"Previously on Total Drama Malibu..." Bridgette began the recap of the last episode, standing next to Geoff on the beach while the interns lugged large bags of something wooden clattering in them. "We took the final five to our sponsoring indoor theme park for a thrilling game of laser tag! Or it would have been thrilling if there wasn't already a 4 versus 1 set up against Mitzy since she wasn't part of the big alliance that took out her friends. Seeing the division, she made deals with each half of the alliance, and when it came time to vote, she didn't get a single vote against herself! Vanessa ended up getting duped by Mitzy's deal and was sent home that night, but not before Mike returned to his senses and finally patched things up with her! We're at the final four now, and we've only got one ceremony left before we reach the end! Who will lose it at the last second? Find out right here on Total Drama Malibu!"
Intro Sequence:
Instead of the usual rock tune of I Wanna Be Famous, harsher electric guitar chords came in at A minor, along with harsher drum beats and synths. Cameras popped out of various places along a beach in Malibu, first a trash can, then from behind a lounge chair, then out of some sand. Before the lyrics came in, a film clapper appeared in front of the camera and began the scene.
Whatever happened to the young young lovers? One moved on and the other got lost in
After the scene began, the camera briefly showed a beautiful stretch of a Malibu beach, with a bustling street right behind it. Geoff and Bridgette were shown on a pier together, each of them raising an arm to let the camera zoom by them. Mike was a bit behind them, just watching the co-hosts with a blank expression.
Meds and shocks and tears in the street, tears on his knees, teary history
Vanessa and Zoey were further down the pier, playing a carnival throwing game together. Vanessa had a big smile on her face as she got a bullseye with a baseball, making Zoey sigh as she threw and missed her shot.
Whatever happened to the Nerd Herd? Still quite sane, but what about Shane? Took himself back to the drawing board, plotting for those he abhorred
Mitzy and Arin were playing some kind of laser game at a carnival stand, both of them having ice cream cones, with Shane trying to keep up with them in the game and fire at the aliens in it. Jo came running by down the pier though, and his face filled with malice.
An eye for an eye, a leg for a leg, a vote off the show doesn't go away
Going down from the pier and onto the beach itself, Monica was sitting on a beach chair with binoculars on her eyes, while Lucien was napping on a chair next to her. Jo passed by them both on her run, blatantly pushing Monica off her seat as she passed by.
Everyone has to go, but being booted by a kid stings a long long way
Anne Maria was trying to sunbathe on the beach in her swimsuit when Caleb passed by with a metal detector, getting a scornful look from her.
You wanna be famous? You wanna be famous? You wanna be famous? They go
Brick and Brava were playing volleyball together, although Brava jumped up and spike the ball right at Brick's face. The cadet rubbed his face, but tried to keep a smile albeit pained. The ball bounced towards Petunia, who was startled as it hit her in the back and made her spray them both.
Na na na, nanana na na
The skunk spray transitioned the scene to neon lights above several beach garlands on wooden posts at night. Mickey and Jay were sitting next to each other on folding chairs, already looking nervous before Geoff popped up between them to try and cheer them up. This made the twins run off, with Bridgette letting out a sigh as this happened. The scene then zoomed out to show the rest of the cast sitting in a half circle on folding chairs, all of them humming one last droning note while the title of the season was shown on the center garland.
After the intro ended, the episode began on the stone tables where Zoey, Mike, and Anne Maria were all having breakfast together at around 10 in the morning. Mike was just eating toast, Zoey had eggs, and Anne Maria had a whole helping of bacon and biscuits. "So great to have you back Mike! Glad I can finally talk to the real you!" Zoey exclaimed, then ate a small egg chunk.
Mike chuckled awkwardly, rubbing the back of his head. "Yeah, it feels good to be back, so close to the end as well. Mal helped me get this far, but thanks both of you for keeping me around long enough for things to work themselves out. Mal definitely recognized how much you cared." Mike thanked both girls, then took a bite of his toast.
Anne Maria gave a wave of dismissal, nowhere near as enthusiastic as Zoey was. "Yeah yeah, we can get all mushy about you being back, but that Mal guy was playing the game, so I hope you don't throw right before the end." Anne Maria remarked.
"Of course not! I got 8th without him last time, I still know what I'm doing. And this is pretty easy too. We just vote off Mitzy right?" Mike asked them, very optimistic.
Anne Maria nodded, now looking in the direction of the artist, who was sitting at the other table eating her breakfast of toaster tarts. "Yeah, we already had a good alliance, and now we know she was just playin' both sides yesterday. So she's the next ta go." Anne Maria stated confidently.
Mike gave a thumbs up, then stood up from the table. "Great, figured that almost went without saying honestly." Mike replied, then walked away to go get some more food.
Zoey watched Mike leave, then looked to Anne Maria with a small sigh. "Do we have to gang up on Mitzy like this though? This feels just a bit mean, even if it is a game." Zoey asked hesitantly.
Anne Maria put on a serious look, then gestured with her thumb to Mike. "Well did you want to be the one goin'? It's just me, you, and Mike, ain't anyone else we can go for. And if she gets immunity, one of us is done." Anne Maria told Zoey sternly.
"Guess that's just how the cookie crumbles then. Hope Mitzy doesn't take it personally then." Zoey commented, then took a bite of one of her eggs.
Mitzy had overheard their conversation a little, sighing to herself as she doodled, knowing her time here was still numbered. "Guess we're voting off Mike next right? Sticking to us three like last time?" Mitzy called to them hopefully.
Anne Maria didn't answer, not even acknowledging the call, while Zoey looked back and gave a thumbs up to Mitzy. "Yup! We've got it!" Zoey answered, forcing a smile.
Mitzy smiled back, then went back to doodling. "Great! Just making sure we were on the same page!" Mitzy exclaimed, then flipped the page in her sketchpad.
When she flipped the page though, the loudspeakers turned on and Bridgette's voice soon came through. "Good morning everyone! It's challenge time! So head out to the eastern end of the beach a bit past your hut! But as you do so, you'll find shells along the path with each previously eliminated player's name on them. Grab them as you go, say a thing or two about them, and bring them to today's challenge in their honor! You wouldn't be here right now if they hadn't left after all! So head out when you're ready!" Bridgette directed the final four, prompting them all to stop eating and head to the site.
-Confessional: Zoey-
Zoey sighed, aimlessly kicking her legs for a moment. "I like Mitzy, and we just made things even between us by voting out Vanessa. I don't want to ruin a chance at a friendship by voting her out, but it's my only option here. Anne Maria has been looking after me since the pre merge, and I can't vote off Mike! So sorry Mitzy, but the game is a the game."
-End Confessional-
The final four now walked down the beach together, soon coming across the first shell, hanging on string on a wooden peg that was fixed onto a pole. Zoey pulled it off, reading the name that was carved into it. "Petunia, man. I wish I got to actually know her, I feel bad for her." Zoey commented, pocketing the shell.
Anne Maria shrugged, not really caring. "Whatevs. She was stinkin' up the place, and she woulda just been Jo's ally once the merge came. Not like she was a good person anyway." Anne Maria gave her opinion, moving right along.
Mitzy chuckled, following behind the trio. "Well Arin is probably jealous of her mutation still. Or maybe not, I think it scared her straight about getting powers like that!" Mitzy joked.
