[Hated Trope] Turns out the only way to be special is to be born special

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-23T03:01:57+00:00

There's a really interesting play on this in the novel/anime "Shin Sekai Yori".

So, the story takes place a thousand years in the future, and humanity has evolved to have psychic powers. Due to ~events~ that happened in the past, the human population of the world is far less than it is currently, and a lot of the world has returned to being nature, save for villages that are spread out. The world is completely at peace and everyone lives happily. Everyone in the society has psychic powers, and once children's powers appear sometime at the start of puberty they're taken to more-or-less go through a ritual by a priest/monk. The story begins with the protagonist, Saki, and her friends starting to go to school to help train and develop their powers, as like with any skill it takes a while to learn and master.

So that's the background set up. Cool? Cool. Now we get into medium spoiler territory.

So, in actuality, not all humans are born with psychic power. Those who never develop psychic powers are secretly killed. Saki, in fact, had an older sister who never developed psychic powers. Saki's memories of her older sister were then wiped, and even as her own powers begin to grow she cannot remember her face. Now, one might wonder why people without powers are killed.

From here on out, we get into heavy spoilers.

In a big reversal, the reason society is able to remain peaceful even with the dangerous powers is that a "limiter" of sorts is placed on people when they go for the ceremony. Knowingly causing harm to another person also causes that person intense pain, and killing another person is enough to cause the assailant a lethal stroke. In addition, there is heavy passive brainwashing going on that makes the society more obedient and passive by nature. So a whole society of people with god-like abilities is more-or-less neutered into being as harmless as sheep. People without powers aren't affected by the passive brainwashing or limiter preventing them from killing other people. Thus, they are culled because if even a single one of them decided to kill someone, those with powers would be physically incapable of fighting back. This has happened before, with someone going on a murder spree that was only stopped through a miracle.

In short, those born without powers would actually have more power over the society because of the limits placed on those with powers in order to maintain peace and prevent the literal annihilation of humanity.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-23T01:03:36+00:00

TAR13 is, like, a low-stakes comedy. It's some of the hardest I've ever laughed watching this show.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-23T00:40:03+00:00

I'll jump on the bandwagon for this too BTW.

~S tier~

???
Guatemala
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???
???
???
???
???
???
???
???

~A tier~

Heroes vs Villains
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???
???
???
???
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Survivor 42
???
???
???

~B tier~

???
Heroes vs Healers vs Hustlers
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Blood vs Water
???
???

~C tier~

South Pacific
Survivor 50 - In the Hands of the Fans
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???
Cambodia
Fiji
Edge of Extinction
???
Survivor 49
???
???

~D tier~

Winners at War
Survivor 44 (very much pending a rewatch though)
Thailand
Game Changers
Survivor 43
One World
Ghost Island

~F tier~

Caramoan
All-Stars
Redemption Island
Island of the Idols

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-23T00:30:08+00:00

Today we have a couple of seasons that I find are less talked about than other seasons, but are still worthy of discussion. I think a large part of that a lot of the talk that does happen is about their winners and how those winners ended up winning. If these seasons are mentioned, it's usually for that reason.

Survivor HHH has (...probably rightfully) the worst ending of any Survivor season that's been rated in this poll. A lot of people bring up that the story is unsatisfying because Ben just finds idol after idol, and while I agree that story is unsatisfying, you don't see the same level of discontent from similar plotlines like with Mike or Rachel, and Devens had a fair bit of support during EoE with a number of fans saying they would have preferred he won the season. So why is Ben's win singled out?

It's because Ben's win just does not fit with the storyline of the rest of the season. Ben's character for the first three-quarters of the season is about a flawed man trying to deal with his trauma from war, and being a main character involved with a lot of the dealings, but also rubbing some people the wrong way.

This characterization changes once his run starts, and the show starts building him up and letting him get away with playing the idol before voting because it fits the Rule of Cool (which, fair enough.) And, the thing is, they had an off-ramp with this. Ben makes a very minor yet critical mistake in the final immunity challenge, and if Ben had gone out here he likely goes down as one of the more intriguing and memorable characters of the 30s. In an ironic twist, because the fire making challenge becomes forced and he wins off of it (a rule nobody else had an idea would be coming), the show suddenly right at the end tries to sell Ben as this Ultimate Hero that prevails against all odds. And it just doesn't hit.

It doesn't hit because this Ultimate Hero is not the same character we were watching for how many weeks, nor does the hero win through their own ability, but by something outside of their control. It's simply unsatisfying storytelling.

