The ranking of Survivor seasons *updated with s38*

The most asterisk-riddled season yet, any good moments the season had were in spite of the twist, not because of it. Edge of Extinction was an airtime suck, the vets/rookies dynamic defined the whole show, too many advantages and a winner that goes against the very principle of the show. Mostly it's so low because the ending made it feel like everything before the finale was a waste of time.

1. Pearl Islands
2. Cook Islands
3. Heroes Vs Villains
4. Micronesia
5. China
6. Cagayan
7. David Vs Goliath
8. Kaoh Rong
9. Vanuatu
10. Nicaragua
11. Philippines
12. Millennials Vs Gen X
13. Cambodia
14. Palau
15. Caramoan
16. Blood Vs Water
17. Game Changers
18. Worlds Apart
19. Samoa
20. Tocantins
21. All Stars
22. Exile Island
23. Guatemala
24. Gabon
25. San Juan Del Sur
26. Amazon
27. Ghost Island
28. Heroes Vs Healers Vs Hustlers
29. Australia
30. Borneo
31. Fiji
32. One World
33. South Pacific
34. Redemption Island
35. Africa
36. Marquesas
37. Edge Of Extinction
38. Thailand

Edge Of Extinction Episode 14: Comeback Kid

End of the road at last for the now-extinct

There's so much to get through tonight, we don't even have time for a full recap, we just go into the challenge. And this challenge is for the Edge of Extinction players to return to the game. They have to unwrap themselves from multiple ropes, then build a rope bridge and get balls through a table maze. Eric is first out of the fence section, with Aurora, Julia and Joe behind him. Ron and Wardog are going very slow, Reem and Aubry get stuck. Aurora gets through the rope bridge first, and it's her, Joe, Eric and Chris shooting for the win. Joe gets a chance to win it, but misses. Chris goes for it...and gets it. The losers from the challenge all get to tell their story one more time, as Reem recounts her darkest day, Joe wonders if he's let down the kids that look up to him, and Julia gets to mention losing her dad.

Back into the game after missing most of it, Chris tells them all he has to offer is information. Victoria doesn't buy the soft quit act he's doing. Chris gives Lauren some advice, telling her that Victoria is the next biggest jury threat after Rick and that she has to make a big move with the idol (which everyone knows about, thanks to Kelley).

Plug the gaps

The immunity challenge is to jump over obstacles, pick up a bag from a beam, unlock a puzzle and then solve it. Chris is the fastest out of the gate, but Victoria gets lucky on the combo and soon Chris is in last. Julie and Lauren make great progress on the puzzle, but Julie is having a tough time getting her last piece in. Chris starts helping Julie, which makes Rick mad. Julie wins immunity, and gets to choose two people to eat. She picks Chris, because he hasn't had a reward, and Lauren. Now Rick is mad again.

Julie discusses the vote over the meal, and says she is hoping Rick's idol is fake so she can vote him out. They want to split on Rick and Victoria. Gavin and Victoria start to get nervous the other three are working together, so approach Rick about possibly voting Chris. But Rick doesn't want to betray Chris a second time. Rick asks Chris if he got anything in his bag, and as a matter of fact, he got the same two-part idol Rick did. He hands a piece off to Rick and then also extracts a promise from Lauren that she will use her idol on him if Rick plays his.

At tribal council, Rick cries as the pressure of being on the bottom takes its toll. Victoria says she's not gonna rock the boat when there's an obvious target. After the vote, Rick plays his idol, so Lauren plays hers on Chris like she said she would. Victoria is sent home with two votes, so it went to waste. She wishes Gavin luck on the way out.

Rick watching Lauren take the bait

Rick is looking for his next idol, but also planting some fakes as well. He finds the real one just ahead of Chris and Julie, and then decides to give Chris his half back. Lauren, who is still mad at herself for wasting hers, goes looking with Julie. Julie finds the first fake and then Lauren finds the 2nd, as Rick laughs in the background.

The next immunity challenge is to get bags back from 5 different stations and use the pieces to solve a puzzle (a water version of the one Kelley Wentworth won in Cambodia). Gavin and Rick go for the same one, and Gavin wins it. Gavin is first to start on the puzzle, ahead of Chris. It soon ends up Gavin vs Rick and Rick manages to win.

