Episodes 13-14: The king of Fiji receives his crown

Published: November 11, 2020

There's a lot going on in the final two episodes of Survivor: Fiji, but they contain the complete story of the Yau-Man/ Dreamz truck deal, and put some finishing flourishes on Earl's unanimous victory. It's the hero story of Earl Cole, king of Fiji. It's also the tragedy of Dreamz, consumed by the game.

Episodes 11-12: Here's where the Pagonging comes in

Published: November 1, 2020

As we wind our way to the final pair of Fiji episodes, it's understandable that every episode pair can't be a home run. Here in Episodes 11 and 12, the remnants of the Horsemen are slowly being dispatched, and there's not much they can do about it. Sadly, an idol sits there, waiting to be found, but it isn't. Oh well.

Episodes 9-10: Twists on twists, and Horsemen dismissed

Published: October 26, 2020

Back-to-back viewing of Fiji's merge episode with the Edgardo boot in Episode 10 cushions the over-produced merge's production meddling with the satisfying, player-driven season highlight of the fall of the Horsemen, one of the show's best episodes.

Episodes 7-8: New Ravu, same results

Published: October 20, 2020

The post-swap dawdling allows each idol to be found, but also puts the new Ravu on a familiar path: The hike to Tribal Council. Still, Yau-Man gets his turtle and single-handedly beats Ravu, and the merge is nigh. Things are looking up.

Episodes 5-6: Mistreatment

Published: October 16, 2020

Episodes 5 and 6 are Survivor: Fiji at its grimmest: Bullies running rampant, toxic masculinity, no women whatsoever, and half-starved Ravus failing due to physical and mental fatigue. But it's also the start of the reversal of fortunes, as the swap brings relief to a fortunate few.

Episodes 3-4: Eating their own

Published: October 10, 2020

Survivor: Fiji's second pair of episodes finds the two tribes on completely opposite trajectories, but somehow ending up even in numbers at 7-7. Ravu is riven by division, mostly driven by Rocky. Moto is coasting on a fluffy bed and giant platters of fish and rice, but still loses Gary to a medevac, then opts to abdicate immunity and boot another. Some themes remain, though: the Earl vs. Dreamz parallels by contrast, and the rapidly dwindling number of women.

Episodes 1-2: The King of Fiji

Published: October 5, 2020

In contrast to Survivor: Marquesas's editorial concealment of its future winner for much of the season, Survivor: Fiji's king is omnipresent in its first two episodes. In fact, the season does an outstanding job of building compelling, three-dimensional characters out if its contestants ... as long as they're men.