BY DC CUEVA
Last week, we saw two betrayals in two members of the Skeletons cast leading to one of them facing another castmate in the season's first elimination in Thailand, while the other took place in the Caribbean immediately after the season's first confirmed perfect match in the Truth Booth. We also saw appearances by a wall, a lie detector, a mean girl and a couple who just can't seem to get off one another in that singles pad.
Coming up in this combined edition of the WRAP, we'll recap both shows on you with the key moments of the Challenge premiere, what we've learned the past few weeks in Thailand and the particulars on the past week. Plus, we'll learn more about the deep bonds among some of the Invasion underdogs and share you a travelogue from Thailand. Join us for all that next.
THINGS TO KNOW
● GAME ON: First, we begin in Thailand, where the underdog competitors board a fisherman's boat towards their destination on an island off the coast of Thailand, much like what we see on Survivor. After the usual "get to know you" with many of the rookies, returnees and regulars of this season, the competitors settle into a hut/shelter rather than a traditional Challenge house, followed thereafter by TJ Lavin arriving to tell them that this season will be the hardest ever, and that only those who win missions get to move into the actual Challenge house called an Oasis. And he also adds that there's no past winners on the cast, meaning someone will win their first title...but everyone has no idea that past champions are back home preparing to invade Thailand later on.
● GOING UP & DOWN: The season's first mission sees the players climb over a wall, then under another wall and then solve a puzzle, with those who win going to the Oasis and those who finish last go to the elimination. Though it's essentially an individual challenge, this mission has a team element in everyone working together to get over the wall. Most work on one side of the wall, while Tony, Kailah, Jenna and Cory are on the other side, which catches Amanda's attention on the belief they're forming an alliance right on the spot. In the end, it's Nicole and Dario who finish first and gain immunity, but the drama centers around Bruno deciding to give up because the mission was too hard, which leads to him and Tony getting into words after he decided to give up, while Nelson joins in on that argument. Not surprisingly, TJ spots Bruno on him giving up.
● MEAN GIRL: In the lead-up to last week, Kailah developed a reputation of being the least-liked person of the Trifecta community on social media...it was proven on the premiere. As we saw in that challenge, she instantly bonds with the relatively drama-free Jenna, and when everyone is back at camp, the cast finds themselves in a divide post-game. The girls find themselves in the middle and call out Nelson, who appears to be majority of the majority in the house, and Kailah reminds him of this game being an individual game. It's her mouth and arrogance is, not surprisingly, putting a target on her back this early, and Ashley and Marie believe Kailah will go in that first elimination battle, to go up against the ladder who finished last among the ladies.
● GOING UP & DOWN: The season's first mission sees the players climb over a wall, then under another wall and then solve a puzzle, with those who win going to the Oasis and those who finish last go to the elimination. Though it's essentially an individual challenge, this mission has a team element in everyone working together to get over the wall. Most work on one side of the wall, while Tony, Kailah, Jenna and Cory are on the other side, which catches Amanda's attention on the belief they're forming an alliance right on the spot. In the end, it's Nicole and Dario who finish first and gain immunity, but the drama centers around Bruno deciding to give up because the mission was too hard, which leads to him and Tony getting into words after he decided to give up, while Nelson joins in on that argument. Not surprisingly, TJ spots Bruno on him giving up.
● MEAN GIRL: In the lead-up to last week, Kailah developed a reputation of being the least-liked person of the Trifecta community on social media...it was proven on the premiere. As we saw in that challenge, she instantly bonds with the relatively drama-free Jenna, and when everyone is back at camp, the cast finds themselves in a divide post-game. The girls find themselves in the middle and call out Nelson, who appears to be majority of the majority in the house, and Kailah reminds him of this game being an individual game. It's her mouth and arrogance is, not surprisingly, putting a target on her back this early, and Ashley and Marie believe Kailah will go in that first elimination battle, to go up against the ladder who finished last among the ladies.
● SKELETON BACKSTAB: when time comes to nominate who goes to the elimination, the rules are simply that the opposite sex will vote who goes in - guys choose girls, girls pick guys. Plus, those who go to elimination will be the only ones who will be at that site with the rest staying back, plus one extra twist that those who win those eliminations will also go to the Oasis as well.
