Lilah Birdyshaw ‘26, News Editor
Running since May 31, 2000, Survivor is an iconic, enduring television show where a group of competitors—dubbed “survivors”—complete physical and mental challenges and engage in strategic, social gameplay with the goal of winning $1 million dollars and being named the sole survivor. The show is currently airing its 50th season, set to end on May 20, and this milestone season’s theme is “In the Hands of the Fans,” appropriately named because fans had the ability to vote on certain aspects of the game pre-season. While none of the voting opportunities have been majorly impactful to the survivors’ gameplay so far, fans still enjoyed having a say in the widely-famous show.
After 715 episodes, Survivor has undergone many changes since it first premiered. In fact, one major point of contention for long-time fans is that “new-school” Survivor is too easy for the competitors. Fans who have watched from the beginning will certainly notice shifts in how survivors fight through the competition as well as changes in production style. For example, the coined “old-school” Survivor era was much more focused on the actual survival aspect, with a large part of screentime dedicated to the players foraging, hunting, and building shelters. Newer seasons, however, were much more centered around the competitors’ social gameplay, with big blindsides and crazy advantages being introduced as the show progressed. Some critics point out the show’s newfound emphasis on the competitors’ life stories, complaining that the show is too focused on the “sob stories.”
For instance, players are now allowed to bring more changes of clothes than they used to. In previous seasons, players would appear rugged, exhausted, dirty—as if they had genuinely been left on the island with nothing, which was mostly the case; in newer seasons, however, players wear fashionable clothes and often have multiple outfit changes an episode—something that many long-term viewers struggle to grapple with.
While it is true that production tries to highlight more about the players’ individual lives than the show used to, many fans believe that production is trying to add more representation into the show. This is likely because representation for queer people, people of color, and differently abled people was limited in the earlier seasons. Now, the show is trying to appeal to a wider audience by incorporating players’ backgrounds and life stories.
Nevertheless, the show remains iconic. Fans of drama, action, romance, and comedy can all appreciate Survivor as a cornerstone television show, especially with the most recent season bringing back the best of the best players from across the show’s history. Some of Survivor’s “Mount Rushmore” players featured on season 50—such as challenge beasts Colby Donaldson and Ozzy Lusth, social strategists Cirie Fields and Benjamin “Coach” Wade, and other old-school legends—promise only the best for this season. Senior Nathan VanSteenkiste said, “I have recently gotten into Survivor after watching former players (like Fields) compete on some of my favorite reality competition shows, including The Traitors. I just love the social aspect behind the game and am so fascinated by the strategic gameplay required to succeed in the game.”
So far, fans are enjoying the season, as demonstrated by the average episode rating of 7.7 stars out of 10 from the seven episodes aired as of publication. However, this figure excludes episode four, which is the lowest rated Survivor episode in the show’s history. In that episode, titled “Knife to the Heart,” the survivors competed for a chance to meet famous country singer Zac Brown, and the production team included a long segment of Brown singing and spearfishing, which many fans believed severely overshadowed the survivors’ screentime and took away from the value of the show. Other than that, though, fans are largely pleased with this season and excited to watch future episodes pan out. In all, Survivor is an epic competition available to watch on Paramount+ and CBS that has stood the ruthless test of time. To quote Jeff Probst, the show’s witty and iconic host, “Survivor is so much more than a game. I think it is the greatest TV format in terms of unscripted shows that will ever be created.”
Lyon Life 