We are now deep into quarantine and it’s been a while since we checked in here, but I was inspired by a friend recently who said she wanted to get into a show with several seasons as the new TV schedule is starting to really thin out. Lots of articles have already come out on the upcoming TV desert as production companies and studios mostly haven’t been able to make shows due to the virus. That’s not what I’m here to talk about. I’m here to talk about something you can use to plug a hole in this upcoming void. A TV show with an illustrious 20-year, 40-season history: Survivor.
The last time I wrote, I touched on a lot of the reality TV I was watching, which included Survivor season 40, Winners at War. Winners at War was my first foray into Survivor and after watching one episode I was hooked. So way back in February, which feels like another year ago at this point, I decided to start rewatching old Survivor seasons so that I could more fully understand the characters who were gracing my screen in this epic season of winners. As a result, this is how I would recommend watching old seasons of Survivor. If you’ve never seen the show before, I’d start watching some earlier seasons where famous players get their first experience on the show, build up to some elite seasons with returning players and end with a bang with my favorite (and probably the best) 3 seasons of Survivor.
Seasons to Get you Familiar with Survivor and Its Key Players
1. Tocantins (season 18)
If new to Survivor, this is a great season to dip your toes in and really get what the show is all about. It features almost everything that makes Survivor so special: the “Challenge Beast” (aka someone who excels at all the challenges, often helping their team win immunity or themselves individual immunity), the “Game-Play” guy (aka the person who isn’t great at challenges, but excels at the strategy part of the game), the power of a key “Alliance” (aka a small group of people who band together early, and by being actually loyal to each other, finds a way to make it to the end together). These are key aspects of Survivor and while most seasons have their own versions, oftentimes the cast isn’t good enough to make that entertaining. This cast had some incredible, if very *unique* players (you’ll understand exactly what I mean by this when you watch, cough cough Coach) and the drama is great until the very end where someone has to choose social relationships and loyalty vs. game play.
Twist: Something to note if this is your first season ever: most seasons of Survivor have a “twist” that permeates through the season. This one is Exile Island; where two people go off to a stranded island and have to survive on their own with basically no food, water or shelter… but they get a hint to a clue for an immunity idol (something you can use to protect yourself from going home). This is not a twist present in every season. I give this one a B.
Notable people to look out for in upcoming seasons: J.T., Stephen Fishbach, Coach, Tyson Apostol
2. Pearl Islands (season 7)
This is the earliest season on here and if you watch this after Tocantins, you’ll immediately be able to understand the stark difference in “old school” vs. “new school” Survivor, a theme that will pop up consistently in Winners at War and other later seasons. As Survivor has aged, people have gotten savvier about game-play and strategy versus just physical and social skills. This is not the case in Pearl Islands. This season has an interesting progression where one starting tribe is significantly stronger and better than the other tribe and so the weaker tribe basically starves and struggles internally until the merge. It’s sad for them but pretty epic to watch the different ways the tribes turn on each other. Even the winning tribe eventually starts to hate each other and tries to find a way to get someone out. There’s another reason this is one of the most famous seasons of Survivor, so I’ll just let you watch how Johnny Fairplay’s storyline plays out here…
Twist: there is none. Too early in the show’s history.
Notable people to look out for in upcoming seasons: Sandra Diaz-Twine, Johnny Fairplay, Rupert Boneham, Andrew Savage
3. Survivor: Cook Islands (season 13)
This season is definitely controversial due to the original premise: original tribes are split up by race (black, white, hispanic, asian). This was controversial at the time…imagine the controversy today. However, this happens to be one of the best casts of all time and the original appearances of my favorite Survivor player (shoutout Parv). This season is complete with a showmance and a mutiny. Does it get any better than that? It also is what I think probably sets the stage for this new vs. old school type of survivor. Let me explain that a bit. In this season, the two strongest players were perhaps the smartest guy in Survivor history playing with the physical beast who also had the best survival skills (fishing, climbing, building, etc) teaming up for most of the game. This meant they were unstoppable for the most part. But ultimately, who did the most maneuvering to win? I’ll let you guess the answer. I have a feeling many people saw this and realized that if you really want to win, you have to outthink everyone; you can’t merely outperform others in challenges.