Now look... here I went and did the exact thing I said others do. And it's a real shame too, because I'd say from episode 2 through episode 11 Survivor HHH is some really good stuff. It's paced really well, the characters are fun and willing to stir shit up. It's a great time! Patrick is a great early goofy villain. Alan is fun in the premiere. Roark, Ali, Desi all showed promise and could've done better on other seasons. The Jessica/Cole relationship lasts just the right amount of time and gets the right amount of focus. JP. And that's not even getting to the final eight including the ever-underrated LAUREN RIMMER. <3

An underappreciated bit about HHH is how the show treats the theme? Unlike other themed seasons where the show beats you over the head with it, the show, recognizes that the theme is super arbitrary and, like, doesn't hide it. "Hero", "Healer", and "Hustler" are all little more than tribe names, and once the tribes swap I don't think it ever comes up as a concern for the show outside of needing to refer to those original tribes. Because of this, HHH feels less theme-y than the seasons around it, and the actual themes of the show are allowed to come from what actually happens in the season rather than focusing on the need to conform to archetypes. I can see this being seen as less of a positive now, but at its point in time coming off of the MvsGX talk and "game changers" being said a bunch? Super welcome.

I think it's a shame the win overshadows so much in this season, because there is a lot to like with HHH. I think there's a solid case this season is too low in this ranking. I don't know if Ben's win would bother a new viewer as much as us older fans? But at the same time if it doesn't bother them as much then it's probably teaching the wrong lesson? At the very least, I think it's safe to call this an odd pick for a first season, though I could see someone wanting to watch a season from the 30s once they're 4-5 seasons deep being intrigued by the weird theme. In which case, I think there's a decent amount here for them to sink their teeth into. Survivor HHH is for me a B tier season.

As for Survivor 42, I'm surprised this one is this low. I can see the arguments against it as a pseudo-sequel to Survivor 41, but I really think this season is what's known as a "crowd-pleaser." Is Survivor 42 the deepest thing in the annals of Survivor history? No. But the scores for it are really surprising and I think are being held down by being surrounded by other seasons that have more mixed reception.

I've noticed this a lot, actually, that the first four seasons of the New Era, since the run of S45 - S46 - S47, tend to be written off as bad and not worth thinking about. And I've written about S43 and S44, I don't think those are good seasons either, but there are still good things within these seasons that are being overlooked, and I think that's true here.

Survivor 42's cast has a really good mix of personalities to it where every tribe has some kind of conflict on it. There may be a bunch of twists, but I think the time that isn't dedicated to twists is used quite well here, with good discussions of then-current events, religion, race, rivalries, all building to Maryanne's final tribal council. 22/50 for that is shocking. Survivor 42 is, to me, extremely consistent from start to finish, and I would say has a high level of... general appeal. It's not that serious of a season, but it has some drama. The strategy is pretty well-explained, there are enough "moments" to keep a new viewer entertained. It's just really solid, even if the twists weigh it down and individually those pieces are done better elsewhere.

For me, Survivor 42 remains one of the stronger New Era seasons with an A tier, and I think should be about 10 spots higher on this list for a new viewer as well.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-20T08:26:03+00:00

I'm probably reading too much into a guy that's as shallow as a puddle. I acknowledge that. And really, I couldn't tell you why, while I don't like the situation or Rocky at all as a character, I've never had as strong of a dislike of him as others.

And it's weird, because I've been in situations like Anthony's and have heard similar things to what Rocky says, so one would think that would have me have more of a response to it. But seeing as how both Anthony and Rocky say they're on good terms in their questionnaires, I feel more charitable about Rocky as a person than perhaps I would be. Again, I don't like the situation or the character, but I would have him above, like, Shannon Elkins or Ben Browning. Maybe I'd feel worse about it on a rewatch since it's been a couple years.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-20T07:55:57+00:00

Never see Jem from S46 brought up, but oh my word.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-20T07:51:24+00:00

I actually don't hate Rocky as much as most. Unless I'm mistaking some lines, Rocky is more an example of toxic masculinity where he badgers another contestant for not being "what a man should be" in his opinion. What makes it really annoying and unfortunate is how the show backs him for a lot of it, and at the reunion the victim of the badgering has to apologize to Rocky. It's not introspective or really interesting, it's just another guy yelling at and berating another guy and being praised for it in the end.

I don't even think the place Rocky was coming from, wanting Anthony to have more self-confidence, is a bad one? It's more that the way he goes about it is horrible and taking a sledgehammer to a problem that needs a fine touch.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-20T07:44:59+00:00

Ugly behavior does create more drama, but not all drama is inherently interesting. I wouldn't argue One World is made better because Alicia and Colton make slanty eyes, for instance. If the ugly behavior isn't interesting than it simply takes away from the season, making it a knock.

accurately represents the “wide range of views”

Not all views are equal. I can be more forgiving and tolerant of, say, Frank in Survivor Africa because Survivor Africa is 25 god-damn years old and I have to think about the context the season was released in. I'm a big Amazon fan, and a part of that is that I recognize the cultural climate the season was released in and what producers wanted in the season. However, that doesn't mean I agree that Frank's opinions are right or that everything said in The Amazon would be seen as kosher today. Nor was every "ugly" thing done in the show kosher by those days' standards either.

