CBS • Challenge Producer
Survivor: Marquesas
Michael worked with the team to create challenges for the seminal series.
SOME FAN FAVORITE CHALLENGES OF SURVIVOR: MARQUESAS
EPISODE 1 IMMUNITY CHALLENGE
Outrigger Fire Quest
Physical Race
The first challenge of Survivor's fourth season keeps tradition, as it is the return of "Quest for Fire." This version is very similar to the original Borneo version, except the castaways don't start in the water, they have to paddle out, and once they get back, they have to run through through an additional obstacle to the finish. While I don't find this version as interesting as what we saw in The Australian Outback or Africa, it is still a super solid challenge.
EPISODE 2 REWARD CHALLENGE
Float Your Boat
Physical Race
I think this might the paragon of simple but effective challenges. Each tribe starts in the water, and they have to get their canoe back to the shore. The only problem is that the canoe is submerged underwater, full of rocks. So we end up with a very difficult challenge, where tribe members have to swim down and remove the rocks from the boat one at a time, until they are able to flip the entire boat over, which is incredibly satisfying. Once the boat is able to float again, the rest of the tribe has to use buckets to empty the water out of the boat, and then finally, they can row back to shore. It's such fantastic idea, and I think up to this point in the show, it is by far the best water challenge we have seen.
EPISODE 2 IMMUNITY CHALLENGE
Marquesan Menu
Miscellanious Challenge
Also in keeping tradition, the season's second immunity challenge is a food-eating challenge. Like in all of the seasons so far except for The Australian Outback, this challenge highlights one particular food, and to befit Marquesan Culture, that food is "fafaru." Jeff does a great job at making fafaru sound as disgusting as possible before the challenge starts, and while I don't think it quite lives up to Africa's cow blood as far as shock value goes, it is probably the grossest thing the Survivor have had to eat so far. One complaint though, I'm not a fan of how they made the Survivors bob for the farfaru; I don't know, it just seems unnecessarily cartoonish to me.
EPISODE 3 REWARD CHALLENGE
Raft Rescue
Physical Race
This is very similar to the "Shipwrecked" challenge from Season 1, but instead of rescueing tribemates, each tribe is "rescuing" crates scattered among the ocean. I don't like that nearly as much, but I think the challenge makes up for it by adding a new twist: Each tribe was responsible for making their own raft before the challenge started. We are going to see this idea explored a couple more times throughout Survivor, and I really love it when they do this.
EPISODE 3 IMMUNITY CHALLENGE
Coconut Maze Race
Skill
One of my favorite things about doing this "Revisiting Survivor Challenges" project is that I get to see all of the Survivor firsts. Here, we have the first ever Survivor table maze! And it's just a table maze. Maybe not all that exciting, but there are 2 things I sort of like about it. First, this acts as a nice bit of variety, as most of these early challenges are strictly physical. Second, they use a coconut instead of a ball, which I guess is them kind of playing into the season's location. Plus, there's still a novelty here given this is the first time we are going to see something like this.
EPISODE 4 IMMUNITY CHALLENGE
Life's A Tapestry
Mental
We're going to get a few challenges this season that just feel like they do not belong on Survivor, and that's likely because Marquesas was a last minute back-up location when the show's intended location, Jordan, became infeasible. Some people make enjoy these challenges just because they feel so out of place it's almost comical, but I am going to continue to assess these challenges based on how interesting they are to watch, how creative they are, and how well they fit into the show. If you disagree with me about some of these assessments, then that is totally fine! But I feel like this challenge, which simply involves solving a tapestry puzzle, is not one of most entertaining challenges.
EPISODE 5 REWARD CHALLENGE
Tiki Towers
Physical Race / Mental
This is the second blindfold challenge we will see on Survivor, and much like the original, I feel like what we get is enjoyable but unremarkable. There is a new component here, as once all of the objects are collected (tikis in this version), they have to use them to solve a (very easy) puzzle. One other thing I wanted to mention– this challenge's location feels very... not isolated? I'm definitely not complaining, but it does feel a bit strange, like how tribal council is only a few yards away, and the grass looks freshly mowed. If anything, I guess it makes this one more memorable?
EPISODE 5 IMMUNITY CHALLENGE
Distress Signal
Miscellanious Challenge
I've made it clear by now that I really enjoy this "SOS" challenge. In Marquesas, instead of a plane flying overhead, a rescue boat drives by each camp, which I think is a nice way to mix it up a bit. I don't think this plays out as fun as Africa's rendition did, but I still love this challenge and seeing the whole tribe work together to try and create the best distress signal.
EPISODE 6 REWARD CHALLENGE
Jungle Relay
Physical Race
This is a very intricate challenge, involving a lot of running through the jungle, finding keys, unchaining a boat, and paddling to shore. I think this challenge was very well designed so that no part of it feels like it drags on too long. Another great thing about this challenge is that it was really close between the two tribes. One thing worth noting is that Jeff initially declares the wrong winner, as the Rotu tribe forgot to dock their boat within range of the chains and to have all tribe members present at the end of the challenge. Thankfully, in the end, Maraamu was awarded the reward they deserved.
