Since the age of COVID, Survivor has altered how they do the reunion following the finale. In the past, the full cast would gather live in a studio in New York City or Los Angeles where Jeff Probst would reveal the results and chat with the entire cast. For Survivor's 40th season, it was all done via Zoom call. To avoid that ever happening again, Probst and Co have not only read the votes on the island; they filmed the "reunion" right on the spot. Without the non-jury members. That means, aside from exit press or any social media musings, we never get to hear from anyone who didn't stay in Ponderosa beyond their elimination from the game. It's an unfortunate and unfair situation.

Now that we're in the clear, why not have a special reunion episode taped following the finale? The fans want to hear from the players who left early. In a time when players have been posturing to return for another chance to play, the lack of visibility from the early boots may be prohibitive to their chances of playing again. It almost feels disrespectful that, in the New Era of Survivor, the early boots do not experience the full Survivor journey.

The New Era of 'Survivor' Has Had Super Pre-Jury Castaways

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Since Survivor 41, the pre-merge has had an array of incredible players who don't get to speak about their game with Jeff because of finale circumstances. Once their torch is snuffed, their journey is essentially over. It's up to them to optimize their profile beyond the show. With some crucial and game-changing moments occurring during the pre-jury phase of the game, Jeff Probst is essentially the only voice who gets to speak of these moments through an authoritative lens on his podcast.

Let's start with Survivor 41. Not only did the first "Mergatory" moment occur with a massive twist played by Erika Casupanan, through the encouragement of Jeff Probst, but the first ever Shot in the Dark was used by Sydney Segal. Because she was not part of the jury, we never got to hear her discussing the decision and why it was an important move, looking at the future of the twist. By Survivor 42, the season lost Jackson Fox, a transgender contestant who was forced out of the game due to his lack of disclosure about certain medications. This conversation could have been an important topic to cover in a reunion setting.

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Hey, Jeff Probst, This Isn't What Fans Want for 'Survivor' 50

Jeff Probst wants 'Survivor 50' to be fun. The fans are not feeling that decision.

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When it comes to iconic pre-merge tribes, look no further than Survivor 45's Lulu Tribe and Survivor 46's Yanu Tribe. The Lulu Tribe is one of the worst tribes in the history of the game. Between quits and botched challenges, the story was about these individuals. Yet, once they were gone, their story was too. We, as viewers, spent weeks watching this trainwreck and never had it wrapped up in a Survivor bow. With the Lulu Tribe, including individuals like David Jelinsky and Bhanu Gopal, making brilliant television moments, their bad game deserved a retrospective. And yet, nada.

And then we come to the most recent season. Survivor 47's Rome Cooney is possibly one of the most diabolical masterminds of the New Era. His journey ended just shy of the jury. The way that Jeff Probst gave him some preferential treatment, knowing he had television gold on his hands, he would have been the star of the reunion. And yet, because he was already out of Ponderosa, this memorable character will forever be relegated to what was seen on the show. Oh, and remember how the biggest, high-profile contestant was the first voted out? Yeah, well, Jon Lovett's single episode of Survivor deserved a second. He, too, would have earned a segment with Jeff during the reunion.

We Deserve the Old-School 'Survivor' Reunion

The fandom has been clamoring for Survivor to return to the classic reunion format. Some of the most memorable moments from the franchise have occurred live on that studio stage: Jerri Manthey getting booed off-stage during the Survivor: All Stars reunion. The pre-jury cast of Survivor: Caramoan being relegated to sitting in the audience. Russell Hantz lobbying to be given the title of Sole Survivor. The list goes on and on. Instead, we are now forced to watch starving contestants eat Fijian pizza and get champagne-tipsy as they try to process the game they just finished mere days to minutes prior. It's not fun, nor is it the true Survivor experience.

Many classic Survivor mechanics need to make a return. As seen on Survivor 47, the Fire-Making Challenge truly is not working. Teeny Chirichillo's game was gone with the wind, and it was not fabulous. The three-tribe format has been played out and causes uninteresting early eliminations. Hell, I might have had a slight impact on having the Sweat vs Savvy challenge removed from Survivor 47 following my pitch to eliminate it. It's time for the return of another Survivor classic: the reunion. Jeff, it's time to give the pre-jury cast their flowers! Are you really going to kick the pre-jury cast of Survivor 50 to the curb? All signs point to no.

All seasons of Survivor are available to stream on Paramount+.

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Survivor

Reality

A reality show where a group of contestants are stranded in a remote location with little more than the clothes on their back. The lone survivor of this contest takes home a million dollars.

Release Date May 31, 2000

Cast Jeff Probst

Rating

Seasons 45

Studio

Story By Jeff Probst

Writers Jeff Probst

Network CBS

Streaming Service(s) Hulu , Netflix

Directors Jeff Probst

Showrunner Jeff Probst

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Stream on Paramount+