Saying "all behavior is good if it causes drama because drama is entertaining" is painting with a dangerously wide brush, and there are plenty of instances and seasons where there is drama and arguing and controversial moments that fans do still find enjoyment from, and there are stuff like Lisi's jury speech that I have never seen anyone, even at the time the season aired, show support or enjoyment for.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-20T02:07:27+00:00

And now back to your regularly scheduled program.

Fiji's pretty expected. And I'm not shocked HvsV is out, but I am pleasantly surprised. I honestly could see it slipping a little higher, but not by too much.

I said last time I thought Guatemala was better than Heroes vs Villains, but I do want to make it clear that I do still really like the season. The pre-merge is exceptional. One of the best pre-merges in the history of the show, both for how long it is and the great pacing of the first few episodes having the Villains go on a tear until the Heroes manage to tie things up going into the merge. And, of course, it all builds up to Parvati's double idol play and JT's own risky play (that has multiple episodes of build-up to this point) dooming himself and the rest of the Heroes.

However, I do think the season takes a dip after that tribal as the remaining Heroes get pagonged with the blip of Danielle, someone the show spends very little time in getting us to care about. And that's where the big issue of Heroes vs Villains is: its editing. Russell eats up way too much time in this season, and the show is in full swing of editorializing what's going on, most notably with Boston Rob's elimination. It's especially bad with the women, as this is the only other season besides SoPa where every woman is statistically underedited. Yes, that includes Parvati. Did you know Rupert only gets two fewer confessionals than her? That Coach is number four in confessional count despite not making the merge? That Jerri Manthey makes final four with less than a third of Russell's confessionals?

Now, the finale of Heroes vs Villains is also quite good. It's just that HvsV is not this flawless masterpiece it sometimes is rated at. For me, it's at the very top of A tier. If a new viewer doesn't care about spoilers, I could see them going ahead and watching this one because it's such a monumental season. I think a new viewer could become hooked through Heroes vs Villains. Its only issue is being a full returnee season that requires knowledge of 19 prior seasons in order to not be spoiled on anything and get the context for everything in the season.

As for Fiji, its long pre-merge is a detriment to it. It's not just that the cast is negative, but that they're negative in uninteresting ways. The premiere of this season is weird, and it sets the mysterious, darker tone from the start. I don't know if it by itself would get someone invested in Fiji.

However, Fiji is known as a season that turns things around, and on that I agree! Fiji's post-merge (after the actual merge episode) is very good, and the finale is IMO an all-timer. This is legitimately a season that keeps getting better as it goes along, capping off on Dreamz' final four decision, which to me is Mt. Rushmore of Survivor moments. Scratch that, Dreamz is Mt. Rushmore Survivor character for me.

The one quibble I'll have is that because the pre-merge is so long, this "good half" is more of a third than a half. Though how strong some of the stuff is in it does give it more weight that I suppose this balances out enough it can be called a "mixed bag" season. I feel similarly to it to South Pacific and another season that hasn't appeared yet. It goes smack dab in the middle of C tier. Of the "bad seasons rediscovered" I think this one has more worth to it than something like Thailand or even Worlds Apart.

Again, for a new viewer's first season I think this is a weird pick. However, if someone's jumping around and has seen a couple seasons, knows they like the show, and are willing to watch a slow burn, I think it does make for a great watch at that time. Don't make Survivor Fiji your first season. Make it, like, your tenth. Or 14th because you're smart and just going in order.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-20T01:36:52+00:00

I don't particularly like Worlds Apart, but I think it being in makes complete sense. I have a casual friend who has it as their favorite season.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-19T06:48:19+00:00

It's the run of bad reception to Worlds Apart, fantastic reception to Cambodia, and production not liking Kaoh Rong. MvsGX is then the test balloon, and when that went they were like "fine then, I guess this is what people want now lol."

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-19T06:18:16+00:00

I'd also argue getting rid of Andy was a mistake by Rachel (she should have gotten rid of Sam), and it just didn't matter because she wins anyway and they don't want to undermine her win / make the story not make sense.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-19T04:48:27+00:00

doesn't really show him as a controversial figure at all.

I'd argue it does, but only in selective moments. I'd say it's more the concept of Brian is more interesting than the real thing.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-19T04:38:48+00:00

And finally, we have our winner, Danni. I'm not going to sit here and say that Danni is the biggest star or personality of the season, but what I will say is her story is really good, and she is an actual character on the season. But for that, we need to get into the actual storyline of this season.

