Underestimate Me

**Underestimate Me** is the season finale of *Survivor 1 (US)*.

## Story

 The Talotia tribe returned to camp after Spenser’s elimination. Madi pulled Trina aside and apologized for not flipping. Trina explained she understood but that she just felt very alone and didn’t see how she could reach the end at this point without just winning out. Madi reassured her that she wanted to take Trina to the end and had no intentions of betraying her. Trina didn’t know if she could believe Madi but knew she didn’t have much of a choice. DJ and Paloma sat up by the shelter and got ready to go to bed. DJ told Paloma that he felt their best shot was against Madi in Final 3, and Paloma was on board for taking Madi there. Paloma suggested they take Boston or Sage out next to separate that duo before the Final 5. DJ shrugged it off and said Trina had to go before she won out. DJ was really fearful of Trina’s chances in a jury vote. Boston and Sage both went for a walk after the vote. Sage brought up that they’d need to think about taking out DJ sooner rather than later, and Boston agreed. The two saw DJ as their biggest threat to win and felt like now that Trina was on her own, she wouldn’t be much of a problem. Boston explains that DJ and Paloma are a clear duo and once he’s out, Paloma will be on her own and helpless.

 The next day, the Talotia tribe met Jeff at the beach for the Immunity Challenge. Jeff let them know that for the rest of the game, there’d be no more Reward Challenges. Jeff explained the rules of the challenge. The castaways would have to attempt to stack a series of cards high enough to reach their lever. The first person to accomplish this wins the Immunity Challenge and advances to the Final 5. With that, they begin the challenge. At first, Madi and Paloma both seemed to be gaining some momentum and taking a bit of a lead but after finishing over half their tower, both of their towers dropped and they had to start over. Boston and Trina were both moving slowly but hadn’t dropped their towers at all. DJ started pulling ahead but just before he could reach the end, he dropped his. Sage also made some progress but the wind blew their stack over. It came down to a head to head between Boston and Trina. Trina attempted to place her last card and accidentally knocked her entire stack over. This opened the door for Boston who successfully placed his last card and won Immunity. Jeff handed the immunity necklace over to Boston and congratulated him on the win. He told everyone else to head back to camp and meet him later that night for Tribal Council where someone would be voted out.

 Back at camp, Boston and Sage pull Madi aside. They make their pitches for why they should vote off DJ at six. Madi is completely on board and asks if they’re going to tell Paloma. Boston is adamant that Paloma should not know and that it would put the plan at risk in case DJ has an idol. Madi doubts Paloma would say anything but understands that it’d be a risk. Madi tells the two that she is in and willing to cut DJ. Sage pulls Trina aside and informs her of the plan. Trina was over the moon and hugged Sage tightly, thanking them. Trina asked if they were going to split the votes between DJ and Paloma. Sage said they weren’t sure yet and that they were going to try and decide as a group. DJ and Paloma sat by the fire. Paloma smirked and asked DJ if he had any special powers he’d be whipping out at tribal. He assured her that he didn’t and was hoping everyone stuck to the plan and voted off Trina. DJ asked if Paloma had heard anything different and she assured him that she hadn’t. Paloma bumps into Boston and asks him if anything’s changed for tribal or if it’s still Trina. He reassures her that the vote is still falling onto Trina and that she has nothing to worry about. DJ also checks in with Boston and Sage to triple check that Trina is still the plan. Boston and Sage promise that it is and lock in a Final 3 deal with DJ. Trina checked with Madi before tribal and asked if their plan was still on. Madi said as far as she knew, DJ was still the vote and everything was running smoothly. Trina hugged Madi and thanked her for being there while everyone else abandoned her. Madi smiled and said Trina was cool and a huge inspiration. The two hugged again and then went to get their torches for tribal. Everyone gathers their torches and get ready to head off for tribal.

