Throughout Survivor’s history, there hasn’t been a ton of awesome, badass female players. That’s why Kelley Wentworth is so important for Edge of Extinction.
During episode two of Survivor: Edge of Extinction, something jumped out at me. While Lauren was searching for the Hidden Immunity Idol, the viewers heard a confessional on how she always looked up to Parvati Shallow and Kelley Wentworth. Now she’s playing with Wentworth and is on the same tribe as her. Oh, they’re also BFFs.
Anyway, once Lauren found the idol and buried it on the beach, it really did make me think about how cool that moment must have been for her. She not only gets to play a game she’s loved since she was younger, but she gets to do so with one of her two heroes from that very game. Pretty darn cool.
Wentworth is one of those few female Survivor contestants that proves women on the show can be badass and give the guys a run for their money. She was one of the early boots on San Juan del Sur (season 29; good lord, where has the time gone), but a lot of that could be pinned on her father who was playing with her that season.
The second time Wentworth played (Cambodia, season 31), she was freaking awesome and wound up finishing fourth. She clawed her way from the bottom of the totem pole time and time again. Survivor needs more players like Kelley Wentworth and that’s why I was relieved when she wasn’t voted out in episode two.
You see, Survivor never has a shortage of fun characters. Usually we get at least two or three from each season that fans can usually expect to see back in the future. A good majority of the time, however, those players are guys.
Yes, I would have watched this season regardless, but Wentworth being one of the returnees made me really excited for it. She’s a competitor, she’s funny, and she makes big moves. She was one of the main reasons Cambodia was as good of a season as it was.
My biggest hope for Survivor: Edge of Extinction (next to that whole twist not being as laughable as it is now) is that Kelley Wentworth gets to the merge and makes her Wentworth magic happen in the later episodes. She’s the gift that keeps on giving.