BY DC CUEVA
This past week, episode 1 had all of the usual "get to know you" as we met our new group of 22 single girls & guys and saw them get close and figure out who they feel will be matches. But one word seems to dominate the opening prelude of this season, as host Ryan Devlin dropped not 1, not 2 but THREE twists on the cast that sure make the house want to love harder and play the game smarter if they want to score the cash. That affected how they played this game, including a dramatic first match-up ceremony.
Coming up, our review of this first episode with the night's key moments, results of our Twitter polls, and a look at the new Fantasy League returning for this Trifecta cycle. After all of that, a double dose of ExtraTime as we'll tell you about a notable horror thriller coming up this year as well as a past Challenge champion's selfless gesture. All of that follows next.
THINGS TO KNOW
♥ LOVE AT PARENTS' EXPENSE: First off, we begin with what's now standard at the beginning of this ride: host Ryan Devlin greeting the cast on the beach, reminding them of how they got here, and what awaits them in this fight for love and money. And just as we've had since Season 2, the host reveals a twist out of the gate: in addition to 11 now being the new magic number, Ryan reveals that the parents of the singles had a chance to look over the bios of their respective co-stars and saw who they thought would be their perfect matches. By random, this twist sees Joey & Carolina, Hannah & Osvaldo and Gianna & Hayden get paired up for the first wave of getaway dates, bypassing the usual opening getaway challenges and being the three picks for the house to choose from.
♥ SINGLE READY TO MINGLE: As the group settles into their new digs, it doesn't take long for them to christen their new pad and to get to know one another. Right off, Carolina tells Joey that the parents must've misunderstood her dating philosophy of the guys she dates having more muscles, and he agrees with her that they're not a match. On the other hand, Kathryn & Ozzy hit it off after finding out about their common trait of having teaching professions. But when they begin to discuss possibly kissing each other, he upsets her. And to add some jealousy to this thing: Kathryn invites Staten Island's Mike to her bed and the two become the first to hook up, all in public view. She and Ozzy make up the next day, saying she was confused thinking he's her match. The Costa Rican feels he won't judge and adds he's not been faithful and needed a girl to break his heart & his pattern.
Another couple who get paired up by the parents and get close immediately are Hayden & Gianna. Though she does have an interest in him, she feels someone who she considers safe is more her type and thinks Hayden isn't her match. But there's another guy who's has their sights set on the girl from Northern Ohio...more in a moment.
♥ THE DATES & THE CHOICE: When our three couples go on their getaway date, Gianna gets annoyed when Hayden puts on camo pants and proceeds to impersonate the character played by Chris Pratt in Jurassic World, which leads her to say that she prefers bad guys over country guys. The pairs take for a ride in an ATV through, of all things, a course resembling a section of that movie park and Hannah figures out that Osvaldo likely isn't match material. But despite what happened to them back at the house, Hay & Gia share a kiss and get closer due to having grown up in the Midwest and feel they have a better chance to be a match than the other two couples. For Joey & Carolina, they also feel sparks and have a kiss, and think that they should be put into the Booth also.
Meanwhile, as the house sides not surprisingly with the Midwesterners for the Truth Booth vote, as Hayden & Gianna make their way towards the chamber of lasers Ryan decides to drop a bomb on the house. There, he asks them, "The truth booth is one of the most important parts of the game but how much is it actually worth to you?" There, he proposes a truth booth trade where the house can give up the results of the truth booth and the $1 million jackpot will rise by $150,000 -- potentially as much as $2.5 million could be handed out at season's end (think, $113,600 for each of the 22 castmates!). But there's a catch to all this: the pair sent in that week can't be sent in again.
The house gets divided by this sudden choice they're forced to make, but with Kam being the leader of the group, the majority sticks with Gianna & Hayden. Unfortunately, that decision to stick to their plan proves costly as the two emerge out of the booth a no match. He gets upset when she tells the group that she believes their connection wasn't that perfect at the beginning, and that leads us to our next item...
