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Survivor: Panama, also known as Survivor: Panama — Exile Island, is the twelfth season of the CBS competitive reality television series Survivor. Aras Baskauskas defeated Danielle DiLorenzo in a 5-2 vote to become the Sole Survivor. It would ultimately feature one medical evacuation, and has to date produced four returning players (Aras Baskauskas, Cirie Fields, Danielle DiLorenzo, and Terry Deitz) for subsequent seasons.

Production[]

Applications were due on June 17, 2005. Around August 2005, 800 applicants were invited for an interview by CBS. Out of these 800, 48 of them were selected as semi-finalists and were invited to Los Angeles in September 2005. From these semi-finalists, 16 were chosen to appear on the show. Filming took place from November to December 2005.

The season's theme is inspired from Haitian Vodou and headhunting culture practiced in Central and South America. The Tribal Council set was a cave made out of foam. The Panamanian government insisted on preserving certain trees nearby, prompting production to build the cave around these, hiding them in the process. The candles illuminating Tribal Council can be controlled, thus enhancing the fire whenever production pleased.

Twists/Changes[]

  • Exile Island: After a Reward Challenge, players may banish a player from the rival tribe to Exile Island. This island, entirely separate from the existing camps, will force the banished player to fend for him/herself until the upcoming Immunity Challenge (unless stated otherwise). The player would not be left in despair, for he/she will be given clues to a Hidden Immunity Idol that is hidden somewhere on the island.
  • Rehashed Hidden Immunity Idol Mechanism: Unlike the previous season where the Hidden Immunity Idol is used like the Immunity Necklace, the mechanism of using the idol was now changed. Instead of revealing the idol before voting, the owner must draw it when he/she has enough votes to eliminate him/her. The votes cast against that player will be considered spoilt, while the person that gets the second highest amount of votes will be eliminated instead. The idol is usable until the Day 36 Tribal Council.
  • Four Tribes: For the first time in the series, the castaways were divided into four tribes of four.
  • Tribe Division: These four tribes are defined according to age and gender, thus having tribes of Older Men (La Mina), Younger Men (Viveros), Younger Women (Bayoneta), and Older Women (Casaya).
  • Tribe Switch: On Day 4, the tribes were mixed up. Viveros and Bayoneta were disbanded. Two team captains were chosen randomly and contestants were divided into the new Casaya and La Mina tribes by a Schoolyard Pick. Because of odd numbers, the last unpicked player was sent to Exile Island and was given immunity. The exiled player will stay there until the tribe that loses the next Immunity Challenge already finished the task of voting out one of their own. After the vote, the exiled player will join that tribe.

Castaways[]

Contestant Tribe Affiliation Finish Votes
Against
Original Tribe Switched Tribe Merged Tribe
S12 tina t Tina Scheer
44, Hayward, WI
Lumberjill
Casaya 1st Voted Out
Day 3
3
S12 melinda t Melinda Hyder
32, Sevierville, TN
Singer/Entertainer
Casaya Casaya 2nd Voted Out
Day 6
5
S12 misty t Misty Giles
24, Dallas, TX
Missile Engineer
Bayoneta La Mina 3rd Voted Out
Day 8
5
S12 ruthmarie t Ruth Marie Milliman
48, Greenville, SC
Property Developer
Casaya La Mina 4th Voted Out
Day 11
6
S12 bobby t Bobby Mason
32, Los Angeles, CA
Attorney
Viveros Casaya 5th Voted Out
Day 14
3
S12 dan t Dan Barry
51, South Hadley, MA
Astronaut
La Mina La Mina 6th Voted Out
Day 15
3
S12 nick t Nick Stanbury
25, Tempe, AZ
Financial Salesman
Viveros La Mina Gitanos 7th Voted Out
Day 18
6
S12 austin t Austin Carty
24, High Point, NC
Writer
Viveros La Mina 8th Voted Out
1st Jury Member
Day 21
7
S12 sally t Sally Schumann
26, Chicago, IL
Social Worker
Bayoneta La Mina 9th Voted Out
2nd Jury Member
Day 24
8
S12 bruce t Bruce Kanegai
57, Simi Valley, CA
Art Teacher
La Mina Casaya Evacuated
3rd Jury Member
Day 25
2
S12 courtney t Courtney Marit
31, Los Angeles, CA
Fire Dancer
Bayoneta Casaya 10th Voted Out
4th Jury Member
Day 30
4
S12 shane t Shane Powers
34, Los Angeles, CA
Marketing Executive
La Mina Casaya 11th Voted Out
5th Jury Member
Day 33
9
S12 cirie t Cirie Fields
35, Walterboro, SC
Nurse
Casaya Casaya Eliminated
6th Jury Member
Day 36
3
S12 terry t Terry Deitz
46, Simsbury, CT
Pilot
La Mina La Mina 12th Voted Out
7th Jury Member
Day 38
1
S12 danielle t Danielle DiLorenzo
24, Pompano Beach, FL
Medical Sales Representative
Bayoneta Casaya Runner-Up 4
S12 aras t Aras Baskauskas
24, Santa Monica, CA
Yoga Instructor
Viveros Casaya Sole Survivor 9

