Six Slowest Starts in Survivor History

RHAP: We Know Survivor

Survivor Know-It-All, Rob Cesternino

After Shows, Tv & Film, Tv Reviews

4.8 • 1.4K Ratings

🗓️ 21 October 2025

⏱️ 74 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Six Slowest Starts in Survivor History
Rob Cesternino and Brandon Donlon dive deep into Survivor history, examining seasons that started slow but eventually gained momentum. This special podcast explores the nuances of pacing in Survivor storytelling, highlighting six seasons that overcame sluggish beginnings to deliver compelling gameplay.
The hosts debate what constitutes a “slow start” in Survivor, analyzing factors like tribe dynamics, memorable characters, and early-game twists. They examine seasons ranging from old-school classics to new-era entries, discussing how different elements contribute to a season’s early pacing.
Rob and Brandon discuss:
– Caramoan’s pre-merge struggles and eventual turnaround
– San Juan del Sur’s lackluster early episodes and post-merge excitement
– Fiji’s controversial haves vs. have-nots twist impact on early gameplay
– Debate over including Survivor 46 in the list of slow-start seasons
– Comparison of old-school vs. new-era Survivor slow starts
Chapters:
0:00 Slow Starts in Survivor History
10:38 Caramoan: The Slowest Start?
20:44 Survivor 43’s Sleepy Pre-Merge
31:19 Micronesia’s Controversial Beginning
41:38 San Juan del Sur’s Gray Start
51:48 Vanuatu vs. Season 46 Debate
1:02:24 One World’s Problematic Pre-Merge
1:08:02 Wrapping Up Slow Starts

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Transcript

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0:00.0	In the Premier League, everyone pushes their hardest to win. And now it's your turn. With their EPL fantasy challenge, Coca-Cola are giving you a chance to win big by beating the best. All you have to do is build a team based on rules set by an icon. And to help you on your way, I've got a tip to help you build your team. Make sure you keep an eye on fixtures. Who are the players up against next? Sometimes it's not about form.
0:21.7	Like there are some players that, for whatever reason, always play well against certain teams.
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0:31.8	a Coke and scan the code on the pack. Just by playing, you get a chance to win Coke swag or
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0:38.9	who set the rules, you could win vintage Coca-Cola jerseys, Premier League tickets, and more. So go
0:45.0	ahead and get involved. Grab a Coke, drink it in. Hey everybody, what's going on?
0:58.7	Rob Cisprinino back, and we got a little podcast off the cuff here today.
1:04.3	And these are one of my favorite types of podcasts to do where we're just vibing today.
1:10.1	A little bit of reheating of the nachos from Summer of Survivor.
1:14.7	I said, hey, why don't we do a podcast of the times Survivor seasons started a little slow and got good?
1:23.7	Maybe putting out into the universe, maybe manifesting a very exciting
1:29.2	second half of the Survivor season
1:31.5	while still acknowledging it's been a little slow
1:33.9	to get out of the gate.
1:34.8	And here with us,
1:35.9	a man who once famously was slow to get out of the gate,
1:38.6	it's Brandon Donnellin.
1:41.1	Wow.
1:42.4	You introduce your guests.
1:44.3	It is true. It's not incorrect. But I, you know, one thing. But look at you now. You're flying. We're here. Nobody else. I'm looking around. I don't see anybody else here. Yeah. I'm thrilled to be here. I'm thrilled to. The only thing I like talking about more than current Survivor is old survivor. Yeah. And we're going to talk about a lot of it. So we're going to get into it. We're going to talk about six times. We were going to talk about five times. I said, wait, let's get the alliteration. Six slow starts for Survivor. And we'll talk about six different times. I have a list of six. Brandon has a list of six. We're going to take,
2:18.3	we're going to give our lists. I'm sure there'll be some overlap. We'll come away with the definitive
	...

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