Survivor: Cook Islands

Survivor: Cook Islands is the thirteenth season of . 
The season initially generated much controversy due to the decision to split tribes by ethnicity. The season also saw drastic format changes in the game's format, such as an expanded Jury and a 3-finalist Final Tribal Council. In the end, Yul Kwon won in a 5-4-0 vote over Ozzy Lusth and Becky Lee in the first Final Tribal Council to deviate from the original Final Two format. To date, it has produced five returning players (Candice Woodcock, Jonathan Penner, Ozzy Lusth, Parvati Shallow, and Yul Kwon) for subsequent seasons.
==Production==
The tribal camps, Exile Island, and many challenges of Survivor: Cook Islands were filmed on small "motu" (Polynesian word for "islet") in the Aitutaki lagoon. The Rarotonga (later Aitutonga) tribe's camp was on Moturakau. The Aitutaki tribe lived on Motukitiu. The short-lived tribes of Manihiki and Puka Puka lived on Rapota and Muritapua, respectively. Most challenges were filmed on Tekopua and Tapuaetai (One Foot Island). Exile Island, a small sand cay south of Tapuaetai, is called "Nude Island" by locals in reference to its lack of vegetation. Akaiami hosted challenges and also the loser's lounge, where eliminated contestants were sequestered until the end of the game. Tribal Council, the production camp, and a few challenges were located on the main island of Aitutaki. There were three reward trips to the neighboring islands of Atiu, Mitiaro, and Rarotonga.
The season was themed around sailors and explorers, specifically James Cook and his expeditions of the Pacific Ocean. The tribal council set was a British-styled shipwreck adorned with maps and sailors' items. 
==Twists/Changes==
* Four Tribes: For the second time, the castaways are divided into four tribes, containing five members each.
* Tribes Divided by Ethnicity: This season featured twenty contestants that were divided into four tribes divided by race, despite controversy.
* : Returning from the previous season, after a Reward Challenge, players may banish a player from the rival tribe to Exile Island. This island (entirely separate from the existing camps) will force the banished player to fend for him/herself until the upcoming Immunity Challenge (unless stated otherwise). The player would not be left in despair, for he/she will be given clues to a Hidden Immunity Idol that is hidden somewhere on the island.
* Hidden Immunity Idol: During this season, the Hidden Immunity Idol is hidden somewhere on Exile Island.
* Tribe Switch: On Day 7, the four tribes became two. Puka Puka and Manihiki were dissolved, with the 18 remaining contestants spread into the new Rarotonga and Aitutaki tribes with nine members each.
* Double Tribal Council: On Day 15, both the Aitutaki and Rarotonga tribes were forced to visit Tribal Council to eliminate one of their own.
* : On Day 19, the tribes were offered to switch tribe affiliations.
* Message in a Bottle: After losing the Day 24 Immunity Challenge, the Rarotonga tribe received a sealed bottle with a note that can only be read after the Tribal Council elimination. The tribe assumed it was a note about instructions about the upcoming merge. But much to their shock, the note instructed them to vote out another member of the tribe.
* Delayed Merge: Because of the sealed message in a bottle twist, the tribes were merged with nine members.
* Final Three and Expanded Jury: Unlike the first twelve seasons where the usual Final Two facing a seven-player jury is featured, this season featured a Final Tribal Council with three remaining finalists facing a nine-person jury.
==Castaways==
Contestant	Contestant 	Tribe Affiliation	Tribe Affiliation	Tribe Affiliation	Tribe Affiliation	Finish	VotesAgainst
Contestant	Contestant 	Original Tribe 	Shuffled Tribe 	Post-Mutiny 	Merged Tribe 	Finish	VotesAgainst
 	Sekou Bunch45, Los Angeles, CAJazz Musician 	 	 	 	 	 	3
 	Billy Garcia36, New York City, NYHeavy Metal Musician 	 	 	 	 	 	4
 	Cecilia Mansilla29, Oakland, CARisk Consultant 	 	 	 	 	 	5
 	J.P. Calderon30, Long Beach, CAProfessional Volleyball Player	 	 	 	 	 	7
 	Stephannie Favor35, Columbia, SCNursing Student 	 	 	 	 	 	9
 	Cao Boi Bui42, Christiansburg, VANail Salon Manager 	 	 	 	 	 	6
 	Cristina Coria35, Los Angeles, CAPolice Officer 	 	 	 	 	 	5
 	Jessica Smith27, Chico, CARoller Girl 	 	 	 	 	 	6
 	Brad Virata29, Santa Monica, CAFashion Director 	 	 	 	 	 	7
 	Rebecca Borman34, Laurelton, NYMakeup Artist 	 	 	 	 	 	6
 	Jenny Guzon-Bae36, Lake Forest, ILReal Estate Agent 	 	 	 	 	 	6
 	Nate Gonzalez25, Playa del Rey, CAShoe Salesman 	 	 	 	rowspan="9" 	 	5
 	Candice Woodcock23, Washington, DCPre-Med Student 	 	 	 	 	6 	
 	Jonathan Penner44, Los Angeles, CAWriter 	 	 	 	 	15 	
 	Parvati Shallow23, West Hollywood, CABoxer 	 	 	 	 	4 	
 	Adam Gentry27, San Diego, CACopier Sales Executive 	 	 	 	 	5 	
 	Sundra Oakley31, Los Angeles, CAActress 	 	 	 	 	6 	
 	Becky Lee28, Washington, DCAttorney 	 	 	 	SecondRunner-Up 	5 	
 	Ozzy Lusth24, Venice, CAWaiter 	 	 	 	Runner-Up 	1 	
 	Yul Kwon31, San Mateo, CAManagement Consultant 	 	 	 	Sole Survivor 	5 	
==Season Summary==
The 20 players were initially divided into four tribes based on race. On Day 7 of the competition, two of the four tribes were dissolved and the remaining members were split up and joined the two remaining tribes. An early visit to Exile Island resulted in Yul discovering the Hidden Immunity Idol. With the tribes having six members each on Day 19, Probst announced that any tribe member may mutiny and join the other tribe; Candice and Jonathan opted for this move, leaving the Aitutaki tribe at four members, consisting of Yul, Ozzy, Becky, and Sundra, and an eight-strong Rarotonga tribe. 