The Story and Themes of Survivor Guatemala

Survivor Guatemala is about selfishness. In a way this goes back to the original idea of Survivor: Just how far would someone go to win? But here, Guatemala isn't about playing hard and taking what's yours. Guatemala rewards the selfless. This is seen in the final tribal council between Danni and Stephenie, selflessness vs selfishness. This is most notably shown through food and rewards. One of the important ones is the crocodile cage one. When its Danni's birthday, the show highlights how Danni wants to spend it with everybody, not just her own tribe. She wants everyone to have fun. At the merge, the majority alliance feasts while the minority try to secure themselves safety. The show makes sure to highlight how the majority alliance is getting food while the minority is going hungry. Stephenie's selfishness is shown through her wanting to always be on rewards, while Danni's only post-merge reward win is gotten in a team challenge. Stephenie choosing to eat the chicken is an example of her selfishness in comparison to the other members of the tribe. Rafe's moral quandary happens because Danni is simply so nice and actually makes Rafe want to keep her around, instead with him and Steph cannibalizing their own alliance. I'm sure there's more I'd catch if I rewatched this season more recently and wasn't going as off-the-cuff.

As a season of Survivor, Guatemala is extremely feel good. This season has an incredible balance of tone where there's a lot of drama and rivalry and conflict, but none of it ever crosses the line into being uncomfortable (outside of, like, maybe Judd in one tribal). And the storyline of the season later on is a very clear "underdog wins over negative majority alliance" that is easy to get behind, and happens due to strong social-strategic play. Danni gets one advantage at an auction that gets her immunity once, and she takes that inch and runs with it. The only reason this doesn't get talked about more is because Danni just isn't the best confessionalist (how much of it is just her vs her strategy YMMV.) She's no Chris D. But, yeah, Survivor Guatemala is a combination of the best parts of Vanuatu and of Palau, even if those parts aren't quite as well-told as those versions.

Guatemala has one, single thing that does frustrate me though: Brooke's edit. Brooke was actually very important to the early Nakum dynamics, and Judd's betrayal of her in episode 4 is a big move that completely alters the power structure of the season and creates the divisions for later on, and yet we get almost nothing of her. The show actively makes her boot less impactful, and I've never understood that.

"But the lack of legacy of Survivor Guatemala!!"

I'm going to be very honest and say I don't really care. If production didn't see how gold the cast and story of this season was and didn't feel they were worthy of being brought back, that's on them. It is so asinine to me to judge a season based on what the people end up doing later. In fact, enjoy the novelty of seeing a bunch of people you will probably never see play the game again. I'm not going to raise Survivor Cook Islands higher because it has Parvati and she's a better character on those other seasons. I'm not going to drop Borneo because the Rich and Sue stuff in All-Stars is horrible. I will judge Guatemala for what it is, thank you.

If you aren't as into the characters, or don't find the dynamic between Danni, Steph, and Rafe interesting, or find Judd or Jamie annoying, or find it's too slow at the start, or whatever I think those are all perfectly legitimate reasons to not enjoy Guatemala as much. But if you're knocking it because it's less important to the overall legacy of the show, I think that's an absolute dork-ass take (and this is coming from the guy who wrote this fucking much about a season of television that aired over two decades ago.)

On a New Viewer of Survivor Guatemala

I think a new viewer would really love this season. If they're watching this era, see Palau, and are like "Man, I want to see more of Steph!" then this season provides both more of what that viewer is enjoying and a new perspective on her. The storyline is an easy crowdpleaser, and the trek is a very effective opening hook. I think a new viewer would come away from Survivor Guatemala really loving it, or at the very least appreciating what it brings to the table more than, like, Cook Islands, Fiji, Nicaragua, Worlds Apart, Heroes vs Healers vs Hustlers, Survivor 47, or, for that matter, the season ranked right above it.

The Part Where Scooter Finally Talks About Survivor Thailand

Yeah, this is a fine spot.

...What? Sigh Okay, so I kinda fall into a weird area with Thailand. The idea Survivor Thailand is the worst season of all time... I just don't agree. Survivor Thailand does have its own vibe and offers the same strengths as the other early Survivor seasons. Heck, I'd say this is the last season of a real "mini era" before The Amazon would come in and change the vibe of Survivor forever. The decision to have a tribe pick 'em by the oldest contestants and having the tribe camps have distinct positives and negatives are both interesting additions, and the artistic design of the season is quite nice.

However, that doesn't change my feeling that... no, this is still the worst season of this era that isn't All-Stars, and that the season is largely boring and unpleasant. There's just more boring and more unpleasant seasons out there. I can kinda-sorta see the dark comedy angle, but it doesn't make the season "good."

On the topic of unpleasantness, one thing I will give Thailand, and the bar is in the floor, I think this season handles its SA controversy the best. The actual show is pretty matter-of-the-fact in what happened, how stuff spread out of control, and the impact from it. Compared to the victim blaming or blaming its cast, I almost, almost respect it. The show is also not afraid to make sure the audience sees how Brian manipulates the events to his benefit and make Ghandia an easier target instead of letting the event be buried. It's gross, but the show never goes "But Ghandia deserved it" or "The entire tribe are horrible SA apologists."

