I have been watching Survivor since I was young. My family and I used to sit down every Wednesday night and watch the show as it aired. After watching Survivor for so many years, here are my top 10 seasons that I think you need to watch.
Slight spoilers ahead!
10. Winners at war
Winners at War is season 40 of Survivor. This season is one of my favorites. It contains all returning players that have previously won, hence the name.
The season has favored castaways, such as Parvati Shallow and Boston Rob Mariano. Season 40 hits heavy on nostalgia. Some old-school players such as Ethan Zohn and Yul Kwon, who we never thought would return to the screen are also present in the cast.
This season is interesting to watch since all the players know how to play and they know how to win. The strategy as well as the relations between players is fun to watch. As aforementioned, players like Yul and Ethan have to adapt to the new school style of game, we watch either struggle or thrive.
Rob and Amber from All-Stars play the game for the first time as husband and wife as well as ex-couple Wendall and Michele. These relationships outside the game, create changes and alliances within the game.
Overall it is a great season, although I would watch it last unless you want the previous season’s winners exposed.
9. COOK ISLANDS
This season is seen as boring and controversial by some. However, I think it is a great season that gave birth to several survivor legends.
The Cook Islands is season 13 of Survivor. In this season, tribes are separated by ethnicity. The Manihiki tribe is home to Africans, the Rarotonga tribe is Caucasians, the Puka Puka tribe consists of Asians and the Aitutaki tribe is Latinx. Although this is seen as controversial it creates a diverse cast that we hadn’t seen before. We do see more of this in modern survivor seasons.
This season has its moments, from comments by Jonathan Penner, or the love story between Candice and Billy, it is definitely entertaining. This season also provides a survivor twist of mutiny, which creates a shocking moment.
The Cook Islands is the birthplace of Ozzy Lusth, who has gone back to play the game 3 more times, and Parvati Shallow who has played an additional 3 seasons (winning one of them). As well as Jonanthan Penner and Yul Kwon.
Overall this season has good moments and a great cast. It also contains no returning players, making it a great season for new survivor watchers.
8. China
China is the 15th season of Survivor. This season gave us great characters and great gameplay. It blessed us with Courtney Yates, who in my opinion has some of the most entertaining confessionals ever. China is also home to one of the worst moves ever, it’s almost painful to watch.
China also uses its location to its advantage. The season’s opening has beautiful hints of Chinese culture, which is continued throughout the entire season.
Overall this season is filled with masterful gameplay, dynamic characters, and a beautiful location. It is a great season and contains all new players.
7. San Juan del Sur
San Juan Del Sur plays on the Blood vs. Water twist seen in season 27. Loved ones play against other pairs of loved ones. This is season 29 of Survivor.
The loved ones’ pairs create interesting drama as well as heartfelt moments and strategy. Unlike the first blood vs. water season, San Juan Del Sur consists of all new players.
San Juan Del Sur is the season that brought us Jeremy Collins, Kelley Wentworth, and Natalie Anderson, who have all gone on to play several times.
This season has a great sense of humor, drama, and an act of great final revenge from the winner.
6. all-stars
Survivor All-Stars was the first all-returnee season. All-Stars immediately gets into action with the limited supplies and the inability to make fire.
Although the post-merge gameplay is almost frustrating to watch, I must admit, Boston Rob slayed that season.
The cast was also full of colorful characters and great moments. The thing that makes this season most worth the watch is the fact that it is the birthplace of one of reality TV’s most iconic romances. Rob and Amber, or Romber, as we know them. The two had their wedding completely televised and paid for by CBS in a special called “Rob and Amber get married.” The couple also went on the Amazing Race, coming in second. Recently they have played together in Winners at War. So this season is worth a watch.
5. Heros vs. VILLAINS
Here’s where this list gets hard. Heroes vs. Villains is the 20th season. It has one of the best themes, putting the returning players seen to have played the game clean and nice into the hero’s category; the people who played the game dirtier, seen as villains. This season is home to some of the most iconic characters of all time. We see the return of Parvati, Sandra, and Rob as well as Heros such as Colby and Rupert.
The way the tribes are split creates an interesting dynamic between the tribes, as well as within their own tribes, more specifically the villains. The season is almost ironic, by the end of HvV the Heros have all turned to the dark side, betraying and backstabbing one another while the villains (apart from Russel) band together.
This season has some of the best gameplay, and the worst (Im looking at you, JT).
Overall this season is an entire masterpiece and everyone loves a good villain.
4. Pearl islands
One word, pirates. Season 7 is a pirate-themed season, with the tribe names being Morgan and Drake, named after famous pirates. This season has a great soundtrack, my favorite one if I do say. It also has cool pirate-themed challenges and set pieces.
This season has an unforgettable cast. We get Rupert, who fishes all day and roars. We have Sandra who became the first two-time winner in history and we get Jonny Fairplay one of Survivor’s most infamous villains (he pretended his own Grandma was dead to win a challenge!).
The outcast twist also comes into play this season, where voted-off players have a chance to return to the game.
All round, this is one of the best all-new player seasons.
3. Cagayan
Cagayan is the 28th season of Survivor and it is split up into brains, brawn, and beauty. This season has many iconic scenes and characters, such as J’tia dumping the rice and Tony speaking llama (iykyk).
This season has several cast members that have returned to later seasons, such as Tony Vlachos, Spencer Bledose, and several others. This just proves how great the cast is.
Cagayan has beautifully crafted gameplay by Tony and Kass as well as several others. If you enjoy crafty moves, solid gameplay, and beautiful one-liners, this season is a great one to watch.
2. Kaôh rōng
I may be biased with this one. Kaôh Rōng is the season that brought me back. At one point my family had stopped watching Survivor together until one day we did again. That season happened to be 32: Kaôh Rōng. Once again this season is split into brains, brawn, and beauty (hey, it’s a great theme!).
Kaôh Rōng is an interesting season to watch, it’s an all-newbie season with beautiful casting. Season 32 has some crazy characters such as Debbie and Tai.
While this season has wholesome moments, it also holds some extremely bitter moments. In the end, Kaôh Rōng has a well-deserved winner, although it is seen as controversial. This season helps prove that through and through, Survivor is a social game.
1. Micronesia
Season 16- Fans vs. Favorites is a must-watch season. It’s a half-returnee, half-newbie season and both sides of the cast are amazing. We get the return of Ozzy Lusth, and Parvati Shallow, as well as others such as Amanda Kimmel. The fan’s side also gives us memorable players such as Erik Reichenbach and Natalie Bolton.
This season is pure chaos but in the best way. There are several medical evacuations, a fake idol play, and the Black Widow Brigade. Erik also goes down as one of the dumbest survivors in history for a truly iconic move.
The icing on the cake with this season is the final tribal. Jurors like Ozzy and Eliza deliver some of the most painful jury speeches ever. Overall, this season is a must-see.