Characters / Survivor: China

The Tribes

Fei Long

Color/ namesake: red/ fēilóng, Mandarin for "flying dragon, wyvern"

Members (start): Aaron Reisberger, Amanda Kimmel, Courtney Yates, Denise Martin, James Clement, Jean-Robert Bellande, Leslie Nease, Todd Herzog

Members (swap): Amanda Kimmel, Courtney Yates, Denise Martin, Frosti Zernow, Jean-Robert Bellande, Sherea Lloyd, Todd Herzog

Fei Long was immediately distinguished for being the stronger of the two starting tribes. Not only did they have a capable lineup, but they handled camp life much better than their rivals Zhan Hu. However, their success meant they couldn't vote out sources of conflict and had a more chaotic relationship with each other at the merge. Ultimately, Todd Herzog and Amanda Kimmel's majority alliance pulled through and wiped out the remaining Zhan Hus by the final four.

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• Animal Motifs: Dragons.
• Comically Lopsided Rivalry: The only time their dominance is ever threatened is at the swap, but Todd is able to spin even this to his advantage by giving James his idols.
• Law of Chromatic Superiority: Red, and dominant throughout the game.

Zhan Hu

Color/ namesake: yellow/ zhàn hǔ, Mandarin for "fighting tiger"

Members (start): Ashley Massaro, Chicken Morris, Dave Cruser, Erik Huffman, Frosti Zernow, Jaime Dugan, Peih-Gee Law, Sherea Lloyd

Members (swap): Aaron Reisberger, Erik Huffman, Jaime Dugan, James Clement, Peih-Gee Law

Beset by wildnerness inexperience and constant arguing, the Zhan Hu camp was a miserable environment across the board. This reflected in challenges too; only three of the ten team challenges were won by Zhan Hu. They entered the merge with two people less than Fei Long, and came close to exploiting their rivals's disloyalties. Despite their efforts, Fei Long kept it together and Pagonged the Zhan Hu by day 37.

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• Animal Motifs: Tigers.
• Born Unlucky: A major reason they lose so much. The tribe lacks cohesion and often isn’t productive, but they also get hit with a conga line of bad luck. Among other issues:
  • One of their strongest physical members, Ashley, is sick from day one and never fully recovers by the time she's voted off.
  • Jaime gives the first idol clue to Leslie, with no way of knowing that the latter would give the clue to the othe tribe's Todd Herzog.
  • Repeated rains end up flooding their camp, wasting days of effort.
  • A large amount of their rice supply is destroyed by mold.
  • Winds up in the tribal swap down 5 to Fei Long's 7.
• Failure Hero: Has plenty of likable characters, but are no less doomed for it.
• For Want Of A Nail: Ashley’s sickness robbed the tribe of one of its physically strongest members. This put the tribe at a huge disadvantage in challenges, which resulted in a cascade effect, as the team lost reward after reward and immunity after immunity.
• Total Party Kill: The remnants of Zhan Hu end up getting eliminated before the final four.

Hae Da Fung

Color/ namesake: black/ ''hēi dàfēng", Mandarin(?) for "black windstorm"

Members: Amanda Kimmel, Courtney Yates, Denise Martin, Erik Huffman, Frosti Zernow, Jaime Dugan, James Clement, Jean-Robert Bellande, Peih-Gee Law, Todd Herzog

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• As Long as It Sounds Foreign: Allegedly, the phrase is butchered Mandarin.

The Sole Survivor

1. Todd Herzog

Tribe: Fei Long -> Fei Long -> Hae Da Fung

Age: 22

Hometown/ residence: Pleasant Grove, Utah

Occupation: flight attendant

Vote: 4-2-1

Todd was always the strategic mastermind on Fei Long and orchestrated nearly all of the game's blindsides and key plays. He garnered many close allies and never took any character hits in the many dramatic episodes engulfing the season. Towards the end, he expressed doubt he'd win after backstabbing so many people, but these fears were put to rest by his clear strategic proof and charismatic jury performance. He won the title of Sole Survivor in a handy 4-2-1 split, with little competition the entire game.

