Survivor Best Players by Season

This is part 3 of 3 of my Survivor posts.

Throughout my rewatch of every season of Survivor, I am picking out who I think played the best overall game that season.  This player isn’t always the person who ended up winning that season, but they often are.  For me, my best player is (if not the best) one of the best at strategizing and doing their best to make sure they were never a target of a vote.  I am looking for solid, all-around players with very few weak spots in their game, so people who were a liability in challenges won’t be on here much, and I considered players more if they were great at challenges.  Basically, based on what I saw, these are the people who I think most deserved the million dollars because I felt they exemplified a true survivor best.  Sometimes that person did not even make it to Day 39 and the Final Tribal Council, due to bad luck, losing the final immunity challenge, a betrayal, or a matter out of their control.  Here they are:

Borneo: Richard Hatch
Survivor was a lot different in its first season, and from what they showed, Rich was the only one who schemed or seemed to plan anything.  Heck, Sean even had his “alphabet strategy” because he didn’t know how else to vote.  Anyway, the producers didn't want Richard to win (instead they wanted Rudy) as Rudy was more likable.  Rich courageously and smartly knew he did not have to win Final 3 immunity as either Kelly or Rudy would take him to the end, so he stepped down and saved his energy.  That’s a ballsy move and one that I have not seen matched since.

Australian Outback: Tina Wesson
I would love to have given this to Colby, but at the final tribal council, it did not sound like Colby wanted to win.  He didn't fight for himself much at all.  I don’t know why he did this, but not having a killer instinct or a strong desire to win will make me not choose someone, and in this case that is Colby.  He was just too honorable to try to make Tina look bad, I guess.  Tina, meanwhile, didn't really get on anyone's bad side, and in a season without a true scheming player, she was able to be the first "nice" player to win.  Keith was close, but he didn’t do enough to justify me picking him over the actual winner, Tina.  Tina was always on the right side of the vote, and once they got Jeff Varner out via a tiebreaker of past votes, they had the numbers advantage and it was smooth sailing for Tina.

Africa: Lex van den Berghe
The first non-winner that was the best player was Lex.  He was easily the biggest challenge threat of the season.  He was such a force in the game that there was a rumor that Kelly had thrown a vote his way (when in fact it was Theresa), and he was able to get Kelly voted out as a result.  His only downfall was the final immunity challenge in which he had a stomach bug that kept him up all night the previous night, costing him immunity, because he physically could not go on further.  But if he had somehow gone to the Final 2 against either Kim or Ethan, he definitely would have won.  Kim knew she had a better shot against Ethan in the Final 2, despite Ethan’s likability.  She knew the jury would’ve respected Lex’s gameplay too much. 

Marquesas: Kathy Vavrick O'Brien
Kathy was definitely the most well-respected player in Marquesas.  Neleh always had Paschal to protect her and Vecepia just scooted by without drawing too much attention to herself or even doing much.  Kathy also was the challenge "beast" of the season, because everyone else was only mediocre.  Just like with Lex, the final immunity challenge cost her.  In this case, it was wearing a low cut top.  We know she would've beaten Vecepia or Neleh if she made Final 2.  Vecepia and Neleh had made a deal behind Kathy’s back to take the other if either won immunity (because each knew they couldn’t have beaten Kathy), so Kathy had to have won that challenge to win the game.

Thailand: Brian Heidik
Brian straight-up lied to people's faces, most notably Ted and Helen.  He told them they weren't going at the next vote, yet they did.  He also was the challenge beast of the season.  This season wasn't known for its great players; in fact, only one player (Shii-Ann) returned to play again that was from this season, and she didn't even make the jury this season.  But Brian was in control pretty much the entire game and was never in danger of being voted out.  Much like with Richard Hatch in Borneo, Brian seemed to be the only real strategist of the season.

Amazon: Rob Cesternino
So far, the best players have either been 1st or 3rd.  Trust me, that will change.  Rob was the one true hard player this season.  Unfortunately for him, turning on Jenna and Heidi (and voting out Alex) cost him.  Also, not winning final three immunity just like Lex and Kathy couldn't, either.  But he basically controlled Matthew in the game and was the first true mastermind of the game.  What would've happened had he stuck with Jenna, Heidi, and Alex?  We'll never know.  But I don't blame him for picking Matthew and Butch; they were much more easily manipulated, and Rob had a VERY good shot at beating either of them in the Final 2. 

Pearl Islands: Sandra Diaz-Twine
Up until this season, no one had played the "as long as it's not me" game better than Sandra.  She always made sure was on the right side of the vote, and it helped that the opposite tribe struggled to win challenges.  However, she did not excel in challenges herself (at all).  In fact, she is still to this date the only Survivor winner not to win a single individual challenge, reward or immunity.  And she did it twice!  She excelled at the final tribal council, giving excellent answers to each of the juror's questions.  My favorite moment of hers was giving Burton and Jon a false sense of security by moping at camp.  She told Jon that she and the other two women did not form a pact to vote one of the guys out, when in fact they did, and she got the biggest threat left in the game in Burton voted out.  She also survived the horrible “outcasts” twist which saw Burton and Lil reintroduced into the game.

All-Stars: Amber Brkich
Now, I so badly wanted to go with Rob on this one.  Rob was the most manipulative player this season by far.  But I have to penalize players who backstab and betray people to the extent that it hurts their chances in the end.  Amber knew what she was doing.  She knew Rob would take all the bullets for her while still making all the decisions together.  She won the Final 4 immunity and I think would've won Final 3 immunity if not for a brain fart in hers in touching the idol with her other hand.  Rob betrayed Lex, Kathy, and Tom, and in some instances, such as with Lex, Rob did not handle it well at all and made Lex look like a fool.  You have to know where to draw the line, and Rob went too far.  Amber did not.  Sometimes the best move is to align with a bad guy, so you look better by comparison.

Vanuatu: Chris Daugherty
Yet again I pick the winner.  Chris went from challenge goat in the very first episode to winning the game.  He formed the "Fat Five" alliance, but once they picked off too many guys, the guys themselves started getting picked off by the women.  Chris then scraped and clawed and lied and deceived his way to the final two.  After that first vote where a woman finally got voted out (Leigh Ann), he was confident the rest of the way.  Sure, he betrayed Julie and Eliza, but they understood it was part of the game and voted for him to win anyway.  He also won the final two immunity challenges.  I think Ami was more of a challenge beast, but towards the end Chris really was in every single one of them, so he greatly improved his game in challenges.  Chris's game reminded me a bit of Brian Heidik's, in that once they got kinda near the end, they were confident in every vote and won the immunity challenges they needed to. 

Palau: Tom Westman
I'm sorry, but we're just in a stretch where the best player wins all the time.  This season wasn't known for its strategists.  Ian seemed to be the one doing the most talking and move-making, but he got caught in too many deals and lies, and ultimately to save face, he had to bow out of the Final 3 Immunity challenge.  Tom, meanwhile, was a beast at challenges, and I bet he set a record for the amount of times he was safe during an episode, whether it be tribal or individual immunity.  He did of course make moves and said things people didn't like, most notably Caryn and Coby, but he won by a margin of 6 votes to 1.  Many will describe him as one of the game's most deserving and likable winners.  Hard to go against that.

Guatemala: Rafe Judkins
I like to pick the challenge beasts, but not just because they do well at challenges.  Rafe had the most immunity wins, but he also did the best to set himself up to win the game.  He and Steph blindsided Jamie, Judd, Lydia and Cindy, yet Steph got all the blame.  Rafe was able to use her as a shield (Like how Amber used Rob).  In a final act of trying to win a jury vote (Steph), he told Danni she didn't HAVE to keep her word and take him to the end.  He did this because he felt bad for Stephanie and the way she fell out of the final immunity challenge.  He also did this in hopes Danni still would take him to the end.  She did not.  Had she taken him to the end, I think Rafe wins 5-2 or even 6-1.  He was well-liked and played the best all-around game, and Danni knew Rafe would have beaten her in the end.

