DC WRAP: Are You The One? S3 Episode 7 & DC FORUM - Devin's Behavior

BY DC CUEVA                           

> @DC408dxtr / @DC408dxnow

It's DC BDAY Week on the DC Social Network and tomorrow, the festivities continue with an all-new episode of Are You The One?. This comes as the buzz for Challenge Bloodlines kicks into full gear and as some of our MTV friends are off on a rather early winter vacation. And if things are correct on what we think they're up to, we'll have even more to look forward to in the new year.

   On Episode 7 this past week, we saw the latest chapter of the Devin and Kiki Show, another potential Truth Booth pick go by the wayside, and more of the same in the Match-Up, along with Hunter enjoying his surroundings on a horseback as well. We'll, of course, have the Five Things to Know wrap-up of the episode's key moments.

   Then, we'll have a new edition of DC FORUM to provide takes from fans and myself on what we've seen from Devin this year and how it compares to other instances in recent years when a castmate's behavior casts a dark cloud over an MTV Trifecta show. And if you think this is all serious business, don't worry as after that on ExtraTime we'll join with both a Challenge legend and an MTV host who got to run in the largest annual footrace in the world.

   Join In after the jump for a recap of last week's episode as you prepare for tomorrow night.

FIVE THINGS TO KNOW

> The Best Relief is Talent

In these first two seasons, it was in the homestretch that the first two casts were over the hump in the light game and ultimately landed the knockout blow in the late rounds of getting their matches and winning the cash. This year's guessing game has become more of a ginormous task than what we've seen the first two seasons and after another Match-Up gone wrong, Team Ohana has ideas of how to pull off the huge but not impossible task ahead of them. As a way to break the house tension, the group decides to put on a talent show as some of the group do freestyling, comedy and other things to lighten the house morale. This is hopefully a way for the group to gel, just as it was for Season 1 in Kauai when their Spin the Bottle night helped bond the Originals.

> Helping Hands and Horse Backs

The week's Getaway Challenge sees the singles work in pairs and in "You Guys REALLY Need a Helping Hand," the guys are blindfolded and holding their arms around their girls as they try to stack a colored Jenga tower on the ladies' legs and matching the colors. With the top two earning the date, the task is as hard as it seems, but ultimately Alec & Melanie get the hang of it and nab the first spot. The race for 2nd is a close one but Hunter & Rashida finish their tower next to win the other date, and their reward is a date in the countryside riding horseback away from all the madness. No doubt this is in Hunter's alley and the Florida guy with that accent takes advantage of the surroundings.

> Are Alec & Melanie the Next Ones?

There is chemistry beginning to come together, including Mike & Kayla as they goof off and flirt, including an egg too, and Amanda doesn't want to lose him. The focus is though on Alec & Melanie, both at the house and on that date after taking top GC honors. They spent time together out in the back with the hope that they're a perfect match, which is when you have that happen in the backyard everyone will notice. Their strong belief that they could be match #2 frustrates Stacey, but when Alec & Mel are voted into the Truth Booth, they are not a match and though the house is frustrated by their sixth TB dud, Tyler has hope that Mel will be his match.

> The Puppeteer's Manipulating Ways

THE story of this week didn't even involve the date winners, but of course of the most infamous couple of these three seasons. Earlier in the episode, we saw Devin come up with an evil plan that's too late for Halloween but still a big one: he wants to get over Kiki as he's had it with her, but is not done with messing with her mind as well. D will pull off a "hard-to-get," which per the Urban Dictionary, is when a guy flirts with a girl and she pretends to not be interested in to make him do everything he can to let her like him. This will obviously make Kiki jealous so that it will cause torture for not being with Devin, and the house begins to see this sight.
   Later on while everyone else begin to chat in couples in the hope they find a connection after Alec & Mel's TB, he would execute his plan while he is flirting with Britni and Kiki takes notice of it while feeling jealous of him. She would go up to him and he decides to manipulate her but pulling in Kiki for yet another kiss and the two would head into bed together afterwards. When everyone wakes up, the girls get mad at poor Kiki as the bad habits she's had begin to resurface and goes to Devin afterwards, which is obviously an unfortunate sight. She is sorry for everything that has happened in this ordeal, but the girls have decided that enough is enough. And when Kiki heads into Devin's arms being heartbroken by this, his plan is working to what he wants with no idea of how tearful and bad she is going through. We'll elaborate on that in the FORUM below.