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• Affably Evil: Will backstab his friends and allies without a single thought, but always makes it clear that it's nothing personal.
• Ascended Fan: He's a long-time Survivor fan with extensive knowledge of the game. It shows.
• At Least I Admit It: One of the reasons why he won is because he owned up to everything he did to get further in the game.
• The Bad Guy Wins: But he's not a full-fledged one in the way, say, Richard Hatch of Borneo and Brian Heidik of Thailand were. He still was so extremely devious that he became an obvious threat during the end game.
• The Chessmaster: The driving force behind most of the intrigue in the season.
• Deadpan Snarker: His reaction to Jean Robert finding out there's idol sums it all up.
• Evil Genius / The Smart Guy: Explicitly states that he realized coming in that his only hope is to out-strategize the competition, which he does successfully.
• Guile Hero: Courtney was the favorite going into the finale, but his impressive showing marked him the winner.
• The Man Behind the Man: While Aaron appeared as the leader of Fei Long before the swap, Todd was actually the one calling the shots for his tribe.
• Manipulative Bastard: His likability and people skills help him manipulate almost everyone into doing his bidding. Particular noteworthy are his manipulation of Frosti (who is tricked into flipping on the false assumption that he's become a fully integrated member of the alliance) and his stroking of Jean-Robert's ego to secure his finale vote.
• Non-Action Guy: Todd is one of the few winners to not win a single individual immunity challenge.
• Negated Moment of Awesome: Happen twice in the individual challenges
  • Todd was leading the way in the final 6 immunity challenge but got an wrong key. The mistake allowed Peih-Gee to win immunity.
  • In the final 5 reward challenge, Todd landed 5 of his 6 arrows on his targets. However, Denise ended up winning the challenge because Courtney landed on Denise's targets more than Todd's.
• Shorter Means Smarter: Shorter than most men on the tribe, but runs rings around all of them.
• Sole Survivor: The fifteenth one.
• Straight Gay: Less in his interests and styling, more in his jockish attitude.
• The Strategist: One of his most dominant traits, especially given that at least two people have described him as devious after first meeting him. His plan was to bring Amanda on account of her physical prowess, and Courtney for being an obvious goat. It worked.
• This Is for Emphasis, Bitch!: He uses this a lot.
• Worthy Opponent: Especially to Jean-Robert.

The Runners-Up

2. Courtney Yates

Tribe: Fei Long -> Fei Long -> Hae Da Fung

Age: 26

Hometown: Boston, Massachussetts

Residence: New York, New York

Occupation: waitron

Vote: 4-2-1

Expecting to leave early and be forgotten, Courtney immediately became recognized for her snarky and shifty personality. She was typically bad at challenges and a liability in alliance plans, yet connived herself all the way to the end. Ultimately, the jury chose Todd Herzog to win for his proactive gameplay and impressive jury performance, with Courtney nabbing two votes for her effective character arc.

Courtney was selected to compete on Heroes vs. Villains

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• Badass Adorable: Somehow managed to become a finalist despite her half-assing the game. She even managed to win an immunity!
  Courtney (to Jean-Robert): I won an immunity, did you win an immunity?
• Call-Back: References Jonny Fairplay's Dead Grandma Lie when Todd said her sister's
• Child Hater: Admitted to being one at the reunion.
• The Cutie: Non-threatening, likeable, and sometimes emotional. All in spite of (or perhaps including) her Deadpan Snarker attitude.
• Deadpan Snarker: One of the show's best examples.
• Fag Hag: To Todd.
• Intergenerational Friendship: With Leslie, for the brief time Leslie was around.
• Jerkass: She's not one to be gentle in her snarking. The best example of this comes a little after Denise spoke about her fears of being poor if she goes home empty-handed:
  Courtney: Are you kidding me?! This ism't, like, welfare. Like, she doesn't deserve it just 'cause, you know, she...sucks at life.

[[Main/Beat *beat*]]

Courtney: (now grinning to herself) I'm the biggest bitch on the planet.

• This was never said to Denise's face, but Jeff Probst made sure to grill her about it at the reunion. She immediately flips him off in return.

• Kid-Appeal Character: Despite hating children, it makes sense. She's very small, relies heavily on luck and likability, but makes almost to the finish line in spite of having little going for her.
• Lean and Mean: She's quite skinny. She's quite rude.
• The Load: She's the one who sits out of the most challenges because of her lack of physical prowess. Most of her strategy came from following orders by her alliance, which she often threatened to derail in favor of somebody that personally got on her nerves. Again, she still made the final three and won an immunity on her own.
• No-Damage Run: Despite being an incredible challenge and strategic liability, and having her name tossed about many times, she doesn't get a single vote against her and only loses at the finale.
• Ship Tease: With Frosti.
• The Snark Knight: One of the most sarcastic, acerbic players in Survivor history. Outright says she hates everyone in the game at one point.
• Wins by Doing Absolutely Nothing: How she won her only individual immunity. The challenge was to sit on a seat that slowly becomes less stable, which is also the only challenge where her petite frame is an asset. While everyone struggles and shakes, she's as solid as a rock.
  Courtney: "I'm lazy!"
  • In general, she did pretty much zero strategizing all throughout the season, was an active liability in challenges, and threatened to blow up alliance plans because she disliked certain people. She even expected herself to be booted pre-jury but somehow made it all the way to the finals.