-Reflection Confessional: Petunia-
Clips of Petunia's run played, showing her shaking her shoes to clear out the sand in them, cheering with Brick and Mickey, swimming despite the germs, and finally being shocked as Mickey was safe instead of her. "Yeah... I ended up going home first this time around. I honestly thought I had a shot to turn things around for myself, but clearly I'm just not cut out for competition anymore. Would I trade my experience? Most definitely."
-End Confessional-
The next pole they arrived at had a small shell hanging on it, which Anne Maria ended up grabbing. "Pff, Caleb. From first place to first boot of his team! Talk about deserved." Anne Maria remarked.
Mitzy nodded in agreement, rolling her eyes as she remembered him. "Yeah, I couldn't stand him last season, and being on the same team as him this time was even worse. Don't know how he pulled off that win still." Mitzy complained, walking ahead now.
"Him and Jo are just never going to get along huh? He'll never get far again if he just keeps focusing on her." Mike gave his take.
-Reflection Confessional: Caleb-
Clips from Caleb's run were shown, with him proudly walking onto the dock, throwing a seashell at Mickey during the first challenge, stomping on Jo's foot on day 2, then falling and taking Monica down with him on the climbing challenge, and finally being dumbfounded as Jo was given immunity over him. "I don't care that I didn't win! I'm already a millionaire! And a very happy won at that! This is their second try winning? Well I won on my first try! So final four, none of you really have what I had to win! Ha!"
-End Confessional-
The third pole they arrived at was painted red with a white cross on top, with the shell hanging right beneath it. "Poor Monica, I didn't think she would be the one to get eliminated by injury honestly." Mitzy commented as she grabbed the shell.
Mike rubbed the back of his head, feeling a little awkward now. "Yeah, wish her the best, I imagine she would have been just as helpful with getting rid of Mal. Hopefully she's recovered by now." Mike said, looking away from the others.
"Yeah yeah, wish her well, but I ain't gonna be upset she left either. She was clingy and annoyin', nuff said." Anne Maria stated firmly, not a hint of pity.
-Reflection Confessional: Monica-
Monica's run was shown, with her swimming in the first the challenge, being saved by Svetlana in the second, showing off finding multiple shells in the third, dancing with Mal in the fourth, and finally being loaded into the ambulance to be taken away. "My run was rough, but I'm just glad I spent my last moments in the game with Mike! Happy he's still in the game, and I think I'm ready to move on to other guys. Nearly died trying to impress him, so that's enough!"
-End Confessional-
The next pole was a normal wooden one like the first two, with a blue painted shell hanging from it. "Jay, I really didn't think he would go so soon. He seemed like the more strategic of the twins." Mike commented, trying to recall the differences.
Anne Maria smirked, grabbing the shell. "Yeah, that's why he got targeted first. Ain't no way Mickey goes before him, still dunno why Brava and Brick wanted him to stay over Mickey." Anne Maria explained her vote, pocketing the shell.
"I guess that's a compliment to him then? He probably could have done well if Shane wasn't running things." Zoey looked at the positive side, feeling bad still for the twins.
-Reflection Confessional: Jay-
Jay's run was shown, with him repeatedly helping Mickey up, falling down in the rock climbing challenge, guiding Mickey while carrying the statue in the chapel, and finally being shocked at his blindside that night as Brick was safe instead of him. "So that didn't go great. I thought my approach to not making alliances with others and staying safe from exploiters would get me further in the game. But turns out that just made me an even bigger target. I didn't get medically evacuated like Monica did, so I'll take that as a plus!"
-End Confessional-
The following pole the four arrived at had a camouflage painted shell on it, which Zoey grabbed. "Brava! She was pretty rough and tough, can't be too surprised she went early twice honestly." Mitzy gave her opinion, thinking on both seasons.
Anne Maria rolled her eyes, thinking back on her more fondly. "Had a pretty sweet alliance with her. Lame that bum Shane tricked y'all into voting for her when he was way worse in that challenge." Anne Maria complained.
-Reflection Confessional: Brava-
Clips of Brava's run played, with her arriving on the team mats early, saving Brick in the climbing challenge, abandoning Mickey on during the boardwalk murder challenge, and finally taking her elimination well after Shane was tossed the last soda can. "I was an asset to my team, like Brick was. But clearly that isn't what is valued in this game. Before the teams merged, the Gulls were embarrassing by every metric. Chris wasn't here either, so this was simply a waste of my time."
-End Confessional-
Up next was another camouflaged shell on a wooden pole, and Zoey was quick to grab this one. "I miss Brick, I really do. I wish we could have merged with him." Zoey lamented, pocketing the shell.
"He was always an upstanding guy, but he just didn't play the game at all. A sense of code can only get you so far." Mike complimented Brick as well, feeling just a little bad.
"Just another victim of Shane, that chump really got in y'alls heads. Not me though, I ain't stupid enough to vote for Brick over Shane." Anne Maria boasted, pointing at herself as she walked ahead.
-Reflection Confessional: Brick-
Brick's run was shown, with him leading everyone in swimming to Big Rock, showing Shane where buried shells were, dancing with Zoey in the chapel, completely failing at the rope bridge climb, and finally being voted out over the recovering Mickey, but still taking his loss gracefully. "I played by my own code, and when I let the team down, I went home. That's how it should be, and I would rather go home an honorable man than make it far scheming like the rest of my teammates. To all the players with integrity still in the game, I wish you luck!"
-End Confessional-
The next pole they came across had a red shell on it, and Mike ended up grabbing this one. "Lucien, I feel guilty he's gone. He tried to warn you all about Mal early and got booted for it." Mike stated, frowning as he looked at Lucien's name on the shell.
"I mean, it was either me or him. Can't say I feel too bad he's gone since he was more willing to throw me under the bus than actually vote Mal out." Mitzy reminded Mike, not guilty at all.
"Well, you're Mike again, so hopefully no hard feelings when you meet again right?" Zoey again stayed optimistic, trying to cheer Mike up.
-Reflection Confessional: Lucien-
Lucien's run was shown, with him taking a nap as soon as he was done with his turn swimming, successfully freeing the statue in the chapel with the salt, easily climbing the rope bridge, getting knocked into the water by Anne Maria's duel stick, and finally getting bummed as he was booted instead of Mitzy. "Wasn't the first boot this season, so there's that. Guess actually trying gets you much further. But Mike just had control of the team socially, I couldn't really contest it, and that was that. Jo was the most sensible on the Octopi surprisingly, wouldn't mind swapping some jokes once this is all done."
-End Confessional-
The last wooden pole they came across had a green painted shell hanging from it this time, which Zoey took and crushed in her hand. "Shane, good riddance. He never really cared about any of us." Zoey insulted him, before just handing the shell pieces to Anne Maria.
"You said it girl. That fool was not makin' merge, and we took him down ourselves." Anne Maria agreed with Zoey, then gave her a fist bump.
-Reflection Confessional: Shane-
Shane's gameplay was shown, with him organizing Petunia's blindside with Mickey, Jay, and Zoey, then him trying to propose a long term alliance with Jay and failing, ditching Anne Maria in the pier murder challenge, then getting taken out by Jo in the duel stick challenge, and being voted out that night by the rest of his team. "I was playing the game, much better than anyone else on my team or the other team if I may add. I can't believe I got taken out before the merge again, all because these softies don't want to actually strategize. Put me against actual players and I'd run the game."
