BY DC CUEVA
Well, hey there folks... welcome on in to the second half of 2018 in the always fascinating and never-ending drama that is MTV Reality, and to the sixth season of Inside MTV Reality at DCBLOG. We hope you've been enjoying this holiday week with barbecue, fireworks, family time and all that comes with this mid-summer time to celebrate America with the 4th of July, north of the border with Canada Day, NBA & NHL free agency frenzy, and this year all around the world with the FIFA World Cup as a wild tournament in Russia reaches its last four. Amidst this backdrop, we are anxious to again bring you this site's signature coverage of the most unique and exciting programming of its kind anywhere. And as we dive into this summer, think about what we have ahead of us...
Following an eventful first Jersey Shore Family Vacation down in Miami, Season 2 of Floribama Shore with Nilsa, Gus & friends will again take over Panama City Beach and will kick off Premiere Week tomorrow night. Also ahead, stars will turn their focus from challenging Champs to trying their luck on Celebrity Fear Factor, and new shows will take us to the heartland, the city and the tattoo parlor. Just after what we saw on Ex On The Beach, we'll soon return to Hawaii to meet the next wave of love-seekers on Season 7 of Are You The One?. And before you know it -- a new group of seven strangers will "stop being polite and start getting real" when The Real World returns to its roots. Of course, there are other series too -- and perhaps, we could have yet another crossover that will sure leave everyone shook... as we love to say around here, stay tuned.
Here, the players have come from all walks of the MTV community: six past champions, big-name veterans, emerging contenders, the British continent who dazzled us this winter, alumni of summer sensation Big Brother, and just off the plane from Hawaii -- four members of the cast of the juicy U.S. iteration of Ex On The Beach. Plus, we have our our very first Star to come to The Challenge after a run to the pairs portion of Champs vs. Stars II, and beating a British Olympian to become the first to make the jump into the top flight.
Like what we have seen in seasons aplenty recently, they all have something in common: they all have past histories between them full of bad blood, and as we've seen on Rivals and Exes seasons of years past, the teams who have been put together in this heartland must put it all aside when it matters most. And just as it was last year, the prize purse is as grand as you can get: $1 MILLION.
Yes, there's all the crazy, extreme and daring competitions we've come to expect from this show, along with all the love, politics and drama that makes this show so great - and of course, host TJ Lavin patrolling matters. We at DCBLOG will be here to bring you all of that and more every step of the way from here two days before the premiere, right through the champs being crowned later in the autumn... and in this, the 27th full season we have dedicated wall-to-wall coverage to, we'll cover not only all of those but also offer a unique angle you won't find anywhere else. And it all begins with this preseason preview as we'll look at what Final Reckoning is all about and what we can expect, break down the people who have been selected to be part of Season 32, and our traditional preseason introduction to the newbies of this season.
So, if you are ready as we are... and are ready to escape the heat that's been engulfing the nation this summer's weekend, get warmed up, put on your Under Armour uniform and Join In with us after the jump as DCBLOG kicks off year six of Inside MTV Reality and our first look at The Challenge - Final Reckoning. We're so glad you're with us.
WHAT TO EXPECT...
For those who have been following this show from its earliest days, so many formats have been used spanning veterans vs. rookies, rivalries, ex-romantic partners and the like. The past two seasons, Dirty 30 and Vendettas, used elements of the Free Agents format for a few years ago where they combined an individual format with challenges that saw the competitors compete as themselves, in pairs and in teams, followed by one-on-one tilts to see who stays and goes. But this time for Season 32 and the last stage of this trilogy, it will be different: pairs who will have to work together, just as we've seen on Rivals and Exes before this, in order to get to this season's $1 million prize pool.
The format of this game has the usual daily challenge and elimination format with those who win getting immunity, having a front row seat to what goes down at night and having the power of throwing a team into elimination… and this will continue until we reach the final challenge several months from now. We don't know what the exact procedure of this Final Reckoning season is, but we should have a good idea of what this should be all about by the end of this first hour, and we'll explain that here in due course. But there will be three important twists that fans will be familiar with from this trilogy that will once again rear its ugly head in part 3 of this trifecta.