3. Amanda Kimmel

Tribe: Fei Long -> Fei Long -> Hae Da Fung

Age: 22

Hometown: Montana

Residence: Los Angeles, California

Occupation: hiking guide

Vote: 4-2-1

Amanda came into the game under the radar, but quickly ingratiated herself with Todd Herzog's Fei Long alliance. She became his second-in-command and acted as a diplomat to some of his schemes. As the numbers dwindled, she tried her best to blindside Todd and make a name for herself, to no avail. At the final jury, she could only get a pity vote from Erik due to her perceived weaker gameplay.

Amanda was chosen to compete on Fans vs. Favorites and later, Heroes vs. Villains.

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• Action Girl: Her ability to defeat Denise and Peih-Gee in the last two immunity challenges was crucial in determining the final three.
• Aloof Dark-Haired Girl: Can be rather distant and awkward at times.
• Commonality Connection: When she hangs out with Peih-Gee after being denied the opportunity to go on a reward challenge, it's evident that they are both rather awkward people. They form a bond that lasts post-game.
• Ms. Fanservice: Former Miss Montana, ladies and gentlemen.
• Nice Girl: Has a kind heart, though her social awkwardness sometimes gets in the way of expressing it.
• No-Damage Run: Received no votes the entire game, due to being likable enough and managing her threat level. However, spending too long in Todd’s shadow, combined with a very bad final tribal council performance, lead to her losing at the finish line. Her one vote came from Erik, who felt bad that she wouldn't get any votes.
• Poor Communication Kills: Part of why she lost the final tribal council. It carried over in Micronesia as well.
• The Runner-Up Takes It All: Or rather, the ''second'' runner up takes it all.
• Statuesque Stunner

The Jury

4. Denise Martin

Tribe: Fei Long -> Fei Long -> Hae Da Fung

Age: 40

Hometown: Revere, Massachussetts

Residence: Douglas, Massachussetts

Occupation: school lunch server

Eliminated: 3-1, Day 38

Denise's older age, down-to-earth attitude, and working class background distinguished her from her Fei Long tribemates, but she hardly popped up on the radar. This also meant she was an outsider to the Fei Long alliance, and was unanimously voted out before the finale.

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• Fish out of Water: A big theme of her story was her experiences on reward trips where she was completely amazed and humbled by the culture she'd never experienced.
• Hidden Depths: Would you believe she's a black belt in Kenpo? She also used to repair video game machines.
• Out of Focus: Early in the season entire episodes would go by without her having a single confessional. It's only after James and Aaron are sent to Zhan Hu that she starts getting attention.
• Perpetual Poverty: Denise discusses how that while Todd will have his flight attendant job, Courtney will have her waitressing job and Amanda will have her modelling career after the show, this trope is all Denise has to go back to after the show is over. But, it was since revealed that she had lied about this.
• Picked Last: She sometimes spoke about being bullied growing up, and lightheartedly related it to her outsider status in the game.
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech: To Amanda and Todd and final tribal council.
• Ungrateful Bitch: Peih-Gee takes her on a once-in-a-lifetime trip to the Shaolin Temple. Denise refuses to return the favor despite winning two subsequent rewards, explicitly with the goal of starving Peih-Gee. Peih-Gee was very upset at this, and her animosity towards Denise continued outside the game.
• Unwitting Pawn: And then immediately thrown away the final four.
• You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: Serves only as an extra vote for Todd. She is dumped the moment all the Zhan Hus are eliminated.

5. Peih-Gee Law

Tribe: Zhan Hu -> Zhan Hu -> Hae Da Fung

Age: 29

Hometown: Hong Kong, China/ Los Angeles, California

Residence: Marina del Rey, California

Occupation: Jeweler

Eliminated: 4-1, Day 36

The longest-lasting member of the Zhan Hu tribe, Peih-Gee more than overcame almost being eliminated first. Though not the particularly happy in the wild, she became part of the core of Zhan Hu and entered the merge at the center of its leadership. Zhan Hu's numbers disadvantage meant Peih-Gee effectively lost control of her game. She kept herself in the game by winning immunities and obliging whenever the Fei Longs targeted themselves. This eventually ran out on day 36, when Peih-Gee (and by extension Zhan Hu) was finally defeated.

Peih-Gee was chosen via public vote to return for The second Chance season.

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• Action Girl: Achieved two clutch immunity wins, keeping her in the game until the final five, despite being identified as a big threat right at the merge.
• Born Unlucky: Peih-Gee was on the weaker tribe pre-merge, in the minority post-merge, and singled out as a threat with those factors and her relative strength combined.
• Butt-Monkey: Read Born Unlucky.
• The Cassandra: Makes several correct observations and predictions, but is usually ignored due to being ostracized. Most notably, she realized Todd was a huge threat to win and was frustrated by the tribes reluctance to blindside him.
• Deadpan Snarker: Has her moments. For example, her first voting confessional:

Peih-Gee: Really lived up to your nickname this time, Chicken.

