DC ExtraTime: Catching Up with... Cory's Quirky Bloodline

BY DC CUEVA                      

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

Five years ago, The Challenge took a bold step and began its progressive expansion by spreading its wings to more of the broader MTV Reality family as well as planting the seeds for the eventual reunion of its corporate parent Viacom with CBS. After bringing those from Are You The One? into the fold on Exes 2 and years before Big Brother alumni joined them, the winter of 2015 saw Battle of the Bloodlines and bought related siblings of the competitors onto the series. It gave us Tony Raines' fiery brother Shane and future Ex On The Beach single, Nany Gonzales' cousin Nicole Ramos.

But while Cara Maria would eventually become a deserved first-time champion with her cousin Jamie Banks and enduring having to see her ex Abram Boise crash the bash, going into the season there was immense anticipation for the rookie Challenge debut of Cory Wharton from Real World Ex-Plosion a year earlier. Little did he know that he would become the King of MTV in spreading his wings to three additional shows outside of a competition series that he's now done seven additional times, plus the equally tall task of being a dad to two kids which in turn helped bring this community into the Teen Mom world thanks to his relationship with baby mama Cheyenne Floyd.

Back in the very first scene of a now glorious MTV career six years ago (and a season that gave you a 2-time Challenge champ & a future Barbie beast), Cory was working out in a neighborhood park just as he got that call that would turn this guy from Grand Rapids, MI into a prominent figure. Watch that Real World Ex-Plosion premiere carefully, and spot the guy with blond hair who he played catch with: he also comes from the Midwest next door in Minnesota, and who would eventually join his cousin on MTV for his maiden Challenge.

Mitch Reid was the younger of the Bloodlines team with Cory, linked by the ladder's mom being adopted by the parents of Mitch's dad. In their bio Mitch gushed, "I always looked up to Cory. He's definitely been a role model to me in a lot of ways. So I'm really glad that he's here and he's got my best interest at heart." And while Cory represented the brawn side of things, Mitch stood for the brains in this duo in spending his break before senior year at UC-Berkeley on this Challenge, and would become a big asset when it came to puzzles - a must in any Challenge. And they also mixed in some love during that season when his cousin was courting Aneesa, and Mitch himself also was flirting with another girl there.

That extracurricular activity didn't deter them much, as they won an elimination, then made it to the transfer point from Turkey to Germany for the semifinal (the season's last regular challenge), which they absolutely killed to clinch a ticket to the series' first city-based final in Berlin. And in the crucial final stage that ended inside the venerable Olympic Stadium where Jesse Owens reigned, Cory & Mitch found a puzzle which the bloodline figured out and saw them be the first to enter the track, and it helped them place second to Cara & Jamie. It turns out to be Cory's best final performance to date.

Of course, Cory has branched out to EOTB Season 1 which introduced him to his girlfriend and fellow mom Taylor Selfridge, to when he was given an MTV logo tattoo on How Far is Tattoo Far, and of course him being dad to baby Ryder brought him to Teen Mom as part of Cheyenne's crew. And those who watched TMOG a week or so saw Mitch once again, this time being branded as "his friend" rather than "his cousin."

So is Teen Mom lying or was the challenge lying? Is Mitch his Cousin or his Friend? pic.twitter.com/NU17ms9MIC

— price ✨✨ (@too_price) April 28, 2020

DC SocialPulse: The Challenge Total Madness - "Love Will Tear Us Apart"

*** Advisory: #DCSocialPulse contains adult language, objectionable content & spoilers for some readers. Viewer Discretion is Advised. Due to its length, take frequent eye breaks if you're viewing this top to bottom. ***

BY DC CUEVA                        

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

Welcome back everyone, as we at DCBLOG roll along with our SocialPulse doubleheader for The Challenge: Total Madness. Last night on a Backtracked basis, we brought you the action, reaction & interaction of Episode 5 from Prague, where we saw the Swayleigh express continue to hold their grip on the game being part of the tribunal again thanks to a 4-team challenge, while Bear got himself in some hot water when he sprayed a fire extinguisher around, which ignited one of two blow-ups among the girls while the other fight saw Wes & Jordan argue with deli meat.

