To point out the obvious, Amber in All-Stars, it was extremely impressive and she had no business making it to the merge

To point out a more recent one, Stephenie in Survivor 50, after Q left she should've been the obvious boot since she was way too connected outside the tribe while at the same time having no one inside the tribe, in a tribe full of pregame relationships, yet she got away making it to the merge

Kenzie Petty is one of the most underrated and controversial winners of the New Era, and I personally think she deserved to beat Charlie.

A lot of Survivor fans (myself included sometimes) love the big strategic moves. Charlie had a very strong case. He was consistently in the majority, had strong relationships, and played a really impressive strategic game, but his social game lacked. The major part of Survivor is getting the people on the jury to vote for you to win the game, and Kenzie did that. Some people might say that Maria’s vote was because she was bitter at Charlie, but there were still 4 other players who voted for Kenzie to win.

Was Charlie a deserving winner? Absolutely. I don’t think this was a “robbery” situation. Charlie played a great game. But I do think Kenzie gets unfairly labeled as a weak winner because her strengths weren’t as visible on screen.

The biggest misconception about Kenzie is that she “didn’t do anything.” Sometimes the best move is not being the person everyone is afraid of. Sometimes the best move is making sure nobody feels like they need to get you out. Kenzie was a major threat at the beginning of the season and managed to make it to the merge. Kenzie survived a chaotic season full of huge personalities, and she was almost always someone people wanted around.

Her Final Tribal Council was also a great example of why she won. Charlie had a strong argument, but Kenzie understood what the jury cared about and explained her game in a way that connected with them. She owned the fact that her game wasn’t the same as Charlie’s instead of trying to pretend she was a mastermind.

Overall, I think people will look back at the New Era and appreciate Kenzie’s win because it is a reminder that Survivor is still a social experiment first and a strategy game second.

Rewatching Cambodia - Second Chance and I'm in awe.

Not saying we didn't have good seasons after, but it really feels like the climax of 15 amazing years of Survivor...and also the beginning of the end.

It genuinely just feels so badass and epic. You have an all-star cast of players the fans voted in, a season where fans actually had a say. You had the amazing adventure in a foreign land with a beautiful culture infused with the narrative - I mean starting out with a drive through a village before passing through Angkor Wat? Gives me chills. You had advanced, evolved strategy but players for the most part still dictated eliminations as the concepts of voting blocs, meat shields, and targeting the goat are centralized and popularized.

I just feel like Cambodia had amazing elements from both old-school and new-school Survivor. The twists like the unprecedented swap, hiding idols at challenges, and the vote steal all were fun to watch but didn't detract from the social strategy. The narratives of players having a second chance to correct their mistakes was compelling. Everyone was playing so hard.

And unfortunately, production took all the wrong lessons away from the season, thinking that throwing in whackier and whackier twists for the sake of players' resumes was the way to go. Swapping from 2 to 3 tribes in subsequent all-star seasons would just screw over big name players again and again. Spamming repetitive, recycled individual immunity challenges became the norm. Production fundamentally thought that people prioritize big splashy moments rather than genuine stories that organically give rise to explosive, memorable moments.

Oh well, thank you Survivor for the amazing television up until around this era. Cambodia felt like the last great big hurrah for the show before (Kaoh Rong and MvGX notwithstanding) Survivor permanently transitioned into something else starting with Game Changers.

Nobody’s Favourite Season

Ah, Thailand. The black sheep of the pre-All Stars era. Frequently cited as one of the worst seasons of the show. Virtually every vote is predictable. The pre-HD cameras leave the location looking muddy and washed out. The cast is full of unlikeable people who all seem to loathe one another. Our first truly boring tribe. Grindgate.

Approaching Thailand in my re-watch, I was bracing myself. I remembered it being dull, having horrible vibes, and just generally wishing that I could skip to The Amazon in previous re-watches. I was ready to re-evaluate it — that’s the point of this exercise — but I felt like that would be limited. Maybe I’d find one or two things, and at least I could appreciate Robb again, but that’d be it. Right?

Wrong.

I can’t believe I’m saying this . . . But I loved Thailand.

