Episode 1
In Survivor: Blood vs. Water, we follow the show as it cuts ties between friends and family, pitting them against each other in this competition. Each pair is split from their loved one and put into either tribe – Hunahpu (blue) or Coyopa (orange). As a stranger to one another in their new groups, the audience is able to see how they all unite as a team in order to compete against their loved ones in their opposing tribe. In this first episode, we are able to see how the contestants develop into their groups, establish goals, and motivate one another to win each challenge.
When the contestants were all put into their tribes, we began to see how they all interacted and formed bonds with one another. For example, in the Hunahpu tribe, we see the winner of the first challenge – Jeremy – build relations with other people in his group. For him, he is able to diffuse the typical awkward tension that normally occurs when strangers are put together. The others have respect for him because he earned the tribe their first one, and he uses this to start up good relationships and alliances to benefit him later on. In the Coyopa tribe, we see strong relationships form between the younger members who are of the same age group. Although most of the tribe gets along fairly quickly, we see Dale struggle to be included due to his great age difference, which also makes him a target for elimination. He struggles to be accepted into the group, but is able to change everyone’s perception of him when he is able to start a fire. With most of the tribe members building up their relations with one another, we slowly start to see them grow as a group.
Both groups and all contestants share the common goal of winning their rivalry with their loved one and the ultimate goal of winning the entire competition. We do, however, see how the groups might have different goals in other aspects. At the Hunahpu base camp, Drew sees that building a habitat is a main priority but believes that hardly anyone else shares that view. This creates some awkward strain between him and another tribe member when he begins to see himself as superior to the others who do not help as much. The Coyopa tribe, on the other hand, form a different objective for the time being when Josh has a bad reaction. The group realizes that the sap from the plant they used to make their habitat could be potentially poisonous. Together, they remove the plants and find a replacement.
Winning the second challenge is another goal that the tribes hope to accomplish, and it also proves how well they have developed as a team and becomes an incentive for motivation. They encourage each other with words and phrases, cheering each other on to get through the challenge. When Keith decides to throw the rope that will allow the rest of the Hunahpu tribe, he allows someone else to step in to help. This allows the group to reorganize to complete the first hurdle. The Copoya tribe worked well when John used his body to hoist his teammates up. They clearly performed very well together, but even though they did have an advantage, they did not do well enough to pass the puzzle.