Now that he doesn't even need his idol, Rick offers to use it on Gavin if he promises to take him to end....Gavin agrees, but knows he can't keep it. Julie, Gavin and Lauren all agree to vote Chris. Lauren starts to get worried that her idol could be a fake, so makes her case to Chris to vote for Julie as she won't be much use in a firemaking challenge. Chris and Rick decide which of the girls they're sending home and Rick says he thinks Lauren has played the better strategic game.

At tribal council, Chris says he needed to win. Lauren says it's frustrating Chris doesn't seem to trust her despite her playing the idol on him. Rick is annoyed everyone is still focused on him. Gavin points out he's done well in challenges so he's willing to take Rick on tomorrow. Now comes time to play the idols, and Julie and Lauren both play their fakes. Rick then plays the real one on Gavin, and Chris plays his real one too. The Chris votes are canceled and Lauren goes home. Man, huge misplay by Lauren that she held onto her idol that long and then threw it away one vote before she needed it.

No sudden movements

The final immunity challenge is to walk over a rocking beam, placing blocks on the end to spell out "final 3". Julie takes the early lead, but then drops. Chris is first to get all six, but takes his time going back. After what seems like an eternity, he gets over the line to win. Back at camp, he tells Gavin and Julie to both practice fire and whoever is better at it will be Rick's opponent. They both seem confident, but Chris hints at a bolder move.

At tribal council, Chris says again he needed to win. Julie and Gavin both say they're comfortable making fire, so Rick jokes that they should let both of them do it. Chris then shocks the jury by giving Julie the necklace and throwing himself into the showdown with Rick, to give the season the ending it deserves.

Breaking news: I'm out!

The match-up will take place in the voting booth due to wind. Both guys take a while to get going, as Wardog gives updates to Gavin and Julie who can't see. Chris gets something eventually, and Wardog declares "it's over". But then Rick does get a flame and might be back in it. Chris holds strong however, and knocks Rick out. Wow, this is really how it ends for him? I wasn't even really rooting for Rick but swapping a 4th boot for a 3rd boot feels like a real monkey's paw situation.

The most underwhelming final 3 in history enjoy the last breakfast. Julie thinks her relationships are what got her this far. Chris thinks that his game in just 3 days has been better than the 39 days of the other two. Gavin is hoping he can explain that he wasn't just a follower and that his social game gave him options.

Off to make a millionaire

David opens up final tribal council by asking them what their most important relationship was. Gavin says Victoria. Chris says Rick. Julie says Ron and Eric. Aubry gets Chris to talk about his social game on Edge of Extinction. Gavin talks about his social bonds, and Chris interrupts to call him a goat, which annoys Kelley. Julie admits to being emotional, but says she had a big part in Julia getting voted out. Rick and Wardog have a lot to say about this, saying the vote wouldn't have switched without them.

Jury getting grilled too

Chris defends his time out of the game by saying Julie didn't go to tribal until the merge. He says his biggest move was getting Lauren to use the idol on him, which she admits was stupid of her and she got played like a violin. Jeff asks who is undecided and a lot of hands go up. Aubry encourages them to keep fighting.

Rick asks why the others didn't look for idols and Gavin says he had the numbers. He also asks about the unfair advantage of getting information from Extinction. Gavin adds that Chris got a free idol too, and he at least played the full 39 days. Julia disputes this by saying the game evolved. Wardog says the theme isn't on trial...maybe it should be. Gavin raises his hand when Rick asks who never had their name written down.

For their closing statements, Gavin just talks about his family and not really his game. Chris says the odds were so stacked against him after coming back he had to make as many big moves as he could. Julie says not playing an aggressive game doesn't mean she's not worthy and thanks them for being respectful.

Back in the studio, Jeff reads the votes pretty quickly since there are a lot. We go back and forth between Gavin and Chris for what ultimately ends up being a 9-4 win for Chris. Well, my worst fears for this twist all came true! Very cool that it all came down to a table maze and basically nothing else mattered. I don't say this lightly, but this could be a shark jumping moment for the show. Now let's just put this entire chapter behind us.