The Final Social Experiment

Look, I’m not pretending anything I mentioned above about Thailand isn’t true. It’s an ugly season full of assholes who treat each other like shit and the winner is the asshole who cared the least about all of the other assholes. It’s not a fun watch, and if you’re the kind of viewer who simply wants to know who goes out at the end of each episode and who wins, you’re not gonna have a good time here. But if you’re interested in Survivor as a show that tells a story about people from different walks of life working together — I would argue that Thailand is the last version of that show that was more or less pure.

See, I’ve already started watching The Amazon, and it already feels like a different show. I won’t say too much about it here, but the producers weren’t as interested then in how people lived together so much as how they played the game against one another. It feels there like the show’s being made with a different purpose — one that continues into Pearl Islands (as great as it is, the pirate theme with the plunder and the Outcasts and all of that . . . that’s a game show) and onward. Thailand is the last time that the show really embraced the social experiment.

Villains vs. Villains

My Marquesas post went way too long and I’ll try to be briefer here, but there’s something darkly fascinating about how the show presents all of these people more or less as they are, with little editorializing. Neither Sook Jai or Chuay Gahn are presented all that well. Sook Jai are dysfunctional, and while Jake himself cuts a vaguely heroic figure (as does Ken, the NYC cop in a post-9/11 world), the tribe itself is full of bickering and weirdly bland personalities.

Only Robb, Jake, and Shii-Ann really stand out, and even then, they’re mostly negative figures outside of a few key moments. Sook Jai is easily the dullest tribe pre-All Stars, with underdeveloped dynamics that made me wonder what I was missing — like when did Penny become so sneaky? Outside of Robb genuinely learning a life lesson, there’s little time with Sook Jai that feels valuable. In this sense, I think this represents Survivor’s first real big editing miss.

On the other hand, you have Chuay Gahn, would in most seasons would be our heroes — the underdog tribe of older players who turn the table on the dominant Sook Jai — but in practice, the five who go into the (fake) merge are hard to root for. The closest thing we have to a hero, Helen, is still bitterly acerbic and jokes about shooting Jan and then herself. Moreover, she recognizes the social conundrum and apparent hypocrisy of supporting Ghandia in the real world and then still voting against her. I don’t have much to say on Grindgate that’s not already been said, but it was interesting how the show tried to present it at arm’s length compared to the ickiness of trying to manufacture a #MeToo moment in Island of the Idols. Of course, that distance disappeared when they presented Ghandia’s explosive cry as a wacky teaser for the following episode, then made it a punchline at the reunion. It’s undoubtedly the lowest point of the season and I wouldn’t blame anyone for tuning out here, especially considering how the show seems to embrace Ted in the end.

As for the rest of them — Jan is quirky and entertaining and though we don’t see much of her, I love that she went so far. Brian is a complete nothing of character. I’m not going to go so far as to say I buy the “sociopath” moniker that’s tossed around with him, since I think that’s more than we can say from thirteen hours of edited television. I do think it’s kind of darkly fascinating to watch someone just decide that they don’t care about anything but the win — everyone before had a line they wouldn’t cross, or at least made a show of remorse if they did. Brian apologized a few times at Final Tribal Council, but I struggle to find any kind of sincerity in that performance. Watching him win was interesting from a sociological angle, if nothing else.

The King of Thailand

All of that said — I like the concept of Brian, but his confessionals are so juiceless there’s not really much entertainment to be found in watching him. Instead, all of that is reserved for Clay Jordan, who to me is indisputably the star of the season: the five-foot-five Louisianan jackass who shirks his work, pisses in the cave, brazenly lies, talks shit about his tribemates, ogles them and their wives, and yet is clearly so much more authentic than virtually anyone else out there. Clay may be the single most authentic castaway who’s ever set foot on a Survivor beach — a guy like him would never be cast today, and even the outright assholes of later seasons had at least some sense they were on television . . . When you watch Clay, you’re watching a real human being, and despite his many faults, he’s oddly endearing, he’s a good narrator, and in a certain sense, a really great foil for Brian. They don’t have a ton of meaningful direct interactions that we see outside of their reward, but there’s a kind of bleak conclusion to the fact that the jury was presented with the choice between an inauthentic sleaze who charmed them and a person who was unapologetically himself and lost them in the process. The jury obviously voted for Brian and I won’t say he didn’t deserve the win, but I’d love to live in the alternate timeline where Clay wins out. When you watch Thailand next, watch how much the show lingers on Clay. He’s the most human person out there, and Brian’s victory over him despite that feels like a dark thesis statement on what it takes to win Survivor.