Our third trip to the purgatory saw two-skull holder Jay make his choice for who he wanted to face off instead of letting the tribunal do the picking for him... and he is facing off against Rogan - who didn't even have to prove himself when he went from being purged out as a rookie to becoming king last year. Whoever is victorious will then find themselves & the rest of the crew wanting to audition to be stuntmen with a high-speed challenge inspired by the Fast & Furious franchise. And two-thirds of the Holy Trilogy find themselves in some love drama: one dealing with cheating may have this new fling be all for naught, while the Barbie Beast tries to keep afloat a relationship of her own.

After the jump, the back-end of this week's special SocialPulse doubleheader as we bring you Week 6 of The Challenge Total Madness... plus a rematch for two power vets as they go for another prestigious crown. Thanks for joining us, we're glad you're here again...

DC ExtraTime Funny File: A Real World'er Gets Punk'd

BY DC CUEVA                      

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

On St. Patrick's Day night 2003, the world was on a state of heightened alert with the possibility of a second American war with Iraq in twenty-two years that would ultimately come to pass just three days later. But for those needing an escape, those who were turned to MTV on that night were offered a classic moment, one that ranked among Time Magazine's top moments in the genre.

Ashton Kutcher had already become a big star thanks to him playing Michael on That '70s Show, and then made a huge splash in Dude, Where's My Car? He would late have roles on Two and a Half Men, portraying Steve Jobs in a 2013 biographical film on the Apple founder, and now devoting more of his time to being a venture capitalist, as well as being dad to his two kids with fellow '70s star Mila Kunis, coming after his high-profile marriage to Demi Moore.

But the one thing he may be remembered most for was of when he went to the Hollywood Hills house of his friend Justin Timberlake, and had his friends including CHIPs & Parenthood star Dax Shepard pose as government agents. There, they were seizing his Hollywood Hills home and his precious valuables as part of a foreclosure due to the 'NSYNC star not paying his income taxes. Once Ashton emerged out of the control room, Justin's reaction to him being the victim of this epic prank was classic, which became an all-time MTV moment and helped cement his megastar status.

That is the definitive moment in the several seasons' run of Punk'd, born out of a pilot where regular people would be the victims of ordinary pranks... but when a Las Vegas prank gone wrong saw MTV have a $10 million date in court, Ashton turned his attention to just pranking celebs at just about anywhere in Hollywood. Besides that JT prank, the very first episode saw Frankie Muniz get a specially-made Porsche get stolen, and red carpet interviews gone wrong by a then 15-year-old kid named Ryan Pinkston. The series itself has recently returned with Chance the Rapper taking over the big chair, and it is streaming on the newly-launched mobile-first television app Quibi.

When Punk'd made its premiere that March, it was during when The Real World Las Vegas was still airing, as the original reality series was still airing half-hour episodes and airing for as long as Final Reckoning did. It was the season that changed everything, as this documentary-based project that might be a snooze at times truly came of age in the capital of adult freedom and the go-to spot for all of us to escape our worries for gambling, entertainment and all-out fun. And the amount of sex and drama that went down on the 28th floor of The Palms Casino Resort upped the ante on the show, and set the style and tone for the MTV Reality entertainment you all enjoy some two decades later.

And for a time, The Real World turned a Southern belle from Louisiana named Trishelle Cannatella into a household name and a hot commodity in TV land: she did not only four Challenges after leaving Las Vegas, she & future MTV Reality alum (and her WWE champion ex) Mike "The Miz" Mizanin won Celebrity Fear Factor. She also appeared on Dr. Steve-O with the Jackass star, cameoed in American Idol William Hung's "She Bangs" cover video, did VH1's The Surreal Life, hung out with Star Trek's George Takei, and became a pro poker player... and of course, she posed in Playboy.

And in that decade of the 2000's, you pretty much haven't become big until you got to appear on Punk'd... that's exactly what happened during the show's first season. In this instance, she was called to MTV's West Coast offices then located in Santa Monica (and now it calls CBS' former Sunset studios in Hollywood home), where she was told that had a meeting with execs from the channel about possible future projects. Also at the office was the oldest member of the Backstreet Boys, Kevin Richardson, which next year turns 50 years old (and this post goes to press the week longtime MTV newsman Kurt Loder turns 75, if you can believe that).