♥ MICHAEL & GIANNA: Earlier on when her & Hayden were first getting to know each another, Michael would quickly catches her eye, and after she discusses having gone through open heart surgery one time their chat then brings about some make-outs. Later before the big reveal, Michael - or Hercules as we'll also call him as in reference to his Snapchat nickname, tells the group that he feels Gia is his "ride or die" and comes clean about their kiss. After the non-match is revealed, she shares with them that her attention now has now turned to the South Florida resident. But when Hercules begins to figure out that Gia has similarities to the girls he's been with in the past, he decides he doesn't want to make himself more vulnerable. Gianna heads to the bathroom to shed the first tears of the season and counters that Michael is just not being sympathetic.
♥ FIRST MATCHUP: When the group freshens up, dons their club clothes and rejoins Ryan at the patio for their first Matchup Ceremony, those twists just continue to keep piling on. Along with reminding them of that number 11, he tells them that the blackout rule, which was implemented two years ago after Season 2 experienced two of those, will still be in play where if the house doesn't record any lights at a matchup they will lose money from their jackpot. But this time, it gets even more interesting: instead of $250,000 being docked from their jackpot like what happened to Season 3 early and last season late, now the penalty will be that their bounty will be cut in half each time they black out. Talk about even higher stakes on the line.
The order of which gender picks who in this last act of this weekly routine rests with the girls, who pick this first week - which means the guys will pick in the 10th and final week, should we get to that point come March. Not surprisingly, just as we saw back on Season 3, this first M.C. sees drama take place when after going on a date with Hayden and got close to Michael, Gianna plays differently and chooses Ozzy instead of the ladder. As Ozzy feels connected to Kathryn, the girls slam Gianna for this first choice. Alicia threatens to get into a fight with Gia if they go don't go 11 for 11, while Tyranny adds she would make her cry more than her second crush. But Gia does stand by her choice, citing the fight she had with Hercules made her pick someone else.
With the group fearing that she made a $500,000 mistake, the house can breathe a sigh of relief in notching two light beams, thus two perfect matches and keeping the house eligible for the $1 million. It is down from the three the Season 4 cast had first time around last year, and the same that the first three seasons had...but Team 22 knows this could've gotten worse. Now, it's about building upon what they have and hope to play smart... otherwise it could be a long season ahead.
WHO PICKED WHO...
Kam & Edward
Taylor & Tyler
Kari & Mike
Casandra & Jaylen
Carolina & Joey #
Tyranny & Osvaldo
Gianna & Ozzy
Hannah & Michael
Alicia & Andre
Kathryn & Derrick
Shannon & Hayden
# - denotes was paired up at getaway date/challenge
Like other sites, we'll be featuring charts of who got paired up at the match-up's, but we'll be going a step further as in letting you know who paired up in any paired getaway challenges. We'll also let you know of any times a couple has paired up in multiple MC's, on dates and in challenges also, so as to keep track of who might be possible matches based on the number of times they pair up.
FORUM: POLLS
Now just as we did at times during this past Real World season and introduced during Rivals III last year, I will be conducting Twitter polls on my handle at @DC408Dxtr in asking you what you all think about the episodes, with them bring presented while these episodes air on the west coast, and results to be presented here after our Things to Know review. Here's the results...As revealed in the premiere, what is Season 5's biggest game-changing twist?
● Truth Booth Trade-In 15%
● 11 Girls & 11 Guys 4%
● Even Bigger Blackout Loss 19%
● All of the Above 62%
Out of 27 Votes
Among these couples we saw on the premiere, who do you think could be a perfect match?
● MICHAEL & GIANNA 36%
● KATHRYN & OZZY 36%
● JOEY & CAROLINA 28%
Out of 14 Votes
Do you think the cast should have added $150k to the cash or have taken the 1st Truth Booth results?
