Survivor 45 Premiere Recap: A Tribe’s Daunting Start Leads to One Wonky Tribal Council — Who Was First Out?
It’s hard to imagine that 23 years later, players are still enduring a months-long casting process and flying all the way around the world just to quit the game three days later, but here we are! Welcome to the premiere of Survivor 45 which, I am sad to report, had one of the most disappointing first Tribal Councils the game has ever seen.
But before we jump too far ahead, let’s break things down from the top, including the return of Season 44’s Bruce Perreault, who was medically evacuated just hours after stepping off the boat last season. As the tribes arrive to the barge for their first challenge, Jeff makes it a point to introduce the former Tika member and explain why he’s back for another go. Bruce plays it smart, and says he really didn’t have a first chance and that any advantage other players might perceive him to have is more or less nonexistent.
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And then Emily opens her mouth. And boy, are we going to be talking a lot about Ms. Emily this season. Even though nobody asked her a flippin’ thing, she decides she needs to “push back against Bruce a little bit,” despite the fact that she’s not even on his tribe. She calls him out for being more mentally prepared than any of them. When he responds, she calls him out again for “already speaking with authority.” Girl, chill! It’s minute one. Stop saying all of your inner thoughts out loud because you clearly just made an enemy, should you both make the merge together. Anyone else surprised by her unnecessary banter? (Not going to go into too many details about all of the cast in this recap, but if you need a refresher of who’s who, take a look at our full cast rundown here.)
Finally, Jeff pries the mic from Emily’s hands to announce that the tribes will be named Reba (red), Lulu (yellow) and Belo (blue). With that, he launches them into their very first challenge, competing of course for a flint, a machete and a pot. And not a single thing else!
FIRST CHALLENGE | The tribes must scramble around a large ship trying to collect sets of keys, and finally, their flint. The first team to retrieve the keys, unlock some poles and snatch the flint off a contraption wins its starting supplies. It’s a pretty tight race, until Lulu’s Brandon hits the ladder and tries to climb back onto the ship. All of a sudden, his arms and legs stop working! It’s Day 1 and the poor guy can’t pull himself up? It’s later revealed to be the result of an anxiety-induced panic attack, which I can empathize with, but it’s going to be a loooong season for the kid if he’s shutting down this soon.
Reba wins the challenge, sending Lulu’s Kaleb and Sabiyah, and Belo’s Brando and Jake to the Sweat and Savvy tasks.
BELO | Bruce says it’s “euphoric” that he’s been granted a second shot. He tells the rest of his tribe that he’s not the dad, OK? He’s cool, Funcle Bruce, but NOT DAD. Got it? Seconds after saying this, he doles out advice that nobody asked for and advises against weaving palm fronds. Say and do less, Bruce!
LULU | Surprise! Emily has more to say! She tells Hannah and Sean that if Kaleb and Sabiyah come back with nothing, then they probably were offered an advantage. I guess it’s good to play a defensive game, especially in this era of 1,000 advantages, but man! This woman is firing on all cylinders and at maximum capacity, and it is truly mind-boggling.
Brandon returns to camp after seeing medical and says he doesn’t really remember getting back on the boat during the challenge. But he’s good for now and ready to go… so he sits on a tree log for what I suppose is a much-needed rest.
SWEAT AND SAVVY | In a bit of a twist, the losing tribes face off against each other in a competition to earn their starting materials. But they won’t be choosing sweat or savvy — this time, they’ll have to do them both! First, they must move 40 heavy logs 200 feet across the beach. Then, they must solve a puzzle that involves a flint connected to a rope and a metal structure. The sweat portion looks brutal, but both teams are able to get the job done. But they only have one hour to complete both tasks… and both teams fail on the savvy portion, marking the first time in this new era that a tribe failed to earn supplies.
LULU | Sabiyah and Kaleb are quick to notice Emily’s pessimism and “glass half empty” approach, while Emily can’t wrap her brain around the fact that pyramids might be giant batteries. Regardless of where everyone lands on the “aliens built the pyramids” thing, Emily feels like she’s been isolated on an island with crazy people. But even if you aren’t jibing with the tribe, you’ve gotta at least pretend that you are, right?
REBA | While Sifu is caught idol hunting by his tribemates (who say he’s playing a Tony Vlachos game), Austin accidentally stumbles upon a beware advantage. He can’t help himself, and he tears that sucker right open. It’s a clue to the whereabouts of an idol, but he must perform a series of tasks first. He can’t vote at Tribal until he has possession of the idol. His first task: Decipher the coded message on his tribe flag with the little coder provided. Game on.
IMMUNITY IS UP FOR GRABS | It’s a Survivor obstacle course! There’s a giant ramp, a mud pit, a large basket of coconuts they’ve got to sink into a net, then a tall tower and (pretends to be shocked) a puzzle. First two tribes to finish are safe from the vote.
As the challenge starts, Jeff yells, “Keep your head down!” as Bruce climbs up the first obstacle, which is the exact same thing I was screaming from my couch until my wife told me to shut up already. (Yes, I watch Survivor like it’s the fifth national sport.)
Lulu quickly falls behind trying to get everyone through the mud pit, as Reba and Belo start to unload their coconuts. Lulu struggles once again trying to get everyone up their tower. Belo and Reba are seemingly unstoppable, as they place first and second, respectively, sending Team Yellow to Tribal.
STRATEGY | Now that someone’s gotta go, Hannah can’t stop thinking about how hungry and exhausted she is. She tells us she felt “relieved” that her tribe lost, and confides to Brandon that everyone else but her wants to be there. “Maybe I like my comfort and that’s OK… I want nicotine and food!” she says. GIRL, BYE. Get to stepping! If you don’t want to be there, why’d you sign up in the first place? It’s literally Day 3 and we’re trying to quit already?! (What a slap in the face to everyone who applied to the show and didn’t make it.) Meanwhile, Brandon’s in physical pain and crying (again), saying he’s going to play his Shot in the Dark because he feels like a liability.
Sorry, Jeff, but can we do a tribe swap in Episode 2, please?
Emily, on the other hand, thinks that targeting the tribe’s two strongest players — Kaleb and Sabiyah — is the key to being successful. (Facepalm.) They’re a massive liability to her game, she says. You know what else is a massive liability? Losing each and every challenge after you vote Kaleb out. Brandon smartly tells Kaleb what Emily’s trying to do, and at this point, anything is possible for this Hot Mess Express.
TRIBAL COUNCIL | The “Lulu Losers” (thanks for that Kaleb!) meet Jeff deep in the jungle for a casual fireside chat. Hannah admits that she’s in a constant battle of listening to her heart and her head. Sabiyah says she doubts Hannah will quit. It seems like she wants to target Emily, who then pipes up to tell Jeff that Sabiyah and Kaleb aren’t even hiding their alliance one bit. Emily says she feels shut out, but Sabiyah says it’s more like she isolated herself by relying on her first impressions and nothing else.
Hannah chimes in again. “I think [the tribe dynamic] is amazing, and I just keep thinking I’d love to watch it unfold… from the comfort of my home,” she says. She then nearly begs for her tribe to vote her out. “And I’m just going to be really honest. I don’t need to be voted out to go home.” The tribe then puts its drama aside, and agrees to give Hannah what she wants. Jeff tells Hannah to grab her torch and doesn’t even make the group leave their seats to formally vote. (Read our Q&A with Hannah here!)
Thoughts on Episode 1? Grade the Survivor 45 premiere below, then go full tilt boogie in the comments!
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