Review: Survivor, “Cinema” | Season 49, Episode 2
The New Era formula yields scattered moments of fun in a predictable episode
During a typical pre-merge episode in New Era Survivor, you can expect a few key features. Someone will find a Beware Advantage, risking their vote but getting some sort of clue to find a hidden immunity idol or other advantage. One person from each tribe will go on a journey together, also risking their votes but potentially getting an idol or advantage out of it. And then the immunity challenge will feature some sort of obstacle course ending in a puzzle.
“Cinema” has all three of these basic features, but manages to make … some of them stand out. Now, I’m beyond ready for Survivor to abolish journeys, especially because the contestants barely get any time to chat and form cross-tribal alliances anymore—think of Shan and Liana’s genuinely touching bond in Season 41, or even Bhanu’s outburst to Ben and Liz in Season 46. But I do enjoy coconut basketball as a challenge, and in general it’s nice to see the three tribal representatives actually competing instead of going their separate ways for individual challenges or (god forbid) dice rolls. Better yet, there’s only a mild risk of vote loss, and thanks to Jawan’s choice to help his tribe, everyone makes it out of this journey with their vote intact.
