Jack Nichting was a nimble, quick-witted contestant that learned some honest lessons on Island of the Idols. Should he get another shot at Survivor?
Modern Survivor sensibilities typically suggest that a 20-player season will begin with two tribes of 10, followed by a tribe swap or two, with a pre-merge ending at the Final 13, producing a 10-person jury. Heading into the Island of the Idols merge, Jack Nichting found himself in an untraditionally early jury spot, setting up to assess a group of peers he luckily had the opportunity to meet.
Jack was an extremely likable guy early on in the game, as he found himself at the bottom of a power trio of himself, Jamal, and Molly. When you’re in power early, being at that bottom is actually the best position because when people come for power (like they did with a Molly blindside in 19th place), they know to retain some of the numbers.
As such, Jack played the blindside cool and reserved as a means of survival, which helped him preserve his relationships heading into the tribe swap. From there, he formed new relationships with players such as Karishma, helping her to air out her grievances and concerns to better Vokai’s odds of dominating at the merge.
Jack wasn’t perfect, however, though he did something few can do; admit their mistakes, apologize, and learn while strengthening his bond with those he transgressed. He made a comment about how Jamal’s buff was a durag but instead of unraveling his game, he owned his mistake and truly learned from a patient teacher in Jamal, emboldening their relationship to the point where they’re roommates out of the game.
Just shy of the merge, Day 19 saw Lairo 2.0 lose another Immunity Challenge and it seemed as though the numbers would dictate Dean going home. However, Jack couldn’t prepare for Dean and Kellee knowing each other outside of the game, nor a limited-time Immunity Idol expiring at that tribal, giving Kellee the opportunity to pull off a crazy move to give Dean an idol and have Noura and Dean vote for Jack, sending him home in a shocking blindside.
Jack was targeted for being part of a strong trio early, and his ability to make friends easily got others scared in his abilities playing Island of the Idols. Vote here in our straw poll to let us know if he should get another shot at playing Survivor.