One twist that defined Dirty 30 last summer was the Double Cross: the multiple players who are up for elimination should they finish in the bottom portion of each daily mission get sent into the Draw. Free Agents had the kill cards which saw Jordan gamble and lost against Bananas and fellow Portlander Johnny R. get the luck of the Irish as did Devin & Cheyenne on Rivals III when black and white skulls were the rage. And here, it's boxes with either an X which means safety, or a XX to indicate the Double Cross… and those who draw it can throw anyone other than the winners into the chamber. That will be in play yet again on this season to rid the house of preconceived alliances early on and add plenty of intrigue to what will go down when the lights are brightest.
Second, Vendettas as well as this spring's Champs vs. Stars saw something that can give those in power a chance to further stake their claim to the game. The "Grenade" saw those who won the weekly eliminations in Spain give punishments to any player for the ensuing challenge, while the similar in size "Power Play" gave those dibs to the Champ or Star voted MVP. It had a hand in creating one of the teams of this season, but also there Kam took advantage of her two grenades to both lube up and add time to Cara, while Nelson took money from Joss' account when he won under the lights. Watch for it to put into focus yet again here when talk of strategy comes up, especially with this being a paired challenge and knowing what happened last time this format was used.
Our third and last major twist to go down in South Africa came our way last season on Vendettas, and first appeared on Cutthroat, which was the venue for The Challenge's most famous moment ever. There in Prague, Johnny thought he was going to face rival Tyler in the Gulag as did Theresa and Tori Hall in that same elimination. But instead of facing off against each other, they were given a total shock when CT and Road Rules alum Tina Barta were brought into the game as Mercenaries… we all know what happened next with him and Bananas. That twist was revisited multiple times in Spain: first with Tori, Jordan, Aneesa & Derrick in one week, and Ashley, Darrell, Frank & Laurel in another – the battle between Derrick and Joss was called one of the biggest elimination battles ever.
Second, Vendettas as well as this spring's Champs vs. Stars saw something that can give those in power a chance to further stake their claim to the game. The "Grenade" saw those who won the weekly eliminations in Spain give punishments to any player for the ensuing challenge, while the similar in size "Power Play" gave those dibs to the Champ or Star voted MVP. It had a hand in creating one of the teams of this season, but also there Kam took advantage of her two grenades to both lube up and add time to Cara, while Nelson took money from Joss' account when he won under the lights. Watch for it to put into focus yet again here when talk of strategy comes up, especially with this being a paired challenge and knowing what happened last time this format was used.
Our third and last major twist to go down in South Africa came our way last season on Vendettas, and first appeared on Cutthroat, which was the venue for The Challenge's most famous moment ever. There in Prague, Johnny thought he was going to face rival Tyler in the Gulag as did Theresa and Tori Hall in that same elimination. But instead of facing off against each other, they were given a total shock when CT and Road Rules alum Tina Barta were brought into the game as Mercenaries… we all know what happened next with him and Bananas. That twist was revisited multiple times in Spain: first with Tori, Jordan, Aneesa & Derrick in one week, and Ashley, Darrell, Frank & Laurel in another – the battle between Derrick and Joss was called one of the biggest elimination battles ever.
While the rules are the same in that if an elimination competitor beats that heavy hitter in the weeks this twist goes down they get to stay in, the big twist here is that if the Mercenary takes out the win, they they will take their spot in the game and move into the house to join the rest of the competitors in this game. Imagine if Laurel won as she did last year, she would've spurred all that drama with her, Nicole and Cara all over again. So, the onus is on the challengers to get the job done or that will be taken care of by the heavy hitters.
Of course, all of this will take during the course of the game itself as we begin the long process of narrowing the field down to the final few teams who will play off for the seven-figure treasure chest that awaits... that may include other twists that are so out there we don't even know what's gonna happen. And don't be surprised if there will be times where things will get ugly in the house outside of all the competition. The country that serves as the backdrop to this season had one of THOSE moments take place here the first time it hosted a Challenge... more on that later.