> Is the Seventh Match-Up a Lucky One? And More Matchup Drama

The girls took their turn to choose at the 7th Matchup, but the thing everyone wanted to buzz about was Devin and Kiki. Knowing what he's doing and them being a witness to every move he's made in the house, not surprisingly the group voices their anger towards Devin for executing his manipulation plan on Kiki. The most vocal of Devin's critics are Connor (calling him a "scumbag manipulator"), Rashida for now having "no respect" for him and the girl with the Matchup moment of the season in Cheyenne in their hookup, who can easily notice his lies and the house wants to protect Kiki and want him to stop. This cast a shadow on the game itself, and once again they had no luck at only three matches...well off the pace of the first two seasons where they were well ahead. And obviously, time is ticking on Team Ohana if they want to salvage lost pride.

DC FORUM: DEVIN'S BEHAVIOR

The views and opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of DCBLOG or 

affiliated parties. Certain comments in this section are used courtesy of MTV.com.

Now, to a feature that's been promised to figure more prominently this cycle but haven't done in a while but will be prevalent when the holidays come a calling in a couple weeks. It's DC FORUM - my fan discussion & opinion section and I'll be planning to do this again at season's end which will also be in between that and an all-new Challenge, which this time is Battle of the Bloodlines and we'll be beginning our coverage of that here fairly soon.
   After last week's episode in a DM chat with Andrew Kirk (@CSUGradAKirk), we discussed more about what we saw in a private manner. But with this great fan, follower and webcast host not being afraid to vent a bit, we felt we wanted to share with you some of that dialogue publicly here, though as always these comments do not necessarily reflect those of DCBLOG and only that of one of the best in the business in talking all things MTV Trifecta. And it's clear that there's one person Andrew will not invite to any parties over the holiday season.

> ANDREW KIRK:

"SMDH man I've never disliked someone on a reality show more than (Devin). Have you seen any group of guys treat women as bad some these guys treat them? The guys don't care about winning they just wanna be on TV. And what disappoints me the most dc girls like Kiki let guys let Devin treat him like crap on the show she's oblivious which disappoints me."

> A FAN'S VIEW
In the MTV.com wrap of this week's episode which you can check out here, one user vented their frustration for Devin...

fieryredhead23 on MTV.com: "Devin is so full of ****. Seriously. Don't get me wrong, Kiki is by no means innocent in the whole thing, but Devin is awful. Also, can the house PLEASE be smarter at the competitions and let viable couples win so they head into the Truth Booth?! I want to rip my hair out every episode because they're sending such weak potential matches in. I really don't think they can pull off the win at this point."

> AND MY VIEW...
Again, I am not in a position to put anyone on blast for bad behavior unless it's something that I have to really vent like what happened last year which we won't revisit on here. But again as I offer my opinion in an objective manner, it's unfortunate and sad that this kind of treatment of the girls by the guys is again putting a cloud over this season of AYTO, just like what we saw with Zach on Exes 2 earlier this year. I would always prefer to oversee this whole thing from a objective, journalistic third-person outlook, but I assumed, in our preview post, that Devin's behavior is expected because it is the Boston way just as we had seen with other New England castmates on other reality shows.
   So just as it was for Thor, do I think Devin is an idiot and the least liked person of this franchise? Again, I'll leave it up to you fans to make that judgment. But what we've seen from Devin in treating Kiki the way he's done throughout the season will be the defining storyline this year whether or not the group comes back from the deep rut they're stuck in right now. The two made a connection early on in their stay in the islands, were proved to be a no match when they were put in the truth booth the same week the house got their blackout at the Matchup, but have still stayed together well after the fact. And there's also him apologizing to her for his treatment before doing it once again on last week's show, which for in most fan's minds made him a hypocrite for manipulating poor Kiki, which was the straw that broke the camel's back for many.