EPISODE 6 IMMUNITY CHALLENGE
The Maze
Physical Race
Here's the return of another challenge that originated in The Australian Outback. It's "The Maze!" I have to say, this is definitely an improvement over the Season 2 version; everything just feels a lot more refined. It is still a tribal challenge, which I don't like as much as if it were individual, but this time, both tribes share the same maze, which has a much sleeker, circular design. Instead of all of the tribe members running around on their own like total chaos, each tribe is belted together, similar to The Australian Outback's "Lock Step" challenge. Still not even close to the coolest mazes we will see on Survivor, but it's still definitely a really great challenge!
EPISODE 7 IMMUNITY CHALLENGE
Sea Legs
Endurance
I feel like this is one of the few challenges that originated in Marquesas that really stands out as being a Survivor classic. Whoever can balance on a floating platform the longest wins immunity. There are a few fun moments here, like Boston Rob getting eliminated after trying to splash someone, but there is also some stuff that bogs the challenge down in my opinion. First, the challenge seems to be a bit too hard, as it goes by really fast. Second, the ending is incredibly anticlimactic, as John accidently touches the platform with his hand, and that's it, challenge over.
EPISODE 8 REWARD CHALLENGE
Go Fly A Kite
Miscellanious Challenge / Physical Race
Okay, here's our second oddball Marquesas challenge— the iconic kite flying challenge! But unlike the first oddball challenge, this challenge is actually a blast to watch. Yes, flying a kite feels very out of place on Survivor, but what we get from this challenge more than makes up for it. Similar to Borneo's mud volcano challenge, there is something genuinely heartwarming about seeing this season's cast have such a fun time all throughout this challenge. The music that plays during the challenge is awesome, and we get a few really stunning shots of Marquesas' mountainous landscape.
EPISODE 8 IMMUNITY CHALLENGE
Parang Swing
Mental
Here it is— the challenge that completely flipped Survivor: Marquesas on its head. Let's start from the beginning though; it's the return of the "Survivor Quiz Show," and harkening back to Borneo, its an individual challenge, hooray! As always, I appreciate how this challenge incorporates the season's location into the show. But everyone knows why this challenge truly stands out– the new format. Instead of earning points, getting a correct answer allows you to chop someone else's rope; when all 3 of your ropes are chopped, you are out of the challenge. It's somewhat similar to "Blue Plate Special" from Seasons 2 and 3, but to a much more extreme extent; you have to chop someone's rope, and there's no way you can claim that you didn't mean to do it; it is designed to indirectly reveal the pecking order, particularly to those in the majority alliance. This format, commonly referred to as the "coconut-chop" format, is a favorite among the Survivor community, and for good reason– it has the potential to completely shake up the game, and that's exactly what happens in Marquesas, as members of the majority Maraamu tribe, insulted to be the first eliminated from the challenge, flip over to the Rotus, culminating in a historic John blindside. It all sounds so perfect– but there's just one big problem- is this fair?
EPISODE 11 REWARD CHALLENGE
Rock Bottom
Physical Race
Time for another really fun challenge! In a Survivor take on musical chairs, each person has to dive into the water to find a shell, and then bring it back up to the surface. The person who isn't able to get one is eliminated. Not only is it a good concept, but it's also a really unique water challenge and adds some great challenge variety to the post-merge. There is a final round that I feel like maybe happens a bit too early, as in I would prefer seeing a few more regular rounds first, but overall, it's a great challenge.
EPISODE 12 REWARD CHALLENGE
Turtle Roll
Mental
For this season's Loved Ones Challenge, it's the return of the "Squared Off" challenge from Borneo! I loved the challenge on that season, and this season, it's even better, for two reasons. First, the board is shaped like a turtle– that's adorable. Second, this time there are power-ups in the middle of the board, just to spice things up a little bit. For the first time, the Survivors' loved ones compete in this challenge instead of the Survivors themselves, and I like that a lot.
EPISODE 13 REWARD CHALLENGE
Second Chance
Physical Race / Mental
The "Survivor Pentathalon" is back! I think this is my favorite version so far, as it combines a whopping six challenges (including stilt walking) into one obstacle course— that's a long obstacle course. As always, this challenge is a treat.
EPISODE 13 IMMUNITY CHALLENGE
Marquesan Folklore
Mental / Physical Race
FOLKLORE! NIGHT TIME CHALLENGE! It's back everyone, and this is the last time we are going to see it for quite a few seasons. I've already made it aggressively clear how much I love this challenge, so let's just dive right in. This time the story is about the fearsome, stealth-bombing warrior Keikahanui. Honestly, I have no idea how the producers learned this story; I tried researching it, and it took me a while to find even a single reference to this guy– it's real though, so props to the producers for digging deep on this one!
EPISODE 14 FINAL IMMUNITY CHALLENGE
Hard Idol
Endurance
Once again, the iconic "Hands on a Hard Idol" appears as the final Immunity Challenge of the season. It's still a fantastic Final Immunity Challenge, but it does ends a lot sooner than any of the other renditions of the challenge because after Kathy drops, a deal is promptly made between Neleh and Vecepia, ending the challenging straight away. I do like how they started the challenge later in the day so we get some night time action, that's a nice touch!