Today, we're talking Season 27: Blood vs. Water - or maybe more appropriately, Season 27: Tyson Finally Wins. FAIR WARNING: This episode is a long one because we had some differing opinions and we had to figure it out on air. We debate the difference between 'old school' and 'new school' Survivor (and where we think that distinction comes from) AND the overarching pros and cons of our illustrious winner Tyson. Dive in with us because we're not sure where we stand at the end of this. 

We also discuss how we think production decided on the returning players (and their loved ones) when conceptualizing the season, the strength of Blood vs. Water as a theme, and the continuous use of Redemption Island (for good or bad). We're bringing you Rapid Fire, honorable mention (with a shoutout to Big Brother), and a twist on our favorite segment: #Jeffneedsavibecheck (except this week it's about Tyson). It's a wild ride, so buckle up cause you're in for a roller coaster of emotions.  

Be sure to give us a follow as well on Instagram @EscapingRealityPod and on Twitter @EscRealityPod --  If you enjoyed this episode, please leave us a rating/review on Apple Podcasts and/or follow us on Spotify! 

As always, thanks for listening & thanks for Escaping Reality with us! 

Welcome back to Escaping Reality -- in this episode, we're diving into Survivor Season 26: Caramoan aka Fans Vs Favorites the sequel! Would we call these castaways 'favorites'? listen to find out! 

This season had so much to unpack. We spend equal parts getting silly talking about the returning players & more seriously analyzing the places where casting (once again) fell short -- the negative impacts of the lack of representation & the exploitative nature of calling back Brandon Hantz. Plus we get into the very different styles of gameplay seen in our final 3. 

It's not all so deep though -- we’re pulling no punches in rapid fire where we’re sharing our favorite Cochran moments, best quotes of the season, whether we want to see a single one of the fans play again, and which of Dawn's many, many cries made us say: that’s enough. 

Be sure to subscribe to Escaping Reality & leave us a review/rating is you liked this episode. You can always follow for more content @EscapingRealityPod on Instagram & @EscRealityPod on Twitter. 

Thanks for listening & Thanks for Escaping Reality with us. 

We're so excited to be back with another episode! We hope you enjoyed our interview with Missy last episode, we can't wait to have more Survivor alums join us! 

Today, though, we're talking Season 25: Philippines. There's a lot going on in a season where one tribe gets annihilated (much like Anna's favorite season, Palau). We discuss bringing back returning players with purpose, i.e. because they were medically evacuated in a previous season, and also the reappearance of religion as a driving force behind your game play. 

We spent most of our time talking about the final 4 and the general 'silliness' of Mike Skupin and his return; but we spend plenty of time talking about our collective love for Malcolm and Denise. In the words of Nick, "I would step in front of a bus for either one of them." We're bringing you Rapid Fire and the return of our favorite segment: #Jeffneedsavibecheck. It's a wild ride and we're excited for you to join us.  

Be sure to give us a follow as well on Instagram @EscapingRealityPod and on Twitter @EscRealityPod --  If you enjoyed this episode, please leave us a rating/review on Apple Podcasts and/or follow us on Spotify! 

As always, thanks for listening & thanks for Escaping Reality with us! 

We're so excited to welcome our first Survivor Alumni to Escaping Reality! 

Season 39's Missy Byrd joined us to talk through Season 24 (because it's incredible, and she had great taste) - plus, she's shared all about her experiences before, on, and since the show, as well as a peek behind the production curtain. 

We spent most of our time talking about this season's players in our deep dive, since this is one of the best casts we've seen in a while, but we're also unpacking the controversial Colton story arc, the Men vs Women divide (...again...), and our favorite Tarzan AND Troyzan moments. Don't get it twisted.  

Missy joins us for the first 30 minutes of our season 24 discussion, and pops back at the end to answer some of our rapid fire questions and spill even more Survivor tea. 

Thanks again to Missy for coming on this episode! You can follow Missy on Instagram @themissybyrd on Twitter @themissybyrd and on YouTube to keep up with all her adventures.

Be sure to give us a follow as well on Instagram @EscapingRealityPod and on Twitter @EscRealityPod --  If you enjoyed this episode, please leave us a rating/review on Apple Podcasts (and make sure to let us know if you came because of Missy, and want us to do more interviews with former players!) 

Thanks for listening & Thanks for Escaping Reality with us! 

Happy New Year Escaping Reality Fam! We have a special surprise for you on this lovely first day of 2021! We have our first crossover season episode with our friend Tom (@thetomhamlett) from Dumpster Dive with Tom Hamlett (@dumpsterdivepod). He comes to us with a ton of reality competition love and an allegiance to Dawn! 

We're unpacking Survivor Season 23: South Pacific.  Honestly, it's less of an unpack and more of an accidental predictions for Season 26 (even though we haven’t seen it yet). 

We’re talking about the role of religion on the players and the game as well as how deserving Sophie was of her win. 

We also discuss the value add of redemption island on a second round and Coach’s evolution over 3 seasons. We also start our stan of the one and only John Cochran - a love affair that will continue in season 26. With that and rapid fire, we are truly just having a party with our podcast friend Tom! Enjoy!