Season Summary[]

The game began with the sixteen competitors split into four tribes by both relative age and gender. They were also introduced to the concept of "Exile Island" with the promise of a Hidden Immunity Idol located somewhere on it, while one person from the losing tribe at challenges would be sent to the island and given clues to look for it. After the first four days, the four tribes were merged by a Schoolyard Pick into two tribes, Casaya and La Mina.

Though Casaya was generally the stronger of the two tribes, they were dominated by dysfunction and infighting, mainly between Shane (who was suffering from nicotine withdrawal), the eccentric Courtney, and hot-headed Danielle. In the midst of the chaos however, a tight bond formed between Aras and Cirie. Compared to their rivals, La Mina was much more peaceful, as a powerful men's alliance headed by Terry and Dan took control. Because of their challenge ability, Casaya opted to send Terry over to Exile Island multiple times, which eventually allowed him to find the Hidden Immunity Idol.

The two tribes merged into Gitanos on Day 16, with Casaya holding a 6-4 numbers advantage. Though their conflicts continued, Casaya held together and was successful in eliminating the former La Mina members until only Terry remained. However, Terry soon began a streak of immunity wins, forcing Casaya to turn on one another. Come Day 30, Cirie noticed that both Terry and Shane looked to take Courtney to the Final Two as an assurance to win the jury's favor. Forming a final three pact with Aras and Danielle, Cirie succeeded in blindsiding Courtney, with Shane following immediately after on Day 33.

At the final four, Aras won reward and took Cirie with him. This prompted Danielle to vote with Terry, forcing a fire-making tiebreaker between Cirie and Danielle, with the latter emerging victorious. Danielle would also go on to win the Final Immunity Challenge, forcing her to cast the sole vote to eliminate. Believing Terry to be the larger jury threat, Danielle voted him out, advancing to the Final Two with Aras. At the Final Tribal Council, Aras and Danielle both received lukewarm remarks from the jury, but by a vote of 5-2 Aras was awarded the title of Sole Survivor.

