Best Survivor Blindside Moments

Tyson Apostal—the cocky, Morman mischief-maker—first appeared on Survivor: Tocantins, where he met his demise at the hands of J.T. Thomas and Stephen Fischbach. Fans of Tyson hoped he would fare better in Heroes vs. Villains, knowing that if he could just keep his ego in check, he had the chance to make it all the way. For a while, things were looking bright for Tyson. He was Boston Rob's right-hand man, in a tight alliance and posing a serious threat in immunity challenges. But sadly fear and self-preservation got the best of him. During a crucial vote, Tyson decided to fall back on Boston Rob's plan to split the vote between Parvati and Russell, resulting in his exit from the game.

When Survivor super-fan John Cochran first stepped foot on the South Pacific sand, he announced that he wished to join the ranks of the Survivor legends. Little did he know that eight episodes into the season, he would be responsible for one of the series' biggest blindsides to date. Both the Savaii (Cochran's tribe) and Upolu tribes went into the merge dead even and everyone knew the vote was going to be decided by drawing rocks. Wanting to take his fate into his own hands, Cochran ditched his verbally abusive, bullying Savaiis in favor of the constantly-hugging Upolus. The backlash was brutal, and for a moment it looked as if the former Savaiis were going to tear the tiny, red-headed neurotic to bits. But instead of cowering, Cochran stood tall—becoming an inspiration to long-suffering nerds worldwide.

The blindside that started it all. After the first merger in Survivor history, the Tagi alliance (consisting of Richard, Rudy, Kelly and Susan) voted out Pagong's former leader, Gretchen Cordy. The former Pagong members, who all voted separately, couldn't believe that Tagi was voting in unison. At that point, Pagong was under the impression that you were supposed to vote out whoever wasn't "surviving" the best, or whoever you found most annoying. Their naivety led to their demise as each former Pagong member was voted off one by one.

Boston Rob wasn't deemed "The Godfather" for no reason. On Survivor: Redemption Island, the four-time player controlled his tribe like the Cosa Nostra—ensuring loyalty with fear and giving orders like a true don. This strategy ended up winning him the million, but it came with a hefty price. After every member of the opposing tribe was voted off, Rob had no choice but to snuff the torch of his best friend in the game, Grant Mattos. Grant did not take this betrayal kindly. The tension in the room during the Redemption Island finale was almost palatable. It's clear that to some castaways, Survivor is more than just a game. Unfortunately for Grant, no one knows how to play it better than Boston Rob.