Bruno quitting and Nicole winning isn't the end to the Skeletons' story: before the vote goes down, the group got on Sylvia to break her alliance with her Chicago roommates and vote Tony in. She finds herself stuck between a rock and a hard place of who to vote in, hut had to do what was best game-wise. While three went for Theo, four voted for Tony, and instead of going with someone else as a throwaway vote, Syl sticks with the alliance and votes Tony in. This leads, not surprisingly, to words among her castmates over the vote and appearing to have broken off this bond.
Bruno quitting and Nicole winning isn't the end to the Skeletons' story: before the vote goes down, the group got on Sylvia to break her alliance with her Chicago roommates and vote Tony in. She finds herself stuck between a rock and a hard place of who to vote in, hut had to do what was best game-wise. While three went for Theo, four voted for Tony, and instead of going with someone else as a throwaway vote, Syl sticks with the alliance and votes Tony in. This leads, not surprisingly, to words among her castmates over the vote and appearing to have broken off this bond.
● FIRST ELIMINATION: For the first elimination battle, "In the Trenches" sees players begin on opposite ends of both ducts, with sandbags on both sides and the goal to get all ten of them to the other side before the other, and the first one wins safety. The women go first and we find out for the first time that Kailah used to play football and appears to have a competitive edge here as both have shoulder pads on. Kailah simply becomes too much for Marie in this game of trying to power their way through that trench and earns the deserved win. For the guys, Bruno and Tony go at it, and the last time the two were mentioned in the same sentence before last week was when they got into words in Chicago when Tony's brother Shane was in town. Here, a few rough shoves take place in their heat before they decide to go sandbagging. Eventually, Bruno appears to be gassed out as Tony eventually takes the lead and wins. And when he and Kailah return to the campground, most everyone becomes worried of what might happen next. It's just the beginning there.
►#AYTO - Episodes 3, 4 & 5
♥ BAD BOY TYLER: In AYTO land, something that's been emerging the past few weeks has been of Tyler. Heading into week 3, the Bostonian turned Floridian was close to a girl he wasn't affected by the matchup faux pas in Taylor. But then he begins to play other girls: he first flirts with Shannon, and then gets into bed with another girl as Tay begins to question what is going on with him. Then, it's Kari's turn which later catches Hannah's attention at the 3rd matchup. The next week, Taylor finds herself in tears upon finding out of Tyler has been playing her, and later gets put under the microscope at that week 4 beam session. And on week 5, he and Shannon head to Poundtown.
♥ #HAYANNA: A key storyline this first half has been of Hayden & Gianna, and as of late the two from the Midwest have sure taken their non-match relationship to another level. On Episode 3, the two hook up in the confessional...the next week, #Hayanna do it again inside the Boom Boom Room. And this past week, she decides to string him along in the house, while also hooking up with Michael inside the closet, and the Ohioan has gone as far as threatening to do him harm if he goes all in on Carolina, while he assures that they should separate just for the game purpose. MTV.com ranks them among the six dumbest hookups in AYTO's first five seasons, and who knows? They may go down the route of two couples from Season 3...stay tuned to see where that might end up.
♥ LIE DETECTOR: To last week, and the week's getaway challenge sees everyone get tested as Ryan Devlin brings out the lie detector and asks everyone questions while hooked up to that toy. We see answers both serious and silly, and Tyler is asked the last question which he gets wrong. The result of this girls vs. guys battle sees the women win, with the reward being two members get to pick which two guys they get to bring on their date. Here, Kam and Kari are awarded those coveted spots, and both respectively pick Eddie and Mike, much to Alicia's displeasure.
♥ A TRIANGLE & A BETRAYAL: Before this all goes down, Alicia has belief that Eddie has eyes on her and Kam to be matches, and that both ladies are close in the house and shouldn't disrespect each other. Eddie feels convinced that they are going to the truth booth after the challenge, and talks to Alicia before the date and tells him she doesn't want to break her loyalty to Kam. And on that date, Kam & Eddie bond over their desire to connect mentally first before getting it on, with her hoping she's what Eddie wants and will be there for him regardless of the TB result.