   This brings to mind what we saw in recent years, starting with a young Adam on Real World Vegas XXV who engaged in this same behavior of treating a female MTV castmate (Nany) in a similar fashion that also made him the most-hated person of that cast. Obviously, there was what we saw with Zach when he was treating Jonna in Costa Rica that had many turning their backs on him; and there was Nia in Portland in treating Jordan and Johnny & Averey. For AYTO fans, Devin & Kiki staying together after being a no-match brings back Shanley & Chris T. on season 1 and Brandon & Christina last year. But what we're seeing here with them is taking the best of those two instances and taking it to a level we've not had in some time. And for Challenge fans, you can see a trait of Frank in how Dev was able to manipulate Kiki and be the most-hated guy on his cast, just as we saw with Frank too in San Diego and then on BOTS 2.
   Obviously, Devin has been able to respond to those who've been getting on him in this YouTube video on MTV's hub and of course on Twitter as well throughout the season. This was the opposite of Zach on Exes 2 earlier this year when his treatment of Jonna saw him become MIA on Twitter during most of the season knowing how bad the twitter world would treat him when it aired. And if we have an idea of where Devin is right now as the season is winding down and we have just seen what we saw last week, then this might be the beginning of a stint as a top Challenge name which, as Brian Cohen (@BusDriversRoute) asserted during the episode, "As Devin becomes a worse person, his Challenge stock rises. Let him try (manipulating someone like Kiki) on someone like Nany though & he'll end up in a body bag."

   Again while not putting him down here, just as I suggested with Zach, if he can change his ways and go to the Big D who is as he's listed in his bio as that adventurous one who also has a laugh when doing his Alliance Webcasts with Zak and tone down that manipulative behavior and attitude, then he can become some as well liked in Challenge world once the big name vets who are still on decide to finally hang things up. But for now, just continue to see what Devin does in Hawaii this season and make a judgement for yourself if you like him or not. That's my view.

Well, there's sure to be at least one person Andrew will give a good old Reality Check to when we bring you DC FORUM's Reality Debrief 2015 - or as I like to call these chats with these two MTV fans, The Cueva/Kirk Report - coming during Thanksgiving week right here on DCBLOG. There in that two-part post, we'll be recapping AYTO Season 3 (by then the season will have wrapped up), our long-promised review of the reality TV year that was and, of course, our preview of Bloodlines.

   And if there's anyone who's grown a rapport with the OG's of the new Challenge cast and others in this Trifecta world, then Andrew earns a nod as he's spoken to eight of the fourteen originals of Bloodlines, among 65 castmates from the RW/Challenge franchise and AYTO that he's talked to in the last three years. As I say, those interviews will all come in handy as we go through this cycle.

#DCExtraTime

MTV AT THE MARATHON

Finally as we know, not everything in these posts should be all serious business, so here's something to cheer about to put a bow on this Wrap. There are no Winners of the Night for the latest AYTO episode after what we saw last week, but if there are Winners of the Night for the MTV world in this week's posts then the people below are worthy of taking the honor this week.
   As you know, when I'm not following the MTV Trifecta much of my interest is on the sports world. And as proof in a hat I wore in my last two DC Selfies I posted recently on Selfie Sunday, there's something I'm looking forward that trumps even the Trifecta but is the one sports event I look forward to more than any other. The Rio 2016 Olympics begin in less than nine months from now and before you know it, the kind of enormous patriotism we've experienced the last two years with World Cup fever and Team USA will be here yet again when the weather outside gets warmer.

