Survivor, even after 25 years, has maintained certain game mechanics to keep the game alive and the players on their toes. However, these twists aren’t always utilized as frequently as they should be. Thankfully, Survivor 49 included a major memorable twist. After becoming a tribe of two, it seemed impossible for Sophi Balerdi and Alex Moore to survive, so Jeff Probst announced it was time for a tribe swap. Unfortunately, this just resulted in Survivor manufacturing moments in an attempt to seek Emmy glory rather than letting things happen naturally, which is only hurting the show.
How Did ‘Survivor 49’s Twisted Tribe Swap Backfire?
When the castaways received their new buffs, they either went to the Hina beach, which was filled with every reward thus far, or the Kele beach, which was not only the losing tribe, but they still had no flint, and their boat had just been washed away into the ocean that morning. It created a Have vs Have-Nots scenario for the two tribes, a theme that has played out in previous seasons, including the renowned flop, Survivor: Fiji. By inflicting the emotional and psychological toll on the players through this twist, it builds character and certainly forces the Have-Nots to fight harder for survival. It’s another example of Survivor refusing to play fair and give its players equal footing.
Tribe swaps are historically meant to wipe the slate clean and begin a new phase of the game. Because the tribe swap is done at random, you’re allowing fate to dictate your future. It’s been quite an important mechanic in the history of the game and was seldom used in the New Era. Introducing it here was crucial due to how the season had been playing out, but implementing a further story was simply going overboard to force human interest stories.
Upon reaching the Kele beach, the new members noted how bug-infested and worn down it was, while Sophi, who swapped to Hina, comparatively felt as if she was at Club Med. The Uli tribe had rewards at their beach, but are we to expect that they just disappeared? The original Uli tribe members did earn them, so why not get them back? Magic did happen out in Fiji. The Have-Not tribe pulled off the Immunity Challenge upset. They worked harder because they knew a loss would mean toppling that first domino. Sure, this twist is built for brilliant character arcs to develop for us so we have competitors to cheer passionately for, but it compromised the actual game of Survivor. We need to trust the castaways to direct the action and not the other way around.
‘Survivor’ Needs To Let Character Moments Happen Naturally
This episode was lucky to have a brilliant narrative brew, but long-time viewers are catching on to the antics. Some could easily argue that Survivor is not the game it used to be because the mission is to win Emmy gold. If last season’s emotional tug of Joe Hunter and Eva Erickson wasn’t enough to defeat The Traitors at the Emmys, which plays out as a genuine reality competition show, overcompensating to create moments is not the recipe for victory. If you analyze Eva’s arc on Survivor 48, she told her story on her terms, and the show was able to edit the pieces into a beautiful puzzle.
We come to Survivor for the game first, which includes the strategy, the social game, and the physical tests. If human interest stories come along as well, then it’s icing on the cake. Yes, the sharp improvement in casting has brought new excitement to the New Era of the game, but we’ve fallen for the characters because they are naturally fascinating. Survivor needs to let the game play out naturally and maybe then that Emmy will deservedly fall into their laps.
‘Survivor 50’ Must Be a Return To Form
We are all anticipating Survivor 50, with some of us just wishing to time-travel to the end of the season to understand just why our two Survivor 49 representatives are cast alongside a mix of legends and fan favorites next season. From a game perspective, Survivor in the New Era has become stale. Just look at how starting with three tribes has caused one tribe to implode. With a cast of 24, Survivor 50 is already moving into a strong new direction, but we’re not ready to hear sob stories from our favorites. We are coming to see them play again. Survivor 50 might end up being the test of how the following seasons of the hit competition series are made.
Survivor airs Wednesdays at 8:00pm on CBS. All episodes are available to stream on Paramount+.
- Release Date
-
May 31, 2000
- Showrunner
-
Jeff Probst
- Directors
-
Jeff Probst
