Brandon Donlon: Hope for Andy

First is the worst: what happens after a rough premiere episode

As I sat in front of the camera for the last time in my Survivor tenure, I started my final words package with, “Sometimes you go on Survivor and think you’ll be David Wright. I was David Wrong.”

Whether you’re a tire salesman or a slot machine specialist, it doesn’t take much to recognize that things are not going to plan just days into the game. No amount of survival books and strategy podcasts can prepare you for that realization as you (try to) fall asleep – this might be over sooner than it started. 

But then… something crazy happens. You’ve been spared. Maybe your tribe clinches that first immunity or a shock blindside sends another player packing. Maybe you integrate into the majority alliance or someone on your tribe really needs her vape. No matter the reason, what’s important is that you’ve been given a gift. An opportunity. You’re back on the beach, laying in the same spot you were 24 hours prior. There’s a first boot for your season and it’s not you. What now?

To keep this list consistent, we’re going to discuss the castaways that made it to the second week of the show. Despite meeting every contestant in the season premiere, you only ever finish the episode with a strong opinion of a small handful. You, the reader, know how you think Andy is going to do on Survivor 47. You’re also learning this second that there’s a “Kyle” on a different tribe. You get me?  

The folks we’ll talk about were the topic of water cooler conversation the morning after the show. With varying levels of success, this is the path of the chosen few. 

J’Tia Hart (Survivor: Cagayan)

I still remember the pre-game hype that surrounded J’Tia in our niche online circle, long before they were saying Rob Has A Podcast on TV. J’Tia seemed to have every necessary trait and life experience to excel at our favorite game, becoming a pre-game winner pick for many. Despite setting her tribe back at the first immunity challenge, David Samson was ultimately deemed a bigger fish (a Marlin, perhaps?) to fry at the first Brains tribal council. It seemed there was nowhere to go but up for J’Tia halfway through the Survivor: Cagayan premiere episode. We were wrong—there was still an hour left to go.

After losing the second immunity, largely portrayed as J’Tia’s fault, she spotted members of her tribe discussing the vote for later. In a moment that Brandon Hantz would later call “better when I did it”, J’Tia dumped the tribe’s rice into the fire. What I need you, the reader, to do with me right now is imagine how poor of a player Garrett Adelstein must have been to get voted out instead of J’Tia. The unthinkable had happened. The episode ended and the nuclear engineer continued on. Every message board, every tweet, every Survivor web forum was buzzing about J’Tia. We were witnessing a Survivor legacy in the making, no matter the outcome. 

At this point in Survivor, the precedent hadn’t been set for someone to have this poor of an opening episode and to make a deep run into the game. Unfortunately for us, J’Tia would not set that standard. Although her tribe won the third immunity challenge, J’Tia ended up as the fourth person to be eliminated. If they ever do a pre-merge returnee season, J’Tia should be the first call. Seldom are people who are eliminated that early still so memorable. J’Tia, if you’re reading this, I’ll give you Brando’s number so you can pre-game. DM me. 

Aubry Bracco (Survivor: Kaoh Rong)

Unlike a challenge failure or a poor social showing, Aubry faced a more specific peril in her opening days, reminiscent of old school Survivor. Aubry couldn’t hack it. As Survivor slowly transitioned from a show based in survival skills to strategic gameplay, the focus of the “elements” faded with every passing season. Kaôh Rōng was the exception. The combination of Cambodia’s unforgiving conditions and Aubry’s predisposition to anxiety caused her to break down just days into the game. Encouraged to go on by water treatment specialist Debbie Wanner, Aubry regained her composure and helped her tribe win immunity the following day. 

After moving and shaking throughout the pre-merge, Aubry lost her closest ally, Neal, to a leg infection. Aubry danced through the merge portion of the game, fluidly navigating through each vote after forging close bonds with members of the Brawn and Beauty tribes. Despite not taking the winning title home, the outpouring of support and love given to her after the finale proved that her underdog story resonated with Survivor fans. Aubry’s run in Kaôh Rōng was so impactful to Survivor, she inspired an entire casting archetype you still see shown today. 

David Wright (Survivor: Millennials vs. Gen X)

David Wright is not a great Survivor player on paper. Days into the game, the anxious TV writer acknowledged that he was scared—not of the challenges, not the elements, not even Bret… but all of the above. Watching David plug his ears at the sound of chopping wood, it was clear he hopped on the wrong plane to San Diego Comic Con and was too shy to say anything. Then, David shared his story. “I’m going to work hard to make this happen, and I’m going to turn this around for myself.” After narrowly escaping the first vote to a fallen Rachel Ako, David settled into his own and like he does at home, crafted a winning story.

Between real idols and fake, blindsides and swing votes, David Wright found himself immersed in a fantasy — one where he is the hero. David understood two things imperative to Survivor success — strategy and story. Writers on Survivor have an acute awareness not only of how they’re perceived, but how each character is perceiving one another. David’s moves in Millennials vs. Gen X were informed by strategy, but structured more as a Survivor screenplay rather than the classic résumé. Although he doesn’t get to pitch at final tribal council, he solidified himself as a Survivor inspiration for many successful new era players like Zach Wurtenberger, Daniel Strunk, and myself. 

