What Australian Survivor reveals about Survivor: David vs. Goliath

Two different versions, two similar themes. After two episodes, David vs. Goliath has been following the same path as Australian Survivor: Champions vs. Contenders.

For those who are only familiar with the US version, Australian Survivor began its third season this past August. Besides the fact that Russell Hantz was among the cast, the buzz surrounding this version was how similar the theme was to the upcoming season of its American counterpart.

David vs. Goliath and Champions vs. Contenders both spell underdog vs. favorite. Australian Survivor just finished its 25 episode season. So that begs the question: how did the tribes fare and will those trends translate into David vs. Goliath?

The underdogs can’t beat the odds. The Champions tribe dominated by winning seven out of ten Immunity Challenges. By the merge, the Contenders were outnumbered four to eight, and the final three castaways were all from the Champions tribe.

In David vs. Goliath, we’ve seen a similar trend. The Goliath tribe has dominated winning back to back Immunity Challenges. The underdogs appear to be outmatched. Is this season shaping up to be a total blowout like Champions vs. Contenders?

The fact is, it is still too early to count the David tribe out of it. Although it may seem like the David tribe is about to get clobbered, here are three reasons why they have better odds than the Contenders tribe on Australian Survivor.

1) Tribe Swaps: While Australian Survivor tries to hold onto their originally themed tribes as long as possible, the US version is at the point now where tribal swaps can happen as soon as the fourth episode. This early switch gives original members of the David tribe a chance to regroup and makes for gameplay that is less inclined to rely on old tribe loyalties.

2) Challenge Style: After the first three challenges, it’s clear that production has put a lot of thought into giving both tribes the opportunity to capitalize on their strengths. Whereas, Australian Survivor had a lot of physically demanding challenges that suited a Champions tribe composed of several rugby players and Olympians.

3) Tribe Unity: There’s no denying that Australian Survivor has a lot of mateship going on. Plus, the contestants deeply value the relationships they build with the tribe as a whole. We do see friendships develop in the US version, but it’s usually in pairs or small groups, not the entire tribe. This creates a lot of tense situations between factions within the group, opening the door for players from different tribes working together more often.

The big takeaway from Australian Survivor is that it’s a different type of show. Yes, its theme is almost synonymous with David vs. Goliath, but American Survivor is far more willing to shake things up in order to balance the playing field. So don’t expect the Goliath tribe to run away with it just yet.

One thing we saw from Champions vs. Contenders was that both tribes had several castaways who made game-changing moves with their backs against the wall. Even the “goats” who were brought into the merge stepped up their gameplay when they needed to, including the winner of Australian Survivor. Let’s hope we’ll see that trend continue with Survivor: David vs. Goliath.