Survivor: Game Changers Power Rankings After Episode 1

18. Malcolm Freberg

Malcolm is undeniably good for television when it comes to playing that role on Surivivor. He’s charismatic, inserts snarky humor into the show, and is often fun to watch when it comes to challenges due to his physical prowess. However, Malcolm’s biggest weakness remains his enormous ego, which was highlighted in the second challenge when he lost it for Nuku by not letting Michaela in. With a group of strong players around him, that seems like something that could come back to bite him sooner rather than later.

17. Tai Trang

For the first half of Kaoh Rong, the first time that we saw Tai play the game, his gameplay was quite good. He came off as likable and was a provider for his tribe. What’s more, he was also a sneaky physical threat in challenges and just a generally solid all-around player. As strategy became more involved, though, he got sloppy and indecisive and, frankly, it probably cost him $1 million in that season. Unfortunately for him, those negative qualities surfaced almost immediately when Cirie confronted him about Ozzy still having a beef with her.

16. Sandra Diaz-Twine

She can say that the “Queen stays Queen” as much as she wants, and it’s uncanny how Sandra can come back as a two-time winner and still convince an entire tribe to take out someone (miss you, Tony). However, Sandra is playing a very dangerous game right now. She probably had the biggest target on her back to begin with. So to come out of the gate so aggressively—something that’s also uncommon for her as a player—seems like an ill-fated decision. Maybe I’m wrong, but the premiere feels like a firework for Sandra and she will flame out quickly playing this way.