• Determinator: She did everything she could to make sure she wouldn't go home, including winning two clutch immunities. She ended up in the final five, but not for a lack of trying.
• Facial Markings: She paints her face in multiple challenges.
• Foreshadowing: Peih-Gee's confessional about feeling like she was on an losing tribe.
• For Want Of A Nail: They jury unanimously agrees that they would have voted for her if she, Denise and Erik were in the final three.
• Graceful Loser: After being eliminated, she states she’s very proud of making it to the final five and the experience she had doing it.
• Last of Her Kind: The last Zhan Hu left.
• Plucky Girl: If any one word could adequately describe her in this season, it would be "scrappy".
• Sitcom Arch-Nemesis: Treats Denise as this because after giving her inviting her to the Shaolin temple, Denise doesn't return the favor in any way. It was a completely strategic move on Denise's part (albeit a bad one), but the feud grew enough for her to hate Denise outside the game.
• The Strategist: When trying to find ways to vote off Todd. She notes in her AMA that it's strange nobody else tried voting him off, considering the amount of power he had. She and Jaime also came up with the idea to exploit the swap by voting off Aaron.
• Took a Level in Kindness: Started as Alpha Bitch of Zhan Hu, but by the merge, she mellowed.

6. Erik Huffman

Tribe: Zhan Hu -> Zhan Hu -> Hae Da Fung

Age: 26

Hometown: Greenville, South Carolina

Residence: Nashville, Tennessee

Occupation: musician

Eliminated: 4-2, Day 33

Never a power center but charming and down-to-earth, Erik flew under the radar for more than a month into the game. As the Pagonging of the Zhan Hus continued, Erik quickly began living on borrowed time. After Peih-Gee won immunity at the final 6, the Fei Long alliance quickly came together to send him home.

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• The Generic Guy: Doesn't get a lot of character focus compared to the rest of the cast. This is less due to him being vapid or Out of Focus, but his sheer level-headedness next to his hammier competitors.
• Mr. Fanservice: Everyone comments on how handsome he is.
• Nature Abhors a Virgin: He tells only one person (Jaime) that he's a virgin. She ends up being his future wife.
• Nice Guy: All the players thought he was the nicest guy on the face of the Earth by the final 5. He even voted for Amanda because he felt bad that no one else would vote for her.
• Pretty Boy: Probably the most handsome member of the cast. This is not lost on Amanda, who calls him adorable and cites this as a reason to keep him around, and James calls him beautiful.
• Out of Focus: Until the Zhan Hus are reduced to him and Peih-Gee, which is to say, his last two episodes.
• Ship Tease: With Jaime. They got married and had children post-show.

7. James Clement (IV)

Tribe: Fei Long -> Zhan Hu -> Hae Da Fung

Age: 30

From: Lafayette, Louisiana

Occupation: gravedigger

Eliminated: 5-1-1, Day 30

Incredibly strong but incredibly whiny, James had an odd relationship with most of his fellow contestants. His skill in challenges and relative familiarity with camp life got him in the good graces of alliance bosses Todd and Amanda. A series of schemes by Todd left him with two immunity idols by the individual phase, boosting his chances of survival. Unfortunately for him, the Fei Longs realized they had a massive threat on their hands and conspired with all the other players to blindside him on day 30.

James was selected to return for The first Fans Vs. Favorites and Heroes Vs. Villains.

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• The Big Guy: Fei-Long's greatest physical asset, dominating physical competitions.
• Big Eater: Jean-Robert got on James for eating extra rice and On the Day 27 immunity challenge, James opted out to eat burgers instead. Once the time was up, James claimed he ate 7 out of 12 burgers.
• Breakout Character: Won the fan favorite award this time and in the next season.
• The Dreaded: The Zhan Hus hate going up against him because there's pretty much zero chance he'd lose a physical competition.
• Gentle Giant: Maybe not gentle, but his aggression bears more resemblance to a petty Alpha Bitch than a violent Jerk Jock. He's also got a great sense of humor.
• Heroic Build: His most dominant characteristic is his sheer size, becoming a large contribution to his team's challenges.
• Ineffectual Loner: James admitted he like being a gravedigger because he likes being by himself.
• Irony: Repeatedly advises his alliance “not to eat the apple”, i.e., to trust the alliance and not get tempted into breaking it. Not long after, his own alliance blindsides him.
• The Juggernaut: Completely unbeatable in any contact challenge. He could pretty much solo the entire Zhan Hu tribe. Despite this, he's never won an individual immunity.
• Mr. Fanservice: One of the most impressive physical specimens ever invited on the show.
• Oh, the Humanity!: Said this when the very real prospect of being transferred to Zhan Hu.
• Pixellation: James had his ass blurred out while Showering at the Chinese bathhouse.
• Rejected Apology: At one point, Peih-Gee loses her temper and blames him after losing a reward challenge. After she cools down, she comes back to apologize, but James bitterly rejects her apology.
• Scary Black Man: He's very imposing. Nice Guy, though.
• Tall, Dark, and Snarky: Whenever his many complaints are more deadpan and isolated.
• Took a Level in Jerkass: Becomes noticeably more rude and grumpy post-merge, as he’s living with several Zhan Hu members he dislikes. Todd Herzog also said for as much as he likes James, the edit cut off a lot of his bitching pre-merge.
• The Unintelligible: Sometimes, his Cajun accent gets so thick that you won't understand a single word he's saying.

