'Survivor 50' Episode 12 Recap: Major blindsides send two favorites home ahead of finale

The penultimate episode of 'Survivor 50' sent home two fan-favorite contestants whose game plans were the highlight of the season
A look at Episode 12 of 'Survivor 50' (Cover Image Source: CBS | Photo by Robert Voets)
A look at Episode 12 of 'Survivor 50' (Cover Image Source: CBS | Photo by Robert Voets)

The penultimate episode of 'Survivor 50' was packed with tension and backstabbing as two more contestants left the island. Titled 'Inconceivable,' the episode dropped on May 13 on CBS. The show's latest chapter started with seven players: Cirie Fields, Rick Devens, Aubry Bracco, Jonathan Young, Rizo Velovic, Joe Hunter, and Tiffany Nicole Ervin. After two immunity challenges, Rick was voted out unanimously 6-0 in the first Tribal Council, and Cirie followed with a 4-2 vote against her.  The brutal double elimination gave fans their first look at this season's top five, who will compete in the finale next week.  

An image of the first immunity challenge from episode 12 of 'Survivor 50' (Image Source: CBS | Photo by Robert Voets)
An image from the first immunity challenge from Episode 12 of 'Survivor 50' (Image Source: CBS | Photo by Robert Voets)

The episode opened as the final seven gathered for the first challenge, 'A Bit Tipsy,' with the winner gaining immunity and a barbecue feast. After Joe won the challenge, he decided to take Cirie and Rizo along with him for the meal, where the trio started plotting against Rick. Back at camp, Tiffany planned to blindside Rizo into flushing his idol, and she let Rick and Jonathan in on her plan. Aubry, the deciding vote, saw Rick as a bigger threat than Rizo. At Tribal Council, Rick played his shot in the dark, but he was not safe. Realizing his vulnerable position, all six players voted Rick out unanimously, making him the 8th member to join the jury.     

An image of Rick Devens from the episode (Image Source: CBS | Photo by Robert Voets)
An image of Rick Devens from the episode (Image Source: CBS | Photo by Robert Voets)

Tiffany made a second go at her plan to flush Rizo's idol by talking to Aubry. However, Aubry teamed up with Jonathan and Joe to take out Tiffany instead. All they had to do was ensure that Tiffany didn't win the immunity challenge. The top six players then headed to the episode's second immunity challenge, which was an obstacle course where they had to spell the word 'Inconceivable.' Despite being in the lead, Joe and Jonathan struggled to spell the word. Meanwhile, Tiffany cruised through the challenge and won immunity, becoming the first person to earn a spot in the top five. 

With Tiffany safe, Cirie became the main target in the next vote-out. She tried to shift the focus onto Aubry by manipulating Jonathan, which almost worked. Furthermore, Rizo also joined the majority, willing to turn his back on his closest ally. At Tribal Council, host Jeff Probst revealed that Aubry and Cirie were the only two contestants who had reached this stage of the competition multiple times. Rizo, who had planned to use his idol before, decided against it as he knew that the two women were on the chopping block. Aubry, Joe, Jonathan, and Rizo wrote down Cirie's name, while only Tiffany and Cirie went for Aubry. With a 4-2 vote against her, Cirie ended her journey on the show. She became the 9th jury member, who will decide the fate of the top five players in the finale. 'Survivor 50' will return next week with a three-hour live finale, starting at 8 p.m. ET on CBS.

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