Deal or No Deal Island Recap: An Attack on the Family

Here’s the thing about Alexis Lete: She’ll always let you know where you stand. While every other player on Deal or No Deal Island keeps at least a couple of cards close to the vest, Lete never hesitates to flash them all in her competitors’ faces. Sometimes this pays off, and sometimes (like, say, for the last couple of episodes) it backfires. This week, she scored big in the most satisfying way possible — by telling her enemies exactly what she planned to do and then pulling it off flawlessly.

The groundwork for this coup began last week when Dickson started cozying up to Lete. As the weakest member of “the Family,” the game’s strongest alliance, Dickson seems to sense that he needs a backup plan just in case his “parents,” Survivor gods David and Parvati, choose each other over him. So he picked Lete. But not long after they forged their alliance, she kind of accidentally (I think) threw him under the bus. This week, Dickson revealed he’s playing both sides by allowing David and Parv to think he’s completely on their side while also laying the groundwork with Lete to get Parvati out. But Lete is no one to be trifled with, and this week, she showed everyone why you don’t mess with a tall queen.

Personally, I’d bet on David taking Dickson to the end over Parvati simply because he’s less of a threat. Dickson seems to sense that their bond is stronger than his own with Parv, who spent just a little too much time last week flirting with the idea of making her “son” face the Banker. So much for maternal instincts! But the point is Dickson wanted more allies, so he did his best to flirt with Lete by giving her a friendship bracelet with her initials and the words “Island Babe.”

If I had some letter beads on me right now, I’d make one that spells “Y-U-C-K.” But on this wheeling, dealing island, relationships are currency, so Lete ignored the “ick” factor, let Dickson kiss her hand, and called it a win. And then, in a somewhat prophetic move, the Banker sent our competitors out for an excursion that immediately tested Dickson’s allegiances and, in the process, completely screwed his game.

The challenge itself was straightforward: One by one, players had to choose a briefcase to carry across a very narrow balance beam positioned over a huge pit of quicksand in two minutes or less. Whoever carried the heaviest case would win automatic safety from elimination and the Banker. Players could also choose one of two lighter red cases. If they succeeded, the red cases guaranteed automatic safety, but if they failed, they’d automatically wind up at the bottom, at risk of facing the Banker.

Because Dickson wound up in the bottom and at risk last week, he got to go first. Immediately, he grabbed a red case — a bold move for someone who frequently underwhelms during physical challenges. Like clockwork, he fell off the balance beam and spent two minutes flailing in quicksand while Joe “helpfully” counted down the time. As if that wasn’t painful enough, he then had to choose who would go next — and both David and Lete were itching for a turn.

Predictably, Dickson chose David, all but guaranteeing safety for both him and Parvati, whom he’d obviously choose next. This did nothing to score Dickson points with the woman he just asked to be his “island girlfriend.” In fact, it all but sealed his fate.

Ever the tactician, David chose the heaviest of the silver cases — which left the other red case for Parvati, guaranteeing their safety if they both succeeded. He fared no better than Dickson on the balance beam, but once he hit that quicksand, he went into absolute beast mode. I don’t know where David’s “experience” with quicksand came from — Survivor or just being Australian — but whatever it is, he was an absolute pro. (Apparently, the key is to lie on your stomach and swim across.) He made it just under the wire, as did Parv after she also fell in and he coached her across.

Let’s just pause here for one note: It’s interesting that David let Dickson sink like a rock for two minutes. Once again, this reveals his strategic prowess. He didn’t want to show anyone how to succeed in this challenge until he did it himself. Would he have extended the courtesy to Parv if the order had been different? I wonder!

Parvati picked C.K. to go next, and I’m not gonna lie, it brought me nothing but pleasure to watch her face plant into the mud. Still, she somehow made it across — embarrassing Dickson in the process. So this round was a double win!

In a fascinating move, C.K. wound up picking Lete to go next, despite their ongoing beef. Could this be a sign that the non-Family members on the island have finally figured out that they’re one another’s only chance of survival? Let’s hope so! After watching C.K.’s painful fall, Lete dove straight into the mud and swam across.

That left Phillip, who made no effort to hide how hurt he was that no one chose him earlier. With only two cases left to choose from, it didn’t really matter if he made it across; you just knew he’d be in the bottom. Sure enough, it was him and Lete in the bottom with Dickson — leaving David, who held the heaviest case, to send one of them to a duel with the Banker.

Early on in the game, people seemed more gung-ho to face the Banker. These days, no one ever wants to do it. Phillip pulled the guilt card and told David that after his middle-school-gym-class experience being picked last, he was not in the right “headspace” to play. For some reason, David respected this. That left Lete and his “son.” And this is where things got really interesting.

Obviously, David wanted to put Lete up. She’s the biggest threat to Team Family right now, and she put him up last week, so he has an easy excuse. But she really, really, really did not want to play, and Dickson actually volunteered. Still, Dickson knew better than anyone that David would refuse to put him at risk.

Here’s what I don’t understand: Why on earth did David think he could convince Lete to vote C.K. out? He seemed to suspect she was bluffing when she told him point blank that if she beat the Banker, she’d send Dickson home, and I cannot fathom why. Even with all the bullshit between them, sending C.K. home would make absolutely no sense for Lete’s game. With only six people left in the game, the Family trifecta was her only logical target — and David and Parv were both safe. You can never really guess if someone’s going to beat the Banker, and I understand David’s hesitation to put Dickson at risk, but he had to know that if Lete won, she’d be true to her word.

In the end, David picked Lete, and if there was any question about what she planned to do if she won, she looked Dickson straight in the eye and told him, “You’re going home.” God bless! Please make it so! We’ve been waiting for weeks! Weaponized friendship bracelets should be an automatic disqualifier anyway!

In her first round, Lete picked like a champ, knocking $500, $100, $1, and $2 million off the board and rejecting the Banker’s lowball offer of $273,000. The next round was a bit rougher, as Lete opened the $1.25 million, $1,000, $2.25 million, and $1 million briefcases. Still, she held strong when the Banker offered $599,000, opening one more case — sadly, the $2.5 million.

But here’s the thing about Deal or No Deal: It doesn’t really matter how high your case values are. You could accept a $500 offer and still win as long as the amount in your own case is lower. Although her offer went down to $550,000, Lete’s odds after Round 3 were way better, so she took it. Sure enough, she made a good deal. And so ends Dickson’s annoying reign. Somewhere far away, you just know his biggest hater, former player Seychelle, was cackling.

Lete might’ve forced herself back into the game after some setbacks, but the road ahead will not be easy. Next week’s challenge will feature a double elimination, and given how well David and Parv have done during these excursions, Phillip, Lete, and C.K. will all need to bring their A game if they want even a shot at going to the finale. Let’s hope they form a strong alliance of their own.

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See you all next week!