 The Talotia tribe arrived for Tribal Council and sat down in front of Jeff. Jeff welcomed in the members of the jury; Marissa, Jarrett, Gloria, Owen, and now Spenser. Jeff started by asking Trina how she felt after last tribal, given how the vote went for her. She said that she felt very alone and hopeless and especially after the immunity challenge, she basically didn’t feel like she had anything she could even do. Jeff asked DJ if there had been any talks or concerns about people seeing Trina as a free agent and pulling her in. DJ shrugged and said that he’d stayed loyal to his group and held true on voting for Trina, and as far as he knew, everyone else did the same as well. Jeff asked Madi if she foresaw a big move happening. She said that at this point in the game, anyone leaving is a big move because they’ve all thought to be there. Jeff finished by asking Boston what word he’d use to describe the outcome of tribal and Boston said “telling”. With that, Jeff began the voting process. After everyone casted their votes, Jeff polled the room and asked if anyone had a Hidden Immunity Idol or an advantage and wanted to use it. DJ thought about it but eventually stood up and revealed his Legacy Advantage. He explained that he consider not using it but that he didn’t want to look back on this moment and regret it. Jeff explained the advantage to the castaways and said that any votes cast against DJ wouldn’t count. Jeff then proceeded to reveal the votes. The first two votes to be revealed were both for DJ. Him and Paloma both looked at each other with shocked faces and peered around at everyone with confusion. Paloma was visibly panicked and ran her hand through her hair. After two more votes for DJ rolled through, Paloma sighed a breath of relief. Her and DJ both smirked at each and shook their heads. Paloma called everyone shady ass bitches. By a vote of 2-0, Trina was voted off with only DJ and Paloma’s votes. She heaved a sighed and noted that she tried and told DJ good game. He offered her a hug and called her a genius. Trina left on a positive note with everyone and wished them luck. She picked up her torch and handed it to Jeff. He snuffed it out and told her that the tribe had spoken. DJ and Paloma were still shaking their heads at everyone. Once Trina left, Jeff turned to the remaining five and said that despite their efforts, the alliance had made it to the end together and now it was every man for themself. Jeff excused them from tribal.

 Following Trina’s elimination, the Talotia tribe returned to camp. DJ laughed all the way there and noted that they’d all truly fooled him. Boston tried talking to Paloma but she was pissed. She snapped at him and said that he’d lied right to her face for no reason. Boston, Madi, and Sage reconvened and agreed that if DJ lost the immunity, he absolutely had to go next. Sage showed their idol to Boston and Madi and revealed that if DJ pulled out an idol, Sage would just use it on whoever DJ and Paloma were voting for and they could vote Paloma out on a revote. DJ and Paloma had sat by the shelter and he pulled his idol out of his bag. He told Paloma that if one of them won immunity, he’d use his idol on the other to ensure they made it to Final 4 together. DJ told Paloma that she had to keep the idol to herself and she agreed.

 The Talotia tribe met Jeff at the beach for their next Immunity Challenge. He explained that it was called The Last Gasp. They’d be submerged under water with just their heads peeking above. They’d have to try and remain here while struggling to breath and be the last one standing. The challenge then begun. All five of the castaways struggled but held in for twenty minutes.The tide started coming in pretty hard and DJ was the first person to drop. Boston followed soon after. This left just Madi, Paloma and Sage. The three reached the hour mark. Soon, they all started really visibly struggling. Eventually, Madi gave out and couldn’t hang on any longer. Soon after, Sage also fell and was eliminated. Paloma’s eyes lit up and Jeff confirmed that she had won the Immunity Challenge. She sprung from under the water and ran over to him, already crying. Jeff wrapped the immunity necklace around her neck and declared that Paloma was safe from being voted out and that one of the other four would become the next person voted out.

 Back at camp, Boston, Madi, and Sage all sat with each other solemnly and agreed they just needed to hope DJ wasn’t carrying anything. Madi headed off to fill her water bottle. Once she was gone, Sage side eyed Boston and asked if he was thinking what they were thinking and Boston sighed. They agreed that if they caught wind that DJ had something, they’d need to vote off Madi in order to secure their own safety. Madi went off and met up with Paloma. Paloma explained that she wanted to get rid of Boston at tribal. Madi asked if DJ had anything and Paloma openly told Madi that DJ had another idol. She then said that he was going to use it anyway so Madi would be better off voting with her anyway. Madi let Paloma know that Sage had an idol and was planning on using it on whoever they thought was getting votes. DJ joined the conversation and asked if he was interrupting. Madi insisted that he wasn’t. Madi also let him know about Sage’s idol and how they planned on using it. Since Madi gave him that piece of info, DJ felt comfortable showing her his idol and said he was going to use it. DJ said they needed to either find a way to nullify Boston and Sage’s votes or to dodge the idol. Madi said that it could work if the pair was mislead before the vote about who the idol was going to. DJ then had a lightbulb go off in his head. He explained to Madi and Paloma that if he revealed his idol before the vote, that Sage and Boston would automatically default to voting for Madi, then if he actually used the idol on Madi, only their three votes would count. Paloma then added that the three of them could split their votes with two going to Boston and one to Sage, ensuring that even after Sage’s idol, they’ll have the votes. The three were completely on board and shook on the deal. They locked in a Final 3 and swore not to tell anything to Boston or Sage. Sage runs into Madi before tribal and they agree that the plan to vote for DJ is still on. Boston joins them and they all pray DJ has nothing. Paloma sees them and winks at Madi. The tribe gathers their torches and head off to Tribal.