STAR OF THE WEEK: CHRIS UNDERWOOD

To Chris' credit, he made good use of the tools at his disposal and did a lot when he was actually in the game. But the purist in me doesn't like that somebody who spent only 13 days in the actual game (less than Wendy) was able to win. I kinda think he has to be 38th on the winner rankings just by default.

Next time on Survivor: Island Of The Idols. The theme seems fairly unobtrusive and much less game-ruining than this season, at least. But my God, are they serious with those giant head statues!? Perhaps one of the show's most embarrassing moments.

Edge Of Extinction Episode 13: Keep On Running

Rick is telling everybody he got the idol from the Edge of Extinction, hoping they won't be looking at camp. Aurora is happy that she finally has an alliance. Rick wakes up in the middle of the night to get a headstart on idol hunting. Lauren is keeping an eye on him, as she doesn't believe him about where he got the idol, but obviously she doesn't do a good enough job because he finds his 2nd.

What a save!

The reward challenge is to throw a ball onto a track and catch it at the other end, then leave them balanced on a beam. Victoria pulls out a nice save early on, as does Aurora. Aurora gets hers over first, as Julie falls over on the obstacles. Gavin, Victoria and Aurora are all in it but Gavin wins. He decides to pick Victoria....and Lauren. Julie and Rick are both shocked Aurora was not picked, and are ready to exploit that rift.

Not invited

The chosen three fly over their camp in a helicopter and see Aurora lying there awkwardly. At the reward, they agree on Rick as their target and Julie as their backup...but Lauren feels good about her relationship with Julie and isn't on board with that. Victoria does damage control with Aurora immediately after coming back, insisting nothing has changed.

Self-love, time capsule style

On Extinction, they all get a letter they wrote to themselves before the game. Julia cries reading hers saying she rediscovered her purpose. Eric's and David's both offer reminders of what they have back home. Joe's gasses him up and Aubry's tells her she only needs validation from within. Reem's says she hopes she has more patience. Oh boy, looks like she needed to hear that!

Rick walks off into the jungle, and when everybody follows him, he decides to mess with them and play a little hide-and-seek. He already has the idol, but he's just doing this for fun.

Madman on the loose

The immunity challenge is to slide letters across a table, then carry them over balance beams using handles, then solve a puzzle. Aurora declares from the start word puzzles are not her strong suit. Lauren, Rick and Aurora all get their letters through first. Then they start transferring, and a few are dropping. Gavin goes with smaller stacks. Lauren is the first to transfer with Gavin, Aurora and Rick not far behind...Victoria then has to remind Jeff she's still in this too. Rick is first to start solving, but others soon catch him - Gavin needing an extra trip. "Tonight" seems to be the first word everyone gets. The first to complete it all is Rick though. Wow, he was already safe, and now he's sticking around til final 5.

Short-lived final 4

Julie goes off with Rick, sensing she's next on the chopping block. The other 4 affirm the plan, but Julie is holding out some hope Lauren might save her. Lauren would like to sit next to Julie in the end, so talks to Gavin about possibly getting him to vote out Aurora. Gavin wants to get Victoria's opinion, but Lauren is willing to do it with or without her.

At tribal council, Rick says there's a clear alliance of 4 and Aurora is even on the bottom of that. Aurora is still lazer-focused on Rick. Various people talk abut Rick's disappearing act. For his next trick, Rick pulls out the idol and threatens to play it on Julie. Lauren is prepared to believe him, but Gavin isn't sure and thinks he might keep it for himself. Rick argues he's hoping to make it 3-3 with the Extinction returnee coming back in, and says he's playing harder on his 2nd chance.

Rick hangs onto the idol, which I never doubted for a second. Aurora goes home 5-1, only her voting for Julie. Aurora is pissed they fell for an obvious bluff. I suspect they didn't and she was always going home...didn't stop Rick taking credit though.

Well, Aurora will probably only spend one night on Extinction as the return challenge is looming. How will the returnee shake up the game? And will the others finally succeed in getting Rick out?

