Survivor featured the Baka Tribe voting out Morriah Young at Tribal Council after the season’s first Immunity Challenge during the Season 43 premiere that aired Wednesday night on CBS.
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The Baka Tribe voted Morriah, a 28-year-old teacher from Philadelphia, PA, out on Night 3 of the game at the first Tribal Council of the season instead of Owen Knight, a 30-year-old college admissions director from Bethesda, MD, who currently resides in New Orleans, LA.
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“It’s heartbreaking to be going, but I’m happy with the game I played,” Morriah said in her final words.
“I had a ton of fun, but I played like it was my first time when I should’ve been playing like it was my second time. I genuinely love the Baka Tribe, and I am so proud of them and proud of how they played — and I hope they get far in the game.”
The Survivor 43 broadcast began with the 18 new castaways arriving on a beach in Fiji and meeting the show’s longtime host Jeff Probst.
The castaways were already split into three tribes: Vesi wearing red, Baka sporting yellow and Coco with blue bluffs.
Vesi was comprised of Cody Assenmacher, a 35-year-old in elevator sales from Preston, IA, who currently resides in Honolulu, HI; Dwight Moore, a 22-year-old graduate student from Palo Alto, CA, who currently resides in Collierville, TN; Jesse Lopez, a 30-year-old with a Political Science PhD from Venice, CA, who currently resides in Durham, NC; Justine Brennan, a 29-year-old in cyber security sales from Sunnyvale, CA, who currently resides in Marina Del Rey, CA; Nneka Ejere, a 43-year-old pharmacist from Weatherford, TX; and Noelle Lambert, a 25-year-old U.S. Paralympian from Londonderry, NH, who currently resides in Manchester, NH.
The Baka Tribe was made up of Morriah; Owen; Elisabeth “Elie” Scott, a 31-year-old clinical psychologist from Atlanta, GA, who currently resides in Salt Lake City, UT; Jeanine Zheng, a 24-year-old UX designer from South Hamilton, MA, who currently resides in San Francisco, CA; Mike “Gabler” Gabler, a 52-year-old heart-valve specialist from Houston, TX, who currently resides in Meridian, ID; and Sami Layadi, a 19-year-old pet cremator from Las Vegas, NV, who currently resides in Las Vegas, NV.
The Coco Tribe consisted of Cassidy Clark, a 26-year-old designer from Plano, TX, who currently resides in Austin, TX; Geo Bustamante, a 36-year-old project manager from Miami, FL, who currently resides in Honolulu, HI; James Jones, a 37-year-old event planner from Philadelphia, PA; Karla Cruz Godoy, a 28-year-old educational project manager from San Diego, CA, who currently resides in Newark, DE; Lindsay Carmine, a 42-year-old pediatric nurse from Greensboro, NC, who currently resides in Downingtown, PA; and Ryan Medrano, a 25-year-old warehouse associate from Savannah, GA, who currently resides in El Paso, TX.
For the first Reward Challenge, two players from each tribe had to race down the beach and bring back two heavy wooden crates.
Two different players would then run out to the water, pulling a boat back with more crates onboard. Once all the crates were gathered on the beach, the two remaining players from each tribe would solve a puzzle, forming a giant cube.
One player would then climb onto the cube and use a bamboo pole to retrieve a flint. The winners would earn camp supplies in the form of a pot, a machete and a flint.
Jeff said everyone would have to earn food along the way and the losing tribes would need to fight for supplies later on.
Vesi won the first Reward, and the two losing tribes were pretty disappointed. Each tribe was given a map to their “new homes,” and Vesi’s supplies were going to be waiting for them back at camp.
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At the Vesi camp, no one knew how to construct the shelter, and over at Baka, Gabler was a little bit nervous considering he’s significantly older than his tribemates.
Baka was then asked to choose one of two tasks to complete: “Savvy” or “Sweat.”
In “Savvy,” the entire tribe had to work together to solve a brain teaser, but they’d only get one guess.