 The Talotia tribe gathers at Tribal Council and sit down. Jeff welcomes in the members of the jury; Marissa, Jarrett, Gloria, Owen, Spenser, and now Trina. Jeff asks DJ what it was like back at camp after the tense previous tribal. DJ said that he laughed all the way back because he was gobsmacked by Boston, Madi, and Sage’s betrayals. Jeff followed up by asking if he was worried at all that he might be next now that he no longer had his Legacy Advantage. DJ said he wasn’t because he still had his idol. He then pulled his idol out of his bag and wore it around his neck. Boston and Sage both gasped, Madi feined a shocked reaction. DJ then explained that he was using it and that since Paloma had immunity, the trio would have to vote one of their own off. Boston and Sage immediately started whispering to one another. Jeff asked Madi how that made her feel. She said she felt a lot more nervous about the vote now and that it could really lean any which way. Jeff asked Boston if there was a clear hierarchy in his alliance, which Boston denied. He explained that this vote would be really difficult. DJ and Paloma smirked to each other. With that, Jeff began the voting process. After everyone casted their votes, Jeff asked if anyone had an advantage and wanted to play it as this was their last opportunity to do so. DJ stood up and said that as much as he’d love to be guaranteed immunity tonight, he was going to go for the bigger move and use his idol for Madi. Boston and Sage both gasped. Jeff assured that the idol was real and any votes for Madi would not count. Sage then stood up and pulled out their idol. They looked back and forth between them and Boston. Sage teared up and said that they had to idol themselves as much as they loved Boston, they couldn’t risk leaving despite having an idol. Jeff also confirmed their idol was real and that any votes for Sage would not count. Jeff was about to read the votes when Madi stood up. Everyone looked at her with confusion. She pulled an idol out of her pocket. Madi noted that everyone was probably confused and offered an explanation. She had in fact given Kit her real idol because she didn’t think that she’d be voting for Kit to leave anyway. Whenever her and her alliance had finally come to the conclusion to flip on Kit, Madi snuck into her bag before tribal and replaced the real idol with a fake she’d made earlier in the day. Madi smirked and said that’s why she was so relieved when Kit didn’t pull it out of the bag because she would’ve known it wasn’t the real one, Kit was too smart for that. Madi headed towards Jeff and said that all game she’d been underestimated and was used to everyone’s pitch for her to flip being that she had no chance to win. Madi noted that everyone sitting down had played flashier games than she had but that the one she played allowed her to have the information to make the play she was about to make. Madi thanked DJ for using his idol for her but said she needed to take the final boss out of the game. She turned to Jeff and used her Hidden Immunity Idol on Boston. DJ and Paloma were both gagged and had their jaws dropped. Jeff confirmed that the idol was real and any votes for Boston would not count. Jeff then explained that Paloma had Individual Immunity, Boston, Madi, and Sage had all been saved by idols, which only left DJ. He explained that as the only person eligible to go home, DJ was automatically voted off. DJ looked around in awe and after a bit of silence, he offered Madi a handshake. He called her a beast and said good game. DJ grabbed his torch and headed towards Jeff. Jeff blew it out and said the tribe had spoken. DJ looked to everyone and laughed, saying he must look like such an idiot. He then headed off chuckling. Jeff told the tribe that after the most unpredictable tribal yet, only four of them remained. There would be no more voting and merely survival. He wished them luck and excused them.

