Episodes 13-14: Straight to the top

Published: April 23, 2021

The final two episodes of Survivor: Palau play out in precisely the way you would have expected: Tom wins three immunities, the people who aren't Ian and Katie are voted out, and then Tom wins the jury vote vs. Katie. There are a few bumps along the way, but it's as expected. Here's a look back at his win and the season.

Episodes 11-12: You wanted strategy? We'll make you pay

Published: April 19, 2021

The thing to remember about Survivor: Palau is, despite the social-strategic game the show has belatedly embraced, it always wanted to be this type of season: One in which an alpha-male leader is good in challenges, and people just let him stick around and win because he's so awesome. That appears to be the only explanation for the unforced errors by people not named Tom in Episodes 11-12.

Episodes 9-10: The case for Coby

Published: April 13, 2021

As the (non-) merge comes and goes on Survivor: Palau, things are changing: Stephenie is now on Koror! Everything else, though, is pretty much the same. Tom's group stays in charge, the people on the bottom of Koror are voted out or are encouraged to quit. There are probably other plans going on, but you really have to dig to find or remember them.

Episodes 7-8: So long, Ulong (at long last)

Published: April 7, 2021

It's over. It's finally over. The long, slow decimation of Ulong comes to its inevitable conclusion in Episodes 7-8 of Survivor: Palau. Sadly, this drawn-out execution comes across on TV as, well, long and slow. Koror scores a clean sweep of tribal immunity. Yay. But at least the actual game can start now, right?

Episodes 5-6: The roads not taken

Published: April 5, 2021

Ulong continues its downward trajectory in Episodes 5-6 of Survivor: Palau, and as time wears on, it becomes clear there's little chance of production stepping in with a swap (or even a merge) to bail them out. What were the costs of these production decisions? And what did production hope to gain?

Episodes 3-4: You can actually pinpoint the second when Ulong's heart rips in half

Published: March 28, 2021

By the end of Episode 4 of Survivor: Palau, the Ulong tribe is down, but not yet completely out. In fact, they matched up really well against Koror over the second pair of episodes, it's just everything that could break against them did. And when their thrilling comeback in the Ep4 IC fell just short, that may have been the actual end for Ulong.

Episodes 1-2: Jumping right in

Published: March 24, 2021

Survivor: Palau is known for a lot of things — picturesque islands, colorful characters, a hapless tribe of youngsters, a heroic FDNY firefighter four years after 9/11 — but most of all, Palau is a season where production's choices, actions and inactions, visibly shape the outcome of the season. That all begins in the premiere.