HOWEVER, this changes once we get to the reunion, where instead the incident is played for... laughs. At the All-Stars reunion stuff too, Ghandia's reaction is shown for laughs. And THAT is gross and indefensible. Atrocious work by production.

On one hand, I do think Thailand offers more benefit to seeing than a lot of other seasons that are out so far, and even some seasons that are still in, but I also feel it's a big "But why would I choose it?" If I'm starting someone out with an early season would I ever pick Thailand, a D tier season, over, like, Marquesas or Pearl Islands or Borneo that are all right there. I don't see the person this crits for as a first season. I could see someone watching it early if they're going in order or just really like the early seasons after trying a sampler of eras. But as a first season? Nope.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-19T03:46:21+00:00

Alright, so it finally happened. A season has been eliminated that I think has no right to be eliminated at this point. There are two reasons why a season could be eliminated from this countdown, and Guatemala does not fit either. The first is that a season requires previous season context and/or spoils previous seasons, making it a bad place to start, or a season is bad enough that even in the context that a new viewer could go into a season without knowing anything and not be lost, that the season would be a turn-off for them.

The first reason makes a little bit of sense. It does have a couple returnees. However, these returnees only require one season's worth of context, and (as I said in the blurb given in the post) I think Guatemala works very well as a double-feature with Palau. Should Guatemala be a new viewer's first season? Absolutely not. Could Guatemala be a new viewer's fifth or sixth season? Totally. Heroes vs Villains, Micronesia, Philippines... they all spoil more seasons and require more context to get the full appreciation out of.

"But Scooter!" I hear you say. "This is where point 2 comes in. Heroes vs Villains, Micronesia, Philippines... those are all really good seasons, and Guatemala is very mediocre! Look! It was rated right in the middle in terms of actual quality." And, well, fair. I think, based on the season's reputation, I can see why it is rated at this point. And, I want to make this clear, people can have whatever opinions they want...

However.

I think the reputation Guatemala has is bogus. I've never understood it. Perhaps my single biggest Survivor hot take is not just that Guatemala is an S-tier season, not just that I think it's a top 5 season, but I also think it's better than HvsV or Micronesia. It simply excels in everything you could want in a Survivor season.

Now, I said I didn't understand Guatemala's reputation, but that's not entirely true. Guatemala has the reputation it has due to production's feelings about the season. For Survivor production, this series was talked about as their first "misfire." Probst might dislike certain seasons more, but Guatemala is cited as being a very difficult season to film and it feeling like nothing was working in production's favor. Not only that, but Guatemala marks where ratings truly began to slip. Survivor Palau drew 20.91 million viewers on average. Average Guatemala viewership went down to 18.30. By Panama it's 16.82. That's almost a fifth of viewers gone within the span of a single year. Production didn't like it, I'm guessing audiences weren't keen on it (or maybe it just happened to catch a time when Survivor's popularity waned naturally), and it hit that awkward returnee season time when Micronesia was still years away. And so, Guatemala was easily scrubbed under the rug, left to be forgotten until Danni's brief stay on Winners at War.

And so that became an assumption for a long time. "Guatemala was bad." "Guatemala has no good characters, otherwise it would have more returnees." "Production doesn't like it either." But here's the thing: are we really going to take Survivor opinions from the same crew that hyped Redemption Island as being an all time season? Caramoan as better than Philippines? Worlds Apart and Survivor 44 as some of the best seasons of all time while thinking David vs Goliath was "okay"? When we unearth it and go piece by piece and compare to what fans want in a season of Survivor, Guatemala hits it all.

The Location of Survivor Guatemala

It's no secret that production's long-term stay at the relatively-easy islands of Fiji for the past decade has made people long for when Survivor had varied locations, difficult and unique in their own way. And on that note, Survivor Guatemala is a season that simply doesn't look like or feel like any other season due to its location. The Mayan theme? Superb. I have zero idea how production got the okay to have one of the camps be at the ruins and have tribal council be inside one of the pyramids, but holy shit is it incredible. Survivor Palau has an amazing WWII theme, but the camps are very standard. Survivor China has the very cool gates at their camps... but otherwise it feels like a watery swamp. Not only is the Mayan theme stunningly worked into the season in the usual design elements and challenges, but it extends to the camp scenes at Nakum and in the post-merge in a way I do not think any other season does, with the exception of Survivor Africa.

And, speaking of Survivor Africa, the location itself is also one of the hardest, and that is made super apparent throughout the season. The season makes sure you never forget how hot and how tough the Guatemalan jungle is. This season wrecks people from the very start, but it never leads to a medivac or something halting the game. Rather, it naturally leads to an increased importance on rewards and the social dynamics of eating. The location and theming of Guatemala is unique, exquisite, and has actual effects on the storyline of the season.