Panama/Exile Island: Cirie Fields
I surprised even myself with this one.  Cirie, to me, played the best strategic and social game.  She engineered getting Courtney and Shane out.  That to me proved she deserved my choice for best of the season.  Aras, the eventual winner, didn't do too much, as I saw Cirie doing more game-planning than him.  It's just a shame she lost the Final 4 firemaking challenge to Danielle.  Had she won that, Cirie probably would have gone to the end and won the whole game.  Aras and Terry had a heated rivalry, and as Aras won the final three immunity he probably would've taken Cirie as he was in an alliance with her as well.  And I honestly think she would've beaten him, not just because of her better strategizing, but because she was more well-liked by everyone, even the people she engineered in voting out.

Cook Islands: Yul Kwon
Was there any question?  Yul found the idol and was able to sway Jonathan over to his side in the most crucial vote of the game.  He went from a tribe down in numbers (just four people) and got them to the Final 4.  He played a very diplomatic and calculated game.  He almost always knew exactly what to say to make the person he's talking to happiest, or in other words, the least upset.  He always talked very politically you might say.  Before the change where the idol could be played after the votes, it was extremely powerful and nobody in two seasons even attempted to flush the idol out, and so they never got played.  He used that to his advantage perfectly. 

Fiji: Yau-Man Chan
It was a close call between Yau-Man and Earl.  What made me choose Yau-Man as best player of the season was that Jeff polled the jury at the reunion show, asking them who they would've voted for if both Earl and Yau-Man were in the final.  Yau-Man got at least 6 of the votes.  Besides that, he was actually better in challenges than Earl and found the idol first.  He was the first person in Survivor history to play an idol successfully, and nobody else this season nor the next played an idol successfully, either.  Yau-Man's downfall was trusting Dreamz, but he was smart to make that deal.  Dreamz should have realized by reneging on that deal he wouldn't get much love from the jury, and Yau-Man was banking on Dreamz realizing that. 

China: Todd Herzog
Todd was in control from the get-go.  It helped to be on the tribe that won more challenges, because if he was on Zhan Hu, he might've been an early boot.  Todd made alliances with almost everyone on his tribe and they all believed he was genuine.  He wasn't particularly good at challenges, with Amanda winning the bulk of the late challenges.  But he was a target from Final 7 on, and he never had an idol in his possession, yet made it by.  He somehow was able to convince Courtney and Amanda and Denise to go to the end with him even though they didn't have a shot against him.  I think he was able to convince the girls they had a shot against him, when actually, they didn’t.

Micronesia/Fans vs. Favorites: Parvati Shallow
Parvati smartly got a lot of people on her side, and she was never pointed out as a threat.  She made alliances with her fellow female Favorites in Cirie and Amanda as well as two female Fans Natalie and Alexis.  She got Ozzy out before he could use the Idol.  She was willing to betray James, but didn't have to because he was medically evacuated.  She spearheaded the Black Widow Alliance and led it all the way to the title of Sole Survivor.  Cirie may have been my first two time pick as best player in a season, but she lost the final immunity challenge.  Also, had this been a Final 3, Cirie may have won, but I still don't think she played the absolute best game.  Parvati did.

Gabon: Kenny Hoang
This is the player who (so far) has placed the worst of all my best players of their season, which is 5th.  In watching the Final Tribal Council, it's evident that none of the best players in the game got to the end.  Sugar didn't get any votes, Susie flip-flopped and did very little strategizing, usually relying on other players to tell her what to do.  And then there's Bob.  Bob was very good in challenges and very good around camp, but did almost no strategizing.  His moves of giving fake idols were other people's ideas.  So to me, Kenny was the best player.  He strategized as well as anyone, executing multiple blindsides, most notably Marcus.  To be able to do that despite Kota dominating in challenges was impressive, although the tribe switches helped.  Kenny's one bad move was getting sure of himself and not realizing he was as big of a threat as he was, but also trying to make Bob out to be the bad guy at the tribal council before he got voted out.  He made a deal with Bob to get his immunity necklace, but Bob reneged on that deal. 

Tocantins: J.T. Thomas
Hard to pick against a guy who played a perfect game, which is to say, never receiving any votes against and receiving every vote at the final tribal council.  He was in danger shortly after the merge, but he made “allies” with Coach and Tyson and Debbie and exploited the fractured Timbira tribe.  It’s amazing that while he was definitely considered a threat to win challenges and the game his entire time there, he never received a single vote against him.  And it’s not like he never went to tribal council vulnerable; his Jalapao tribe lost more than Timbira and he went into the merge down in numbers, and he didn’t win that many immunity challenges (at least not until late in the game).  It’s more impressive to win a game down in numbers after the merge than it is up in numbers.  If it was a close vote at the final TC, I might consider Stephen for this, but Stephen was the Robin to J.T.’s Batman.  Sometimes, just being a really likable person is all it takes to win the game.

Samoa: Russell Hantz
Survivor is a game where it benefits you to lie and deceive people and try to manipulate them, and perhaps no one in the game’s history has done it better than Russell Hantz.  From day one, Russell worked all the women on his tribe and was able to convince the rest of his tribe (Mick, Jaison, Natalie) to vote anyone out that borderline threatened him.  He also was the first person in Survivor history to find a Hidden Immunity Idol without a single clue, and he did it twice.  Nowadays, that’s a common occurrence, but Russell started it.  He entered the merge with a target on his back and greatly down in numbers, but thanks to idols and his manipulating and getting Shambo on his side, he was able to get all the way to the end.  The jury should have swallowed their pride and recognized Russell’s dominating game and voted for him.  His game was a bit like Rob’s from All-Stars, except Russell wasn’t really working with anybody closely.  And Russell didn’t “betray” people quite like Rob did.

Heroes vs. Villains: Parvati Shallow
I couldn’t pick Russell again, because I don’t think he played as good of a game as he did in Samoa, and I can’t pick someone who gets ZERO votes at the final tribal council (if they make it that far).  He played a game that not one person on the jury could respect.  As for Sandra, I just don’t think she did enough in the game.  Sure, she tried exposing Russell for who he is, but she basically lucked herself into the win.  Had the Villains gone to another tribal before the merge, she would’ve been gone.  As for Parvati, she made one of the biggest moves in Survivor history by giving Jerri and Sandra her idols to swing the numbers in the Villains’ favor.  Had she not done that, none of the three of them make the final 3.  And she was challenge beast throughout the season, being in every individual challenge and winning two of the last three.  She should’ve won, but too many of the jury members didn’t like how close she was to Russell.  But like she said, she did what she had to to survive, which at the beginning of the game was aligning with Russell.  All of the Heroes on the jury voted for Sandra because they felt she was the closest thing to a Hero in the Final 3, not because she played the best game.  The only villain to vote for Sandra to win was Courtney who was close to her in the game.  We also can’t forget how Parvati was a target almost all game long, from early on in the game to late in the game, and never got voted out.  To me, Parvati should have been the first two-time winner and not Sandra.

Nicaragua: Holly Hoffman
This was a hard one.  The best strategists of the season, Brenda and Marty, were picked off early.  Chase and Sash both lost to Fabio, but Fabio was just “along for the ride” and was in the finals thanks to some timely immunity challenge wins.  Holly, however, I believe played the very best social game.  She was betrayed by Chase big time and paid the price.  There is no doubt Holly would have won if she had just made it one vote further.  Her story was very inspiring: she went from thinking of quitting to having the desire to win, and she almost did. 

