On this episode of Survivor: Micronesia, the challengers found themselves in a rare situation.  For the first time since I can’t remember when, the ladies had a clear advantage over the men.  Ozzy’s blindside at the last Tribal Council gave the women a two-person lead.

Were the females able to capitalize on this momentum, or did another idol threaten to ruin their takeover?  And what about Amanda?  Was she even interested in backstabbing one of her friends (James)?  Read on!

Although Erik was completely stunned by his Ozzy’s elimination, he knew the ladies had made the right decision.  Had the ice cream scooper been aware that was going to happen, he would have ratted them out.  Even James – as irked as he was – had to admit that he admired the smart play.  Amanda, though, wasn’t feeling as much respect for the other women.  Parvati and Cirie not only withheld information from her, they made her look stupid.  Oh, boo hoo.

Later, Parvati did her best to try and smooth things over with James.  The gravedigger accused her of letting the paranoia getting to her, but she said she simply had to do what she had to do; she would have been stupid not to get rid of such a big obstacle.  When asked who she planned to bring to the Final Three, the charity organizer was honest with her response:  “Girls.”  This answer encouraged James to once again complain about people who are always being lured by the apple.

After being chastised by James, Parvati moved down her apology list and sought out Amanda.  She wanted to reassure her ‘friend’ that she was not out of the loop; it was just that the Ozzy situation was a little too personal for them to reveal to her.  Amanda – realizing Parvati now had the power – held back from unleashing any anger.  She honestly believed that all the women were now wrapped around Parvati’s finger, so she couldn’t rock the boat.  (Sadly, they hadn’t yet figured out that it was Cirie’s idea to take down Ozzy.)  When Cirie later joined the conversation, the three ladies agreed they would be the ones going to the end.

For their next Reward Challenge, the survivors got to participate in another food auction.  (In this regular event, the contestants are allotted a certain amount of playing money; they get to bid on food they usually have not seen yet.)  This particular event had a slightly different twist though.  Unlike previous seasons, Jeff Probst would not allow the competitors to share any of their money or food.  Not surprisingly, the money quickly few out of their hands.  Cirie spent $120 on a hot dog and fries.  Erik spent $80 for a plate of nachos (he luckily avoided a jar of octopus).  Natalie wasted $240 on some ‘bat soup.’  (When she refused to eat it, James was more than happy scoop up the free food.)  Amanda paid $280 for a PB&J sandwich.

Even though she had very little money left, Natalie decided to spend another $240 (out of a total $500) only to end up with a note inside a bottle.  The note told her that she must choose one person to go to Exile Island; she would then get to take all of the money they had left.  Before she made her decision, Probst clarified that there was a new idol hidden somewhere.  (Since Ozzy never got to play his, another person now had their chance.)  Without much thought – and despite his begging not to go back – Natalie sent Jason for his third time.  She tried to make him feel better by saying this might work to his advantage. 

After Jason left, Natalie used his remaining money to buy a large chocolate cake.  This time around, Jeff allowed her to share the cake for 60 seconds with three other women.  After Cirie, Natalie and Parvati shoved down what they could, Erik then paid Cirie $40 to lick her fingers.  James was completely grossed out by the spectacle and said there was something “wrong with that boy.”  (Keep in mind – this was coming from the guy who had just eaten bat soup).

Back at camp, the Dabu members were freaking out about Jason’s stay at Exile Island.  What if he were to find it?  That guy was already the luckiest survivor around!  Natalie had to defend her decision by saying she didn’t want to send anyone else out there.  Realizing they now had to prepare for the worst, the ladies came up with a backup plan.  First, Natalie needed to psych Jason out and convince him that he didn’t need to use his idol at the next Tribal Council.  She needed to make him feel comfortable and safe so that they could do another blindside.  In the event he did pull out his security blanket, they would split the votes so that they could vote out James instead.  Natalie was convinced this plan would work because Jason would be stupid not to trust her.

Meanwhile, favorable weather conditions helped the gymnastics instructor find what he needed out at Exile Island.  The discovery really lifted his spirits in more ways than one.  He truly believed that Natalie sent him out there for reason; now he was happy at the prospect of returning to camp and into a real alliance.  He felt he could trust the personal trainer because she kept to her word and didn’t vote for him at the last Tribal Council.

At the next Immunity Challenge, Natalie did her best to talk to Jason before the competition began.  She quickly told him to let “anyone else but James” win.  “He is going home tonight.  Don’t ask any questions.  I sent you out there for reason.”  Jason nodded and said he knew she sent them out there on purpose.

For this event, the survivors repeated a bunch of segments from previous challenges.  After knocking down hanging bundles of tiles with rocks, the first four (Amanda, Erik, James and Jason) go to move on.  From there, they had to search the sand for a key to unlock their pieces.  Once their wheels were assembled, they had to place it on a contraption that would eventually lower two panels of wood.  Because Amanda and Jason had difficulty finding their keys, James and Erik moved on to the final round.

At this point, the women were extremely nervous.  If James were to win, their backup elimination plan would completely fall apart.  And although it was a very tight race – the two men were neck and neck getting over their rope bridge with the two planks – Erik managed to narrowly take the win.  This victory (on his 22nd birthday, no less) earned him a round of applause from the ladies.

Back at camp, the ladies seized the opportunity to search Jason’s stuff while he was out gathering food.  When they confirmed he had the idol, James freaked.  Now that the other two men had immunity, he knew he could be the next to go.  Although Amanda later admitted to James that he might be voted off, she said she didn’t think it would happen.  She believed they had convinced Jason not to pull out his idol.

Meanwhile, Jason had another private conversation with Natalie and readily admitted that he had the idol.  (Duh.  Couldn’t he tell that they had already rifled through his stuff?)  He made a point of thanking her for keeping her word last time and assured her that she would have his from this point on during the game.

Unfortunately, the guy who just wanted to be liked couldn’t detect an evil woman with a plan – or a fake immunity idol – even if it was standing right in front of him.  That night at Tribal Council, the ladies got rid of another unsuspecting fool.  LOSER: Jason.

(You can review last week’s episode here.)
(You can read next week’s episode here.)