In “Sweat,” two tribemates would work together to dig up their supplies hidden within a giant square in the sand. They were warned it may take several hours to dig up the items, and those two castaways would be isolated from the rest of their tribe for that entire amount of time.
The tribe had four hours to complete either task, and if they failed, there would be a penalty and the tribe wouldn’t receive its supplies before the next Tribal Council.
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The tribe agreed to take a shot at the puzzle. They were instructed to move large bones around in order to form the largest whole number, but they could only move two bones at one time.
Sami figured the puzzle out and immediately showed his strength, although he didn’t want to come across like a threat so early in the game. He said he’s determined to be the youngest person to ever win this game.
Coco chose to do the “Sweat” task, with Ryan and Geo volunteering to dig. Ryan, who was born with mild cerebral palsy, suggested they should dig together in the shape of an X to cover the most ground with the least amount of effort. They managed to dig up their bag of supplies in only 30 minutes!
While Noelle and Justine bonded on the Vesi tribe, Nneka developed friendships with Cody and Jesse. Jesse felt in the middle of the men and the women, but he liked having multiple options.
And Cody tried to make people wary of Justine because she’s a salesperson with great social skills.
Over at Baka, Jeanine, Morriah and Elie became aligned with one another after opening up about their life stories and family history, including how Elie had lost her beloved sister in 2020.
At the Coco tribe, Lindsay started an all-girl alliance on her tribe with Karla and Cassidy, but she wanted to pull James into their alliance since she thought he was very genuine. James loved the idea of working with the ladies and said he felt like “a king.”
On Day 2, the Baka tribe made fire, and Elie and Gabler found out they have a love for heavy-metal music in common. Elie thought Gabler was sweet and caring — and so she said she wasn’t going to rule him out at all despite their age difference.
Meanwhile, Geo and Karla started to vibe over at Coco’s tribe because they’re both gay, married and Latino. Geo planned to play with his heart and share everything about his life, which would enable genuine and deeper connections.
Karla felt solid with Geo and Ryan, but she was also working with James, Lindsay and Cassidy.
“It feels like I’m in the middle,” Karla noted in a confessional.
“Coming in, I was very nervous that I would be perceived as weak… I honestly thought I was going out first. So it’s hard to trust that everyone wants to talk to me and solidify my votes. So I don’t know what to believe.”
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Jesse then shared with his tribemates how he ended up in a gang as a teenager and got arrested, where he was sent to juvenile hall. He took the GED test while in jail, passed with flying colors, and then decided to changed his life. He eventually went on to study at Berkeley and Duke, where he obtained a PhD in Political Science.
On Day 2, the Vesi tribe’s shelter collapsed on Day 2, but they were also able to make fire.
Just as everyone started relaxing, a boat showed up at each of the three different beaches.
One person from each tribe was asked to get on the boat, and those players would return to camp later that day.
Karla got on the boat after playing a quick game with her tribemates, Gabler went on the journey after a quick game of “Rock, Paper, Scissors,” and Dwight actually volunteered to go given he’s a Super Fan.
Everyone assumed there was going to be some advantage presented to the castaways, and so the game had really begun at this point.
The three players were asked to make a group decision once they reached the top of a rock cliff. Karla, Gabler and Dwight were instructed to get to know each other during the slippery and dangerous hike.
Karla said she’s the first person in her family to graduate from college, and so she tried to remember she is book smart and socially aware.
The trio was asked to risk their votes for a potential advantage or play it safe and receive nothing.
“For those who RISK, one player will earn an advantage. The others will lose their vote at the next Tribal Council,” a scroll read. “Those who chose RISK will choose a package from the appropriately numbered bags. You will wait to open once you’re back at camp and you have a private moment.”
Everyone picked RISK or NO RISK secretly and independently, but Karla, Gabler and Dwight had to reveal their choice simultaneously. Both of them men opted to risk their vote, and so Gabler and Dwight got to choose one of the bags, which either contained an advantage or “lose your vote” card.