Redemption Island: Rob Mariano
I don’t think one player has ever had this much control for this long in one season.  Boston Rob’s only “lack of control” came early on when his tribe lost some challenges and they had to vote out a few tribe mates.  But the other Zapatera tribe foolishly decided to throw a challenge to get out Russell Hantz, and Rob gained control from there by getting the numbers and controlling his tribe.  He almost treated it like some sort of dictatorship, where Rob did not allow his alliance members  to eat the other tribe’s portions of food or even talk to them alone.  Rob received votes, but only ever from the former Zapatera tribe members.  He even found an Idol that he never needed, and won immunities at crucial times, especially the Final 4 challenge in which I’ve never seen someone so relieved.  I would have to say that you really can’t play a better game of Survivor than Rob did in Redemption Island. 

South Pacific: Sophie Clarke
I seem to be always picking the winner now, but I think the jury got it right this season.  When I first watched this season, I thought the members of the jury were morons.  Now,  I think they chose correctly.  Obviously I had to choose someone in the five alliance as the best.  Rick did no strategizing and was generally poor in challenges.  Brandon was just off his rocker, but he should have gotten more respect from his family.  Albert was too wishy-washy and didn’t play a good social game.  Coach was my next choice, but he made the fatal move of making too many final three deals with people.  I look at Sophie’s game as a cross between Natalie’s of Samoa and Amber’s in All-Stars.  Her intelligence was vastly underrated, and she used a male player as a shield.  You get all the benefit of making the same moves without any of the blame.  And I didn’t even mention Sophie being the best at individual challenges, most notably defeating Ozzy at the Final Four immunity challenge. 

One World: Kim Spradlin
Kim dominated this game, and I think she played one of the best games we have ever seen.  She always put herself in a good position, and then won immunities when it mattered.  Her game was so dominant that she found an idol fairly early on and never came that close to playing it.  Troyzan was the only one who tried to take her out, but she took him out first.  And the biggest thing she did was convincing the other women that she wasn’t a threat to take out.  I would even argue Kim’s game was the most dominant game by a female in the history of Survivor. 

Philippines: Malcolm Freberg
Malcolm was often talked about being the biggest threat or the best player, and rightfully so.  He survived one of the worst tribes of all time, he integrated himself into the Tandang tribe with ease, and he formed a final four alliance with Skupin, Lisa, and Denise, that carried him to the final four.  Unfortunately, he got a F4 challenge that did him in.  I always think if one can find an idol, but they’re always so safe that they never need to play it, that they played a tremendous game, and that was the case for Malcolm.  He played a great social and strategic game, and came one challenge away from winning the million dollars. 

Caramoan: John Cochran
Cochran was never not in control.  Sure, he ceded “actual” control to Philip while Philip was in the game, but that was also a strategy of Cochran’s so that Philip would be the target before he was.  Who knows if or when Cochran would have taken Philip out if the “Three Amigos” didn’t idol him out of the game.  Just when Cochran was starting to be in danger, he won a couple immunities to help guide him to the end.  Cochran also played a perfect game, meaning he didn’t receive any votes against him, and he received all the votes at the Final Tribal Council.  Hard to go against that. 

Blood vs. Water: Tyson Apostol
Tyson was really in control most of the game.  He found two idols before other people, despite them having the same or more clues than him.  He always made sure he had at least two other people with him, usually Gervase and Monica.  He turned on Aras, Vytas, Tina, and Katie at the exact right time.  And then, just when he needed to most, he won individual immunities.  I think I would still have picked him for best player here had he drawn the white rock or if Monica had turned on him.  But it takes a bit of luck to win Survivor as well.

Cagayan: Tony Vlachos
I really could not go with anyone else.  Spencer would be 2nd best, if it’s any consolation.  Tony found a total of three (!) idols throughout his time there.  The funny thing is that he never had to use one to negate votes and save himself.  It was the way Tony talked them up and his “bag of tricks” which scared the other players into not voting for him.  Tony never won an individual immunity challenge, so he was eligible to get votes at every tribal council after the merge.  Yet, he never got the majority of votes.  I don’t like how he broke promises he made on his wife, child, and dead father, but that’s the way he plays, I guess, and it works.  But we have not, and probably will never see again, someone using Idols as a scare tactic better than Tony. 

San Juan Del Sur: Natalie Anderson
I hate always going with the actual winner, but I do think Survivor got better about the best player actually winning.  I was very tempted to award this to Jon, but he got too comfortable in his alliance and also got voted out with an idol in his pocket.  Natalie pulled off several brilliant moves, from “mistakenly” writing Alec’s name down, to blindsiding Baylor with her idol, to convincing Jacqueline that Missy and Keith were the threats she had to choose from.  She won a timely immunity challenge and of course, found an idol.  I was also surprised to learn she didn’t get a single vote against her all game, which is very tough to do.  She didn’t particularly get a winner’s edit, but she was the one player that kept on gaming and strategizing until the end. 

Worlds Apart: Carolyn Rivera
The fact that “Mama C” had to share 2nd place with Will is a travesty.  She smartly used Tyler as a shield until she could not any longer.  She found an idol on Day 1, despite not having the clue.  She knew Joaquin and So were looking for it and followed their footsteps.  She then joined the “Axis of Evil” alliance with the blue collars (minus Mike) and Will.  She won immunities when she needed it, and she played her idol perfectly, negating votes against her which included Dan’s extra vote.  She wasn’t overly impressive at the firemaking challenge against Rodney, which probably hurt her chances.  But she played a superior game to Mike, who made a horrible move to put himself on the outs and had to rely upon winning immunities to stay alive.  Carolyn never seemed to have to scramble, she always seemed like she was in control, and the one time we saw her in trouble, she remained calm.

Cambodia (Second Chance): Jeremy Collins
It’s hard to pick against someone who won unanimously at the final tribal council.  Jeremy played a very smart game.  One smart thing he did was not tell everyone his wife was expecting, as he may have been seen as a jury threat.  He also found two idols.  What always impresses me is when people are so sure of themselves in the game that they can play their idols for other players, and Jeremy did that for Stephen Fischbach.  Jeremy also smartly played his final idol at the “null votes” tribal council, and then won final immunity.  I’d say there was a chance he might have been turned on by Spencer and Tasha if he didn’t win that challenge, but he assured himself a spot at the final tribal council, where he gave some of the best answers I’ve seen there.  Somehow, Jeremy was never seen as a huge threat to win until it was too late, mostly because he aligned himself with people he knew wouldn’t turn on him (at least until it was too late).   

Kaoh Rong: Michele Fitzgerald
This was a very tough one to choose.  The one who outplayed the best was Tai, as he found an idol, won an advantage, and won multiple challenges.  But I went with the actual winner Michele.  I would argue she played one of the best social games in Survivor history.  She was never the backstabber of a vote.  She perfectly skirted between alliances.  The one time she was a target of someone (Tai), no one else wanted to vote for her because she had integrated herself so well.  She was talked about being a social threat late in the game, but she won the final four immunity to ensure her safety.  She then won the advantage to vote out a jury member.  She won challenges when it mattered, and she topped it off with a great final tribal council.  She deserved to win Kaoh Rong. 

Millennials vs. Gen X: Adam Klein
I was so tempted to pick David, but Adam won, and David didn’t.  David played too hard too soon and established himself as a threat.  Adam had about the same level of “outplay” as David, but Adam successfully used people as shields and took them out at the exact right times.  He also smartly didn’t tell anyone (except for Jay) about his mom’s cancer, which would have labeled him as a threat to win.  I mean, Adam did get every single jury vote, and it’s so hard to pick against that. 

Game Changers: Sarah Lacina
Yet again I chose the winner, but I just had to.  Sarah played a very sound strategic and social game.  She had a surprisingly little amount of blood on her hands by the end.  Her best move was getting the legacy advantage from Sierra even after she voted Sierra out.  She went into the game wanting to play like a criminal and not a cop, and boy did she.  She outed Tai, and she made Cirie look like a fool when Cirie tried to play Sarah’s advantage she had given Cirie to hold on to.  Very savvy and impressive game. 

Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers: Devon Pinto
Boy, this was a tough one.  I feel like the final four each had their strengths.  Ben relied too much on idols and that last minute twist, because without it, he was a goner.  Chrissy relied too much on winning immunity.  Ryan couldn’t keep a dang secret, and I think he only made one good move all game, finding the idol advantage and giving it to Chrissy.  But Devon did a good job of ingratiating himself into alliances.  He formed bonds with Healers, Ryan, Chrissy, and Ashley.  Ben saw him as a target, and at Final 5, Devon would have been gone had he not cast his vote for Dr. Mike.  Devon had the best social game, and I’m almost positive if he made it to the end, he would have won. 

Ghost Island: Wendell Holland
I had to go back to picking the winner again.  Wendell played a great social game, used Dominick as a shield, found an important idol, and won timely immunity challenges.  Wendell won the final 6 and 5 immunities.  Little did he know then, that him giving his idol to Laurel at final 5 probably ensured she voted for him in the tie-breaking vote.  That was huge.  He didn’t win the final 4 immunity, but he knew how to make fire so he didn’t have to win it.  Wendell didn’t really piss anyone off, and helped build shelters to help build a very strong social game. 

David vs. Goliath: Nick Wilson
Nick earned this win.  He flew under the radar for the most part, although he had to rely on Pat’s injury (possibly) to survive the first vote.  But after that, he smartly made little alliances with people, even giving them nicknames, like Mason-Dixon with Christian and the Rockstar Alliance with Mike.  What I always think makes a great player late is their ability to come in clutch and win a lot of the final immunity challenges, and Nick did just that.  But perhaps the best thing Nick did was boding with Angelina and Mike, making it very hard for them to turn on him. 

Edge of Extinction: Rick Devens
It’s too bad that everyone saw Devens as the huge threat he was to win.  He was like the Ben Driebergen of his season, finding idols and having a huge target on his back post-merge.  Unfortunately for him, unlike Ben, he did not win the fire-making challenge.  Chris took the opportunity to take him out, and he did just that.  Sure, Rick did get voted out, but he wasn’t out of the game too long.  I also want to add he wouldn’t have been voted out the first time if his tribe wasn’t so awful at challenges.

Island of the Idols: Janet Corbin
I’m not going to go into much detail, because I stopped rewatching at IOI, so  I’m going off my memory of what I remember watching over a year ago.  Janet was extremely likable and did surprisingly well in challenges, I remember.  It’s just unfortunate that in the game of Survivor, if you’re likable, you’re a target.  If Janet gets to the end, I think she beats anyone who finished ahead of her. 

Winners at War: Tony Vlachos
It would have been a travesty if Tony didn’t win.  He won numerous immunity challenges, especially when he needed them most.  He made a core alliance that he stuck with, and he eliminated anyone that opposed him (Kim) or anyone that was flaky (Jeremy, Nick).  He was given so little help in the game that, as he stated at the Final Tribal Council, he got more hurt by advantages than helped by them.  He found an idol, which he didn’t have to play, but after Natalie played hers at Final 6, he realized he better play it safe.  To top it off, he didn’t receive a single vote against him, and he won in a 12-4-0 landslide victory.  Tony is the king of Survivor.
To finish this off, some stats about the players I picked as the best player their season:

- 25 out of 40 times, I conceded that the winner was the best player that season.
- Three of these players received an amount of votes in the double digits: Lex, Carolyn, and Devens (who led the way with 12). Both Devens and Carolyn negated some votes with an Idol. Lex played when there were no idols. - Malcolm and Devens tied for seven individual challenge wins - Of the 40 players, so far 28 have gone on to play after the season I picked them as the best. That's largely thanks to Winners at War. - The lowest my best player ranked is 5th, shared by Kenny (Gabon) and Janet (Island of the Idols).

Survivor's Luckiest and Unluckiest Players of Each Season

 I recently finished watching through each season of Survivor for a second time, and I thought I'd take advantage of that by doing a few posts about the show.  This is part one of a three part series.  In this one, as you can gather from the title, I am going to name the luckiest and unluckiest player of each season.  Survivor requires a certain amount of luck to win (although the winner wasn't always the luckiest player, in fact, they often weren't).  Also, if you have too much bad luck, you can see yourself gone from the game, even though you might have previously been in a good position.  Without further ado, going season by season, the luckiest and unluckiest players:

Borneo, Unlucky: Joel Klug

Something I had almost forgotten about was that Joel got voted out over something incredibly stupid.  Gervase, one of his allies, made a joke about how women are like cows, and Joel laughed along with it.  This upset the women on their tribe, and instead of them targeting the one who told the joke, they went after the guy who laughed about it.  Joel was a force in challenges, and perhaps if he survives until the merge he goes far.  But one laugh at a joke did him in.  Unlucky. 

Borneo, Lucky: Kelly Wigglesworth

Hard to say, as there weren’t really any twists in the game to favor anyone.  Kelly was talked about multiple times about being voted out, but never was.  She basically skirted along, and only had to beat a 70-year-old man in an endurance challenge to get to the end.  Otherwise, she would’ve been as forgetful as most of the other players this season.

Australian Outback, Unlucky: Michael Skupin

Was there any question?  My unluckiest contestants will often be those medically evacuated, if there were any.  I think his evacuation was the reason Kucha fell apart after the merge.  Had their tribe not lost him, they might’ve had the numbers advantage and picked off the Ogakor members one by one.  And Michael could’ve won the game if that happened.  Michael would later make it to the end in a future season, proving he was capable of getting that far.

Australian Outback, Lucky: Tina Wesson

Colby very easily could have (and should have) taken Keith to the end instead of Tina.  Also, Tina very easily could have been voted off because she was a bit of a liability in challenges, but her Ogakor tribe got the advantage in numbers after the merge, and she scooted on after that.  And then, to have Colby not fight for himself much in the final tribal council; hard to argue Tina didn’t get lucky.  She certainly did.

Africa, Unlucky: Lindsay Richter

She got eliminated because of Survivor’s old tiebreaker which was previous votes.  Thank goodness they did away with that.  But she was the last person to be voted out as a result of that tiebreaker, and who knows how far she could have gone if the tiebreaker was changed before Africa.  She wasn’t necessarily in a great position to get far, but who knows?  

Africa, Lucky: Kim Johnson

Kim was close to being an early boot because she struggled in the early challenges.  Once her body (sort of) adapted, she did a bit better.  She scooted on by and then the three guys Ethan, Tom, and Lex, had to turn on each other once she won the final 4 and 3 immunities.  And those two immunity challenges favored Kim, especially the Final 4 one.  She got to the end without much scheming.

Marquesas, Unlucky: Paschal English

No question it’s Paschal, as he was the first person ever to be eliminated on a rock draw.  And the only person to have it happen in the final four.  In future seasons, they would have gone to a firemaking challenge at the final four (now it’s automatic).  I think Paschal would have won that firemaking challenge.  I don’t think he would’ve won the final immunity challenge, but I think Neleh would have taken him because they were so close.  So Paschal was very close to potentially winning the game, and an unlucky draw of the purple rock may have cost him a million dollars.

Marquesas, Lucky: Vecepia Towery

She was on the wrong side of the numbers, but she got taken to the end, anyway.  She was never seen as a threat to win, although she should have been.  Rarely do people on the wrong side of the numbers get to the end, but when they do and win, that’s pretty darn lucky of them, in my opinion.

Thailand, Unlucky: Jake Billingsley

Honestly, this could have gone to any member of the old Sook Jai tribe.  They got screwed by a late merge and went into the merge down in numbers as a result.  I picked Jake because he was the last member of Sook Jai left standing.  They originally started out in the season dominating, but lost too many immunities late.  Jake might’ve won if they had the numbers at the merge.