Of course, all of this will take during the course of the game itself as we begin the long process of narrowing the field down to the final few teams who will play off for the seven-figure treasure chest that awaits... that may include other twists that are so out there we don't even know what's gonna happen. And don't be surprised if there will be times where things will get ugly in the house outside of all the competition. The country that serves as the backdrop to this season had one of THOSE moments take place here the first time it hosted a Challenge... more on that later.
▪ ▪ ▪
MEET THE CAST
Italics denotes first-time rookie; asterisk denotes previous champ;
Twitter handles are linked to competitors' names
Twitter handles are linked to competitors' names
For this summer's class of competitors, each of the pairs who have been revealed here have long histories: rivalries that unfolded during, except in some cases, during this Challenge trilogy; or in the case of two of these teams, stories of being relatively recent exes who would've easily been cast on on Ex On The Beach or would've had to wait a little for Battle of the Exes. They all have to face the consequences of what they have done in recent years and, as the MTV presser states, "All of the recent betrayals, regrets and wrongdoings will rise to the surface as the competitors pair off with their fiercest vendetta yet. Will they be able to put aside their issues, settle the score and work together to take home the $1 million prize?"
This is a cast that should please everyone: big names with 19 Challenge finals wins in total (regular & the Champs vs. Stars spinoff), newcomers to the show from in and outside the MTV vernacular, and spanning from one who made their MTV debut 19 years ago to a half-dozen who debuted earlier on Vendettas.
● BRAD* & KYLE: For the Cutthroat champion who returned last season and the bronze medalist in Prague, Brad and Kyle were never aligned together in Spain, and it was when the former used his grenade against ladder of tying his legs together while watching a challenge from pitchside that made them vendettas. The Geordie Shore alum overcame that to eventually make the final in Prague, while the newly single Chicagoan found love with Britni and is a proud dad... now the task at hand for these hotheads: work together and hope what happened in Spain stays there.
● NELSON & SHANE: Two men had their breakthrough Challenges last year in Thailand: Nelson pushed CT in the final to finish second on Invasion, and Shane brought his fiery fury to this latest wave of Challengers. Also in Asia, Shady Shane made deals behind closed doors with some of his fellow Underdogs which eventually made the rounds to Nelson and he went off on him. The king of almost becoming king and this master of politics and water challenges will have to try and simmer down a bit if they want a part of the jackpot.
● CARA MARIA* & MARIE: For the most intriguing pair here, it comes bringing together a beast and a blonde, and who both have a tense history. Marie actively campaigned against Marie on Dirty 30, then on Vendettas after an attempt to work together went by the wayside, a guy got in between them in Kyle... and this bickering has even made its way to Twitterland. Cara is, of course, the defending champion, while Marie returned from a long hiatus last year and has made quite a splash. Now comes the biggest challenge yet for these mortal enemies: working together... certainly it's no easy task.
● JEMMYE & JENNA: For the #1 example of how the Double Cross should be executed this season, look back to what happened on Dirty 30: Jemmye pulling it in the first girls elimination last summer and saying Jenna's name which put her in an elimination she would lose to best friend Kailah and sent the Barbie Beast to the Redemption House. Up until that Colombian night, the two were never on each other's radar, but the gossip queen and the girl who comes here with a high-profile romance must mesh together if the Barbie wants to be crowned Challenge queen for the first time.
● KAM & MELISSA: If you watched Vendettas, you saw the Brits make quite a splash... and the first time they made waves on American television came when Melissa got to flirt around the Vendettas villa, while Kam and her Dolphin alliance went around to plot against the EOTB UK DJ. It was a chaotic night of these two getting into it verbally that nearly became a physical one... and now comes the hard part of trying to put what happened in Spain behind them and work together. It's also a tough act for Queen Kam to follow after her stellar rookie season, as well as Mel's solid elimination effort.
● KAILAH & KAYLEIGH: The other British lass who made her way to The Challenge was Kayleigh, and it was in Europe that Kailah relied on the social game to make the final. It was also there that a rumor started to fly of the Wales native hooking up with Bananas. It led to the biggest blowup of Vendettas: Kailah coming to the aid of Natalie (who Bananas was in love with) by teaming with Britni and Jemmye to toss Kay's clothes over the balcony... and eventually leading to Kay quitting, and continuing their beef on Twitter. Who knows what will happen when you put them together.