However, this betrayal served to only increase the determination of the Aitutaki tribe. Between strong teamwork skills, Yul's intelligence, and Ozzy's physical skills, Aitutaki remained strong and continued to win both tribal and individual challenges, sending the Rarotonga tribe to Tribal Council three times in a row. Additionally, they would continuously send Candice to Exile as payback for her mutiny.
The tribes merged with 9 players remaining: 5 Raros and 4 Aitus. Yul cemented his Aitutaki alliance by showing them the Hidden Immunity Idol, and convinced Jonathan, a former Aitutaki member who had accepted the mutiny offer, to vote along with them in order to give the former Aitutaki tribe the majority and eliminate Nate. 
The Aitutaki 4 would eventually pagong the remaining Rarotonga members and become the final four. With Yul holding the Hidden Immunity Idol and Ozzy winning the Final Immunity Challenge, the four agreed to let a fire-making challenge decide who would join them at the Final Three. Despite this taking more than an hour to complete, Becky emerged victoriously.
At the Final Tribal Council, Becky was criticized for her perceived coat-tailing of Yul and poor performance at the fire-making challenge, Yul was respected for his strategic mind, while Ozzy was commended for his challenge performance. Ultimately, Yul defeated Ozzy and Becky in a 5-4-0 vote.
==Voting History==
==Trivia==
* Thus far, this is the only season to have one tribe accidentally stumble upon the opposing tribe's camp (Aitutaki members Jessica Smith, Ozzy Lusth, and Cao Boi Bui had accidentally ended up on the rival Rarotonga's beach while exploring the bay).
* This season ties with for the most starting tribes, with four.
* It is the first and only season to have the tribes divided by ethnicity. 
* This is the first season to feature a Final Three at the Final Tribal Council rather than a Final Two as in previous seasons. Since Cook Islands, the only seasons to not have had a Final Three were , , and .
* Cook Islands is the only season where the offer was accepted.
* The jury (except for the last member) consists of all former post-mutiny Rarotonga members, while the Final Three and last member of the jury consists of all former post-mutiny Aitutaki members.
* This is the second season to have the jury phase start before the merge, following .
* This is the second season to have only two different players (Adam Gentry and Ozzy Lusth) win individual immunity post-merge, following .
* This is the second season to have the merged tribe consist of nine members, following .
** Palau had its individual stage start at the final nine, but it was not a merge as the eight-member Koror tribe conquered the one-member Ulong.
* This season had the most representatives in Micronesia, with three.
* This is the first season in which a finalist (Becky Lee) received no jury votes, which has since become very common in seasons with Final Threes.
* This is the first season where the first two people voted off were both men. It would be followed by Cagayan.
** This is also the first season where the first two people eliminated were men, unless one counts The Outcasts from as not being eliminated when they were voted out of their original tribes. It would be followed by and Cagayan.
* 13 of the 20 contestants of this season were from the state of California. This is a record for the most castaways from one state in a single season.
* This season has the most pre-merge jury members, with three.
** Fiji has three jury members who never took part in an individual challenge, but one of them was a member of the merged tribe.
* This is the first season since to not have the Second Chance challenge.
* 17 out of the 20 contestants were recruited for this season.http://www.realityblurred.com/realitytv/2006/08/survivor-cook-islands-cast_recruited/
**The ones who were not recruited were Jenny Guzon-Bae, Stephannie Favor and Cao Boi Bui.
* This season has the most people voted out pre-merge, with 11.
* This season ties with and Pearl Islands for being represented in the most seasons with returning players, with 7.
*This season has the most Latin-American contestants, with 6.
==References==
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Category:Survivor (U.S.)
Category:Survivor: Cook Islands