Brandon Donlon (me) & Emily Flippen (Survivor 45)

This one might be a little longer. 

Survivor 45 ushered in a new era of the rough opening episode. I felt like Drew Barrymore in Scream, tragically passing away minutes into the program before they’d played the opening credits. Emily was Ghostface in khakis, causing chaos and discomfort within her first moments on camera. Through conspiracy theories and reflux, challenges and arguments, it appeared there was no way that the long-haired neurotics from hell made it to episode 2. Enter Hannah Rose. As Emily ran around scrambling, and I searched the beach for a loose Prilosec OTC, Hannah spent her final island hours debating whether this journey was for her.

Twenty minutes before tribal council, she told me that she’s pulling the plug. I begged her to stay, knowing full well that I’d be in a much better position with her there. I thought I’d convinced her. We gathered with Jeff as Emily appeared to dig herself further into her hole – a hole so appealing, Hannah Rose dove head first into it. She wanted to leave. Jeff was perplexed. Survivor history was made. Emily and I lived to see the sunlight. Hannah would, too, just in a resort somewhere with breakfast and chewable tobacco.

Ending the first cycle of the game, Emily and I had one goal in mind: patch up our visible weaknesses and hope to do it before the other person. We both understood the assignment, but Emily aced it. In the days leading up to our second immunity challenge, Emily was under new management. Your favorite Public Relations professor would struggle to explain such a rebrand. Like if Arby’s started selling wedding dresses. No amount of jokes or pep talks could save me after our second immunity loss, as all five Lulu-losers (derogatory) watched our chances at safety crumble. The pressure I felt to perform wasn’t tangible, but the puzzle pieces certainly were. A social faux pas or a miscommunication can be taken out of context and justified. An incomplete task when the team is counting is binary: either good or bad. As my teammates made their decision, I thanked Jeff for the opportunity and started my two-week paid vacation with Hannah Rose. Emily became one of the most important characters in Survivor history. 

Emily’s “rough start”, in my estimation, was a combination of those first-day-of-school jitters mixed with some unintentional self-sabotage behavior. She is exactly what her edit portrayed her to be: strong-willed and self-deprecating, with a tinge of argumentative. Just like adjusting levels on a soundboard, it took Emily a while to adjust to that perfect mix. Her success in Survivor, with a nice alley-oop from Kaleb, is credited to her. She did what many people can’t do — adjusted her perception in real-time while never changing the qualities that made her who she is. She latched onto Austin and Drew come the swap, captained a spectacular Bruce blindside in the merge, and got idoled from the game out of fear that she could win. She assessed and adapted, and captured America’s hearts along the way — about a million of them, give or take.

Andy Rueda (Survivor 47)

Sometimes your ladder isn’t physical. It feels like we know a lot about Andy despite only spending two hours with him. Andy grew up battling with deep-seated insecurity. Now 31, he’s surrounded by people and activities that make him feel like he can do anything — including excelling at his favorite game. I can promise you from experience, Andy did not come to Survivor hoping that his journey would start in the way it did. Nothing in the world can compare to the culture shock that is Survivor. Stripped of every creature comfort and plopped on an island with four strangers and a relatively well-known podcaster, it’s hard to articulate how alone you feel in those moments. The presence of the camera crew can make you feel even more isolated. Superfan Andy understands how you’re supposed to start this game — and maybe even more, how you’re not. Andy processed the reality of his situation at the immunity challenge, watching his tribe lose the puzzle. He panicked. 

Do I think what followed was optimal for his game? Absolutely not. Do I think Andy thought that either? Of course not. But Andy didn’t leave the game that day. Jon did. Whatever the reason for ousting Jon over Andy, it’s a moot point. Andy didn’t need to go to the Edge of Extinction to feel like he came back from the dead. He earned a Survivor advantage so valuable that it can’t be found in the woods — more time. There’s a first boot for his season and it’s not him.

Kathy Vavrick-O’Brien started as a social pariah and ended up on Survivor’s first All-Star season. Chris Daugherty couldn’t get across the balance beam — but he dominated the endgame and earned his million. Aubry re-adjusted from a panic attack and played the game twice more. Her underdog story has permeated Survivor culture so much that Mo was voted off of Survivor 46 for mentioning her. David Wright escaped the first vote and ended up one immunity away from winning his season. Emily reset and is the face of the Survivor new era. J’Tia and me? We’re on “Top 10” lists of Survivor players, too. Just maybe not the ones you want to be on. 

What remains the same — we all started from the bottom. Hypotheses can be made. Predictions can be locked in. There’s only one way to know for sure how this ends for Andy. More time.

-Brandon

Brandon Donlon was on Survivor 45, where he was part of the iconic mess that was the Lulu tribe. He is still a huge fan of the show and an amazing member of the Survivor community, despite having a tenuous relationship with ladders since he left Fiji. You can follow him on X/twitter @BrandonDonlon.

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