(Photo Manipulation by Alex Gerson)
“Survivor” (2000) proves it is still an exciting and worthwhile watch with its return to screens on Feb. 28 on CBS, marking the 24th year of the show’s run.
“Survivor” reached peak popularity when it premiered in the early 2000s, becoming an instant classic in reality TV. Two decades into its run, it entered a “new era” after the COVID-19 lockdown, leaving viewers unsure of whether the show could recover after network television seemingly hit a decline. However, the show returned with high ratings, continuing its streak of respectable viewership. “Survivor” now debuts season 46, following a generally well-received season 45, begging the question: Just how good can Survivor get?
The premiere, titled “This is Where the Legends are Made” (2024), kicked the season off with an action-packed episode of challenges. After a classic “Survivor” opening sequence of the three “tribes” of players arriving, host Jeff Probst introduced the first challenge: constructing a human-sized puzzle to retrieve their flint for the island. The three tribes, Nami, Siga and Yanu struggled through mud pits and complicated team dynamics, but Nami prevailed. This set Nami’s dominant tone, as the team proved to be the most equipped for the cut-throat nature of the show.
The winning tribe, Nami, quickly bonded due to leadership from Soda Thompson, a 27-year-old special education teacher. An initial tension between this tribe rose between Venus Vafa and Randen Montalvo, as Randen saw Venus as a threat to the rest of the group. This was a particularly frustrating plot point of the episode as Randen’s suspicions were almost purely based on Venus’ looks, calling her a “princess” and implying that she could scheme against the other players in the future despite her unassuming appearance.
The Siga tribe’s bonds seem mostly surface-level after one episode. Out of the three women in the tribe, Maria Gonzalez, a parent coach, was the standout. She established a leadership role on the island, forming an alliance with the two other women, Jem Hussain-Adams and Moriah Gaynor. This female alliance posed a threat to the remaining men, who are considering voting one of the women off the island as soon as possible. While the Siga tribe are strong players, they lack the entertainment value necessary for the show.
Lastly, the Yanu tribe are the biggest losers in the episode. Perhaps it is because they are incredibly dysfunctional, but they are the most captivating crew on this season. Bhanu Gopal, a 41-year-old IT analyst, is a burst of intense emotional energy who is either way too happy or upset to be stable enough for reality TV. Jess Chong, a 37-year-old software engineer, should really not be on the island. She cannot express herself to the other players on the show, making it hard for her to bond with them. She also freaks out about being too closed off, rendering her completely useless and demanding pity from the audience and the rest of the tribe. Though these characters stand out among Yanu, the one that drew the most attention was David Jelinsky.
While “Survivor” is known for its strenuous challenges and brutal conditions, it is characters like Jelinsky that keep us coming back for more. We first see the beauty of Jelinsky during Yanu’s “sweat challenge,” which tasked him with filling two large pots with water using buckets with holes in them in four hours. Although he was a self-proclaimed “legend” who boasted there was no challenge he could not conquer, he gave up on filling up the pots after 90 minutes, stomping off and breaking the hourglass that marked their time limit. Later, he volunteered to venture off the island for a solo task with representatives from the other tribes, which he attempted for about two minutes before giving up.
Maybe the biggest shock of all was that the members of Yanu were caught off guard by Jelinsky’s “all talk” persona. Being a boastful and egotistical slot machine salesman from Las Vegas, Jelinsky’s character arc was completely predictable but made the episode particularly entertaining.
The episode closed with the three tribes competing for immunity, and, as predicted, Yanu sorely lost. At Tribal Council, where contestants are voted off the island, Yanu voted off an overly confident Jelinsky, ending his epic run of quitting challenges.
No premiere is perfect, but “Survivor” started season 46 off right. Probst himself claimed that season 46 is the peak of the modern era of “Survivor,” which I am excited to tune into in the coming months. I only hope for more twists as the season continues. While being on air for two decades makes some of the puzzles and courses seem played out, “Survivor” still dominates reality television at a time when it may be easier to turn to streaming services for binge-worthy entertainment. I will be joining the millions of other viewers patiently waiting to see who comes out on top as the winner of this season (clearly Hunter).
