If there is one thing to know about “Sole Survivor” Mike Gabler, he is an absolute goofball.
Survivor 45 is officially underway, and it looks like the controversial winner of Survivor 43 has been tuning in week after week. With a cast that is nothing short of spectacular (despite the lack of age diversity), Gabler has taken to social media to pinpoint his favorite castaway of the season, and given the history behind his decision, his pick is just too funny.
The 53-year-old has decided to root for Emily Flippen this fall, despite the not-so nice things she had to say about him in an exclusive interview with Entertainment Weekly.
In said interview, the infamous Survivor 45 castaway revealed that she only applied for the show because she was angered by Gabler’s win — she thinks he was undeserving of the million-dollar prize!
“I applied for the first time in my life in the beginning of December 2022. Ripped an application video because I was really angry that morning after watching Mike Gabler win. I decided that was not ok in my book so I was like ‘I should apply, I can do this!'”
For those who need a refresher as to how the heart valve specialist was awarded the title of “Sole Survivor” in the first place, his journey was anything but ordinary.
During the season finale of Survivor 43, Cassidy Clark won the final immunity challenge and decided to take Owen Knight with her to the end, forcing Jesse Lopez and Mike Gabler to compete against one another in the infamous final four fire-making challenge — in her eyes, Gabler was the only one who could take out Jesse once and for all!
Naturally, Gabler won the challenge, making Survivor history with the fastest time ever recorded in a fire-making challenge (before Heidi Lagares-Greenblatt beat him during Survivor 44). To the surprise of viewers around the world, knocking out the frontrunner of the season turned out to be one of the key moments that led to his victory…
Advancing to the final three, the Idaho native was praised by the jury for his final four fire-making win, as well as his strong social bonds, despite being Survivor 43‘s biggest oddball. Gabler dominated the conversation at the final tribal council, explaining that he was an “alli-Gabler” throughout the entirety of Survivor 43, playing in the middle and hiding in plain sight, resulting in a near-perfect game with no votes cast against him.
In the end, Gabler beat Cassidy and Owen in a 7-1-0 vote, which caused an uproar from Survivor fans across the globe (including Emily Flippen).
Nonetheless, Gabler ultimately turned a negative into a positive, sharing his support for Emily in an extremely comedic way.
“Flippen Awesome Tribe Swappin’ Survivor Wednesday! #Luv4Lulu @SurvivorSFT @survivorcbs,” he shared via Twitter (referencing Emily’s last name), coinciding with four images of him wearing a tee shirt with her face on it — how funny is that?
Fans praised Gabler for his optimism, calling this post “absolute icon behavior.”
“I think it’s hilarious that you did this considering how she talked about you”
“Wait this is actually so funny lmfao”
“How can you not like this guy?”
“Love your positive attitude!”
One of the greatest Survivor castaways of all time, Rick Devens, even chimed in, also making a joke utilizing Emily’s last name.
“You’re such a Flippen great sport, Gabler!”
To see how the rest of Emily Flippen’s journey unfolds on Survivor 45, tune into CBS every Wednesday at 8pm ET/PT.