Episode Air date Challenges Exiled Eliminated
(Vote)
Finish Viewers
(in millions)[2]
Rating/Share
(18-49)[2]
Reward Immunity
1 "The First Exile" February 2, 2006 La Mina Bayoneta Misty Tina
(3-1)
1st Voted Out
Day 3
19.20 7.0/18
Viveros La Mina
Casaya Viveros
2 "Breakdown" February 9, 2006 La Mina La Mina Bruce1 Melinda
(5-2)
2nd Voted Out
Day 6
18.75 6.6/17
3 "Crazy Fights, Snake Dinners" February 16, 2006 La Mina Casaya Bruce Misty
(5-2)
3rd Voted Out
Day 8
16.98 6.3/16
4 "Starvation and Lunacy" February 23, 2006 Casaya Casaya Terry Ruth Marie
(4-2)
4th Voted Out
Day 11
14.85 5.5/14
5 "For Cod's Sake" March 2, 2006 Casaya La Mina Terry Bobby
(3-2-1-1)
5th Voted Out
Day 14
16.08 5.5/14
6 "Salvation and Desertion" March 9, 2006 Casaya2 Sally Dan
(3-1)
6th Voted Out
Day 15
15.33 5.4/N/A
7 "A Closer Look" March 15, 2006 Recap Episode N/A N/A
8 "An Emerging Plan" March 30, 2006 None Terry None Nick
(6-4)
7th Voted Out
Day 18
16.25 5.8/17
9 "The Power of the Idol" April 6, 2006 Aras,
Bruce,
Sally
Terry Austin,
Danielle
Austin
(6-3)
8th Voted Out
1st Jury Member
Day 21
16.36 5.6/17
10 "Fight for Your Life or Eat" April 13, 2006 Bruce,
Courtney,
Sally, Terry
Terry Aras Sally
(6-2)
9th Voted Out
2nd Jury Member
Day 24
15.07 5.2/17
11 "Medical Emergency" April 20, 2006 Cirie
[Aras,
Danielle]
None Terry Bruce
(no vote)
Evacuated
3rd Jury Member
Day 25
16.26 5.5/18
12 "Perilous Scramble" April 27, 2006 Courtney,
Danielle,
Terry
Terry Aras Courtney
(3-2-1)
10th Voted Out
4th Jury Member
Day 30
17.09 5.9/18
13 "Bamboozled" May 4, 2006 Terry
[Shane]
Terry Danielle Shane
(3-1-1)
11th Voted Out
5th Jury Member
Day 33
17.04 5.9/18
14 "Call the Whambulence!" May 11, 2006 Aras
[Cirie]
Aras Danielle,
Terry
TBD
(2-2)3
Eliminated
6th Jury Member
Day 36
17.2 5.8/N/A
15 "The Final Showdown" May 14, 2006 Cirie
(tiebreaker)
17.07 6.2/15
Terry Danielle None Terry
(1-0)
12th Voted Out
7th Jury Member
Day 38
Jury Vote Danielle
(5-2)
Runner-Up
Aras
(5-2)
Sole Survivor
16 "Reunion" 12.3 4.6/N/A
Notes:
^1 Due to an odd number of castaways at the tribe switch, the odd person out was sent to Exile Island until after the following Tribal Council, when that castaway would join the tribe that lost a member.
^2 Combined Reward and Immunity Challenge.
^3 Per Survivor rules, in the event of a tie at the final four, a fire-making challenge would be held between the tied castaways. The challenge was shown in the next episode.

Voting History[]

