Editor’s note: The below recap contains spoilers for the premiere of Survivor 47.

The sun rises over the vast Fijian sea. Waves lap gently on a white sandy beach, its beautiful trees and gentle breeze hiding the immense hardships it contains. And somewhere, the warm voice of Jeff Probst announces what fans have been waiting for: It’s the thrilling return of the reality series Survivor, created by Charlie Parsons, an engrossing epic that sees a batch of complete strangers try to outmaneuver the elements (and each other) for a grand prize of $1,000,000. Each season challenges these castaways from the moment they step onto the island and pits them against one another as they try to earn the title of “Sole Survivor” — and this season seems ready for the exciting conflict, having the entire cast ride in on the same boat to size one another up and show the audience what makes them unique in this game.

Whether it be Tiyana Hallums playing as the first Native Hawaiian on Survivoror Jon Lovett bringing the knowledge it takes to run the successful “Pod Save America” podcast onto the island, viewers quickly learn about the many different personalities this cast is offering this season. They have the traditional beach chat with Jeff, everyone joyously discussing how excited they are about the game — with Probst cutting in to remind them all just how intense this competition is with their first challenge. As they prepare for that, we learn that this is the tribal breakdown for the season:

Tuku (Blue): Caroline Vidmar, Kyle Ostwald, Gabe Ortis, Tiyana Hallums, Sue Smey, and Terran “TK” Foster Gata (Yellow): Andy Rueda, Anika Dhar, Sierra Wright, Sam Phalen, Jon Lovett, Rachel LaMont Lavo (Red): Aysha Welch, Solomon “Sol” Yi, Genevieve Mushaluk, Teeny Chirichillo, Kishan Patel, Rome Cooney

Even Advantages Can Hurt You On ‘Survivor’
Survivor is defined not only by its great players but also by the cutthroat challenges it puts them through, and Season 47 is no different. The first challenge sees this cast racing underneath a muddy net into the jungle to retrieve heavy blocks and bring them back to assemble a giant puzzle. Despite an early lag, Gata clinches it in the end and receives a basic Survivor kit: a pot, a machete, and a flint. The other tribes miss out on those vital supplies, instead being offered a choice: which one of your people will you send out on a mystery journey to maybe earn supplies for your camp? Aysha and TK are selected and taken to a separate island, where they find out the task is to use clues to locate three keys in the jungle, with the fourth one opening a box with the resources they need. While both make good progress, Aysha’s inability to find the ocean lets TK grab the final key and win those essential tools — and he’s not the only person in this episode who finds something to help in the game ahead.

Back on the beach, we see relationships begin to form, those early moments of the game creating alliances that could win the whole season. TK’s triumphant return to Tuku leaves everyone in high spirits, while Gabe sees the benefit in working with an older player and forges a bond with Sue, who immediately reaps the rewards of this team-up when Gabe finds a Beware Advantage while building the shelter. It leads him on a wild hunt for lockboxes, keys, and driftwood, scoring him an Immunity Idol that’s good for three tribal councils with the possibility of upgrading it into one that’s good until the final five. He does get caught by TK while searching but, overall, the man keeps his hunt a secret. If only the same could be said for Lavo’s Rome. This player ducks off almost immediately to search for whatever advantages his island has in store. After finding a clue, digging around in a well, and blatantly ignoring his tribe’s attempts to connect with him, he gets a one-tribal Immunity Idol with the opportunity to improve it like Gabe’s. It’s an important tool in his arsenal, yet the crude way he looks for it has Aysha knowingly remarking, “Hello, Mr. Gamer,” with most of his tribe now viewing him as a threat.

On ‘Survivor,’ Your Biggest Enemy Is Yourself
Image via CBS

While the Red and Blue tribes begin hunting for clues and forming bonds, one person on the Yellow tribe reminds viewers of the biggest game-killer in a setting like Survivor: someone’s own anxiety. Andy is open about his past as a social outcast, and his feelings of awkwardness from that period come out in this setting where people’s opinions decide your fate. The rest of his group notices how he pulls Jon to the side and quickly tries to ally with the man, and he even wakes Caroline up in the middle of the night to vent after only one day of knowing each other. She appreciates his trust, but makes it clear that such open displays of friendship are not strategic, and while he agrees, Andy’s fear also begins getting the better of him. He notices small things like people not celebrating him when he cuts open a coconut — after they celebrate Jon for doing the same — making him think that he already has no chance of winning only 24 hours in.

The season’s first immunity challenge sees the players swimming and using a boat to pick up heavy chests in the water, pushing their boat onshore, and then building a puzzle, with two tribal Immunity Idols and toolkits on the line. Lavo wins quickly, with Tuku taking the lead right after, leaving Gata in the dust — which is when Andy walks off into the shade and collapses. Jeff checks in on him, the player moaning about how “he gave it his all” and that he’s going to be voted out tonight as the medical team rushes over. They realize he’s overheating and help him, with Andy eventually joining his team on the game mats after they lose (but not before he and Jeff exchange a quick “I love you”). When asked what he’s feeling, Andy uses the platform to tell everyone about how his tribe doesn’t like him (citing the coconut incident) and, to the complete shock of all, that he’d been considering throwing Jon under the bus as a ploy to stay, despite the man being his closest ally. This is one of the most open (and misled) admissions of feelings that this series has ever seen, and with everyone still startled by the medical emergency and this startling confession, everyone returns to their beach.

And ‘Survivor’ 47’s First Boot Is…

Survivor is all about knowing when to pick your battles, which Jon gets fast experience with as he realizes that, despite initially considering betrayal, Andy is his only ally in a group he’d been having trouble connecting with. The pair attempts to flip what seems like a clear vote on Andy, trying to recruit Sam to eliminate Anika, who’d been establishing herself as the tribe leader — a move which Sam immediately tells the women about. The four debate over who would be a better target between John and Andy, recognizing that while an emotional liability, Andy offers a strength in the challenges that Jon is sorely missing. Plus, they know that Andy is a messy player, whereas Jon’s knowledge of the game could spell trouble later on. Deciding to stick with the devil they know, the group decides to eliminate the podcast host, with even Andy going back on the plan he helped come up with to ensure the man gets eliminated over him. With a 5-1 vote, Jon Lovett becomes the first boot of Survivor 47.

Every season’s first episode offers an exciting balance of introductions and thrills, but rarely do players hit the ground running like this group did. From multiple advantages being found to Andy’s shocking confession to the player whom the franchise has been hyping up for months being the first out, this premiere was unpredictable from start to finish. It was a thrilling, jaw-dropping watch, and if this energy keeps up, it may be the start of Survivor’s wildest season ever.

Survivor 47 premieres Wednesdays on CBS before becoming available to stream on Paramount+.

WATCH ON PARAMOUNT+