Best Moment: Robb's epiphany is the most moving, but I love basically everything Jan does. Her screaming at the men in the water about American dollars is probably the funniest moment of the season for me.

Favourite Characters: Clay, Robb, Helen, Jan

Not much to say here that hasn't been covered elsewhere -- the first three here are remarkably well-rounded characters, real people that leap off the screen. The fourth is a kooky old lady who wears her heart on her sleeve and lasts 38 days in Thailand with some of the most misanthropic people who've ever been on the show.

Final Thoughts and Rankings

Thailand is not going to be for everybody. But part of the fun in revisiting the series is in re-evaluating what I get from the show and viewing it in light of what it is now. I oddly think Brian still does well in today’s game up until the end; much has been said about how the game is weightless for modern casts, how people congratulate their opponents when they’re blindsided, and how the show celebrates the “it’s just a game mentality. . .” Yet the “business trip” mentality doesn’t exist in this space. There’s still a spirit of camaraderie, and to that end, it’s fascinating to look at Brian’s game and Thailand as still completely unique. Of the sixteen people on this season, how many would realistically be on a modern season? Two? Thailand is Survivor looking at humanity and finding an answer so repellent it threatens the whole enterprise. It’s fascinating stuff: grim, ugly, moving, compelling, and often very funny. If Australian Outback is a companion piece to Borneo that shows how good people deserve to win, Thailand is its polar opposite, the yang to Australian Outback’s yin, and my #2 season so far in this re-watch.

1) Borneo

2) Thailand

3) Australian Outback

4) Marquesas

5) Africa

It quite literally just happened but Devens who's on BB28 rn was talking candidly about being on Survivor to some of the other houseguest in the background.

You can hear him mention he believes Underwood mostly won cause of a bitter jury. EOE continues to live on as a contentious season for even the people who were on it is my main point~

Did Dee make a major mistake in taking out Colby over Coach?

Cirie pushed her and Emily to go for Colby, but Colby directly pitched to Dee that when the merge came, he would rally Joe/Chrissy/Steph and tell them that Dee saved him in the Blood Moon, to not target her, and even push to work together for the long haul.

Seeing as how Dee was immediately targeted once the merge came, and even publicly shamed (by Coach as well!!!) for the Charlie blindside, having Colby in her corner could have gone a long way.....

One of the things that the new era did (and nobody liked it) was the change to the game format, from 39 days to 26.

Now, at the time of Survivor 41 & 42, this was necessary, since the castaways had to go through a 2 week quarantine and it messed up the schedule too much.

But, why is this still a thing now that Covid is not code red anymore?

All I see is negatives with this format. Firstly, there is next to no downtime. Also, the surviving aspect is next to gone, despite the production's best efforts. Which leads me into the topic of not giving the losing tribe flint until they win, which usually leads into them falling deeper into the hole.

Overall, I don't think we need to keep this shortened version of the game anymore. Hopefully, the open era will include this.

Like the title says, my picks are probably Sherri from caramoan and Dean from island of the idols ! both come from very unpopular seasons and were seen as "mid runner ups" but i think both display a great understanding of the game and are amazing to root for !

Operative phrase there is "these days" because a decade or so ago they were willing to cast people un their 70s. Nowadays, though, the casts skew a LOT younger. Mike Turner and Sue Smey were both late 50s and I believe are the oldest new era players, so is 60 the cutoff for 1st time players these days?

On the other hand, returning players obviously skew a bit older. On season 50 we saw Coach, Chrissy, Colby and Cirie all play in their mid 50s, and even some 60+ year olds like Jonathan Penner were heavily rumored to be in the mix for the cast.

How old do you all think is too old in the eyes of production? Is it different if you're a returnee? And where would you personally put the cutoff if you were in charge?

As someone who loves categorizing things and remembers the old "fox, bunny, bear, goat" theory, I was thinking about a way to categorize winners specifically. The more I think about it, the more I feel like there are only 6 real archetypes of winners, with some variations

The Dominator- Players who have a stronghold over the game. These players are seen as leaders or big threats and make it to the end regardless. Most dominators rely on a combination of strategic control and immunity wins; these are the players who lead alliances that steamroll.