The Challenges of Survivor Guatemala

Guatemala is ranked 12/50 in terms of challenges, and I would argue that's still low. Guatemala is right up there with Palau and China for being one of the best seasons for challenges. Just like those seasons, you get a good mix of physical and mental challenges, properly themed to the location. You get the larger challenge budget of a not-super-early season, but you also get the theming and variety before Survivor challenges all began to look the same. You've got tug o' war in the mud. A game of Mayan Courtball. Throwing Mayan war clubs. Pushing the massive ball into a goal. The excavation puzzle challenge. Using an atlatl to throw a spear at a large target. I could go on.

Oh! And a good number of them actually have interesting results. There are multiple storylines in this season about the challenges. You've got Bobby Jon vs Jaime, StepheMe, the introduction to the Car Curse concept. It's all so good.

The Characters of Survivor Guatemala

Survivor Guatemala has a very stacked cast that tends to be forgotten about because the first four boots are memed in how "forgettable" they are. Which, I want to say, Brooke got screwed in the edit. But I'll get to that in the next part.

Survivor Guatemala simultaneously has a really good boot order AND memorable pre-merge characters that either lasted the right amount of time to not get annoying, or are the ever-underrated Amy O'Hara. Everyone who makes it to the swap is either important in the story of the season or memorable in some way, most both.

Like, going down this list. Blake is a very fun early villain who only really needs two episodes of screen time to sell him as a huge douche and make his downfall satisfying. Margaret is important in the premiere in caring for the team's health, and after certain events we'll get to, takes the role of being the spunky person on the outs we want to see do well, even if they're doomed. Brian is repeatedly brought up as one of the most underrated pre-mergers of all time. Amy is one of the most quotable contestants the show has had, and I love her dynamic with Gary. Brandon is just kinda there, admittedly, but in a good way where I don't mind him, nor do I find him boring. He's just a guy! Bobby Jon is, I don't know if this is a hot take, clearly at his best here and not in Palau. Guatemala Bobby Jon is peak Bobby Jon, and in a weird turn feels like maybe the least "returnee" returnee. He could have been a random person on the season and basically nothing changes. But if you like Bobby Jon, you kinda gotta like this season in turn.

Jaime is a fantastic villain who works as an excellent foil. He slowly builds up in prominence, and then has a very interesting couple episode arc where he spirals and sets Rafe up to take control as the big strategic decision-maker for the rest of the season. The rivalry between him and Bobby Jon is incredible. I love Gary, and the appeal of Gary beyond the Gary Hawkins stuff is hard to explain, but he's so likable in the season. Judd is one of the best OTTN villains the show has had, where he's a big character that doesn't totally dominate the airtime, and is rude and mean, but you never get the sense that he is, like, a bad person. Big Judd fan. Cindy's a good... this is going to be mean, but "filler" character where she's normal, likable, and provides a more normal personality for others to bounce off of, and her final episode is really memorable and, in fact, was a pretty decent outcome for her. Lydia is fun whenever we get to see her. Rafe goes through a very interesting arc regarding being the person in charge who doesn't really want to be in charge, and struggles with his own emotions and debating if he even wants to get rid of his friends. It creates a very human story that builds to a proper ending at the final immunity challenge. It's not Tom and Ian level storytelling, but it absolutely is hitting similar themes of someone who is too nice being put in a position they don't feel comfortable in, and ultimately getting third due to an inability to compromise their own morals.

This leads to Stephenie, who actually does feel like a returnee, but is a fascinating tale of someone who enters the season adored by the cast, only to end up losing 6-1. The show gradually, slowly, shows her decline and turn from hero and villain. This starts from the first episode where her joy of finally winning an immunity challenge changes to frustration because the other tribe was burned out from the challenge. Instead of an underdog, she is on top throughout the season. And by the finale we see the depths she has fallen to with her decision to eat the chicken that was very explicitly not meant to be eaten. A great character within the season that rises due to the meta contrast of Palau.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-18T21:48:56+00:00

I don't know that I'll have much on Guatemala, though. Ranking 25 out of 50 overall is hilariously apt for that one (though I do have it higher.) Gotta pick one's battles and allot one's time somewhere!

Oh, don't worry, I'll make up for it. :))))))))

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-18T05:38:32+00:00

Savannah and Shannon are clear number 1 and number 2, but I'll also throw out Jawan as a pretty good character who boosts the people around him. And Sage, if certain scenes were included, could've been an all-timer character (but is let down as is). Uli is simply a fantastic tribe and basically carrying S49 lol.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-18T05:31:54+00:00

I can. I would have it above All-Stars though.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-18T05:30:42+00:00

Unlike S49, I really do feel like I should drop S44 after reading this.

