Survivor Ghost Island: Should Donathan Hurley return?

Photo: Screen Grab/CBS Entertainment ©2018 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Photo: Screen Grab/CBS Entertainment ©2018 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved. /
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Perhaps one of the biggest fish out of water stories in Survivor Ghost Island, Donathan Hurley scratched and survived. Should he return?

For many who play the game, Survivor is their first true test in the great outdoors. Even those who live in mountainous regions with a rough and tumble climate, it’s an entirely different thing when you have minimal food and water for 39 days. Not only was it Donathan Hurley’s first time out of the country, it was his first time out of the state!

That put him in an immediately noticeable underdog role in Game Changers, and it started out with a strong representation in a premiere Immunity Challenge. With his team needing to dive down and open a latch to retrieve balls, noted sprinter James Lim could not do it. After prodding from Jeff Probst and the Malolo tribe, Donathan was able to pull it off (even if his tribe went on to lose).

After almost being voted out first in the game, Donathan needed to work with his new friend Laurel and find a group willing to play the game of Survivor. As the two swapped onto Naviti 2.0, they found willing partners in Domenick and Wendell, as they preferred him to Chris Noble and his egotistical ways. Even in the shock of Morgan Ricke‘s departure, a secret Final Four alliance was born.

It stayed a mostly dormant alliance until Desiree plotted with the Malolo minority after the merge to take out Kellyn, Wendell and Domenick. Nobody knew that Donathan and Laurel were working with the two power players, but the framing of the betrayal facing Kellyn helped hide the about-face vote as Desiree was voted out of the game.

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It was when Chelsea first became safe after winning two straight Immunity Challenges that Donathan really wanted to take out Domenick and Wendell. He knew that the opportunities to take out players with Hidden Immunity Idols would be few and far between beyond the Final Eight, yet Laurel insisted in staying the course in voting out Chelsea.

Eventually, Donathan grew frustrated with Laurel and started pitting Wendell and Domenick against each other, effectively blowing up his game at the Final Seven. After Kellyn and Sebastian went home and both Wendell and Domenick had to play their idols, Donathan was sent home in fifth place.

Next: Vote here for whether Donathan Hurley should return

Donathan was such a sweet, pure-hearted player who did everything in his power to help support his family, even earning a cheque from Sia in the process. Vote here in our straw poll if you would like to see him get another shot at a million dollars.