Survivor Season 49, Episode 1
"Act One of a Horror Film"
Host: Jeff Probst
Cast: Sage Ahrens-Nichols, Sophi Balerdi, MC Chukwujekwu, Annie Davis, Shannon Fairweather, Jeremiah Ing, Jake Latimer, Savannah Louie, Nicole Mazullo, Kristina Mills, Alex Moore, Nate Moore, Jawan Pitts, Steven Ramm, Sophie Segreti, Jason Treul, Rizo Velovic, Matt Williams
Episode 1 of Survivor opened with a voice-over claiming the show is like a horror movie. The episode is named "Act One of a Horror Film" and the speaker suggests that in Act 1, it's all about escaping the monster. But they're wrong.
I kept asking myself what type of movie Survivor really is. Is it a heist film, where a ragtag crew has to come together to steal a million dollars? Is it a political thriller, with each blindside knocking out another operative? Or maybe it's a rom-com, a story about awkward speed-dating where alliances and bromances are the love stories of the season. The answer is kind of all of those things, and also not really. What makes Survivor great is that it's its own genre. It's equal parts strategy, drama, and chaos, with no script and no guarantee the "main character" will even make it to the end.
We do get to meet the cast of characters we'll be following along with this season through mat introductions and marooning challenge for camp supplies.
We meet the various members of the Blue tribe, a.k.a. Kele. These include Alex, who immediately casts himself as the smooth-talking strategist who works on Capitol Hill; Jake, a muscular jock from Edmonton; Sophi, already angling to be everyone's friend; Jeremiah, trying to pass himself off as ditzy while clearly sizing everyone up; and Nicole, who's earnest and hardworking but struggling to find her footing.
On the Red tribe, Uli, we start with Shannon who sets the tone with meditation on the beach, positioning herself as the spiritual center. Savannah is a reporter who is keeping her read on people close while lying about her real job. Jawan wants to be the provider but falters at fire-making. Nate downplays his career as a producer in Hollywood while quietly offering himself as the reliable "Rad Dad." And then there's Rizo, the self-proclaimed "Rizgod" who's not here to compete for himself but his family.
Finally, Yellow, a.k.a. Hina, strikes first in the marooning challenge, a sign that this group will be quite capable in the challenges. Jason leans into his gamer background, connecting with Steve over nerdy interests. Matt, the elder statesman of the tribe, shows off his Boy Scout skills by starting fire. And the aforementioned Steven, the rocket scientist, wants to bond with everyone but can't quiet his paranoia due to a childhood filled with social anxiety.
One of the real strengths of this premiere is how clearly the show introduces us to such a big group right out of the gate. With 18 players, it's easy for people to get lost, but the 90-minute runtime (not counting commercials) gives everyone a chance to pop. By the end of the episode, we know who's spinning stories, who's overplaying, who's bonding, and who's already on the outs. The edit makes space for both the big personalities like Savannah and Rizo, and the quieter beats, like Steven's paranoia or Nate worrying about being the old guy on his tribe. It feels like the show is trusting us to invest in these characters for the long haul.
While Hina (Yellow) wins the marooning challenge, there is still a prize of camp supplies to be won. The winner of a head-to-head challenge will take home the reward for their group and it ends up being Alex versus Riz. In what might be a sign of things to come, despite Alex's early lead, he can't dig up the shipwheel needed to win and lets it all slip through his fingers. Rizo has a moment of triumph and secures a wild come-from-behind victory. This scene felt prophetic for Rizo (in a good way) and Alex (in the not-so-good way).
After much work and socializing at their respective camps, the tribes compete for Immunity. The first two tribes to return three giant serpents, then traverse a ball over a snake-shaped course would earn their safety. While it could have gone any which way, Hina (Yellow) completed their course first, followed by Uni (Red). That would send the Kele (Blue) tribe to Tribal Council first.
In the lead-up to the challenge, the foundation was set for the Kele vote. First, Alex and Jake seem to have put a massive target on their back by becoming an out-and-out bromance. However, considering how important strength is, that might not affect them until later on in the game. They were able to loop in Sophi, who quickly realized that she would need Jeremiah to counter-act the double dudes. Thus, that left Annie and Nicole as the odd ones out.
It seemed at first that Nicole was the sure-fire easy vote. She worked hard around camp but seemed to be a bigger liability in the challenges. However, when Annie learned she was the decoy vote, she began to see how things might be shaping up. She tossed the idea of eventually getting rid of Jake or Alex in future Tribals to Sophi, who became paranoid that Annie had just revealed herself as the savvier game player. Bringing this information to the rest of the group, Annie now seemed to be the one in the hot seat. This must be one of the hardest things to navigate in Survivor — when to play hard and when to let things go as they are.
But the show fooled me. I thought Annie was a goner as Nicole had been a far bigger presence in the episode (I will highlight two of my favorite moments being when she spit in Jeremiah's face to rinse out his eyes mid-challenge, only then to be seen moments later on the show vomiting). But perhaps Nicole's visibility was there precisely because she was going home. There's time for Annie to appear later as Nicole ended up being the victim of a 5-1 vote. She had thoughts of playing her Shot in the Dark, but was so confident that she was safe that she never did.
I hate to see a queer player go home first but the game has no patience for players who can't quite lock into the tribe dynamic (especially on a six person tribe), and the edit made it clear she was on the outside looking in.
The premiere leaves us with plenty of storylines to track: Rizo announcing himself as a player to watch, Savannah quietly working her angles, and the Jake/Alex bromance that could either bulldoze its way forward or collapse under its own weight. If Survivor really is its own genre, this was a great first act. It had character introductions, a few prophetic scenes, and a nice plot twist to end the episode.
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