-End Confessional-
The next pole the players came across was made of straw instead of wood, and hanging from it was a red shell. "Jo. Man, she was set to win the whole thing once she merged. She was pretty crazy in challenges." Mitzy commented, remembering how she did in all of them.
Zoey nodded in agreement, a bit relieved she wasn't here. "Yeah, good thing Vanessa took her out before she could start winning everything." Zoey added, smiling at the others.
Mike smiled back, grabbing the shell from the pole. "Thank you for that one if you're watching! She definitely would have just won." Mike thanked the camera, giving it a thumbs up.
-Reflection Confessional: Jo-
Jo's run was shown, with her arriving at the team mats first, struggling on the rope bridge challenge, taking down each one of her opponents in the duel stick challenge, going further than anyone else in the surfing challenge, and finally being selected by Vanessa's sole vote to be eliminated. "Can't believe I stuck it out through all of premerge just to get sucker punched out by a returnee right at the merge! How lame is that!? I would have dominated each and every one of those losers and they know it! I've got no respect for any of them, none of them were as strong as I was!"
-End Confessional-
The next straw pole had a green shell hanging from it, and Mitzy rushed to grab it. "Mickey, sorry you can't be here with us. I'll win for you and Arin, don't worry!" Mitzy assured the shell, making Anne Maria smirk.
"The shrimp is lucky he made it to merge, but somehow he got himself a girlfriend. Good for him, but he ain't deservin' of a million bucks." Anne Maria stated, not guilty at all over voting him off.
"He was nice, but yeah, he had to go where he did." Zoey agreed with Anne Maria, still somewhat regretful over the vote.
-Reflection Confessional: Mickey-
Mickey's run was shown, with him getting conked in the head by Caleb's shell, freaking out and closing his eyes at the chapel, swinging and taking himself out against Lucien in the duel stick challenge, stopping Vanessa from winning in the valley race, and finally getting voted out thanks to Zoey's betrayal. "When Jay and I first signed up for the show and took Cameron's place, our parents didn't think we'd win, our doctor said we would either leave premerge or getting medi-vacced, and our gym teacher just laughed and laughed. But I showed them! I made it to the merge, I made some friends, a girlfriend, and I got taken out for being a threat! How is that Mr. Wallowitz!?"
-End Confessional-
After Mickey's, Mitzy also hurried and grabbed the red shell from the next straw pole. "We were so close to the end Arin, but I'm still here, so the Nerd Herd will come out victorious!" Mitzy declared, raising a fist in determination.
"Uh huh. She was a sorta wackjob, so I had no problem votin' her out. She already got a boyfriend anyway, not like she needed a ton more." Anne Maria stated with a deadpan look on her face.
"Still don't know how that happened..." Mike muttered, unaware of the circumstances.
-Reflection Confessional: Arin-
Clips of Arin's run was played, with her and Mitzy getting giddy as they stepped onto the pier together, her saving Mickey in the shell digging challenge, her rocking the arcade machine on the Santa Monica challenge, her lashing out at Zoey before the balancing challenge, and finally her being eliminated and resigning to her fate. "I really thought I had a shot at going all the way to the end! But turns out Mitzy pulled a fast one to save herself. She's still my friend, but I really didn't see that coming! Guess I got my head in the heroic clouds after Mickey left. But I did better than last time and found a boyfriend, so I'd say I got a hero's run!"
-End Confessional-
The final straw pole the final four arrived at had a yellow shell hanging from it, and Mike grabbed this one. "Then there's Vanessa. We almost got her to the final four with us." Zoey commented as Mike grabbed it.
"Yeah, and it's because of her constantly trying to make things right and work with me that Mal finally gave up. I don't think he would have stopped if Vanessa wasn't doing everything she could to work with me." Mike spoke of her fondly, relieved that was all over now.
"Still don't like her. Glad she's gone, but also glad she at least did somethin' useful." Anne Maria commented, moving right along.
-Reflection Confessional: Vanessa-
Vanessa's run was shown, with her arguing with Monica, getting voted out and yelling at Mike after the shell digging challenge, returning and winning the surfing challenge, crashing on her scooter in the valley race challenge, and getting voted out again thanks to Mitzy's last ditch plan. "I came here bitter, and I kind of deserved the hate I was getting. I treated Mike wrong, and it took me way too long to see how wrong I was. But we've made things even now, and hopefully everyone else can see that. I don't care that I didn't win, I'm just glad things have been set right."
-End Confessional-
The final four then reached the challenge site at the end of the beach, where Geoff and Bridgette were waiting for them in front of a bonfire. "Sup dudes! Now that you had some time to reflect on the bros you booted, toss their shells into the fire!" Geoff instructed, pointing at the bonfire.
"It symbolizes the sacrifices they made that went in flames this games, as well as you all tossing them aside when voting them off. So discard the shells when you're ready!" Bridgette added, adding some guilt to everyone except for Anne Maria.
Seeing that they were all hesitating, Anne Maria just stuck her hand into each of their pockets, grabbing the shells and quickly tossing them into the fire. "Hey! I wanted to hold onto Arin and Mickey's..." Mitzy protested, watching the shells slowly melt in the fire.
"That was a bit abrupt yeah..." Zoey added, looking sadly at the fire.
Anne Maria didn't care though, standing with them again after throwing the shells into the fire. "Whateva, we're done with 'em. What's the challenge?" Anne Maria asked the hosts, wanting to get to the point.
Since the burning was already done, Geoff and Bridgette now stepped away from the fire and walked over to four tarps that had been set up by the interns, one red, blue, yellow, and green, each with a huge stack of matching wooden planks. "For your final challenge, you will all have 200 wooden tiles. You will use those wooden tiles to build a house of cards as high as you can." Bridgette began to explain the challenge, then pointing up to Brody sitting in a lifeguard chair 7 feet above the others.
There were stepladders next to each tarp for each player to use as well, if needed. "The first person to build a house of cards past Brody, being 10 feet up, wins immunity and is guaranteed a spot in our final ceremony, where you'll get to plead your case for a million dollars!" Geoff finished explaining the challenge.
"This seems pretty simple! I'm pretty good at puzzles." Zoey commented, looking forward to the challenge.
"Let's hope that pays off for you then!" Bridgette responded, smiling at Zoey. "Because if none of you are able to make a house of cards 10 feet tall within 30 minutes, then whoever has the highest stack wins immunity."
"Sounds like a pretty fair challenge, here's that smarts challenge Caleb kept asking for!" Mike joked, walking onto the blue tarp.
No one else really laughed at this except for a small giggle from Zoey, as she walked onto the red tarp, Anne Maria took the green, and Mitzy took the yellow. "Y'all just have to beat Mitzy and we're good, don't blow this Red." Anne Maria stated, getting an annoyed look from Mitzy.
-Confessional: Mike-
Mike scratched the back of his head, resting his other hand on his knee. "Man, Mal really put me in a good position to win this. Zoey is great, glad he kept her around. She's a great friend and she'd never vote me off over the others. Anne Maria is counting on me for her alliance so she won't go for me. Then Mitzy is the easy target, but she's probably going after Zoey or Anne Maria since they crossed her more."