Karla thought she had done the right thing because one of the guys was going to be in trouble and possibly regret his decision.
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Once the castaways returned to camp, Gabler discovered he had received an advantage. Dwight, on the other hand, risked and lost his right to vote.
Gabler received an Immunity Idol that would keep him safe at the next two Tribal Council sessions. After that, the idol loses all power. Gabler celebrated and appeared ecstatic.
Instead of buying the idol and lying about it, Gabler shared the news with his entire tribe, who expressed how they were happy for him. Gabler was hoping to build good will and trust.
On Day 3, the three tribes met Jeff for the first Immunity Challenge of the season.
For the challenge, each tribe was required to race through a series of obstacles, collecting three balls along the way. One player would then dig under a log and release a ramp.
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The players must work together to get an entire tribe up the ramp and across a balance beam. As players crossed the beam, they could untie a handle that would open the beam wider, making the journey easier.
The first tribe to get all the players to the finish would be able to choose between three table games. The second tribe picks between the remaining two games, and the last tribe would get what’s left. Finally, two players would work together to maneuver three balls to the end of their table game.
The first two tribes to finish would win immunity and be safe from the vote at the first Tribal Council of the season.
Lindsay and Ryan did the table game for Coco, Sami and Gabler worked on the table game for Baka, and Jesse and Noelle handled the table game for Vesi.
Coco ended up finishing the challenge in first place by a mile, with a “dominating performance,” according to Jeff, and then Vesi pulled out a second-place finish.
The challenge results meant Baka would be attending Tribal Council, where the first person would be voted out of the game. They also lost their flint as a punishment.
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Gabler told Jeff that his team never lost hope or friendship, but there were some tears and disappointment among them.
Sami said losing sucked and was sad, and he pointed out in a confessional how the tribe hadn’t talked any strategy at all up to that point and things were about to get real and brutal.
Gabler announced to his tribe how he didn’t want to hide behind his Immunity Idol and so he was going to take a “Shot in the Dark” that evening at Tribal Council. Gabler felt he “should be at risk” that night because he was part of the tribe’s loss, but everyone was shocked.
Elie didn’t want to lose Gabler this early on, and so she attempted to talk him out of that plan. She also appreciated how he was a work horse around camp.
Sami shared with Morriah how he liked Elie and Jeanine and he hadn’t talked much with Owen. Morriah felt close with her girls, but she thought it would be too risky to vote out Gabler. She therefore assumed Owen would be the tribe’s best option.
“I think he’s a lot smarter than he seems,” Sami said of Owen, “which scares me a little bit.”
Morriah and Elie came up with opposing plans, however, because Elie said she wasn’t interested in voting out Owen and wanted to prioritize strength this early on. Elie wanted to vote Morriah out, thinking Morriah was the weakest member of the tribe.
Jeanine wasn’t sure whom to side with and which way to go. She was afraid the men would end up working together to take the women out one by one. Elie understood Jeanine’s fears, and so she weighed her options of taking out Owen vs. Morriah.
Elie knew Morriah would continue working with her and Owen may be trouble down the line by teaming up with the men, so she had a big decision to make — and she and Jeanine held all the power in terms of who was going to be sent packing.
On Night 3, the Baka Tribe attended Tribal Council, and they discussed how they started off the game so tight and strong as a unit. They had lost the challenge with dignity and were proud of their effort.
No one seemed to be pointing fingers at Sami and Gabler for the challenge loss, but Gabler admitted there was accountability on his part and he wouldn’t be surprised if there was a target on his back and votes would be thrown his way.
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After the castaways voted one by one, Jeff read the votes aloud. (Gabler did not play his idol).
The votes were for Morriah, Owen, Morriah, Morriah, and Morriah.
Morriah was clearly the only person who voted for Own, and she assured everyone that it was “okay” on her way out. She told the girls that they’re “amazing,” but the tribe had spoken.
About The Author:
Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
Elizabeth Kwiatkowski is Associate Editor of Reality TV World and has been covering the reality TV genre for more than a decade.