Rob Cesternino

Seriously, since the episode ended last week, Rob has given us:

1. The Know-It-Alls breakdown with former Survivor runner-up Stephen Fishbach.

2. The final installment in Josh Wigler's "First One Out" series, which he absolutely knocked out of the park.

3. An exit interview with the latest voted out castaway.

4. An episode recap with Survivor: Africa winner .

5. A 'fun and games' episode recap from Mike Bloom, Liana Boraas, and Jordan Parhar.

6. A 'Why _____ Lost' episode recap from David Bloomberg and former Survivor Jessica Lewis.

7. An episode feedback show with Taran Armstrong.

8. An episode of the Wiggle Room, with Josh Wigler, breaking down the story of the first episode.

That totals roughly 10 hours of Survivor content, and it covers pretty much every angle from which you can enjoy the show.

Rob and everyone at RHAP, keep up the fantastic work!

It’s the off-season. So we of course we are seeing a million "Survivor Rushmore" and other such ranking threads pop up. And one consistent trend I've noticed is that there is very little love for Rob Cesternino and his legacy on this sub. Don't get me wrong, Rob has his fans here. But so many are tied simply to RHAP and don't really seem to recognize his game or his influence on it.

I think a big part of that is the fandom, and this sub resultantly, has trended young in recent years. A lot of people here haven't watched Amazon and those who have didn't watch it contemporaneously. Which you kinda need to do (or at least watch the seasons in order) to really appreciate what a huge influence Rob C. had on this game's evolution, an influence that carries through to this day and the modern game.

I think another part of it is, unlike someone like Boston Rob and a few other greats, Rob C. hasn't had Probst and production as his personal hype team. He has shifted into his role as a "Survivor journalist" (for lack of better wording) and that, in many ways, has divorced him from production and the game itself. In addition, he doesn't really self-promote. Rob very seldom, if ever, talks about his own game on his podcast. He may share experiences he had as a player, but he never really talks about how he changed the game, what his legacy is, etc. He uses the platform to focus on others, not himself, unlike some of the other former players who have podcasts (Russell, I am looking in your direction).

Its led to a chain of events where Rob really isn't recognized for what he contributed to the game as a player, but rather what he contributed as a Survivor pundit. Its almost the John Madden effect. So few appreciate what a groundbreaking coach John Madden was because they know him for his broadcasting career (or even his video game series) more than his time as a coach.

But that really is unfortunate that Rob's legacy as a player is becoming lost on the modern fandom. I've often said, if Rich Hatch is this game's George Washington, Rob C. is its Thomas Jefferson, in the sense that he laid down and pioneered a lot of the fundamental tenents that carry through to the modern Survivor game. Rob was really the first player to look at this game as a fluid, living thing and adapt more of a pendulum-esque strategy than the more rigid "get the numbers and rule from the top down" strategies the preceded him. Basically every attribute and trait that we associate with a good, modern Survivor game, Rob pioneered. His influence is still felt today, more than any other early player's influence on this game.

Even when you look at the social game, Rob seemed to be the first person to really use personal relationships, built through his sense of humor (remember the relevance of the 8 ball as his luxury item) and bonds to exert influence over the game in a way beyond "we're allies, let's vote together." His social bonds are what allowed him to hop back and forth between sides without really losing standing in the game. Its what allowed him to betray virtually every player in the game, and still be a guaranteed lock to beat either Jenna or Matthew had he won that final competition.

Rob is a pioneer. Even in terms of Survivor media coverage, can you think of anyone more influential or anything more influential than RHAP?

The brilliance of Rob Cesternino and his impact on the game cannot be understated. Yet sadly, on this sub and in the fandom, it has been. So can we take a minute to just give our a boy a shout out for everything he has done for Survivor?

He was Survivor's first "revolutionary" player since Hatch, and Probst said at the time he was the smartest player that didn't win, but was he talked about among casuals and the media? Was he instantly seen as a Survivor precursor like Russell was for the 20's?

I love Rob has a podcast, and got interested in podcasts, so this semester at college I joined a podcasting class. Today we have a guest presenter and he put up a list of his most listened to podcasts, and RHAP is on there!! The presenter said he doesn't watch a lot of shows besides strategic based reality competitions, and said Survivor is one of his favorite shows, followed by Big Brother and TAR. I thought it was so cool

Per his snapchat, Nicole gave birth to their second child, Anthony Joseph Cesternino, earlier tonight.

I think Rob Cesternino is the best player to never win (yes, i know Cirie exsists). He controlled the game from start to finish, being able to flip on alliances without burning many people, other then the Alex vote. It was said by many famous villains (Tony, Russell and Fairplay) that Rob was the blueprint for survivor villains, and he was the one who they based their games off of. It pains me that he hasn't returned since All stars despite all the times hes been asked, and I cried so hard when he was voted out. What are your thoughts?

Anyone want to debate with me about how Rob isn't the best player to never win? I'm ready when you are :)

Does anyone know why? I follow Goddess Nicole Cesternino on Instagram and she just quit her job as a nurse at an LA hospital. People in the comments thought they were moving back to New York but it’s to North Carolina according to Nicole. Does anyone know why?

In the pre-season cast interviews released by CBS, when asked the question “Which past Survivor will you play the game most like?” Omar’s answer was: “Rob Cesternino’s strategic prowess – he really understood the power dynamics and when to shift the game, and also made people feel comfortable with humor. He was also able to articulate his game beautifully in confessional.”

I remember thinking that that it was rare in modern survivor to see the smartest player to never win’s name be brought up as inspiration by players - I think the last time was Christian on DvG, not certain - but I had a strong feeling about Omar and he was my winner pick from then on (probably helped that were both Muslims and from Ontario lmao.)

After watching him run the entire season and clearly stake his title as the mastermind of Survivor 42 and one of the best players we’ve seen in YEARS - a clear lock on the next returnee season - I do think I see a lot of similarities to Rob’s game from the Amazon. Being in everyone’s pocket, whilst swaying them on how you want them to go but making them think it’s their plan - Rob with Heidi; Omar with Mike - socially and strategically dominating without relying on comp wins - both only won one individual comp each on their seasons. I do think Omar is the modern day Rob Cesternino, does he assume the title of smartest player to never win? Not yet in my books, maybe if he dominates once more on a second run - shoutout Cirie too obvi she’s tied for the top spot in my book just quoting Probst.

Let me know what y’all think and can’t wait for the finale 🤙🏽