Episode 1 Stats

Each week Inside Survivor contributor Rob Brodeur will be collecting various Survivor-related statistics and information based off the latest episode of Survivor 42.

Season

• This is the first season to have three starting tribes directly after another season with three starting tribes.
  • Worlds Apart and Kaoh Rong both had three starting tribes and were filmed back to back, but Cambodia (which was filmed after) aired between them.
• This is the second season to go by only a number instead of a location/twist/subtitle (41 was the first).
  • Borneo was originally called just “Survivor” but was later changed to Survivor: Borneo.
• This is the first time a filming location has been used 10 times in a row.
  • Season 33 (Millennials vs. Gen X) through season 42 were filmed in the Mamanuca Islands in Fiji.
  • This is the 10th consecutive season to be filmed in Fiji.
    • It’s the 11th season overall to be filmed in Fiji.
• According to Ricard’s Twitter, his and Heather’s eliminations from Survivor 41 were only a week before the eliminations in the premiere episode of Survivor 42.

Cast

• The average age of the cast is 33.
• Swati is the youngest castaway this season.
  • She’s currently the youngest castaway by date of birth.
• Zach (21) and Swati (19) are the youngest man and woman this season.
• Mike (57) and Marya (47) are the oldest man and woman this season.
  • Mike is the only player this season who is 50+.
• Swati and Omar are the second and third Indian-American contestants after Karishma from Island of the Idols.
• In 2007, Jonathan was on the sixth season of Endurance (a teen version of Survivor).
  • Coincidentally, his season of Endurance was also filmed in Fiji.
• Tori was on the third season of Sequester, an online reality show created by Audrey Middleton of Big Brother 17.
• Jackson is the second trans man to be on Survivor after Zeke from Millennials vs. Gen X and Game Changers.
• Lindsay was originally supposed to be on season 41 but had to drop out at the last minute—Tiffany was her replacement.
• Lydia is the second person named Lydia to be on Survivor.
  • The first was Lydia Morales in Guatemala.
    • Coincidentally, both Lydias on Survivor have last names that start with “M.”
• Survivor 42 has the record for most LGBTQ+ players in the season, with five: Chanelle, Hai, Jackson, Lydia, and Romeo.
  • The previous record was held by Micronesia, Game Changers, David vs. Goliath, Island of the Idols, and Survivor 41, which all had three LGBTQ+ players.

Tribes

• This is the only three-starting tribe season to start with blue, orange, and green tribes.
• Every tribe this season has at least one person who wasn’t born in the United States or doesn’t currently live in the United States.
  • Ika has Drea who is from the US but lives in Canada.
  • Taku has Maryanne & Omar who are both Canadian.
  • Vati has Hai who was born in Vietnam.