● YES! Money 62%
● NO! Love 38%
Out of 13 Votes
FANTASY TRAX
Now, just as it was during Rivals III last summer, MTV.com is hosting a Fantasy League for not just this coming Challenge, but also this very AYTO season. During the next few months, the WRAP will feature a breakdown of fantasy scoring from the weekly episodes, for the sake of those of you who want to keep up with how your favorites are doing. We're doing this feature in place of fellow MTV fan, insider and webcast host Brian Cohen, who did a Fantasy League on his blog but with him now focusing solely on podcasting we'll be doing that for him once again on here.
Since there wasn't week 1 scoring as of press time on the MTV.com page, we'd like to run down how the scoring system works. And like what we had first time out, points are divided into three categories: Competition, Drama and, of course, Romance.
● For COMPETITION: if you're one of those couples who is chosen to go on a date, you earn 20 points with 5 extra being given to the pair who finishes first. If you're that couple who's voted to go into the Truth Booth, you earn 20 points, and you score 50 if you're a confirmed match inside that chamber. But if you pick someone that's not a match you lost 10 points, and going against the house's matchup strategy, 20 is deducted.
● For ROMANCE: If you hook-up in the Kitchen you get 10 points, in the Confessional on in the pool - 15. Kissing on the hammock or hooking up with a non-confirmed match will be 5 points. If you're spotted with any type of nudity, you score 25 points; the same amount if you get slapped on the butt. And for the biggie: if you discuss marriage you earn 30 points, and proposing nets you a big 100 points. And can't forget about reaching for those condoms: it scores you 15.
● And for DRAMA: If you're being called a Ho or a Thot: you get 15 points...same if you have a meltdown. If your girl cries in the house: it's 5 points but it's double if a guy does that. If you're getting swerved or get rejected, you score 20 points. For that juicy Love Triangle, those involved net themselves 25 points, and if you talk about an ex, it's 10. If you pull off an Amanda and argue with Ryan Devlin, you score 20 - which is also the number of you have a hard push or a slap in getting a fight. If you express homesickness you score just 5. But watch out if you see someone hit someone of the opposite sex: you lose 25 points and if someone gets kicked off: -30 points.
Now from judging from what we had in the premiere, Hayden & Gianna earn 20 points for being voted into the Truth Booth, while she gets 5 points for crying after what happened with Michael but she loses 20 for choosing Ozzy instead of Michael. Hay & Gia, Joey & Carolina and Kathryn & Ozzy all get 15 for being on the season's first date, while Kathryn and Mike should earn hook-up points.
Again, this is just a preliminary points list... we'll have a breakdown of all the scoring plus Top 10 point-getters for not just AYTO, but also Invasion, in our WRAP posts.
• • •
#DCExtraTime
HABIT
As we begin a new year, so does another year of highly anticipated movies, with the most recent Golden Globe Awards ushering in the countdown to the Oscars. And being one who actually went to three movies over the holidays last month and watching them in more spacious seats & theaters, the slate of what's ahead in 2017 on the big screen might actually give me a reason to come to the movies a little more often this year.
This winter sees the sequel to Fifty Shades of Grey -- Fifty Shades Darker, plus Sleepless with Jamie Foxx, Fist Fight with Ice Cube, and Kong. As spring arrives, so will the next chapter in The Fast and The Furious saga in The Fate of The Furious, The Power Rangers Movie, Guardians of the Galaxy 2 and the live-action Beauty & The Beast. Of course, all eyes are on the summer blockbuster season with Baywatch, Wonder Woman, The Mummy, Transformers, Despicable Me, Spider Man 3 and Blade Runner 2049. And that's only a handful that's ahead in these next 12 months.
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| Brittney on the cover of Dig Boston Magazine, from IG @TheJohnnyHickey |
That film that's headed to local theaters in the New England area later this year is called Habit, an low-budget horror thriller produced and directed by independent local director Johnny Hickey, and has been in production for over a month now. Given that they've been filming over the holidays, they have had to endure the cold of sub-20 degree conditions and sometimes having to film with no heaters inside some old mental institutions where the movie is being situated and filmed in. It feels very much appropriate for a film with such a dark and chilling theme.
