Survivor 50: My thoughts on the inclusion of Survivor 49 Players

 

This post is going to be a bit different from the rest of my posts about the cast of Survivor 50 because we have not seen the 49 players play. I want to preface this by saying that I am completely unspoiled on Survivor 49. Anything I say about the players is purely speculation. I will, however, spoil the names of the players competing on Survivor 50, so if you've managed to stay unspoiled on that and want to keep it that way, this post isn't for you.

I'm completely cool with Savannah and Rizo competing on 50. I've seen some discourse where people don't like that players we haven't seen are coming back, but that isn't a new thing. Russell, Malcolm, Zeke, and Michaela all played for a second time before their original seasons aired. I like when returning player seasons represent the newest season, as I like to see how the "new kids" interact with the "seasoned vets." Additionally, I think that both of them probably had notable enough runs to return. Rizo called himself "the Rizz God" in the season trailer, so I imagine he'll be a big character. Savannah is an interesting case because, if you look at the tribe divisions, you'll see that Savannah is on the only tribe with no other winners. Additionally, I've heard that she took Maryanne's spot on the cast (which is a shame, I would have loved to see Maryanne on this season), so I believe that Savannah is going to win Survivor 49. A big character and a winner are notable enough to bring back, assuming my speculation is correct, so I think they deserve to come back.

Now that I've said what I needed to say about Rizo and Savannah, I feel like I should talk about the future of this blog. I will not be posting as frequently now that I've gone through the cast of 50, but would still like to try to post weekly. What will I write about? Reality TV, obviously, and primarily Survivor, but I don't really know otherwise. I'll figure out specifics as I go, as it will really be things I want to write about. I'll also eventually write individual posts for Rizo and Savannah like the rest of the 50 after their runs on 49, so stay tuned for that. In the meantime, thank you to anyone who has read any of these posts, I've really enjoyed going through 50's cast (and talking about casts for other shows), and hope you enjoy whatever I write in the future!

Survivor 50: My thoughts on the inclusion of Kyle Fraser

Previous Season:

Survivor 48 (2025) - 1st Place

I'm happy to see Kyle come back. As I said on my post about Dee, I wish there were more winners! Maryanne should have been on the season, I would have liked Yam Yam, and there are plenty of other winners who would have been good additions too (I do think there's one more on the cast, but I'll get to that in my next blog). Kyle was also one of the few redeeming players of 48. He was actually playing a dynamic and self-interested game, and I thought for the longest time he'd be the runner-up. His edit reminded me so much of Sam and Charlie, the previous runners-up, and Austin to an extent as well. It wasn't until Final Tribal Council where I realized Kyle was actually going to win, and I was really excited about that, because I really liked Kyle. Do I think he'll do well on 50? No. His win will be so fresh in everyone else's minds, the 48 finale aired literally a week before the cast flew out to Fiji. There's no way he even makes merge, but that's the tragedy of winners on All-Stars seasons. Sometimes they'll go far, like Sandra and Parvati on HvV, other times they'll go early, like all the winners on All-Stars, it's hard to say. Better to have loved and lost than not loved at all, and I'll take the risk of heartbreak seeing winners go early, over not having winners come back at all.

Survivor 50: My thoughts on the inclusion of Joe Hunter

 

Previous Season:

Survivor 48 (2025) - 3rd Place

I definitely could have gone without Joe on this season. 48 was, in my opinion, easily the worst season of the New Era, and did not need three representatives, let alone the guy who was responsible for that. Joe's "honor and integrity" preaching created such a boring alliance that steamrolled its way through the season. The only saving grace was that Joe and Eva lost to a player who, while in their alliance, played a much more self-interested game. Joe does seem to be a pretty good guy though. His moment with Eva was truly touching, and I see why production did likes him so much. As I said, I do not need him on the season, but since he is there, I really hope he ditches the honor and integrity thing. Do I think that is likely? No, but maybe he learned from his mistakes and saw that it did not work out for him the first time around. Not likely, but it would make for a much more interesting run than his 48 stint.

Survivor 50: My thoughts on the inclusion of Kamilla Karthigesu

 

Previous Season:

Survivor 48 (2025) - 4th Place

I'm happy to see Kamilla come back, though I am a bit surprised. She kind of got a quiet edit, so I was not sure how much production wanted her back, though I am happy they did. She was super funny, her Olympic confessional was one that I will remember for a long time, and she also had a good strategic mind for the game. I do think it was kind of insane that she went out of her way to tell Kyle she wouldn't take him to the end before they even competed for final immunity, since that then gave me an easy out to not take her (he probably would not have anyway, but she did limit her options, as trying to guilt him into taking her to the end was no longer an option), but thought she was very solid otherwise. I do think her and Kyle are gonna have targets on their backs on 50 as the new hot duo in town, but I think Kyle's will be bigger. If Kyle is voted out early, Kamilla may be able to skate by for a bit, as no one would have to worry about them reuniting at the merge. However, I could also see her getting taken out early, so it really is hard to say how she will do.

Survivor 50: My thoughts on the inclusion of Genevieve Mushaluk

 

Previous Season:

Survivor 47 (2024) - 5th Place

I'm pretty excited for Genevieve's return. After a quiet first couple of episodes on 47, she ended up being one of the stars. Her gameplay was fun to watch, and I really enjoyed her from a character standpoint too. Her turning off her emotions after her guilt from the Kishan boot, but learning that emotions are part of Survivor was a really good arc. I would have liked more 47 representation alongside her, but if I had to pick only one player from that season to come back for 50, it would probably be her. Rachel's a close second, and Sam and Andy are up there too, but a Genevieve return interests me more than any of them. Her husband is also pretty funny on Twitter, so I'm looking forward to his tweets during the season.

Survivor 50: My thoughts on the inclusion of Charlie Davis

 

Previous Season:

Survivor 46 (2024) - 2nd Place

Charlie's return was inevitable, as he was the "you should've won" guy who got "screwed over" by Maria's bitter jury vote in the eyes of a decent chunk of fans (and probably Jeff). Do I personally think Charlie was robbed? Not necessarily, every juror is within their right to vote however they please, and Kenzie is a deserving winner. With that being said, would I have voted for Kenzie if I were on the jury? No, I would have voted for Charlie, and I think Maria in particular not doing so is pretty lame. Charlie has something to prove, so I'm happy to see him come back. I thought he played a pretty solid game on 46, and am interested to see how he navigates the game with the "you should've won" target on his back. I think all of his Taylor Swift mentions are honestly pretty funny, and people who hate him for that specifically are weird. I wouldn't call myself a Swiftie, but hate for her is so forced, and Charlie catches a lot of that hate from that part of the internet that watches Survivor. I'm sure he'll get along with Coach, since Coach is good friends with Ben, who was one of Charlie's closest allies. Would like to see them talk music like Charlie did with Ben. With all that said, I think Charlie earned his spot on the season, and I'm looking forward to watching him play again.

Survivor 50: My thoughts on the inclusion of Q Burdette

 

Previous Season:

Survivor 46 (2024) - 6th Place

If it hasn't been clear from my previous posts, I am ECSTATIC for Q to be back on Survivor. I thought he was hilarious on 46, and knew he was a lock for the next returnee season (granted I also thought Jesse and Carolyn were locks, but I was right in Q's case). Will he become self aware and overuse his catchphrases? Almost certainly, but I don't care. If he doesn't show up to the marooning wearing a Q-Skirt it'll be a BIG MISTAKE and they'll have to cancel Christmas. I don't think he'll do super well, considering that everyone will know what a chaotic player he is, but I don't care. Any amount of Q time will be such a fun ride.