Boston Rob's Reality TV Games, Ranked

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This week, “Boston” Rob Mariano was banished in Episode 7 of THE TRAITORS after another memorable run on a Reality TV social strategy game. Rob’s effort in the turret as a traitor was captivating to watch for us viewers and had all the hallmarks of the way Boston Rob always plays these games.

Boston Rob’s style can be summed up in one word: control. Whether he’s outsmarting his fellow castaways on Survivor, calling the shots on The Amazing Race, stirring up intrigue on The Traitors, or even trying to work his magic on Deal or No Deal Island, his game plan is all about dictating the narrative and dominating the other players. 

With all due respect to “The Boston Rob Rulebook”, here is my synopsis of how Rob does it:

• Always start aggressively: Rob’s first move is always to assert himself into the game’s leadership position. He’s a master at getting his foot in the door—whether it’s forging alliances or asserting his presence—so that everyone else is forced to react to him.

• Control everything, especially the vote: Once he’s in charge, Rob doesn’t leave anything to chance. He builds tight, unbreakable alliances (often using what you might call his “buddy system”) and meticulously orchestrates betrayals, always making sure he’s the one calling the shots. Every vote, every social interaction, and even every off-camera chat is carefully steered to serve his agenda.

• If you’re not with him, you’re against him: The beauty of Rob’s strategy is that it translates no matter the game. On Survivor, it’s all about controlling the tribe and neutralizing threats. On The Amazing Race, he uses quick thinking and negotiation to force other teams into taking penalties. And on The Traitors and Deal or No Deal Island, his reputation alone is enough to sway dynamics in his favor—he’s always working to keep his fate firmly in his own hands. 

In short, Boston Rob doesn’t just participate in these games—he remolds them to suit his vision. His approach is a blend of strategic foresight, psychological warfare, and a dash of charm that makes every move look inevitable. And while his tactics might leave some scratching their heads (or plotting their revenge), there’s no denying that Rob’s relentless pursuit of control is what sets him apart in the world of reality TV strategy.

Now that Rob’s run on The Traitors has come to an end, I thought it would be fun to try and rank Rob’s reality TV appearances in order of Rob’s trademark control over the game.

Honorable Mention: Island of the Idols

Although Rob was not a competitor this season, Rob still made his presence felt in a BIG way. Stationed on the “Island of the Idols” with Sandra Diaz-Twine, he mentored new players by testing their decision-making and risk management. His aura of dominance was felt without even playing when the show erected giant statues of Rob and Sandra for the players to idolize.

9. Survivor: Winners at War

Playing against fellow winners, Rob quickly aligned with other “old-school” players (Parvati Shallow and Ethan Zohn) to watch each other’s backs​. Rob’s biggest control move was when he coerced his entire tribe to all empty their bags at tribal council to reveal where an idol might be.

Rob lost a valuable number when Ethan got taken out of the game and things got worse after the swap. On the swapped Yara tribe, Rob urged everyone to stay together at camp and not scramble before Tribal Council – essentially a “buddy system on steroids.” Unfortunately for Rob, he was dealing with Sophie, Sarah, Adam and Ben and not the members of the Ometepe tribe. With the opportunity to put a big time notch on their Survivor belts/resumes, they decided to send Rob to the Edge of Extinction for a second honeymoon with Amber.

8. The Amazing Race 11 (All-Stars)

Competing as newlyweds, Rob and Amber came out of the gate strong. They won the first three legs in a row, a record at the time​. Rob and Amber leveraged their extensive Reality TV experience to make quick decisions and stay calm under pressure, which kept rivals in a constant state of unease. 

Rob and Amber returned for their second season of The Amazing Race with a clear IDGAF attitude. Not being there to make friends, they blew past the competition and Rob took great pleasure in using any opportunity to sabotage his rivals.

However, leg 4 was a total disaster for Rob & Amber. Rob struggled in a task over misspelling Philippines, dropping them to be on the second flight to Argentina. Perhaps being a little off their game by not being in first, Rob and Amber struggled to find a letter that was addressed to them in the roadblock. They got beat out by Charla & Mirna and experienced one of the worst nose-dives in Amazing Race history dropping from consistently being in first to eliminated from the Race for the very first time.

7. Survivor: Marquesas

We first met Rob Mariano in Survivor: Marquesas as a 26-year old cocky construction worker from Boston, Massachusetts. Despite the distractions of an early showmance with Sarah Jones, Boston Rob formed a counter-alliance on the Maraamu tribe to take out Hunter Ellis – the tribe’s strongest member and leader, and a Reality TV icon was born. One of the most shocking moves in the early days of Survivor history was felt by over 20 million Survivor fans who tried to understand what was happening. 