The Mastermind- Players who have control over the game specifically due to their strategy. The mastermind is the one making the plans and organizing most of the votes. Masterminds can win immunity, but challenges are not generally a part of what gives them the win overall. These are the players who flip or make the plans.

The Second/Third-In-Command- Players who have power and are in the main alliances, but are not driving things. Most second or third-in-command players vote out their "first-in-command" or win because the jury dislikes the player seen as the "leader". These are players who are seen as playing the game but not necessarily regarded as huge threats.

The Underdog- Players who do not have control over the game, but make it to the end anyway. Many underdogs rely on idols or immunity wins. Underdogs can have a good social or strategic game, but the main qualifier is not having the numbers or appearing to be a "longshot" to win.

Mr/Mrs. Popular- Players who might have some agency in the game, but are consistently well-liked by the other players. These players win because of the relationships they built over the course of the game. Many popular players are also strategists, but their wins mainly stem from being well-liked.

The Townsperson- Players who do not necessarily have agency in the game, but are rarely targeted. These players are often part of the majority for long stretches and are seen as trusted members of the group. Townspeople win because they manage their threat level well, and often pull out one or two flashy moves towards the end.

To try and prove the concept, I sorted all 50 winners:

It was honestly easier than I expected, which makes me think there's something to this. The few I struggled with

-Ethan- there's definitely an argument he's the first Mr. Popular, but I think he won mostly because he was a part of the Boran Boys group that ran things rather than just likability

-Aras- REALLY hard to place. He was the leader of his alliance, but I wouldn't call him a dominator, especially having lost almost every challenge to Terry. He was playing strategically, but Cirie was definitely the mastermind of their group. I went with 2nd-in-command because it conveys that he was seen as a major part of the power alliance

-Denise- she feels like an underdog for going to every tribal, but she was never actually on the bottom. I wouldn't call her a mastermind because it seems like [redacted]/Lisa/Malcolm make most of the major decisions after the merge. I was going to put her in second-in-command, but [redacted] and Lisa were the ones with the most sway.

-Nick- I think Mike White is more of a mastermind, but he definitely mostly won due to strategy. He could be a dominator considering he wins the last 3 challenges, but his post-merge game doesn't feel super controlling. He's not an underdog either, being in on almost every vote.

-Erika- Definitely thought about her putting her in mastermind, and I do think her game from final 8 on is pretty flawless, but for most of the season she's just there, and I think she fits the profile of the townsperson winner in being someone unassuming who weaponizes that.

-Savannah- Another very hard one to place--she feels like an underdog, especially because she's technically down in numbers most of the post-merge, but she's on the right side of almost every vote. I wouldn't say she's a Mastermind since it seemed like Rizo had the most strategy out of her alliance. I went with dominator since she was certainly the face of her alliance, had the immunity wins, and people saw her as a threat from the merge and she still made it to the end.

I also have to emphasize no type is inherently better than another type. There are better and worse players in each category. I just feel like these are the 6 kinds of games that we've seen lead to a win.

What do you think about this theory?

I just love this arc of being such a last minute alternate to ultimately winning. We do know that she was never an "alternate." She was called at the beginning of casting and interviewed but was full on cut in March. She was than called in April and asked if she wanted to be on. Devens claims he was an alternate before that day (he was never cut) and was added to the cast after Aubry. So the concept of "alternates" was in play in some way in Survivor 50 yet Aubry never was one.

I do remember reading somewhere recently that Aubry, Cydney, and Danielle DiLorenzo were the only three who had medical up to date at that point and therefore those were the only three to choose from for replacing Amanda. No clue where this rumor came from but I did hear it.

This directly inspired by second chance. It’s where you have people who have all played twice and never won. What do you guys think?

