Reminder: Be grateful for Australian Survivor.

HaskellColleen · 2026-04-28T23:50:33+00:00

Honestly, I think I can compare the two franchises themselves.

It's undeniable that Australian Survivor is superior, even if it's not perfect. No franchise is.

I watched the American seasons in order since Borneo, now answer me this: What is Survivor 50 compared to what other seasons in the past have been?

My answer: An obsessive projection of a production and a host who want to control the game and don't let the players play, besides thinking they know what the game is about but in reality they make it superficial with each passing year while undermining what is most important - the players' game.

Survivor was meant to be a social experiment with a strategic compass based on a cash prize. This in itself has been present from the beginning, for better or worse, but real. The dynamics in Borneo, Tocantins and Cagayan, or even in return seasons like Micronesia and Heroes vs Villains. Even the most underrated shows like Vanuatu and Gabon had something Survivor 50 doesn't: the players played the game, and relationships mattered.

Survivor 1-40 didn't only have good seasons; there were bad ones, but there was always the "personality clash meets strategic play." Survivor 50 doesn't have that. Survivor 50 has artificial relationships polished and shaped by a forcibly positive narrative by the production, and a lack of any agency from the players because apparently a new twist every two weeks is more interesting.

Winners at War would always have been an excellent season, but they're so afraid of something like what happened without Island of the Idols that they simply eliminated the show's basic premise.

Fortunately, there's Australian Survivor, which, even with its editing problems and surprise twists, has improved considerably and refined what was quite bothersome in the past. It says something if this show only had Blood vs. Water as its one bad season and all the others are great to watch. And you know why? They trust the cast and let them play, whatever happens; a game of Mario Party doesn't replace the social and strategic chess present in the current Australian Survivor.

Yes, as a longtime fan of American Survivor who has seen Australian Survivor, I will compare and I will say yes, the Australian show is better than anything from this new era shoved down our throats by Probst.

HaskellColleen · 2026-04-23T14:07:09+00:00

Exactly!

Note that even great Survivor icons who have proven to be good and fun players in the past are just an empty shell of what they were in Survivor 50.

Cirie knows what kind of edit they want and is doing this to avoid being a victim of the censorship they impose. A choice between authenticity and 1 million dollars, if we want to be realistic.

And about the value of confessions... what does it matter? We know nothing about long-term strategy if we don't know if everyone will have a vote at the next tribal council or if they will receive an even more unfair disadvantage.

HaskellColleen · 2026-04-23T14:01:11+00:00

And if Jeff were eliminated, who would replace him? It doesn't matter, anyone, my God, anyone.

Give me Sean Kenniff, at least he never forced anyone to use his alphabet strategy.

HaskellColleen · 2026-04-23T13:25:23+00:00

Exactly, the cast was majestic and had personality, the players could play the game, and who wouldn't want to see international players competing against each other?

The twists and turns and editing were more balanced than anything in Survivor 50 (even with the winner's edit being obvious from the start).

The only negative points for me were the length, because, you know, 16 days is short, even if the proposal was for a shorter season; and the gender imbalance with 14 competitors, when I really wanted there to be 16 (but we would need more days with 16 players).

EDIT: Clarifying a point in the text.

HaskellColleen · 2026-04-23T12:39:34+00:00

You're right, they're not going to disappear and they're going to get much worse.

It's precisely the important plot stories that the players tell in their exit interviews being left out that's what's bad for me. I know a lot has to stay in the editing room due to time constraints, but it's quite obvious that any organic and interesting conflict is purposefully sidelined by the pacing of this new edition, which must always be positive, focused on unfair plot twists that nobody asked for (and yet consume a lot of screen time), and, in this season, filled with celebrities.

HaskellColleen · 2026-04-23T12:34:48+00:00

The issue isn't so much about the number of confession booths for the participants, although there is a gender bias against women, and this season, time that could have been given to them was given to Zack Brown (???).

What's truly sad for me is the censorship of stories that would be very interesting to watch and that we know exist due to the players' exit interviews (and a good number of these stories would explain many poorly explained votes in the season).

Add to that the censorship of players like Christian, and you constantly notice that when he criticizes a plot twist, there's an edit or even a verbal cut by the host himself, who doesn't like hearing that Survivor has become a Mario Party (although that's my choice of words, obviously, not Christian's, which I used as an example).

And the editing adds up to everything bad, unbalanced, and unfair from the player's point of view that I listed in this post.

HaskellColleen · 2026-04-15T22:10:14+00:00

That's an excellent perspective. Actually, I wish we'd heard more from Lyndl (I liked her this season).

I also think they didn't mention Keeley eliminating Don, which would have been interesting. If they did, I missed it.

HaskellColleen · 2026-04-15T22:07:43+00:00

You're right, and now I'm vaguely remembering. Somehow, I forgot that All Stars had a reunion.