When it comes to the vote, Alicia is among those vote to see if Kam & Eddie are a match just to see if there's a shot at him. They are indeed sent in, and the two find shock in the chamber of lasers that they are a perfect match, which of course gives everyone reason to finally let loose. Alicia gives Kam a hug knowing how lucky she has Edward while she tells the camera it'll be hard for him to leave. Well, that's just the beginning.
Later that night, Alicia & Eddie raise people's eyebrows when they go and sneak off together to grab some water in the bathroom. When Kam and Tyranny go all around to look for the two in the kitchen, they don't find them there. In this house where cameras seem to be everywhere, the infrared cams spot Alicia & Edward kissing and her telling him that Kam will not like it. When everyone wakes up, Alicia tells her about it and doesn't like what she's just heard. And when time comes for the two to talk, Kam says Alicia crossed the line for kissing her match and won't accept her apology, while Eddie says he wanted to enjoy his last time in the house.
When it comes to the vote, Alicia is among those vote to see if Kam & Eddie are a match just to see if there's a shot at him. They are indeed sent in, and the two find shock in the chamber of lasers that they are a perfect match, which of course gives everyone reason to finally let loose. Alicia gives Kam a hug knowing how lucky she has Edward while she tells the camera it'll be hard for him to leave. Well, that's just the beginning.
Later that night, Alicia & Eddie raise people's eyebrows when they go and sneak off together to grab some water in the bathroom. When Kam and Tyranny go all around to look for the two in the kitchen, they don't find them there. In this house where cameras seem to be everywhere, the infrared cams spot Alicia & Edward kissing and her telling him that Kam will not like it. When everyone wakes up, Alicia tells her about it and doesn't like what she's just heard. And when time comes for the two to talk, Kam says Alicia crossed the line for kissing her match and won't accept her apology, while Eddie says he wanted to enjoy his last time in the house.
♥ STUCK AT FOUR: As everyone knows, last year's AYTO cast found themselves at a number they shake out of their heads for most of the season: four. In week 3 of this season, the group bounced back from their blackout at that number, and the next week they felt lucky they got out of the patio with an unchanged result. For last week, before proceedings begin Kam announces the bombshell of what went down, plus Andre and Derrick get into heated words as well. The good news is that they avoid a blackout, but they remain stuck at four.
And for the matching order, here you go...
WEEK 5 (Girls' Pick)
*** Kam & Edward ***
Ozzy & Hannah (W4)
Carolina & Hayden (3/4)
Alicia & Mike (W3)
Tyranny & Derrick
Taylor & Andre
Casandra & Jaylan (1/3)
Kari & Michael (W4)
Kathryn & Joey (3/4)
Gianna & Osvaldo
Shannon & Tyler (3/4)
►FOUR BEAMS
Alicia & Mike (W3)
Tyranny & Derrick
Taylor & Andre
Casandra & Jaylan (1/3)
Kari & Michael (W4)
Kathryn & Joey (3/4)
Gianna & Osvaldo
Shannon & Tyler (3/4)
►FOUR BEAMS
Italics denote repeat picks, asterisks denote TB match
►MATCH MATH
For this week's Match Math, Are You The One? Math at AreUThe.Blogspot.com estimates that the group had no chance at blacking out, and seven of the couples that sat at the Matchup were repeat picks, including three from the previous two weeks. Among those seven, Hayden & Casandra is still pegged by the site at 67% to be the next confirmed match, followed by Kathryn & Joey at 62%, Tyler & Shannon at 57% and Ozzy & Taylor at 49% - the only four non-confirmed matches the site has placed their odds at that is in green on their charts. Among those who need a helping hand, Alicia's best option could be Mike, while Gianna could take her mind off of Hayden by going for either Derrick or Ozzy, who could also be the object to Hannah's attentions.
And the most intriguing number AYTO Math has found: the season began with 36,288,000 combinations in week 1, which dwindled down from roughly 48,000 in week 3 to 2,067 possibilities in week 4 to 951 after the first truth booth match, to now 312 possibilities of what could be that combination of the 11 matches could be. At least now with Kam & Edward awkwardly heading into the Honeymoon Suites it's now made things easier for that site's blog master Alex and everyone who loves doing math.