-Confessional: Anne Maria-
Anne Maria applied one last can of spray tan, then stuffed the can into her hair. "I ain't feelin' the best about Zoey lately. Mitzy was makin' deals with everyone yesterday, so I dunno if she tried to win Zoey over to her side. But if I just beat these suckas at this challenge I ain't gotta worry about it! So that's just what I'll do!"
-End Confessional-
Since everyone was on their tarp, standing in front of their stacks of 1 foot by 6 inch wooden tiles, Geoff gave the thumbs up to Brody, who grabbed the lifeguard whistle and blew it. "Go dudes! Build your crazy towers! So like, the crabs can live in them and stuff!" Brody started the final challenge, then kicked back in his seat.
"Great thinking bro! Build those crab houses!" Geoff agreed with Brody, as the final four now started the challenge. Mitzy right away laid down three pieces in a triangle, Anne Maria made a square, Zoey conserved pieces and made walls of two pieces with tiles on top between walls, and Mike was watching the others at first. "And everyone is off! Except for Mike who seems to be hanging back!" Bridgette narrated, seeing what they were doing.
Anne Maria laid tiles on top of her square, and then made another square on top of that flat surface, only for them to fall in on each other and collapse. "And Anne Maria has to start over again already! Not her day it seems!" Geoff pointed out.
Anne Maria grumbled to herself, but just went right back to starting her tower formation again. Zoey was building faster than Mitzy, as her form was using less pieces per level, while Mitzy's triangles going back and forth wobbling a bit but stayed up as she built them. "I can't let her win again..." Mitzy mumbled to herself as she saw Zoey's build already stand at three feet tall.
Mike continued to watch the others, rubbing his chin as he looked over what each build was. Anne Maria had expanded the base for her build, using four tiles to make a flat surfaces, then six to form the walls, followed by another four on top of the walls to make another flat surface. The pattern kept repeating, and she was pacing herself this time. "Anne Maria going slowly but steady, will it hold this time?" Bridgette asked the audience as she watched.
Zoey now stepped onto the stepladder, going one step up as she placed her next two walls on her flat surface, now bringing the build up to six feet tall. "10 feet here I come!" Zoey exclaimed, while Mitzy's stack was only at 4 feet and Anne Maria was at 2.
As soon as Zoey placed the flat pieces on her build though, it pushed the pieces beneath it down and made the whole thing fall apart. "Ah geez, I was doing so good!" Zoey let out, stepping back down the ladder now that her tiles had fallen.
"And now Zoey has to start over! We're only 5 minutes in and it could still be anyone's game!" Geoff narrated after watching Zoey's house of cards crumble down.
-Confessional: Mitzy-
Mitzy had a smile on her face, then pointed at herself confidently. "I got this! I just have to play the long game and go slow and steady while the others let their house of cards collapse! It's like one of Sam's favorite games, Art of Balance, you never win by rushing in headlong!"
-End Confessional-
15 minutes had now gone by, and Mitzy was currently in the lead with her build standing at 7 feet tall. Anne Maria's had collapsed again so she was only back to 2 feet, and Zoey had gotten her tower back to 3 feet. Mike was now finally building, and his tower stood at 6 feet tall. "Mitzy is in the lead, but we're only halfway done so anyone could take it yo!" Geoff narrated, closely watching everyone.
Brody was watching Mitzy at the moment, who was standing several steps up on the stepladder carefully placing her tiles. Her triangle form had been working out, albeit she had to pause every now on then when the breeze came through and it wobbled. "Slow and steady wins the race..." Mitzy whispered to herself as she placed down two more pieces of a triangle formation on top, soon bringing her tower to 8 feet tall.
Anne Maria saw how close she was getting and quickly got an idea. She grabbed one of her tiles and chucked it at Mitzy's tower, making the whole thing collapse. "Booyah baby! You ain't takin' this one just yet!" Anne Maria taunted as it all came down, then went back to building her tower.
Mitzy was devastated as this happened, glaring at Anne Maria as she stepped down. "You can't just do that! That's cheating!" Mitzy complained, pointing at her.
Anne Maria scoffed, just continuing to build while Zoey was shocked at the stunt. "Pff, they didn't see we couldn't do that, cry about it." Anne Maria told Mitzy.
"We did not mention anything like that." Bridgette told Geoff, not punishing Anne Maria for this.
Mitzy let out a huff, then just walked over and kicked Anne Maria's tower, knocking the whole thing down as well. "There! How do you like that!?" Mitzy yelled at Anne Maria, who just continued to smirk at the whole thing.
"I ain't the one who needs to win immunity. So I don't really care hun." Anne Maria replied coyly.
"Hey, I know we're voting for her but we could've at least given her a fair shot." Zoey pointed out, stepping down from her tower to get more pieces.
Mitzy now looked to Zoey, giving her the stink eye as well. "So you're really just gonna talk about fair after betraying me huh? I know we're even but you don't get to call people out on that, none of us do!" Mitzy shot back, then threw one of the tiles from Anne Maria's fallen tower at Zoey's, making it come crashing down as well.
"There goes Zoey's house of cards, guess she has to start over again!" Geoff commentated, amused by the argument now.
Mitzy walked back over to her tarp now, glaring at the two girls. "If it's a fair challenge you want, then leave my tower alone!" Mitzy scolded them, now making another triangular base with her pieces.
Anne Maria was ready to throw another tile at her out of spite, but Zoey grabbed her arm. "Don't, she deserves a fair shot at this." Zoey urged Anne Maria.
Anne Maria set down the tile, now just opting to do nothing for the rest of the challenge. "Fine, ain't worth the effort anyway." Anne Maria commented, laying down on the tarp and taking in the sunrays.
There wasn't much time for that though, as Brody then blew his whistle after another two minutes of quick building. "He passed me up dude!" Brody exclaimed, pointing at Mike's tower.
Geoff and Bridgette walked over to Mike's tower, which comprised of triangular walls with two flat tiles between each set of walls to keep it stable. "Wow! Coming out of nowhere, Mike wins the challenge and is safe from elimination tonight!" Bridgette announced, making Mitzy throw one tile down in annoyance while Anne Maria just smugly smiled while still laying down.
"Congrats Mike! Looks like we're in the clear!" Zoey congratulated Mike, although the guilty feelings still couldn't leave her as she looked towards Anne Maria to see her reaction.
"Yeah, guess we got our final three baby!" Anne Maria boasted, getting up to high five the two of them.
With the challenge over, the hosts now stood by Mike as they looked at the others. "Mike is safe from being voted off tonight, which means the rest of you will be voting off the last person in this season! The final ceremony will be this evening instead of tonight, so vote once the sun sets and we'll see you there!" Bridgette explained to the players, then hopped on a buggy that was parked next to the lifeguard chair, being driven by Brody now.
"See you dudes!" Brody waved to the final four before speeding off with the hosts.
-Confessional: Mike-
Mike let out a sigh of relief, then awkwardly whistled. "Wow, feels good to win that last challenge, although I just kinda copied what worked with their builds. I don't know if I even needed it honestly with how the girls were fighting. But hey, I'm in the final three so that's epic!"
