Survivor South Africa: Immunity Island

Survivor South Africa: Immunity Island is the eighth season of Survivor South Africa.
Nicole Wilmans defeated Anela Majozi in an 8-1 vote to win the title of Sole Survivor, becoming the first female winner since over a decade prior.
To date, Immunity Island has produced four returning players (Chappies Chapman, Dino Paulo, Pinty Nkanjeni, and Thoriso M-Afrika) for a future season.
==Production==
The season was officially announced in December 8, 2019, with the applications being open immediately and the deadline to submit applications being January 20, 2020.
The season was supposed to be filmed in , , , the same location where was filmed, but production was postponed due to the outbreak of .https://www.channel24.co.za/TV/News/m-net-indefinitely-postpones-8th-season-of-survivor-sa-over-covid-19-lockdown-20200416https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Message_Wall:Lerouxbotha?threadId=4400000000000056615#4400000000000199836? According to M-Net and Afrokaans, travel restrictions forced production to film the season locally in the Wild Coast, South Africa.https://www.news24.com/channel/tv/news/m-nets-survivor-sa-immunity-island-wraps-secret-filming-20201217?fbclid=IwAR1wqlxwQJH5DAgoog1FXM0X1WMAdhrY50AGrlbC12rWVko_Fyu9zXao-3I Pre-pandemic, the tribes were supposed to be named "Ahas", "Bungo", and "Sulo" (Filipino words, meaning "snake", "skull" and "torch" respectively), but because of the sudden halt in production, the Buffs were not delivered in time, thus a local company that produced similar headwear was commissioned to recreate the Buffs, keeping the similar design, colors, and tribe emblems, but taking the tribe names from the Zulu language. Ahas was renamed Vuna, Bungo Zamba, and Sulo Osindile. The unused original Buffs were given away to the cast and crew.
, the network that airs Australian Survivor, made this season available for Australian viewers on their on-demand service. Episodes were uploaded at 9am the morning after the South African broadcast.https://10play.com.au/survivor-south-africa/articles/survivor-south-africa-immunity-island-premieres-june-4-at-9am-only-on-10-play-on-demand/tpa210507ysxbw
==Twists/Changes==
* Tribes Selected by Random Draw: Rather than the tribes being pre-determined by production, the tribes are decided by a random draw. The men and women would draw from different bags, with each bag containing five parcels of orange and green Buffs.
* : After an Immunity Challenge, one member from the losing tribe will be exiled to Immunity Island for the afternoon where that player will be given an Immunity Necklace and an offer to compete in a solo challenge for an advantage in the game. Accepting the challenge will allow the player to keep the Immunity Necklace for themselves in the upcoming Tribal Council but at the cost of their vote, while declining the challenge will allow the player to return back to camp immediately and vote at Tribal Council, but will have to pass the Immunity Necklace to someone else, or it will lose its power in that Tribal Council.https://m-net.dstv.com/show/survivor-south-africa/season/8/news/immunity-island-explained-survivor-sa/news Further, a clue to their tribe's Hidden Immunity Idol is available on Immunity Island for them to find. 
** Tribal Council Pass: Known as the "Safety Without Power" advantage in the American version, its owner may leave Tribal Council before the vote. The player cannot vote, but cannot be voted for. The advantage can be played until there are seven players left. The advantage is transferable.
** Tribal Insurance: This advantage allows its holder to steal a vote from any of their tribemates, allowing them to vote twice. This advantage could be used when there were either thirteen or twelve players left in the game.
**Juror Removal: The winner of the Day 37 Immunity Challenge was allowed to select one juror to be permanently removed from the Jury.
* Diplomatic Immunity: After the Reward Challenge on Day 2, the representatives sent for the challenge would earn Diplomatic Immunity, represented by a bracelet. At any point if their tribe loses an Immunity Challenge, the castaway may invoke their Diplomatic Immunity by handing the bracelet to Nico and abstain from Tribal Council by permanently joining the opposing tribe.
* Hidden Immunity Idol: Hidden Immunity Idols are hidden around each camp site, with clues available to find while on Immunity Island. In addition, another Hidden Immunity Idol can be found at Tribal Council. The castaway who finds this idol may leave it in its hiding place at Tribal Council until the player decides to play it. Also, starting this season, the last time that idols can be played is at the final six.
*Double Tribal Council: On Day 13, both tribes were forced to attend Tribal Council separately to vote out one of their own.
* : The final ten castaways were randomly divided into pairs. For the rest of the episode, the castaways' fate were linked to their partner: the challenges were competed in pairs and once a player is voted out, their partner was also eliminated with them.