8. Michael "Frosti" Zernow

Tribe: Zhan Hu -> Fei Long -> Hae Da Fung

Age: 20

Hometown: Traverse City, Michigan

Residence: Chicago, Illinois

Occupation: student, athlete

Eliminated: 7-1, Day 27

A social butterfly and strong competitor on the barely-functional Zhan Hu tribe, Frosti spent the first couple weeks out of trouble. The tribe swap forced him to defect to the Fei Longs, making the rest of his stay an uphill battle. He was never able to reconcile being between two alliances, and Frosti was voted out unanimously on day 27.

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• But Not Too Foreign: Stated in his Profile that he is half-Russian and half-Japanese.
• Informed Flaw: Frosti states he sucks with memory games. However he won the first immunity challenge and nearly won immunity in his last episode, and both challenges involved memory.
• Kid Hero: He was the youngest contestant of the season and was at the time, the youngest player ever.
• Le Parkour: An honest-to-goodness practitioner of it, but his skills weren't put on display for the challenges very often.
• Lightning Bruiser: Being a freerunner, he's one of the fastest and most agile players in the game. However, he was far from the strongest overall.
• Loved by All: Despite being an obvious target across the merge, the other castaways genuinely liked him and lamented having to send him home.
• Neutrality Backlash: Not as bad as other examples, but playing both sides ultimately does him.
• Only Known by Their Nickname: Frosti. None of the other players nor Jeff Probst say "Michael".
• Pint-Size Powerhouse: Frosti stated he was the smallest on Zhan Hu. He was also the most athletic of his tribe and performed well in all of the individual immunity challenge.
• The Quisling: Defects to Fei Long while still letting Zhan Hu think he’s on their side. He’s actually at the bottom of Fei Long’s alliance, but doesn’t realize it till he’s voted out.
• Rewarded as a Traitor Deserves: Defects to Fei Long believing that he's become a fully integrated member, only to be unanimously voted out by both by Fei Long and Zhan Hu alike.
• Ship Tease: With Courtney. She still calls him "my little munchkin" in the rites of passage.
• Spanner in the Works: He becomes an issue when he catches Todd and Amanda prying off the Hidden Immunity Idol, so the two are forced to include him in the alliance. Not that it becomes that big an issue, since he's voted out rather easily.
• Tagalong Kid: At first to Zhan Hu, then to Todd's alliance.

9. Jean-Robert Bellande

Tribe: Fei Long -> Fei Long -> Hae Da Fung

Age: 36

Hometown: Long Island, New York/ Beijing, China

Residence: Las Vegas, Nevada

Occupation: poker player, club promoter

Eliminated: 5-3-1, Day 24

Jean-Robert was the primary source of conflict on Fei Long and narrowly escaped elimination multiple times. The Fei Longs saw him as lazy, sexist, condescending, and argumentive, and summarily kept him out of the loop. However, his relative strength in challenges and extra number in the Fei Long alliance saw him somewhat overstay his welcome. After learning that James was in possession of two idols, Jean-Robert confronted about Todd his actual role in the alliance. This move made Todd realize he had run out of use as a pawn, and Jean-Robert was blindsided at the day 24 Tribal Council.