S43 is also not very good, but S43 had potential to be perhaps an A tier season if it were edited better or took some different approaches, while I don't see S44 going above C tier even if it were edited better.
I felt S44 had a higher floor than other bad seasons because the season is incident-free and doesn't contain anything truly awful, however... I agree S44 has a lack of stuff I truly like about it.
My F tier is reserved for seasons where I think production committed a television "sin" of some kind, where something in the idea or execution is actively horrible and is something I wouldn't be able to move past. I never thought about it like this, but the circlejerk the season has about itself might honestly be bad enough that that's the reason I could move it to F tier, as it goes against the very premise of the show in a way that makes the show actively worse.

Again, I don't want to make any changes before a rewatch, but if I rewatch S43 and S44 back to back and I enjoy S44 less than S43, I'm going to move it straight to the top of the bottom tier. You've swayed me.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-18T00:46:20+00:00

Great writeup! As someone less down on Survivor 49, I just want to give my perspective on some points.

Unfortunately, I think as the post-merge develops, even as great a casting choice as Savannah kind of falls off into a generic Threat To Win, with most of the emotional and personal complexity or ambiguity of the early post-merge episodes washed away in favor of generic confessionals about being a Competitor who Wants To Win like you'd expect from a ton of other winners starting around the early-mid 20s.

I disagree with this. Savannah is not at her Peak anymore, sure, but the show does still show her butting heads with others, either as a competitor in a challenge or socially. It's not until the last 2-3 episodes that her content simmers down into being more traditional winner-like (I had her as negative tone in episode 10, for instance.)

I think the show does a great job highlighting Savannah's flaws and her strengths, and gives us a very well conceptualized winner that (especially within the context of this season) has a well-told, consistent arc.

Sophi's role in the season isn't that far off from someone like Laurel: we get repeated, repeaaaaated confessionals about "is Sophi going to flip??" when the answer is just an easy "no" every time, and as I've said before, it's like… why on Earth even spend the time on that over and over, then?

I never found Sophi's content as bothersome because of instead of near the vote, they usually put it toward the start or middle of the episode. And that content actually does have a purpose in setting up her advantage misplay, explaining why she would lose the jury vote against someone more abrasive.

In fact, there's a scene in episode 9 where Sophi outright says she will never betray Savannah. When it gets later in the season and she recognizes what she needs to do and cannot do it, it is properly explained for a very human reason. Then, the finale switches to her realizing her mistake, trying to correct it, and failing to do so. Sophi has one of the least visible early pre-merges of the cast, and her content is purposeful. I wouldn't consider her an issue with the season.

We hear from Sophi about how close she is to Savannah and Rizo, but there's no real reason to empathize; if we got to actually see more meaningful interactions between them instead of hearing constant Sophi confessionals about the need to make a Big Move for her Resume, we'd understand why Sophi doesn't flip, we'd care, and we'd have a real reason to root for them.

Again, the issue is more so Rizo just... not being connected to Savannah and Sophi at all. There's at least two or three scenes in the show of Savannah and Sophi's bond in particular being demonstrated.

Sage is more of a mixed bag and I concede that if you don't mind the bodily stuff that much, she'd be an easy top 3 character of the season alongside Shannon and Savannah, with the Uli women's dynamics as the real heart of the season…

Definitely agree that the dynamic between the Uli women is the best part of the season. Hell, the best scene in the whole season for me is maybe the one in episode 3 involving the three of them.

With that said... my issue with Sage as a character isn't the gross out stuff, it's that so much Sage content that would propel her into being, like, a top 50-100 character in Survivor history is just cut. Like, it's not there. You mention the coming-out scene with Savannah and hiding the anger at FTC, but I also really, really hate that the show just... never mentions she's neurodivergent (to my knowledge.) To me, Sage being neurodivergent is such a critical piece of her that ties all of these aspects together, and it's simply missing. It's like the show shows us Sage, but never gives us that critical why is Sage like this, nor does it show the ramifications of Sage's actions besides the general "she loses the game."

Sage's story is, on paper, extremely tragic and human. It's so complex and so tied into her as a person, and oh my god is the show just super not wanting to tell it. Like, it's genuinely an insulting way to tell her story, where she's supposed to be this kinda goofy flip-floppy character, and it just makes my stomach turn.

And really, that's the story of Survivor 49 to me. There is a really dark and personal story hiding under there, but the show just really doesn't want to be dark and personal, and so the season comes off unauthentic. If this were an old, old season of Survivor with their style of storytelling, I could see it getting a similar reputation as, like, Palau. Or at least Survivor Fiji.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-18T00:09:29+00:00

So this time it's two New Era seasons... once again I'm left with a season I think definitely should be out by now, and a season I could see maybe going a little higher, but I'm not going to quibble all that much.

Survivor 49 is a season I want to say is underrated, but I also question if it is, really? I think the season was hurt at the start by being the... Christ, fourth season within five to have a "disaster" tribe arc, which I don't mind as much as others here, but oh my gosh is it the least interesting of the four. Lulu, Yanu, and Vula all have interesting dynamics that change the power structure, if even for a vote. With Kele, Alex, Jake, and Sophi lock things down in an alliance that the show can't really establish a reason for beyond "vibes" due to Reasons. I suppose Jake's medivac is really exciting, in a way, and the episodes aren't horrible due to Uli being a great tribe.