Thailand, Lucky: Brian Heidik

The only reason I can think of for Brian being lucky is that Brian was put on a tribe with a bunch of players who couldn’t take control of the game.  He lucked out by being on the right side of the numbers, post-merge, and then lucked out by having easy to manipulate tribemates.  He was also lucky because none of his tribemates banded together to get rid of him.  Honestly, a lot of players in Survivor history put in his position would have won the game, too.

The Amazon, Unlucky: Ryan Aiken

Sometimes I pick the first boot because of how the game starts, and Ryan sure drew the short straw in this one.  Daniel was the one who cost the men the first immunity challenge, but ultimately Ryan paid the price.  That first immunity challenge was one they should have won, but Daniel couldn’t balance and kept falling off.  Ryan could’ve been a big player in this game had he been given a chance.

The Amazon, Lucky: Jenna Morasca

She was never a dominant force in challenges, and easily could have been picked off.  She also was lucky that Rob didn’t win Final 3 immunity, and went to the finals with a scrub like Matthew.  And she was a bit lucky that Heidi went home instead of her at final 5, because those two were interchangeable, according to the Survivors that season.

Pearl Islands, Unlucky: Andrew Savage

The Morgan tribe was one of the worst tribes I’ve ever seen.  They sucked.  And Andrew was one of their only competitors and their leader.  He had a good chance of going far and perhaps winning if his tribe doesn’t suck at challenges.  Watching him struggle to keep his team’s spirits up was definitely hard to watch.  He was unlucky to be paired with a bunch of losers, most notably a quitter in Osten.

Pearl Islands, Lucky: Lillian Morris

Being put back in the game after being voted out is pretty darn lucky if you ask me.  Lil ended up making it all the way to the end and almost won, even though she had previously been voted out.  Of course, her luckiest moment was when her fellow outcasts voted her back into the game.

All-Stars, Unlucky: Lex van den Berghe

Rob screwed over Lex big time.  Lex saved Amber for Rob, only to have Rob break his word with him and send him home.  Lex was a huge player in the game and Rob knew it.  I honestly feel if Rob wasn’t in the game to screw Lex over, Lex would have won.  Lex was a very good social and strategic player in both of his seasons.

All-Stars, Lucky: Amber Brkich

Amber was saved by Lex when she very easily could have been voted out.  She then formed a bond and relationship with Rob and was lucky to have him in the game.  I think Amber would agree she was very lucky this season in more ways than one.

Vanuatu, Unlucky: Brook Geraghty

This is the second time I have picked a first boot, but Brook got screwed by the fact his tribe had more older or out of shape men than they had young, fit men.  Not only that, but he was the one the “Fat Five” picked to go home first.  Unlucky.

Vanuatu, Lucky: Chris Daugherty

The girls easily could have banded together to get him out as he was the last man standing, but they decided to fight amongst each other, instead.  Chris also survived the first vote in which he could’ve gone after struggling in the first immunity challenge.  

Palau, Unlucky: Jonathan Libby

I was so tempted to pick Steph or Bobby Jon, but they had their chances.  Jonathan did not.  He and Wanda were picked by their tribes as first boots without even really getting a chance in the game.  Jonathan really could’ve gone far in the game, but Wanda was annoying others so she didn’t have much of a chance, regardless of the twist.

Palau, Lucky: Katie Gallagher

Katie was pretty awful in challenges, and if her tribe wasn’t as dominant as they were, she would’ve been a semi-early boot.  She also went to the end because Ian bowed out, when we know the final two should’ve been Ian and Tom.  

Guatemala, Unlucky: Brian Corridan

The second (and so far, most recent) guy named Brian to play Survivor, Brian Corridan got screwed by a tribe switch.  He was playing a really good social and strategic game, but ultimately got blindsided.  Many saw him as a Rob Cesternino-type player (but more likable), but he never got the chance to prove himself.

Guatemala, Lucky: Danni Boatwright

Danni was on her own after Gary got voted out yet somehow made it to the end and won the game. She won the final immunity and in a way lucked out in Rafe telling her she didn’t have to take him.  So she didn’t, took Steph instead, and won the game.

Panama, Unlucky: Tina Scheer

They divide the tribes by gender and age, and predictably the older women lose.  Tina was by far their best player and provider, but the other three just didn’t want to play with her.  Had she been put on a normal tribe, she could’ve done really well in this game.  On a semi-related note, Tina’s also been unlucky with her personal life as she lost her son unexpectedly before her season. :(  

Panama, Lucky: Aras Baskauskas

Aras wasn’t ever really a huge strategic or social player.  He lucked out in Cirie losing to Danielle at the fire-making challenge, because if Cirie won, he’d have been forced to take her to the end (if he won F3 immunity), because otherwise he would’ve looked bad for breaking his alliance with Cirie.  The only way Aras wins from Final 4 on is going against Danielle in Final 2, and that’s exactly what happened.  He would’ve lost to Cirie or Terry.

Cook Islands, Unlucky: Jenny Guzon-Bae

I think she’s the only contestant to ever be screwed over by a surprise double elimination tribal council.  That’s not really fair, as you go into tribal you’re thinking you only have to survive that one particular vote.  Then, Jeff springs on you that you’re voting again?!  Not exactly fair.  Doesn’t give people (in this case, Jenny) a chance to scramble and save themselves.

Cook Islands, Lucky: Yul Kwon

He was able to align with the biggest challenge threat (maybe ever) in Ozzy, but the main reason he was lucky was in finding the idol (he was lucky at the timing of going to Exile Island), and having a Super Idol that could be played after the votes.  And he lucked out in Penner picking his side, because if he hadn’t, Yul would not have made it to the end and won. 

Fiji, Unlucky: Anthony Robinson

Anyone on the original Ravu tribe could be put here, as they had to live with less food and a much worse shelter in one of Survivor’s worst twists ever.  However, Anthony was constantly picked on, most notably by Rocky.  If he had been on the other tribe or if he could’ve survived the merge he could've gone far, maybe making an alliance with Earl, who he got along with.

Fiji, Lucky: Earl Cole

Earl did indeed start out on the bad Ravu tribe, but the tribe switch happened and he went to the better tribe.  He was able to coast along then, and people just wanted to be on his side so he was able to coast until the end.  He also lucked out that Dreamz went back on his word to Yau-Man, because otherwise Yau-Man beats Earl in the final.

China, Unlucky: Aaron Reisberger

Aaron got one of the biggest shafts from producers all time.  The tribes were allowed to pick two players from the other tribe to join their tribe.  Then, the other players on Aaron’s new tribe exploited this twist by throwing the immunity challenge and voting him out, since he was considered a threat.  Sure, Todd probably would have backstabbed him at some point if not for that twist, but it would’ve been interesting to see how far Aaron could have gotten had he not been screwed over by the tribe switch.

China, Lucky: Todd Herzog

Todd lucked out by being on the better tribe at challenges, because otherwise he probably would’ve been an early boot.  Being a scheming player that’s not particularly good at challenges is a bad combination, at least on a bad tribe.  He was also lucky that none of his alliance members turned on him when they should have, and they easily could have switched over to Peih-Gee and/or Erik and taken him out.

Micronesia, Unlucky: Jonathan Penner

Penner was unlucky mostly because he had to leave because of an injury to his leg.  It killed him inside to leave, but he had no choice.  He was also unlucky at challenges, often voicing his displeasure to Jeff.  

Micronesia, Lucky: Natalie Bolton

Natalie was never that great of a player until the Black Widow Brigade formed.  She hardly had any spotlight until then.  She then lucked out in Erik giving her his immunity necklace.  She also was lucky Parvati approached her and Alexis to form an alliance, and lucked out in that Alexis was picked off before her.

Gabon, Unlucky: Ace Gordon

Ace was another player screwed over by a tribe switch.  He not only was screwed over by that, but was screwed over by who he thought was his closest ally in Sugar.  Ace was definitely seen as a threat, but how would he have fared had he made the merge?  We’ll never know.