Original
Tribes
Switched Tribes Merged Tribe
Episode 1 2 3 4 5 6 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
Voted Out S12 tina t
Tina
S12 melinda t
Melinda
S12 misty t
Misty
S12 ruthmarie t
Ruth Marie
S12 bobby t
Bobby
S12 dan t
Dan
S12 nick t
Nick
S12 austin t
Austin
S12 sally t
Sally
S12 bruce t
Bruce
S12 courtney t
Courtney
S12 shane t
Shane
Tie S12 cirie t
Cirie
S12 terry t
Terry
S12 danielle t
Danielle
S12 aras t
Aras
Vote 3-1 5-2 5-2 4-2 3-2-1-1 3-1 6-4 6-3 6-2 No vote3 3-2-1 3-1-1 2-24 Tiebreaker 1-05 5-2
Aras Melinda Bruce Nick Austin Sally Courtney Shane Danielle None Jury Vote
Danielle Melinda Bobby Nick Austin Sally Courtney Shane Cirie Terry
Terry Misty Ruth Marie Dan Shane Aras Aras Aras Aras Cirie None Aras
Cirie Tina Shane Bobby Nick Austin Sally Courtney Shane Danielle Eliminated Aras
Shane Melinda Aras Nick Austin Sally Danielle Danielle Danielle
Courtney Melinda Bobby Nick Austin Sally Aras Aras
Bruce Exiled1 Courtney Nick Austin Sally Evacuated Danielle
Sally Ruth Marie Ruth Marie Exiled2 Shane Aras Aras Aras
Austin Misty Ruth Marie Dan Shane Aras Aras
Nick Misty Ruth Marie Dan Shane
Dan Misty Sally Austin
Bobby Melinda Bruce
Ruth Marie Tina Misty Sally
Misty Ruth Marie
Melinda Tina Shane
Tina Cirie
Notes:
^1 Due to an odd number of contestants at the tribe switch, the odd person out was sent to Exile Island until after the following Tribal Council, when that player would join the tribe that lost a member.
^2 After winning the Immunity Challenge, Casaya was given the opportunity to exile one member of the losing tribe, allowing them to abstain from Tribal Council.
^3 Bruce was evacuated from the game due to severe gastrointestinal problems. No vote occurred for his removal.
^4 Per Survivor rules, in the event of a tie at the final four, a fire-making challenge would be held between the tied players. The challenge was shown in the next episode.
^5 Aras and Terry did not vote as they could only vote for each other. By virtue of winning the Final Immunity Challenge, only Danielle voted.

Trivia[]

  • All four original tribes were represented in the final four, with Aras Baskauskas, Danielle DiLorenzo, Terry Deitz, and Cirie Fields representing Viveros, Bayoneta, La Mina, and Casaya respectively.
  • Panama is the first season to have Exile Island as a season-long twist.
    • This is the first season to have a Hidden Immunity Idol at Exile Island; the two twists would often be associated with each other in future seasons.
  • Panama is the first season to have a gap between episodes longer than eight days. Coverage of the NCAA basketball tournament led to a 15-day gap between "A Closer Look" and "An Emerging Plan".
  • Panama is the first season to feature a shorter "Ancient Voices" intro rather than play the entire opening credits for every episode.
  • Only the final three castaways won individual immunity. Terry won the first five, then Aras won the penultimate, and Danielle won the Final Immunity Challenge.
  • Panama ties with Cook Islands for the most starting tribes, with four.
  • Panama is the first season to have an episode end with a Tribal Council vote, but no elimination. "Call the Whambulence!" ended with Danielle and Cirie preparing to start the fire-making tiebreaker, but its result was not featured until the finale.
  • Panama is the second season where the youngest contestant of the season won, after Jenna Morasca won in The Amazon.
  • Panama is the first season since Thailand to have a Tribal Council area with a roof.
  • Panama was the last season until Caramoan in which the first person voted out of the merged tribe was not a member of the jury.
  • Panama and Survivor 44 are tied for fewest votes cast throughout the season, including at Final Tribal Council, with only 85 ballots cast.
  • Panama is one of three seasons to have the entire final four come back as returning players in future seasons, the other two being Borneo and Cagayan.
    • As Borneo and Cagayan had other contestants return in future seasons, Panama is the only season to have only the final four come back as returning players.

References[]

Survivor (U.S.) Seasons
BorneoThe Australian OutbackAfricaMarquesasThailandThe AmazonPearl IslandsAll-StarsVanuatuPalauGuatemalaPanamaCook IslandsFijiChinaMicronesiaGabonTocantinsSamoaHeroes vs. VillainsNicaraguaRedemption IslandSouth PacificOne WorldPhilippinesCaramoanBlood vs. WaterCagayanSan Juan del SurWorlds ApartCambodiaKaôh RōngMillennials vs. Gen XGame ChangersHeroes vs. Healers vs. HustlersGhost IslandDavid vs. GoliathEdge of ExtinctionIsland of the IdolsWinners at WarSurvivor 41Survivor 42Survivor 43Survivor 44Survivor 45Survivor 46
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