-Confessional: Anne Maria-
Anne Maria still had a smug look on her face, filing her nails. "Mitzy didn't win immunity, so we're votin' her out, plain and simple! Easiest merge run ever, I ain't been in danger ever, just always been votin' with the majority to the end! Man, Shane really could've pulled off what I did if I didn't steal his allies! Nah, just playin', he ain't got what I got!"
-Confessional: Mitzy-
Mitzy crossed her arms, still very annoyed with how the challenge went. "I can't believe Anne Maria stooped to that! Her and that attitude, no one likes her, how did she even get this far? How do Zoey and Mike trust her so much? I don't see it."
-Confessional: Zoey-
Zoey looked unsure, rubbing one arm behind her back. "That felt wrong. I know it's just part of the game and Anne Maria was trying to get us to the final three, but that didn't feel right at all. Mitzy's been playing a good game, and to go down to a brutal 3v1? Sorry Mitzy, but that's just how it goes."
-End Confessionals-
Soon enough evening rolled around, and with the sky a sweet orange and the neon yellow lights up on the garlands, the final four were seated on four folding chairs set out in a row for them. Mike sat on the left, next to Zoey, then Anne Maria, and Mitzy on the right side. Mike didn't say anything or partake in the drama next to him, while Mitzy still glared at the two girls beside her.
Zoey felt guilty still just looking at Mitzy, and Anne Maria kept her smug grin, knowing who was leaving tonight. Geoff and Bridgette stood behind the bonfire next to the cooler, with Geoff holding the ballot box. "That was a short but sweet final challenge, didn't think making a house of cards could get so confrontational!" Geoff remarked, looking at the girls.
"Not so much making it, moreso destroying it in a cheap shot." Mitzy corrected Geoff bitterly.
"Yeah, so much for a calm before the finale storm, we're already in it!" Bridgette joked, seeing the particular tension.
Geoff handed the ballot box to Bridgette, with him then grabbing the first soda can. "Mike is of course safe tonight, so he gets the first soda can!" Geoff stated, tossing Mike his soda.
Mike caught it and cracked it open, kicking back to enjoy the ceremony. "You've all already voted, so if you don't receive a soda can tonight, that means you'll be going from possible finalist to final boot of the season and you'll have to watch as the other three plead their case for the money!" Bridgette explained, opening the ballot box up and reading the votes inside before closing it again.
"Soda cans of safety go to..."
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"WAIT!"
Mitzy stood up from her seat, now grinning at the other players. "Huh? What is it dudette?" Geoff asked, raising an eyebrow.
Mitzy reached into her pocket, then pulled out the immunity idol, being the same wooden totem that it was last season. "I have the immunity idol, and I'll be using it right now!" Mitzy declared, then switched expressions with Anne Maria as now she wore the smug grin while Anne Maria quickly grew bitter.
"You had it this whole time? Why didn't you use it to save Arin or Mickey? I thought you didn't have it because of that." Zoey asked, also caught off guard by this.
"Because I knew I could get to the end without her. It was the final 6, all I had to do was survive last night and I was set! Just didn't tell any of you for funsies!" Mitzy giggled, walking over to the hosts and handing them the idol.
Bridgette grabbed the idol and looked it over, before tossing it into the fire. "That was a real immunity idol, which means that all votes against Mitzy are nullified for tonight! Mitzy, you may take your seat and your soda!" Bridgette stated, with Geoff tossing Mitzy the second soda can.
Bridgette then opened the ballot box, pulling out the four votes. "Since we're at the end here and the idol has been played, I'll just read out the votes so we can see if the idol was needed, the votes goes to..."
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"Mitzy, it doesn't count."
Mitzy giggled as she saw the vote for her, while Mike looked a bit tense now that the easy boot was gone.
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"Mitzy, also does not count."
Mitzy pulled out her sketchbook now and began to doodle the scenario, gleefully taking in the tension she created with the idol.
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"Mitzy, yet again does not count!"
Mitzy had now drawn Mike with little detail, a Zoey with tears streaming from her eyes, and a very angry Anne Maria with frayed hair.
Bridgette grabbed the last vote from the ballot box, holding it folded for the moment. "Only one vote left! Whoever this vote is for is out of the game! And that person is..."
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Zoey clenched both hands worriedly, looking over at Anne Maria. Anne Maria looked nervous as well, but kept her arms crossed and tried not to let it show.
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"Zoey!"
The final soda can was tossed to Anne Maria, leaving both girls fairly shocked at this result.
Anne Maria pumped a fist in the air, while Zoey slumped in her seat. "Why would you do that Mitzy?" Zoey asked, feeling dejected.
"Why did you vote out Mickey? If you hadn't done that, maybe you'd be be going to the final three! Plus everyone likes you and you've been winning immunity a bunch, no way are you going to the final ceremony with me!" Mitzy explained her vote, staying cordial.
"Zoey, you are out of the game, sorry that your run ended like this, you played well." Bridgette told Zoey, seeing how sad she was about it.
Mike patted Zoey on the back, trying to comfort her. "Hey, if Mitzy didn't have the idol you'd be there, you did everything right. Thanks for helping me through all this. When this is over, we can hang out as friends still." Mike consoled her.
Zoey gained a smile despite her sadness, looking at Mike. "Thanks, at least I'm coming out of this with friends. It means a lot. Even you Anne Maria, I know you're just making allies but I think deep down you really do care. You still helped me, whether it was for game reasons or not." Zoey thanked Anne Maria.
The Bus of Losers then pulled up to the sidewalk, and Zoey started to walk up the beach towards it, but Geoff whistled to her. "Hey! That bus isn't for you dudette!" Geoff called to her.
"Then who is it for?" Zoey asked curiously.
Zoey soon got her answer, as Vanessa was the first to step off the bus, followed by Arin, then Mickey, and one by one everyone that had been voted off the show, with Petunia stepping off last and getting her tail stuck in the bus door for a moment. "For your final ceremony, everyone will be here to decide who should win the million dollars! Finalists, feel free to give your thoughts in the confessional before we start while we set up the seating!" Bridgette instructed the contestants as the atmosphere electrified.
-Confessional: Mike-
Mike looked plenty awkward as always, scratching his head. "Wow, so I'm one of the finalists, and now the others get to vote for who should win! I hope Mal didn't burn everyone too badly, because I've been nice to everyone I think!"
-Confessional: Anne Maria-
Anne Maria chuckled, applying one last can of hair spray now to pretty herself up. "I knew I'd make it here! Didn't expect the idol play but I didn't get booted over it, and I'll make Mitzy regret takin' me over Zoey! I played a way better game than any of these bozos, so I'm obviously gonna win this!"
-Confessional: Mitzy-
Mitzy was giddy with excitement now, drawing in her sketchbook. "Eeeee! I'm in the final 3! All it took was playing the game and a little bit of sacrificing! Sorry again Arin! But I'll win for the Nerd Herd!"
-End Confessionals-
The seating for the final ceremony had now been arranged, with Mike, Anne Maria, and Mitzy sitting in front of the bonfire while the 13 contestants that had been eliminated were seated in two rows on folding benches on the other side of the fire. Petunia, Jo, Brick, Lucien, Shane, Caleb, and Monica sat in the back row while Vanessa, Zoey, Brava, Arin, Mickey, and Jay sat down in the front.