 The Talotia tribe returned to camp after DJ’s elimination. Boston, Paloma, and Sage were all still in shock from what happened. Boston pulled Madi aside and apologized for voting for her but Madi shrugged it off and said she’d expected it. Boston and Sage found each other and hugged, thankful to have survived the vote. They then agreed that they now had to cut Madi instead of Paloma since Madi would now be a threat in a jury vote after her move. Paloma congratulated Madi on the move and said she respected it. Madi assured Paloma that she still wanted her in the finals with her and if she won final immunity, she’d give safety to Paloma from fire making. Paloma promised to do the same but she was just bluffing.

 The Talotia tribe joined Jeff on the beach for the final immunity challenge. Jeff explained the rules. They had to maneuver a seires of balls through a course and make sure none dropped throughout the challenge. If any of their balls fell, they’d be out. The challenge then begun. All four castaways seemed in the zone and focused trying to maneuver their balls. After twenty minutes passed, Madi’s attention slipped for a second and one of her balls dropped. She heaved a great sigh and then sat down on the bench. Madi felt really disappointed and like her chances of winning greatly dropped. Sage then dropped moments after as Madi losing distracted them. This left Boston and Paloma who went at it for another hour. After going head to head for over an hour, in a moment of weakness, Paloma grabs one of the balls and it slips out of her hand, dropping. She crouches down in disappointment. Jeff calls Boston as the winner of the Final Immunity. Boston cheers loudly. Jeff wraps the necklace around Boston’s neck and explains that at tribal, he’ll have to select one person to join him at the Final Tribal Council, while the other two will battle it out in a fire making competition.

 Back at camp, Boston hosted a tribe meeting and gathered everyone to sit down by the fire. He explained that he’d made up his mind to save Sage, leaving Madi and Paloma to duke it out in fire-making. Boston wished them luck and said he was telling them so they could practice. He said that trying to change his mind would be a waste of time. Both Madi and Paloma understood and headed off to go practicing. Madi sat on the beach and started practicing fire. Her hands were clammy and shaky. All season, she’d been able to start a fire in seconds with no problem but now her nerves were getting the best of her. At one point she snapped her stick in half out of frustration and started crying. Boston and Sage sat with Paloma back at camp and coached her on the fire making. She was able to get one started and began feeling a bit more comfortable going into it. Paloma told the two straight up that if she lost, she was voting for Madi to win. The final four grab their torches and start heading towards Tribal Council.

 Boston, Madi, Paloma, and Sage headed towards tribal and sat down. Jeff introduced the jury; Marissa, Jarrett, Gloria, Owen, Spenser, Trina, and now DJ. Paloma smirked at DJ as he walked in and he saluted at her. Jeff asked Boston how it felt to be secured a spot in the Final 3. Boston said it felt surreal and that he felt so close but also needed to make this decision carefully as it could make or break his game. Jeff asked Sage if there’d been any discussion at camp about what Boston would decide. Sage said Boston made it pretty clear he’d be saying them and sending Madi and Paloma to fire-making. Jeff asked Paloma why she felt he did that. Paloma bluntly said because she felt he saw Sage as the easiest to beat. Sage scoffed. Jeff asked Madi if she felt more of a target on her back after last tribal and Madi said she absolutely did. Jeff then asked Boston to make his final decision. Boston announced he’d be giving Sage immunity and sending Madi and Paloma to fire-making. Madi and Paloma took their places and Jeff began the fire-making duel.

They both started knicking away with their flint and trying to capture any spark. Paloma got a slight spark going and tried to nurture the flame but it quickly dissipated. Madi had the same thing happen to her. Madi’s hands were visibly shaky and she had sweat building on her forehead. She could feel herself getting anxious and nervous. Madi looked up for a second and locked eyes with Trina on the jury. Trina gave her a smile of reassurance and a thumbs up. Madi looked back down and took a deep breath. She started knicking away again and caught a spark. She nurtured it and the flame built. Paloma looked over and saw Madi had something going and immediately started panicking, rubbing the flint aggressively. Madi added more and more to the fire to build onto it, and watched as it went higher and higher. It eventually reached the level of the rope, which started burning. Paloma looked over at Madi as she still had no fire going. Madi stopped working on it, backed up and prayed as she watched the rope burn. Eventually the rope burnt and Madi’s flag went off. She squealed and cheered. Paloma sighed and offered Madi a hug. She told Madi good job and Madi apologized.