• Ika Tribe
  • This is the sixth consecutive blue tribe, which is a record for most consecutive tribe colors in seasons.
    • Kalokalo – David vs. Goliath
    • Manu – Edge of Extinction
    • Lumuwaku – Island of the Idols
    • Sele – Winners at War
    • Luvu – Survivor 41
    • Ika – Survivor 42
  • Ika is the Fijian word for fish.
  • Ika is the 27th blue tribe in Survivor.
    • Blue is the most used tribe color in Survivor.
    • Fiji, Millennials vs. Gen X, and Ghost Island are the only seasons filmed in Fiji without a blue tribe.
  • Ika is the second tribe on Survivor to start with an “I.”
    • The first was Ika Bula in Millennials vs. Gen X.
  • Swati (19) is the youngest player on Ika, while Rocksroy (43) is the oldest.
    • The average age of the tribe is 29.67.
  • Ika is the only Survivor tribe to have only three letters in its name.
    • It’s the second shortest tribe name after Ua from Survivor 41.
      • They both also won the reward but lost the immunity challenge in the premiere episode.
  • The Ika tribe is on the same beach as Ua in Survivor 41, Yara in Winners at War, Lesu in Edge of Extinction, Tiva in David vs. Goliath, Yanuya in Ghost Island, Levu in Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers, Nuku in Game Changers, and Ikabula in Millennials vs. Gen X.
    • This beach has only had a green or blue tribe reside on it.
    • Coincidentally, both “Ika” tribes (Ika Bula and Ika) have been on this beach.
• Taku Tribe
  • Taku is the Fijian word for a sea turtle.
  • Taku is the 19th orange tribe in Survivor.
    • It’s the sixth orange tribe in a season set in Fiji.
      • There has never been an orange merged tribe in a Fiji-set season.
  • Maryanne (24) is the youngest player on Taku, while Jackson (47) is the oldest.
    • The average age of the tribe is 34.5.
  • Taku is the first starting tribe to have multiple Canadian players.
  • The Taku tribe is on the same beach as Luvu in Survivor 41, Dakal in Winners at War, Vokai in Island of the Idols, Kama in Edge of Extinction, David in David vs. Goliath, Malolo in Ghost Island, Yawa in Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers, Tavua in Game Changers, and Vanua in Millennials vs. Gen X.
• Vati Tribe
  • Vati is a variation on “bati loa” which is Fijian for crab.
  • Vati is the 21st green tribe in Survivor.
  • Lydia (22) is the youngest player on Vati, while Mike (57) is the oldest.
    • The average age of the tribe is 34.83.
  • Vati is the second “V” tribe to be green.
    • The first was Viveros in Panama.
  • Vati is the third green starting tribe in a season set in Fiji after Moto in Fiji and Ua in Survivor 41.
  • Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers and Island of the Idols are the only seasons filmed in Fiji to not have a green tribe.
    • Island of the Idols had an unused green tribe (it was planned to be an expansion tribe).
  • Vati is the only tribe this season to not have someone from Canada on the tribe.
    • Ika has Drea and Taku has Maryanne & Omar.
  • Half of the Vati tribe is made up of LGBTQ+ players (Chanelle, Hai, and Lydia).
    • Ua, which was the green tribe on Survivor 41 also had the majority of the LGBTQ+ players on it (Genie & Ricard).
      • This is the highest percentage of LGBTQ+ players on a single tribe (50%).
      • Vati also has the highest number of LGBTQ+ players for a starting tribe with three.
  • The Vati tribe is on the same beach as Yase in Survivor 41, Sele in Winners at War, Lairo in Island of the Idols, Manu in Edge of Extinction, Goliath in David vs. Goliath, Naviti in Ghost Island, Soko in Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers, Mana in Game Changers, and Takali in Millennials vs. Gen X
    • Vati is the first green tribe on this beach.

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Medevac

• Jackson was medevaced.
  • He’s the second man from an orange tribe to be medevaced before the first tribal council in a season set in Fiji.
    • The first was Pat Cusack in David vs. Goliath.
• Jackson is tied with Pat Cusack from David vs. Goliath and Kourtney Moon from One World for the earliest medevac, which happened on Day 3.
• Jackson is the seventh person to never attend a tribal council. The others are as follows:
  • Jonathan Libby & Wanda Shirk in Palau
  • Gary Stritesky in Fiji
  • Kourtney Moon in One World
  • Dana Lambert in Philippines
  • Pat Cusack in David vs. Goliath
    • Jonathan and Wanda are the only ones that weren’t medevaced as they were eliminated during a schoolyard pick at the beginning of the season.

