The Big Picture

• Survivor is a cutthroat reality show where anyone can win, but making a comeback from the bottom is rare.
• Natalie Anderson's win on Survivor: San Juan del Sur defied the odds with a vengeance-fueled victory.
• Anderson's strategy and revenge plot led to blindsides and a triumphant win, showcasing the power of resilience.

The most intense reality competition shows are those where one small mistake can ruin someone's game, and nowhere is that more true than on Survivor. This cutthroat reality series, created by Charlie Parsons for CBS, is one of television's most complex, its premise challenging players to use their survival savvy and skills in deceit to vote one another out. It's a setting that truly anyone can win, but while the legendary franchise has seen some truly remarkable winners, it's not too common that a person who spends most of the time struggling can come back and win their whole season.

The strategy of the program is constantly changing, and aside from a person going on an immunity run, it's not typical for someone who spends the entire time seen as a coattail rider to end up winning their season. Even more, on Survivor, it's rare for a person to be wronged in the game and successfully enact their revenge, avenging a fallen comrade or getting back for some slight by sending the other person home. Both of these situations are uncommon, and even more so when those two experiences collide - which is what makes Natalie Anderson's win so astounding. The winner of Survivor: San Juan del Sur, this iconic player not only showed that you can fight your way to the top and win your season, but you can do it fueled by one emotion: a thirst for vengeance.

'Survivor' is a Social Game

While there are countless reality competition shows that demand the most from their players, none feature as intricate gameplay as Survivor. This thrilling setup - marooning a group of 'castaways' on an island and challenging them to survive the elements (and each other) - has re-defined the potential of similar shows by just how many wild situations and personalities it produced over 46 seasons. Yet despite this unpredictable nature, one thing that can be expected is those on the bottom will stay in that relative spot for a majority of their time on the show. There are some outliers, like season 42 winner Maryanne Oketch who fought her way up as the tribe outcast to eventually win the season, but players like last season's Jake O'Keene showed that even if you make it to the end, your placement on the outs of the social hierarchy will disqualify you from a potential triumph. Even more rare is the successful revenge story, as too often tribal conflict leads to emotional blowups that make someone a target or someone swallowing their pride. Often to the point of being walked over by everyone around them. These situations are rarely successful for someone to come out of - and it's even worse when someone faces both.

Natalie Anderson was familiar with intense reality TV long before she was ever cast on Survivor. She and her sister, Nadiya, competed in The Amazing Race's 21st season and made it quite far in this trek around the world, wowing viewers with their combination of evil gameplay and hilarious banter that entertained audiences to no end. This made them perfect for Survivor, with the twins being cast in the program's 29th season San Juan del Sur. It was a season that pitted loved ones against each other, a hard experience for the pair as their constant bickering masked the intensely deep connection and love they had for each other - making it that much more devastating when Nadiya was voted out first. Their reputation as fierce competitors made her a target on her tribe, and her vote-out made Natalie break down at losing her closest friend in the entire world. She didn't let that hold her back from playing the game, though, she pushed on making connections and even helped orchestrate a thrilling blindside, and even forming an extremely tight connection with future winner Jeremy Collins. These relationships brought her through to merge where she was firmly in the show's power alliance...which is when a blindside by the people they'd partnered with saw Collins get shockingly sent out of the game.

Natalie's 'Survivor' Journey Was a Hard One

A person losing their closest ally is common in Survivor, with each season seeing at least a few eliminations break the hearts of the people who'd grown close to the unfortunate send-off. This is the situation that Anderson saw herself in, heartbroken over losing yet another person close to her and furious at the people who'd betrayed her trust - but she didn't let any of that show. After her initial shock, she went silent, listening intently as the people who'd turned on Collins assured her that it was just a strategic move and that they still considered her a valuable member of their group. Anderson was particularly furious with Missy Payne and Jon Misch, her long-time allies, but she listened to their reassurances quietly and, in the next few days, seemed to have trusted everything they'd told her. She voiced no further ill-will, abided by their orders, and allowed herself to become just another lowly number they could use going forward. But Anderson had lost her twin, her closest ally, and her only other partner was Baylor Payne, Missy's daughter, a situation that would make many other players terrified - but Anderson didn't get scared. She got mad, and fueled by all she'd lost, she started to plan.

In a setting where every emotion must be guarded and only those who can maintain their threat level survive, Anderson's performance is truly one of the best the show has ever seen. She stayed quiet after Collins left and committed herself to Misch and his girlfriend Jaclyn Schultz's ideas for the game - she even saved Misch from a blindside when her quick read of her fellow players' lies made her advise him to successfully use a hidden immunity idol. This earned her some much-needed credibility, bringing her up from the bottom of that alliance's pecking order and making the others trust her when she 'accidentally' flipped a planned vote and sent a rival, Alec Christy, out of the game. It's a testament to how she managed those around her that the excuse of 'I misheard you and put the wrong name down' was believed. This allowed her to continue playing silently until, in the season's biggest upset, she blindsided frontrunner Misch in a shocking elimination. She followed this up with one of the most daring moves the show has ever done when, at the final 4 tribal council that saw Anderson with an immunity idol, she got up, turned to the other three and asked Schultz in front of everyone, 'Did you vote for who I told you to vote for?' Everyone's jaws dropped as the woman nodded, Anderson played her idol for her, and Natalie's new #1 ally, Baylor, was swiftly voted out. One of the program's most brazen power moves, though somehow Anderson was still able to convince the surrounding others that she wasn't a threat, meaning that she was allowed to make it to the top three.

Anyone Can Win 'Survivor,' But Some Have It Harder

This legendary player followed up one of Survivor's fiercest moves with an amazing final tribal council performance. Sitting next to Payne and Schultz, she highlighted her amazing strategy, all she had to overcome after having both of her closest allies voted out so early and, aided by an impassioned speech by a grateful Collins on the jury, won season 29. Never before had the series featured such a triumphant tale of revenge that saw the competitors claw their way up from the outs after losing all those important to them. Anderson was gutted at these losses and the fact that so much of her hard work had been for nothing, but she kept her cool, keeping her mouth shut and her eyes open to learn everything she could and decimate everyone later on. Her Survivor story is one of immense hardships and impressive strategy, pulling off more blindsides than most people do over multiple seasons and showing that you can lose literally everyone important in the game and still come back to win. Natalie Anderson is one of the franchise's most legendary winners, and it's time she receives credit for carrying out the best revenge arc this show has ever seen.

Survivor airs Wednesdays at 8:00 pm on CBS and is available to stream the next day on Paramount+.

WATCH ON PARAMOUNT+