"We've been trying to get Varner back for years. Every time a new casting theme came up he would be one of the first names on the list. We have always loved Varner," host Jeff Probst told Entertainment Weekly. "I will say that the Varner who showed up was not the Varner I expected. I remembered Jeff as a young, cocky, charming villain who I would have been delighted to see win the game. The guy who showed up for 'Second Chance' is a much more mature, slightly annoyed, but still incredibly charming guy with just enough life experience and humility to be an equally satisfying winner."

While Probst may pick on Varner just a little during challenges and really call him out, he promises it's only because he's a big fan. "I'm so glad he's back," Probst told People. "He has a lot of fun out there and is so much fun to watch."

Varner's strategy to get Shirin out of the game so quick may have seemed confusing and evil, but it worked. To have someone who knows as much about the game as Shirin does gone will only benefit those who really want to win. Shirin, however, really did think Varner was on her side, and the blindside came as a huge shock to her. "I think I was still recovering [from last season]," she said in her exit interview. "The fighter in me thought, I've got to fix this. I should have just let them take out Spencer or take out Aib. For whatever reason, in the moment, I just didn't drop it. It brought out the emotional side of me that I'm usually really good at suppressing."

Following Shirin's exit interview, we got a sneak peek at next week's episode, where we got to see that the two tribes will be expanded into three, which is a rare instance for "Survivor."

"When you bring back returning players, it's extremely tough to ever surprise them," Probst continued to tell Entertainment Weekly. "I wouldn't be surprised if several players considered the idea of a two-to-three tribe switch - but you never know for sure, and when it finally hits, it's pretty powerful. The obvious impact is that it completely changes the game, and for some I will tease that it will be a major setback. I love these moments because it pushes people to find a new way."

He went on to explain that a tribe switch is something that is completely out of the contestants' control. "That's why there is no 'foolproof' strategy," he said. "'Survivor' requires you to constantly adapt - 24 hours a day for 39 straight days. Exhausting...and life-changing."

It's easy fort Probst and the crew to control the game when it comes to stuff like that, but when it comes to challenges and eliminations, they really have no say in what goes on. In week two's challenge, Bayon never found the hidden immunity idol clue, so the idol hiding within the challenge went completely unnoticed. "One of the benefits of it not working out is further evidence that we don't control the game," Probst said. "We rehearsed it as though they would find it and when they didn't, we pulled it out. That's how it goes."

All this strategy, blindsiding, backstabbing and pure shock is the reason "Survivor" has been able to last for 31 seasons, and why it has such loyal fans. It's stayed in its Wednesday 8 p.m. time slot since the beginning and is "still winning that time slot," according to The New York Times. During last week's premiere, it captured the best ratings of the night during the 8-to-9 p.m. slot. The continued success of the show is so impressive that CBS executives have even called it the "miracle show." It brings in an average of 11.5 million viewers each episode, and it doesn't look like these numbers are dropping anytime soon.

"Appeal to your audience, and you do not need to do a whole lot more than that," Probst said of the show's strategy. "I'm not going to lie and say I wouldn't love for more people to start watching 'Survivor,' but I'm not making it to attract a new viewer. I'm making it for the people who have kept us on the air."