Madi and Paloma rejoined the group at the tribal seats. Jeff asked Paloma how she was feeling in this moment. She said she felt really defeated and like she’d let her family down after getting so close to a win. Jeff assured her that she didn’t let anyone down and that she should be very proud of everything she’d accomplished during her run. Paloma thanked him. He then asked her to bring him her torch. Paloma stood up and brought her torch over. Boston, Madi and Sage all cheered for her and commended her game. She sat her torch down and Jeff snuffed it out. Paloma headed off with her head held high and wished the final three luck. Jeff told Boston, Madi and Sage that they’d reached the end of the game and the next day, they were going to be confronted by the jury who would each have some questions for them. With that, he excused them.

Following Paloma’s elimination, Boston, Madi, and Sage returned to Talotia camp for their last day. They went to bed and woke up to a surprise feast with champagne. They all cheered and congratulated one another on this milestone. As they ate, they went over how they felt each juror would vote. Sage fairly confidently felt like they had Jarrett, Marissa, Owen, Gloria, and Trina’s votes in the bag. Madi said she felt like she might be able to snag Trina’s vote. Boston and Sage both smirked at it and assured that she was a locked vote for Sage. They each spend some time alone to reflect on their journeys. The three reunited once night time struck and grabbed their torches, marching to the Final Tribal Council.

The Final Three arrived for the Final Tribal Council. Jeff welcomed in the jury; Marissa, Jarrett, Gloria, Owen, Spenser, Trina, DJ, and now Paloma. Jeff begins by explaining how it’ll work. Each juror will have a chance to ask the finalists a question, then the finalists will each give a closing statement before the voting process. Jeff will then reveal the votes here on location. With that, Jeff welcomes Marissa up to ask the first question.

Marissa congratulates them all on making it there. She asks them all which juror they would have voted for to win if they could’ve. Boston replies first and answers with DJ, stating that he dominated most of the game and always found ways out of bad situations. Sage answers with Gloria saying that she played a pivotal role in the early game. Madi answers with Trina, saying she was on the bottom for a lot of the game but never gave up and always delivered right up until the end. Marissa thanked them and went back to sit down. Jarrett heads to the front of the room and asks each juror who they’d vote off from the Final Three if there was another tribal. Boston and Sage both answer with Madi, saying they wanted to stay true to their alliance. Madi answered with Boston, saying she felt Sage was easier to beat. Jarrett thanked them and sat down. Gloria was next up and she took the stand and asked each castaway to explain what separated their games from the others sitting with them. Boston said that his competition prowess definitely set him apart from the other two and that he won the most individual immunities all season long. Sage said what set them apart was how safe they were all season. They explained that their social bonds were strong enough for them to avoid being targeted all season and that they didn’t receive any votes until the Final 5, and that even then they still received less votes than Madi. Madi said what set her apart was her story of being underestimated and surprising everyone else. She didn’t feel that Boston or Sage had one impressive move they could site back to easily, while she did. Gloria thanked them and returned to her spot.

Owen headed to the front and asked the three why they didn’t take DJ out sooner and save themselves the trouble. Boston said that he wanted to be the one to take out DJ and he felt like if he took him out at the Owen boot that Owen would’ve gotten the credit, not him. Sage said that they respected DJ’s game and felt he deserved to make it further in the game than to be taken out in the early jury. Madi said that felt DJ was a shield for her and that as long as he was there, she’d remain in the middle. Spenser was next to ask his question. He decided not to ask a question and instead to plead a case for why Boston should win the game. He explained that Sage and Madi played passively and let others make moves for them, taking the safer path to the end. Spenser explained that Boston was never afraid to be seen as a big player and be seen as a leader, and that he still made it here despite that. With that, Spenser told the jury they’d be foolish not to reward Boston the win. Boston thanked Spenser, and he sat back down.

