Survivor: Gabon

Survivor: Gabon, also known as Survivor: Gabon — Earth's Last Eden, is the seventeenth season of . The winner of this season, Bob Crowley, the oldest winner in Survivor history, defeated Susie Smith and Sugar Kiper in a 4-3-0 final vote. To date, it has produced three returning players (Corinne Kaplan, Randy Bailey, and Sugar Kiper) for subsequent seasons.
==Production==
On April 13, 2008, at the National Association of Broadcasters's annual show, Sony announced that the 17th season of Survivor would be the first to be shot in high definition, using Sony XDCAMs.
Survivor: Gabon began filming in late June. It marked the second season of the series that was filmed in Africa, as had been filmed seven years earlier in Kenya. Reports from Gabon indicate the show was filmed around the coastal towns of Nyonie and Ekwata in the Wonga-Wongue Presidential Reserve. Production struggled in transportation because of animals constantly obstructing them.
==Twists/Changes==
* Tribe Selection: Like , the oldest male and female players will choose their tribemates.
* Individual Immunity Idols: Similar to , the players competed for individual immunity for their first visit to Tribal Council.
* : Exile Island returns this season, with some new tweaks. The banished player will pick one of two bottles, one will grant idle comfort (referring to a semi-lavish shelter with a fruit basket inside), while the other will provide idol protection (a clue to the Hidden Immunity Idol somewhere around the vicinity). If the player chose to look for the idol, he/she must rest outside of the shelter. If that player chose to enjoy the comforts of the shelter, the player in question cannot look out for the idol.
* Hidden Immunity Idol: Two Hidden Immunity Idols were available this season, one during the tribal phase of the game hidden on Exile Island, and another during the second tribe switch.
* Double Tribal Council: On Day 21, both tribes must go to Tribal Council to eliminate one of their own.
* Two Tribe Switches: There were two tribe swaps in this season, the first one on Day 10, and the other on Day 22.
**Fake Merge: On Day 22, the tribes convened for a feast and were led to believe that they were merging. However, after finishing the feast, they discovered that they would be switching tribes instead.
* Delayed Merge: Due to the surprise second tribe switch, the merge was delayed for three days, merging with nine remaining contestants.
* Final Three: The finale returned to the Final Three, albeit with a seven-person jury format, similar to .
==Castaways==
Contestant	Contestant 	Tribe Affiliation	Tribe Affiliation 	Tribe Affiliation 	Tribe Affiliation	Finish	VotesAgainst
Contestant	Contestant 	Original Tribe 	FirstSwitched Tribe	SecondSwitched Tribe	Merged Tribe 	Finish	VotesAgainst
 	Michelle Chase24, Los Angeles, CAMusic Producer 	 	 	 	 	 	8
 	Gillian Larson61, Temecula, CARetired Nurse 	 	 	 	 	 	8
 	Paloma Soto-Castillo23, Downey, CAStudent 	 	 	 	 	 	7
 	Jacquie Berg25, Santa Barbara, CAMedical Saleswoman 	 	 	 	 	 	5
 	GC Brown25, Portland, ORMaintenance Man 	 	 	 	 	 	6
 	Kelly Czarnecki22, Buffalo Grove, ILRetail Saleswoman 	 	 	 	 	 	8
 	Ace Gordon27, Naples, FLJewelry Salesman/Photographer 	 	 	 	 	 	5
 	Dan Kay31, Boston, MALawyer 	 	 	 	 	 	4
 	Marcus Lehman28, Atlanta, GADoctor 	 	 	 	 	 	3
 	Charlie Herschel29, New York City, NYLawyer 	 	 	 	rowspan="9" 	 	5
 	Randy Bailey49, Eagle Rock, MOWedding Videographer 	 	 	 	 	5 	
 	Corinne Kaplan29, Los Angeles, CAPharmaceutical Saleswoman	 	 	 	 	4 	
 	Crystal Cox29, Durham, NCOlympic Gold Medalist 	 	 	 	 	11 	
 	Ken Hoang22, Westminster, CAProfessional Gamer 	 	 	 	 	7 	
 	Matty Whitmore29, Pacific Palisades, CAPersonal Trainer 	 	 	 	 	7 	
 	Sugar Kiper29, Brooklyn, NYPin-up Model 	 	 	 	SecondRunner-Up 	0 	
 	Susie Smith47, Charles City, IAHairdresser 	 	 	 	Runner-Up 	7 	
 	Bob Crowley57, Portland, MEPhysics Teacher 	 	 	 	Sole Survivor 	2 	
==Season Summary==
The players were divided into tribes by a Schoolyard Pick started by the oldest players, Bob and Gillian. It became evident that Gillian's tribe, Fang, was weaker, losing many of the Reward and Immunity Challenges, even after a Tribe Switch; however, a core alliance between Matty, Ken, and Crystal developed. On Bob's tribe, Kota, a series of alliances were formed, most notably the Onion Alliance, which was strengthened after the swap with the addition of Randy. 
Both the Hidden Immunity Idol and twists were in play; the winning tribe on Reward Challenges was able to send one of the losing tribe's members to the latter. At Exile, that player had the option of a clue to the Immunity Idol hidden near Exile (ultimately leading to a string of hidden clues to the Idol), or to relax in a small shack, with a provision of fruit and a hammock. Sugar was the second player to visit Exile and found the idol on her first visit. Sugar's Idol was eventually discovered by Matty, Ken, and Crystal, and they decided to bring her into their alliance.
On Day 22, both tribes were given clues suggesting a tribal merge, but then discovered they were still separate tribes, mixed by random draw, and returned to their camps. This development proved crucial for the minority Fang alliance, who successfully convinced Susie to join their side. The tribes were then merged with the former Onion Alliance in the minority. 
The Fang Alliance, now with Susie, dominated the game, eliminating the Onion Alliance until only Bob was left. Bob won three consecutive Immunity Challenges, forcing the Fang Alliance to turn on themselves. This resulted in the eliminations of Crystal and Ken due to their strong strategic prowess. At the final four, Susie won the Final Immunity Challenge, ending Bob's immunity streak. Sugar decided to vote with Bob due to their social bond, forcing a tie between him and Matty; Bob won the fire-making tiebreaker challenge.
At the Final Tribal Council, the jury was critical of Sugar's backstabbing and of Susie's less-dominant strategic game. Split between the two warring alliances, the jury narrowly voted Bob as the Sole Survivor with four votes to Susie's three, and Sugar receiving none.
==Voting History==
==Trivia==
* This is the only season to have only two pre-merge tribes, yet have two Tribe Switches.
* This is the first season since to feature a seven-member jury with a final three. After this season, every season that had a final three would feature a jury of at least eight members, though the Juror Removal twist in would reduce that season to an eventual seven-member jury.
* This is the first season with an 18-player cast where the jury began before the merge.
==References==
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Category:Survivor (U.S.)
Category:Survivor: Gabon