● CT* & VERONICA*: For the one who comes here off a 2nd straight Champs vs. Stars win, CT now turns his attention from working with Tony to now dealing with one who had some ill will last year on Dirty 30. There, longtime queen Veronica argued with him many times and when the opportunity was afforded to him, CT sent her into elimination. And when she returned from Redemption, she got her revenge and returned the favor by sending him to the cramped quarters. With these two having competed together before and now, will these Vets work together to claim one for the old guard?
● AMANDA & ZACH*: Last year on Invasion, Amanda was an Underdog who would ultimately make it to that season's Purge, but the Pop-Off Queen not only sparked some drama but also created a vendetta. When she went around to spread rumors of Zach's then-ex and fellow Challenger, Jenna, hooking up with a competitor on the plane ride to Asia, she immediately became enemies with Thor.
The past champion finished 2nd on Vendettas and comes here with Jenna also in the house as well... which should make for an interesting dynamic for him and Amanda.
● SYLVIA & JOSS: For the girl who put up an epic elimination battle with Mel last season, Sylvia returns after giving so much of herself in that battle in the lube that an illness cut her trip short. Before that, Syl started on good terms with the other returning UK lad Joss, but it all came crashing down when he voted her into that elimination tilt which not surprisingly left the wedding planner shook. They have yet to bury the hatchet, but they must do so if they have a shot at the mill.
● TORI & DERRICK: Last year, Tori & Derrick met up while in Australia for AYTO Second Chances spinoff and then flew over to Colombia for Dirty 30 as a couple. She was a strong competitor who would make it to the final as a rookie, but after he lost in the first elimination she would then cheat with eventual champ Jordan (they're still together). Mr. Chocolate comes here straight off of what he had to go through not just in Hawaii but also on the XXX reunion which, like what went down in the Shack of Secrets, also featured a reference to his phone... and two exes are living with him.
● PAULIE & NATALIE: This year has seen a Big Brother fest, which started with Natalie invading The Challenge on Vendettas. We first saw her on BB18 where had a huge hatred for the man who we just saw in the heat of the Ex On The Beach drama, Paulie. If you watched him two years ago, she was on a mission to have him evicted, only to meet him head on in a bad-mouthed tirade that saw him make the first of many headlines since. If there is one pair who is bound to become the team fans will most definitely root against on Final Reckoning, Natalie & Paulie are likely to become that.
● DA'VONNE & JOZEA: The other Big Brother pair here also shared quarters with Paulie & Natalie two years ago: Jozea comes here having made the pairs part of Champs vs. Stars, beating Louise Hazel to become the first Star to head to the big time. He got here because of Da'Vonne and what happened there when they had a miscommunication with one another in trying to protect themselves in that always intense house that's as much a part of summer as anything else. It's one thing to survive that Big Brother house, but it's another to survive The Challenge - that's what they have here.
● JOHNNY BANANAS*: For Johnny Bananas, he has six titles under his belt and the most prize money, and as always, he's hoping to dodge the bullets yet again. Aside from leading that dominant Champs vs. Stars win this winter, he hasn't won a Challenge since, of course, that the biggest backstab of all which led Jemmye to lay a curse upon a man who we just saw dress in drag on 1st Look TV recently. But we don't know who his partner is, which begs us to wonder who it might be... and there are many possibilities out there of who is that mystery 30th competitor.
● The Mystery #30: Maybe, it could be Devin after he fulfilled his promise to take Bananas out during Vendettas by outsmarting him in elimination, continuing their hatred post-Rivals III. It was there that we had THAT betrayal burned in Challenge memories when he stole all the prize money from Sarah as revenge for her boss move on him on Exes II. And in another backstabbing, friend Tony became a foe when he sent him in on Vendettas... or maybe it's Cory. Or perhaps, it could be another person we can't think of that could be Johnny's partner here. Only time will tell.
