Watching Survivor is a tradition in my family. I remember as a little kid being excited for Survivor night each week because my parents let me stay up late to watch it. I watched the first few seasons on DVD’s from Netflix. I have rewatched seasons on Hulu. Binge watched and not. I consider myself a Survivor super fan. Yet, many seasons blend together. I forget winners and the redundancy of Survivor is undeniable.

Not this season.

On Wednesday night, CBS concluded the 33rd season of Survivor. After this many seasons, Survivor winners typically claim their million-dollar prize after executing a game strategy identical or very similar to winners before them. However, this finale was different from the first 32. Instead of celebrating and basking in the glory, Adam Klein pushed through tears of agony. To the 9 million heartbroken Americans watching, Adam explained the traumatic events that occurred when he went home.

Throughout the season, Adam broke our hearts as he explained his mom’s diagnosis with stage four lung cancer. Part way through the season, Adam learned his mother’s cancer treatments were not working. We watched Adam connect with his mom every time a big moment in the game happened. Yet mom was millions of miles away. He was genuinely playing for nobody except his mom. I cannot imagine how terrified Adam was that Jeff Probst would pull him from the game because his mom had passed. Instead, Adam powered through 39 grueling days. However, this story had a devastating ending…

Adam’s mom died 1 hour after he got home…

This season will always be etched into my mind. Adam elevated Survivor above a game into something words cannot describe. The amount of empathy I felt for someone I only saw on television is incomprehensible.

I was not cheering for Adam to win Survivor; I was just cheering for Adam.

I also feel sympathy for the other finalists. Starving through 39 days to lose at the end must be devastating since they played such a great game. They built relationships, pulled off blindsides, and outlasted everyone else. Nevertheless, they never stood a chance after Adam revealed his mother’s condition to the jury. Regardless of other competitors, who would not vote for Adam? This begs the question; Are winners like Adam good for the game of Survivor?

After all, what occurred in the 39 days up to the finale was thrown out by Adam’s backstory. I know this bothered some of my Survivor enthusiast friends. They argue the game loses something when jury members vote for something bigger than the game itself. Stealing the jury vote with such a powerful story at the end takes away from the other contestants and gameplay.

I disagree.

Everyone brings their own advantage to the game of Survivor; Social skills, physical strength, leadership abilities, manipulation tactics, etc. Having a powerful background story is no different from these advantages. Not to mention, after 32 seasons, I do not watch Survivor just for the game. I watch Survivor to get to know the people and watch them interact in challenging conditions. This season will not blend with the other 32.

Adam will not be forgotten.

All because Adam’s story is more powerful that the winners before him, a new element was added to Survivor. My message to CBS, continue bringing players like Adam onto Survivor. Giving the game more depth only helps the show, it does not damage Survivor.