   The weekend before last, the world's largest 26.2 mile footrace, the New York City Marathon, held its 45th renewal in the Big Apple as this year, 50,229 runners took to the five boroughs for the city's greatest day out. As expected, the traditional superpower in distance running, Kenya, again took both the men's and women's titles, just as recent news surrounding athletes from that country and Russia and a possible doping ban has cast a cloud in the track & field world. Paralympian Tatyana McFadden led the American cause in winning the women's wheelchair race as she preps for a golden 2016, while '09 NY champion, '14 Boston winner & Athens silver medalist Meb Keflezighi placed in the Top 10.
   But with New York annually boasting the largest number of runners of any marathon, there is always a slew of famous names who sacrifice months of training for that November stroll from Staten Island to Central Park. Alicia Keys, NY Giants legend Tiki Barber, Survivor icon & cancer survivor Ethan Hawke, retired tennis star James Blake, actor Sean Astin, 30 Rock's Katrina Bowden, and Greg T. from Z100's Elvis Duran Morning Show were among those notables who ran this year in this year's marathon, most of whom running for charities and to bring into focus social causes.

Credit: @NevSchulman

   Two members of Team MTV got the opportunity to fly the MTV flag this year in both the hometown of the channel they appear on and on a personal level, and the first one had the greatest status and would ultimately post the top time in the list of the key celebrities who ran this year. One of MTV's biggest hits of recent years and a show that always enthralls me is Catfish and the show's host and subject of the original documentary movie of the same name, Nev Schulman, took time out from filming Season 6 with buddy Max Joseph to run this year on behalf of of the J/P Haitian Relief Organization, founded by Sean Penn in the wake of the earthquake of five years ago and ran his 26.2 miles in 3:34:31. The reason why he ran, per his marathon page, was to become more engaged in social matters and wants to help an organization he believes in, including helping those people down there who suffered enormous damage and calamity.

Credit: @TheEvanStarkman

   And the second one, who also ran for Haitian Relief as well, is the one of great interest to all of you who follow this MTV Trifecta world. If you follow The Challenge, then you no doubt know who Kenny Santucci is. Next year will be ten years since we first saw Mr. Beautiful on our MTV screens when he was a Team MTV newcomer on the first Fresh Meat. He would become a Challenge staple in developing a bond with fellow Fresh Meat'er Evan Starkman (who took that picture on the right) and Johnny Bananas, and of course forged that long-standing rivalry with Wes. Him cashing six times including three finals wins plus many a one-liner and that JEK Dynasty is his legacy, a far cry from the school age overweight Kenny of his childhood. Nowadays when not on MTV, he is now an all-out fitness guru and trainer who owns two CrossFit gyms in New Jersey, and has Reebok and its Reebok One fitness brand as a major sponsor. No doubt, the experience of him being on nine Challenges and going thru the endurance of many finals & missions had something to do with this passion he has now, which also includes competing in an Ironman triathlon too. And though we miss watching him compete on these shows in recent years, it's great someone who was once "Cup Cake Kid" is now forging a new career in helping us become more active everyday.
   In all, and with respect to the AYTO 3 cast, both Nev and Kenny deserve Winners of the Night standing this week for taking part in the biggest annual sporting event in America's biggest city and running for a cause that, though it's been five years since it happened, puts things into perspective for a country that suffered its greatest tragedy at the beginning of this decade. Over $138,000 was raised to help fund the charity's cause in this year's Marathon, comprising a quarter of the $534,000 that's been raised by the J/P Haitian Relief Organization since Sean Penn formed that foundation to help the people of Haiti post-2010. For more on the efforts, check out its CrowdRise page here.