A longstanding credo of DCBLOG's Challenge coverage has always been that, whenever a new competitor joins this community as a rookie, we make sure you don't meet them for the first time on the premiere and to give them proper welcome to those who just The Challenge and not much other MTV fare. Who Are These Newbies? provides this platform for us to introduce each new competitor (and where possible, returning veteran) as a service to our fans - both longtime & new - and have done bits on every rookie and returnee since we started during Rivals II five years ago.
There are six rookies making their Challenge debuts on Final Reckoning (one their MTV debut too), but since we also did a Who Are These Newbies? post for Ex On The Beach, we're spared the expense of writing again about Angela, Faith and Paulie who were on other series before going to Hawaii and then here to South Africa... check that out if you want to learn more about them or search around this site for more on those you're seeing for the first time here. For the three whose Challenge debut is taking place here, one is from AYTO, another is from Champs vs. Stars and his partner was on the same Big Brother season as him.
● CHUCK (Are You The One? Season 3)
We first saw Chuck on Are You The One? Season 3 three years ago - a highly touted cast as he's now the 7th member of that cast to go onto The Challenge amidst babies, social media, a finals berth and even Real World. According to his bio, "Chuck has the charm, looks, and swagger of a bad boy but, a heart of gold," and from the outset he was attracted to New York blonde Hannah but was taken down by an early matchup blackout. He then turned his attention to Britni afterwards, and despite being sent into the Truth Booth and not being a Perfect Match they still remained together after the season, dated for a year and broke up upon her going on Vendettas. Meanwhile, Chuck had a freak accident while cliff diving in Hawaii when his foot was so badly hurt it almost got amputated. Below is Chuck & Britni talking about what happened to their picture perfect relationship before they have to work together again (we devoted a post on that relationship last year)... and on a fun note, below he & Devin head into the confessional to perform a song as "Chuck N Big D," as well as him going scuba diving just after he and his AYTO cast were revealed back in August 2015.
● JOZEA (Big Brother 18 and Champs vs. Stars II)
Before he made his way to Champs vs. Stars II three months ago, Jozea Flores first debuted on Big Brother 18 two years ago as a Bridgeton, NJ native who moved to L.A. to become a makeup artist. Openly gay, he described himself as "funny, outgoing and a creative artist" with his strong fashion sense, and who related well BB-wise to Frankie Grande (Ariana's sister) from BB16 as he set about using his mind to get into the heads of the other houseguests. In that house, fans and cast alike were all over Jozea for making a variety of pompous claims... most notably when he called himself a "Messiah," and in the clips below he wore a puppy outfit when word got to him that the house had enough of his antics and made a move to give him the boot. He was on the same Team Big Sister as his partner here, and when word got to the Head of Household of his intentions to go for the top spot he would eventually be the victim of a blindside vote and became the second evicted houseguest of BB16, and lost to Vendettas competitor Victor in the BattleBack redemption house. And as he enters his 2nd MTV show in three months - for which him battling the water on CVS is also included below, Jozea is now embracing hip-hop with the track "Tony Montana."
● DA'VONNE (Big Brother Seasons 17 and 18)
To be in the Big Brother house is one thing, but to live in summer paradise twice is another: that's what we have with SoCal native Da'Vonne Rogers who first took up residency in the BB house two times, first back in 2015 when the single mom moved into the Season 17 house and leaving behind her daughter. The poker dealer described herself as "loud, hilarious and unpredictable", and in her first go she was the midst of an early girls alliance that quickly evaporated and, like Jozea, was the second houseguest to be evicted. Da'Vonne was then given a second chance the following season for Season 18 and like the previous summer joined an alliance... only this time it was two of them: one with seven other houseguests and a five-person all-female alliance. She improved on her previous stay in spending an additional month on the BB18 house before being evicted in 11th... and yes, it was when he called himself the "Messiah" that caused De'Vonne to send home Jozea from the house and led them not only to this Challenge but also to RuPaul's Drag Race when they were spotted in the live audience of last week's finale. Below: her fight with Paulie in the Jury house, her opening up to the BB17 house, and when she took part in an EDM-themed challenge.
