RHAP: We Know Survivor - Survivor Wants You to Plan Season 50 | The Reality Flash

Episode Date: February 23, 2025

In today's podcast, Mike talks through Survivor's new interactive theme 'Survivor 50: In the Hands of the Fans,' giving fans the opportunity to vote on twists and advantages in Season 50, as well as some groups the opportunity to fly out to Fiji and visit the set.

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with iGaming Ontario. Breaking news are happening now. Hi everybody and welcome to the reality flash. My name is Mike Bloom and I'm here to bring you the flashiest breaking news in the wild world of reality TV Now before we get into today's topic, you know I would never be one to fish for like so I do have some fishing gear available up for grabs But I'm always fishing for subs and tips So be sure to subscribe to this very podcast at therealityflash.com.

And while you're there, any ratings, reviews, of course, greatly appreciated. We're talking a lot about fan input today, and that very much carries over into this podcast. And if you spot any reality TV news that you want me to cover. No spam, no solicitations, just tips at the realityflash.com. Just slide that tip right into my DMs. I will always peak. So 10 years ago, Survivor got the fans involved in the show in a way that it never did before. Back in the spring of 2015, I remember it well, we toiled away at our keyboards as we watched 30 players from Seasons Past campaign for this popular vote to earn a spot

on the upcoming 31st season. Of course, 20 castaways were voted on, Survivor's second chances ended up playing out and the rest is history. Now, a decade later, the show is once again getting the fans involved in a brand new way. But now in a new brand new way, as for the first time ever, we get the opportunity to vote on key elements that are going to appear in

the upcoming milestone season of Survivor 50. So this news was just announced today, February 22nd, in the midst of this big event that happened in New York City. It featured this beach drop event that had challenge demos and appearances from a bunch of alumni as well as Jeff Probst and this VIP screening of the premiere of Survivor 48 which is coming out on Wednesday. And that is not coincidental that the announcements happen to come today of all days because when it comes to 2025 for Survivor, in a phrase, this is huge, they needed this.

Because the show is gonna be celebrating its 25th anniversary on May 31st. And according to CBS, this entire proceedings that happened today kicks off an entire year of quote, first ever fan-centric festivities leading up to Survivor 50 to premiere in February 2026. And so we know, in addition to now when Survivor 50 will be airing, around the time that it will be filming, which is of course later this year.

Now, outside of that, we really don't know much about Survivor 50. You know, we've heard these little rumblings from Jeff in these various interviews that he's done. The big piece of information, of course, that he revealed last year is that it's going to have all returning players for the first time since season 40, back before the pandemic. That news, of course, over the past year has influenced a myriad of fan castings and people who dearly lack social lives to do entire podcast series devoted to just going through every single season and narrow things down to a short list for a final fan vote to

determine the ultimate cast and an exercise in both insanity and passion. But we are not going to theorize me right now. We have plenty of opportunity to do that. Let's get into exactly what this fan vote is going to involve. So this is all part of this new interactive theme from CBS that is titled Survivor 50 in the Hands of Fans, which is not to be confused with In the Hands of Hans, which is the Michaela Wingel story now coming to lifetime. So essentially what all this involves is starting on the

night of February 26, which is the two-hour premiere again of a Survivor 48 fans can go to survivor 50 CBS dot vote now dot TV So make sure I'm getting that URL right so I'll read it again survivor 50 CBS all one word dot vote now Dot TV and once you get there you can vote on a series of key elements that you want in And once you get there, you can vote on a series of key elements that you want in Survivor 50. Now, we're going to get into a few examples that the press release lists here. These sound like they're going to be more of like a this or that series of decisions, like a detour, if you will, to cope a bit from another CBS reality series that is coming back very soon, rather than sort of like a multiple choice, pick all these twists that you want to bring back. But apparently

the press release also says there will be multiple rounds of voting. So I'm not entirely sure what that entails. I can get a bit of a clue as to what that means, because I actually did access the site that I listed out a couple of times right now. And of of course it's a bit of like a landing page right now that just says voting open soon. It does say come back on Wednesday, February 26th at 9 p.m. Eastern. Okay, so it's, I guess it's just smack dab in the middle of the Survivor 48 premiere to cast your vote in each of our first four categories for Survivor 50 on CBS. So my best guess would be multiple rounds of voting isn't necessarily a, hey, we're going to have you re-vote again, just to make sure you didn't change your mind, or hey, we're going to start with a certain number of options and then winnow it down.