The final three waved to those they got close to during the game, and some reciprocated those waves from the stands. Geoff and Bridgette stood opposite to the final 3, looking at the eager finalists with anticipation. "Welcome to the final ceremony! If this goes well, Chris might start doing these instead of brutal challenges at the end! But let's hope!" Bridgette greeted the finalists.
Geoff then stepped forward to explain the rules. "You'll each get a chance to make a speech to the previously eliminated contestants, and take any rebuttal you get during your speeches! After all three of you make your speeches, the 13 contestants you all had a hand in eliminating will get to vote for who they think deserves the money the most!" Geoff explained the rules, some of the losers very happy with these terms.
"Mike, since you won immunity last challenge, you can go up first!" Bridgette instructed Mike, with her and Geoff stepping aside so he could address the jury.
Mike stood up from his seat and waved to them, feeling awkward facing them like this. "Uh, hi everyone! I'm Mike, not Mal! And uh, I think I should get your votes to win the million dollars because I grew a lot as a person, made things up with Vanessa, and flew under the radar pretty well! I came into this game a depressed mess, and I'll hopefully leave it a millionaire!" Mike gave his speech, smiling confidently now.
"Flew under the radar because of Mal." Shane pointed out right away.
"Well yes, but that was still part of me, I say I earned my place here." Mike replied, tapping his head.
"So it was you that threw me over a balcony?" Monica asked, having recovered enough to sit with the others.
Mike paused, then shook his head. "Okay maybe not like that. Mal made some good moves, and once he let me take over, I won immunity and got myself here! That's pretty smooth huh?" Mike reasoned.
Jay narrowed his eyes at Mike, rubbing his chin. "So let me get this straight, you had someone else do all the big moves for you, and just coasted the whole season? I don't see how that's deserving." Jay stated, not buying it.
"If it wasn't for how great I got along with everyone, the tricks that Mal used would not have worked! I had a way better attitude than Anne Maria and I actually talked with people outside my friend group unlike Mitzy! Just because someone else did all the big strategic moves doesn't mean I wasn't doing things great socially!" Mike defended himself, now throwing the girls under the bus.
"You did get along great with everyone, it's one of the reasons even Anne Maria wanted to help you." Vanessa noted, making Anne Maria roll her eyes.
"He did fine in challenges, and fine socially when he wasn't Mal. Valid points to make when considering the vote." Brava added, somewhat accepting his speech.
Mike nodded, smiling at them brightly. "Thank you! I had my own merits to get here, so I don't think I should be counted out because of Mal's plays! I was myself for parts of the game and I did great those parts. So I hope you all consider that when yo vote, thank you." Mike concluded his speech, then sat back down.
"Anne Maria, you're good to go next brah!" Geoff stated now that Mike had sat down.
Anne Maria scoffed, satisfied with how Mike's speech went. She stood up and cleared her throat, staring down the jury with a smirk. "Hey y'all, bet ya all counted me out before the season even started huh? Well I'm here and you ain't! And you wanna know why? I minded my own business, made a whole bunch of alliances, and none of y'all ever caught on and targeted me! While you all had your petty drama, I was just lookin' my best and siding with whoever helped me get further. I had Mickey, Brava, Brick, Zoey, Mike, and even Vanessa for a while votin' with me, plus my little 1 on 1 deals kept me from ever gettin' singled out! I overthrew big alliances like Shane's, and got Zoey to flip on the nerd turds. If anyone deserves that million bucks, it's ME!" Anne Maria gave her speech, seeing it as more of a victory lap.
"You just stole my alliance, I could have just as easily won. You almost got booted for your attitude in the final 5." Shane pointed out bitterly.
Anne Maria shook her head, gesturing to Mitzy with her thumb. "Nah, did you not see the deal I made? Vanessa and Mal's votes didn't mean a thing when we had the majority." Anne Maria refuted.
Vanessa grumbled, annoyed that Anne Maria was even up there. "Isn't social game a big part of this? Like how Mike said. Your attitude rubbed everyone the wrong way, and was incredibly annoying. Mike and Mitzy were way nicer to everyone than you ever were." Vanessa argued, with Mike glad to hear Vanessa arguing for him more.
"You sayin' I didn't play a good social game? I got mr. honorable Brick on my side, and the mega softies like Mickey and Zoey wanted to work with me. Just 'cuz I stand up for myself don't mean that I ain't thinkin' these things through! You hated me and still joined up with me. 'Nuff said." Anne Maria defended herself once more.
"Softies? I thought we were friends." Mickey repeated, a little hurt.
"Yeah, did you care about us? I feel like you do care deep down, but you don't show it well..." Zoey asked, hurt like Mickey.
Anne Maria shrugged her shoulders, then pointed at herself. "After last season, I decided I was just gonna put myself first and care only about me. I know y'all are cool outside the show, and maybe after I win we can hang out, but helpin' ya with your problems was to get me further. Can't call it out either, 'cuz it worked." Anne Maria answered, which Mickey just accepted and Zoey lingered on in her head now.
"It's how the game should be played anyway. Getting your emotions tangled up in it is only what softies do, friends aren't a thing here, only allies." Jo stated firmly.
Petunia looked to Jo with a small frown, and Jo then cleared her throat. "Except for you." Jo corrected herself.
"Somehow Jo is the most logical one here, I agree here. It was good gameplay." Lucien agreed with Jo, then let out a yawn. He clearly didn't want to be here.
Anne Maria continued to smile, reassured of her victory. "See? Grumpheads like Jo and Lucien even think that I played a good social game, any of y'all that don't vote for me are just mad I'm here and they ain't, cuz my strategy worked perfectly!" Anne Maria declared, then sat down with one leg over the other.
"Well that's one way to look at it, the honest is appreciated." Brick commented, unsure of what to make of her speech.
With Anne Maria done, Bridgette now gestured to Mitzy. "Alright Mitzy, it's your turn, good luck!" Bridgette told Mitzy, giving her the floor.
Mitzy stood up, then waved to the jury. Right away she noticed that Arin wasn't too happy with her, as was Mickey. "Hi everyone! Umm, what's with the odd looks?" Mitzy asked the losers.
"You didn't play the game at all in the premerge. You almost got blindsided for how bad you were playing. So I don't think anyone would want to vote for someone as stupid as you!" Caleb answered, rolling his eyes.
Arin nodded, frowning at Mitzy. "Then in the merge, you sacrificed your friends just to get further! That's what villains do!" Arin called out Mitzy.
Mitzy winced at this, but still kept her composure. "Well, it was either you or me there Arin, I had to do something, and you weren't playing the game either. I had to do what I did if I was going to win for us, and here I am! I learned the game throughout my time here, and even in a 4v1, I was able to wiggle my way out of that without using my idol! Which hey, that saved me just now! I stopped taking things personally like I did last season, and I've realized that you just have to set your emotions aside sometimes if you're going to win this. I was nice, played a good social game, played good strategically, so I think I deserve the million more than Anne Maria or Mike here." Mitzy gave her speech, standing her ground.
"More than Anne Maria? At least Anne Maria played the game during the premerge. I have more respect for how she played." Lucien stated, frowning at Mitzy.
"Anne Maria kept getting into fights with people and ticking them off though! I was making friends with people, which is definitely playing this better! I only got targeted once because I didn't do great in the challenge. Then I played it safe with my alliance and recovered pretty well from Zoey's betrayal! If I did huger moves, I would have just been kicked off." Mitzy defended her gameplay.
