BY DC CUEVA
In the words of Jim Nantz, we say "Hello Friends" and welcome back to DCBLOG, and to our tenth anniversary year Inside MTV Reality... it has been a while since we've spoken to you in this manner of covering the thing that we have followed the most on here in this last decade. For an obvious reason, it's personal: last month, my inner circle marked a year since the passing of my late dad... that life-changing experience and the increased role I've inherited as man of the house (and also, today in us saying goodbye to my aunt as she flies back home to the Philippines) has forced me to step away from this passion project and focus to the one thing that takes precedent above all else in my life: family. But now, we're set to resume matters on here... and we're glad to be back to doing what this site does best.
Exactly ten years have passed since we started covering the world of the most talked about shows of a genre that's been practically owned in the latter years of a cable channel that began its existence with wall-to-wall music videos forty-two years & ten days ago. Well, here we are in the summer of '23... and a lot has evolved since we began since this site first flickered on the blogosphere back in the summer of 2013. We know that a lot has taken place in the several months since we last covered an MTV show earlier this spring when we crowned new Challenge champs -- and that includes a new spinoff... and we'll catch up on those matters of The Challenge World Championship and the 2nd half of Season 9 of Are You The One? just to come on here as we go deep into the coming fall season.
 |
| (Jonne Roriz/Paramount) |
As for now, we are set to go back to covering all the dealings in and around the MTV Reality world: later this evening sees the return of the sweetest of all sweethearts to grace our screens in Sammi on Jersey Shore. We are well into a new season of the show that saw Cheyenne extend this MTV crossover into the Teen Mom sorority, and there's even a new dating show among other things in The Love Experiment which premieres next week. And then, there's Season 2 of The Challenge USA, which tonight kicks off a year after the fifth major pro sport came to unchartered waters of primetime broadcast network television for the first time. Then as now, alumni of the CBS network's reality programming took on a whole new game that might be one thing to watch and enjoy but certainly a different animal when playing it.
Last season down in Argentina saw familiar faces from Survivor, The Amazing Race and Big Brother adopt from surviving the elements, traveling the world and living in enforced lockdown to playing our own game -- one that a few who have been on the former and the ladder have been able to master to a degree... and capped off by a rather controversial final act. But this time around, Season 2 promises to be a bit different in many ways -- some familiar faces who have been in both parts of being on network television and in cable-ville will be at it again, and joining them for this odyssey are even more familiar faces who are making their network television debut, and an assortment of Challenge rookies. And if things turn out the way they're supposed to, we should be in for quite the next few months ahead.
After the break -- and with just hours before it begins, DCBLOG brings you our first look at Season 2 of The Challenge: USA... and we'll also reacquaint you with not only this year's crop of contestants, but also that chaotic first season too. Welcome back Challenge Nation... it's good to have you with us again.
LAST TIME OUT
An Eventful Season 1
When the company now known as Paramount Global saw the potential of what The Challenge brand could accomplish, the dressed-up hierarchy saw a show that has been on for twenty-five years could make waves not just on MTV on cable, but also on its many platforms around the world... just the All-Stars spinoff will suffice for that great potential. But in addition, there's also the impact it could make when it can bring all of that excitement to the broadest platform there is: network television, and a CBS network that brought the reality genre front and center two decades ago.
A year ago saw The Challenge take its talents from MTV to what's known to TV buffs as "The Tiffany Network," and where Season 1 of The Challenge: USA saw a stellar cast on paper of alumni from Survivor, Big Brother and The Amazing Race, plus the first three seasons of Love Island (before its move to Peacock), as they took up the same game that we all know and love. From The Cookout to Tyson to Danny & his #1 fan, there was lots to talk about last summer... and below, some of the big moments.
A FIRST LOOK &
MEET THE CAST
Now eleven months after that chaotic finale the focus turns to this summer... and a sophomore season that will actually end in the fall due to the current standoff that have writers and actors picketing around Hollywood. And with reality programming taking precedent as the only fresh TV content to come from networks and streamers alike the rest of the year, this CBS Challenge sequel takes on the role of being the show in town... one that can be seen on that form of television where an antenna can give it to you for free -- in addition to being streamed on Paramount+ too.
For the most important points: TJ Lavin will be at the helm once again, the game will remain the same as far as having all of those grueling mental and physical daily challenges and eliminations, and it will have the lead-in audience of Season 25 of Big Brother (though as both my increased family duties and working on this site & my social networks, don't expect me to be into that show that much). We don't have any clarity as to the exact format of this season, but last season is a sign then we may have the return of bankrolls to this season in which the players will have to earn their way to keep and increase a bankroll that starts out at $1,000, and also of random algorithms determining who gets paired up... making alliance and strategy talk harder to come by with all eyes on the $500,000 come autumn.
And as for this all-star cast of this year's CBS Challenge, there is definitely something for everyone: three who competed last summer are back for a second chance, while five who have competed on the MTV show before will get another crack at it in their return to network television, and ten players are making their Challenge debuts this week on this spinoff. But most paramount in this whole thing: the headliners of this cast are the half-dozen MTV Challenge veterans who have more than a dozen total finals wins to their total and are looking for more as they take their talents to the primetime lights.