I saw people suggesting that Kimmi laughed at Spencer/Reiman crying post Cambodia. I couldn't find a source. I saw some information suggesting RAHP was the source, but I couldn't find the relevant transcripts and didn't want to watch full podcasts.

the standing up whispering specifically.

i've been binging survivor for the last year and a half and gotten up to game changers (34). i also watched 49 and 50 as they aired, and i remember being floored on 49 when mc and juwan stood up and whispered to each other. i thought i missed something and was so confused until later. now that i'm on game changers, i see the origin of this trend, and i loathe it. i just watched a tribal council (the one where cirie tries to play sarah's advantage) where people were climbing each other like trees. it was so ridiculous. tai grabbed sarah's face so hard it looked like he was going in for a kiss. i think this trend is so absurd and completely uninteresting as a viewer. the anxiety of tribal council is largely rooted in the fact you cannot communicate with your allies, or you have to be sly about it. just because it's a "live" tribal doesn't make it interesting. my first season was cagayan and there's that moment where the girls are whispering behind spencer, probst points it out, and spencer says he'd love it as a viewer- that was very entertaining! it was hilarious watching them talk about him in direct proximity, but there is something so...visually unappealing about seeing people stand at tribal. it's just so awkward to watch them parkour around. i don't know how the producers haven't cracked down on this.

Rick Devens and Dee are crushing so far and are shaping to be highlights of the season.

Which leads to the question which survivors do you think would the most entertaining to see in the BB house?

My top 5 in no order:

-Coach
-Special Agent Phillip
-Shane Powers
-Russel Hantz
-Tyson

Drop your type 5’s or whoever you think would make a good cross over player

If production wants to sustain their vison for the Open Era, satisfy CBS by helping create new reality stars, and satiate fans wants, this is the perfect format to do so. The main reason is that this theme does not constrain them at all. They just need players that did some semblance of a notable thing in survivor and it could’ve a great cast (unlike 1.0). This would be an especially great way to utilize the 50 casting pool leftovers and get some great players that will actually do fun things with the dumb twists and trinkets they think up. Ultimately, they could also restore the good name of Game Changers by actually casting some. I don’t need legends, I just need some people like…

50 Players that could up their legend status-

Devens- He’s on BB so CBS loves him. Made big swings on 50 and throws caution to the wind. Best choice imo.

Dee- Also on BB. Some say she’s the best of the New Era. She also makes good tv.

Emily- Her loose lips cause memorable chaos.

Rizo- Back-to-back firemaking loser. Also has a signature “hold onto an idol” play style.

Q- memorable for his huge personality and his real and fake (?) pleas to quit on 46

Gen- Beloved Operation Italy participant and was screwed maybe the worst of all time on 50

Jonathan- great second place game and he has such a jump in game quality. Has a chip on his shoulder now too.

(Side note I absolutely love Christian and I see them wanting to put him on for the “voting himself out” thing but he was so present on 50 I could even use a bit of a break. If they did I wouldn’t be mad at all)

New Era players that could or should have been on 50-

Carolyn- Revolutionized being a massive character while also subverting expectations and playing a good game. Should be a lock.

Jesse- Should also be a lock. He stole idols and backstabbed his buddy.

Shan- Truest villain of the new era. Would make great tv.

Venus- Another villain-esque personality. She would be a good counter to some bigger egos.

Andy- Operation Italy mastermind. He had such a memorable growth arc and some great confessionals.

Soph B- Had the opportunity to stop Rizo but misplayed her power. Pretty likely to return imo.

Eva- CBS clearly loved the Joe and Eva moment and how it showed unprecedented vulnerability.

Jake o’Kane- my favorite representation of the Charlie Brown, comedy of errors player. Came the closest to getting Dee out on 45. You could also say he changed the game by breaking the challenge.

Previous returners due for another go-round

Rob C- Not only revolutionized Survivor strategy, but also laid the groundwork for what the fandom is today. Game changer on and off island.

Jerri- Legend due for one more. Would love to see her separated from Colby

James Clement- Has recently popped back up in the community. Great pick for the whole 2 idols fiasco and getting nerfed twice due to injury.

Abi-Maria- Apparently got close to being on 50 and always makes great tv.

Amanda - Also close to being on 50. Runner up twice and also a fan favorite.

Malcolm- It would be fun to have a GC1 person back. He was also notably screwed on that seasons motto mention the whole Philippines run and 3 amigos of it all (maybe Reynold would be a fun wtf).

Tai- Beloved, great player and tv.

Danielle- Also close to 50. It would be cool to see her adapt.

Rupert- If the old guy physically can, it would be awesome to see the most popular player of all time, especially after bvw.

Kelley W- She’s been on thrice already fairly recently so this might be pushing it but many fans love her.