Tribal Council

• Zach was voted out 5-0.
  • Zach is the second person to be voted out unanimously (not counting players voted out at the final 3 in a season with a final two).
    • The first was Jeff Varner in Game Changers.
      • Coincidentally, both players were eliminated from a blue tribe on a season set in Fiji.
  • Zach, however, is the first person to be voted out unanimously by a formal (typical) tribal council vote, as Jeff was voted out verbally.
• Zach is the first person to be voted out by a true 5-0 vote (aka no hidden immunity idol played that negated votes).
  • Malcolm in Game Changers, Jay & Zeke in Millennials vs. Gen X, Jane in Nicaragua, and JT in Heroes vs. Villains were also voted out 5-0 due to idols being played.
• In this episode, the youngest man on the Ika tribe was voted out, while the oldest person on the Taku tribe was medevaced.
• Zach is the second castaway in the history of Survivor to attend a tribal council but never cast a vote, including a jury vote.
  • The first was Sydney in Survivor 41.
• Zach is the third player to get voted out without casting a vote at tribal council.
  • The others are Chris Noble in Ghost Island and Sydney Segal in Survivor 41.
• Zach is the sixth person to be voted out during a tribal where he couldn’t vote. The others are as follows:
  • • Chris Noble in Ghost Island
    • Jason Linden & Jamal Shipman in Island of the Idols
    • Brad Reese & Sydney Segal in Survivor 41
• Zach is the second person to use the shot in the dark after Sydney in Survivor 41.
  • Coincidentally, they both were on blue starting tribes and were the youngest player of their gender on their starting tribe.
  • Both of them were unsuccessful in getting safety from the shot in the dark and were voted out with five votes against them.
  • They were also both the first players voted out from their original starting tribes.
• This is the first time where the first eliminated and first voted out were man, as Jackson was the first eliminated due to a medevac and Zach was voted out. Other seasons where the first eliminated and first voted out were different people are as follows:
  • Palau: Jonathan and Wanda were first eliminated while Jolanda was first voted out.
  • One World: Kourtney was the first eliminated while Nina was the first voted out.
  • Blood vs. Water: Rupert was the first eliminated while Marissa was the first voted out.
  • David. Vs. Goliath: Pat was the first eliminated while Jessica was the first voted out.
  • Edge of Extinction: Keith and Wendy were the first eliminated while Reem was the first voted out.
  • Winners at War: Sandra was the first eliminated while Natalie was the first voted out.
    • This is the first season where a man was the first player voted out after someone was already eliminated from the game.
• Jackson and Zach are the 42nd and 43rd players eliminated on Day 3.
  • The only season where nobody was eliminated on Day 3 was Millennials vs. Gen X, and this was because of the cast being evacuated due to the cyclone.
• Jackson, who was eliminated from Taku, was the first player alphabetically on his tribe, while Zach, who was eliminated from Ika, was the last player alphabetically on his tribe.
• Neither one of the players eliminated in this episode ever cast a vote.
• This is the first season where a tribal council set was reused from the previous season.

Reward Challenge: “Marooning”

• Just like in Survivor 41, the tribe that won the reward challenge in the premiere also lost the immunity challenge.
  • Ua won the reward in 41 and went to tribal, and Ika won the reward in 42 and went to tribal.
    • Coincidentally, both of these tribes are the first 2-letter and 3-letter tribes in Survivor history.

Immunity Challenge: “Draggin’ the Dragon”

• This challenge was previously used in Cagayan, Cambodia, and Winners at War.
  • Winners at War is the only time this challenge was played by two tribes.
  • Both times a blue tribe competed in this challenge they lost (Sele in Winners at War and Ika in Survivor 42).
  • Both times an orange tribe competed in this challenge, they won (Aparri in Cagayan and Taku in Survivor 42).
  • Taku is the first tribe to win this challenge with only five players on their tribe.
    • Aparri, Solana, Ta Keo, Bayon, Dakal, and Vati had more than five players on their tribe when they won.
• Nuku and Luvu are the only blue tribes to win the first immunity challenge in a season set in Fiji. The losing blue tribes are as follows:
  • Levu in Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers
  • Manu in Edge of Extinction
  • Sele in Winners at War
  • Ika in Survivor 42
• Taku is the second orange tribe after Vanua to win the first immunity challenge in a season set in Fiji.
  • However, Vanua in Millennials vs. Gen X is the only orange tribe to not have someone eliminated in episode 1, as Jackson was medevaced this season.

Twists

• This season, three women went to the Summit in episode 1 (Drea, Jenny, & Maryanne), while last season, three men went to the summit (Danny, JD, & Xander).
  • Both seasons, two players risked their vote (JD & Xander / Drea & Maryanne) while one player protected theirs (Danny / Jenny).
• In Survivor 41, both tribes that didn’t win flint decided to do the “Sweat” task to earn their supplies, while this season both tribes decided to do the “Savvy” task to earn their supplies.
  • In both seasons, both tribes to do these challenges were successful.

Confessionals

• Maryanne, Tori, and Zach had the most confessionals this episode with 6 each.
  • Vati is the only tribe where nobody got more than 4 confessionals.
• Everyone got at least 2 confessionals in this episode.

Ratings

• The first episode received 4.99 million viewers and 0.8 in the Adults 18-49 demo. This is down from the Survivor 41 premiere (6.02 m / 1.0) in September 2021.

Episode Title

• The episode title “Feels like a Rollercoaster” was said by Maryanne when discussing her excitement about playing Survivor.

• News
• Stats
• Season 42
• Survivor 42
• Survivor 42 Stats

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