In a photo posted on its Facebook page, Habit's plot sees this story take place at a EDM event in an abandoned underground mental hospital where 8 young adults experience not only the time of their lives, but also the last day of their lives. A party girl named Ray-Ray brings her friends to the rave at the hub of the area's electronic dance music scene, invited to come there by a drug dealer with connections to dance music. She had previously had a sexual encounter with the dealer, but is dared to renew acquaintances with the manipulating promise of supplying she and her group with what's known as "Molly" - official name MDMA. It's best known by its alternative name of ecstasy (E), that recreational drug commonplace at raves, and that leads the group to not only get high, but find themselves in what's more like a real-life Halloween horror movie than a EDM gathering.
Director Hickey's first film in 2011 was called Oxy Morons, which co-starred a childhood friend of his, David Burns - the Bostonian on Real World Seattle best known for his infamous late night meltdown inside the car of his love interest at the time and the one who cast him - Kira - on that season 19 years ago in the same city that just saw some bad blood roll through. As he set about his second movie from the director's chair, Johnny looked to cast not Hollywood big shots - as is usually the case for these indie flicks, but to that MTV acumen he gained from having David the first time out to ask three recent alumni of the Trifecta and a Challenge legend to dive into the acting world for the very first time.
He explains in Dig Boston magazine, for which the cover is pictured above: “The biggest thing is to get people you know you are going to jibe with in your cast. My cast are no-name actors—they’ve never done acting before, but we have four MTV personalities.” And in the realm of having three shows for this site to cover and for me to watch & follow very intently, and the region being a favorite of MTV casting directors, each of them will have representation in the cast of Habit.
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| IG Emilee @IWantMyEmTV |
Joining Brittany in this new endeavor of acting in front of the cameras rather than just living their lives and/or competing within their view is Sabrina from last spring's Go Big or Go Home Las Vegas season of Real World, who we saw write and record music and meet her biological mother for the first time, all the while staying sane in the madness of what happened there in downtown Sin City. And to complete the triple threat of Trifecta girls shifting their attention to screaming and running from the bad guy trying to kill them, there's Emilee from Real World Cancun of eight years ago (for which we did an In-Depth post on her cast hanging out with LMFAO on Thanksgiving), who we then saw on The Challenge: Cutthroat and most recently being part of a short-lived love triangle with her, Jessica and Dustin on Free Agents.
Emilee says, "It started off a little rocky, but it’s progressed into something amazing. For me, the camera [on reality TV] amplifies your personality. I’m all for the dramatic, though, so the acting comes naturally." And Brittany adds, "The Tewksbury [hospital] is haunted as f... It would be totally cold over here, then totally warm over there … It got you more in the mindset. We were going upstairs, and the energy just straight dropped into cold air."
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| IG @TheJohnnyHickey |
FRANK GIVES BACK
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| IG @FrankCSweeney |
As the countdown to that new Challenge begins, five years ago I began regularly following the Real World's competitive sibling with Battle of the Seasons II and was hooked on it from the get go. It was, in fact, an epic elimination battle that was the biggest moment of the last season to not include Johnny Bananas, which I cite as the reason that I now watch that show and eventually have three shows to cover, and was the subject of an In-Depth post which you can read here.
If you happened to have seen that season, one of the key players in Turkey was Frank Sweeney from Back to San Diego. He became notorious to many for his outlandish behavior in Turkey and Surf City, as well as for his gameplay of trying to win at all costs. That led the team of him, Sam and two people from the next champions team of Zach and Ashley, to the win, despite it being overshadowed by the guys berating Sam during the season and in the final in Africa. He did two more Challenges after BOTS 2 -- which includes of course getting slapped by Knight at the Rivals II Reunion, and now he's more than calmed down a bit setting down to a married life with his husband.