POLLS
Who are you with after seeing
that costly elimination vote?
● TONY & SKELETONS 56%
● SYLVIA & ALLIANCE 44%
OUT OF 16 VOTES
Who do you think was being
disloyal to Kam?
● Perfect Match EDDIE 29%
● Best Friend ALICIA 71%
OUT OF 51 VOTES
FANTASY TRAX
Now, the MTV.com Fantasy Scoring...
►#DCChallenge
■ WEEKLY POINT SCORERS (and TOTAL TOP 10)
1. SYLVIA: 95 Points
2. KAILAH: 90 Points
3. TONY: 70 Points
4. NICOLE: 65 Points
5. DARIO: 45 Points
T-6. LATOYA and SHANE: 30 Points each
T-8. ASHLEY M., JENNA & NELSON: 25 Points each
T-11. THEO, HUNTER & ANTHONY: 15 Points each
14. BRUNO: 0 Points scored
■ THE WEEK'S NOTABLES
● SYLVIA: In a week that saw her make huge noise, Sylvia scores 95 overall points to take the lead after week 1. For competition, she notches 15 for breaking an alliance with her Skeletons castmates, another 15 for joining Nelson's alliance, and notches 15 romance points for nudity when she skinny dipped into the ocean. As a result of those competition points, Syl scores 50 drama points: 20 for crying several times, 20 for having a meltdown, and 10 for verbally fighting with Nicole.
● BRUNO: As a result of him deciding not to finish that first challenge, Bruno loses 20 points for not completing, and got 20 for TJ showing his displeasure.
● Others: Ashley M scores 10 for the season's first vomiting, Jenna gets 10 for arguing with Nelson and Theo, Latoya gets 15 for reading TJ's clue, and Shane gets 15 for nudity.
►#AYTO
■ WEEKLY POINT SCORERS (and TOTAL TOP 10)
1. SYLVIA: 95 Points
2. KAILAH: 90 Points
3. TONY: 70 Points
4. NICOLE: 65 Points
5. DARIO: 45 Points
T-6. LATOYA and SHANE: 30 Points each
T-8. ASHLEY M., JENNA & NELSON: 25 Points each
T-11. THEO, HUNTER & ANTHONY: 15 Points each
14. BRUNO: 0 Points scored
■ THE WEEK'S NOTABLES
● SYLVIA: In a week that saw her make huge noise, Sylvia scores 95 overall points to take the lead after week 1. For competition, she notches 15 for breaking an alliance with her Skeletons castmates, another 15 for joining Nelson's alliance, and notches 15 romance points for nudity when she skinny dipped into the ocean. As a result of those competition points, Syl scores 50 drama points: 20 for crying several times, 20 for having a meltdown, and 10 for verbally fighting with Nicole.
● KAILAH: Kailah is not far behind at 90 overall points: for competition she scores 15 for joining Jenna and Tony on their alliance, and in winning her elimination versus Marie she earns 35 - 10 for winning the battle and 25 for earning a ticket to the Oasis. Drama wise, she earns 5 for being called a rookie, 5 for crying and 10 for verbally fighting Nelson during nominations, and 20 for sex noise off camera.
● TONY: Tony scores 70 overall points to be the top-scoring guy of week 1: 15 for joining the aforementioned alliance, 10 for verbally fighting with Nelson after the mission about Bruno, 10 for giving the customary arrival toast in place of Johnny Bananas, and by way of winning his first elimination, 10 for winning that battle and 25 for going to the Oasis.
● NICOLE: By way of winning the first challenge of the season, Nicole earns 65 overall points: 20 points for winning that mission and 25 for heading to the Oasis. Drama wise, her fight with Sylvia notched her 20 for that meltdown and 10 for verbal fighting, plus 5 for crying when she discussed her ex girlfriend who she gave up to be in Thailand.
● DARIO: Dario wasn't featured much in the drama, as he won for the guys and got 20 for winning that first mission and 25 for that ticket to the Oasis.
