Yanu Power Ranking — Who Can Save This Tribe? (RECAP)

[Warning: The following contains MAJOR spoilers for Survivor Season 46 Episode 3.]

The Yanu tribe has been memorably bad in Survivor 46. Like Survivor 44’s Tika, they’ve spent the entire season so far being the only tribe sent to Tribal Council. They finally caught a lucky break in Episode 3, but it wasn’t because of a challenge victory. Sadly, a player was eliminated from the game due to an injury that ended up not being worst-case scenario.

Things were looking bad for Bhanu in the episode. His Episode 2 Tribal Council meltdown continued when they got back to camp, and his best strategy the next morning was to ask his teammates how he should play. When Kenzie said she was open to hearing out his ideas, he said he didn’t have any; he just wanted to follow her (or anyone’s) lead to get on their good sides. Inexplicably, Bhanu said this made Kenzie a vicious player.

Bhanu seemingly came into Survivor with a big heart but no plan. And when people questioned his strategy both at camp and on his Summit Journey, he said he didn’t come to Survivor to “win $1 million,” but rather “win one million hearts.” He doesn’t want to strategize, he won’t lie to protect his moves, and he doesn’t want to win?! Maybe don’t sign up for Survivor then.

Q was also ready to lose in Episode 3. The former D-1 athlete was hard on himself for their challenge loss when reward and immunity were right in their grasp. So hard, in fact, that he tried to martyr himself by asking to be voted out. There was no chance for that, however, as bad luck brewed over at Nami.

Randen tells Tevin of his injury at the Nami camp in Survivor Season 46 Episode 3 (Robert Voets/CBS)

Randen from the Nami tribe woke up to find his right side numb. He felt a pang in his sleep that he believed was the cause. It was just a quick sensation overnight, but in the morning his condition worsened. After a medical evaluation, the series decided they had to pull Randen out of the game so he could get an MRI for a suspected spinal injury.

It turned out to just be a pinched nerve, and Randen was healed in a matter of days. But he’s still out for the season. Hopefully, he’ll get a second chance to play like Bruce Perrault. But for now, Randen leaves with a Beware Advantage clue in his pocket. Venus is the only person who knew of this advantage.

Yanu struggles have been the main event of season so far, but it seems that Randen’s elimination could be a sign of the tide turning in their favor. Now that there’s been a shift in luck for this downtrodden foursome, here’s a ranking of the players based on their performances in the potentially game-changing Episode 3.

Best Players: Q & Tiff

Robert Voets/CBS

These two have an eye on every facet of the game. They share the foresight to plan ahead and consider eliminating Kenzie before she gets too powerful. Although the credit for that plan goes to Q, who’s been setting the stage for this for two episodes now. Both are strong physical players and are the reason Yanu almost won their first challenge in Episode 3. Tiff also helped devise the fake idol plan in Episode 2, and Q is the one who convinced Jess to use it. They may not be winning challenges, but they’ve been getting everything else they’ve wanted.

Worst Mistakes: Kenzie

Robert Voets/CBS

I know the obvious choice is Bhanu, but hear me out! Kenzie’s already Survivor confident. She’s banking on the assumption that the one and only choice is to send Bhanu, the weakest link, home. Resting on her laurels with her alliance with Tiff isn’t a smart thing to do just three episodes (seven days for the players) in.

No one should be comfortable in friendships in Survivor. There should be constant evaluation of where you, your allies, and your potential threats stand. Kenzie’s plan right now seems to be to wait until Bhanu is gone to get her real game going. She’s the only one in Yanu who doesn’t know that Q is planning an alliance with Bhanu, and she’s making the mistake of thinking he can’t be an asset.

Dark Horse: Bhanu

Robert Voets/CBS

Bhanu finally started playing the game smarter when returning from the Summit Journey. Instead of telling everyone that he lost his vote, he lied and said he pulled the white rock that sent him home early with no risk and no reward. He told Q the truth in a private talk, and Q decided to make him an asset from there. Now that he’s caught a lucky break with Randen’s elimination and learned some valuable lessons in gameplay, I’m interested to see if he can go from zero to hero.

Survivor, Wednesdays, 8/7c, CBS