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'Survivor' Season 40 special episode was a treat and fans can't wait to see their favorites battle it out

The retrospective special featured all iconic moments from the previous seasons that included the 20 champions

'Survivor: Winners at War' Season 40 is all set to premiere on February 12. But prior to the season premiere, CBS aired with a retrospective special welcoming the 20 returning champions.

The hour-long special that aired on February 5 night was especially for the fans and viewers who haven't watched the earlier seasons. We got to see each champion in their season and what made them a champion. From alliances, hunting immunity idols, heists, making a fire to the season where there were a bunch of fake immunity idols, the special episode showed them all.

Hosted by Jeff Probst, Season 40 of 'Survivor: Winners at War' will feature the 20 champions battling it out to be the greatest 'Survivor' of all time, and bag home $2M instead of the regular $1M that has been awarded over the past seasons.

Season 40 of 'Survivor' will see the 20 champions divided into two tribes — Dakal and Sele.

Tyson Apostol 'Blood vs Water', Sophie Clarke 'South Pacific', Sandra Diaz-Twine 'Pearl Islands' & 'Heroes vs Villains', Wendell Holland 'Ghost Island', Yul Kwon 'Cook Islands', Sarah Lacina 'Game Changers', Amber Mariano 'All-Stars', Kim Spradlin-Wolfe 'One World', Tony Vlachos 'Cagayan' and Nick Wilson 'David vs. Goliath' belong in the Dakal tribe.

Natalie Anderson 'San Juan del Sur', Danni Boatwright 'Guatemala', Jeremy Collins 'Cambodia', Ben Driebergen 'Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers', Michele Fitzgerald 'Kaoh Rong', Adam Klein 'Millennials vs. Gen X', Rob Mariano 'Redemption Island', Parvati Shallow 'Micronesia', Denise Stapley 'Philippines' and Ethan Zohn 'Africa' belong in the Sele tribe.

The one-hour special kicks off by showcasing one of the most favorite players, Rupert Boneham, and one of the least favorites, Jonny Fairplay, from Season 1. The retrospective special also took us back to the first time an alliance was formed. It was started by Kelly Wiglesworth and Sue Hawk and then Richard Hatch and Rudy Boesch went on to win in Season 1 with their alliance.

The special featured all iconic moments from the previous seasons that included the 20 champions. After the special, the series aired a sneak peek to the next week's premiere. In that Parvati shares, "I'm like a phoenix rising from the ashes. Ready to burn down your house." Sandra looks mad at Rob as she reveals that though she spent 36 days with him on 'Island of the Idols', he didn't mention that he was coming back to play 'Survivor'.

After watching the entire special episode, fans on Twitter are eagerly waiting for the premiere next week. "Just watched the #Survivor special tonight. Not only was it great, but after the sneak peak of Winners at War, I have chills. Fully ready for next week!" a fan wrote. 

"Everyone had their favorite #Survivor moments but regardless of what your list looks like no doubt you're exciting for Winners at War next week after watching that retrospective," a fan wrote. Adding to that another said, "Omg just watch the recap of @survivorcbs of the last 20 years and I cant wait for next week of the war of the winners!!! This is going to be a great season! #Survivor #Survivor40."

"Seeing all 20 winners on the mat for #WinnersAtWar got me all choked up. OMFG I can't wait for the premiere of #Survivor next Wednesday! #rhap," a fan said. While another added, "MAHN the new season of #Survivor is making me QUIVER!!!!!!! Yasssssssasss."

'Survivor: Winners ar War' will premiere at 8/7 C on February 12 only on CBS. Check your local listings for more information.