Survivor: Edge of Extinction

originally aired February 20, 2019 to May 15, 2019

The order in which players left the game and the impact they left behind:

• Reem (Manu) First voted out, first to embrace Edge of Extinction, and stuck with it to the very end.  She becomes almost by definition the best example of a first vote loser ever in the game.
• Keith (Manu) The surprisingly impactful Manu tribe sort of crystalized over this particular tribal council.  Keith ended up being one of two players to quit Edge of Extinction.
• Aubry (Kama) The fifth voted out (Devens and Chris ended up back in the game thanks to Edge of Extinction) was one of the returning players, who never really figured out how to contend with the new players.
• Wendy (Manu) A standout personality in a season almost devoid of them, Wendy unfortunately couldn't compete in the actual game, and was the other one to quit Edge of Extinction.
• Joe (Kama) Another returning player, a hugely popular one among fans, but who just doesn't have the killer instinct to compete in the actual game.
• Eric (Kama) A key member of the overly ambitious Kama alliance that was quickly dismantled.  Take that for what you will.
• Julia (Kama) One of the more anonymous members of the edit and/or overly ambitious Kama alliance.
• David (Manu) Not as much the strategic powerhouse as the last time he played, David still proved a considerable threat and one of the main reasons the game played out the way it did, spurring Devens along to near-victory.
• Kelley Wentworth (Manu) Her appearance this season justified her reputation as a strong player, always scrambling for power.  Spurred her ally Lauren deeper in the game than she would've gone otherwise.
• Wardog (Manu) One of those would-be master strategists who've dominated the game in recent years despite a rank inability to win (although this really goes all the way back to Boston Rob in the fourth season).  Love the nickname, but he didn't have the personality to match.  Where o where art thou, Coach??? 
• Ron (Kama) Hugely cocky de facto leader of the overly ambitious Kama alliance that took on basically a whole tribe and thus epitomized why that's a horrible idea.  Also epitomized the charisma void in much of the cast this season.
• Aurora (Kama) Somehow made her name by performing well in challenges while complaining she had no allies despite being in the general Kama alliance.  Basically had no interest in strategizing.  That's a terrible way to play this game!
• Victoria (Kama) Sort of made an effort to strategize, but coasted too long on the Kama numbers.
• Lauren (Manu) Made it surprisingly far despite being the weaker player of an alliance with Kelley Wentworth that ended well before she was voted out.  A second chance could prove how good she can really be.
• Rick Devens (Manu) Originally eliminated ironically because Lauren and Kelley realized he was a huge threat, and then seized the Edge of Extinction opportunity to in fact become a huge threat, and by far the biggest and best personality of the season.  His late showdown with Chris in a fire-making challenge probably goes down as an all-time great moment in Survivor lore.
• Julie (Kama) The fact that she got no votes from the jury despite arguably looking best at the final tribal council ought to tell you pretty much everything you need to know.
• Gavin (Kama) A great story but...absolutely no!...personality!  And that's what sucked so much about the Kama alliance, that it only worked at all because of the ridiculous numbers that were thrown at it, not because any of them were particularly good players, and the fate of the alliance proved that beyond any doubt, and the fact that none of them ended up winning.  Again, this is exactly why you don't just assume numbers are all you need in this game.
• Chris (Manu) The greatest beneficiary, obviously, of the Edge of Extinction gimmick, which itself was basically a combination of Exile Island and the Pearl Islands outcast concept, which ended up backfiring spectacularly with an unlikable player ending up back in the game.  This time not only did we get Devens back, but Chris, who swooped in at literally the last minute and actually gave up protection at the last tribal council before the vote so he could prove his worth in the game, in an epic showdown with Devens in a fire-making challenge.  I'm so glad the season ended the way it did.  We've had too many seasons, recently, where it was players who thought they were master strategists basically cancelling each other out because they couldn't figure out how to actually maneuver this game.  It's always possible to be outmaneuvered, but the trend has more been players who weren't good at strategy thinking they were, just because they were aware of the general way the game is played.  They end up more like a Jerri than a Rich, which is why it's better when a Tina wins, someone who maybe didn't have the best game but still put in the effort to get to the end, no matter how it was accomplished, and won with honor.  That's where Chris stands.