Editing Survivor: Marquesas (section)

==Reception==

The season was ultimately met with mixed to negative reception, primarily due to the cast being seen as fairly forgettable, and the final two being perceived as having poor gameplay.{{citation needed|date=July 2023}} However, the use of the purple rock tiebreaker has been one of the most polarizing moments in ''Survivor'' history, with critics divided on whether or not it was an unfair solution to a tie, or if it made for entertaining television.

Host [[Jeff Probst]] was not fond of this season, ranking it his second-to-least favorite (as of [[Survivor: Samoa|season 19]]). Probst stated, "Dramatically, I just felt like ''Marquesas'' never got any momentum, and by the time you got to the final two with Neleh and Vecepia — I'm sleeping." Winner Vecepia Towery was not contacted about appearing on the show's [[Survivor:Winners at War|all-winner season]], despite being one of only 14 female winners, as well as her status as the show's first African-American winner.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://heavy.com/entertainment/survivor-winner-vecepia-towery-robinson-not-invited/ | title=A Strong 'Survivor' Winner 'Not Invited' to Play 'Winners at War' | date=October 8, 2020 }}</ref> He also said that the environment in Marquesas was the most brutally unpleasant in the show's history due to the biting no-no flies.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.ew.com/gallery/survivor-jeff-probst-ranks-all-seasons-worst-first/393701_16920richardljpg-1 |title=Survivor: Jeff Probst ranks all seasons from worst to first|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|access-date=December 25, 2015}}</ref>

However, ''Survivor'' columnist Dalton Ross of ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' gave this season a positive review, ranking it 17th out of 40 and calling it, "an underrated season that saw the first totem pole shake-up: where people on the bottom got together to overthrow those on the top. Yes, it was a weak final two, but it also had a woman peeing on a guy's hand. Plus: Purple rock!!!"<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/tv/recaps/survivor-season-40-episode-13/|title=Survivor Winners at War recap: Double elimination smackdown!|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|first=Dalton|last=Ross|date=May 6, 2020|access-date=May 6, 2021}}</ref>

The exit of John Carroll is widely considered to be the foundation of modern ''Survivor'' strategy by columnists and fans alike.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://funny115.com/v1/23.htm|title=23. The Fall of John Carroll|website=funny115.com}}</ref> Joe Reid of ''[[The Wire (magazine)|The Wire]]'' ranked it among the bottom 10, at #19, in 2014, saying that Rob had "a comparatively ignominious debut" despite his future reputation, called John "a preening dyngus," and said that "Vecepia backing into a victory because she didn't piss anyone off was anti-climactic."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thewire.com/entertainment/2014/02/definitive-ranking-every-season-survivor/358537/|title=A definitive ranking of every season of Survivor|work=The Wire|access-date=December 25, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160203115650/http://www.thewire.com/entertainment/2014/02/definitive-ranking-every-season-survivor/358537/|archive-date=February 3, 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref> "The Purple Rock Podcast" ranked ''Marquesas'' 27th out of 40, saying that although the season "gets bonus points" for featuring the purple rock, the season "sort of limps to the finish line" in its storytelling and character narratives.<ref>{{cite web|title=Survivor season rankings (with spoiler-free summaries)|url=http://www.purplerockpodcast.com/survivor-season-rankings-spoiler-free-summaries/|website=The Purple Rock Survivor Podcast|date=May 22, 2020|access-date=May 6, 2021}}</ref> In 2015, a poll by ''[[Rob Has a Podcast]]'' ranked ''Marquesas'' 18th out of 30 with [[Rob Cesternino]] ranking this season 21st.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://robhasawebsite.com/survivor-seasons-rankings-results-live-sept-22-2015-s31/|title=Survivor Top 30 All-Time Season Rankings Results|work=[[Rob Has a Podcast]]|date=September 22, 2015|access-date=December 25, 2015}}</ref> This was updated in 2021 during Cesternino's podcast, ''Survivor All-Time Top 40 Rankings'', ranking 22nd out of 40.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://robhasawebsite.com/survivor-all-time-top-40-rankings-22-marquesas/|title=Survivor All-Time Top 40 Rankings &#124; #22: Marquesas|date=May 12, 2021|website=[[Rob Has a Podcast]]|access-date=May 13, 2021}}</ref> In 2020, ''Inside Survivor'' ranked this season 9th out of 40 saying that it "is a season that deserves more respect. Not only does it have some incredible characters and hilarious moments, but it's an important, game-changing season."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://insidesurvivor.com/best-season-rankings-no-9-marquesas-47408|title=Best Season Rankings – No. 9 – Marquesas|work=Inside Survivor|last=Worthy|first=Gia|date=October 22, 2020|access-date=May 6, 2021}}</ref> In 2024, Nick Caruso of ''[[TVLine]]'' ranked this season 14th out of 47.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://tvline.com/lists/survivor-seasons-ranked-best-worst-photos/|title=Survivor: All 47 Seasons Ranked From Worst to Best — Which Top Your List?|work=[[TVLine]]|last=Caruso|first=Nick|date=December 29, 2024|access-date=January 14, 2025}}</ref>

A small increase in the average number of viewers was observed for the season compared to the prior season, ''[[Survivor: Africa]]''.<ref>{{cite press release |title=CBS Unveils The Identities of The Castaways For ''Survivor: Thailand'' |publisher=CBS |date=August 15, 2002 |url=https://www.realitytvworld.com/news/cbs-reveals-full-identities-of-survivor-thailand-castaways-535.php |quote=''Survivor: Marquesas'' averaged 20.8 million viewers (#4) while ''Survivor: Africa'' averaged 20.7 million viewers (#5). }}</ref>