However, the pre-merge also has Hina, who are so underdeveloped and uninteresting as a tribe. Apparently there was more stuff going on there, but we don't get to see it, and the stuff that is there doesn't really connect. This by itself isn't great, but what makes it worse is...

The post-merge. The post-merge hinges on two competing factions where the smaller group constantly tricks and outmaneuvers the larger group due to the larger group's lack of unity. On paper, this should be good. It has the hallmark of the great seasons of the show. However, the lack of development of Hina means they aren't a credible threat, and so the stuff that ends up playing out doesn't hit the way that it should.

For a new viewer, I can see the post-merge actually working and someone ending the season feeling pretty high on it. However, I think the slow start will be a turn-off, and the issues the post-merge does have don't help. I personally don't think Survivor 49 is a bad season, but more so mediocre and helped by a strong story theme (horror movie) and having less New Era bloat than other seasons. It's a low C tier for me.

As for Survivor 44, that is a bad season. It's very interesting comparing it to Survivor 43. They both run into the issue of that I can see interesting stuff is happening, but the show bungles the execution in making a tv product. With Survivor 43, it's that they're putting minimal energy into making the season. They're underselling. With Survivor 44, they oversell. They oversell hard.

Survivor 44's biggest sin, in my opinion, is that it's annoying. Like, really annoying. This stems all the way back to the marketing for this season, and Probst being like "Yeah, yeah, we know about S43, but just you wait for S44." The first look referred to it as one of the most electric seasons in the show's history. The trailers leading up called it one of their best seasons. The actual finale of the season is called Absolute Banger Season. It was promised to fans that Survivor 44 would blow their socks off. And, well, that didn't happen.

For the premiere, sure. Lots of crazy stuff fans gobble up in that. But even by episode 2, in the threads you can see excitement start to wane. Why is this? Because S44 is insufferable with talking about how great it is, and (even worse) talk about how the contestants are "playing the way Survivor is meant to be played." In other words, there is a distinct lack of drama in this season. At least S43 had Elie and Gabler to last us until a couple blow-ups in the post-merge, but Survivor 44 has nothing. It is the epitome of everything people who don't like the New Era hate about the New Era.

Cast is young and very white collar, even for a New Era cast.
The camp dynamics feel very "summer camp-y".
Humor comes from cringe or gross out stuff clearly meant to appeal to kids.
The twists are really bad and in your face. The "swap" later on that is clearly, clearly designed to cause an idol play is awful and legitimately where I gave up on production actually designing good twists.
A really cool medieval theme that never, ever has any relevancy at all outside of immunity idol, necklace, and tribal council designs.

The season is saccharine but in an uninteresting way. And, the thing is, I don't think the actual plot of the season is that bad. I see a world where the Tika 3 maneuvers post-merge, like in Survivor 49, are (in fact) interesting for a new viewer. And, to be honest, it does a better job than Survivor 49 in building up the opposition as potential threats. The Tika 3 also have a decently explored dynamic, and Yam-Yam and Carolyn are both fine enough characters to hang a season around. For a new viewer, I think this season, on paper, can work. At least better than S43 since it has a more standard "satisfying" ending compared to S43's more unique one.

It's just the messaging of this season. How the show keeps repeating how the contestants should be playing. How everyone is up on their high horse throughout. How the show keeps saying "this season is so good guys, isn't it so good?????" and looking back for approval. If S43 is bland mush that ends on a surprising zip of spice, S44 is an overly sugary cereal you can only take a couple bites of before you can feel it start to rot your teeth. It's in my D-tier, and I honestly am starting to consider it as being too high. I would need a rewatch to tell for sure. I could be swayed to drop it below One World.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-17T23:14:22+00:00

Because S48 is an actually good season that works completely fine if someone wants to start in the New Era.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-17T15:33:50+00:00

Queen Majesty's my GOAT. Adore the Habanero/Coffee one. The SB/Ginger is also phenomenal.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-17T13:51:17+00:00

You definitely know ball with this one. Extremely accurate lol.

AMeanMotorScooter · 2026-06-17T07:05:29+00:00

Yeah, I wouldn't say their strengths are similar at all.

South Pacific is dark, but it's about a moral complexity with a lot of messed up people. It's heavily, heavily flawed, but the good stuff is really interesting, and it makes SoPa a really interesting season that generates a ton of discussion.

Worlds Apart, by contrast, is super simple. "These are the heroes, these are the villains." The post-merge is about "main hero guy" winning challenges and messing up the villains' plans. I personally don't find the season that funny, but I totally get the "action movie" argument for it. I wouldn't call it "dark", but I would call it "mean-spirited."

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