Sarah didn't even consider Josh having protection when he switched tribes is idiotic and they deserved what they got #SurvivorMarch 23, 2023
Oh, Sarah thought she got voted out with an idol in her pocket. "I got played." Yep, you got played. More than you think lol. I wonder when & how she finds out it's a fake idol.🫣😭😂 #Survivor44 #SurvivorMarch 23, 2023
sarah wade voted out of survivor 44... #Survivor44 pic.twitter.com/cg512teSh3March 23, 2023
Ugh poor Sarah I really liked her 😭😭 #SurvivorMarch 23, 2023
Love that Carolyn made a big move, but why vote Sarah? She was good in challenges and didn’t treat her as badly as Yam Yam. Did she see him on the balance beam?! #Survivor44 #survivor #VoteOffMenMarch 23, 2023
I guess Sarah turned out to be "Felicia." 😆#Survivor @survivorcbs pic.twitter.com/VJmDy4mZO7March 23, 2023