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• Appeal to Flattery: He voted for Todd to win because Todd complimented him so hard that he was actually stunned.
• Character Development: Invoked. His plan was to be lazy and uncooperative at the start of the game, so when he did start to become helpful around camp, his tribemates would mistake that for the aforementioned trope. It didn't especially work, but Fei Long's winning streak and Todd's schemes meant he lasted further than one would expect.
• The Comically Serious: Sometimes, such as anytime the editors show him trying to strategize or when he swore he wouldn't vote for Todd if he got oustered by him.
• French Jerk: Granted, his family's Haitian and he was raised across Asia, but he's jerk and a faux-intellectual at that.
• The Friend Nobody Likes: Only James really liked him that much, and even he had a hard time putting up with his condescension. Notably, he's one of the few players who have received from votes from everybody else in their tribe without being voted out at their first tribal council.
• Hidden Depths: Shocks everyone when it turns out he speaks semi-fluent Mandarin, which comes in handy when a Chinese fisherman and his family visit Fei Long as a reward challenge prize. Fei Long continues to use him as a translator up until his elimination.
• Informed Ability/ The Cobbler's Children Have No Shoes: His poker skills and his ability to read people, considering everyone on his tribe thinks he's a sleazy scumbag. He was able to make one right call: that Todd should NOT be trusted. You'd also think a club promoter would do better socially, not have everyone vote for him at least once and be in no alliances.
• Jerkass: The primary source of conflict on Fei Long, and had votes received at every tribal council he attended. It was so obvious that even visiting Zhan Hus saw him as an obvious target.
• Lazy Bum: Deliberately invoked this trope in order to lower the tribe's expectations of him and then pleasantly surprise them when he did start working hard. It only worked partially.
• Locked Out of the Loop: Thanks to his personality, no alliance wanted to plan anything with him. Todd and the Fei Long inner circle did, however, keep him around as an extra vote and jury goat.
• Muscles Are Meaningless: He looks a tad overweight, but is about as good as the well-built Aaron in challenges.
• Pixellation: During the episode 2 reward challenge mud wrestling/ handball match.
• Politically Incorrect Villain: One of the many reasons Courtney dislikes him is because he has chauvinistic tendencies (e.g. calling her a piece of ass, comments about bathing with her, refusing to sleep without being next to her.).
• Sitcom Arch-Nemesis: To Courtney, and the feeling was mutual. Courtney found him a vain creep, while Jean-Robert found her a whiny idiot.
• Small Name, Big Ego: Genuinely believed himself to be the best player in the game. The actual sequence of events that leads to his being voted out proves otherwise, and he actually refuses to admit he made mistakes as a player at the reunion in spite of it.
• The Pawn: His usual "role" in Todd's schemes. When Jean-Robert finds out about this and confronts Todd, Todd finally sends him packing.
• The Strategist: Attempted to be this, but it never really panned out.
• Tall, Dark, and Snarky: But he's not shown to be particularly handsome or cunning.
• Worthy Opponent: Considers Todd this when all is said and done.

10. Jaime Dugan

Tribe: Zhan Hu -> Zhan Hu -> Hae Da Fung

Age: 21

Hometown: Sunrise, Florida

Residence: Columbia, South Carolina

Occupation: Student

Eliminated: 7-3, Day 21

Along with Peih-Gee, Jaime was the brains behind Zhan Hu and typically voted with the majority. This quality, along with her upbeat and kind personality, put a target on her back. Knowing she was in trouble, she scrambled to save herself with a doorpost she thought was an idol. The ploy obviously failed, and Zhan Hus numbers took another blow without her.

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• The Cutie: The reason why Fei Long decided to kidnap her. They believed that taking her would bring down the group's morale.
• Disc-One Final Boss: Had the strategic and social chops to go far, but is taken out at the merge.
• Dumb Blonde / Obfuscating Stupidity: Played with. Jaime wanted to give the impression she was dumb while she operated in the shadows. While some of the cast believed it, people like James, Jean-Robert, and Todd saw through the ruse and marked her as the biggest threat. Her last episode has her playing a wooden plank that wasn't the immunity idol, making her look especially foolish on the way out.
• Failed a Spot Check: Mistaking a plank of wood for the hidden immunity idol. To her credit, see Wrong Genre Savvy.
• Giggling Villain / Smug Snake: Her three episode arc cementing her as Zhan Hu's strategist involves her and Peih-Gee throwing a challenge to get the ever-heroic James or Aaron out. Throughout the challenge, back at camp, and tribal council, she could not stop laughing.
• Humiliation Conga: By no means the worst example, but the editors had a lot of fun making her look overconfident in her last episode.
• Ms. Fanservice: Courtney describes her as a blow up doll, so it's hardly unnoticed.
• Nice Girl: Very friendly with the rest of her tribe, something that makes her a target to (the former) Fei Long.
• Ship Tease: With Erik. They got married post show and had a son.
• Southern Belle: Has a southern accent, blonde hair, and a sweet personality.
• Smug Snake: Especially when throwing the challenge to get rid of one of Zhan Hu's new tribemates.
• Wrong Genre Savvy: Her rationale for believing the piece of wood was the idol was she thought the Chinese symbol on front might've stood for "immunity idol". It not only didn't mean that, but the planks James got were the only idols in the game.