By “dethroning” the perceived tribe leader so early, Rob disrupted the traditional Survivor hierarchy and asserted his control. This bold move was virtually unheard of at the time and earned Rob a reputation as a fearless Survivor strategist​. Rob said “It doesn’t matter if my team is stronger physically or even stronger mentally but just that they obey”.

The move to blindside Hunter turned out to be Rob’s lone strategic power move in Marquesas. He might have gone out right after the swap had Gabriel been a reliable ally for the Rotu alliance (and how Reality TV history might have changed if that had happened!). However, he stuck around and Rob’s potential and off-the-screen charisma left audiences wondering what could happen if Rob ever got another chance. 

6. Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains

After two stints on the Amazing Race, Rob finally returned to Survivor after a six year absence. Rob almost always portrays himself as the one that is the only sane person on a tribe of nincompoops. On Heroes vs. Villains, Rob found himself as the experienced leader who was able to galvanize a chaotic Villains tribe. Rob was focused on camp stability and challenge strength and found loyal allies in Tyson, Sandra, Courtney, Coach and Jerri. 

While Rob tried to provide control through stability to the Villains tribe, he met a formidable foe (or Foa Foa) in Russell Hantz. Russell is almost the antithesis of Rob in that Russell uses chaos to create an environment he can control whereas Rob wants to provide security for his minions in order for them to do his bidding. 

Despite Russell’s effort to sow chaos, Rob had Russell and Parvati outflanked and devised a plan to split the vote between Russell and Parvati to flush out a hidden idol​. Had it not been for Tyson’s last-minute misvote, it’s entirely possible Rob controls this whole game down to the end and wins Heroes vs. Villains - completely remapping all of Survivor History.

5. The Traitors Season 3

After being part of a game-opening twist, the players didn’t invite Boston Rob to join the game. Instead he got installed as the fourth traitor at the end of the season premiere. Rob entered what will likely go down as The Traitors’ most dysfunctional group of traitors ever. 

Boston Rob does not take a backseat to anybody on Reality TV and Rob sees how much of a voice Bob the Drag Queen has, both in the turret and amongst the faithful in the castle. Bob the Drag Queen made a key mistake when he announced that one of the three caged newcomers (Boston Rob, Wes and Derrick) must be a traitor, and Boston Rob didn’t appreciate this.

Boston Rob springs into action and weaponizes the earlier suspicions that Dylan Efron had around Bob the Drag Queen to turn the faithful against him. When Bob the Drag Queen was revealed as a traitor, Rob was seen as a conquering hero by many of the other players and built an incredible amount of goodwill.

Even with mounting suspicion placed on him by Derrick and Wes, he managed to make it a few more rounds - even getting the vote flipped around on Wes on a night that Rob could have been banished. Ultimately, I believe Rob picked the wrong target to go after in Brittney Haynes (a player who was too well liked with little suspicion on her from the group). So while Rob’s time in the castle was cut short, he proved to be a truly dominating force at the roundtable.

4. Deal or No Deal Island

Fully aware that his Survivor fame painted a target on his back, Rob addressed it head-on. Rob actively convinced others that keeping him around was in their best interest because of his contributions. By positioning himself as an asset, he diffused the urge to vote him off early. This strategic charm offensive made his competitors willing partners in his plan, essentially buying Rob time in the game.

Rob applied game theory to ensure he was never at others’ mercy. Knowing the Banker’s “Deal or No Deal” twist could eliminate a player without a vote, Rob maneuvered to avoid any scenario where he lacked immunity. He dominated in excursions (challenges) to secure safety for himself whenever possible, refusing to leave his fate to chance.

His strategic foresight paid off – Rob reached the final four with an excellent shot to win. Unfortunately, a misunderstanding around the rules gave Rob a time penalty that he was unable to overcome, landing him in fourth place for the season. Had Rob gotten through that challenge, he undoubtedly would have won the final challenge and taken on the Banker to win a few more million dollars.

3. The Amazing Race 7

Racing with Amber shortly after Survivor All-Stars, Rob applied Survivor-style cunning to the Race. While The Amazing Race is a much different game than Survivor, Rob was able to integrate his trademark game of control to the race. For instance, when faced with a Roadblock requiring a single person to eat four pounds of meat, Rob realized he couldn’t finish it. Instead of accepting last place, he convinced other teams to also quit the task and take a four-hour penalty alongside him​. By “Tom Sawyer-ing” the others into quitting too, Rob ensured multiple teams would take the penalty, not just him and Amber

In another leg, Rob showed financial and social savvy by pooling money from other teams to bribe a local bus driver. He orchestrated an early stop so those teams (and his) could disembark sooner, using none of his own cash in the bribe​. This is textbook Boston Rob, forcing others to do something that benefits the group (and himself) that he himself somehow declines to take part in.

