DC's View: A Game-Changer Coming? And What's Ahead Here

By DC Cueva

@DC408dxtr

Okay, another SOTM post here, and sorry for the lack of recent posts here lately. I've been trying to get my sports series up & running, but me being busy with other things, plus having some writers block in writing a number of these posts, are the reasons why DCBLOG has been slacking. But rest assured, I am writing on here...it's just those reasons above that's been stopping me in posting them and bringing you the best possible posts. Of course, when Are You The One? Season 2 kicks off in mid-September with the season 1 cast's 2nd reunion, this site will be abuzz once again. We'll look ahead to what the autumn has in store for DCBLOG coming up at the end of this post. First, I want to get something off my chest concerning the very reason this site has been thriving this year.


If you're an avid follower of The Real World and The Challenge, then you know it's a bit of a lean period around here with no episodes of either show on, but with all eyes on the hot stove. That's baseball lingo of fans talking during the offseason when fans speculate about transactions among players and teams from the end of the World Series until players report for spring training. This comes as right now as I write this, season 30 of The Real World is filming in Chicago and season 26 of The Challenge is taking place outside the U.S. Thus of course, many of good twitter friends are off doing their thing and won't be back in the social world until mid-September.

   If you're brave enough to have looked over that list of those who will be on this upcoming Challenge - and I won't be spoiling on here who these people are, then we'll once again have a good mixture of both veteran and rookie names, people for whom I've had the pleasure of interacting with in the social world a lot during my two great years on twitter. And if that presumed group is correct, and the buzz before this all began is right, then it will be Battle of the Exes 2. And you guessed it, yes a few from Real World Ex-Plosion earlier this year will be competing, and given that the most recent season in San Francisco had the exes moving in, then you'd probably assumed season 26 would be this Exes theme.

   The twist that has got everyone talking in the past couple days is one that involves something totally new that might be coming to Exes II. That would be of the show's production company, Bunim-Murray Productions, and of course MTV, making an unprecedented move of including a number of cast members from outside the bubble of the Real World/Road Rules/Fresh Meat family but from another MTV show not produced by BMP have been invited to compete on this season. And that group happens to be from a show that grabbed my attention like no other one outside the bubble earlier this year, Are You The One?.

There's been a lot of discontent among traditionalist fans among this change from the twitter world, and those are probably the people who I might like to punch in the face (sorry for using that analogy which I don't use often but I had to get my point across there). But for me, I fully welcome this change of direction and unlike most fans, I am not surprised even one single bit about the twist. There's no Road Rules on anymore and who knows when Fresh Meat III might come up next, but if you want to inject the so-called "5th major pro sport" with some great MTV people from outside the BMP universe in addition to whatever new Real World'ers come on down the line, then go for it, I won't be mad. I've grown that huge a relationship with MTV and shows outside the bubble that even if people from a show I don't normally watch might get included on a future Challenge, I'll still be comfortable.

   Just as it was with the exes twist on Ex-Plosion - which drew the best ratings for a RW season since Vegas XXV, this twist will surely help to bring in new viewers to the show and introduce them to a show that's been on longer than any current reality competition show. And if Rivals brought new life to The Challenge franchise three years ago, then having this crossover in welcoming Team AYTO might add both some new life to the show and increasing the draft pool to a new generation of competitors, which we saw a good amount of in Hawaii. By sacrificing bringing people passionate fans are familiar with, including back veterans from past seasons and also some from a cast who were all paired up in the Virgin Islands (RWSTT), this is a bold move to reinvent The Challenge as most of us know.

There was a good number of those in the RW/Challenge fanamily who, just like me, also got to watch that great 1st season of Are You The One?. And those who watched it know that it has elements of The Challenge and The Real World in a dating atmosphere that reminds many of The Bachelor franchise. For those who haven't - and considering everything that I got to see, it's a strong recommendation to spend a day in the next month or so before season 2 premieres, here's a primer...

   AYTO has challenges each week to determine who wins getaway dates, the truth booth that determines if one of the winning pairs chosen by the group is a perfect match, and a matchup ceremony that determines how many perfect matches they have. Plus, there's the money factor in that if they run the table within 10 tries they win $1 million (or don't win any money if they don't,), and of course there's the living element with all the contestants sharing an entire mansion, complete with all the drama we've become used to and love on all the MTV reality shows.

