After the Survivor: David vs. Goliath merge kicked off with a relatively low-key episode, last week’s episode kicked the season into high gear once again with one of the craziest Tribal Councils in Survivor history. The Mayor of Slamtown went home in an idol-fueled blindside and the numbers between David and Goliath were evened to 6-5 – with the Davids holding several key advantages including a new power.

Coming off that craziness, it wasn’t clear how the next episode could live up to that standard – but Survivor is all about surprising us this season. The chaos began as soon as the tribe returned back to their beach. Davie’s enthusiasm after pulling off the coup with his new allies was one of the most entertaining moments of the season, but the Goliaths were in far-less good spirits. While most of them – including frequent flip-flopper Alec – tried to make peace, alliance leader Dan quickly sunk into a pout.

With Dan alienating both his alliance and the tribe as a whole, the fractures we saw in the Goliath tribe began to show. Although Mike was quick to encourage everyone to stay “Goliath Strong”, Alec and Alison immediately started looking at other opportunities. Even Kara, Dan’s closest ally and showmance, started getting tired of him and seemed to whiplash quickly from wanting to go to the end with him to wanting him gone. When Survivor showmances go bad, they go back quickly.

A plot was quickly hatched between the three Goliath flippers and several Davids – including Gabby, who Alison seems to be close to – to blindside the famous “Hot Cop”, but the Davids were naturally suspicious. After all, the Goliaths keep on proposing alliances and then going back on them to stay “Goliath Strong”. They’re like the Survivor equivalent of Lucy pulling away the football.

The first half of the episode was almost entirely devoted to the Goliaths fracturing, with prominent Davids like Nick getting little to no screentime. Then came a team reward challenge for a meal of burgers from a mobile burger bar, notable only for one of my Survivor pet peeves. I don’t know why they do team challenges with uneven numbers so someone gets left out through no fault of their own. Poor Carl really wanted those burgers! He should have at least gotten to “place a bet” and join the winning team if he guessed the winner right.

Then came an immunity challenge involving balance beams, retrieving balls, and balancing them on a snake-shaped puzzle. This challenge, especially the second half, felt much more like a Big Brother challenge, and was dominated by the game’s two strongest guys. Although Dan got out to an impressive early lead, it was Alec who lapped him and won immunity. For someone discounted by most analysts before the season due to his bro-like personality (and other external factors), Alec is making an impressive showing.

And just like that, the tone of this episode of Survivor: David vs. Goliath shifted completely. As soon as they got to camp, Dan consolidated the Goliath alliance and convinced them to go for Christian. Again. Poor Christian, the awkward robotics nerd has somehow become perceived as the biggest threat in this game in years. It would be hilarious, if I wasn’t afraid it would give him a heart attack before day 39.

The Davids, though, wouldn’t take their fate lying down. First, Christian pioneered a new method of idol-searching, “Breadth First”, where his cursory searches of large areas of the beach netted him an idol. Then, the Davids met, and everyone revealed their advantages. With an idol, a vote steal, and an idol nullifier in play, the game was theirs – they just had to figure out their next move.

Sure enough, tribal council was chaos from beginning to end. After a lot of back-and-forth about who was at the bottom of each alliance and whether it would be a smart move for a Goliath to flip, it was time to vote. And sure enough, Nick pulled out his advantage, stealing Alison’s vote. Just like that, the numbers advantage switched to the Davids. Seeing this, Dan pulled out his idol and protected himself before the votes could be read. And then came the Idol Nullifier, as quiet Carl struck like a ninja. The only question was, had it been played properly?

Tenth Boot of Survivor: David vs. Goliath – Dan Rengering

Sure enough, the Davids had played the idol nullifier on Dan, and with six votes against him the leader of the Goliaths followed his alliancemate right out the door. Alec and Kara had hedged their bets, voting for Angelina in hope that’s what the Davids would do, but the Davids had their own plan, and it worked out perfectly. Dan played Survivor hard but not well, and while he had an impressive resume in his time in the game, it came crashing down just as fast.

Now, the numbers are even, setting the stakes for a high-octane top-ten showdown. Christian has the only idol in the game, but Dan’s idol is about to be put back into the game. One thing’s for sure – the alliance of David guys formed in the last few weeks is turning into one of the most impressive alliances in recent memory.

Next week is the two-hour double episode, so below I’ll be ranking the top ten of Survivor: David vs. Goliath based on how likely they are to survive both episodes. Last week, I ranked Dan as #8 out of eleven in terms of safety, near the bottom of the pack. He had an idol and knew when to play it – the Davids just had a big target and knew exactly how to get him.

Power Rankings for Episode 10/11 of Survivor: David vs. Goliath

1. Davie

The power rankings have a new king! It’s not that anyone else went downhill, but Davie is playing the perfect social game to survive right now. He’s in the dominant strategic alliance and his alliance-mates are much bigger targets.

2. Nick

The king is still going strong, playing a role in two fantastic blindsides over the last two weeks. He now seems to be firmly in control of the game, but he’s not going to be able to hide under the radar anymore – he’s officially the game’s biggest competitor.

3. Christian

Christian has an idol and will be properly paranoid after seeing his name come out of the urn in the last two tribal councils. That idol should save him the first time – but the second tribal council could be a bit trickier if the Davids don’t get a firm numbers advantage.

4. Gabby

She seems to have gotten into a solid alliance, the Davids won’t turn on her, and she’s not high on anyone’s list.

5. Mike

Of all the Goliaths, Mike is the one who appears on people’s lips the least. He has a good social game and will probably skate by a few more weeks.

6. Alison

Like Mike, she’s not high on anyone’s target list. She wasn’t a part of this week’s blindside either way, so she might be seen as a wild card. Unlikely to be a target unless the Davids really want to surprise people.

7. Carl

The oddball David, his old-fashioned personality has rubbed people the wrong way throughout the game. I doubt the Davids will turn on him at the first tribal council, but if Gabby’s conflict with him escalates they may cut him loose sooner rather than later.

8. Alec

Alec seems to have the best relationship overall with the Davids, giving them key information several times. He’s also the strongest contestant left in the game, giving him good odds to win immunity – but if he falters, the Davids may decide to play smart and send him packing to see his fellow bros.

9. Kara

Kara’s lost her closest alliancemate, and it’s not clear if the Davids will care that she tried to flip sides. She’s an easy potential boot for them and I don’t know if she has the social game to get out of it.

10. Angelina

I mean, we know this song by now, don’t we? The Davids are going to be looking for an easy target to pick off first, and she already got two votes from her own tribe. They’ll go for her first, and then it’ll be time to stay “David Strong”.