Reality Roundup: “Survivor” Episode 1 Recap

“Survivor” kicked off its 49th season Wednesday with a two-hour premiere introducing 18 new castaways split into three tribes: Hina, Kele, and Uli.

The Hina tribe consists of Steven, Sophie, MC, Matt, Kristina, and Jason. The Kele tribe includes Alex, Annie, Jake, Jeremiah, Nicole, and Sophi. The Uli tribe is made up of Jawan, Nate, Rizo, Sage, Savannah, and Shannon.

The episode began with the castaways meeting host Jeff Probst before quickly being thrown into their first challenge, in which the winning tribe would earn camp materials — including the ever-important flint.

The Hina tribe ultimately took the win and set off to their island with their newly acquired supplies. The two losing tribes each had to choose one person to compete for supplies.

The Uli tribe sent Rizo, while the Kele tribe sent Alex. Both were taken to an island where they competed in a challenge that involved gathering puzzle pieces, assembling them to reveal the location of a steering wheel buried in the ground, then using the wheel to raise a flag for the win.

Alex dominated the early portion of the competition, quickly gathering pieces and completing the puzzle. However, he struggled to find the buried steering wheel, allowing Rizo to make a comeback.

Rizo copied Alex’s completed puzzle, finished his own, and quickly located the steering wheel to raise the flag for the win.

Afterward, both players returned to camp — one with supplies and one empty-handed.

Alex’s loss didn’t hurt his standing in the tribe, as he quickly formed a bromance with fellow Kele member Jake. The two then created a four-person majority alliance with Jeremiah and Sophi.

That alliance soon became crucial when Kele lost the immunity challenge, forcing the tribe to vote someone out.

The group debated between Nicole and Annie, neither of whom performed well in the challenge. Ultimately, they decided Nicole was the weaker link and voted her out — making her the first person eliminated this season on “Survivor.” — Nikolai Wagner

Nikolai Wagner is a second-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To email him, contact njw5648@psu.edu.