Since it debuted in 2000, “Survivor” has delivered unforgettable blindsides, iconic castaways, and strategic gameplay that continues to evolve each season. While each season is now filmed in Fiji, things were different when the show first started.
Yes, we are celebrating “Survivor” 50 right now, but let’s take a look back at the 49 other seasons of “Survivor.” We are picking the five best “Survivor” seasons and ranking them for their impact, entertainment value, and memorable gameplay or winner chosen.
1. ‘Survivor: Micronesia – Fans vs. Favorites’
This season proved again that returning players can make the game even more fun. We had some intense alliances and one of the most famous blindsides in “Survivor” history.
The one alliance everyone talks about: The Black Widow Brigade, which featured Parvati Shallow, Cirie Fields, Amanda Kimmel, and Natalie Bolton. They dominated and advanced to the final four.
Some amazing blindsides after the merge, including Ozzy Lusth and Jason Siska. Erik Reichenbach gave up his immunity necklace, which remains one of the most infamous moves in “Survivor” history.
There was a lot of entertainment value in this season, as it combined returning players (Favorites) with new players (Fans). Parvati won the season in a 5-3 jury vote, cementing her legacy as a top-tier strategist.
2. ‘Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains’
“Heroes vs. Villains” just had it all. This one brought together some of the most iconic castaways in the show’s history, and they did not disappoint.
We saw the Russell Hantz vs. Boston Rob feud, which gave viewers some of the best pre-merge episodes ever. We had some epic moments, like Tyson voting himself out, J.T. giving Russell his immunity idol, and Parvati handing out two immunity idols at the same Tribal Council.
This was all returning players, like “Survivor” 50, and it brought the drama and great gameplay. Will that happen again with this current season?
3. ‘Survivor: Cagayan’
“Survivor: Cagayan” is the complete opposite, as this was a season of completely new players. This season had a great mixture of terrific and terrible gameplay.
We had players with huge personalities (Tony, Spencer, Kass), but they weren’t just personalities. These were castaways who came to “Survivor” to play the game. Maybe the gameplay wasn’t perfect at times, but they were at least playing.
The cast was amazing, the challenges were good, the elimination order was completely unpredictable, and the creative twists worked.
To top it all off, Woo bringing Tony to the end with him was the moment that just sealed this season as one of the best.
4. ‘Survivor: David vs. Goliath’
This is a more recent season (37). The theme was odd, and the challenges weren’t anything to write home to mom about. However, this was all about the castaways put on that island.
I mean, we had Christian, who is probably one of the most-loved contestants of all time. Then add in Angelina, Nick, Davie, Gabby, Mike, and even more. This was the type of season you were tuning in every week to see what they would do next.
The editing for this season was top-notch, also, as producers were trying some new techniques to freshen it up. It gave us some changes that fans liked, but the true reason this season makes the Top 5 is because of the cast.
5. ‘Survivor: Winners at War’
Let’s talk about this one. A season of 20 former champions, there to compete for one of the biggest prizes in the show’s history. We had legends in the mix: Parvati, Boston Rob, and Sandra.
We also saw the return of the ultimate Survivor, Ethan Zorn. He used his winnings from “Survivor: Africa” to fight AIDS on the continent.
Tony Vlachos returned for another season. He took it and ran too, cementing himself as one of the greatest players ever.
A downfall for this season was the Edge of Extinction. Who wants to vote out a player, but then have them come back because of this island? The Edge also got people complaining about it, so that took a lot of time. That cut into showing us more details about the castaways and tribes, so fans weren’t really sure where alliances lay.
This was also the case heading into Tribal Council every week, as fans were more confused than shocked when the votes were read.
Which seasons would you rank in your Top 5?
Damn good choices. 2 of the best 5 seasons also Include the goat, Tony.
I noticed 3 of the 5 had my favorite Parvati in them
I do not like Exile Island or the Edge of Extinction, but I think they needed to have in for Winners at War. These was a celebration of the most popular winners from the past 39 seasons and some of them had to be voted out early on. EoE allowed us to continue to enjoy watching them through the whole season. It was a different kind of season, an example was when they decided to let the exiles have their loved ones visit too.