Gabon, Lucky: Sugar Kiper

Sugar lucked out in being on the dominant Kota tribe at the beginning, and then was able to scoot by on Fang after the tribe switch, even though she was a liability at challenges.  She made it to the end by scooting by and never being a target.  And, in my opinion, she was actually lucky to go to exile island so many times, because after finding the idol she was able to use it as a place to relax under a roof and get food.

Tocantins, Unlucky: Joe Dowdle

Another player that was medically evacuated was Joe.  He wasn’t a huge threat in any way, but that’s why he could have made it really far.  His exile alliance with Erinn could’ve helped propel him to final 5 or 4 or even 3.

Tocantins, Lucky: J.T. Thomas

J.T. lucked out first by his alliance finding an idol (but not him directly).  He also lucked out because the opposing Timbira tribe was fractured and turned on each other.  If they were a solid whole, J.T. would have been the first boot after the merge, as he was a known threat.

Samoa, Unlucky: Russell Swan

Poor guy was playing his heart out and it cost him.  His tribe was absolutely dominating, and if he had made the merge, there’s no way his old Galu tribe would have crumbled the way they did.  Sure, he probably would’ve been picked off before the finals for being a threat to win, but he certainly would have had a shot.

Samoa, Lucky: Natalie White

Natalie lucked out in being the last remaining girl on Foa Foa.  She could have gone when girls like Marisa and Ashley did, but she didn’t.  She also lucked out when Eric basically convinced the jury to vote for her.  And in hindsight, it’s pretty lucky to be taken under the wing of one Russell Hantz, as he protects those in his alliance well and is unable to beat them in the finals.

Heroes vs. Villains, Unlucky: Stephanie LaGrossa

Boy, I feel so bad for Stephanie.  She is such a fierce competitor, and she got caught on the wrong side of the numbers on a Heroes tribe in the midst of losing a bunch.  I think she might’ve been a force post-merge and perhaps may have stopped J.T. from giving his idol to Russell.  At the very least, I think she could have taken Colby’s place as the last remaining Hero.  Hey, Colby was the last member of his alliance, and Steph very well could have been in his spot. 

Heroes vs. Villains, Lucky: Sandra Diaz-Twine

Sandra was lucky the merge wasn’t prolonged because otherwise she was a goner.  She also was lucky that the Villains were more focused on the Heroes than her (and Danielle for one vote).  She lost her alliance before the merge, yet made it all the way to the end and won, mainly because the mostly Heroes jury favored anyone that had nothing to do with Russell, which was Sandra.

Nicaragua, Unlucky: Tyrone Davis

It was pretty hard to pick out someone who was unlucky, but if that’s ever the case, I just look to the tribe switch or any other twist and see who immediately got voted out.  That would be Tyrone, who not only gets screwed by the tribe switch but by his long time tribemate Holly.  He kind of dug his own grave by being too bossy and eating too much chicken, but the tribe switch still really hurt him.

Nicaragua, Lucky: Fabio Birza

Fabio could have been an early vote off because of his clashing with NaOnka, who had a tight alliance.  Then, after NaOnka and Purple Kelly quit, it was down to him and Benry as to who was the next to go, and the majority chose Benry, deeming him a bigger threat.  Fabio lucked out in not being chosen there.  Then he lucks out with immunity challenges he can beat Chase and Sash at, and gets all the way to the end.  To top it off, he wins by one vote.  That’s pretty darn lucky if you ask me.  

Redemption Island, Unlucky: Russell Hantz

His luck finally ran out.  He was put on a tribe so determined to get him out that they threw the challenge.  Russell usually could control his tribemates in seasons past, but not this time.  I think if he had instead been put on the Ometepe tribe, he would’ve been able to control the girls and Grant (Just like Rob did), and he could’ve either controlled Phillip or gotten him voted out early.  Then, to top it off, he went to Redemption Island where he had to face off against Matt who won all but one dual out there.    

Redemption Island, Lucky: Phillip Sheppard

Phillip is darn lucky that he wasn’t an early boot.  He quarrelled with the girls on his tribe, Rob (on occasion), and almost every member of the former Zapatera tribe once they merged.  With how he acted, he was lucky he had Rob to protect him.  Most players in control would have gotten so tired of him that they would’ve taken him out well before Final 3.  Phillip even lucked out by getting a vote at the Final Tribal Council to make him the runner up and not Natalie.  

South Pacific, Unlucky: Keith Tollefson

I could really choose any of the former Savaii tribe for this, but I chose Keith because he was the first to go.  He and the rest of his Savaii alliance got screwed by Cochran, when a 1-10 rock draw really wouldn’t have been a terrible idea.  Then, Ozzie plays his idol, not for his closest ally in Keith, but for Whitney.  Keith then gets voted out by the former Upolu plus Cochran.  To top it off, Keith had to go against Ozzie in a duel.  In the prior season, you only had to either not be last or first out (for endurance challenges).  But they changed it that you had to win and beat everyone to stay alive.  Otherwise, Keith might have had a shot.  At least he was lucky in the end, meeting his future wife on this season, Whitney.

South Pacific, Lucky: Brandon Hantz

Brandon is so lucky the rest of the former Upolu tribe didn’t turn on him earlier.  He was the very definition of a loose cannon.  He also could not keep his mouth shut.  Like Phillip in the previous season, his only redeeming quality was his loyalty.  But we have seen on other occasions where players were voted out for being too disruptive or talkative, despite being in the stronger alliance.  Brandon is also lucky he wasn’t targeted almost immediately after he revealed himself to be Russell Hantz’s nephew.  

One World, Unlucky: Jonas Otsuji

My first thought was to pick Monica, as she was an obvious choice being the first boot after a tribe switch.  However, she was on the outs on the women’s tribe anyway and probably wouldn’t have made it far regardless.  However, Jonas kinda got screwed.  He gets put on the worst tribe after the switch, then after they merge, he gets targeted despite him providing food and not upsetting anyone (other than Tarzan).  Now Colton and Courtney were medically evacuated, but Courtney idiotically didn’t listen to Jeff’s directions for the challenge, and we later found out in Blood vs. Water that Colton basically feigned an appendicitis to get out of the game.  To me, Jonas was the unlucky one.  Also, they should have brought him back for a future season.  

One World, Lucky: Sabrina Thompson

I really could have picked any of the girls that made it to the final three, but I feel like Sabrina was lucky to make it there, having been talked about by others as a possible boot a few times.  She also luckily got a few votes at the final tribal.  She was lucky to find the idol (although not lucky that she couldn’t use it), but she was also lucky to not have a target on her back for giving an idol to Colton.  Sabrina wasn’t a very memorable player and to get runner up was pretty lucky of her.  

Philippines, Unlucky: Malcolm Freberg

Not only does Malcolm get put on one of the worst tribes in Survivor history, but that final four challenge was the one challenge he could have lost, given he had an advantage going in.  Looking at the final immunity challenges throughout the show’s history, Malcolm beats everyone at all of them (with an advantage) except that particular one.  It’s almost as if the show knew about his shaky hands and wanted to prevent him from getting to the final 3.  That’s probably not the case, but like Ozzy in South Pacific, he got jipped at the final immunity challenge, costing him the million dollars.  

Philippines, Lucky: Abi-Maria Gomes

For the first time, my lucky player did not make it further than my unlucky player.  Abi was one of the most intolerable contestants of all time, and unlike the case with Phillip Shephard, it was not an act.  She could have gone when Pete or Artis did.  Then, when she was rumored to be the next to go, she wins an advantage for immunity at the auction, and of course the last part of the immunity challenge, untying knots, is something Abi can do.  Then, she lucks out by the foursome alliance realizing Carter is a threat, so they take him out over her.  She made it way further than she should have.  