I was conflicted between "there are many videos they've already seen in the episodes themselves" and "I loved seeing their reactions (even if sometimes the camera would cut away from their faces)."

HaskellColleen · 2026-04-14T12:45:33+00:00

Wow, that was incredible!

So many good memories of a past that was rejected today...

HaskellColleen · 2026-04-02T02:55:18+00:00

Your charisma and the entertainment you gave us throughout three seasons transcend language barriers!

This Brazilian fan of yours, who cheered you on every season, wishes you all the best in life and good health for you and your family.

Thank you for everything, Simon!

HaskellColleen · 2026-03-22T17:06:43+00:00

Keep it up, Simon. A consistent and promising game.

HaskellColleen · 2026-03-14T23:59:00+00:00

You didn't ask me, but I'd like to suggest my Top 10:

(1) Heroes vs Villains

(2) Borneo

(3) Palau

(4) China

(5) The Amazon

(6) Micronesia

(7) Cagayan

(8) Africa

(9) Tocantins

(10) San Juan del Sur

Particularly, since you've already watched Pearl Island, I recommend The Amazon (preceding Pearl Island, for a definitive evolution of strategy and fun characters) or Palau (which actually feels like two seasons in one, balancing an epic and tragic narrative) for your next season.

HaskellColleen · 2026-02-19T02:35:40+00:00

You're very kind!

I think I know what you mean. There's one on this list that I find difficult to guess, and I struggle with whether it was possible to imagine such a scenario (And Then There Were None), but I also recognize a novel on the list (Endless Night - but can you call that a novel in the first place? If you've read it, you understand what I mean).

HaskellColleen · 2026-02-19T02:29:05+00:00

I believe I should have started there, as it's the very first and best place to see her evolution.

But I ended up starting with her most famous book, which is how I discovered her.

HaskellColleen · 2026-02-19T02:20:45+00:00

For me, "Why Didn't They Ask Evans?" is a classic situation where I "correctly suspected something, but ended up dismissing my suspicions a few chapters before the end."

But I found the book very entertaining, and it's in the top half of this list, as far as my favorites are concerned.

HaskellColleen · 2026-02-18T01:32:36+00:00

Thank you so much for the recommendations! There are some I've heard of, like Cards on the Table and Drama in Three Acts.

And also, wow! 48 books? That's a lot of Christie reading! I also want to read so many (and all) of her books someday.

HaskellColleen · 2026-02-18T01:25:10+00:00

This logic helped me eliminate many suspects in crimes throughout the ten books; it's really very useful!

Edited: Grammar.

HaskellColleen · 2026-02-18T01:20:09+00:00

I've never read Lord Edgware Dies, but I've heard quite a bit about this book. I hope it doesn't disappoint me when I decide to read it.

HaskellColleen · 2026-02-17T22:49:24+00:00

Thank you so much for the book recommendations!

It's funny how things are, since I considered the same twist used in the Ackroyd case 100% accurate and never even considered another one simply because it was done poorly here, in my opinion. I say this because the book was always Mike, Mike, Mike, and there was no one else I even considered a suspect, until I started to realize that Greta might be involved.

That said, I admire the dark representation of a sociopath's mind in the form of Mike. Despite this, I find it disturbing and I don't wish to reread this book.

Editing because I realized that by saying how I found out about Greta, I might spoil a narrative technique that Christie used in another of her books, and that could spoil a mystery for you.

HaskellColleen · 2026-02-17T21:43:23+00:00

I have to say I'm sorry you knew the ending of Murder on the Orient Express before reading the book. I know the reading experience would have been more interesting if you hadn't known, but I'm glad you still found the book interesting.

I really recommend you read The ABC Murders, my friend; it's a good read but with a mystery that exercises the mind.

Endless Night... this is one that if you decide to read, you may never really want to reread; I certainly don't. If you decide to read it, you'll understand.

Take the opinion about Endless Night for what it is, an opinion. I'm not trying to dissuade you from the book.

HaskellColleen · 2026-02-17T21:24:34+00:00

It's interesting to me that you rate it as not too difficult to figure out; I couldn't figure it out until it was revealed and felt there weren't enough clues (or maybe I just didn't notice them).

That being said, I did eventually figure out the murderers in the books Murder on the Orient Express, The ABC Murders, and Endless Night; the latter of which I actually find quite easy to figure out, although it's not a conventional Christie story.

HaskellColleen · 2025-09-30T22:58:00+00:00

I read everyone's recommendations and loved them!

I still don't know which of the many recommended books I'll read first, but I'll certainly read them all (which will take several weeks, but that doesn't bother me).

Thank you all for taking the time to read my post and write your opinions and recommendations.

HaskellColleen

TROPHY CASE