Here is your recap for last Tuesday night’s episode:
The Captain: Azmyth
The Officers: Ben, Jay
The Crew: Christa, Jupiter, Kendra, Laurel, Louie, Nessa
Sent ta Davy Jones’ Locker: John, Christian, Alexis, Cheryl, Sean, Joy, Joe Don
Stacking the Deck - The Triad Cuts Joe Don Adrift 
The triad of Azmyth, Ben and Jay continues to grow stronger as they relax and eat hearty breakfasts while the rest of the crew starves and works endlessly right before the Expedition. Even though both crews are neck and neck throughout the Expedition, the Black Crew wins again, putting the triad back in power. With Pirates' Court looming, the crew must choose whether to keep the strong Joe Don, who could be their last chance at removing Azmyth from the Captain's seat, or the likeable Louie, who has formed a close bond with the women on the ship. When the ballots are collected, it is Joe Don who has received the most. After a final kiss from Nessa, he is cut adrift.
"I really felt like I played the game the way I really wanted to play the game," Joe Don explains as he floats out to sea. "I'm gonna miss Nessa. She's a sweet little girl, man. She's cool. And I hope she goes a long ways in this game. I hope she goes a long ways."
Win or Die Trying
After another Pirates' Court, Captain Azmyth and his Officers, Ben and Jay, return to the Captain's Cabin. "The three of us, the triad are feeling well rested, well fed and we have another Expedition coming up," Azmyth points out. "And I feel that fate has already sealed and signed our destiny. The Black Crew shall triumph." Meanwhile, below deck, Joe Don doesn't share Azmyth's beliefs "There's gotta be new blood," he explains. "I'm gonna hang myself if I don't get a win tomorrow, man. It's gonna be tough, but I'm gonna die trying."
A Grueling Morning
The next morning, the crew of the Picton Castle lines up outside the galley to receive their cup of gruel, which is all they will have to eat until the late evening. Azmyth then calls the crew over to give them a list of duties that must be accomplished before the Expedition. Nessa can barely hide her contempt. "Captain Azmyth is definitely number one on my list," she proclaims. "I'm itching to get him out of here."
Azmyth tells the crew he needs someone to clean the barnacles off the ship's hull, but he has ulterior motives. "Since Joe Don and Louie would be on the Red Crew, we're gonna tire them out as much as we can in any way we possibly can," he explains. Jay echoes this when he says, "Me and Azmyth want them to be as weak as possible when we got out on these Expeditions. I think it's a great strategy."
Joe Don jumps in the water to clean barnacles while Louie climbs up the rigging to unfurl sails. While the crew works tirelessly, Azmyth and his Officers kick back and enjoy a hearty breakfast prepared by Jupiter. As Louie works on the ship, he watches the triad and says, "They don't want to feed us that well and we're working hard and they are definitely racking and stacking that deck because those greedy blue coats just want more gold."
The Purser's Treasure
The Pirates gather on the quarterdeck where host Cameron Daddo presents the Chest of Zanzibar. Christa opens the next compartment and Cameron reveals that the next treasure was hidden by the ship's Purser, who left the first clue beneath a floating marker, secure inside a bottle. Azmyth and his Officers join the Black Crew while the rest of the crew picks shot to determine which crew they will join. The Black Crew consists of Azmyth, Ben, Jay, Laurel and Jupiter while the Red Crew includes Joe Don, Louie, Kendra, Nessa and Christa.
As the longboats are lowered, Jay thinks about what could happen if the Black Crew loses. "The reality of this is if we lose it, the triad is in trouble," he explains. "Almost guaranteed, at the next Pirates' Court, one or all of us will be Black Spotted."
A Clue Beneath the Surface
The Expedition begins and both longboats row towards the Western tip of the island in search of the floating marker. The Black Crew sees the marker first and Ben immediately dives underwater to retrieve the bottle containing their first clue. Joe Don swims underwater for the Red Crew as the Black Crew breaks their bottle and examines the map inside.
Now armed with a map of the island, the crews must row to Skull's Point, where they must search the island for a cannon where two hidden ropes await them. Both longboats row to shore, with the Black Crew in the lead. As both crews run uphill on the island, Louie comments, "We're pretty hungry and we're pretty tired…I just felt like I was gonna pass out."
