Editor's note: This article contains spoilers for episode 7 of The Traitors season 3.
After banishing Wes Bergmann and murdering Derrick Levasseur, The Traitors season 3 episode 7 featured Danielle Reyes, Carolyn Wiger, and Britney Haynes throwing a bloody Red Wedding that ended with the supreme Straightors leader himself, Boston Rob Mariano, getting banished and unmasked. And just like that… Alan Cumming's castle is a certified queendom.
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Four episodes into season 3 of The Traitors, Out warned fans about the dangers of joining alliances dominated by straight male contestants in reality TV. Historically, these groups of men — which Outnicknamed as "Straightors" — tend to trust one another, immediately agree to follow a "bro code," and are loyal to one another until the bitter end… unless forced to make a move that sacrifices one of them.
That initial analysis identified Wes as a "defector" archetype who was onto Boston Rob but was still trying to play with the boys. There was no question that Rob could snap his fingers to make Wes disappear, which is exactly what happened in episode 6 as Dylan Efron and Sam Asghari both followed Boston Rob's lead to banish Wes.
In the aftermath of Wes's banishment, episode 7 featured the most chaotic Traitors meeting in history. The three of them disagreed in a way never seen on Traitors (U.S.) before, but it was clear that neither Carolyn nor Danielle wanted to murder Derrick. In typical Boston Rob fashion, however, the Survivor alum made sure to have the final say, which meant that Derrick got the chop.
Danielle Reyes on 'The Traitors' season 3 episode 7.
Peacock
Danielle delivers the performance of a lifetime as a devastated Big Brother icon who just lost a (not so) dear peer — full-on sobbing over the breakfast table. A few souls can clock the waterworks as being strange, but Danielle does it anyway, and she even bonds with Britney when they compete in the main challenge together.
(About that main challenge. The contestants were asked to pair off in a memorable wedding-themed challenge — and other than Boston Rob and Ciara, everyone else chose to wed a person of the same sex. It was cute to watch these "marriages" last through a hand-holding test, where they had to grasp each other tightly through rains of insects. And Alan wore a memorable bridal ensemble, unpacked in Out's fashion series What Alan Wore.)
Over the course of the episode, Carolyn and Danielle realize that being at odds isn't the way forward. Whether or not Danielle's breakfast tears are seen as real, it's clearly not optimal for her to be seen as a Traitor who potentially killed the Big Brother 16 winner known as a puppet master.
Surprisingly, things end up looking very obvious by the time they get to the round table. Things become so obvious, in fact, that even Tom Sandoval — who's spent the entire competition at least 20 steps behind any strategic move — concluded that Rob took out Wes and Derrick as the two men who he felt threatened by.
All there's left are Dylan, Rob's number one fan; Tom, perpetually lost; and Sam, who we constantly need to be reminded is still there.
The round table segment of episode 7 is one for the ages. Big Brother fans who have been waiting to see an activated Britney Haynes since she first appeared on Big Brother 12, as well as Traitors fans who had been dismissing her social strategy throughout the season, suddenly get to see what all the fuss is about.
Britney, against all odds, completely outsmarts and owns Rob at the round table, which emboldens Faithfuls like Tom and Sam to believe their suspicions that they're just being used as "numbers" for Rob to conquer the castle.
Whatever beef existed between Carolyn and Danielle is also put to the side as they identify the perfect opportunity to banish Rob and get rid of a Traitor who will always make sure that his choices triumph over theirs. Adding to Britney's momentum, Danielle and Carolyn go full-throttle to vote for Boston Rob's banishment.
Surprisingly, Tom and Sam follow suit. Only Dylan insists on having Rob's back, which prompts him to vote for Gabby Windey instead. But anyway…
In the end, Rob is banished from the castle with seven votes — an overwhelming majority that even includes two fellow Straightors. It's a chop for Rob.
Danielle, Carolyn, and now Britney have seemingly locked into a strategic plan that could get them to the end. Nonetheless, they just delivered back-to-back eliminations of Wes, Derrick, and Rob, and things couldn't feel sweeter.
Up next, Carolyn and Danielle will have the opportunity to recruit another player to fill in the empty spot left by Rob. These next few moves will determine the endgame of The Traitors season 3, and it'll be interesting to see how Dylan, Sam, and Tom are able to navigate the rest of the competition without the allies who were calling most of the shots.
For now, Alan Cumming's Traitors castle has officially turned into a queendom.
(L-R) Sam Asghari; Derrick Levasseur; Dylan Efron; Wes Bergmann; Boston Rob Mariano; Tom Sandoval on 'The Traitors' season 3; updated as of episode 7.
Peacock; art by Out.com
Where do we stand? Well, for one: Wes, Derrick, and Boston Rob are gone.
Seven episodes later, Danielle has only received a single vote this entire season. One vote from Carolyn in episode 6. No one else. In any other episode.
The Faithfuls seem 100 percent convinced that Carolyn could never be a Traitor due to her utterly unfiltered personality. This could get clocked, as it eventually was in her season of Survivor, or she could just continue to fool them all for the rest of the competition.
It's still clear who the new Traitor recruit will be. Some fans root for Britney, while others want Dylan to join the trio. Either way, we can't wait to see how this will turn out.
The Traitors season 3 drops new episodes every Thursday on Peacock.
