All have experienced big weight losses; Rudy estimates his, with amusing exactitude, at 22 pounds. Richard says he's lost as much as 30 pounds. In what will unfortunately be one of the show's more indelible images, he's seen jiggling the formidable love handles that remain and in the process managing to prompt a disturbingly high percentage of his exposed skin area into large kinetic waves of motion.

Says Kelly: "I've lost a lot of muscles and a chunk of my sanity."

The procedures for the last show are a bit different. Host Jeff Probst leads the quartet directly to the tribal council, where an immunity challenge called "Fallen Comrades" is played.

The four get 10 questions on the particulars of the ejected castaways: Who did this bandana belong to? What were the names of Jenna's children? And so forth.

In the recent immunity challenges, Kelly's physical grit helped her persevere; here it seems that she's capable of conjuring up mental grit as well. After Sue barely manages a tie, Kelly dusts her in a tiebreaker by recalling the last name of Sonja, the first castaway bounced, more than a month before.

In its own way this is quite an achievement -- it's her fourth immunity challenge win in a row. And for the fourth episode in a row as well, Sue and Richard are not able to vote her off the island.

Probst makes the four cast their ejection vote immediately. The alliance fractures along gender lines. Rich and Rudy vote for Sue, Sue and Kelly for Richard. It's the first tie at the tribal council. Probst says that Rudy and Kelly must vote again to try to break the tie.

Sue and Richard are allowed a quick plea for mercy. Sue talks at Rudy, Rich to Kelly.

"You know me, you know how I operate," says Sue. "Whatever." She knows she's not changing Rudy's mind.

Richard says he wants to stay in the game and says, "I love you, Kelly." She's repulsed.

It's not clear what will happen if the pair hold to their original votes. But Kelly does some thinking and decides that she and Richard can dump Rudy in the next round. She then will end up in the final with the more dislikable Richard. She switches her vote to Sue and Sue is ejected.

Rudy, Rich and Kelly are left.

Sue gets a few moments to talk at the end of the episode. Her envoi is almost touching: "Living on the island was easier than driving a truck to Chicago every day."

- - - - - - - - - - - -

For the final immunity challenge, Tiki Jeff bursts into the trio's tent to rouse them before dawn. "Wear something comfortable," he says.

He tells them they're going through a "final rite of passage of this whole 'Survivor' experience."

The three are told to paint themselves in island volcanic mud, and then walk through a path of fronds waved by suspiciously pale-looking "natives." The three then hit a forest of burning torches, each one representing a departed castaway. We get a quick photo-album shot of each -- Stacy eating her worm, Jenna crying and so forth.

Now playing: Read all the recent movie reviews by Salon's critics