The definition of the word "selfless" means, "being concerned more with the needs and wishes of others than with one's own; unselfish." This past week, Frank did a deed that will make you appreciate life even more with that generous act of giving a part of his life to help save the life of another. As he laid in his hospital bed after surgery at City of Hope - a well-known cancer treatment center located north of Los Angeles, this was the Instagram caption he posted to compliment the picture above:
"SO SORE. But SO worth it. Today I donated my bone marrow to a 7-year-old kiddo who's immune system needs a second chance. Sexually actively gay men can't donate blood - but you CAN donate bone marrow (INSANITY, I AGREE). But YOU can make an amazing difference. You can give someone a chance at LIFE. Get on the front lines. Give what you can. Create the kind of world you want to live in. #BeTheMatch #PoofyHairDontCare"
A few days later after receiving a ton of positive notes to the picture, Frank responded to those who gave him compliments for his gesture: "I can't thank you ALL for the outpouring of love and sharing of your stories. Truly an amazing day and community of inspiration. I hope we can continue this conversation with everyone giving a shot to people in need @bethematch. And let's hope everything goes well on the kiddo's end of things!! THANK YOU. 🖤." Fellow Challengers who competed with him on his three appearances were among those to say thank you:
● @justjem24: "You make me so damn proud 💜"
● @trishellec: "So proud of you!"
● @ashleymariekelsey: "❤️️❤️️❤️️❤️️"
● @realjohnnybananas: "You're a good egg Frankie angel 🙏"
● @realjohnnybananas: "You're a good egg Frankie angel 🙏"
● @cjkoegel: "Amazing brother!"
● @iwantmyemtv: "😍❤️❤️❤️"
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
And on that inspiring note, that will wrap it all up for these posts for Week 1 of Are You The One? Season 5 at DCBLOG. There's more to come here, but in the meantime there's some notable webcasts of interest to share with you if you want to check out more from the Trifecta before Episode 2 tomorrow night, and be sure to sample them below...
● First, Kam from this season has her own YouTube channel where she typically posts hairstyling videos, but with her on this AYTO season she at least had to do something related to her new show. And before this season, she posted a Q&A video where she answered questions from fans about AYTO 5.. check that out here, and you may spot an appearance from someone familiar here. ;-)
● With AYTO now underway, it also means the return of the MTV RHAP's on Rob Has A Podcast, but there's something a little different: while Ali Lasher (@LashTweets) is back for another cycle, but this time YouTube personality Adam Buongiovanni (@AdamBongo) will take the place of Brian Cohen (@CohenBrian_) as co-host of the AYTO pods, and the two discussed the premiere which you can listen in here at RobHasAWebsite.com.
● As the countdown to the new Challenge begins, the one most affected by last summer's stunner, Sarah, and her friend Susie, did a new podcast on their Brain Candy Podcast where they discuss the big show and the season that's coming up... Listen to that podcast here on thebraincandypodcast.com, which also includes their signature discussions on non-MTV related subject matter.
● And for you Real World fans, Anika hosted her own Real World reunion and cast catch-up, where she chatted to her castmates on what has been happening with them since their Bad Blood season ended. Check out that catch-up here and her YT channel, and not only will be on the next Challenge - she will also be doing her own talk show called Ask Anika, more on that at @AskAnikaTV.
With the usual reminder to bookmark this site for our unique coverage of the MTV Trifecta, coming sometime this week is Part 2 of DCBLOG's Reality Debrief 2016 with me and Andrew Kirk discussing the Trifecta in 2016 and this new AYTO season through one episode. Apologies to everyone for the lateness of that post taking almost forever for it to be posted due to something called life taking precedent but again it'll be worth the wait, and both of us will sure have something to say about what we've seen the past 13 months.
On our posts for Week 2 of AYTO coming over the weekend, along with all of our episode coverage -- and as the first event of the sport's most-prestigious series of events take place down in Australia -- we'll look at the unique bond a recent RW alum and his whole family have with the game of tennis. Plus, keep an eye out for our Challenge coverage starting up soon, among many things planned for this new year. And as always, follow me @DC408Dxtr on Twitter, Instagram, SnapChat and all of my social media platforms.
That's how we look at it this week that was in the MTV Trifecta. Have a good week ahead and talk to you then.
- I AM DC
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