De'Vonne, Jozea and Chuck are only part of a story that will, in more than 48 hours from now, unfold from a place that, at the beginning of this decade, hosted the event stops the world every four years in the FIFA World Cup. South Africa not only hosted that memorable 2010 tournament in front of its greatest citizen Nelson Mandela and with those famous vuvuzelas, it also played host to Season 14 of The Challenge: The Inferno III - which also was the rubber match of a series trilogy. There, it was where CT was DQ'd for throwing a haymaker in leaving Denver alum and aspiring musician Davis Mallory with a black eye, where Johnny Bananas and Paula made their first finals in their second Challenges, and where Kenny Santucci, Derrick Kosinski and Evelyn Smith all won the first of their three titles alongside all-time Challenge rebel Abram on Team Bad A$$es.
Now, a 90-minute drive from where that 2007 Challenge season took place in Cape Town will take this season's class of thirty competitors to the small town of Hermanus, which is paradise for retirees and whale watchers. Johnny and CT return to this nation a decade older and with many titles in hand, and those who were in middle school when them on Inferno III are now joining them for what should be an epic Challenge season. Among the questions are on our mind in the South African countryside is of how will a two-time defending champion handle working with a Staten Islander? Will teams that have explosive personalities try to cool down in the heat of the battle? Should two pairs of exes survive not only dealing with each other but also working with each other? Who will have the tough task of having to work with a six-time champion? And how will this season stack up with the rest?
We'll all find out together come Tuesday. And as we love to say, let's get this all started.
As we begin this new cycle of what we now are calling Inside MTV Reality instead of just Inside the Trifecta, think of DCBLOG as sort of your Sunday supplement to the shows you love. And in a world dominated by podcast interviews, power rankings, fantasy scoring, hot takes and Twitter stans, this site is the Parade Magazine of MTV Reality in covering not just The Challenge but other series as well, including Floribama Shore - for which a recap of Season 1 will come here tomorrow, followed by a Forum preview of this Final Reckoning season on Tuesday.
For here, we'll be along every week to cover this Challenge as only we can... starting with our exclusive DC SocialPulse diaries offering all the play-by-play of the action, reaction and interaction from the cast, alumni and fans from before, during and after the episodes on Twitter - everything that takes place in 280 characters or less. In addition to wrapping up every episode and offering our own take on the usual recaps, opinions and analysis, our other key component of ExtraTime will allow us to use our adapt skills in "up close and personal" storytelling to add context and perspective on the competitors, the MTV Reality community and the world we live in as seen from this prism.
To make things easier on those who watch the episodes live on Tuesdays and those who don't cable and can't catch up until Wednesday morning, our weekly episode coverage always begins over the weekend and a few days after it first airs. That way, we'll give all of you ample time to catch up and then join us here for all the reaction, analysis and stories covering this Challenge when you're relaxing at the end of the work/school week. And while you're catching up, we'll be able to craft and curate our acclaimed, high-quality coverage to better offer an angle on The Challenge you probably won't find anywhere else... content that offers something for both the hardcore and casual fans.
● TORI & DERRICK: Last year, Tori & Derrick met up while in Australia for AYTO Second Chances spinoff and then flew over to Colombia for Dirty 30 as a couple. She was a strong competitor who would make it to the final as a rookie, but after he lost in the first elimination she would then cheat with eventual champ Jordan (they're still together). Mr. Chocolate comes here straight off of what he had to go through not just in Hawaii but also on the XXX reunion which, like what went down in the Shack of Secrets, also featured a reference to his phone... and two exes are living with him.
● BRITNI & CHUCK: There's another pair fresh out of Splitsville: before she became attached to Brad, Britni got hot and heavy with Chuck on AYTO Season 3... and even after they returned from the Truth Booth matchless they still dated after the show. They broke up before she went onto Vendettas and have since been on bad terms since, one they have to overcome for a shot at money.
For Chuck, he's lucky he's even able to make his Challenge debut here: this scuba diver had a bad cliff diving accident that nearly saw him lose his foot and has fully recovered.
For Chuck, he's lucky he's even able to make his Challenge debut here: this scuba diver had a bad cliff diving accident that nearly saw him lose his foot and has fully recovered.
