Beast Games players 173 (Jim) and 152 (Monika) are best known for their love story, having gone from strangers to husband and wife (kinda) over the course of Season 2. But Episode 8 ends on a cliffhanger that raises the following question: did Jim betray Monika?
Season 2 Episode 8 is a marked improvement on the previous episode, which mostly involved the finalists having dinner with their family, before setting up the infamous ‘Million Dollar Split or Steal’ test from Season 1.
Not only does this week’s Beast Games Season 2 installment show how that plays out, but we also get to see the setup for the next game, which will decide the six players who make it into the final challenge.
Up until now, Jim and Monika have been each other’s ride or dies, having met and fallen in love on the Prime Video series. But the ending of this week’s episode seems to suggest that Jim may have betrayed his girlfriend. Warning: spoilers ahead!
Did Jim betray Monika in Beast Games Season 2?
We don’t know for sure, but the leading theory is that Jim didn’t actually tell Player 172 (Auguste) about Monika’s secret. It seems far more likely that Auguste is using this as a way to get Monika to confess.
You see, the ‘Million Dollar Split or Steal’ starts off with, you guessed it, $1 million. The first player decides how much of it to take, before the next player does the same from the remaining funds. This continues until no players are left.
Essentially, they can either be selfish and take the lot, or they can take an even amount to leave more for the remaining players. When it comes to Monika’s turn, MrBeast offers her a separate $500,000 for the gold coin she was given earlier in Beast Games Season 2.
What she does next is genius gameplay – Monika takes the $500,000 but keeps it a secret, deciding not to take any of the remaining cash from the main ‘Million Dollar Split or Steal’ fund.
In the eyes of the remaining contestants, she’s the ultimate team player. Of course, Monika decides to tell her partner, Jim, who promises to take it to the grave.
Later on in Season 2 Episode 8, however, while in his individual pod for the next challenge, Auguste says he’s considered the bribing patterns in the show. “I am so confident that she (Monika) took a bribe at the money pool,” he says.
Interestingly, the next game will see the 10 finalists vote for the player they want to see progress to the last game. Rounds of this will continue until there are only six finalists remaining.
Auguste decides he’s going to use his knowledge to blackmail Monika and Jim into voting for him. He calls Monika on his red phone and tells her, “I know you sold the coin.” She repeatedly denies it, and so Auguste says, “Jim pretty much told me.”
Unfortunately, the episode ends there, so we don’t know for sure whether Jim sold Monika out. But given his loyalty towards Monika and the fact that keeping her secret boosts his chances of getting into the finale, it seems far more likely that Auguste is bluffing in order to get Monika to confess.
Season 2 Episode 8 cliffhanger ending sparks theory
Most Beast Games Season 2 viewers agree with this sentiment, while some are predicting what will happen next. The leading theory is that Monika will trust Jim didn’t say anything but still vote for Auguste to prevent him from talking to the other players about the coin.
One Redditor who believes Auguste wrote, “Jim’s an idiot. Why the hell did he tell anyone? Even if it wasn’t directly he should have just kept his mouth shut. If you apparently love someone the last thing you do is snitch behind their back.”
But another replied, “Or… Auguste just made that up knowing she would tell Jim,” and a third said, “Jim didn’t tell anyone… Auguste found out Monika sold the coin due to patterns in bribes during games.”
“Auguste made up the fact that Jim told her to gain leverage and uncertainty. Auguste is smart and playing to win,” they continued.
A fourth chimed in, “Agree to this, the camera focused a couple times on Auguste when Jim and Monika were talking in private, and after his deduction at the end that was a big IQ move from him.
“He knew something was up and knew where to push, so breaking that trust between the couple was vital and maybe he just secured a spot to the last episode.
“Same with Monika’s big IQ of taking the bribe and 0 money, was a masterful play, but unfortunately for her someone figured it out, and it’s gonna make everything more interesting.”
Many have pointed to the fact that before Auguste calls Monika, he explains how he got to his theory – and it has nothing to do with Jim.
“JC got the coin after the island, and going into the next challenge, he was offered $50,000 as a bribe. Next, he transferred the coin to Monika, got eliminated, and Monika was offered $100,000 before the next challenge,” Auguste explains.
“After that, we had the money pool. She still has yet to get bribed, and obviously I’ve been paying attention to patterns. If she’s getting bribed before every game, why is there a break all of a sudden where now she’s not getting bribed?
“I know Jimmy wanted to sell that coin. He didn’t want to spend the extra five million. That is why I’m so confident that she took a bribe at the money pool. She’s lying. She has money, and she took at least $200,000 would be my guess.”
In short, Auguste is no fool.
Elaborating on what they predict will unfold in next week’s episode, one viewer said, “I personally think that Monika wouldn’t get baited and calls Auguste out for lying. What do you all think?”
But another pointed out, “She cannot call Auguste’s bluff, because he would tell everyone what he knows and nobody is voting for her or Jim anymore.”
A third added, “I feel Auguste should’ve been called the smart player just for noticing that pattern but I feel that’s a good plan.
“And I think Monika might be spooked a little because if she doesn’t, what’s stopping Auguste from calling everyone and telling them? She’s supposed to have the physical coin on her which she doesn’t, words won’t defend her.”
And a fourth chimed in, “I think she knows Jim wouldn’t say anything openly but she might think that Jim let something slip which would be enough… it’s too risky to let Auguste reveal the info to everyone else regardless so she’ll probably just get Jim to vote for him.”
Beast Games fans debate Season 2 winner
It’s masterful play all round, with Beast Game Season 2 viewers now divided over who they want to win: Monika or Auguste. For the record, over on the prediction platform Polymarket, a whopping 89% of bettors have gambled on Player 167 (Tyler) to be the winner.
But that doesn’t necessarily mean he will be, nor does it mean he’s who viewers at home want to win – especially after everything that went down in Season 2 Episode 8.
Another discussion is the fact that fans have gone off Player 118 (Nick) after he was chosen as captain in the ‘Million Dollar Split or Steal’ test – meaning he got to go first – only to take $250,000.
“Nick taking the $250k and then being mad at the group that didn’t vote for him to be captain even though he literally proved they made the right choice was annoying,” said one Redditor.
“I’ve been rooting for Nick (along with Monika) for the better half of the season and that really soured me on him. Also, ‘Jim pretty much told me’ is CRAZY Auguste.”
Another wrote, “Man, Auguste is suddenly a big fave for me. Last season by now everyone had top fave players and Auguste might’ve increased his chances a lot by taking that gamble. Also why didn’t the smart people not even notice that?”
A third added, “Damn this is going to get worse. Auguste will use Monika truth for vote and what was that Jim part?… Before this episode I wanted Monika to win but from this episode I am confused between Monika and Auguste.”
Beast Games Season 2 Episodes 1-8 are streaming on Prime Video now, with Episode 9 arriving on February 18.
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