Both crews find the old cannon where two ropes hang over the side of a cliff. Everyone works together as they start to pull the line, which is tied to a barrel hanging at the end. As everyone pulls the barrel up the side of the cliff, Louie hopes the Red Crew can triumph. "This win means everything to me and I wanna take out the biggest threat to me," he explains. "And that's gonna be Az."
Neck and Neck
The Black Crew is the first to pull up their barrel. They learn they must solve a riddle by locating an X where the keys to the treasure are buried. Shortly after the Red Crew retrieves their barrel, Christa notices an X on the beach. When the Black Crew sees the Red Crew running toward the beach, they give up and decide to follow the Red Crew.
Both crews converge on the X at the same time and immediately start digging at its base, unearthing a pair of dials. They learn that they must locate a bunker on the island and use the dials to figure out the correct combination to unlock the bunker and uncover the treasure. The Red and Black Crews run up the beach, locating the bunker at the same time.
Everyone jumps in and quickly starts to turn the dials on the bunker's floor, trying to discover the correct way to unlock the hatch. Both crews are neck and neck until the Black Crew gets their door open first and Jay jumps in, retrieving the treasure. As the Black Crew cheers, the Red Crew suffers their worst defeat yet. "This is probably the hardest loss that I've had," Joe Don explains. "I really wanted to get them out of power and start a new regime."
Drowning Sorrows and Counting Gold
The Red Crew climbs back aboard the ship. Cameron lets Joe Don know that he must sell the Royal Pardon before Pirates' Court. Everyone then heads below deck to drown their sorrows in alcohol. But Kendra is especially worried. "The loss hits me really hard because I barely squeaked by on Pirates' Court last week," she explains. "I'm considered very weak by everybody on the ship and I have a feeling I'm going home. I needed this win."
The mood is decidedly different on the ship's deck when the Black Crew returns victorious and counts their $35,000 of treasure. Azmyth decides to keep his same officers, commenting, "I love Jay and Ben. We're fantastic as a crew together. As long as we can hold this position, I would never turn my back on them."
Friends in High Places
In the Captain's Cabin, the triad splits the treasure 60-40 again, which allows them to pocket extra gold. Jupiter brings snacks to the Captain and his Officers, realizing that her friendship with them can be advantageous. "Though I don't wear the blue coat, I still kind of have an upper hand with being the one who's feeding them," she explains. "So I might just get thrown a little bit more money." This proves to be correct when Jay gives her a few extra gold coins.
Below deck, the Pirates discuss the Royal Pardon and Joe Don comments that he can't place a bid since he is the Pardon's current owner. When pondering her bid, Nessa decides to bid high, seeing an opportunity to keep the Pardon between her and Joe Don.
A Deal with the Devil
Kendra worries about her future, so she grabs Jay and confesses her apprehension about bidding on the Pardon. "I'd really like to stay if there's any kind of chance," she begins. "I'm a vote that can be bought to keep around. My vote is gonna stand when you guys need it." Jay considers this deal, commenting, "If I can keep Kendra, Kendra would have my back forever. I say get out someone that's a threat to us…somebody strong from the other team, like Joe Don or Nessa." The two Pirates strike a deal where Kendra is safe and Jay knows he always has a vote on his side.
Chopping Off the Beast's Head
Azmyth meets with his Officers to discuss the impending Black Spots and everyone agrees that Joe Don is their greatest threat. Since Joe Don can't bid on the Pardon this week, he's more vulnerable, which prompts Jay to suggest they get rid of him, thus chopping the head off the beast. Jay convinces Azmyth not to Black Spot Kendra since she will vote the way the Triad wants.
Everyone then decides to nominate Nessa because she'll most likely be the highest bidder on the Pardon, thus improving Joe Don's chances of departure. Because everyone loves Louie, they decide that he should be the third marked Pirate as a placeholder, further ensuring that the votes move towards Joe Don.
Later, when Azmyth hands the summons out to the crew, Kendra is excited to see no Black Spot. When Nessa sees her Black Spot, she is shocked that she received one instead of Kendra. Louie sees his Black Spot, but remains optimistic because of his ties with the women. When Joe Don sees his Black Spot, he knows that Louie's popularity with the crew could hurt his own chances, but states, "I'm just gonna let them know that popularity doesn't win Expeditions."