Pre-Jury

11. Sherea Lloyd

Tribe: Zhan Hu -> Fei Long

Age: 25

Hometown: Pontiac, Michigan

Residence: Atlanta, Georgia

Occupation: elementary school teacher

Eliminated: 5-2, Day 18

Despite being thorny and somewhat lazy, Sherea ended being the best challenge player for Zhan Hu and kept herself in the majority. This safety wouldn't last; she and Frosti were swapped onto the rivalling Fei Long tribe on Day 13, instantly putting the two of them in jeopardy. Todd and James originally planned to throw the day 18 immunity challenge and have James use his idols, but when Denise couldn't win for them, the Fei Longs were forced to come up with another idea. Wanting to keep the majority and having already convinced Frosti to defect, the Fei Long majority sent Sherea packing in a 5-2 vote.

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• Action Girl: Much to her own surprise, Sherea decided to be this for her tribe. She particularly dominates in the boat wrestling challenge.
• Diabolus ex Machina: Like Aaron, she probably would have made the merge if not for the tribe swap. She wasn't as dominant, but flew pretty well under the radar. Todd even instructed James on Zhan Hu to throw a challenge so he could take somebody out with his two idols, which would at least make Sherea safe individually. Unfortunately, Denise gives up on the gross food eating contest, and Fei Long are forced to attend tribal council.
• Hair-Trigger Temper: Normally she's more of a grump, but it's pretty easy to make her worse.
• Lazy Bum: Refused to work much at camp to couch her energy for challenges.
• Sassy Black Woman: Clashes with other players quite a lot, particularly Dave. When Dave (who clashed with the rest of the players) is gone, it's even more noticeable, tho not to the extent of putting a target on her back.
• Surprise Difficulty: Sherea admitted to Survivor being this In-Universe during the first episode.

12. Aaron Reisberger

Tribe: Fei Long -> Zhan Hu

Age: 32

Hometown: Belmont County, Ohio

Residence: Los Angeles, California

Occupation: surfing instructor

Eliminated: 3-1-1, Day 15

Aaron was a tough competitor for the Fei Longs, and his (somewhat false) leadership was a key factor in their dominance. The Zhan Hus took notice, and drafted him and fellow powerhouse James Clement IV on the day 13 tribe swap. Knowing both would never defect to them, the Zhan Hu majority threw the ensuing immunity challenge and sent Aaron packing.

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• The Ace / Jack of All Stats: While overshadowed by James's strength and Todd's intelligence, he's considered one of the tribe's strongest members and enough of a strategic threat for Zhan Hu to take him out first.
• Diabolus ex Machina: Had it not been for the tribal shuffle, there was little doubt that he could make the jury. Instead, the shuffle put him on a tribe with people that don't want any part of him, so they throw a challenge just to send him home.
• Kansas City Shuffle: It initially appeared that James would be the one to go because of his obvious athleticism being a great asset during the merge and his whiny attitude after the challenge. Aaron pointed out the former and stayed quiet during the latter. This made it obvious that he was actually a good strategist and bigger problem.
• Mr. Fanservice: Peih-Gee lists his attractiveness as one of the reasons he's great at the game and needs to go.
• Puppet King: While it appeared that he was in charge of Fei Long, Todd was actually calling all the shots. However, he did swing the vote from Jean-Robert to Leslie at Fei Long's first tribal council
• Standardized Leader: To Fei Long, but only for a short time.

13. Dave Cruser

Tribe: Zhan Hu

Age: 37

Residence: Simi Valley, California

Occupation: bartender; former model

Eliminated: 5-1, Day 12

The provider and de-facto leader of the Zhan Hus. Despite his commanding role in the tribe, he never had the fullest trust of anybody. Most of the tribe knew him as a pushy and eccentric individual, though the only one who did work around camp. After too many arguments and too many lost challenges, the Zhan Hus sent him home unanimously on day 12.

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• Cloud Cuckoo Lander: Whenever he wasn't passive-aggressive, he had this persona. Among other things, he participated in a wrestling challenge naked and worked tirelessly on a brick shelter for the fire. To his credit, that fire pit made survived a flood that hit camp.
• Digging Yourself Deeper: A common manifestation of his attitude. Whenever he's irked with somebody, he will not let it go.
• The Friend Nobody Likes: Didn't have a lot of friends on Zhan Hu and his visit to Fei Long is marked by everyone finding him annoying. Todd gave him a clue to an immunity idol knowing he was such a nuisance that Zhan Hu had no chance of bringing him to the merge.
• Hard Work Hardly Works: He did all the camp work for Zhan Hu. It only deprives him of energy for challenges and makes the others lazy. When he gets sent to Fei Long for a day, the other Zhan Hus remark about how Dave doing all the work made them unprepared to do much themselves.
• The Leader: What he tried to be for Zhan Hu, enough for him to never bring up strategizing.
• The Load: His hard work at camp made him weak in challenges. For example, Frosti has to wake him up during the second immunity, which they lose handily.
• Naked People Are Funny: In the episode 3 reward, he stripped off his pants on the off chance it might even the odds against James. It didn't make a difference, but Zhan Hu at least won that challenge.
• Pointy-Haired Boss: Argued with everyone in the tribe and was the closest thing they had to a leader.
• Sitcom Arch-Nemesis: With Ashley Massaro especially, but also to basically his whole tribe.
• Stupid Boss: He’s unqualified to be the leader of Zhan Hu and contributes much to the tribe’s early failures.
• Tranquil Fury: A variant. When he gets angry he raises his voice and acts impatient, but he never stops smiling and purposely circumlocutes his complaints.

