Survivor Winners at War: Adam Klein is episode 2’s MVP

Although the old school winners are getting a lot of the buzz, Adam Klein, a recent Survivor champ, is setting himself up for a deep run in Winners at War.

It’s funny how often we see a castaway get into trouble on Day 1, and then somehow salvage their game, pulling out a memorable performance. Chris Daugherty and Nick Wilson are two Survivor winners that come to mind, and we might be adding Adam Klein to this list after the season is over.

Adam began Winners at War with the seasonal error of leaving the camp for a long period of time on Day 1. Denise and Adam were quickly painted as easy targets because of their escapade to the water well. Since then, Adam has done a tremendous job of making everyone forget about that early risk.

After the first two episodes, you can tell that Adam has a great feel for this game. To ensure survival, a castaway must be conscious of their place in the tribe, especially in a season like this one. We’ve already seen multiple people lack that sense of awareness including Danni, Kim and Denise, while Adam has displayed superior recognition of the situations around him.

With Ben’s help, Denise discovered a Hidden Immunity Idol. Similar to season 38: Edge of Extinction, this idol is composed of two halves that only have power when they’re joined together. In order to gain that power, Denise had to give half to somebody, and for some crazy reason, she suggested giving it to Parvati.

Not only is Adam’s bond with Denise tight enough for her to feel comfortable to confide in him, but he also has the power to convince her. He immediately reasoned with her why giving the idol half to Parvati was a terrible idea. The way he exposed the dangers of this plan without being overly outraged that she even thought of this strategy was very well done.

That motivated Denise to give Adam the idol half instead. At this point, he is the brains of this underrated alliance, knowing the best way to play their cards. Having knowledge and possession of this idol is huge for Adam, as it gives him insight into whether or not their next target has the ability to save themselves. So it might not be an idol he could use liberally, but this discovery will help this sneaky strategic mastermind to maneuver.

All idol talk aside, Adam had a great episode overall. His social game is thriving, as he did a solid job of getting involved in nearly every important conversation. He was there when Ben was exposing Danni’s blunder, he was there when Rob revealed that Danni was throwing Parvati’s name out, and he was a part of the conversation with Jeremy and Michele about deciding if they should actually go after Parvati. The bottom line: Adam is everywhere!

Having that strong of a social presence brings along a valuable wealth of knowledge. When Adam gets to hear each of these alliances’ plans, his potential to steer a vote grows immeasurably. Even with this power, Adam understands the importance of saving his resources for the right time. Instead of throwing out a name, Adam let Boston Rob dictate the vote this time, which turned out to work in his favor anyway. Adam is proving why he deserves to be on this season and is starting to make fans consider him as a favorite to make Day 39.