Below, that clip of Trishelle getting Punk'd when she tried to get past two security guards and that screening checkpoint we all go through at the airport. And the man who shared that infamous threesome in the hot tub with her, Steven Hill, made an appearance towards the end when she still couldn't get by the guards before Ashton walked in to officially say that she has been pranked. And Trishelle remains to this day the only Challenger (or Real World'er for that matter), to be Punk'd... and of course, she couldn't help but laugh along with everyone else.

Trishelle on MTV’s Punk’d. The only Challenger who was Punk’d by Ashton Kutcher. from r/MtvChallenge

- I AM DC
#DCBLOG

DC SocialPulse BackTrax: The Challenge Total Madness - "Break Up with Your BF, I'm Bored"

*** Advisory: #DCSocialPulse contains adult language, objectionable content & spoilers for some readers. Viewer Discretion is Advised. Due to its length, take frequent eye breaks if you're viewing this top to bottom. ***

DELAYED EDITION
BY DC CUEVA                        

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

We've made it to the second weekend of May, and where you all got to celebrate Cinco de Mayo at home a few days ago in this third month of the quarantine, and where on Sunday we'll be honoring that special lady in our lives. And we welcome you to an expanded weekend of episode coverage of The Challenge with us, DCBLOG, as Season 35 of Total Madness is into its second month and we offer you this special doubleheader of SocialPulse on this Mother's Day weekend.

The first month saw this program become the only game in town as sports has been in a standstill, and those hungry for action have been treated to plenty of goodies in the Czech Republic. And when we last Eastern Europe, the man known by his last name of a grizzly animal unleashed his latest act, as Bear decided to unload on a fire extinguisher, which sparked an argument among three of the ladies. We also had a scary challenge where Nelson was caught in a bout with hypothermia in the chilly waters, and a battle of the last two female champions saw Dee defeat Ashley.

It's time for the third cycle of players to get the next ticket out of Prague, and for the first of this weekend's double shot the cheeky Brit is at it once again, as he turns his eyes to a girl who's back in the game and has a man back home. Meanwhile, there's also a thrilling challenge for everyone as teams of four board a speedy car on its side, run like the wind, complete a puzzle and detonate a bomb all in one afternoon. And there's also an argument among two champions involving deli meat, and with this being a men's elimination week we may have our first major showdown in the purgatory among two bitter rivals.

After the jump, all the action, reaction and interaction of Week 5 of Total Madness on this delayed presentation of SocialPulse, BackTrax style... plus, more reaction from Team MTV on the birth of the first all-Ex On The Beach baby, and #2 for Mr. MTV. And welcome to the weekend everyone... we're glad to have you with us.

DC ExtraTime: Going for a Skydive in Siesta Key

BY DC CUEVA                        

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

Four years ago this week, Season 28 of The Challenge kicked off with something so bad@$$, you couldn't think of anything else to begin a season that had the most controversial ending ever. But before what went down with Johnny Bananas that hot August night, the action down in Mexico began with something that marked the last mission for the first class of Road Rules and has also been featured at times on the show, including starting that first $1 million final on XXX: Dirty 30.

Ask anyone - Challenge or otherwise - what their most exciting thing they've ever done in their lives, and some of the responses might have "skydiving" as their answer. Other than for their entrance to the house the previous night, it was the one thing that gave everyone (except for a guy in tattoos) reason to confront their fears and yet have the time of their lives just flying with the birds and screaming at the top of their lings as they ascended down to the beach and meet TJ Lavin to begin Rivals III.

Along with that aforementioned The Challenge XXX, that same month of July 2017 saw the launch of something a bit different from people smashing into one another: Siesta Key, the college-aged version of Laguna Beach and The Hills. The reality soap has definitely glued fans of those two shows (created by Laguna's producers) and a new generation of viewers to the sultry and steamy drama of a young power clique who call this Florida paradise their home. And after it returned for Season 3 earlier this year, thanks to Tuesday's trailer drop it will return into our lives come June 16th.

The first half of it this winter & spring (something we got to do weekly episode recaps for the first time here) has already seen the showmance of main protagonist Juliette Porter and Bachelor alum Robby Hayes, along with most everything else with her and the rest of the crew. It's something that has kept everyone from Spencer Pratt to Robby's ex Scheana and Seth Rogan buzzing and not just because of that short-lived reality romance... the drama, the visuals and the soundtrack are what has gotten us to "Cut to the Feeling," the same way as it was for when LC & Kristin ruled the world.

