“Survivor Jackpot:” A Deeper Look At Survivor Game Changers Episode 3

"Survivor Jackpot" - Brad Culpepper, Caleb Reynolds and Tai Trang on the third episode of SURVIVOR: Game Changers, airing Wednesday, March 15 (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Photo: Jeffrey Neira/CBS Entertainment ©2017 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
"Survivor Jackpot" - Brad Culpepper, Caleb Reynolds and Tai Trang on the third episode of SURVIVOR: Game Changers, airing Wednesday, March 15 (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Photo: Jeffrey Neira/CBS Entertainment ©2017 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved. /
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Survivor Game Changers Cast Reveal
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Throwing Water On The “Pre-Merge Boot” Conspiracy Theory

In the aftermath of episode three, some astute viewers drew attention to an interesting phenomenon: each of the three boots to date — Ciera, Tony and Caleb — appeared on stage at the reunion show for Millennials vs. Gen X when Jeff Probst unveiled the current season’s theme.

What does it all mean? Could it be that the producers drew entirely from their list pre-merge boots when giving viewers a sneak peek at some of the returnees? That seems like a stretch.

More from Season 34 Game Changers

For the sake of the other four castaways in attendance at the finale — Ozzy, Sandra, Cirie and Tai — let’s give the producers a little credit. They likely just opted to go with some of the best-known characters to hype up the upcoming season. Ozzy and Sandra are two of the biggest names in Survivor history. Why wouldn’t they be front and center in promoting Game Changers, regardless of where they finished?

Those involved in the show’s production learned early on that everything put out into the world, intentionally or otherwise, becomes part of the conversation. A “Gervase X”-style faux-spoiler doesn’t add anything to the viewer’s experience and the producers wouldn’t make such an obvious mistake after 33 seasons.