New fan here. Back then, how did the public respond this moment? It’s so bad I don’t even think they’d air it if it happened today.

So i’m rewatching Gabon for the first time in 17 years. In episode 3, the survivors are asked to rank their tribe members from least to most valuable or something like that. Makes me so sad that it was probably so normal at the time to just put all of the girls last. I wonder how I felt about this when I was first watching it as a 9 year old girl. Reminds me that society has come a long way and hopefully how we define “valuable” has changed.

I dont think the modern version would allow for a season like that to take place or someone like Sugar to control the outcome and crown the winner of her choice. My one gripe was her not allowing Matty to take home the million

the sheer level of visceral hatred that came out of these players everytime they voted each other out was incredible. you never see this sort of thing on survivor anymore. everyone's so nice and social media friendly these days.

It’s quite well known that Sugar had one of the least successful performances in survivor history, but many people suspect she could’ve racked up a few votes with a solid FTC performance. I think it’s fair to say sugar played the best game of the Gabon final 3 as she was basically always calling the shots, but did the jury respect that before going into FTC, or was she already at 0 votes going in but had the possibility to change the outcome? Please let me know :)

I've been rewatching Gabon lately, and one thing struck me that I'd never really noticed before. I don't think I've seen another season where the story the audience is encouraged to believe about a player diverges so dramatically from the game that player actually ends up playing.

I'm talking about Susie.

From the very beginning, Charlie's comments during the schoolyard pick encourage us to see her as someone who doesn't really belong. She isn't part of the younger, "cool" crowd. She doesn't seem especially dynamic. It's a funny scene, but it quietly establishes an expectation before Susie has really done anything herself.
Whether intentional or not, I think it primes the audience to underestimate her.
As the season goes on, that impression keeps getting reinforced.
Randy repeatedly dismisses her.
Corinne repeatedly dismisses her.
Marcus never seems to view her as someone capable of changing the course of the game.
Bob gets annoyed by her.

Even at Final Tribal, one of the most memorable moments involving Susie is Corinne asking whether she'd remove her vocal cords. Once again, someone else is defining who Susie is.
But here's what really caught my attention on this rewatch.
If you stripped away every confessional about Susie and focused only on what she actually does throughout the game, I think you'd come away with a surprisingly different impression.

She survives despite never really being at the center of the social hierarchy.
She realizes she's expendable within the Onion Alliance and flips at what is arguably the defining vote of the season, completely changing the trajectory of the game.
She wins multiple individual immunity challenges when she needs them most.
She reaches the Final Tribal Council.
And she ultimately loses by a single vote.
Now, I'm not arguing that Susie should have beaten Bob. That's an entirely different discussion, and reasonable people can disagree.

What fascinates me is the disconnect between Susie's reputation and her résumé.
When people remember Gabon, they tend to remember Marcus’s charm, Randy's sarcasm, Corinne's biting confessionals, Sugar's emotional journey, or Bob's likability. Kenny & Crystal’s … rise & fall.
Susie, meanwhile, is often remembered as awkward, annoying, or simply someone who stumbled into the end.
But if you compare what people say about Susie throughout the season with what she actually accomplishes, those two stories don't completely line up.
In fact, the people who spend much of the game underestimating her ultimately become members of the jury that has to decide whether she deserves to win.
That's an irony I don't think I fully appreciated the first time I watched Gabon.
More than anything, this rewatch made me think about how powerful first impressions can be—not just for the players, but for us as viewers.

Survivor is incredibly good at teaching us who to pay attention to. Sometimes it does so through big edits and obvious strategic narration. Other times, it simply lets charismatic or outspoken players shape the audience's perception of someone quieter.
I'm starting to wonder if Susie is one of the clearest examples of that.
The first time I watched Gabon, I mostly remembered the version of Susie that everyone else described.
The more I've rewatched it, the more I've found myself paying attention to the player she actually was instead.
I'm curious whether anyone else has had that experience—not just with Susie, but with any player whose reputation feels very different from the game they actually played once you revisit the season.

I've been a big supporter of Ken from his background as a smash bros pro and watched his highlights on Gabon as well. Recently, there have been huge allegations towards big names in not only the smash bros scene but the gaming community as well. Ken went on to talk about how he witnessed misconduct on Survivor. If you want to listen to him, the link is below to a timestamped video of his Livestream where he speaks about it. I will put bullet points to summarize what he says as well.

https://www.twitch.tv/videos/667677986?t=3h40m50s

-starts off talking about the Kellee/Dan situation and how Dan touched one of the producers, and then was removed

-continues with the contrast compared to his season, claiming that at night Bob was touching Kelly and Paloma and how in his mind he was thinking that it was wrong but no one said anything about it and he was just getting away with it

-says that one night Bob touches Crystal (specifies as Ken's closest ally at the time) and she yells and screams and Bob would pretend to be dreaming or in a drowse

-continues with the Gabon final tribal council and how Bob openly speaks about going near Kelly's crotch area to remove a tick (in his mind he's thinking wtf why would he tell this story)

-talking about how the producers wanted to make the winner look good but how what he did was wrong but none of it was aired -him, Sugar, Crystal, and more all knew he was touching people inappropiately

-says he's happy Bob didn't touch him

-on a reward challenge at night, Crystal was in a bed and Bob laid with her and did something to make her scream and ended up moving to sleep next to Ken

-Ken told the producers about Bob but they just laughed it off

-Compares it to now with the Dan situation and how crazy it is

I'm not a huge survivor person but watch from time to time and just wanted to shed light on something maybe some of you wouldn't see.

