The season premiere of Survivor: David vs. Goliath airs tonight on CBS. Read a live recap and join the discussion here.
Survivor returns for its 37th season with a new cast of competitors that will attempt to outwit, outplay, and outlast one another for the $1 million grand prize. The two tribes will be represented by biblical figures David and Goliath. The David tribe will be composed of people who are perceived as underdogs in life and the Goliath tribe will be made up of people who are viewed as having advantages in life. Which tribe will come out on top? Let’s find out!
Before the marooning, we hear some confessionals from the castaways. Christian and Elizabeth are on the David tribe, with the former being a self-proclaimed nerd and the latter coming from a family of eight siblings. They both relate to overcoming obstacles. Natalie and Angelina are on the Goliath tribe, and Natalie is a CEO and she claims people who would take a bullet for her. Angelina is also used to having success in her life.
The tribes climb aboard a ship and greet Jeff Probst. Jeff tells them the theme of the season: David vs. Goliath. The castaways are excited to learn this, and they embrace the label they are given. Nick on the David tribe also points out how David eventually became the king after defeating Goliath. Over on the Goliath tribe, John admits he’s a Goliath due to his stature. Alison (also on the Goliath tribe) is a doctor, but she says she worked hard to get to where she is. Jeff then asks Pat on the David tribe to compare his life to Alison. He says medical school or college was never an option for him.
It’s time for the first reward challenge. Jeff tells the Goliath tribe to pick the weakest man and woman on the tribe. They choose Lyrsa and Christian. Neither are surprised to be chosen. Jeff then tells the Goliath tribe to pick their strongest man and woman. They choose Alison and John. Next, Jeff says the David tribe get to choose what challenges each pair will have to compete in the obstacle course. Alison and John must do a plank bridge, go through a net tube, and then complete a cube puzzle. Christian and Lyrsa will go over the beam above the water, crawl under a net, and then complete a slide puzzle. The challenge begins, and the David tribe take a lead. Alison and John try to catch up, but Christian and Lyrsa complete the puzzle in seconds. David tribe wins reward! After the challenge, Christian admits he writes puzzle-solving algorithms, so he says it might’ve been unfair. Afterwards, Jeff sends both tribes off to their camps.
The Goliath tribe arrives at camp, and people recognize Mike from The Amazing Race. He works in Hollywood as a writer, but he also directs and produces. Dan is a police officer, and he says he worked hard to get to where he is now. He tells his tribe about his weight loss story too. In addition, Dan is attracted to Kara, and she seems to feel the same way about him. Dan knows showmances are dangerous for his game, but he can’t help the way he feels.
The David tribe arrives at camp, and they get to work building their shelter. We hear more of Pat’s life in a confessional. He says he comes from a blue collar background and had to struggle throughout his life. He takes a leadership role in his tribe, which seems to irk his tribe members. They don’t like being bossed around.
The Goliath tribe is working on building their shelter, and Natalie is also taking a leadership role in the tribe. She says she’s used to having young people work for her, but her bossiness is also rubbing some of her tribe members the wrong way. Back at the David tribe, Jessica is feeling good about her tribe’s chances. She’s also only 19 years old, which she plans to keep a secret. Tribe members also get to building alliances, which includes an Elizabeth and Lyrsa duo and a Christian and Gabby duo. Lyrsa notes the differences between her and Elizabeth whereas Christian and Gabby relate to how they’re both nerdy people.
Back at the Goliath tribe, Natalia is once again complaining about Natalie. Natalia asserts that Natalie just stands around and barks orders. Later, Mike goes searching for a hidden immunity idol, and his long absence is noted by his tribe members. Natalie goes looking for him. As she wanders off, the rest of the tribe discuss whether Natalie or Mike should be the first target for elimination. As they weigh the pros and cons, Natalie lets Mike know that he has put a target on his back. Mike laments how he made a rookie mistake in searching for an idol, especially since he believes he didn’t even need it.
After a night of heavy rain, Elizabeth notes how hard it was for them. However, she believes the David tribe will care about each other more than the Goliath tribe will care about their tribe members. However, Nick is ready to get to the scheming portion of the game. He wants to save energy and do little to help out around camp. He goes around and makes alliances with people. We see him approach Elizabeth with an alliance called The Thoroughbreds. However, Carl notes how little Nick works around camp. Carl wants Nick out first.
Back in the Goliath tribe, Alison and Angelina discuss how not enough women find hidden immunity idols. They want to increases the stats, so they go looking for it. Soon enough, the entire tribe is looking for the idol. As we see everyone looking everywhere for the idol, we find out Dan found the hidden immunity idol! He found it while searching with Natalia and Kara, and he shares his find with the two girls. He’s excited to have the idol in his possession.
At the David tribe, Davie catches an octopus for his tribe. He’s happy to provide for his tribe members. Later, Jessica breaks down in tears as she’s struggling living in the elements. They all share their life stories, and Jessica says her mom endured domestic abuse. Bi relates to that story since she dealt with domestic abuse too. Nick is uncomfortable sharing his life story, but he later shares how his mother overdosed three years ago. He breaks down in tears and says he never really cries. He says his mother would be proud that he opened up to his tribe members.
It’s time for the immunity challenge. They must sprint through an obstacle course, dig under a log, retrieve a machete, cut a rope to release a ladder, go up and down the platform, and then solve a puzzle. The challenge begins, and both tribes are even going into the digging portion of the challenge. Alec and Carl are digging for their tribes, and Alec retrieves the machete first. The Goliath tribe takes an early lead and are making their way across the platform. Carl eventually makes his way under the log to retrieve the machete. As the David tribe make their way across the platform, the Goliath tribe is already moving puzzle pieces around. Alison and Christian are standing on platforms to give orders to their tribe members. Eventually, both tribes are fairly even as heavy rain is pouring down. It’s a very close finish, but the Goliath tribe completes the puzzle first. The Goliath tribe wins immunity!
After the immunity challenge, we see medics attending to Pat. Apparently, he injured his back on the boat ride back to the David camp. The boat slammed into a rough wave, which led to Pat’s injury. Jeff is there with the medics, and he’s asking them if Pat needs to be pulled from the game. The doctor tells Jeff they have no choice but to take Pat to a hospital. “I don’t want to quit,” Pat says, but Jeff tells him he’s not quitting. He’s being pulled from the game for health reasons. Before the helicopter takes him away, his tribe members tell him goodbye. Jeff lets the David tribe know that they won’t be going to tribal council tonight, but the game continues on.
And that wraps up tonight’s episode of Survivor: David vs. Goliath. Thanks for reading, post your thoughts in the comment section below, and come back next week for another live recap.
