Last castaways standing! After 26 days of battling it out in Fiji, Survivor 48’s top three contestants ended up being determined in a thrilling showdown. In Touch breaks down how things shook out ahead of the final tribal council with the jury.

Who Are the Final 3 on ‘Survivor’ Season 48?

In the promo for the episode, host Jeff Probst promised “two challenges, two tribal councils, one fire-making showdown” and boy did the show deliver.

Joe Hunter, Eva Erickson, Kyle Fraser, Kamilla Karthigesu and Mitch Guerra headed into the night as the remaining five castaways.

The episode started off with an intense puzzle-making showdown that saw Kamilla win individual immunity and take Eva to the sanctuary as a reward. That night, it was Mitch who was voted out at tribal council, which nobody was surprised about.

The following day, Kamilla told Kyle if she won immunity again, she would put him in the fire-making challenge to decide the final three. Kyle said he would do the same thing because both he and Kamilla feared they would be competing for the same few jury votes of their friends if they were both sitting in the final three. Kyle ended up winning immunity, solidifying his spot in the final three. Kyle told Eva and Kamilla that he was choosing them to make fire and was bringing Joe with him to the final three.

While practicing making fire at camp, Eva broke down in tears and grew frustrated. Joe went to comfort her and said he would step in and make fire if she wanted. She told him no. He offered to help her prepare, and, eventually, she was able to make a fire at camp. Kamilla also had her fair share of struggles while trying to make fire at camp as practice. It took her a little while, but she was finally able to get the hang of it. It seemed like they were both on a level playing field heading into the showdown.

At tribal council, Kyle shared his decision with the jury. He said that he previously promised Joe that he would bring him to the end if he was in the decision-making position, and he stuck to his promise. This meant Kamilla and Eva had to battle it out in a fire-making showdown. It was Eva who was able to ignite a flame at the start. She quickly started using sticks to build her fire and tried to keep it going. As Eva’s flame grew, it eventually started veering to the side and would not burn straight. The flame ended up fizzling. Kamilla urged Eva to stay calm despite the fact that they were competing against each other. Eva was able to build her fire back up and it eventually snapped the rope, securing her spot in the final three.

This means Kyle, Joe and Eva made it to the final three.

How Did the Contestants Make it to Top 3 on ‘Survivor’ Season 48?

Week 12 saw the “Strong 4” alliance of Kyle, Joe, Eva and Shauhin Davari getting blown apart by a blindside.

Kyle and Kamilla to use their secret alliance to take out Shauhin by convincing Joe that the debate professor was going to flip on them and not go along with voting out Mitch.

The lie was a half-truth, as Shauhin proposed voting out Eva to Kyle while the two were away at the Sanctuary. However, he and Kamilla went the extra step of lying to Joe that Shauhin had a secret immunity idol that he had been hiding throughout the game.

Joe was on the fence about whether or not he was being played. Eva — who had been in a one-on-one alliance with the Vacaville, California, resident since the start of the season — said she trusted Kyle more than Shauhin.

At tribal council, Joe and Eva joined Kyle and Mitch to vote out Shauhin, with Kamilla voting for Mitch to keep her alliance with Kyle a secret going into the showdown ahead of the finale.

Joe Hunter Is a Beast at ‘Survivor’ Immunity Challenges

Heading into the final two challenges, Joe had the chance to tie and break the Survivor record for immunity challenge wins, entering the night with four during season 48.

After David Kinne was voted out in week 9, the firefighter was the strongest physical player in the game. Joe also proved to have strong mental focus in more delicate situations such as solving puzzles.

Week 12 saw the firefighter win his fourth challenge. The only time Joe was open to being taken out was in week 11, when Mary Zheng tried to get others to vote against the powerful player.

Ultimately, she didn’t succeed. Mary pointed out to his other alliance members that the point of the game was not to “outloyal” each other. But ultimately that’s what Eva, Kyle and Shahun felt about Joe. He was too loved and respected to get voted out by them.

Joe Hunter Has Been the ‘Survivor’ 48 Frontrunner

The father of two won the love and respect of both his fellow castaways and viewers thanks to his deep love for his children and wife. Joe repeatedly said how he wanted to be a good role model for his kids on the show by doing the right thing and being honest with other players.

Fans saw how Eva immediately felt she could trust Joe with the fact that she was autistic when they were put together in the Lagi tribe. She told him what cues to look for that she might be having an episode, as well as methods to calm her down. Eva also said she had trouble reading social cues, such as lying, and Joe vowed to look out for her throughout their time in the game.

Week 5 saw Joe and Eva separated by a brief tribal swap. The Minnesota native had an autism-related episode after having difficulty trying to finish a puzzle at the immunity challenge. After she succeeded, Eva was overstimulated and unable to calm down.

Jeff saw Eva’s distress and Joe’s immense concern as he looked on from the Vula tribe. The host asked if he wanted to help his former teammate, and Joe immediately approached Eva in a calming embrace, whispering, “You’re good. Deep breath, remember.”

As Eva began to settle down, he added, “Ease you out of it. Come back down out of it. Easy, slow your breath,” while also clasping her hands.

In that moment, Joe not only helped his former tribe mate in a major way, but he also exposed his alliance with Eva. That didn’t matter to him.

“I want my kids watching me. I’m going to be the man I want them to be and the people I want them to be, regardless of the game, and that’s what you do. That’s who I am,” Joe explained to Jeff when asked why he revealed their secret alliance. “So, if it exposes, it exposes, but she was in need, and I would want someone to treat my daughter that way if they were playing this game.”

Once again, Joe came to Eva’s aid ahead of the finale. He was shown in the promo comforting the sobbing PhD candidate, saying, “It’s devastating seeing her so upset. It made me feel like I needed to protect her.”

Eva later proclaimed, “I’m gonna do it. I know that I can,” hinting that Joe might have been helping her get through the fire-making challenge.