14. Leslie Nease

Tribe: Fei Long

Age: 38

Hometown: military brat

Residence: Tega City, South Carolina

Occupation: radio host

Eliminated: 6-2, Day 9

Though her devout Christian faith often made her feel like an outsider, she got along well with her mostly-younger tribemates. A kidnapping twist gave Leslie a clue to an idol, which she told Todd Herzog about. Todd, like Leslie, was a huge fan of the game and used the opportunity to send her home and keep the clue to himself.

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• Ascended Fan: Leslie applied 11 times before getting cast.
• Can Not Keep A Secret: The reason why she was voted out was because of telling Zhan Hu about Fei Long's dynamics. She also reveals the idol clue to an incredulous Todd.
• The Fundamentalist: Notably tells her team that Zhan Hu can be trusted because "at least three of them are Christians" and refuses to take part in a Buddhist blessing because she considers it sacrilegious.
• Graceful Loser: Is just happy to have finally gotten to play.
• Intergenerational Friendship: With Courtney, Jaime, Erik, Sherea, & Todd.
• Nice Girl: Friendly with just about everyone.
• Odd Friendship: With Todd and Courtney. She is a devoutly religious and conventionally friendly Team Mom, whereas Todd and Courtney are younger, secular, and Deadpan Snarkers.
• Small Role, Big Impact: Her revealing the idol clue to Todd started the chain of events that led to him taking control across the whole game.
• Team Mom: For Fei Long. Despite this, she admits feeling out of place with all of them.

15. Ashley Massaro

Tribe: Zhan Hu

Age: 28

From: East Northport, New York

Occupation: professional wrestler

Eliminated: 6-1, Day 6

Though cast as a strong player, an early illness sent her to the sidelines. A heated rivalry with tribe provider Dave Cruser only made matters worse. In order to keep the team strong, Zhan Hu voted her out unanimously on day 6.

Ashley has a Wrestling/ page for her usual professional wrestling persona.

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• Born Unlucky: Got sick just before the game started.
• Celebrity Survivor: But not often touched upon by the other contestants.
• Faux Action Girl: Was hyped up to be one of the more physical competitors on the show, being a wrestler and all, but her illness made it difficult for her to work.
• The Load: Her illness turned her into this. She got a lot better, but by that point Zhan Hu had grown dependent on her enemy Dave.
• Pixellation: A lot during the second immunity challenge.
• Shout-Out: Mocked Dave's past as a model by voting for "Derek Zoolander — I mean, Dave" at her last tribal council.
• Sitcom Arch-Nemesis: More than anybody, she hated Dave Cruser's domineering personality. When she got eliminated before him, she directly called out that he would be next.

16. Steve "Chicken" Morris

Tribe: Zhan Hu

Age: 47

Hometown/ residence: Marion, Virginia

Occupation: chicken farmer

Eliminated: 5-2-1 vote, Day 3

The oldest member of Zhan Hu and the only one with any wilderness experience. His non-confrontational and somewhat meek personality irritated his tribemates, who argued with him over his advice. Despite the demands going a few different ways, he was sent home in a clear majority vote.

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• Cool Old Guy: The oldest person of the season.
• Country Mouse: Unlike the others on Zhan Hu, he's been in the wilderness before. They don't listen to his advice and he stops bothering to give it.
• Extreme Doormat: Became quickly frustrated with his tribe ignoring his advice and decided to simply go along with whatever anyone else wanted. This led to his elimination.
• It Has Been an Honor: In his Elimination Statement.
• Meaningful Name: Peih-Gee said this while voting for him, in frustration.
• Only Known by Their Nickname: "Chicken", which comes from his job back home.
• Team Dad: Tried to be this, but gave up quickly after his advice was ignored several times.
• The Stoic: Right up until Jeff Probst confirms his elimination.
• The Unintelligible: Had a thick accent and tendency to speak too quietly, which probably contributed to his tribe not responding to his advice.
• Younger Than They Look: He's 47, but the gray hair and sheer contrast with the other contestants made him appear older.