Caramoan,  Unlucky: Matt Bischoff

Yet again, a good person screwed over by a twist/tribe switch.  In this case, it was both in the form of a surprise tribe switch.  Matt was unlucky by ending up on the tribe easily worse in physical strength, and then he got unlucky by being the one of the three fans that the favorites chose to vote off.  Matt was a very amenable and likable guy, willing to work with the favorites on his tribe come merge time, but he just drew the short straw.  He also in a way was unlucky in that Corinne pulled for Michael over him, simply because Michael is gay.  Had he been another straight guy (Eddie or Reynold), they would have voted them out over Matt.  Tough break.

Caramoan, Lucky: Sherry Biethman

Sherry wasn’t particularly lucky in her “Fans” tribe sucking at challenges or the fact that a close ally of hers, Shamar, had to leave the game.  But the tribe switch greatly benefited her.  She got put on the superior tribe, which kept her safe.  Had she been on the other tribe (instead of say, Julia), she would have definitely been one of the two vote-offs before the merge.  Then, her name comes up after the merge, but the favorites decide to turn on Corinne for her scheming.  Then Sherry basically gets dragged to the end as a “goat”.  She definitely lucked into third place.  

Blood vs. Water, Unlucky: Katie Collins

Hard to not pick someone who lost at the rock draw.  Katie was obviously unlucky when she drew the white rock.  She was also unlucky being on the worst tribe at the beginning, but that was because she was a loved one and not a returning player.  She did sort of luck out in being the first to play with their loved one, but yet again she was unlucky after the tribe switch in the fact that again she was on the worse tribe, challenge-wise.  She didn’t get a duel at redemption island that favored her skill set and was beaten by her own mother.  Unlucky.

Blood vs. Water, Lucky: Gervase Peterson

Gervase was lucky because he was always protected by someone or an alliance or by being on the better tribe.  He struggled big time in the first challenge, yet his tribe still ended up pulling it out.  Had they not come back and lost, he was a very likely first boot.  He then was protected by Tyson, as they were not only always on the same tribe, but the best tribe.  After the merge, Tyson continued to protect him.  He was also lucky when Tyson didn’t draw the white rock, as that would have meant Gervase was going next.  There was a reason Gervase didn’t get a single vote at the final tribal council.  

Cagayan, Unlucky: Spencer Bledsoe

I won’t argue Spencer had the highest percentage of bad luck as he did find an idol, he made it to final 4, and he survived a few votes where he was in trouble.  But he had the most amount of bad luck in the game.  First, he is put on the worst tribe, and he demonstrated himself to be the only intelligent player on his tribe.  He has to fight his way tooth and nail through the merge and after it.  At the auction, he and Tony drew rocks to determine who would get the clue to an idol, and of course, Spencer lost.  I also think if he had won the final four immunity, in which he was very close to doing so, he would have also won final three immunity and therefore the game.  If Kass’s husband had not been at the final four immunity, she would have struggled even more on her pole than she did, and Spencer would have won that challenge.  That close.  

Cagayan, Lucky: Woo Huang

For starters, Woo was put on the best tribe.  He survived his alliance members Cliff and Lindsey leaving.  He was definitely on the outs at that point, but a timely tribe swap helped him.  He then was still on the outs a bit after the merge, but Tony pulled him under his wing.  Tony easily could have considered Woo a threat and taken him out around the time he took out LJ or Sarah.  Woo then won the final immunity over Kass by less than a second (according to Jeff Probst).  He had the opportunity to win the game with a lot of luck involved, but unfortunately did not make the choice on who to bring to the end which would have won him a million dollars.

San Juan Del Sur, Unlucky: Kelley Wentworth

It was hard to pick someone for this, but I’m going with Kelley Wentworth.  She did start out on the better tribe with a solid alliance, but after the tribe swap she was put on the worst tribe with her dad as her only alliance member.  She and her dad were against Baylor and Missy, and Jon sided with Baylor and Missy, eliminating her.  It was also unlucky that her father couldn’t make it another vote further, as he was next to go.  As we later saw in future seasons, Kelley is a legit all-around good player and could have done very well in this season, but was never really given a chance.  

San Juan Del Sur, Lucky: Natalie Anderson

Losing your loved one early in a BVW season is actually a blessing in disguise.  Each winner of BVW has used losing their loved one as motivation to win the game.  Anyway, Natalie was put on the better of the two tribes and remained there after the switch.  She did lose her closest ally, Jeremy, and she was next on the chopping block but she was then forgotten about.  She also found an idol with Baylor that she got to use instead of her.  When she “mistakenly” wrote down Alec’s name, her alliance members believed her that she had made a mistake.  She’s lucky they weren’t smarter to realize she was playing them.  She then was lucky Jacqueline, Missy, and Keith didn’t realize she was the biggest strategic threat.  Natalie played well, but she also required a bit of luck to skirt on by and win the season.

Worlds Apart, Unlucky: Max Dawson

Max was a good-all around player that got screwed by a tribe switch.  Sure, he was a bit annoying to the other players, but most considered Shirin more annoying, yet they sent Max home first.  Max may have been safe from the tribal council he got voted out at if he wasn’t stung by a jellyfish.  Because he was unfortunately stung by a jellyfish, he had to soak his feet in hot water, which disgusted the tribe and was a contributing factor to them voting him out.  Who knows how far Max gets if he doesn’t get stung by a jellyfish.  

Worlds Apart, Lucky: Will Sims

Will wasn’t lucky to be on the No Collar Tribe, which in challenges was the worst of the “Collars”.  But he was lucky to survive multiple votes despite struggling in challenges.  He also wasn’t very loyal to the remaining No Collars, which he proved after the merge.  He lucked into an alliance with Rodney and others.  He berated Shirin, which would have resulted in most people getting voted out, but not Will.  He made it all the way to the end, and even got to tie for second place with Carolyn, despite her playing a clearly superior game.  Will should have been an early vote out, but ended up lucking his way into a tie for 2nd.  

Cambodia: Second Chance, Unlucky: Peih-Gee Law

Peih-Gee was screwed by the game non-stop.  She got put on the weaker tribe in challenges, and she got put with a player very hard to get along with in Abi-Maria.  There is a tribe swap in the third episode which could have reversed Peih-Gee’s fortunes, but they only made it worse.  She got put with Abi-Maria on the new tribe that had to assemble a new shelter.  Their tribe was screwed by this twist because while other tribes could forage or fish for food (or rest), they had to work to build a shelter.  They predictably lost the immunity challenge, and unfortunately Peih-Gee’s foursome couldn’t stay strong together.  Abi-Maria being harder to work with should have been the target, but Varner, Savage, and Tasha decided to go with Abi and vote out Peih-Gee, who in my opinion never had a chance.  

Cambodia (Second Chance), Lucky: Kelly Wentworth

Kelley never did a ton to ingratiate herself into an alliance or even “voting blocks” as they mentioned many times this season.  She was commonly mentioned as someone that could be voted out.  She luckily found an idol clue which led to an idol at a challenge.  Then the luckiest moment of the season for anyone happened to her when an idol clue was attached to her medal as part of the reward challenge.  She even remarked at how lucky she was.  These clues also said exactly where the idols were.  She lucked out when most of the tribe went out to the water, and then Abi went to the hammock.  She lucked out in finding it before everyone came back.  She earned F5 immunity, but to get to 4th place and never really having many true alliance members is pretty lucky if you ask me.

Kaoh Rong, Unlucky: Neal Gottlieb

There were quite a few unlucky players this season.  There was also Caleb and Joe who were also medically evacuated.  There was Anna who was screwed by the tribe swap.  There even were all the Brawn members who got screwed by being on a crappy tribe (and none making it to the finals).  I picked Neal, not only for his medical evacuation (an infection on his leg), but for the remove a juror twist.  Neal made it far enough in the game to at least have a say in who wins the game.  He didn’t even get voted out and then Michele picks him to be removed from the jury.  So Neal made it fairly far, didn’t even get voted out, and didn’t get a say in who won.  Let’s not forget he had a hidden immunity idol, so he had a decent shot of getting very far if not for his infection/medevac.  