It more so seems like there's going to be like three to four questions every single round of voting. We don't know if these rounds are gonna be weekly, monthly, how often they're going to happen. We do know that the voting will conclude prior to the filming of Survivor 50. Once the decision is final, as is his role usually, Jeff will go tally the votes. And allegedly, all the elements that we vote on

are actually going to be seen in the game itself on Survivor 50. And what's really interesting is that apparently, apparently, the results that we vote that are going to be on Survivor 50, know what could possibly be in the game, they won't know which ones actually got voted onto their season until they are there in person with Jeff telling them the results. Now as I mentioned before, the press release for this announcement did send me a few examples of these key game elements that we get to vote on and listen I would never tell anyone how to vote in these types of things I would never go full Natalie Anderson you know all respect due to her but I would never say did you vote for what

I told you to vote for but I thought it would be fun if I could read through a few of these examples and uh maybe I could give like my own endorsement at least as to what I would choose. Let's take a look here. So the the examples that they have listed are again, very binary decisions here. Idols or no idols. That is the question. Literally, that is the question. That is the question, literally that is the question. And look, I feel like we certainly reached a period in the 30s,

especially where we felt like we went idol crazy. Hell, the last newbie season of Survivor before the new era was literally called Island of the Idols. And I don't think it was coincidental that they ended up having the most idols in Survivor history. I would still say idols. Yes, the Surrey lover in me just has a vintage get in burned into their retinas

at any opportune moment. But I do think the new era has done a pretty good job of at least balancing the idols. Like, yes, there are sometimes points where there's three in the game at once. But Survivor 44, we've kind of gotten past that point where they had like six idols handed out in the first few episodes. And now that they're sort of putting time limits

on some of these pre-emerge idols as well, it does prevent us possibly building to a point where it's just, OK, whoever doesn't have a trinket is out. Now, maybe if this question was about advantages, I might have a different answer But listen, there's a reason why? The idols have just become a basic permanent fixture in this game. So I would say personally idols This is an interesting one. This is a hot one if you will final four fire making keep it or lose it

So here's my thing. I can absolutely Final Four Firemaking, keep it or lose it. So here's my thing. I can absolutely appreciate the great moments that Final Four Firemaking has brought. From Ben being able to kind of have this last minute twist come in and help save his game at the last second to go on to win, to having Tony and Sarah face off against each other, tears in their eyes knowing one of them

had to lose to some of these big triumphs and come from behind victories and records being broken that we saw in the new era. I personally feel like fire making is a little expended at this point. I'm not sure how much more Ember is there, that we keep kind of blowing on time after time. I feel like we have seen every single iteration of it and not to say again,

there are moments within it that are not exciting. But I'm also a purist when it comes to like survivor at its essence is voting and should be about voting. And while, again, it's created some great TV moments as a result, I can't help but see, you know, the grass always being greener or the beach sand always being grainier on the other side. I think it like, but if they had to vote at the final four, could that have been interesting? So I personally would say lose it.

I think we got, well probably be what 15 16 seasons of Final Four fire making by the time we get to 50. I think it is time we we snuff that flame out and you know, take the ashes painted on our faces and move on into what happens next into the battle of Final four voting and the last example they give is certainly one that's been talked about honestly like every December and May among survivor fans. keep the winner reveal an after show in the jungles of Fiji. So basically, do you want still the live, raw in the moment after show that we've gotten in the new era? Or do you want to go back to more so the everybody get dressed up months

later for the reading of the votes in L.A.? Now, maybe this is going back to the final four fire making for me. I am a fan of everything in moderation, of changing things up from time to time to not feel like things are getting stagnant or getting stale or not giving people the opportunity to maybe look at some of the structures inherent within those and say like, okay, well, we know what's going to happen in the next season because we know that this thing is coming up. So that being said, I do miss those live reunions in LA.

Yeah, they were a little bit like herding cats, you know, they were getting all of these people who are back in the real world and getting to experience their friends and family in the audience. And it got a bit wild. I mean, there was a whole entire RHAP podcast about like some of the most unhinged moments

that have happened in reunion shows to date. And it's just something that I, I kind of miss, especially for something like survivor 50, you know, it's an incredibly special feeling to be able to celebrate the show. And I'm assuming that this entire season and this entire year is going to be a celebration of it, but I feel like it's going to be such a cool opportunity to get people, you know, dressed to the nines, come out, sit down in front of Jeff and you know, an incredibly eager,

excitable group of fans and talk about how much this experience meant to them to go out and play again, as opposed to kind of getting another like, all right, snack on pizza and drink champagne and two out of the three finalists try to talk through your shocked or maybe demoralized feelings about this experience. And let's talk about kind of what happened in the first half of the game, even though the first half of the game

