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Survivor 43's second episode chronicled the elimination of Justine Brennan, a cybersecurity salesperson, who claims the men on her tribe were threatened by her strength. Audiences got their first look at Survivor 43's new castaways when the season kicked off with a two-hour episode on Sept. 21. While Justine's tribe Vesi managed to escape Tribal Council in episode 1, they weren't able to keep their winning streak alive. A challenge involving a four-hundred pound snake in the water and a complicated puzzle resulted in a dejecting loss for the tribe of six.
Justine was on the wrong side of the numbers from the start of Survivor 43. Justine had little room to maneuver as a classic Survivor twist caused Dwight Moore, one of her closest allies, to lose his vote at Tribal Council. Cody Assenmacher, a salesperson himself, managed to rally Nneka Ejere and Jesse Lopez to help vote Justine off the island.
When asked about her tribe mate Cody in her exit interview with Parade, she says "Some men are just threatened by strong women." This comment comes after Cody successfully targeted Justine, using her job as a salesperson as his reasoning. Justine discusses what she calls, "The sales-on-sales violence," explaining how things could have worked out differently had she been on a different tribe. While some members of the Vesi tribe were threatened by Justine, they were all grateful when she was able to start the fire for her tribe in the very first episode. Unfortunately, her survival skills were not enough to save her, but a new "Beware Advantage" came close. Some viewers of Survivor criticize the advantages, but for fans of Justine, an advantage that threatened to take away Cody's vote kept hope alive.
Could Justine Have Done Anything To Save Her Game In Survivor 43?
Fans may point to the moment where Justine gave the beads from her bag to Cody, who needed them to reinstate his vote at Tribal Council, as the moment she sealed her fate. She says in her exit interview, "I was more than willing to give him my bead so that he could make a silly hat... Hindsight is 20/20." Justine cites the moment she started her tribe's fire as a moment that painted her as "someone that maybe came too strong out of the gates." She added, "It's a bummer that, in the game of Survivor, for a woman specifically, that can be the death sentence for you." Survivor has changed significantly in 43 seasons, and fans of the old school era might be shocked to learn that building a fire can hurt you in the game instead of helping.
Ultimately, Justine's game was cut too short. She had a fun two episodes where viewers got to see her bond with fellow tribe mate, Noelle, and freak out over spiders in the jungles of Fiji. Some fans speculated in the preseason that she was going to win the whole game, but Survivor can be a fickle game. Maybe some day Justine will get a chance to show what she's got on a returning player season and prove she has what it takes to become the sole Survivor.
Survivor airs Wednesdays at 8pm EST on CBS.
Source: Parade