"Face of the new era": Fans rejoice as Maryanne becomes the second Black woman to win Survivor after 20 years

Maryanne Oketch becomes the winner of Survivor Season 42 (Image via maryanneoketch/Instagram)

The epic season of Survivor Season 42 came to an end. The season finale of the reality competition aired on Wednesday, May 25, 2022, at 8.00 pm ET on CBS. The three-hour grand spectacle saw the five finalists give their best performance to win the title and a grand cash prize of $1 million.

Fans rejoiced as Maryanne fought her to win the title and claim the grand prize. One fan tweeted:

With 18 castaways, it was a challenging game from the beginning. To "outwin and outlast" each other, they engaged in many challenges, fought their way through strategies and alliances, and survived many jaw-dropping Tribal Councils to make it to the end. With 26 days in their bag, it was a matter of one contestant playing intelligent and complex to win Survivor.

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Fans react as Maryanne Oketch becomes the new champion of Survivor

Fans were thrilled as Maryanne became the second Black woman to win Survivor after 20 years and the second Canadian to win it in a row. Viewers took to social media to shower their wishes.

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What transpired on the season finale of Survivor Season 42?

The Top 5 finalists battled their best game to make it to the season finale of Survivor. Maryanne Oketch, Romeo Escobar, Mike Turner, Jonathan Young, and Lindsay Dolashewich brought their A-game with a clear goal to win the season and prove that they are worthy of being in the final episode.

However, when it comes to Survivor, dynamics can change, and the tides are unpredictable. Alliances formed can shift to someone else, challenges can be exhausting for some and a privilege for others, and Tribal Councils can be shocking. Something very similar happened in the finale.

At the beginning of the game, viewers knew that out of the five, Maryanne was the one who had the idol that could be used to save another member if she chose to play it. After Omar's elimination last week, his alliance Lindsay felt that she was in hot water and had the chance of getting eliminated at the first Tribal Council. She had only one opportunity going forth - winning the immunity challenge to keep herself safe and earn a spot in the Top 4.

Despite gaining the final advantage after solving a riddle, she fell short of one piece of the puzzle to Mike, who won the immunity that made him part of the Top 4. He chose Jonathan to take him along with the reward, who tried to convince the winner to play the idol on him. At the same time, Lindsay tried to manipulate Mike to play the idol to keep her safe.

Both their tricks didn't work on Mike as he played the idol to keep Maryanne safe, another power move by the latter to keep herself safe until the end without revealing she had an idol to play. Initially, she had to play it to save Lindsay, but the contestant chose against it, which led to the former getting eliminated.

In the second immunity challenge, the unexpected happened. Romeo, who was considered one of the weakest players, won immunity and the power to choose one person to take along to the final 3. He picked Maryanne, who left Mike and Jonathan to make fire and secure their spot alongside the two.

For the final Tribal Council, the three finalists had to prove to the jury (who were made up of eliminated contestants after the merge) why they deserved to win. After a practical grilling session, the votes were in and, like the previous season, were announced in the jungle. Maryanne was crowned the winner of Survivor Season 42.

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While Maryanne made history on the show, host Jeff Probst announced Season 43 of the show, bringing even more drama and exciting gameplay that viewers can look forward to. A whole new set of castaways will once again compete for the coveted title and cash prize of a million dollars.

What did you think of this season of CBS Survivor? Are you happy with the jury's decision? Let us know in the comments section below.