Lex- Blast from the past. He’s a great character that could adapt to the modern game.

Old schoolers that a lot of fans clamor for to have a second chance.

Sean Rector- Beloved character that was in 50 casting and helped organize the first alliance flip in Survivor. Cmon already.

Shane Powers- My favorite character of all time. Has been so close like 6 times and he’s definitely mellowed out. He’s also era dimly more active in the community. If they cast Sean and Shane I will never critique anything they ever do again.

Natalie Bolton- Clamored for. Integral to the most famous alliance of all time.

Ian- Popular early season character that was essentially manipulated into quitting. He’s also older now than tom was when he won.

Cydney- An all around threat that very realistically could’ve won 32.

Kyle Jason- one of the last true survivor villains. Also he was involved in the whole split idol fiasco.

Mama C- Great second-placer that also was essentially promised a return.

Nat ten- got far in 50 casting. It would be fun to see if she elevates her game at all.

T-Bird- PLEASE! She wants it so bad and deserves it.

Janet- Was one stupid nullifier away from maybe winning and leaving a bit of a better legacy on a dark season.

Devon- First firemaking loser. Had great win potential.

Jay Starrett- Super fun character that made some moves but was ultimately outfoxed by a fake idol.

Unreturned winners who have more to give-

Vecepia- Earliest winner to not return and extremely underrated. Also helped organize the first alliance flip.

Earl- First unanimous winner. Has been close to returning a few times and fans would love to see it.

Fabio- Disrespected for his aloof attitude. I could see him surprising on a second try.

Natalie White- CBS loves giving disrespected players a chance to shift the narrative. She’s the blueprint for a New Era UTR winner.

Mike Holloway- Game changing challenge competitor. He underratedly had great ideas that no one would listen to. He would adapt to the new game so well.

Maryanne- Was apparently close to being on 50. Has a huge personality that shines on screen.

Finally, I think if there was a world where he could prove some change of heart to CBS I would love to see Russell Hantz return. He changed the course of Survivor history and is arguably the biggest game changer of all. He played survivor three times in what two years? If possible and appropriate, this needs to happen.

I think any mix of these names could make an interesting season that satisfies most all survivor fans, producers, and corporate overlords. What do you guys think. Is this a good idea? Did I miss anyone? Am I off base with any of these casting pool options?

I'm honestly not sure how much his ultimate goal was to win. I actually honestly do think he wanted to play the game with "honesty and integrity" (even though he never said those words) and whatever position that ended him up in he was happy with. Hence why he said he wouldn't play his idol at the first tribal because he didn't think it was fair he just automatically got immunity despite screwing up on the puzzle or him wanting to take Jesse to the final 4.

I will say I think his social game was top tier though in just how well-liked he was out there, and he did execute the Elie blindside pretty flawlessly. Makes me wonder just how solid of a player he would be if his ultimate goal was to win by any means possible.

This season of Survivor would take place in Japan, with 39 days of game.

This season would have two initial tribes of 10 participants each, called Kitsune (Red) and Tanuki (Light Green), and the initial dynamic would be that of Shogun and Samurai.

On the first day, the 5 best men and 5 best women in a first competition after marooning choose 5 people of the opposite gender to become their respective Samurais.

The Samurai, people chosen by their shoguns, will lose their vote in tribal council during this period and are "forced" to follow the strategies of their respective superiors in the hierarchy as they are not able to cast a ballot by themselves; however, this does not mean that they can't convince or strategize their Shogun masters to do something else otherwise, it just means that the Shogun has the final say.

On the 9th, the roles would be reversed between the two groups, and on the 13th this dynamic would then be abolished altogether.

The challenges are themed around Japanese traditions and things associated with the feudal period of Japan, for example a sword duel, seaside sumo, a kanji memory game, a giant origami challenge etc.

The Merge tribe would be called Nobunaga in homage of one of the most important men in the feudal period, Oda Nobunaga who was known by his tactical innovations and resourcefulness and managed to end the Sengoku and so unify Japan into one sole Kingdom.

Other twists present are: Exile Island (Day 11), Auction and Kidnapping (Day 7) and Tribal Swap (Day 9)

What you guys think?