Twist: Exile island (complete with hidden immunity idol) and a one time ability to mutiny (which served for some of the best drama this show has to offer).
Notable people to look out for in upcoming seasons: Parvati Shallow, Jonathan Penner, Ozzy Lusth, Yul Kwon, Candice Woodstock
4. All Stars (season 8)
If you’re a Survivor fan, I’m sure you’re shocked to be this far into a Survivor article before the mentioning of Rob Mariano. There are several legends in the Survivor world. I’ve already mentioned some of them (Parvati, Sandra) but none is more famous than “Boston Rob”. I’m not the biggest fan of the really old school seasons (because the game-play just isn’t as elite in my opinion) but this season is great because you get the best of all the OG players from seasons 1-7. It’s the first season with returning players. Most importantly though, you get to see Rob in the season that really cemented his legacy. Rob ends up falling in love with another player on his tribe, Amber Brkich, and ultimately, everything he does to protect her and move forward in the game ends up making him several enemies. However, he really puts on full display what it’s like to tower over fellow competitors using an impressive mix of charm and intimidation that is very difficult to replicate; many players have tried but ultimately come off like bullies. This season is great due to its “All-Star” cast and helps you get a fuller history of Survivor before moving into later seasons where so many of these players are referenced; it’s helpful to get the full picture.
Side note: it really makes me mad when players don’t win because they backstabbed people to get to the finale. It’s like no shit! This is the game… sorry you didn’t do it first. This is the first real offense of that but there’s a far more egregious one coming up.
Twist: None
Notable people to look out for in upcoming seasons: Rob Mariano, Amber Brkich, Rupert (also from Pearl Islands), Colby Donaldson, Jerri Manthey, Ethan Zohn, Tina Wesson
Now That You Understand the Dynamics at Play, Let’s Get into Some Elite Seasons
5. Cagayan (season 28)
As the show continued to develop, CBS began using “gimmicks” to split people up in the beginning of the show, as they did in Cagayan. The premise of this season was Brains vs. Brawns vs. Beauty. This season is extremely famous for some of the best game-play of all time, featuring two very different but impressive ways to make it far: (1) playing from the top and (2) playing from the bottom. There are lots of arguments over which is “better” and while both have their merits, there’s a much higher level of difficulty playing from the bottom. In this season, you have a player who is on an extremely weak tribe where players keep getting picked off one by one. To be able to make it to the merge alone is impressive. But when you make it to the merge, you’re automatically numbers down because your original tribe is outnumbered. You really have to start maneuvering and you can decide to either make real friendships or start throwing other people under the bus. Either way, there’s a significant amount of work needed to be able to stay in the game, which often includes a little luck of winning challenges when you most desperately need to. Playing from the top usually involves a player who’s the leader of a strong tribe. On Survivor, being a leader is tricky because it means people are noticing you and want to put a target on your back. Being able to maneuver around this is key so that you’re always placing the target on someone else, even though you’re the most obvious one so you have to manipulate the people around you and leverage any type of possible trust you’ve created, then backstab, but then somehow not make many enemies so that people still want to vote for you in the final council. There’s only so many people who can do that.
Twist: brains vs. brawns vs. beauty. Hidden immunity idols.
