Survivor 50 wrapped up in May, and with that, the new era of Survivor has come to a close. Before Survivor 51 and the Open Era begin, though, it is important to remember a few highlights and low points, including the new era winners.
Survivor had to make quite a few changes after Covid lockdown protocols shut the production down for over a year. During that time, Survivor host and executive producer Jeff Probst, alongside the Survivor team, got their thinking caps on about what should remain and what needed to change for the show to move forward. Hence, the new era began in 2021 with Survivor 41.
While there were a plethora of memorable moments throughout the new era's 10 seasons, there were also several downgrades that both past alumni and fans were vocal about. While only time will tell which feedback will be taken into account (if any) or whether the "open era" will be the new era on steroids, there were nonetheless 10 players who joined the US Survivor winners club, which now has only 48 people in the entire world who can boast membership.
For me, the new era propelled two distinct styles of winning: players who actively commanded the steering wheel, built ironclad alliances, and dictated their seasons in any shape or form, and those who relied on passive threat management and social recovery to escape being the target, emerging from the ashes at the proper time.
Based on the above-mentioned distinction, I will rank the new era winners from the weakest strategic games to the absolute elite. Without further ado, here’s my ultimate Survivor new era winners ranking list:
10. Mike Gabler - Survivor 43
I don’t think anyone would be surprised to see Mike Gabler from Survivor 43 this low on the list, as he is widely considered the worst winner of the new era. For starters, Gabler is notorious for being extremely chaotic during the pre-merge as he openly confronted people and later asked his fellow Baka members to vote him out of the game.
Gabler’s shining moment came when he successfully targeted Elie Scott at the merge, though he later became a passive player who never led votes and was used as a number by bigger players throughout the post-merge.
Gabler was never in control of the monumental pivot moments of the season, for instance, Jesse Lopez blindsiding Cody Assenmacher or Karla Cruz Godoy’s ultimate demise. Gabler then only had to eliminate Lopez in the Final Four fire-making twist that Cassidy Clark set up for him and, since Clark was greatly disliked by the majority of the jury, Gabler ended up winning with a majority of votes. As someone who appreciates strategically dominant players and agency-driven social players, I think Gabler is a weak winner.
9. Kenzie Petty - Survivor 46
Survivor 46 was dominated by big players, iconic moments, nonsensical idol non-plays, and larger-than-life characters, which greatly overshadowed the eventual winner, Kenzie Petty. Also, the fact that her victory over Charlie Davis is still contested as a biased jury decision certainly doesn’t help.
Regardless, Petty was consistently a well-rounded social player. From her early days on the ill-fated Yanu tribe to the post-merge, Petty was able to maneuver around other people’s big egos and gained a solid footing within the Yanu hierarchy, which eventually led to her being one of its three people to advance to the merge.
At the post-merge phase, Petty continued to build relationships, was a solid number in several moves, and was considered a social threat if she managed to pitch her case to the jury. Petty’s lowest moment came when she lost close ally Tiffany Nicole Ervin after first considering blindsiding Ervin herself, but ultimately choosing not to, only for both of them to be blindsided soon after at the Final Eight.
After winning the Final Four fire-making challenge, Petty argued that her social gameplay deserved to triumph over Davis’ strategic one, ultimately earning her the Sole Survivor title via a 5-3 vote. While Petty’s social game is pretty much uncontested, she still lacked strategic agency in pivotal moments (Ervin’s elimination), which hindered her shot at building her resume beyond being a solid alliance member and a guaranteed vote. While I do consider her win as a rightful one, her overall passive gameplay consolidates her in ninth place.
8. Yam Yam Arocho - Survivor 44
Yam Yam Arocho was part of the memorable Tika Three alliance alongside Carson Garrett and Carolyn Wiger during Survivor 44, which allowed them to maneuver into a power position as the other factions battled each other. Wiger was the glue that held the alliance together, Garrett was the strategic force, as Arocho was the social charmer who transformed social bonds into shields to protect himself from the post-merge bloodbath.
