Season 45 had a rough first episode but if it wasn't for the unfortunate quit by Hannah I think a lot of people would think differently about the premiere. Like it or not tribal has a lot to do with the overall enjoyment of the episode which is why this episode was fantastic.
The 90 minute episodes are a dream come true for die hard fans who really care about the social and tribe dynamics. The reason the New Era gets more hate than usual is Jeff and his team think the audience love a million advantages and dumb Risk your vote "journeys" lol and that just doesn't work when you have 40 mins of screen time a week because you also have a lot to focus on; players, immunity challenge and tribal. (Casting for the new era is also a reason for hate but that's a whole different conversation)
I'm personally really liking this cast and if the rest of the game is like episodes 2&3 I think it will be the best season of the new era. S42 &S43 i thought had really strong casts but with bad game layout and 60 min episodes they still felt off. I loved the Tika 3 from S44 but other than them that cast was very weak in my opinion. Crossing my fingers that the swap and the merge will continue to good and with the 90 min runtime I think it will.
Emily had a rough start, starting the game way to hot but had a fantastic episode here and I think her and Kaleb could be a dynamic duo if they both make the merge because they will both be outliers between the other two tribes. Kellie on the blue tribe is playing great putting her and Brando in the perfect position and I'm loving the red foursome of Austin(my winner pick), Drew, Julie and Dee.
Overall I'm really enjoying this season and I think it has the foundation to be the best season of the new era.
Let's hope!