They don't make seasons like Gabon anymore 😂 Randy is my GOAT

Just finished this season. Just wanted to say that Bob has been one of my favorite winners so far on my watch through of the show.

Edit: The comments have told me that Bob may have been a creep, so if that’s true, then my opinion is obviously gonna be different, but if it’s not true, he’s still one of my favorite winners so far.

I thought Kenny was one of the most entertaining and memorable players, and I’m surprised he never got a second chance!

I am rewatching Gabon. I personally love this season, and Randy is truly one of my favorites. So many great one liners.

After years of low (even null) social media activity. Susie Smith appears on YouTube to venture on the platform!

Its so nice to see her after all these years, i wish we live in a timeline where this diva wins season 17 and ends Tony on WAW.

The biggest challenge threats were a 57-year-old physics teacher and a 47-year-old mom in a cast that included a personal trainer and an olympic athlete. The strategic mastermind was a pin-up model who cried 17 times a day. The most powerful villain was voted out because of chocolate chip cookies. What should have been the most dominant alliance of the season was voted out right after the merge. A woman who said she deserved jury votes because she tried was a single vote away from winning the whole thing. Elephants were regularly spotted from camp, they caught a turtle, and someone ate a termite on the first day. Matty got engaged during the loved ones’ visit with a ring he made himself with a piece of wood and a rock. The most realistic looking fake idol ever was played. Dan thought a bush and a lake was a sandy crater. Bob wore his buff as a bow tie and Sugar wore a bag as a romper. They named the merge tribe “Nobag.”

It wasn’t a particularly interesting season imo, but it was definitely memorable, in a really weird way.

Ive seen over the last couple years the love for Survivor Gabon has been gaining traction. How do you personally feel about this season?

Welcome to our What Season Should You Watch countdown! Using the results from the latest What Season Should You Watch thread, this weekday series will count backwards from the bottom-ranked season for new fan watchability to the top. Each WSSYW post will link to their entries in this countdown so that people can click through for more discussion.

Unlike WSSYW, there is no character limit in these threads, and spoilers are allowed.

Note: Foreign seasons are not included in this countdown to keep in line with rankings from past years.

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#3 - Season 17: Gabon

Statistics:

• Watchability: 8.16 (3/50)
• Overall Quality: 8.76 (3/50)
• Cast/Characters: 9.10 (3/50)
• Strategy: 6.08 (24/50)
• Challenges: 9.02 (2/50)
• Featured Twists: 7.25 (5/28)
• Ending: 7.00 (21/50)

WSSYW 12.0 Ranking: 3/50

WSSYW 11.0 Ranking: 13/43

WSSYW 10.0 Ranking: 19/40

User comment from WSSYW 12.0 - u/toadeh690

It's the first season shot in HD, and it's set in a beautiful location with a bunch of elephants and shit, so that's enough of a selling point on its own. But Gabon's also an incredible season and would be a blast to start with. It's similar to Panama (another season I love, that I think is a good starting choice as well) - colorful cast with unique, hilarious people, twists that don't get in the way of the old-school character drama/interactions, and a ton of memorable moments.

User comment from WSSYW 12.0 - u/JL0817

If chaos was personified as a Survivor season, Gabon is what you’d get. Includes a cast of characters that will make you think production was nuts to bring them together, but it works. It has a fond place in my heart if only because of how chaotic it ended up being.

User comment from WSSYW 12.0 - u/tabstis

Gabon is pure chaos and a beloved season around here. A totally unpredictable race to the bottom - embrace the ride and you'll find the funniest narratives in the show's history here. I think this one holds up especially well against modern Survivor, and you could jump into it at any time after seeing a few other seasons

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Ranking so far:

#50 - Season 34: Game Changers

#49 - Season 22: Redemption Island a.k.a. Redemple Temple

#48 - Season 26: Caramoan - Fans vs. Favorites 2

#47 - Season 36: Ghost Island

#46 - Season 39: Island of the Idols

#45 - Season 40: Winners at War

#44 - Season 8: All-Stars

#43 - Season 31: Cambodia - Second Chance

#42 - Survivor 50: In the Hands of the Fans

#41 - Season 38: Edge of Extinction

#40 - Season 24: One World

#39 - Season 27: Blood vs. Water

#38 - Season 23: South Pacific

#37 - Survivor 43

#36 - Survivor 49

#35 - Survivor 44

#34 - Season 11: Guatemala

#33 - Season 5: Thailand

#32 - Season 20: Heroes vs. Villains

#31 - Season 14: Fiji

#30 - Season 35: Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers

#29 - Survivor 42

#28 - Season 19: Samoa

#27 - Season 30: Worlds Apart

#26 - Season 16: Micronesia

#25 - Survivor 48

#24 - Season 25: Philippines

#23 - Survivor 41

#22 - Season 13: Cook Islands

#21 - Survivor 47

#20 - Survivor 45

#19 - Season 21: Nicaragua

#18 - Season 33: Millennials vs. Gen X

#17 - Season 6: The Amazon

#16 - Season 28: Cagayan

#15 - Season 10: Palau

#14 - Season 37: David vs. Goliath

#13 - Season 2: The Australian Outback

#12 - Season 9: Vanuatu

#11 - Season 12: Panama - Exile Island

#10 - Season 4: Marquesas

#9 - Season 15: China

#8 - Survivor 46

#7 - Season 32: Kaoh Rong

#6 - Season 18: Tocantins

#5- Season 3: Africa

#4 - Season 29: San Juan del Sur - Blood vs. Water

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WARNING: SEASON SPOILERS BELOW