Arocho was notoriously vindictive; if anyone dared to write his name down, he made sure to get rid of them at the next opportunity. At the Final Four, Garrett was eliminated in the fire-making challenge, which greatly helped Arocho at the Final Tribal Council, where he was able to explain the method to his madness to the jury and was rewarded the title of Sole Survivor.
Arocho was highly adept in using his charm and social butterfly abilities to rattle the opposing alliance's forces to go after each other instead of targeting the Tika Three minority. However, the one who drove the strategy wheel behind every move post-merge was Garrett. While Arocho had more strategic intent than Gabler or Petty, he still needed other shields to hide his ultimate agency when it came to dictating the votes.
7. Erika Casupanan - Survivor 41
Survivor 41 was an uneven season, to say the least, especially as it introduced the new era to the public and faced backlash due to its game design and overall editing. One of the most egregious crimes the season committed was hiding its own winner, Erika Casupanan. Plenty dismiss Casupanan’s gameplay either because of her purple edit or due to the Hourglass twist, neither of which was her fault.
Casupanan’s first Tribal Council was in episode 7, halfway through the season; therefore, the edit focused on other castaways who either also made a deep run or were going to be eliminated soon. However, this doesn’t mean Casupanan wasn’t playing; on the contrary, she was busy building relationships within the Luvu tribe and formed an impenetrable duo with Heather Aldret.
During episode 7, Casupanan met the hated Hourglass twist, which flipped the game on its head. Casupanan ended up with safety, and Sydney Segal was voted out instead. From that point forward, Casupanan became "the lion in sheep's clothing" by dismantling the majority alliance and by earning her safety via winning two individual immunity challenges.
Casupanan ranks higher than other winners as she is the first player on this list to shift from playing defensively to actively driving votes. However, as her pre-merge game wasn’t as well-fleshed out as others', and her safety at the merge came through a twist rather than by her own actions, the seventh spot on this list seems appropriate.
6. Aubry Bracco - Survivor 50: In the Hands of the Fans
Aubry Bracco began her Survivor journey all the way back in Survivor: Kaoh Rong, where she ended up as the runner-up. Plenty said Bracco had been robbed, and though she also returned for Survivor: Game Changers and Survivor: Edge of Extinction, it wasn’t until Survivor 50 that Bracco was able to finally clutch the long-awaited win.
Bracco began at the bottom of the Vatu tribe, where she struggled to find her footing in the early stages of the game. As the game progressed, though, Bracco managed to fluctuate between multiple alliances, gather allies, and deflect the massive target on her back by playing an idol early to divert attention away from her.
Once other targets were eliminated, Bracco emerged as an endgame threat and won the final immunity challenge, which allowed her to decide who to take to the end with her. Bracco was then seen as the best player out of the finalists and was awarded the Sole Survivor title after an 8-3-0 vote.
Bracco’s editing throughout the season was uneven and often highlighted other players or moves more than her own, which has given detractors a basis to argue against her win. However, Bracco made the best of several bad situations for her, and her jury management, as well as her social and strategic gameplay, were praised by the majority of the jurors, thereby making her win deserved.
I’m placing Bracco in the middle of the list due to the above-mentioned reasons as to why her game was better than other winners, as her strategic agency was evident throughout her game. Nevertheless, it still took Bracco four seasons to win, unlike these other first-time ones.
5. Maryanne Oketch - Survivor 42
Maryanne Oketch began her game on Survivor 42 as being boisterous, energetic, and a highly charismatic player. While she wasn’t everyone’s cup of tea, Oketch still formed a tight bond with Omar Zaheer, making them an unstoppable duo within their tribe.
As the game progressed, Oketch grew into her strategic potential. Seeing how Zaheer would win against anyone, Oketch organised his blindside, positioning herself as the leader of the pack. At the Final Tribal Council, Oketch gave a masterclass in jury performance, and once she revealed she had an idol all along, her win was ultimately sealed.
Oketch took proactive control of her game by managing her threat level and levelling up her social game accordingly to make the necessary moves to advance. While Oketch truly became a winning contender, a few points must be deducted, as her beginnings were shaky, mainly due to her being ostracised and by having to rely on others as shields to survive the pre-merge.