● ANGELA & FAITH: Joining Derrick on the ride from Hawaii to Africa are two reality alums who've just shared a EOTB villa with him: Angela had a fling with fitness guru Tor'i until fellow roommate Faith went on a steamy date with him... and things got ugly once Angela found out about that rendezvous that turned into a girl code violation. The Bad Girls Club vet is tough & sensitive, and the Vanderpump Rules star is surprisingly a college athlete along with being an Army vet... they'll have to forget about that Hawaiian vacation for a shot at gold here.
● DA'VONNE & JOZEA: The other Big Brother pair here also shared quarters with Paulie & Natalie two years ago: Jozea comes here having made the pairs part of Champs vs. Stars, beating Louise Hazel to become the first Star to head to the big time. He got here because of Da'Vonne and what happened there when they had a miscommunication with one another in trying to protect themselves in that always intense house that's as much a part of summer as anything else. It's one thing to survive that Big Brother house, but it's another to survive The Challenge - that's what they have here.
● JOHNNY BANANAS*: For Johnny Bananas, he has six titles under his belt and the most prize money, and as always, he's hoping to dodge the bullets yet again. Aside from leading that dominant Champs vs. Stars win this winter, he hasn't won a Challenge since, of course, that the biggest backstab of all which led Jemmye to lay a curse upon a man who we just saw dress in drag on 1st Look TV recently. But we don't know who his partner is, which begs us to wonder who it might be... and there are many possibilities out there of who is that mystery 30th competitor.
● The Mystery #30: Maybe, it could be Devin after he fulfilled his promise to take Bananas out during Vendettas by outsmarting him in elimination, continuing their hatred post-Rivals III. It was there that we had THAT betrayal burned in Challenge memories when he stole all the prize money from Sarah as revenge for her boss move on him on Exes II. And in another backstabbing, friend Tony became a foe when he sent him in on Vendettas... or maybe it's Cory. Or perhaps, it could be another person we can't think of that could be Johnny's partner here. Only time will tell.
▪ ▪ ▪
WHO ARE THESE NEWBIES?
FINAL RECKONING
A longstanding credo of DCBLOG's Challenge coverage has always been that, whenever a new competitor joins this community as a rookie, we make sure you don't meet them for the first time on the premiere and to give them proper welcome to those who just The Challenge and not much other MTV fare. Who Are These Newbies? provides this platform for us to introduce each new competitor (and where possible, returning veteran) as a service to our fans - both longtime & new - and have done bits on every rookie and returnee since we started during Rivals II five years ago.
There are six rookies making their Challenge debuts on Final Reckoning (one their MTV debut too), but since we also did a Who Are These Newbies? post for Ex On The Beach, we're spared the expense of writing again about Angela, Faith and Paulie who were on other series before going to Hawaii and then here to South Africa... check that out if you want to learn more about them or search around this site for more on those you're seeing for the first time here. For the three whose Challenge debut is taking place here, one is from AYTO, another is from Champs vs. Stars and his partner was on the same Big Brother season as him.
● CHUCK (Are You The One? Season 3)
● JOZEA (Big Brother 18 and Champs vs. Stars II)
● DA'VONNE (Big Brother Seasons 17 and 18)
De'Vonne, Jozea and Chuck are only part of a story that will, in more than 48 hours from now, unfold from a place that, at the beginning of this decade, hosted the event stops the world every four years in the FIFA World Cup. South Africa not only hosted that memorable 2010 tournament in front of its greatest citizen Nelson Mandela and with those famous vuvuzelas, it also played host to Season 14 of The Challenge: The Inferno III - which also was the rubber match of a series trilogy. There, it was where CT was DQ'd for throwing a haymaker in leaving Denver alum and aspiring musician Davis Mallory with a black eye, where Johnny Bananas and Paula made their first finals in their second Challenges, and where Kenny Santucci, Derrick Kosinski and Evelyn Smith all won the first of their three titles alongside all-time Challenge rebel Abram on Team Bad A$$es.