And there will be plenty more on offer this summer, as Jules' ex Alex Kompo & girlfriend Alyssa deal with her pregnancy bombshell at the end of the midseason finale, plus he has to deal with possible infidelity including what happened in Nashville, and frenemy & co-worker Chloe. There's also Madisson's relationship with former producer Ish, a possible third shot at love for Garrett & Kelsey, Jules' new man Sam... and when we get to walk one of those lavish parties they love to throw there, we caution that you will not believe the outfit Jared will be wearing to that.

Above: MTV capture; Below:
IG @Amanda_Marie_Miller

Someone who stepped into the spotlight during MTV's Florida Season (as Season 3 of Floribama Shore also aired at the same time as them) was Amanda Miller, who was there in the beginning when she gave Chloe a broken nose in the series premiere, and who made another move for musician Brandon... all the while dealing with her ex JJ coming into the picture to make it a good old threesome. And she was also at the heart of Jules' fight with Chloe at her housewarming where, not only did she get into it with her friend, her phone was also thrown into the ocean by Robby.

But let's not get more into more of #PhoneGate and stick with the positive vibes around here: if there's a favorite activity for the resident bad girl of Siesta Key, then Amanda definitely loves to go skydiving - and she's done that plenty of times even before the show aired. And below are some of her wildest adventures in the air as captured on her YouTube and Instagram, and as she captions in one of these posts, "You can do what I cannot do. I can do what you cannot do. Together we can do great things. 💙 #oneteam."

DC ExtraTime: Team MTV Takes Over How Far is Tattoo Far

*** CAUTION: Certain Videos Embedded Contain Adult Language and Content. Parental Guidance is Suggested. ***

 FOLLOW UP  The Look: How Far 
is Tattoo Far/Just Tattoo of Us

BY DC CUEVA                      

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

It seems tattoos and television just go together: Black Ink Crew on VH1 and Ink Master on the Paramount Network come to mind when it comes to the artform of ink being brought to your screen. But for the past few years, those shows have had a stablemate in the Viacom/CBS fold thanks to the global franchise known in the international realm as Just Tattoo of Us.

The show premiered on MTV UK and the non-American channels of its international fleet back in 2017, with its first series being hosted by Geordie Shore original Charlotte Crosby & 2-time Ex On The Beach UK alum Stephen Bear, who has made quite a mark on our side of the Atlantic when he crossed into our shores last year. And a year later, Just Tattoo of Us made its way to the U.S. as join EOTB in having an Americanized version of it airing here, retitled How Far is Tattoo Far?.

Regardless of what it's called, the show's concept is simple: pairs of friends, family members and couple will come into the parlor, design tattoos for one another which are designed by leading artists in the tattoo industry, and which are kept secret to them under they are told by the show's hosts to take off their shades and see what was made for them. How these people "deal with the reveal" is just as entertaining as the designs on their skin, which are not always suitable for viewing at work or with friends. And it has become both a ratings and social sensation both here and in Britain.

In addition to welcoming people of all kinds to the parlor, both the American and British versions have also welcomed those who are familiar to MTV viewers from other series. And in its two seasons airing on MTV U.S., Snooki, Younger's Nico Tortorella and Wild 'N Out's Justina Valentine have had those they and you at home know drop in for a visit on occasion... and we thought we'd like to share those times when Team MTV Takes Over How Far is Tattoo Far?.

DC ExtraTime Flashback: The Real World Takes Over Beantown

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

    Estimated Reading Time: 25 MINS.

In the nearly 30 years that MTV has been gracing us with the most talked-about reality television programming there is, there has been one constant throughout this long and proud journey. And that would be the presence of cast members who come to The Challenge, The Real World and beyond from the six northernmost states on the East Coast, and its biggest city, that has had an incredible impact on the channel.