Rob and Amber should have won the Amazing Race 7 had it not been for one of the most controversial moments in Reality TV history. Rob and Amber were the only team who had arrived in time to catch the first plane back to the US when the plane miraculously (or non-miraculously for the Mariano family) returned to the gate to allow eventual winners, Uchenna and Joyce, to board the plane. While production claims the pilot made the decision to allow the other team to board, Rob and Amber felt like the show had screwed them over. 

While Rob and Amber can’t claim an Amazing Race win (and another million dollars) on their resume, Rob’s tactics brought Survivor-style maneuvering into The Amazing Race in a way that it had never been before. While Rob will always be a Survivor player first, Rob and Amber proved to be one of the most dominant Amazing Race teams ever assembled.

2. Survivor: All-Stars

Little did I know when I donned the red buff on the beaches of Panama in 2003 what I had gotten myself into. I did not have the foresight to know that I had stepped into the game with the GOAT and I would be first in a long line of people to discover that during Survivor: All-Stars.

Rob allied with Amber Brkich on day one, creating a tight duo that steered the pre-merge Chapera tribe’s strategy​. Rob provided stability for a group that continued to win and avoid tribal council against the floundering Mogo Mogo tribe. During that time, Rob and Amber cut separate deals to go to the end with Big Tom, Alicia and Jenna along with Rupert. 

However, after a tribe swap isolated Amber away from Rob, perhaps the most impactful deal in the history of the show was struck when Rob persuaded Lex van den Berghe to save Amber at a tribe swap by promising, “You take care of her, I’ll take care of you… if you can.”​

And “Take care of Lex” was exactly what Rob did when he betrayed Lex at the very next vote. This ruthless honor-your-deal-until-it-hurts-you approach allowed Rob and Amber to have full control of the rest of the game until they reached the Final 2. 

While Lex, Tom and Alicia cast their votes for Amber to cost Rob the win, he was able to get the last laugh when he proposed to Amber in one of Survivor’s most memorable finale moments. While Rob didn’t get the win on Survivor: All-Stars, he proved himself as Reality TV’s most notorious player and continues to return for two more decades of Reality TV dominance.

1. Survivor: Redemption Island

In his fourth try – which he won – Rob played a nearly flawless game of control. He built a majority alliance of loyal followers on day one​ and systematically removed anyone who wouldn’t pledge loyalty. Rob even implemented a rigid “buddy system” rule, forbidding his allies from speaking alone with rivals so no one could plot against him. 

Rob’s calculated cold-bloodedness is demonstrated by the way he targeted players. He had a keen sense to get rid of the early dissenters right away. Rob proved willing to cut even close allies if it meant securing victory. He befriended and carried Grant Mattos deep into the game, then eliminated Grant before he could become a final threat.

He controlled every vote with this tight grip​. His best move may have come when he eliminated one of his own tribe members at the merge as Matt Elrod returned to the game from Redemption Island. Matt proved to be too much of a wild card and Rob realized that by eliminating Matt he could control the majority and keep his allies fearful that the same fate could happen to them at any point. 

Rob was in complete control of his game during the entirety of Redemption Island. Rob sat next to his hand-picked goats at the end of the game in Phillip and Natalie, only to be robbed of a unanimous win by Ralph Kiser’s one vote for Phillip (spelled Phile). In Redemption Island, Rob completed his magnum opus of strategy and earned his one and only Reality TV win. Jeff Probst praised it as perhaps the most perfect game of Survivor ever. 

Boston Rob is one of those players you just can’t ignore—whether you’re a die-hard fan or a casual observer, he has a way of making every moment on screen feel like a front-row seat to a master class in strategy and showmanship. There’s something endlessly fascinating about watching him work the game; it’s not just his razor-sharp tactics, but the way he owns every room he’s in, turning even the simplest move into an unforgettable statement. 

Sure, his game is ruthless, but it’s also laced with a kind of magnetic charisma that keeps you guessing what he’ll do next—often with a smirk and a quip that makes you wonder if he’s playing us as much as he’s playing the game. In a landscape where so many players stick to playing under-the-radar just to squeak out a forgettable win, Boston Rob is the antithesis of that type of player - and that is why, whether you love him or loathe him, you just have to watch.

-Rob Cesternino

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