Kaoh Rong, Lucky: Michele Fitzgerald

Michele said at the final tribal council that she didn’t rely upon luck to get where she was, but luck did play a huge part.  She (and Nick) didn’t go to Tribal for the first 22 days thanks to always being on a superior tribe in challenges.  She never had a very strong alliance all game, yet was rarely the target.  She also lucked out in the remove a juror twist, as well as there not being a final 2.  With the final 4 vote out happening on Day 37, it looked like there might be a final 2.  If there was a final 2 and Michele doesn’t win immunity, she is more than likely the target for either Tai or Aubry. 

Millennials vs. Gen X, Unlucky: Jessica Lewis

Like I’ve said before, hard to go against someone who gets eliminated via a rock draw.  It was also a rock draw with the most amount of people left in the game in Survivor history, so Jessica only got to 10th.  Not only that, but she fell one day shy of the loved one’s visit.  Ouch.  She did get lucky with David saving her with his idol before the merge (because otherwise she’s a goner), but who knows how far she could have gone had she not drawn the black rock.  

Millennials vs. Gen X, Lucky: Hannah Shapiro

This girl flip-flopped and yet made it all the way to the end.  She panicked and showed anxiety, yet her tribe never targeted her for being a weak player.  She generally was in a tribe that did well on challenges (despite her not being the reason they won).  She was on the Ikabula tribe that won all but one challenge.  She then went back from Zeke to Adam to David to Ken, not really sticking with any one person, yet no one targeted her.  She would have been picked off in a lot of other seasons.

Game Changers, Unlucky: Sandra Diaz-Twine

Seems weird for me to say this, but we know Sandra’s one of the best players in Survivor history.  She took out Tony and she took out J.T.  She was not in a bad spot… until the tribe swap happened.  After the tribe swap, she was in the minority with Jeff Varner as her only ally.  She didn’t stand much of a chance.  If she had not been screwed by the swap, she may have been taken to the end, as many people were considering it since they thought no one would give her a third sole Survivor title (and third million dollars).  And she may have just won yet again.  

Game Changers, Lucky: Troyzan Robertson

Hard to pick a “lucky” player this season.  Troy was just a non-entity in this season.  He did find an idol, but that literally was his only highlight.  He hid in Culpepper’s shadow the rest of the season, and he’s lucky he wasn’t targeted one of those times Culpepper won immunity.  If you get to the end without doing much, while you probably will not win, you will often get my lucky player of the season.  

Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers, Unlucky: Devon Pinto

It’s weird to say someone who got 4th is unlucky, but I think Devon wins HHH if he has a semblance of luck.  We can’t forget the “This is not an advantage moment” when his vote was blocked pretty early on, costing him to lose a possible ally in Alan.  But the unluckiest part of all is the automatic fire-making that no one in the final 4 knew about until they got to 4, and Devon had to face off against Ben and lost.  Chrissy and Ryan absolutely would have voted Ben out, but the game almost seemed to be rigged in Ben’s favor.  If the game goes by the old rules, Devon almost assuredly wins.  

Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers, Lucky: Ben Driebergen

We know from above why Ben is the luckiest player this season.  He found three straight idols as well.  He must have lucked out in finding the idol that was in their camp, because he obviously got lucky in having time to find it without anyone seeing him.  He didn’t win a single individual immunity challenge, yet relied on idols and the fire-making twist to get to the end.

Ghost Island, Unlucky: Michael Yerger

Michael was a player.  He fought hard, found two idols, and had to fight to get through every vote.  He was by bad fortune put on the awful Malolo tribe, which lost a huge majority of challenges.  He was the only player in the game to never leave the Malolo tribe, an unlucky distinction in and of itself.  He would later draw the short straw when he gets put on a temporary “tribe” of five with Wendell, Dominick, Laurel and Kellyn, with Laurel the only original Malolo, but she was close to Wendell and Dom.  Michael literally had no shot after that and was promptly voted out.  If they ever bring him back, we’ll see how well he could have done with a bit more luck.

Ghost Island, Lucky: Donathan Hurley

Donathan did get put on Malolo at first, but then was quickly swapped away from it, unlike Michael.  He became a huge social and strategic threat, but wasn’t targeted for the longest time.  He even spat off at Dominick at one tribal, yet survived that vote.  Many thought he would’ve been an easy early vote due to his lack of challenge prowess, but he just slithered on by each vote.  He also went on a lot of rewards, most notably with his aunt.  

David vs. Goliath, Unlucky: Bi Nguyen

Who knows how far Bi would have gotten if she hadn’t hurt her knee.  She technically goes down as a “quitter”, but she had to look out for her career in which she needs to protect her knees.  She also lost a close ally in Jessica early and didn’t really get to enjoy an immunity win.  She was relied upon in the hero role on the David tribe (Alec on the Goliaths), and I think she gets pretty darn far being a solid UTR player had she stayed healthy.  

David vs. Goliath: Lucky: Nick Wilson

Nick certainly relied on luck to get through his season.  He was the target of the very first vote until Pat hurt himself on the boat ride back from a challenge.  If not for that accident, there’s a good chance Nick is voted out first.  Then, Nick was on a pretty bad tribe after the swap, yet survived each vote until the merge.  He then avoided being the target of the vote until the end.  He and the Davids got outnumbered by the Goliaths after the merge, yet they refused to band together to get to an all Goliath final three.  Although, Nick winning immunities certainly helped. 

Edge of Extinction, Unlucky: Lauren O’Connell

She was put on the one of the worst tribes in Survivor history, for one.  Also, she seemed to go the longest of anyone without any good food.  She found a very-well played fake idol made by Devens, which is unlucky as most Survivor players would think there’s a chance it was real.  She even speculated that it might not be.  I feel like if Lauren had been on the Kama tribe she could have dominated this game.  Instead, she was basically the only good challenge player on Manu (after they voted Chris out).   

Edge of Extinction, Lucky: Chris Underwood

From 3rd voted out to winner.  How lucky can you get?  He won the challenge to get back in, which wasn’t luck based but he was lucky Joe’s 2nd ball fell (lol).  He lucked out in Devens giving him back the second half of his idol, because if he hadn’t, Chris was gone.  He won final immunity fortunately for him, because if Devens won that challenge he wins the game.  

Island of the Idols, Unlucky: Lauren Beck

This was a hard one to choose, mainly because anyone who went home pretty much deserved it.  Lauren played a really good game, similar to Tommy’s, and I’m still to this day surprised Noura took Tommy to the end.  Tommy is the only player to be taken to the end at the final four (when there’s a firemaking challenge) and win.  If Lauren had been taken to the end, there’s a good chance she beats Noura, and if Dean beats Tommy at firemaking, I think Lauren wins it all.  Close, but no cigar.

Island of the Idols, Lucky: Karishma Patel

How many votes did she survive?  A crazy amount, that’s what.  Karishma set the record for most votes received during a single season.  And unless there’s a significant rule change, she will probably hold that record forever.  Many players called her insufferable and hard to work with, yet she made it all the way to 8th.

Winners at War, Unlucky: Ben Driebergen

Why Ben?  Mainly because he was never given the opportunity for any advantages, nor was he ever given fire tokens.  The guy had to work for everything he earned.  I’m not sure if it was strategy or not, but him telling Sarah she could vote for him cost him the game.  His tribes also often went to tribal council as they often struggled in challenges.  

Winners at War, Lucky: Natalie Anderson

The luckiest player in Survivor history?  Perhaps.  She gets voted out first.  On the Edge, she finds multiple advantages and fire tokens, sometimes by luck.  She gets back in the game, and she finds another idol.  She gets to the very end of the game despite being voted out first.  She’s so lucky that the Edge of Extinction was in play this season, otherwise she would have been just an afterthought.