My initial thoughts of the Survivor 43 and 44 casts

 With the casts of Survivor's 43 and 44 leaking, I thought I'd give about a one or two sentence thought on each player.  It'll be interesting to come back after each of these seasons and see how close my first impressions were.

43:

Cassidy Clark - Definitely a bombshell, I think someone or a group of people will find her intimidating.  Mid-merge boot at best.  

Cody Assenmacher - He seems like he'll be one of the more interesting characters.  I could easily see him getting blindsided and having an all-time great reaction.

Dwight Moore - Could be a finale goat or a forgettable boot.  I'm not sure if we're supposed to get too attached to him.

Elie Scott - Likely targeted for being the next Parvati, as many women have before her.  Can she lower her threat level?  

Geo Bustamante - He looks like he says "Bro" a lot.  I cannot see him winning.  

Jay Jones - Will he be more Rocksroy or more Deshawn?  If he's more Deshawn I could see him doing well.

Jeanine Zheng - My dark horse for the season, she looks smart and mature for her age and I could see a deep run, if she can survive the pre-merge.

Jesse Lopez - My pre-pre-season winner pick.  He got a great confessional in the preview for the season and no pure Latino man has ever won Survivor.  About time to change that.

Justine Brennan - Anything from a very early boot to a possible finale player.  Hard to tell.

Karla Godoy - Her confessional about her willingness to do anything I think is a bad sign... I think she'll do something that'll bite her in the butt.

Lindsay Carmine - Early boot or finale loser.  She's the Chrissy of this season.

Mike Gabler - He'll either be like Mike from 42 or Brad from 41.  For his sake, hopefully the former.

Morriah Young - I love her colorful personality and I can't see anyone disliking her.  She should get fairly far.

Noelle Lambert - We haven't had contestant missing a limb since 21, so it'll be interesting to see how she is viewed.  So that makes predicting her finish very difficult.

Nneka Ejere - Can't see her gelling too well.  Even if she gets in a sizable alliance, I think she'll be towards the bottom.

Owen Knight - I think he'll be a fan favorite, like a smarter Woo.  

Ryan Medrano - This season's Jonathan, likely a mid-merge boot.

Sami Layadi - Early boot or finale goat.  Nineteen-year-olds cannot win.


My EARLY final 3 prediction is Jesse, Janine, and Dwight.  


Now for 44:

Brandon Cottom - I remember when he played for the Seahawks (he never made a final 53-man roster, but was in training camp three straight years).  I'll be rooting for him, and I do think he'll do pretty well, based on his application video I watched.

Bruce Perreault - Another Eric Abraham?  He's not quite as old, but he's definitely a longshot to win.

Carolyn Wiger - Her personality will determine everything, if she survives the pre-merge, and how well she'll fit in an alliance.

Carson Garrett - He should do better than Zach in 42, but his age will work against him.

Claire Rafson - Not much to say, I'd have to see her more, but she could do well.

Danny Massa - Reminds me of Voce from 41, appearance-wise.  If he can survive the merge, he's got a shot.

Frannie Marin - She reminds me of Kelyn from Ghost Island.  Hopefully she won't be as emotional.

Heidi Lagares-Greenblatt - She looks like she's going to want things her way, and that's not a good thing.  

Helen Li - Erika 2.0?  She'll likely be a social/strategic threat at some point.

Jaime Lynne Ruiz - I followed her on TikTok; she has good content.  I hope she does well, too.  I think she could.

Dr. Joshua Wilder - Hard to say how well he'll do... don't have much of a read on him.

Kane Fritzler - No exact age, from Saskatchewan... I have a feeling he'll have a tough time fitting in.

Lauren Harpe - I get Shan vibes from her, but not as assertive, which is a good thing.  She could do well.

Maddy Pomilla - Either a great player or early boot.  No in between.

Matthew Grinstead-Mayle - He will rub someone the wrong way.  Or multiple people.  I can't see him doing too well.

Matt ??? - No picture, age, or occupation, just his name and location of San Francisco.  I get the feeling we're not supposed to get too attached to him (like Rocksroy).

Sarah Wade - She'll be an early merge boot, following in the steps of Sydney, Tori, and Lydia.

Yamil "Yam Yam" Arocho - He's like Ricard, Naseer, and Omar rolled into one person.  Could he have all of their good qualities?  Hopefully.  But if he does, he'll be a huge threat.


It looks like Survivor cast very well again, and I'm looking forward to these seasons.  I might come back after these seasons have aired and see how my first impressions were.