If you are like my family, then this past Wednesday night at 8 o’clock, you were patiently waiting for the new season of Survivor to pop onto the TV screen.

For those who are unfamiliar with the series, it is a reality TV show in which twenty people are brought to an isolated island. While there, they must endure not only the task of obtaining food, water, and shelter but also go through challenges that ultimately lead to a tribal council in which the tribe must vote out one of its members sending them home.

To make matters more interesting, all of the players are fighting for one thing: the million-dollar prize.

This show has been around for quite some time and has seen many seasons, however, the newest season—season 40—brings back all of the former winners of various seasons to come together for the opportunity to win the show again.

While the logistics of the season still remain, they also decided to throw in some new twists. 

One of the most intriguing additions to the show is the more powerful incentive: instead of one million dollars, the show is now awarding the winner two million dollars.

Along with this, they have also brought back a fan favorite called the “Island of Extinction.” This isolated location is where voted off players can choose to go in hopes of, at some point, returning to the game.

Though the new additions of the show are something to look forward to deeper into the season, the players themselves are something to be excited about all on their own because of the legacy that they bring with them.

One of which is Sandra Diaz-Twine, who is the only person in Survivor history to have won twice.

While she refers to herself as the “queen” in the show, everyone else who is playing with her calls her sneaky. However, while her schemes may seem harsh, her spunky personality and cunning gameplay are quite entertaining for the audience. 

Due to the high stakes, she will not be giving up anytime soon, until she is crowned—for the third time—the winner of Survivor.

The face that was most heartwarming to see, however, was Ethan Zohn, who was the winner of Survivor in its third season.

In 2009, Ethan was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma—a rare form of blood cancer. After going through the treatments to try to get rid of his cancer, it, unfortunately, came back in 2011.

Now in remission, Ethan has decided to make a big comeback with hopes of again winning the two-million-dollar prize.

Based solely on the first episode of season 40 of Survivor, it is already clear to me that this is going to be the best season yet due to the royalty that lies within the cast.

While it will be hard to see some of my favorite players get eliminated, I am very excited to see whether someone will join Sandra and be a two-time winner, or if Sandra will, for the third time, be crowned the champion.