4. Savannah Louie - Survivor 49
Savannah Louie was a force to be reckoned with in Survivor 49 the minute she stepped on the beach. Alongside her trusty allies Rizo Velovic and Nate Moore, Louie had a complete chokehold on the original Uli tribe.
At the merge, Louie and her allies found themselves in trouble after being targeted by the Hina faction, and Moore was eliminated. However, Louie, Velovic, and new ally Sophi Balerdi became a formidable trio who exploited the cracks within Hina in their favour, and ultimately reached the Final Four together.
With her four individual immunity challenge wins and strategic dominance, Louie earned the majority of the jury's votes, consolidating her win by playing a hardcore, agency-driven game. Louie’s Achilles' heel became her social game, a fact noted by the jurors, which almost cost her the winning title.
3. Rachel LaMont - Survivor 47
Survivor 47 was a highly entertaining, dynamic, and game-driven season with several memorable players, including the eventual winner, Rachel LaMont. As part of the Gata tribe, LaMont made an alliance with Anika Dhar to counteract the duo of Sam Phalen and Sierra Wright, leaving Andy Rueda in the middle after he survived elimination.
After Daher’s elimination, LaMont went on overdrive to adjust her gameplay accordingly. She masterfully executed a never-before-seen move with her Shot in the Dark, correctly played her Safety Without Power advantage, and also won four individual immunity challenges. Her season-long rivalry with fellow strategic mastermind Genevieve Mushaluk was also one for the Survivor books, as well as her tumultuous working relationship with Rueda.
She only missed a spot in the first two places since Daher’s blindside almost annihilated her game before it ever began. However, LaMont demonstrated her craftiness, resourcefulness, and savviness with her multi-layered game, which therefore, resulted in her becoming a Sole Survivor.
2. Kyle Fraser - Survivor 48
My number two on the list is none other than Kyle Fraser from Survivor 48. While the season was a snoozefest, Fraser was anything but. Alongside his secret partner, Kamilla Karthigesu, both players had everyone else wrapped around their finger without them realising it until the very end.
Fraser and Karthigesu gave a masterclass in social deception and double-agentry. While Karthigesu was on the sidelines of the big alliance, Fraser was constantly in "enemy territory," gathering information about the "Strong Five" alliance and quickly relaying it to Karthigesu, which they both used to their advantage at pivotal times in the game.
Due to the other outsiders' inability to make a move, the Strong Five's overreliance on honour and integrity, and everyone else focused on the public duo of Eva Erickson and Joe Hunter, Fraser and Karthigesu were able to orchestrate the implosion of the majority alliance. Fraser’s charisma, strategic and social gameplay, and physical abilities gave him the win in the end, with the help of Karthigesu’s advocacy with the jury as well.
Fraser always had a finger on the pulse of the game and knew where every public and secret alliance was at every turn. Fraser is only in the second spot due to having to handle extra jury management, as his double-agent role made several jurors get even more upset with him, and because the first person on this list's game control was completely unmatched and absolute.
1. Dee Valladares - Survivor 45
The number one and ultimate new era Survivor winner is, of course, Dee Valladares from Survivor 45. Valladares immediately took control of the game, her original tribe, and consolidated the alliance that would dictate half of the game.
Alongside the Reba Four, which included her showmance Austin Li Coon, Valladares dictated who was eliminated and when. Even when other people tried to rally against her and her allies, one by one fell to her sword (well, in this case, her pen on parchment). At the Final Tribal Council, Valladares once again prevailed by revealing that she had manipulated Li Coon as well when he got rid of his other closest ally, as opposed to Valladares losing hers, earning her the respect of the jury and the win.
With her physical prowess, disarming social game, and complete strategic control, Valladares not only ranks high on any new era winners list, but also among overall Survivor players. While I doubted where to place a few of the winners, Valladares wasn’t one of them, as it would be egregious to place her anywhere else but in first.
Add us as a preferred source on Google