With phenomenal seasons like Survivor: Pearl Islands, Survivor: Tocantins, and Survivor: Cagayan knocking the socks off of Survivor superfans across the globe, there have definitely been some lackluster seasons that have received backlash from reality TV lovers.
Premiering with Survivor: Borneo back in 2001, fans of the beloved competition series have seen the good, the bad, and the ugly over the past 22 years, but according to an oh-so telling Reddit thread, Survivor: Thailand is arguably the ugliest of them all.
With a sexual harassment incident between two castaways (Ted Rogers Jr. and Ghandia Onique Bundhi Mapp-Johnson), a boring plotline, and an unlikeable winner, keep scrolling to see why “season 5 is just purely awful” according to Survivor superfans….
While there were dozens of responses explaining why Survivor: Thailand is the worst season of all time, we gathered the ones that answer the question you all have been wondering: Why?
“Season 5 really is bad by most conventional means. The cast is pretty unlikeable, the inappropriate incident is really a dumpster fire of reality TV, and the winner is infamously disliked.”
“I have watched every season of Survivor at least once, except for season 5. I couldn’t finish it. I’m my recollection is blurry, but there’s an incident with a man and a woman, the woman felt uncomfortable in the way that the man was cuddling with her, she called him out, he gaslit her. It made me so uncomfortable, and I couldn’t bare to watch the way she was treated.”
“I do think the ick for season 5 is more than fair, but reality TV is always scummy and icky to me anyways, especially Survivor. We are watching people starve and have to brutally break bonds and cannibalize the society they’ve built, but yeah, season 5 shows it as dark and depressing as that can get. I think that helps make it a great piece of art, but yeah it can be a rough watch if you’re watching for escapism or just passively as easy-listening-esque television.”
“Season 5 is boring if you don’t enjoy watching as dominant a winner as the game has seen. He doesn’t show his dominance in the final vote, but Brian controls everything and is just on another level during the game. His casual walk to claim immunity post merge is one of my favorite moments, as he’s so casual about it, no care in the world, and he knows he has it in the bag.”
Much like we saw within Survivor: Island of the Idols (another one of the most hated seasons of all time), an unfortunate sexual harassment incident left viewers with a bad taste in their mouths, giving the season a bad rep as a whole.
That — in combination with the dominant gameplay of Brian Heidik — ultimately caused Survivor: Thailand to take the cake as the worst Survivor season of all time, but are all Survivor superfans in agreement?
While there are numerous reasons why Survivor: Thailand is the worst of the worst, it is not the only season that is viewed in a negative light by fans of the hit competition show.
Within this same thread, numerous Survivor superfans proposed some seasons that may be worse than Survivor: Thailand, and they did not hold back whatsoever.
“I think Season 24 and 39 are worse. It might be my worst after those 2 though.”
“I’d describe 39 as bad due to how uncomfortable it is to watch.”
“There’s no way you watched Caramoan and thought that season wasn’t absolutely bad.”
“I get that it’s one of the worst seasons, but I would rather re-watch Thailand than One World, Ghost Island, Island of the Idols, and 41 through 44. I guess I would rather watch a dark season than a boring one personally, since it shows us something about human nature.”
Lastly (to our surprise), a few respondents even argued that Survivor: Thailand is a good season, resulting in our jaws dropping straight to the floor.
“Season 5 gets a lot of flack, but it really is the game changing season. The way the game is played now can be attributed to Brian’s strategizing. If you watch all the seasons, there are those that are game changers and push the game forward.”
“Hot take incoming: I really enjoyed Thailand (aside from the obvious incident). I can see why some would call it boring, but tbh I would call most seasons of Survivor boring if we’re just talking about gameplay. Also, I love unlikable casts! I just want to watch complete assholes compete in a game where the entire objective is to be likable.”
Do you concur with these two Reddit users, or do you agree that Survivor: Thailand is the worst of the worst? Check out the full season on Paramount Plus to decide for yourself.