● Alliances: As a result of the alliances being joined, Ashley M., Jenna, Latoya, Nelson, Shane, Theo, Hunter and Anthony all earn 15 points each.● BRUNO: As a result of him deciding not to finish that first challenge, Bruno loses 20 points for not completing, and got 20 for TJ showing his displeasure.
● Others: Ashley M scores 10 for the season's first vomiting, Jenna gets 10 for arguing with Nelson and Theo, Latoya gets 15 for reading TJ's clue, and Shane gets 15 for nudity.
►#AYTO
■ WEEKLY POINT SCORERS
1. EDWARD: 115 Points
2. KAM: 100 Points
3. ALICIA: 35 Points
4. SHANNON: 30 Points
T-5. MIKE & TYLER: 15 Points each
T-7. GIANNA, KARI & MICHAEL: 5 Points each
■ TOP 10 TOTAL SCORERS
1. EDWARD: 165 Points
2. KAM: 125 Points
T-3. ALICIA and JOEY: 110 Points each
5. CAROLINA: 100 Points
T-6. HAYDEN, KATHRYN & OSVALDO: 85 Points each
9. TYLER: 80 Points
T10: ANDRE, SHANNON & TYRANNY: 70 Points each
■ THE WEEK'S NOTABLES
♥ EDWARD: On the basis of his big week, Edward scores 115 points this week: 85 competition points, 5 romance points and 25 drama points. For competition, he earns 15 for being chosen for the date, 20 for being chosen to go to the truth booth, and 50 for being a confirmed perfect match and thus going to the honeymoon suites. For romance, he scores 5 for hooking up with Alicia after being a perfect match with Kam, and for drama he scores 25 for the love triangle. Overall, he is in first place with 165 points.
♥ KAM: Kam scores 100 overall points this week for all of the reasons stated above with regards to the honeymoon suite (50), triangle (25) and truth booth (25) plus 5 points for being part of the winning challenge side. She stands second on the points table at 125 points overall.
♥ ALICIA: In addition to being part of the love triangle (25) and hooking up with Edward (5), Alicia scores an addition 5 points for crying after Edward & Kam are confirmed as a perfect match. She is tied with Joey at 110 points each.
♥ SHANNON & TYLER: Shannon and Tyler each score 15 points for hooking up in the boom boom room with Tyler, and she scores another 15 for reaching to get a condom in Poundtown.
♥ OTHERS: Gianna scores 5 for hooking up with Michael in the closet, same with Kari in winning the challenge. Her date, Mike, scores 15 for being chosen for that date.
• • • • •
#DCExtraTime
TRAVELS IN THAILAND
 |
| Twitter @MarieR0da |
After losing their battles in the first eliminations last week, Marie and Bruno didn't leave Thailand, but rather stayed for some time in the same country that Sarah has visited two previous times for Challenges. We've supplied Marie's photo for all of you to check out, but they're not the only ones on Team MTV to check out the country of 66 million people and one of the most populous in Asia.
If you check out the Instagram of a cast member of one of the 20 previous non-Trifecta shows I've followed since 2013, Adrian from the 2013 show Scrubbing In, which documented him and other fellow nurses as they spent life in and outside a SoCal hospital, has spent the past month on his honeymoon with his wife in Thailand, even rolling through the same streets of Phuket that hosted Ruins and Rivals II. Adrian's adventures have seen him see the sport of Muay Thai, hang out with elephants, ride scooters through the city's street, seeing the statues of the buudha and roam the beaches and islands where CT, Wes, Paula and Emily went through for their wins a few years ago.
FRIENDLY BONDS
Speaking of our two subjects, as what we saw on the Invasion premiere, there are bonds that are deep as family among the many who reside as part of the MTV Trifecta family. All three of these bonds among the underdogs of this cast were developed inside their original Real World houses, and we thought about giving you all a refresher on them.MARIE/LATOYA
As we spoke about here in our Who Are These Newbies? post for this season, Marie and LaToya established a strong bond in the Real World St. Thomas house from the outset. In the premiere, when Marie saw Latoya moved in, they literally never let go. 'Ri spoke of T on the premiere: "Here comes this little bubbly black chick. I just wanna put her in my pocket and bring her everywhere with me."
