Eighteen strangers are stranded on the islands of Fiji. They are competing in challenges and trusting each other while also having to vote each other out. There is little food. They must depend on each other to survive. It is the adventure of a lifetime. “Survivor” is a reality show that’s been going for 24 years, first airing in 2000. “Survivor” has been in countless locations, first starting in Borneo, and settling in Fiji beginning in 2016. The show is now on its 47th season, having been a great success for decades. I think “Survivor” is the best TV show, and season 47 is one of the best seasons yet.
One reason why I love “Survivor” (more specifically, season 47) is the cast. “Survivor” strives to find the most compelling people who are great storytellers, and they do. In the show, players complete routine interviews, narrating different scenarios and perspectives in the episode. They also choose a good variety of players. This season, some occupations of the players include freelance writers, nurses, and even flight school owners. The diversity represented on the show is much greater than most other shows in the reality genre, and in my opinion that helps enhance the show. I also like the cast because of their personalities. Some are introverts, some are extroverts, but either way the unique group of people each season and all their personalities mesh together in different ways.
Another reason why I love season 47 is because of the new twists and differing events throughout the season. I could see why most people would think that after 47 seasons, a show must be monotonous and boring, being exactly the same as the last 46. “Survivor,” however, is different. Each season is different from the last, with past elements changing as they come back. For example, the survivor auction is an auction that first occurred in “Survivor’s” new era in season 45, and hadn’t occurred in many years since then. Many new things kept the auction interesting, like the advantages, differing food items, and cash back on their plates. In the auction, players can bid on items, and they typically bid most of their money because whoever has the most by the end of the auction loses their vote. The catch-nobody knows when the auction ends. The high stakes and high rewards kept me on the edge of my seat for the entire auction.
Another extra twist I liked in this season was the way “Survivor” went about the advantages. For example, when one player Sue was using a map to find a Beware Advantage, a bucket of red paint fell from a palm tree, and her advantage was in the paint. Traditionally, it was easy to hide your tracks on “Survivor” when finding advantages, but this new twist made it almost impossible for Sue to hide her advantage because of the red paint in the sand and on her hands. There are always new and exciting advantages in “Survivor,” and season 47 is a great example of this.
One final reason why I love season 47 is the dynamic scenarios the game presents, and the events that happen because of those scenarios. “Survivor” is set up for great game play and exciting moments, but those don’t always happen, depending on the cast and other outside factors. I think the players in season 47 have missed no opportunities to make the game exciting and have taken every risk possible. For example, one advantage allowed a player safe at tribal council to save someone who was unsafe at tribal council. When Sol gave Rachel the advantage, he forced the other 5 people who were going to vote for Rachel to quickly turn on each other. There was a chance nobody would have found the advantage, so Rachel would have been the “easy vote” and the game wouldn’t have changed drastically. I like how small moments like this can change the entire game, and that someone on the top can be on the bottom in a matter of seconds.
If you couldn’t tell by this review already, I fully recommend watching “Survivor” season 47, as well as all of the other seasons. I love the show for its fun game play, the compelling cast, and the constantly evolving game. If you’re going to sit down and watch reality TV, what’s more exciting, an obviously scripted show with predictable storylines and bland personas, or a show where people are competing in fun challenges and forming genuine relationships? I rate “Survivor” season 47 5/5 stars, and recommend it for anyone.