With Season 19, the Survivor editing team had to balance two big missions. They wanted to make Survivor: Samoa satisfying as a standalone narrative (same as any season), which meant leading viewers to understand why Russell Hantz doesn’t end up winning. But the season was also playing double duty as promotion for the upcoming Heroes vs. Villains season, which meant building interest in Russell’s return by making him look like a pro stuck playing JV ball. And since they knew he made it to Final Tribal in that All-Star season by the time they were editing Samoa, priority was given to the ‘promo’ mission so that viewers would be revved up for a second full season of Russell Hantz. And this often came at the direct expense of that ’narrative’ mission.

But that didn’t stop the editing team from being able to lay out a nice little ‘How Russell Lost’ storyline in Season 19. And one of my favorite pieces of it is this running gag where Russell can never predict anything correctly.

Far as I can tell, it starts in episode 6. Everyone (except for Russell Hantz) is miserable because it’s been pouring nonstop for five days. The first 11 minutes of the episode are wall-to-wall confessionals from each contestant about how much the rain sucks. So it seems like Russell might be right when he looks up at the clouds and makes a little weather prediction: "I don’t think it’s gonna stop raining."

The very next shot? The rain stops and the sun comes out. With a confessional from Erik who tells us, “Not only is it blue skies, but the most beautiful rainbow you’ve ever seen.” So I guess Russell was just about as wrong as you can be on that one. (Yeah, it’s just a trick of the edit, but that’s sort of the point here.)

Jump to episode 12. It’s the Survivor Auction, and Shambo has just won a covered plate of what turns out to be sea noodles and slug guts. The next item is another secret one, and the price starts high and keeps climbing, with Monica bidding $340 while Russell shakes his head. Jeff asks, "What are the chances we would put back-to-back bad items?”, to which Russell answers "Very, very strong chances. That’s what I think.”

Cut to Monica pulling the cover off of an entire roast chicken. Zoinks. Another major whiff. But you know who struck out more than anyone else? Babe Ruth. So what does that tell you?

Episode 14. With Shambo on team Foa Foa, Brett is the last true Galu enemy left standing. The only way for him to survive the episode is to win immunity, and as we head into this week’s challenge, Russell spells out Brett’s odds. “He's 110 pounds. He’s not faster than me. He’s not stronger than me. So he’s not a huge threat to win the challenges.”

One Immunity Challenge later, “Brett! Wins Immunity! Guaranteed a spot in the final five!” Turns out, Brett is faster than Russell. And then jump cut again to Episode 15, where, “Brett, come on over. For the third time in a row, Brett wins individual immunity.” Huh. Seems like whatever Russell predicts, the opposite ends up happening to an almost comical degree. (We see where this is going, yeah?)

It’s the last episode of the season, and Russell now turns all three of his eyes toward Final Tribal. I’ll line up his next couple of predictions in a row here. “If I win this challenge today,” (which he does) “I’m 100% positive that the game is mine. I won the million dollars.” “I really think this jury’s gonna put my name down.” "I feel strong. I feel good. I feel like I'm gonna go into this, make a great speech, and take it.” And point blank, “There’s no way [Natalie] can beat me in votes.”

…

“Natalie. That’s 3 votes Natalie, 2 votes Russell. Natalie. We’re at 4 votes Natalie, 2 votes Russell. It takes 5 to win. The winner of Survivor: Samoa. Natalie.” She also won another 2 votes which weren’t shown, so it was a blowout. And an absolutely pissed Russell Hantz is forced to watch the million-dollar check and the title of Sole Survivor go to the even dumber long-haired blonde. Who could have seen that one coming? Not Russell Hantz, cause that guy can’t predict anything.

Survivor themed party as in you're competing, there are tribes and tribal council and one person wins it all!

1) What food would you like to have? (Disclaimer, I did this before and had pizza and Applebee's but wondering if there's other fun options I'm not thinking of)

2) What competitions would you want to compete in?

Thank you in advance! My last Survivor party was awesome and just want to improve/get more ideas!

Sorry if this has been posted before, but with the open era being “anything that’s ever happened can happen” what are yall hoping for the most. I’m currently rewatching one world and I would LOVE if they did the all castaways on one beach twist again. I’m not sure how it would play out with the way the game has evolved but I think it would be 1. So easy and 2. So interesting. Lmk!