isn't really represented by the people who got voted out. Then I would love to go back to the live LA reunion. Not to say there isn't room for the after show. I do think actually it can make it interesting like online exclusive of talking with these players live in the moment because I do think to Jeff's point there is something interesting about capturing a player's emotions without kind of bringing in the influences of the edit and other people's confessionals and especially the fandom and the outside world. So I don't know, maybe we

can strike that happy medium, but that does include for me a live reunion in LA. So given these examples, I also wonder slash I can imagine what some of these other questions might be. I personally am hoping to see something like final two or final 3, just because, at least from my perspective, the three examples that I gave kind of sound like layup questions a little bit. Like, I would not imagine a lot of Survivor fans nowadays are going to vote no idols versus idols. And so, I'm kind of like a messy bitch who lives for drama, you know? I want a little bit of like a split decision, a little bit of debate going on between multiple parties. I mean, I will also admit I am pretty surprised to see some very integral structural elements like Final Four fire making and even something that involves a lot of planning like the live LA reunion to be on the table for these types of votes. But I think this is a prime opportunity for production

to be able to take the temperature, Dr. Joe's style, of the very wide variety of people that make up this fan base, from the most devoted, died in the wool, day one viewers to the people who started binging it in the pandemic. I think the thing that has kept Survivor on the air for now a quarter I think the thing that has kept Survivor on the air for now a quarter

century is the fact that so many people take so many different things from it. If you get 10 fans together in a room, first off, I just experienced that. It was great. They would absolutely geek out with each other. But if you ask them a series of questions, you would get 10 favorite players out of them. You would get 10 favorite seasons out of them. You would get 10 different answers from them on what their favorite part of the show is. Is it strategy? Is it the characters? Is it the survival stuff? Is it the challenges? This is almost going to be like a survivor's census, an ability to see where the fan base lies with particular pieces of the show and whether they would wanna see those things play out

in one of the most anticipated seasons in the show's history. Let me finish here actually by reading this quote from Jeff about this in the hands of the fans voting mechanism. All right, let's get into this. Jeff said, from the very first season, Survivor has been evolving. In fact, the evolution of strategy, I hear,

is very well documented. Now for our 50th season, it's time for the next evolution. Survivor 50 colon in the hands of the fans is unlike anything we've done before. For the first time ever, our loyal fans will take control, deciding key elements of the game, from twists to idols to advantages. I can't wait to see what the

fans choose for our returning players. Frankly, Jeff, neither can I. But believe it or not, that is not all. I'll be back in a flash to talk about an opportunity that fans might have to not only affect season 50 But get to see it play out With the Fizz loyalty program you get rewarded just for having a mobile plan You know for texting and stuff and if you're not getting rewards like extra data and dollars off with your mobile plan You're not with Fizz switch Switch today. Conditions apply. Details at Fizz.ca. Fandual Casino's exclusive live dealer studio has your chance at the number one feeling.

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Please play responsibly. This is an ad from BetterHelp Online Therapy. We always hear about the red flags to avoid in relationships, but it's just as important to focus on the green flags. If you're not quite sure what they look like, therapy can help you identify those qualities so you can embody the green flag energy and find it in others. BetterHelp offers therapy 100% online and sign up only takes a few minutes. Visit betterhelp.com today to get 10% off your first month. That's betterhelp.com today to get 10% off your first month. That's betterhelp, H-E-L-P dot com. So again, we don't know a lot about Survivor 50

at this point, but one thing is almost guaranteed. It will be filming in Fiji. And so in another announcement that came today alongside this in the hands of the fans, theming, voting, interactive element, whatever you want to call it, CBS and Fiji Airways are forming their first ever alliance. They're going back to Borneo, I suppose, giving the opportunity to five lucky tribes of fans to visit this set. So there is also very entertainingly so,

in honor of this year-long celebration of the show that I mentioned before, there's gonna be this branded survivor jet in the arsenal of Fiji Airways, which sounds amazing. The amazing plane on the amazing race during the COVID era could fly so that the survivor plane could also fly but longer distances, you know, overseas, I suppose. I hope that it is flown by Terry Dietz and only Terry Dietz. That is the one job that he is locked in for for the next year.

Sorry, Dietz family, your boy has a job. Maybe they can even paint like a little Jeff on the side of the plane. Like he's the driving crooner or something. But I digress. I don't want to fantasize too much about the Survivor plane because we've got a whole contest to talk about. So these are the details from the press release here. From today, February 22 through March 30,

you can go to gf.fan slash cbs slash Survivor Fan Fiji again that is gf.fan slash cbs slash survivor fan Fiji and submit a video where you explain what survivor means to you and how this show changed your life and it looks like from what I am reading here the the tribe leader applies on behalf of the group that they would take. So you are sort of like advocating on behalf of, I suppose, your family, your friends, I don't know, your fantasy league, your loved ones in general to fly out to Fiji, but you and you alone would apply and sort of be the spokesperson. And according to the press release, quote, CBS will determine the five winning tribes based on the passion, inspiration, and storytelling of the applicants.