BIG BROTHER
🏘️ PAULIE CALAFIORE - Season 18 RETURNEE
🏘️ JOSH MARTINEZ - Season 19 RETURNEE
🏘️ FAYSAL SHAFAAT - Season 20 RETURNEE
🏘️ ALYSSA LOPEZ - Season 23 RETURNEE
🏘️ TIFFANY MITCHELL - Season 23 RETURNEE
🏘️ AMEERAH JONES - Season 24 ROOKIE
🏘️ ALYSSA SNIDER - Season 24 ROOKIE
🏘️ MONTE TAYLOR - Season 24 ROOKIE
🏘️ TYLER CRISPEN - Season 20 ROOKIE
Big Brother has had quite the past five years since first crossed over into Challenge territory and paving the way for this show's move to primetime... and if you got no reason to stick around after that show to watch this show then you're not really a true reality fan. Three of those who have made that jump from being part of our summertime to being on the big show headline this field in Paulie, Josh and Faysal... while two who competed last year on CHAL:USA 1 have another crack in Alyssa L. and Tiffany. Four newcomers come to this season a year after they were in that Season 24 house in Ameerah, Alyssa S. and Monte, while the guy who dated Angela from last year joins in on the fun this time around in Tyler.
SURVIVOR
🏝️ MICHELE FITZGERALD - Season 32 RETURNEE
🏝️ MICHAELA BRADSHAW - Season 33 RETURNEE
🏝️ DESI WILLIAMS - Season 35 RETURNEE
🏝️ CASSIDY CLARK - Season 43 ROOKIE
🏝️ CHANELLE HOWELL - Season 42 ROOKIE
🏝️ CHRIS UNDERWOOD - Season 38 ROOKIE
🏝️ SEBASTIAN NOEL - Season 36 ROOKIE
Last year, a pair of Survivor alumni in Danny and Sarah took home the top prize... but the Survivor alumni that come into this season mixes both familiar names to Challenge fans and those who come to this game rookies. Two years ago Michele and Michaela came to Spies, Lies & Allies, and last year Desi came to USA Season 1... and them falling short of making it to the end have them motivated to finally going a few times better here. They will be joined by a diverse array of castaways who will be making their debuts here: Season 43 runner-up Cassidy, Chanelle of Season 42, Sebastian from Ghost Island, and the sole rookie who comes here a past champion in Chris who won Edge of Extinction.
AMAZING RACE
✈️ DUSTY HARRIS - Season 33 ROOKIE
✈️ LUIS COLON - Season 34 ROOKIE
As is was last time out, The Amazing Race once again comes to this Challenge with the short stick as far as representation goes... but that is all made up in all those frequent flier miles racked up by the two who comes from that global Road Rules. Dusty from that pandemic-delayed 33rd season placed third behind runner-up from last year's show Cayla and will try his luck in this totally different game here, joined by one who competed in the final leg last year in Luis... more on the one who beat him to the finish line in Nashville just after competing here last year will come in Part 1 of our rookie primer.
TEAM MTV
⭐ JOHNNY "BANANAS" DEVENANZIO 7X CHAMPION
⭐ WES BERGMANN 2X CHAMPION
⭐ TORI DEAL 1X CHAMPION
⭐ JONNA MANNION-STEPHENS 2X AS WINNER
⭐ CORY WHARTON
⭐ AMANDA GARCIA
And then, there's the headliners: with all that took place last year, there had to be valid reasons for Team MTV to try to be included in Season 2 when CBS renewed this show for this year... and the Challenge veterans will have much of the focus on them. Five of these veterans have been to a final with all but one claiming titles in the end, and the sixth has a deserved reputation of stirring the pot (just a glance at the Twitter feed of the mom with the freckles on cast reveal day will very much explain things). No doubt, one of those champs will have a lot to prove after that win on Ride or Dies, and the same will do for our lone dad... other than that, just another typical Challenge -- and below, a first sneak peek.
🇺🇸 🇺🇸 🇺🇸 🇺🇸 🇺🇸
As mentioned above this is DCBLOG's tenth anniversary year, having begun our coverage of the wide world of MTV Reality television a decade ago this summer... and we have devoted time, effort and resources to covering Challenge Nation and elsewhere, and it will be no different. That is, 'till this year.
As revealed earlier this summer, the way we'll be covering the episodes this season -- and future MTV seasons, for that matter -- will be offered a bit different going forward: our Challenge WRAP will now be recapping the action more traditionally with the week's top moments and analysis... and the 'Pulse will now cap them off with embedded social highlights. But all else will remain the same, including "Who Are These Newbies?" covering the season's rookies which comes up next, and ExtraTime with our original storytelling from this world of TV land's most-talked about reality programming. This includes an instance of two Challengers being spotted competing in other and more unusual sports and a third competing at in his favorite sport, which we'll delve into as the season goes along.
You're invited to bookmark this site for all of that, like, share and comment on our posts, and spread the word of what we do around here by sharing our posts on social media... and introduce our quality, high-caliber content to more & more fans and, in turn, will boost our site's exposure & presence while turning those fans of the show into regular visitors of this site. This is most especially the case as this blogger has earned his stripes going Inside MTV Reality like no other site has the past ten years, and because I don't have the benefit of promoting my content on social media much due to my new family reality.
And if you got thoughts, just send me a social media follow to @DC408Dxtr, where in addition to getting to live watch episodes and tweeting out random thoughts and occasional odd moments, I post links to each & every one of my DCBLOG posts plus all of my YouTube videos too... and be on the lookout for a big reveal towards summer's end regarding the big thing happening coming this fall from this blogger. Happy New Season, Challenge Nation... and join us then.
- I AM DC
@DC408DXTR