   The challenges we saw in season 1 echoed those that we've become familiar with on The Challenge, and varied from climbing down a waterfall to paddling, taking selfies of body parts to drinking unusual drink mixes. We even had exes of a few giving dirt on some of the contestants around the same time Hailey, Brian, Jenna, Ashley C. & Lauren shacked up with the six strangers in the City. The competitors from Are You The One? rumored to be on Exes II have about the same kind of huge history as those we've seen before on past Real World's & Challenges.

   First is Brittany & Adam, who had a connection throughout the season, went to the alone room to have fun known as Poundtown, and she stayed fascinated with his company even as everyone else wasn't feeling them. The other pair is Simone and John, who like Adittany, also hooked up, went to Poundtown and had an eventful relationship until midway throughnwhen after they were not a match, he moved towards Jacy and created a triangle that also included Chris S., aka Scali. Other couples from season 1 that might've easily been picked for Exes II and weren't perfect matches are just about endless, and they include Scali & Paige, Ryan & Kayla, and the most-popular couple in the house, Chris T. & Shanley.

Another advantage I have over Challenge fans who didn't see AYTO season 1 is that I've been fortunate to follow the rise of that great cast from the start, having talked to every single castmate on twitter & on IG...yes, all 20 of them plus host Ryan Devlin. The entire journey from when I discovered the show, to seeing all the drama of their season play out, and seeing the only perfect match that's still together, Amber & Ethan, experiencing two life-changing moments, is one of the highlights of my MTV career. The moment of them going 10 for 10 in the finale and winning $1 million ranks right up with the World Cup and the Sochi Olympics among my favorite moments of 2014. And of the six editions of DC Fan's View, my favorite post is the one covering their eventful reunion, which now ranks #4 in overall hits to my blog, which along with my SocialPulse diaries generated plenty of worldwide traffic.

   Another person who fully backs this change, and watches the trifecta, is my twitter buddy, fellow reality TV fan and colleague Andrew Kirk (@CSUAKirk). He, like me, took notice of Are You The One? back in January and instantly became hooked on it the same way as RW/Challenges and now with Big Brother. Andrew talked to a number of the season 1 cast on his now-defunct SpreeCast shows, and it's responsible for giving him his highest-rated webcast when Shanley spoke to him right after the episode 6 drama (over 12K views). Perhaps in a harbinger of what has just transpired, one of his fantasy Challenge posts on his Big Time Reality TV blog (bigtimerealitytv.blogspot.com) took a look in the crystal ball of what it would be like if the AYTO group joined the Challenge fraternity. His picks pitted Dre, Joey, Wes, Jessica, Kayla & co. against the likes of Bananas, CT, Zach, Emily, Sarah & the establishment. Well, Andrew's wish of a crossover season may come much sooner than he thought, and perhaps he will have the last laugh over the doubters.

So again, I'm not surprised that BMP, producers of The Challenge and Real World, have made the bold move to inviting people from a show it doesn't produce but airs on MTV - Are You The One? (produced by the same people that produces VH1's Dating Naked - Lighthearted Entertainment) to season 26 of The Challenge, which is apparently Battle of the Exes 2. Given the huge success that season 1 had in following in Chelsea, Jenelle, Kailyn & Leah's coattails and generating a lot of buzz that even had a magazine call Are You The One? "the greatest reality show ever", it has taken for this game-changing move to give arguably TV's most-intense reality competition shows to take notice. If everything's all true, one thing's for sure: my 3rd installment of Who Are These Newbies? will have more Challenge newcomers for me to profile & introduce to fans on this site than first thought.

   But first things first, of course: season two debuts on Monday, September 29 (an hour earlier than season 1 at 10 SPOT) with the new class of 10 girls & 10 guys as they try emulate their predecessors in Puerto Rico, which of course has a tough act to follow. A week before, Brittany, Adam, Simone, John and the rest of their castmates will gather in LA for Amber & Ethan's baby shower.

Outside of Challenge 26, there's also something a bit understated due to this madness, which is a possible twist coming to Real World Back to Chicago. As mentioned above, the exes twist brought new viewers to TV's longest-running reality show, so what about season 30? It's not out yet as the seven strangers have moved into the Windy City, and luckily there's no reports yet of the kind of off-camera madness that hampered production early on in the original Chicago season. As pointed out by a web article just after the end of Ex-Plosion, BMP has plans for another twist for the season coming up that only the folks down at their SoCal headquarters and in production in Chi-town know about. One may suggest that friends or siblings of the roommates might move in to shack up with the cast, or something else we don't know that will make RW XXX be unlike any other up until last season.