Together - and when not dealing with their respective house romances, they pulled a fish prank on Swift, hung out with marine animals and explored the island, including being stranded on a nearby island when they hiked in the Virgin Islands. There were fears that they got lost and would never be found again, but eventually park marshals found them safe. And on the reunion they emerged as the most-notable people on there.
THE WOLFPACK
When we first met the Real World Skeletons cast over two years ago, almost immediately four people bonded: the guys of Tony, Bruno and Jason, and tomboy Nicole - who affectionally called themselves the "Wolf Pack." There was a hilarious moment in the premiere where Bruno, Nicole and Jason went all over town to try and look for a burger place around their block, but it really amounted to a 45-minute walk around the neighborhood in Chicago, when in reality that restaurant was just a 5-minute walk across the street from their house.
Their bond stayed strong during the season, even with the clashes Bruno had with most everyone in the house, and the fight that took place with Nicole and Jason which we discussed in an ExtraTime In-Depth last year. All of this taking place with Tony and Madison having their famous romance which brought about baby Harper last year, and Jason also becoming a dad during the season as well.
SYLVIA/VIOLETTA
It would not be fair for us to discuss the Skeletons group without mentioning the bond two of the three other girls had in Chicago. When I gave them, as well as a co-subject of our bit on the movie Habit featuring Real World Go Big's Sabrina, a mention during the third Real World Vegas seasons on DCNOW last year, they responded to me this way:
- @VMillerman: "coots to find the girls for finding themselves a Syl, but no one will ever have the same bond."
- @SylviaMTV: "I would have to agree!"
- @itSabrinaK: "I agree! all friendships and people are different"
As the Wolfpack were clicking in the house, Sylvia and Violetta found that they had similar backgrounds of being passionate women who also dealt with similar backgrounds, skeletons that were similar, and all else that made them have that deep bond in the house in Chicago.
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
That will wrap it up for this week's posts in the MTV Trifecta. There is a lot more to be discussed from this first week of The Challenge, and an eventful fifth week in the Caribbean. And as we always do here at the end of our posts, here's where you can hear and see more before this week's episodes...
● After losing that first elimination, Andrew Kirk (@CSUGradAKirk) had the opportunity to talk to Bruno about that elimination and his short time in Thailand. Check out that interview here - which made Bruno Andrew's first repeat guest from Skeletons to join him on his Big Time Reality TV series, which you can check out his past webcasts on his YouTube channel and with Reality Radio, for which they discussed the premiere at length here.
● Last week on Bill Simmons' Podcast platform, Challenge fan Juliet Litman of The Ringer was joined once again by Johnny Bananas as they discussed this season and everything related to the upcoming invasion of the champions. Check out that podcast here, and see through our past posts for past interviews with Challenge powerhouses.
● The return of a Challenge season also means that it also means Ace Nichols is back with her own recaps of the episodes. Posted a few days ago was her Invasion premiere recap, which you can check out there on her YouTube page, plus check out AfterBuzz TV for their Challenge coverage which also included a visit from Challenger Anika.
● Also back is Brian Cohen (@CohenBrian_), who joined Ali Lasher (@LashTweets) on Rob Has A Podcast for their Challenge recap as they discussed at length everything that went on in the two-hour premiere, their thoughts on the players and much more. Check out their recap here, plus Are You The One? talk with her and Adam Bungiovanni (@AdamBongo) at RobHasAWebsite.com.
Be sure to bookmark DCBLOG for our unique look at the MTV Trifecta, offering you a weekly complement to all the discussion and interviews as we bring you the weekly 'Pulse of the episodes and the stories behind the action and drama on-screen. We'll be back here this weekend with covering Episode 2 of the Invasion and Episode 6 of AYTO - for which we'll be announcing what we'll be covering in addition to episode coverage coming up after the ladder airs, over at @DC408Dxtr.
After live tweeting the Grammys on Sunday, be sure to follow DCNOW @DC408DxNow for live episode tweets, and use my hashtag #DCChallenge to join the conversation there and on my other hub with polls included too.
That's is how we see it this week in the MTV Trifecta...thank you for browsing along here. And until we talk on DCNOW later and then back here Friday, see you then and enjoy the chocolates.
- I AM DC
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