HOLLYWOOD—This season of “Survivor” has been a ton of fun. I cannot recall the last time the pre-merge was full of exciting exits and players along the way. I mean we lost two people who had to exit the game early because of medical reasons, factor in outstanding personalities that have delivered epic television and you have a season that every fan of the series desperately wants. Yes, after the boring and predictable ‘Ghost Island,’ ‘David vs. Goliath’ has been so much fun to watch.

I always love the merge because that’s when you see the game really kick into high gear. Alliances are tested, new alliances are made and people begin to play for themselves. There is indeed tension between Carl and Elizabeth, and she should be careful because Carl has a special power, and he is aligned with Davie. The Goliaths have the numbers, but we know sticking to your alliance makes for boring gameplay. Gabby was already thinking about a potential hidden power, just as word about Alec flipping on his alliance spread to Allison and Angelina.

What the hell Carl? You’re talking way too much, so I was happy to see Christian and Nick chat about Dan being in possession of an idol. The gameplay is really ramping up and I like it. Dan is an idiot, why are you telling Kara about your other idol. She is a blabber mouth and she will share those details, just as Alec realized he needed to make bonds, just as Angelina was planning to target Christian. Alec is a polarizing character, and I actually love that the guy is willing to blindside and backstab; he’s playing the game hardcore.

Alec is doing major work and I love this six of Gabby, Nick, Christian, Mike, Alec and Allison. Elizabeth is working to try to keep the David tribe strong, and pushed to potentially take out Dan, unaware he has two idols. Alec is well aware that Kara and Dan are quite strong. Dan was paranoid and that will work against him, especially when he’s considering John is a bigger threat.

This was a great immunity challenge, all about technique and skill. I love it when you see challenges that have never been seen before. It was all about ensuring your statue doesn’t fall and not losing momentum. It came down to Allison and Elizabeth, and to be honest I wanted to see Elizabeth win for the pure chaos it would cause between both tribes who wanted her out, knowing that she was safe, but it was a non entity Allison who claimed victory.

Angelina was showing her bossy cards per usual and it was not boding well with many members in the Goliath tribe. Why? Some of her allies are aligned with Christian. The separation of both tribes unnerved Gabby, who realized they needed to make a move to keep her group strong. Angelina was not happy to see that things were switching back to Elizabeth, which Davie spotted as a potential weakness. Hmm, this means this could be a number that the David tribe could use against the Goliath’s.

Oh, this is so good, the Goliaths are ripping themselves up from the inside, and Elizabeth had a conversation with Angelina where she learned that she is in major trouble. Gabby and Elizabeth decided to blow up Angelina’s game at Tribal Council to shake the game. This episode has it all “Survivor” fans!

The good stuff alas, Tribal Council and it was a theatrical one to say the least. The pauses between Goliath members (Alec and Angelina) spoke wonders, and Elizabeth blew up to all that Angelina revealed her tribes plans. The fire between Dan and Angelina was huge, as the whispers started to manifest throughout the game. Where was this version of Gabby the past 19 days, not to mention Angelina was crumbling in a major way!

Alec and Dan whispered, but it was nothing more than a ruse because Elizabeth was sent packing. So the Goliaths really have the numbers to say the least now, but with idols floating around, there is no telling where this game is headed, especially with Angelina being exposed in a major way. I was already rooting for the Davids, but now more than ever. With whispers of Christian being taken out next, I need to see an idol or some sort of blindside to prevent a steamroll from happening. “Survivor: David vs. Goliath” airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on CBS.