Now, a 90-minute drive from where that 2007 Challenge season took place in Cape Town will take this season's class of thirty competitors to the small town of Hermanus, which is paradise for retirees and whale watchers. Johnny and CT return to this nation a decade older and with many titles in hand, and those who were in middle school when them on Inferno III are now joining them for what should be an epic Challenge season. Among the questions are on our mind in the South African countryside is of how will a two-time defending champion handle working with a Staten Islander? Will teams that have explosive personalities try to cool down in the heat of the battle? Should two pairs of exes survive not only dealing with each other but also working with each other? Who will have the tough task of having to work with a six-time champion? And how will this season stack up with the rest?
We'll all find out together come Tuesday. And as we love to say, let's get this all started.
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
As we begin this new cycle of what we now are calling Inside MTV Reality instead of just Inside the Trifecta, think of DCBLOG as sort of your Sunday supplement to the shows you love. And in a world dominated by podcast interviews, power rankings, fantasy scoring, hot takes and Twitter stans, this site is the Parade Magazine of MTV Reality in covering not just The Challenge but other series as well, including Floribama Shore - for which a recap of Season 1 will come here tomorrow, followed by a Forum preview of this Final Reckoning season on Tuesday.
For here, we'll be along every week to cover this Challenge as only we can... starting with our exclusive DC SocialPulse diaries offering all the play-by-play of the action, reaction and interaction from the cast, alumni and fans from before, during and after the episodes on Twitter - everything that takes place in 280 characters or less. In addition to wrapping up every episode and offering our own take on the usual recaps, opinions and analysis, our other key component of ExtraTime will allow us to use our adapt skills in "up close and personal" storytelling to add context and perspective on the competitors, the MTV Reality community and the world we live in as seen from this prism.
To make things easier on those who watch the episodes live on Tuesdays and those who don't cable and can't catch up until Wednesday morning, our weekly episode coverage always begins over the weekend and a few days after it first airs. That way, we'll give all of you ample time to catch up and then join us here for all the reaction, analysis and stories covering this Challenge when you're relaxing at the end of the work/school week. And while you're catching up, we'll be able to craft and curate our acclaimed, high-quality coverage to better offer an angle on The Challenge you probably won't find anywhere else... content that offers something for both the hardcore and casual fans.
So be sure to bookmark this site for all things MTV Reality covering not only this season but also other shows too... and when you can, help us by tweeting and sharing our links on your favorite social media avenues so more of your fellow fans can check out our unique look on this world, and to introduce them to our highly-acclaimed content that we know they and you will enjoy. And if you enjoy what we do, feel free to tweet your thoughts at @DC408Dxtr and include #DCBLOG in your posts, and where you can always hit me there anytime if you wanna chat it up there.
Also in conjunction with MTV Premiere Week, Tuesday night after The Challenge airs on the West Coast, at about 1AM ET yours truly will announce, in a special roadblock across my entire social media network, the name of the destination that will host my annual out-of-town weekend trip. This year, it will take place in August -- thus, it will share top billing with this Final Reckoning season and this summer MTV Reality cycle as THE two biggest events in my universe over the next few months - so we have quite an exciting summer to come around here with you and I.
That is our look ahead at The Challenge Final Reckoning... hope you all are ready. Until tomorrow, thanks for checking us out and see you then.
- I AM DC
#DCBLOG
Also in conjunction with MTV Premiere Week, Tuesday night after The Challenge airs on the West Coast, at about 1AM ET yours truly will announce, in a special roadblock across my entire social media network, the name of the destination that will host my annual out-of-town weekend trip. This year, it will take place in August -- thus, it will share top billing with this Final Reckoning season and this summer MTV Reality cycle as THE two biggest events in my universe over the next few months - so we have quite an exciting summer to come around here with you and I.
That is our look ahead at The Challenge Final Reckoning... hope you all are ready. Until tomorrow, thanks for checking us out and see you then.
#DCBLOG
No comments:
Post a Comment
Got something on your mind? Let us know! But please be mindful and do not post spam or negative comments (due to that, all comments are subject to blogger approval... and we reserve the right to disable these sections if things get way out of hand).