Survivor sure moves quickly when there are only 26 days to play!

Survivor Season 41 Episode 2 has some fun moments, including a new advantage, that in typical Survivor fashion comes at a cost.

Let's dive in -- or at least scoot across at a slow and steady pace!

There isn't much Luvu tribe content in this episode, only because they are so competent and cohesive. Naseer was the outlier of the tribe, but even he seems to have endeared himself to his tribemates due to his survival abilities.

Since Luvu keeps winning challenges, we may not see much of them until there's a merge.

We do get a good look into Deshawn's past and learn more about him, which is great. These "flashback scenes" are cute and useful in giving the castaways more context, but since they are new to the show they still take some getting used to. 

Deshawn gets very lucky, paired up with Evvie for the "Summit Meeting" (which, again, like Exile Island, seems to be happening after every immunity challenge). That's how to play though -- you've got to volunteer when adventure calls! 

You may not win, you may be beset with obstacles and challenges, but your journey will not be boring -- and you'll get more screen time!

It's almost baffling how much information Evvie discloses to Deshawn. It seems like a super risky move, but if it pays off and she earns an ally on another tribe, she'll have more options down the road. She essentially gives him an extra vote, at no cost to herself. This should count for something further down the road.

She's a sharp player stuck on a not-so-great tribe, but if she survives, she can always spin it into a "look what I overcame" narrative if she makes it to the end. 

We can't be afraid of making people mad on Survivor.

Evvie

• Permalink: We can't be afraid of making people mad on Survivor.

In yet another episode of Yase fails miserably, the yellow tribe is very much on a downward spiral -- very reminiscent of Matsing from Survivor Philippines. Will Yase yield another tightly-bonded pair to eventually be absorbed by the other two tribes? 

Everyone seems convinced a swap is going to happen soon. It seems unlikely at this point -- if it's something the castaways are expecting, it's probably not going to happen. Nothing is predictable in this new era.

Oh, Tiffany. No wonder she's confused -- if I hadn't personally read the note and only had someone explain the "Beware Advantage" to me, I'd be confused as well. Her days are likely numbered. She's there as a buffer to Evvie and Liana, but she doesn't seem to have grasped that yet. 

There's a lot of things going on right now that I can't even keep it all straight.

Tiffany

• Permalink: There's a lot of things going on right now.

Either Tiffany's out in the next few episodes or she makes it to the final three. 

This episode felt like a natural set-up for a Tiffany boot, but that would have been too obvious. Xander has been a Survivor Golden Boy from the minute he stepped on the beach, so he'll be around for a while.

Voce's exit feels a little unearned -- for the price of a blindside, we didn't get to know this character with so much potential. But that is often how Survivor goes -- everyone's got to be voted out some time. 

So -- is Xander just going to have to keep saying his random, weird phrase at every immunity challenge?

I truly believe that butterflies are dead relatives saying hi.

Xander

• Permalink: I truly believe that butterflies are dead relatives saying hi.

If that happens then surely the other castaways are going to start suspecting that something is up. Only when someone on another tribe finds their "Beware Advantage" will they clue in -- and it will be so much fun when that happens! 

This is such an imaginative, goofy twist on the part of production. It's so convoluted and ridiculous, with the potential to be both embarrassing to those involved and confusing to everyone who's not in the loop.

Xander won't have a vote until one person each from both Luvu and Ua find their "Beware Advantage" and actually decide to use it. Someone like, say, Danny on Luvu seems less likely to take the bait, but he could conceivably tell a more adventurous ally -- Deshawn for instance -- about the advantage and let him take the risk. 

Xander is at a huge disadvantage and his fate now rests out of his hands. He has an extra vote in his pocket that he could have potentially used as leverage, or given to someone else -- though it may be non-transferable.

However, it wouldn't have made a difference as they were still in the minority. He didn't even seem to realize his alliance was in trouble. 

It's juggling chainsaws, whether you want to focus on loyalty or is it someone who can help you go further.

Xander

• Permalink: It's juggling chainsaws.

Evvie and Liana are right to want Xander out -- he's playing hard out of the gate and he's not afraid to show it.

It was surprising that they let Tiffany sway them into voting for Voce -- it feels like there was more at play here that we didn't see. Tiffany appears erratic and paranoid, but this was an easy way to appease her.

They may have cost themselves in the long run by not ousting Xander when they had the chance.

Evvie does have a point about women getting to the end and then having their strategies misrepresented or their accomplishments diminished. We've seen this too many times -- of all Survivor's winners, 25 have been men and 13 have been women.

The show is overdue for a female winner. It would be a new era indeed. 

In the short amount of time with saw Ua this episode, you must concede that Brad is a terrible Survivor player, but a great Survivor character.

Sometimes you can be both -- Evvie, Ricard, and Shan come to mind -- but sometimes it's fine to be just one.

What's in store for our castaways next week?

Can Yase catch a break? How will Xander react to his closest ally voting out his other closest ally?

Will anyone find the Beware Advantage on Luvu and Ua -- and if so, who? Deshawn? Naseer? BRAD?

Share your thoughts in the comments! 

Mary Littlejohn Mary Littlejohn was a staff writer and critic for TV Fanatic.