See any of his twenty overall appearances on The Challenge or the first time he landed onto your screens as that fiesty 22-year-old on The Real World Paris, and the intimidating presence of 3-time champ Chris "C.T." Tamburello has always commanded your attention. The fact that you, the fans, chose him as the biggest reality star ever by Bill Simmons' site The Ringer -- and who smashed his opponent from their famed Cutthroat elimination, Johnny Bananas, in the final no less -- is testament to that legacy. And he is the most visible member of a long & proud tradition of those who come to us from New England and Boston, starting in Real World's early days, and stretching its wings to not only The Challenge, but also Are You The One and other shows along the way.

All Photos Courtesy MTV

Whether they'd be from Boston, from elsewhere in Massachusetts or from Rhode Island, Maine, Connecticut or elsewhere, there's no denying that those from this region have made an enormous impact on MTV. It all began when Soviet-born Boston resident Flora Alekseyeun became the first castmate from this part of the country to be cast on Real World twenty-four years ago on Season 5 in Miami, while the first native New Englander came two years later in 1998 when David Burns went onto the Seattle season and found himself in a forbidden love affair with the lady who cast him on the show but who left him heartbroken in the streets of the Emerald City.

In between those two seasons, the big show brought its talents to New England itself, where they exchanged the first season to take place with swimsuits and bikinis for a whole different locale: a hard-working town rich in tradition and a season that began with snow on the ground. True to the nature of this blue-collar city, a converted firehouse familiar to '80s TV fans was where Season 6 of The Real World took place that year of 1997, and where we had just about everything take place that kept true to the show's uniquely old-school values that defined the show's 30+ season run.

A few weeks ago in this time where being together means going onto videoconferencing and endless hours of FaceTime, there was a special reunion among that group of seven strangers who called that Boston firehouse their home, and where they have had an impact that's been felt from The Challenge and the college called "The Harvard of the West," down to The Hills and even to the most well-known hill in this country: Capitol Hill.

DC ExtraTime: Staying Relevant - The Ultimate House Party

This Post is Dedicated in Memory of Alexis Eddy, Who Passed Away in January 2020 - Two Years After Being on Season 1 of Staying Relevant.

 FOLLOW-UP  Rose City Reunion of Romance 
& All-Star Weekend of Love from Summer '18
BY DC CUEVA                            

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

For someone who blogs on the ebbs & flows of MTV Reality weekly, I have made room in the ample amount of my spare time to shoot & edit my own videos - which has also become a favorite hobby. My DC YouTube channel (YouTube.com/dc408dxtr) serves the site's original purpose when it launched years ago: showcase original videos shot, produced & edited by ordinary people, those with a passion for this field and now by influencers, not be a channel reposting videos from other people and sources as part of the world's largest video library.

Like what I have with DCBLOG, I put in all the time to make sure that the videos posted on my channel meets the same high levels of quality and detail as my blog posts... only here it's all about the visual part of the experience than the written version. It's best on display when I go on vacation and shoot video of my trips, then post produce them to make it available to everyone on the web. For my most recent Las Vegas trip last fall, I bought new editing software and gear to help serve my growing interest in this part of the digital world, including a gimbal which was the first thing I bought with the $2,000 I won in Reno last year.

Instagram @ayeejaee_

With the launch of live video outlets, MTV cast members have also found the video part of social media as a way to communicate to us... and when they go on Instagram Live the moment the episodes end, you know what it's like to see everyone spill the tea and garner thousands of viewers just before bedtime out east and before the episodes air out west. They have also found YouTube as another way for them to communicate with their fans through getting to discuss the episodes from their point of view, and do much more such as give make-up tips. It's become more common now as everyone is staying home to avoid the pandemic going on, as TikTok and Zoom have joined in on the fun.

In the spring of 2018 just as the channel was about to bring one of its biggest reality formats to our shores, a bold idea was hatched up by those who have experienced the feeling on love on MTV. One of those lucky few asked something like, "How about if we can bring those who have shared the same house, and have the chance to enjoy the feeling of living again?" A good handful of those who had this shared experience on Are You The One? and Ex On The Beach got to do it all over again, but this time under their own rules, their way and without MTV holding them back.

The result of all this became Staying Relevant, a unique YouTube reality series that continued the story of those who we loved watching in MTV's two entries into the now packed subgenre of romantic reality dating television, and what happened in their very own trilogy might be just as good as the shows they were on... maybe even better as they got to enjoy three installments of The Ultimate House Party.