Survivor: David vs. Goliath cast assessment: Natalia Azoqa engineering a win?

The second-youngest player and youngest woman on Survivor’s Goliath tribe, Natalia Azoqa will need to engineer an airtight strategy to make it to the end.

Many, many people are confident in their ability to one day get cast for Survivor on social media. You can’t stroll through the online Twitter and Instagram communities without seeing dozens upon dozens of fans that include “future Survivor contestant” (or “winner”) in their bios. Natalia Azoqa did one better; she made a Twitter account, tweeted out her audition video to Jeff Probst, got cast from the show and never tweeted ever again.

She achieved the optimal Twitter career; get in, set out for a mission, complete it in one tweet and log off forever. It’s a testament to the level of success she is used to, one that has helped craft her career as an industrial engineer at the age of 25 and make it to the Goliath tribe full of privileged, accomplished players as the youngest woman in her group.

Looking to her CBS bio, one thing that is alarming for her long-term game is that Natalia’s pet peeves come from the slightest of aggravating details. Being annoyed at people not cleaning their teeth or people tapping their feet shows that she has keen observational skills, but that level will drive castaways like her mad weeks in when the smallest microaggression may cause a conflict.

She is a go-getter as previously mentioned, talking about meeting Probst at a Survivor event and willing herself onto the show in the future. She takes after one of the most determined players in the game, too, pointing to Kelley Wentworth as the player she’s most like. Starting from the bottom and making it far into the game might be a hard position to play, but she seems to know how to will her way forward.

Her gameplay priorities seem to be about adapting and making reads on people, indicating that multiple times. One of the objects she would request if she could is a pair of binoculars so she can read what others are strategizing about on the beach. I could definitely see Natalia as a stone-faced observer on the island, picking up tells and deciding to go from there.

Jeff Probst offered his thoughts on Natalia, saying she’s a strong, smart player. He indicates her unwillingness to share her occupation, teasing her awareness of smart women in power positions and her possible perception as a threat on the island. He posits she may find herself in a core women’s power alliance, especially considering her tribe’s dynamics.

I could imagine otherwise, though, as I’m sure the Goliaths will look to focus on strength on all facets. It’ll be interesting to see where Natalia comes down a tribe where weaker players like Mike White or Kara Kay might have strong game awareness and social play, but alpha bros like Alec and possibly John Hennigan (if playing a wrestling heel role) might counter that.

I’m honestly not quite sure where Natalia will end up in Survivor: David vs. Goliath, but I feel like she will play hard regardless. That could have her be the first or second boot on her tribe (Goliaths look strong) or see her come close, if not all the way, to the end.