Wanna know what you're playing for? Let me see if I can describe this package that was listed in my best salacious Jeff description. Round trip, Fiji Airways, airfare, and ground transportation for each tribe member. Four nights of accommodations at a luxurious oceanfront resort. Exposure to the rich fijian culture while exploring stunning local destinations. And finally a VIP tour of the Survivor Islands including the filming locations

for Tribal Council on the Challenge Beaches, the exclusive opportunity for a behind-the-scenes look at life on Survivor during the filming of Season 50, a meet-and-greet with Jeff Probst, and Survivor swag. I feel like I was going like 1-900 territory there towards the end. But regardless, that's what the package entails. A trip to Fiji with all the fixings, I suppose. But this is obviously a massive game changer when it comes to the fans' access to the show.

And I am not just talking about the season that helped kick off its permanent residence over in the Mamma Nuca Islands. Because while people have occasionally had access to seeing how the heritable sausage gets made, including yours truly, fortunately enough, those were almost always either members of the press or media. This is really for the first time an opportunity for the people on the street, as it were, to leave the streets and dip their toes in the sand to get to visit the islands and see how everything gets packaged and presented into what they view on their screen every Wednesday. Let me just say I think this is a really awesome opportunity. Again, I have had the immense

pleasure of getting to go out on to set for Survivor in the preseason and to watch the first few days unfold, you know, a handful of times at this point. And since my first time going, I kind of always told people that if it was possible, I would want every Survivor fan to have the opportunity to go out onto set and go behind the scenes. Because when we're watching the show every week, I think we very understandably focus on what is just in front of us, right? Jeff and the contestants.

But the show itself really is like this iceberg floating in the tropical heat, where this crew of hundreds of people who come from all different backgrounds, all different ages, all different walks of life, from all around the world, and they are all putting their heart and soul into their specific job to make sure that the show runs as smoothly as possible.

It's many, many cogs that make up this machine, and everyone is able to then watch the show back and kind of like people who work on a building, people who work in construction, being able to look at that finalized structure and say, I was a piece of that from the smallest plants down on the ground level to the highest room at the top.

And the crew gets the opportunity every time the show has aired to see the work that they have put in and how it entertains so many people all around the world. And on top of that, whenever I go, it always gives me so much insight into how decisions are made that influence the smallest to the biggest details that happen on the show. And it also gives me a lot of appreciation

for all the people who work tirelessly to keep this show going every single season, going on 50 of them. So I am already so pumped for those five tribes to get the opportunity to get to experience all of those feelings I was just expressing as well. So if you want to be one of those tribes, now this is when like I do my my Jeff interstitial voice, if you want to be one of those tribes, you got to apply, apply to be on the set of Survivor.

Again, that is gf.fan.slash cbs slash survivor fan VJ. There's a bunch of details there as to the stipulations for your video. Again, only one person has to be one minute, has to be framed properly, etc. But if this is an opportunity that sounds exciting to you that is worth filming for, go ahead, check it out. So there you have it. Survivors year-long anniversary celebration is officially kicking off. We've got some big announcements. I would imagine there's more to come. Again, it's a year long celebration. So we've got plenty in the tank there. And honestly, you know what? Survivor

absolutely is that diva that says like, no, it's not my birthday. It's my birth year. And you know what? Take your lap. Survivor take it. You've been on the air for a quarter of a century. Come on. Now, all that being said, I would love to hear from you all in the comments about all of this. Specifically, I want to hear from you what elements you think we should be able to influence in Survivor 50. If you were, or I should say, if in the hands of the fans was in your hands as a fan, what would you want to let people pick between? Write out your own sort of questions. Maybe we can influence the influential game by some of the choices we come up here. And again, if you see something, say something. If you spot any reality TV news that you want me to cover, no spam, no solicitations, just

tips at TheRealityFlash.com. Again, that's just tips at TheRealityFlash.com. Sorry, Salacious Jeff had to pop back out again. Salacious Jeff sounds like the name of a Star Wars character. And be sure to subscribe at TheRealityFlash.com to make sure you don't miss an episode. It is a veritable galaxy of reality TV out there. And let me be your guide through the stars about the stars. That is going to do it for this episode of The Reality Flash. But I'll return in your eyes and ears soon with more reality TV news

that you need to know as it breaks. Thank you all as always so much for listening. You've just been flashed.