Petunia thought for a moment, before just nodding in agreement. "Good point. You never made yourself a target like other people. But what did you do better than the others? Mike had a good social game and Anne Maria managed while playing strategically." Petunia brought up, willing to hear her out.
"Well I already explained why I played better than Anne Maria, I was actually nice to people and actually cared about them! And unlike Mike, I didn't have to outsource my strategy. I found the idol buried, and held onto it until the final ceremony, which is more impressive than anything he's done. No offense guys, but I played a much more balanced game." Mitzy reasoned, with Mike a little saddened and Anne Maria not caring about what she had to say.
"Why didn't you just tell Arin what you were doing if you were trying to win for us then? I feel like that could've smoothed things over." Mickey asked, addressing the upset Arin.
Mitzy looked to Arin now, sad to see her upset like this. "Arin, sorry I blindsided you, but if I told you what was going on, my plan cold have been revealed to the others and they wouldn't have made that deal with me in the final 5. I am trying to win for our whole group here, so I hope you understand and can still vote for me. I did all this strategy earnestly, which is more than Anne Maria or Mal can say." Mitzy apologized, then took a seat back in her chair.
Once Mitzy sat down, Brody soon arrived at the bonfire pit, pushing a porta potty on a dolly. "Got that voting booth for you dudes!" Brody exclaimed, setting it right down next to the benches the jury was sitting on.
Bridgette was a little grossed out by it, while Geoff just gave his bro a thumbs up. "Awesome find my man!" Geoff praised Brody.
Bridgette turned around and faced the jury now, then gestured to the porta potty. "There's three finalists here, and now you've heard them out. So it's time to vote for which one you think should win the million dollars! We'll go in boot order, so you're up first Petunia! Cast your vote!" Bridgette instructed everyone, letting the skunk girl stand up from her bench seat and walk over to the porta potty.
-Confessional: Petunia-
Petunia stepped into the porta potty and sprayed the seat with her disinfectant, then sat down on several paper towels as she then began to douse her ballot and pen in sanitizer. "I know who I'm voting for tonight, and it's definitely not Mike. He grew a lot as a person, but he's not a millionaire in my eyes."
-Confessional: Shane-
Shane groaned, holding a ballot as he hesitated writing the name on his mind. "I can't believe this is where my vote is falling, but this is the least bad of the three options. I should've been up there!"
-Confessional: Jo-
Jo swiftly wrote out her vote, then crossed her arms. "Vanessa didn't win, so that's all that matters to me. I can't believe I got robbed out of the money AGAIN! This is such bull! But I already knew who I was voting for before the ceremony even rolled around, so I'm not going to do any dramatic thinking here!"
-End Confessionals-
Once Vanessa exited the porta potty and sat back down, Geoff went in and grabbed the ballot box from inside. He handed it to Bridgette, who first faced the jury. "Before we get into our million dollar, we do have one announcement and award to give out. The Sprint Player of the Season!" Bridgette announced.
"The what now?" Vanessa asked, raising an eyebrow.
Geoff nodded, then pointed at the camera. "The bros watching the show back home cast their votes on who the player of the season was, and it included everyone as an option!" Geoff explained what it was.
Petunia snorted, amused by the concept. "Would be funny if I got it somehow." Petunia joked.
Bridgette nodded, then prepared to announce the winner. "Our winner of Player of the Season chose by the fans, and a small check of 1,000 bucks, is..."
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"Lucien!"
Lucien perked up finally, shocked to have been chose for such an award. "Seriously? What did I even do? I didn't even make the merge..." Lucien mumbled, as Geoff tossed him a golden soda can and then handed him the 1k check.
"Not quite sure, but the fans sure loved you, and figured you were the best player of the season as well!" Geoff answered, also having no clue.
"Well then they must be stupid..." Caleb mumble to himself.
Once he was handed the check, Lucien got a small smug smile, waving it at Shane. "Guess the fans decided who the best player was, and it wasn't you. They saw my smarts and wit instead." Lucien taunted him, then closed his eyes to nap as everything else no longer concerned him.
Seeing that they weren't going to get anything else out of Lucien, Bridgette now opened the ballot box as she faced the finalists. "Looks like it's time to read out the million dollar vote then! For once, you'll want to hope you got the most votes here! We already shuffled the votes, so even we don't know who won this. Geoff, get the case ready!" Bridgette built up the excitement, while Geoff gave a thumbs up and pulled out his phone to text to bring the money.
Mike leaned forward, wondering if he had made enough of a case his own merit, Anne Maria leaned back with a smirk, still satisfied with how the speeches of the other two went. Mitzy clenched both fists, holding them close to her face as she waited to hear the votes.
Bridgette pulled out the first ballot and unfolded it, reading the name which had a little smiley face next to it. "First vote goes to..."
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"Mitzy."
Mitzy perked up hearing her name first, already gaining hope just getting a vote.
"Second vote is for..."
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"Mitzy. That's two votes Mitzy!" Bridgette showed the second ballot, which was written with extremely neat handwriting.
Mitzy's eyes widened, now realizing that she was actually in this, and in the lead as well.
Bridgette grabbed the third ballot and opened it, reading the name with a heart on the "i" in the name.
"Third vote goes to..."
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"Mike! That's two votes Mitzy, one vote Mike."
Mike just seeing the vote knew who it was from, to which he mouthed the words 'thank you' to Zoey, who smiled back in response.
Bridgette handed each read ballot to Oliver, who held onto them for record keeping, and then opened up the fourth ballot, which had a stick figure giving a salute to the name written on it. "The fourth vote is for..."
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"Anne Maria! We're at 2 for Mitzy, 1 for Mike, and now 1 for Anne Maria!"
Anne Maria smirked, already expecting to be in this unlike the other two.
Bridgette opened the fifth ballot, which had been written very sloppily. "The fifth vote goes to..."
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"Anne Maria! Looks like this wasn't a unanimous vote at all!"
Anne Maria looked at her nails for a moment, then leaned forward as she waited to hear the rest of the votes for her.
Bridgette opened the sixth ballot, which had a chibi panda drawn next to the vote. "The sixth vote is for..."
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"Mitzy! She's back in the lead with 3 votes now!"
Mitzy sighed with relief at the vote, seeing that her apology was accepted. Arin gave a thumbs up from the jury, rooting for her.
Flaky now arrived with the briefcase, struggling to bring it and was just pulling it through the stand. Geoff then picked it up, holding it for the finalists to see. "There's my money baby..." Anne Maria whispered to herself.
Bridgette got out the seventh ballot and opened it, reading the name written rather plainly. "The seventh vote goes to..."
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"Mike!"
Mike put his hands on both knees, gripping them with anticipation and hope that he'd keep getting votes, although his face was still filled with worry.
Bridgette grabbed the eighth ballot and unfolded it, which had been written in red ink somehow. "Ohkay... the eighth vote goes to..."
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"Anne Maria! That brings us to 3 for Mitzy, 3 for Anne Maria, and 2 for Mike!" Bridgette went over the current status.
Anne Maria was still fully confident, smirking as this vote was read for her.
The ninth vote Bridgette unfolded was barely legible, as the handwriting on it was horrible. "The ninth vote goes to..."
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"Anne Maria!"