Trina stood up and asked the finalists what their biggest regret was in the game. Boston said his biggest regret was not splitting the votes between DJ and Paloma during the Trina boot to ensure one of them left at the very least. Sage said their biggest regret was voting off Rocky at the first tribal council as it led to them losing Yun the next time Tau lost. Madi said her biggest regret was voting out Kit as she felt Kit could’ve been an asset to her game and that looking back, Kit was loyal to her. Spenser scoffed at the answer and Gloria shook her head. DJ stood and asked the finalists what they felt their biggest moves were. Boston said his biggest move was convincing Madi to vote out Kit at the merge because it gave him full control over her going forward. Sage said their biggest move was idoling out DJ at the Final 5. Madi squinted and then replied to both of their answers by saying they weren’t sincere. Madi explained that Boston by no means controlled her and that there many plans she was in on that he had no idea about; including the potential flip during Spenser’s vote, and even the DJ vote. Madi addressed Sage’s answer and said that Sage’s idol play had no impact on DJ leaving and that it was an assumed variable by everyone since she’d told DJ and Paloma about Sage’s idol. Madi then answered the question and said her biggest move was not merely DJ’s elimination but the culmination of moves she made to be able to make it; including pretending to give Kit her idol, building a relationship with Paloma and DJ where they’d give her intel, developing a persona as an easy to beat jury goat so DJ would want to idol her, etc. DJ nodded and thanked everyone for their answers. Last up was Paloma, she asked Boston a question, not Sage or Madi. She asked why he sent her into the fire duel over Sage knowing Sage was better at making fire and that she’d planned on voting for Madi if she left. Boston said that he felt his game stood strong enough on its own that he didn’t need to take Madi out for it to be great, and that he felt he was capable of winning regardless. Paloma smirked and headed back to her seat.

Jeff then asked the finalists to each offer a closing statement. Boston thanked them all for a great season and said that he feels he’s leaving with 17 new best friends. He said that he knew coming in, he wouldn’t be able to fly under the radar being as big as he was. Boston admitted to lying about his job and revealed he was actually a Financial Adviser. He explained that he was never afraid to make big moves and always stayed flexible. Boston cited flipping on Gloria at the split tribal as a moment of him being willing to step up and make big swings. He thanked them again and allowed Sage to give their speech. Sage explained that they started the game in a rough spot from the Tau tribe as they last their closest ally Yun super early on. They developed on how they didn’t give up and worked hard to find the cracks in the alliance. Sage noted that they found the Tau tribe idol and would’ve been safe even if they had returned to tribal. Sage then said they managed to play middle all of merge and avoid getting a vote all the way until Final 5 where they got one merely as a parachute vote in case Boston was idoled. Madi centered her speech around the fact that the winner will represent the season. She asked the jury if they wanted the season to be represented by someone who relied on comp wins, or someone who never did anything but work for the benefit of Boston, or if they wanted to give the win to somebody who worked behind the scenes since the beginning of the game. Madi cited her pulling off the unanimous vote on Martha to disguise her not having a vote, her always building allegiances with players on the other side so they’d come to her if they wanted someone to flip. Madi said she was the only person in the room who had voted correctly at every single tribal council of the season and that she hoped they would vote correctly at this one. With that, Jeff concluded the finally speeches and began the voting process.

The jury casted their votes and returned to sit down. Jeff went and collected the votes, returning back with an urn in his hand. He congratulated Boston, Madi, and Sage on a great season and said no matter who wins, they all have something to be proud of. With that, he begins reading the votes. By a vote of 5-2-1, Madi was revealed to have won the game. She gasped and covered her face. Both Boston and Sage went in to hug her, congratulating her. Madi cried, saying she couldn’t believe it. Jeff told the jurors that they could get up and didn’t have to be strangers. They all ran to Madi and circled her. Madi and Trina hugged and Trina told her how proud she was of her. Gloria hugged Sage and promised they did a good job. Boston heaved a sigh but was still optimistic as he was still proud of the game he’d played. Jeff congratulated Madi on the win and turned to the camera. He told viewers to be on the lookout for the second season as they’d been green lit for one. Jeff and the contestants waved as the season came to a close.

## Tribal Council

### Day 33

 DJ(used Legacy Advantage)
 Trina (2 votes)
 VOTED OUT:Trina Mitchell

### Day 35

 Madi(used Hidden Immunity Idol)
 Boston(used Hidden Immunity Idol)
 DJ (1 vote)
 Sage(used Hidden Immunity Idol)
 VOTED OUT:DJ Greco

### Day 37

 Participant
 Madi

### Final Tribal Council

 Madi (5 votes)
 Boston (2 votes)
 Sage (1 vote)
 SOLE SURVIVOR:Madi Jha

## Trivia

* The episode's title was said by Madi Jha.