Survivor Seasons: How Second Chance changed the game of Survivor

Among the best seasons with returning players, the great cast of Survivor: Cambodia heightened their level of play, changing Survivor forever.

Survivor: Cambodia – Second Chanceis perhaps one of the best themes for a returning player season. Each of the castaways were returning for their second season, and they all had unfinished business. Their experience and knowledge of the game revolutionized the way alliances form, makingSecond Chanceatop ten season of all-time. It’s also agreat season to rewatch beforeEdge of Extinctionairssince both Joe and Wentworth are in it. Here are some key waysCambodiachangedSurvivor.

Voting Blocs!

Avoting blocis when a group of castaways decide to vote out a common threat. These differ from alliances because they’re more short-term and usually change after that threat is eliminated. Although we’ve seen voting blocs temporarily form in earlier seasons like inAmazonandHeroes vs. Villains, it was inSecond Chancewhere this new type of alliance became popularized.

Production did a great job of throwing everything at these castaways. For the first time inSurvivor, the two initial tribes were expanded to three, and then a few episodes later they went back down to two! Add in the earliest merge ever at 13 people and you had so many shifting loyalties.

These dynamics motivated the castaways to view each Tribal as an opportunity to get rid of a big threat, as opposed to simply sticking to tribal lines. This led to thrilling and fluid gameplay that resulted in surprising blindsides almost every vote.

SinceSecond Chance, we’ve seen a few other seasons includingGame Changers,Millennials vs. Gen XandDavid vs. Goliath, build off this progressive gameplay. It’s so exciting to watch the strategy ofSurvivorevolve, and we hope to see to voting blocs become a key part of every season!

Hiding idols in challenges.

Production threw in another awesome twist forCambodia: hiding Hidden Immunity Idols in a challenge. Jeremy Collins and Kelley Wentworth each discovered their own clue that showed them exactly where an idol was hiding at the challenge. They were both skillfully able to pull out the idol without anyone noticing.

This new way of planting idols is perhaps thebest hiding place of them all, as it adds a whole other entertaining element to a Reward or Immunity Challenge. Although it hasn’t been aired, you can be sure that sinceSecondChance, castawayshave been subtly examining the challenge grounds for a possible idol. This is something I’m sure Wentworth will try duringEdge of Extinction!

Using other threats as a meat-shield.

You can always go back in the history ofSurvivorand theorize how possible winners like Vecepia, Natalie White and Danni used bigger threats as a shield to advance themselves further. That being said, none of those castaways were vocal about this strategy during the game. It was really only untilSecond Chancethat the idea of using a meat-shield became popularized.

Coming intoCambodia, Jeremy appeared to be a strong physical threat who even won an Immunity necklace in his first season. He made it clear that he wanted to be surrounded by other strong players so that when someone makes a big move, they go home instead of him. It was a way of keeping the target off of his back. Jeremy used this strategy perfectly, as he had Savage on his side, and he did everything in his power to keep Joe alive deep into the merge.

By the time both Savage and Joe were gone, only seven people remained. Jeremy’s strategy worked so well, that the only votes he received the entire season were three blocked by his idol, and ten to award him with the Title of SoleSurvivor. Just like voting blocs, the idea of keeping a meat-shield around has been used by many castaways since, including Davie from David vs. Goliath.

We don’t get treated often with seasons that evolve the game ofSurvivorin a major way.Second Chancedefinitely fits into that category and it’s fun to watchcastaways still reference this season when they’re out on the island.

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