5 Interesting Things From Survivor Game Changers Episode 1

The Legends Face Off, Others Fall In Line

First off, I would be remiss if I didn’t show love for the camera crew for Survivor Game Changers. This shot above brilliantly encapsulates the animosity between Sandra and Tony in the first two-hour episode of the season, driven by Tony’s paranoid behavior and general lack of sleep.

It all stems from Tony trying to build his spy bunker after watching everyone else fall asleep for at least an hour, almost getting caught, and Tony thinking Troyzan mentioning that Tony wasn’t a threat in an overheard conversation that involved Sandra. Essentially, Tony said he wasn’t “scheming or scamming” anybody, but failed to realize that getting up into someone’s grill can be worse.

What I found interesting from this engagement is how it put Sandra and others out of their comfort zone. Sandra’s not usually the one whipping up votes to get other people out; this isn’t her game. However, this doesn’t stop Tony from saying “this is how she wins twice,” even though it’s totally not how she won twice.

With two legends squaring off, only one can leave, and because of the Survivor Game Changers twist of no re-votes, we see everyone but Tony and Sandra vote for Tony. Hell, even Tony knows not to vote for Sandra, instead hoping someone would idol him out.

Varner notes how scary Sandra can be as she forms an alliance within 15 minutes. It could be bad for Sandra’s game in the short term, or it could be the basis of an unwinnable final tribal council game (depending on the jury). Either way, Sandra and Tony were making the necessary moves as everyone else fell in line.