Notable people to look out for in upcoming seasons: Tony Vlachos, Sarah Lacina, Spencer Bledsoe, Kass McQuillen, Woo Hwang, Tasha Fox
6. Cambodia (season 31)
The theme of this season is “second chances”. It’s a season full of returning players, none of whom have won before. If you’ve watched in the order I’ve laid out here, starting with this season, you’ll start to see a lot of familiar faces and understand their stories and histories with Survivor (which is the reason I’ve laid it out in this way… it’s more fun and easier to be invested in certain people when you know their backgrounds). Lots of players here have very different styles of play and I love this season because it really showcases the value of performing well at tribal council and the importance of the social aspect of Survivor versus just physicality or game-play. Plus, if you’ve made it this far and have been disappointed in how idols are played more as strategic tools or leverage than actually being used, this season will rectify that. I will never forget where I was when one of my favorite players played her idol and nullified EVERY SINGLE OTHER VOTE, with only hers counting. It was like midnight I was in my room and my roommate was sleeping and I was literally jumping up and down on my bed so excited trying to be quiet but freaking out. This makes me sound like a loser but this moment delivers in every way possible.
Twist: Hidden Immunity idols (at challenges), tribe swaps, vote-stealing advantage, fan-vote
Notable people to look out for in upcoming seasons: Jeremy Collins, Tasha Fox, Spencer Bledsoe, Kelley Wentworth, Stephen Fishbach, Kass McQuillen, Andrew Savage, Ciera Eastin, Woo Hwang, Jeff Varner
7. Game Changers (season 34)
This is another season featuring all returning players where the theme is “players who make risky moves” whose play significantly impacted their previous seasons. I like this season mostly for the cast – there aren’t as many significant or “famous” moments here but it’s an important season to watch to set the stage for Winners at War, as many players learn valuable lessons on when or not to play their hand. This also sparked another new vs. old school argument. There are lots of OG Survivor fans who really dislike all the twists more recent seasons have because they believe the twists devalue game-play or strategy. This was on full display this season when a mastermind strategist is forced to leave the show without a single vote against her because everyone else had advantages.
Twist: Hidden immunity idols, legacy advantage, tribe swap
Notable people to look out for in upcoming seasons: Sarah Lacina, Cirie Fields, Ozzy Lusth, Jeff Varner, Sandra Diaz-Twine, J.T., Tony Vlachos, Ciera Eastin
The Best Seasons of Survivor No Questions Asked
8. Micronesia (season 16)
Nothing gets me more jacked up than Micronesia. The theme here is “Fans vs. Favorites” so the original tribes are fan-favorite returning players versus first time players. Obviously, the favorites immediately had the upper hand mostly due to the survival aspect of it: getting a good shelter, fire and food in the early stages of the game so that you’re rested for the challenges is so important. This season is famous for the all-female alliance which basically highlighted the ability of one player to use charm, social ability and challenge prowess to control pretty much everyone around her. While many have misguidedly characterized her as being a “flirt” to get what she wants I think it’s much more than that. It’s the ability to understand how people think and act due to how they’re perceived by someone they admire. Yes, flirting came into play often here, but it’s more about seeing how people tick and then manipulating the hell out of them to get what you want and making sure they’re more loyal to you than anyone else…even when you backstab them. This season features probably the most famous move of all time – convincing someone to give up their hard won immunity in a challenge at tribal and then being voted out. To say it’s an epic showdown of complete strategic mastery I don’t even think gives it enough credit. This season is amazing and if I could be in any girl gang it would be one with Parvati, Amanda and Cirie.
Twist: Exile Island (complete with hidden immunity idols)
Notable people to look out for in upcoming seasons: Parvati Shallow, Cirie Fields, Ozzy Lusth, James Clement, Amanda Kimmel, Jonathan Penner
9. Heroes vs. Villains (season 20)
You know the phrase “villains have more fun”? Well, that’s on full display in this season. Perhaps it’s because Survivor is less about the loyalty-alliance part of the game, and more a test of how far you’ll really go to win. Pretty much all of my favorite players are featured in this season and we get some epic moments. If you thought poor Erik from Micronesia was manipulated, then just wait for J.T. vs. Parv and Russell in this season. Once again, Parv puts on a show of out-manipulating people, understanding that making someone like you is the best way to control them. She’s targeted pretty much the whole game and the slightest power moves she makes against “ally” Russell (one of the least liked players of all time) are why she’s a legend. I may have mentioned before how much I hate when people lose at the end because the jury is mad at someone: this is the most egregious version of that. I’ll never understand the jury’s decision to vote for Sandra over Parvati… I know that’s an important part of the game: managing relationships with the jury so that they still vote for you at the final tribal – but here it just felt so silly that still makes me mad. But really good players, really fun challenges, some really dumb mistakes. This season is really everything you want in Survivor.