Anne Maria set her eyes on the case in Geoff's hands for a moment, gaining more hope as she pulled into the lead.
Bridgette pulled out the tenth vote, although it seemed someone had gotten a papercut on it while writing, as there was a small bloodstain on the edge. "The tenth vote is for..."
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"Mitzy! We're at 4 for Anne Maria, 4 for Mitzy, and 2 for Mike! We've got three votes left, and Mike needs all of them if he's going to win this!" Bridgette stated, worrying Mike greatly now.
Bridgette grabbed the eleventh vote from the box and unfolded it, which had been written in pretty cursive. "The eleventh vote is for..."
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"Mitzy! Which means that Mike is now out of the running!"
Bridgette read off the vote, making Mike sigh in defeat while Mitzy grew more tense as the votes neared the end. "Well, I got what I needed out of this season, glad to even have made it this far!" Mike still took the loss well, smiling genuinely this time.
Bridgette grabbed the twelfth vote and unfolded it, seeing the quickly written name scrawled onto it. "The twelfth vote is for..."
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"Anne Maria! We now have 5 votes for Anne Maria, 5 votes for Mitzy, 2 for Mike, and 1 vote left to read!" Bridgette declared, letting the tension simmer for a moment.
Anne Maria still looked confident she'd win, although not as much before now, while Mitzy bit her lip and leaned forward, trembling as she waited to see if that final vote was for her or not. Mike looked at the two girls next to him, also wondering where the final vote laid.
Bridgette grabbed the final ballot out, which was dripping wet. It was still readable when she opened it though, showing the winner of the season on it. "And the winner of Total Drama Malibu is..."
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"Mitzy!"
Mitzy leapt up from her seat squealing in delight, followed by Arin running over to hug her in congratulations. "Woooo! I won! Thank you everyone!" Mitzy exclaimed as Arin hugged her.
Mike stood up and clapped, also happy for her. "Congrats Mitzy, you had a really good run towards the end, you earned it!" Mike congratulated her.
Anne Maria stood up as well, but just crossed her arms and walked over to the jury seating. "So Howie's a bad guy for playin' like this but Mitzy ain't? Whatever..." Anne Maria muttered to herself as she sat down where Arin had been seated.
Mickey and Jay walked over to Mitzy as well, clapping in sync with each other. "You did it! A victory for the Nerd Herd!" Mickey congratulated Mitzy, while Jay just chuckled and went along with it.
"Even outside of Mickey wanting you to win, you played well, so I respect it! Congratulations!" Jay also congratulated Mitzy, albeit Mickey was much more excited than he was.
-Confessional: Mitzy-
Mitzy doodled in her sketchpad for a moment, before showing the camera a drawing of herself on the top of a podium, with a grumpy Anne Maria on second, and a respectfully drawn mike on third. "After losing last season, I really didn't think I was cut out for this game, but here I am! A winner, millionaire, and proud champion for the Nerd Herd! Now this cast has a winner it can actually be proud of!"
-Confessional: Anne Maria-
Anne Maria applied another coat of hairspray, maintaining her composure despite nearly crushing the spray can in her hand. "I ain't too beat up over losin'. Just lost by one vote despite playin' way better the whole way through. Goes to tell ya how petty some of these fools are that they didn't vote for me. Whateva, I'm still hotter than any of 'em."
-Confessional: Mike-
Mike sighed, but still had a smile on his face. "Yeah I didn't win the million. But I did patch things up with Vanessa, made more friends than last season, and finally learned to accept parts of myself that I had tried for so many years to just bury. I don't think a million dollars could have bought what this season did for me, so I'm thankful for that. Mitzy earned her win, so I'm happy for her!"
-End Confessionals-
Bridgette and Geoff walked over to Mitzy now, with Geoff holding out the briefcase. "Congratulations Mitzy! To the winner goes the spoils, here's your hard earned cash brah!" Geoff congratulated Mitzy, letting her take it.
Mitzy grabbed the briefcase and struggled for a moment with the weight of it, but then opened it to see the million dollars neatly rubber banded inside in stacks. She closed it after seeing it was there, and raised it up with Arin. "This win is for all of the Nerd Herd, and thank you to all who helped me get here! Couldn't have had such a heroic finish without you!" Mitzy thanked everyone for her win.
"So what are you gonna do with the money?" Petunia asked curiously, something some of the others were wondering as well.
Mitzy already knew what she was going to do with it, so she gestured to Arin. "I'm gonna use it to fund my comic series, plus make the Nerd Herd base, or just Sam's basement a super cool superhero hangout spot! I'll have tons left over after that, so I'm not sure what to do with the rest." Mitzy answered, getting Arin further excited.
"Pursuing your own goals, mighty admirable! Best of luck with your series!" Brick commended Mitzy, saluting to her.
Caleb rolled his eyes, then pointed at himself. "Pff, you're just blowing it, I used my money wayyyy more better!" Caleb boasted, before just getting hit in the back of the head by Jo to shut him up.
Mitzy laughed, then looked to the hosts. "If Caleb thinks I'm gonna blow it, I guess I can humor it a little! We're here in Malibu, so we might as well have a huge party here one last time while we're together!" Mitzy declared, getting cheers from the others.
"Awesome brah! What isn't Malibu without killer parties!?" Geoff cheered, pumped for a party.
Bridgette giggled for a moment as he joined in the celebration, before facing the camera and grabbing his arm, prompting him to do the same while the others cheered for Mitzy. "Well that was an uplifting way to end things! Mitzy wins, and it seems we all do as we get to party things out tonight!" Bridgette commentated.
Geoff nodded in agreement, pumping a fist in the air. "We had a rockin' time this season, from fun challenges to gnarly alliances, it was a blast all the way through!" Geoff agreed greatly.
Bridgette and Geoff then both waved to the camera, before raising their arms. "But that's it for us, as we've got an afterparty to attend to! Thanks for joining us this season, and until next time, this has been..."
"Total!"
"Drama!"
"Malibu!"
Elimination Order:
1st: Mitzy
2nd: Anne Maria
3rd: Mike
4th: Zoey
5th: Vanessa
6th: Arin
7th: Mickey
8th: Jo
9th: Shane
10th: Lucien
11th: Brick
12th: Brava
13th: Jay
14th: Monica
15th: Caleb
16th: Petunia
Author's Note:
And that's a wrap on Malibu! Took a lot more cues from Survivor season, and it made the whole experience a bit more fresh to write than some projects. While it wasn't death-defying or openly cynical like my other projects, it was more of a relaxing and measured season that was a nice change of pace to write. Around the final 10 of Reloaded I thought up the storylines here for a follow up season, and I'm happy with how they came out. Mike especially needed this, and writing Mal as he was here is really how I wish he was in canon. Mitzy was someone I long envisioned as a winner when writing Reloaded, but Arin and Sam left a bit too early for her to win there, as she wasn't ingrained enough in the drama of the rest of her final 9 to really stick around without floating. So I set up her plotline with Howard there, and let it naturally play out here, despite him not being present. Would be interesting if those two met again after all this is said and done. Thank you to Littleredline for sending Mitzy to Reloaded, I had a blast writing her for the past couple years, and she's very quickly become one of my favorites overall. Let me know what you thought of the season in the reviews, and I'll see you all in future seasons! Have a great day!