As the crew commiserates over the Black Spots, they consider Mutiny. After realizing that Jupiter could be the deciding vote, they ask her if she would be willing to vote for Mutiny, but unfortunately for the crew, Jupiter declines.
Last Moments of Freedom
Later that day, Louie takes a moment to teach Laurel how to steer the ship. Louie enjoys his paternal relationship with the women on the ship. "I trust my ladies and I've always said it and I've told it to them too. I'm proud of 'em and I look at 'em just like my daughters," he says. "But you never know what they're gonna do."
Meanwhile, Nessa shares a moment with Joe Don. The two discuss Louie's popularity in comparison to Joe Don's athleticism on the Expeditions. "I adore Louie, everybody does," Nessa explains. "But when it comes down to the Expeditions, Joe Don's really strong, so if he's taken out of the equation, there's a good chance we've been checkmated by Azmyth."
Nessa starts to flirt with Joe Don again as the two lie together on the ship's deck. "Joe Don's definitely my main confidante and probably the person I'm closest with on the ship right now," Nessa says. "I don't wanna see him leave."
With Pirates' Court looming, Jay reiterates the importance of Kendra's vote tonight and asks her to vote for Joe Don. Kendra is hesitant to agree. "I am extremely conflicted over selling my vote for Joe Don because Joe Don is the best chance we have to break up the triad," she admits. But she complies with Jay's request, even though she is still conflicted.
Pirates' Court - Who Will Go? The Father or the Warrior? 
That night, everyone gathers on deck for Pirates' Court. Azmyth explains that he marked Nessa because she seems dissatisfied after losing the Expeditions. He marked Louie as a placeholder and Joe Don because he is a fierce competitor.
Nessa begins her defense by admitting that she doesn't like to lose, before branding Azmyth and his Officers cowards. "While I see that you have a strategy, I think it's unfortunate that you don't welcome your competition," she states, staring into the Captain's eyes. "That you'd rather stack the deck than embrace the competition that's out there. But I'm sure there's some method to your madness."
Louie steps forward to defend himself, reiterating his love for the women on the ship. "I'm as proud as any father could be of all of you," he says, eliciting smiles from the women. "You're strong and courageous women. My fate is in your hands."
When Joe Don begins his defense, he mentions Louie's role as a father figure and contrasts that with his own role as a warrior. "I think you need a warrior to light the way and be your voice," he proclaims confidently. "I don't think the father can keep you safe, especially with these individuals. I think you're gonna be picked off one by one. Louie can only do so much."
Turning to Kendra, Joe Don reminds her of an incident where he helped her swim to shore and says, "I feel like I kind of saved you, man. And tonight, I kind of feel like you need to save me." When Cameron asks Kendra if they can afford to lose Joe Don, she says, "He's the fighting chance that the Red Crew needs." Christa, Laurel, and Jupiter all echo the sentiment that tonight's decision is a tough one.
One by one, the Pirates cast their ballots atop the dagger's blade. Cameron examines the ballots and then reveals that Nessa is the highest bidder for the Pardon at $5,000. As she pays Joe Don, Cameron informs her that she received no votes. Cameron then tells Joe Don that he received three ballots while Louie received one. After passionately kissing Nessa in front of the crew, Joe Don leaves the ship and is cut adrift.
Capt’ Cuz’s comment: For all her wheeling and dealing and claiming that her vote can be bought, and promising Jay that she will vote for Joe Don, with a “I don’t like it but I made a promise and I’ll stick to it.” Kendra ended up voting for Louie instead of Joe Don. Guess we know how trustworthy Kendra is.
The current booty take is as follows:
Azmyth: $38,050
Ben: $32,708
Christa: $12,037.50
Jay: $26,325
Jupiter: $21,225
Kendra: $13,620.50
Laurel: $17,100
Louie: $16,870.50
Nessa: $8,371.50
Azmyth splits $35,000 treasure, ($9,200 for himself, $7,000 each to Ben & Jay and $5,900 each to Laurel and Jupiter).
Jay gives Jupiter an extra $500 from his share.
Nessa buys Pardon from Joe Don for $5,000
Cast adrift:
Joe Don: $30,600
Joy: $6,033
Sean: $2,034
Cheryl: $10,625
Alexis: $2,200
Christian: $ 200
John: $ 2,000
I’ll be back Tuesday with your Ping, so till then,
Take Care, 
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