Twist: Hidden immunity idols
Notable people to look out for in upcoming seasons: Sandra Diaz-Twine, Parvati Shallow, Coach, Rupert Boneham, Candice Woodstock, Tyson Apostol, J.T., Cirie Fields, Amanda Kimmel, James Clement, Russell Hantz
10. Winners at War (season 40)
We’ve made it to the end! The most recent season of Survivor featured an entire cast of past winners, distinguishing itself from other seasons with all returning players since these are supposedly the best of the best. The old vs. new school argument fully came to a head in this season as new school players were able to out-strategize the old school players, which honestly as a viewer was exciting but also disappointing just because there’s such a deeper relationship to older players like Parv and Rob versus newer contestants like Ben Driebergen and Nick Wilson. By mid-way through the season you’re just screaming at your TV because you can’t understand why so many of the players aren’t seeing who the real power players are and trying to get them out but that’s part of what makes it so fun. By winning a season full of winners, it really cemented one certain player as the GOAT. The only real criticism was that people would’ve appreciated two hour episodes. I could’ve watched these players strategize all day.
Twist: Redemption Island
Notable people to look out for in upcoming seasons: All of them… they’ve all won Survivor before
Bonus “Survivor” Content
Some Bonus seasons if you still want more Survivor: China (season 15), Blood vs. Water (season 27), South Pacific (season 23), Millennials vs. Gen X (season 33), David vs. Goliath (season 37), Palau (season 10)
Rachel’s Top Seasons (ranked)
- Micronesia
- Heroes vs. Villains
- Winners at War
- Cagayan
- Cook Islands
- Cambodia
- China
- Tocantins
- All Stars
- Game Changers
- Pearl Islands
- Blood vs. Water
- Millennials vs. Gen X
- South Pacific
** Those are the 14 seasons I’ve watched. Next on my list is David vs. Goliath and Palau
Rachel’s Favorite Players (ranked)
- Parvati Shallow
- Rob Mariano
- Amanda Kimmel
- Spencer Bledsoe
- Tyson Apostol
- Tony Vlachos
- Michele Fitzgerald
- Kelley Wentworth
- Sarah Lacina
- Yul Kwon
Honorable Mentions: Cirie Fields (probably the best to never win, but can be annoying when she plays the victim), Kass McQuillen (Spencer’s archnemesis… can’t love her because of that but she’s a fun foil for him), J.T. (just great memories of him as one of the only winners to win unanimously but later make among the dumbest moves in Survivor history), Ciera Eastin (savage who voted her own mother off the show, she’s so entertaining), Ozzy Lusth (I loved him in his early seasons as the OG challenge beast/monkey boy, but the way he shamed Parv for betraying him in Micronesia made me hate him forever, plus he so played the victim in South Pacific which I found annoying), Stephen Fishbach (a funny, relatable guy but too focused on the strategy part… paranoia makes him a worse social player which isn’t great since he sucks at challenges)
*Might’ve left some people out but those are my takes. The top 10 are self-explanatory when you watch. Sorry to all the Penner and Coach fans out there.
**No I did not include Sandra on my list or the honorable mentions. While she may be the “Queen” I am not a fan of her style of play (“anyone but me”) and I hate that she often doesn’t participate in challenges. I know it’s part of her strategy but I just don’t like it. I’ll never get over the fact that she’s a two time winner… Heroes vs. Villains should have been different.