* Final Two and Nine-Person Jury: For the first time in Survivor South Africa, two finalists would face a 9-person jury.
==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
 	Jason Brookstein27, Johannesburg, GPStructural Engineering Draughtsman	 	 	 	 	 	7
 	Pinty Nkanjeni30, Cape Town, WCFreelancer 	 	 	 	 	 	6
 	Mike Laws32, Cape Town, WCLawyer 	 	 	 	 	 	7
 	Paul Cupido29, Johannesburg, GPAftercare Teacher 	 	 	 	 	 	5
 	Thoriso M-Afrika36, Kariega, ECMarketing Officer 	 	 	 	 	 	2
 	Carla Gubb29, Cape Town, WCCorporate Sales Executive 	 	 	 	 	 	6
 	Dino Paulo30, Johannesburg, GPLive Escape Game Owner 	 	 	 	 	 	4
 	Qieän Wang35, Cape Town, WCSelf-employed 	 	 	 	 	 	6
 	Marisha du Plessis35, Tulbagh, WCGuest House Owner 	 	 	 	rowspan="12" 	 	4
 	Shaun Wilson40, Cape Town, WCI.T. Business Owner 	 	 	 	 	6 	
 	Renier Louwrens30, Secunda, MPChemical Engineer 	 	 	 	 	6 	
 	Amy Eliason33, Johannesburg, GPCorporate Lawyer 	 	 	 	 	0 	
 	Anesu Mbizvo29, Johannesburg, GPDoctor/Vegan Lifestyle Entrepreneur 	 	 	 	 	5 	
 	Wardah Hartley39, Johannesburg, GPYoga Instructor 	 	 	 	 	10 	
 	Santoni Engelbrecht39, Strand, WCOnline Business Owner 	 	 	 	 	9 	
 	Kiran Naidoo29, Johannesburg, GPStrategy Consultant 	 	 	 	 	5 	
 	Tyson Zulu24, Johannesburg, GPEntrepreneur 	 	 	 	 	14 	
 	Chappies Chapman32, Centurion, GPTransformation Coach 	 	 	 	 	10 	
 	Anela Majozi25, Durban, KZNMath Educator 	 	 	 	 	4 	
 	Nicole WilmansDigital Marketing Manager 	 	 	 	 	3 	
==Season Summary==
After a draw of Buffs, the twenty castaways were divided into two tribes of ten: Vuna and Zamba. A new twist, Immunity Island added a new layer of deception to the game, allowing selected players to choose individual immunity or a chance to earn a game advantage. 
Throughout the pre-merge, all iterations of the Vuna tribe enjoyed numerous challenge victories, but was undermined during the first Tribe Switch, where original Vuna members Chappies and Santoni sided with the original Zamba to avenge their ally Pinty, who was voted out during the original Vuna's only Tribal Council. After a second switch, the original Zamba members turned on each other, merging both tribes with even numbers 6-6. 
Despite intertwining relationships across tribes, old tribal lines held, with the original Vuna taking an early advantage after a masterful social play, effectively decimating the original Zamba to just the pair of Anela and Nicole. The former Vunas, Kiran, Tyson, and Wardah, however, shook the status quo and blindsided a major social threat in Anesu, though Anesu's allies Chappies and Santoni avenged her by correctly playing a Hidden Immunity Idol, eliminating Wardah. Chappies found himself relying on individual immunity to stay alive and went on to win five consecutive Immunity Challenges. The implosion of the original Vuna caused their eventual extinction, culminating with Chappies losing the Final Immunity Challenge to Nicole, who promptly voted him out on Day 38, leaving her and Anela as the Final Two.
At the Final Tribal Council, Anela was praised for his social connections but was criticized for bailing out from strategic decisions he himself planned. On the other hand, Nicole was lauded for effectively playing an under-the-radar game and eliminating Chappies, but was chastised for an apparent lack of strategic initiative. In the end, it was Nicole's game that won the jury over, winning her the title of Sole Survivor in a 8-1 vote. 
==Voting History==
==Trivia==
* Due to the last-minute change of filming location from the Philippines to South Africa, replacement Buffs with the new tribe names were not reprinted in time. Instead, a local headwear company was tapped to produce the new Buffs.
* Immunity Island is the first season since eleven years ago to produce a female Sole Survivor.
==References==
Category:Survivor South Africa
Category:Survivor South Africa Seasons
Category:Survivor South Africa: Immunity Island