STAR OF THE WEEK: LAUREN O'CONNELL

C'mon, I'm not giving it to Rick again. Lauren wanted to keep Julie around and that's what happened. She also has close connections with Victoria and Gavin. If Rick doesn't win out, my money's on her.

Edge Of Extinction Episode 12: Fake News

Julie explains to Rick why she voted Wardog out, but Rick is more pissed with Ron for lying to him again. Ron makes a ploy to keep Rick on his side by offering him the advantage menu...not telling him that it's expired. Rick appears to buy it.

A Survivor honeymoon

The loved ones reward is to scoop up water from the ocean and throw it to your partner for them to fill up a bucket...yay, they brought this one back! Jeff brings everybody their loved ones, starting with Rick's wife. Julie's husband, Lauren's dad, Ron's husband and Victoria's dad come out next, and Victoria's ice queen persona melts away. We also meet Aurora's brother and lastly, Gavin's wife, who he married 2 days before coming out, a fact that stuns the rest of the players. The challenge begins. Gavin is doing well at it, so are Lauren and Ron. Aurora and Rick have trouble tossing, with Rick just drenching his wife. Victoria gets exhausted on the running. Ron's partner Lloyd finds the last few drops needed to squeeze out a win. Now Ron gets to choose two people to join him, and he takes Julie and Gavin. Well, Victoria knows where she is on his totem pole now.

Gavin gets a tender moment with his wife, as Ron informs his husband that he's running the game. Knowing he's next to go, Rick goes looking for an idol, as Lauren encourages Aurora to check his bag. Rick comes back and catches her, but she has no shame about it, which just makes it more awkward for Rick than her.

Stop interrupting my grindin'

Rick goes back out for a second run and finds a clue that tells him it's in a tree above camp...but there's no way for him to get it with everyone around. At night, Rick makes his move and climbs up a tree which almost wakes some people up. He manages to make it up and get it undetected, then quips about how they searched his bag too soon. Great, looks like we have another Ben on our hands.

Love lifts us up where we belong

The immunity challenge is to stand on tiny footholds. Rick jokingly tries to make a deal immediately, and Ron is visibly having a tough time. Rick is down first...big relief for everyone else. But Ron is not far behind, and then Victoria joins him. Julie is out next and needs to be carried to the bench by Ron. Then Aurora drops...shocking as she was probably the favorite. It's Lauren vs Gavin now, which Gavin wins.

Everybody sits around back at camp, as Rick sees the writing on the wall. Julie and Ron tell Rick they're voting for Aurora, as Rick wonders whether the advantage is legit. Victoria, Lauren and Aurora team up to make their own plans, saying they should put their votes on Ron as a back-up. Aurora reveals she has an extra vote wants to give it to Gavin since he's the only one guaranteed to be able to use it in a tie. They're taking a big gamble that he's on their side though, since he does feel indebted to Ron after he gave him the family visit.

Plotting a plan B

At tribal council, Rick brings up the Aurora drama. Ron shoots down Jeff's roulette wheel analogy when talking about contingency plans, hoping he does know what's going on. Lauren says Ron's picks for the reward were very telling. Rick expresses his hope at being able to find a crack. Victoria says she doesn't want to sit next to Rick at the end, but Rick points out some of them are going to be wrong in their ideal final 3.

Villains revealed

Rick, Aurora and Ron are all on the chopping block as we see the votes cast. Rick pulls out the advantage to see if he can use it...but Jeff tells him it's a dud. Rick blasts Ron and Julie for trying to embarrass him - but then pulls out his real idol and plays it anyway. The fall guy ends up being Ron, which Rick wasn't part of, but is very happy to see. And it looks like the jury are too, especially Julia.

On Extinction. Ron gets a surprisingly good reception, with Aubry and Reem trying to comfort him. Well, Rick is still in the game but another power player is gone. Can Julie adapt without him? And how long will the Rick vs everyone storyline continue?

STAR OF THE WEEK: RICK DEVENS

Rick entered the week the number one target and he made it through. He has the whole jury rooting for him, and whilst his position hasn't changed much, he still has a chance as long as he's there.