And with that uplifting look into the Marathon, that's a Wrap for Episode 7 as you prep for tomorrow's big episode of AYTO. There is a lot of discussion about what we got to see, and here's where you can find them...
- The great folks of AfterBuzz TV (@AfterBuzzTV) and the AYTO panel of Lem Gonsalves, Desiree Murphy & Nino llanera have surely delivered in terms of guests this season and last week was no exception. Hannah was the latest one to join them last week as they talked about Episode 7, the season and of course her dealings with Chuck. Make sure to check it out at www.afterbuzztv.com along with their chats with Cheyenne, Chelsey, Mel, Kiki and Kayla and all their podcasts. And of course, ABTV will cover Bloodlines as well, check out that site for past seasons' shows too.
- On the Episode 7 AYTO RHAP with Brian Cohen (@BusDriversRoute) and Ali Lasher (@LashsTweets), the duo discussed everything that occurred last week, and listen to that show here on Rob Has A Podcast. Be on the lookout for a chat with Zak to come in time for tomorrow, plus with Bloodlines coming up, check out both past podcasts at robhasawebsite.com, Brian's interviews from past seasons at his YouTube channel and the Bus Drivers Route blog at busdriversroute.com.
- Of course, check out Andrew Kirk (@CSUGradAKirk) and all of his interviews on his YouTube channel and his SpreeCast & BlogTalkRadio sites. This includes a chat he just finished up with Tyler, which you can check out here. Also, AK provided additional thoughts on his frustration with this season and gave a suggestion on how to improve casting for season 4 on his Big Time Reality TV blog, which you can read here.
- In case you missed it last week, check out video blogger Ace Nichols' preview video for Challenge Bloodlines and of course she will be doing weekly video wraps for the new season beginning next month on her YT hub. Ace (@AceNichols33) will also join Andrew for his Bloodlines preview next week on G+ along with Challenge vet and soon-to-be mom Jasmine as well. Should be fun.

- And of interest to MTV fans, Jersey Shore's Sammi Sweetheart has her own podcast, Just Sayin' which you can check out on SoundCloud. Last week, she was joined by fellow castmate and podcast host Vinny Guadagnino to reflect on seeing J-Woww get married, so check out that show and other podcasts with Sammi and fellow hosts Siggy Flicker and Clare Galterio. And check out Vinny's Get Into It podcast at PodcastOne.com including his chat with Deena Cortese.

Finally and expanding upon the theme of New York sports touched on in ExtraTime, check out Went to That, a great blog on first-hand experiences of attending sports and entertainment events live at wenttothat.com by fellow Challenge/sports fan David Hanson @TheBallIsOrange. We featured the link here before during Exes 2 - including him going to Super Bowl XLIX, but since that time Dave has added more to his sports resume, including many Mets games including Game 4 of the World Series and the unfortunate enigma of actually leaving Citi Field before the Nats' Max Scherzer pitched his no-hitter at season's end. It's a must-read if you love sports.

Again, be sure to follow DCBLOG and all my social platforms for full MTV Trifecta coverage: Pulse diaries, Wraps and all. Of course, Are You The One? is our focus right now but soon we'll kick off our coverage of Challenge: Bloodlines with a preview post and, as mentioned earlier, the two-part Reality Debrief with Andrew Kirk and myself.
   But of course as this is being posted on Tuesday November 10th, the attention on my DC Social Network this week will be focused on the biggest week of the year in my world: DC BDAY Week. It's my birthday week and this is only part of a big week of big things happening on Twitter, Instagram and all my social platforms. This also includes a very special event whose status is, for now, a big secret and all will be revealed this Friday the 13th, the big day itself, so stay tuned to see what it is. And be sure to follow DCNOW on Twitter @DC408DxNow for live tweets of AYTO, Follow The Rules and big sports & entertainment events, as well as a special DC Playlist on BDAY night. And of course, follow me on Twitter and Instagram @DC408Dxtr and Tumblr.
   Thanks again for reading and until we talk to you on DCNOW tomorrow night, talk to you then.

- I AM DC