You can always follow for more content @EscapingRealityPod on Instagram and @EscRealityPod on Twitter. Be sure to rate/review/subscribe & tell all your Survivor-loving friends to listen! 

Thanks for Escaping Reality with us!

It's Redemption Island and redemption is certainly called for. We're unpacking Survivor Season 22: Redemption Island, but, honestly, it's less of an unpack and more of a narrow exploration into the one and only Boston Rob. 

We're spending a big portion of the episode talking about the man of the hour -- how he won, if it was impressive, why bring him back in the first place? But in a season that didn't have much (in our opinions) beyond the Rob-narrative, we've still got a handful of other topics to bring up. 

The addition of redemption island & returning players are discussed, but we're also breaking down the titular conflict of Episode 10: "Rice Wars" and revisiting the show's struggle with representation, and the handling of conversations that come up within the narrative regarding race. 

Lots to chat about for a season we didn't love. Plus, we're naming the entire cast (sans Boston Rob) as dishonorable mention... jk, but they might as well be. 

You can always follow for more content @EscapingRealityPod on Instagram and @EscRealityPod on Twitter. Be sure to rate/review/subscribe & tell all your Survivor-loving friends to listen! 

Thanks for Escaping Reality with us

We’re back at it! And, first season after Heroes vs. Villains, we’re not really feeling the high-on-Survivor vibes anymore. We still found plenty to talk about, though probably some tangents will be a surprise! In this episode, we're jumping in to discuss the success (or not) of casting post and All Stars season and why we should (or should not) rely on a tribe split based on age. 

We couldn't talk bout this season without the first (and maybe only) double and simultaneous quit as well as our love for Jimmy Johnson. We also discuss our absolute SHOCK that Chase didn’t win and that he does not mention his career in Survivor in his life in 2020 in country music. Chase, we need answers.  

We hope you enjoy this deep dive into a season that the franchise would probably rather forget.

You can always follow for more content @EscapingRealityPod on Instagram & @EscRealityPod on Twitter. Be sure to leave us a rating & review and share with your Survivor-loving friends! 

Thanks for Escaping Reality with us!

It's been 20 seasons and 20 episodes to discuss them ! Which means: it's time to close ranks. We're sharing how we each rank the first 20 seasons of Survivor & having some friendly discussion about why we each think our list is the right one. 

In ranking the seasons, we're also shedding some light on what factors affected the orders -- re-watchability, diverse casting, likable winners, etc. It's different for all of us (which means we're bound to have some disagreements). 

If you've been listening along as we covered seasons 1-20 on Escaping Reality, see if you can guess who ranks which season where based on what's already been said! You can always follow for more content (and opinions) on Instagram @EscapingRealityPod and on Twitter at @EscRealityPod.

Be sure to subscribe/rate/review our show & share with all your Survivor-loving friends! 

Thanks for Escaping Reality with us

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to us all! We have almost made it to the end of 2020 and we are halfway through our deep dive into @survivorcbs. We’re almost as shocked as you are that we’ve come this far!

We're diving deep into our feels on what it means to be a hero or a villain and which strategy works better in the game. Plus, we're digging into what it is about this cast that makes us say, “All Stars could never.” We’ve got big, dumb moves and a second helping of Russell Hantz to dissect and argue about. Will your favorites earn their reputation as a hero or a villain? Or have they learned from their mistakes from the last time they played? 

This season was one for the ages and we had way too much fun breaking it all down (just look at the time stamp on the episode). As always, we’ve got our honorable mention and rapid fire questions! We threw in a dishonorable mention as well - do you agree?

If you found us after binging Season 20 on Netflix, we’re so excited to have you. Go back and listen to our recaps and conversations about the other 20 seasons to get the backstory on some of your favorites from Season 20. 

You can always find more content @EscapingRealityPod on Instagram & @EscRealityPod on Twitter. Make sure to rate/review/subscribe & let us know what you thought of this episode. 

Thanks for Escaping Reality with us! 

It's been 19 seasons and we're a little pooped. It took us a little while to warm up to Survivor: Samoa, but, once we did, we found plenty to talk about. In this episode, we're jumping RIGHT in to discuss the evolution of hidden idols, the importance of having a tribe leader, and the differences between winning the game and being considered the best player. 

We couldn't get into this season without talking about the iconic Russell Hantz - so, don't worry, we're doing that too! Plus, we go deep unpacking Natalie's winning 'strategy,' and final tribal performance. In a season jam-packed with wild moments, we're also taking time to talk through the controversial storyline of Ben--his aggressive behavior and racist comments--and production's lack of accountability for their offensive players and perpetual racist narratives. 

We get serious & we get silly - indicative of the rollercoaster of emotions we felt while watching this season of Survivor! 

You can always follow for more content @EscapingRealityPod on Instagram & @EscRealityPod on Twitter. Be sure to leave us a rating & review and share with your Survivor-loving friends! 

Thanks for Escaping Reality with us