   As I wrote before, I've been a huge Real World fan for a long time, and have been able to handle every change - subtle to huge - to the formula the show invented 22 years ago more than others. And no matter what the format, city or cast might be, I will always remain a loyal viewer of the show just as I have been since Hawaii. Plus, I'm a great storytelling enthusiast who's more at home in the Real World's laid-back, storytelling-oriented style; and for which it's the reason why I'm enjoying that one MTV show I'm very interested in - Virgin Territory - that follows in that style. So, I'm able to handle what the landmark 30th season of the great reality pioneer has in store for me.

Now to what's ahead. As mentioned above, I haven't posted as much here since the end of Free Agents, but that doesn't mean I've been hard at work in writing. I have a lot of posts that I have written and queued up covering mainly the sports world, including long-planned posts on soccer, UFC and more. Rest assured, they'll be posted just as soon as I get done with them and making sure that they're the best ones I have. Of course, this site will have wall-to-wall MTV coverage starting with Are You The One? Season 2 and for which the buzz may kick off next week. DC SocialPulse, my twitter episode diaries, returns with the baby shower on Sept. 21 (maybe earlier for the VMA's) and when the buzz for those two begins, DCB will have Real World Back to Chicago and Challenge 26 covered too.

   The VMA's are generally the launchpad to new MTV programming in the fall, and we should get our first look at AYTO2 on Sunday. Especially considering the issues I had earlier this month, hopefully I'll be able to talk with the season 2 cast once they're revealed and that they'll be as fan friendly as the first cast. Also, I may also add to my live tweet rotation a new reality comedy from the producers of Buckwild called Slednecks, which follows along the line of their West Virginia cousins, but it takes place in the state of Alaska. And depending upon what the trailer shows us and having enjoyed Buckwild, I may have as many as 3 TV shows a week to live tweet at DCNOW this fall and may have to clear even more room on my primary hub for our Alaskan friends.

   Speaking of DCNOW at @DC408DxNow, that will be where I will live tweet the Video Music Awards coming up on Sunday, along with the Youth Olympics, NFL preseason action and much more on there. Of course, it's where I live tweet for now Virgin Territory, and later Are You The One?, RW30, Challenge 26, and Slednecks. And of course there's always my twitter & Instagram @DC408Dxtr.


Finally, as I post this early on Saturday, August 23, we've just received some very tough news from People Magazine. Challenge star and two-time ovarian cancer survivor Diem Brown is in a hospital in New York City after she was diagnosed with colon cancer. She collapsed while on vacation abroad, and upon arrival back home last week underwent emergency surgery which found that a tumor was blocking her colon, then had a 2nd surgery a few days later when an infection in her abdomen was detected. For now, she's in the ICU in stable condition under close doctor supervision, and is expected to stay there for two weeks before beginning chemotherapy if she's alright.

   Considering all she's been through, it's our hope that once again Diem will rise to the fore and beat cancer for a third time. Her showing the kind of great courage, strength and spirit she had in her two previous battles with cancer is the most-notable story in Challenge history, Life & family, among other things, outweighs all else when it comes to these shows, and considering the tremendous outpouring of support she received both in 2007 & last year, including the largest twitter support of any RWC cast member, Diem will no doubt need her fans' support more than ever to get through the toughest of these battles.

   So, all of my thoughts and prayers, along with that of her many fans, go out to Diem, the Brown family and her friends during this challenging time and pray for a speedy recovery.

For more on this breaking story, including quotes from Diem's sister Megan, visit http://www.people.com/article/diem-brown-cancer-returns-colon. And for more on ways you can help, visit her charity site MedGift at www.MedGift.com and Twitter @MedGift. There at the site, with the help of E! News' Alicia Quarles, a newly-created page is asking fans to help raise $30,000 by Friday, September 5th to help pay the costs of her medical bills for this visit. So be sure to take a moment and make a donation there and help make a difference.

For now until I talk to you here & on twitter, this is DC saying thanks for reading and good night.

- DC


UPDATED (8/23/14 - 7:00PM PDT):
As posted earlier on various twitter accounts, here's the link to the newly-created page on Diem's MedGift site called "Diem's Next Challenge":
http://www.medgift.com/DiemsNextChallenge