Survivor Season 34: Millennials vs Gen X just wrapped up and millennial Adam Klein was crowned the 33rd winner of Survivor in Survivor's fifth ever unanimous jury decision, 10-0-0. By no means do I consider Adam a poor winner: I have him ranked as the 14th best winner so most certainly a worthy winner however did he really deserve the jury sweep? Co-runners-up Ken McNickle and Hannah Shapiro also played decent games and neither were goats (had Ken won I would have ranked him the 16th best winner and Hannah I would have ranked the 17th best winner) so overall the final 3 were fairly evenly matched...or, so it appears. So how come the 10-0-0 jury sweep for Adam?
#1 A great final tribal performance
Adam hands down had the best performance of anyone at the FTC, always answering with intelligence and respect. Ken was all over the map, not claiming his moves for what they were worth, never mentioning the fact that he was the strongest physical competitor all season and never paying an apology to those he blindsided. Hannah was a bit better but did not answer with the same maturity Adam did and also lied several times, claiming moves were hers when they were really Adam's. Hannah also got completely OWNED by Jessica when Hannah said that she was never on the wrong side of the vote, and then Jessica said "except for the Michaela vote?" and Hannah said "yeah, except then". Arguably the Michaela vote was the most important vote all season (except for possibly the David vote at the very end) so the fact that Hannah was on the wrong side of that vote is a big deal. So, yes, all things said and done, Adam completely owned the FTC.
#2 Adam had a "David Murphy"
Chris was one of the last jurors to speak and gave a very memorable speech, channeling his lawyer ways and advocating for Adam. Although I don't think this was quite as dramatic or influential a speech as some speeches (Spencer's advocating for Tony in Cagayan is an example) these speeches really do make a difference and Chris could have easily turned a vote or two for Adam.
#3 This jury respects big moves
This season was full of gamers, especially these jurors, and they truly respect big moves. I don't think we've ever seen a season, other than this one, in which there have been so many blindsides but not very many hurt feelings. I love that but it is unusual. So, being there a lot of gamers on this jury, they could see that Adam was the best player. Even though it may be only by a little bit, he was the best player, and they could tell. I also see Hannah's strength being her social game and Ken's biggest strength his physical game but Adam's biggest strength was his strategic game, and I think that in addition to this jury respecting good players, they respect big moves. Give this jury the Kaoh Rong final 3 and Aubry wins, not Michele. Give this jury the Heroes vs Villains final 3 and Parvati wins, not Sandra. Give this jury the Worlds Apart final 3 and Carolyn might win, Mike might not. Simply put, this jury respected Adam's type of play more than Hannah's or Ken's.
#4 The sympathy vote
The very last thing said by any of the three finalists at Final Tribal was Adam telling the story about his mom with stage 4 lung cancer. I don't think Adam was trying hard for the sympathy vote here, but he did mention it in a beautiful way, going back to almost getting on San Juan del Sur with his mom. If anyone was on the fence, this probably pushed them over.
THE WRAPUP: Adam did deserve to win and I'm glad he did, but Ken and Hannah probably deserved a vote or two. 7 (Adam)-2 (Ken)-1 (Hannah) or even 6-2-2 may have been a more accurate portrayal of this season's final 3, however, this jury came together respecting each other, Adam's FTC performance, Adam's big moves and Adam's life story awarding him the million dollars 10-0-0.
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