DC SocialPulse: The Challenge Bloodlines - The Finale

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse contains adult language, objectionable content 

and spoilers for some readers. Viewer Discretion is Advised. Due to its long 

length, take frequent eye breaks if you're reading this top to bottom. ***

BY DC CUEVA                           

> @DC408dxtr / @DC408dxnow

Well, this is it. Welcome all to the DC SocialPulse finale of The Challenge: Battle of the Bloodlines. Yes, it's been an eventful season full of twists and turns, and the final with a veteran we expected to see and two most of us didn't expect to make it to the end.
   Last time we were in Berlin, the final got underway with Cara Maria & Jamie, Jenna & Brianna and Cory & Mitch starting their journey through Germany's great capital with the entire penultimate episode devoted to its first stage. Based at an abandoned CIA station on the outskirts of town, it was a four-station ordeal that saw them test precision, endurance and skill. And in a shock of all things, it was the girls who finished first and had the momentum exiting that arena.

   In the finale, we'll see them tackle the rest of Berlin, and in their nicely tailored suits of all things, with a rather delicious meal that sees more of those vomiting moments. Then, patience is tested while rest is much needed in a darkened train station - or so it appears, followed by the customary water stage as the finalists go on a 10-mile canoeing trek down the river. And 80 years after Jesse Owens' stirring Olympic performance on that very site, it all culminates with one more puzzle and a run inside one of sports' most historic venues: Berlin's Olympic Stadium, and $350,000 awaiting them at the end.

If you missed the twitter reaction to this finale (reunion and clip show too), then of course, we have you covered. Plus, there's the joy of the new Team MTV baby in Madison & Tony from RW Skeletons welcoming their new daughter Harper, as well as the buzz for not only the new Real World season but also the theme of the next Challenge also being revealed for the first time. And if you stick around all the way, what happens when you put together people from multiple MTV shows in the same room at the same time? ExtraTime will bring you that summit in SoCal involving some of the next Real World cast and other shows too, plus a reunion of sorts too.

- Please be mindful there is explicit language in many of the tweets below, but they are kept uncensored in order to retain the heat of the moment. So if you are mature enough, please read with discretion. :-)
- Plus, if you've not watched the episode yet, then do not proceed with reading this post. But need not worry...DCBLOG will compile all of these tweets into these posts after every episode so you won't be in the dark of how your favorites saw this all unfold.

So, join us after the jump for the finale of The Challenge Bloodlines.

DC SocialPulse Extra: Road to the Bloodlines Finale

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse contains adult language and objectionable 
content for some readers. Viewer Discretion is Advised. Due to its long 
length, take frequent eye breaks if you're reading this entirely. ***

BY DC CUEVA                           

> @DC408dxtr / @DC408dxnow

Welcome everyone back to DCBLOG as we begin our final series of posts of this unusual and unpredictable season of The Challenge: Battle of the Bloodlines. Ahead here, we'll have all the action, reaction and social interaction of its final act: a first-ever city-based Challenge final in Berlin, an eventual reunion, the humor of the Clip Show and its aftermath. Plus, there's the season's homestretch to look back on, amazing news in The Real World community, and the postseason Debrief with me, DC Cueva and fellow MTV insider Andrew Kirk.

   But first, before we deliver you that month-watering main course and the dessert of DC WRAP, we have a special appetizer for you here. Typically, our signature 'Pulse posts begin with the gap in between episodes and the lead-up to the new episode, all before the episode tweets themselves. But the time in between both the 1st & 2nd parts of the Bloodlines final saw some big events and dates.
   First, we had NBA All-Star Weekend with two relatively new Team MTV alums being in Toronto for the great slam dunk contest, the Splash Brothers dominating the 3-Point shootout and the All-Star Game itself. Second, there was Valentine's Day with love being spread all over the social world. Third, there's the Grammy Awards as music's best gathered in L.A. And lastly, the trailer for Real World Go Big or Go Home was released, along with news of RW Skeletons' Madison & Tony welcoming their new baby.
   Obviously, the build-up to the Bloodlines finale was something else, and it made it necessary for us to separate the lead-up tweets for this week into this 'Pulse Extra diary. Also included are the usual huge anticipation for the finale, reaction to the latest episodes of The Bachelor (which my mom watches loyally) and The Walking Dead (which my family doesn't watch at all), two Trifecta members get noticed by the one & only Ri, and one recent Team MTV addition makes a point so strong two words might come to mind once you read this person's entire rant.

- Please note there is explicit language in many of the tweets below, but are kept uncensored in order to retain the heat of the moment. If you're mature enough, please read with discretion. :-)

So, join in after the jump for this special 'Pulse Extra.

DC WRAP: The Challenge Bloodlines - "True Blood" (Finals PT 1)

BY DC CUEVA                           

> @DC408dxtr / @DC408dxnow

Well, we are reaching the conclusion of a most unpredictable 27th season of The Challenge. We've had just about everything on Battle of the Bloodlines: surprise exits by fan favorites, house drama among the competitors, interesting competition and an unexpected final three. And it all concludes with the business part of the final in Berlin, Germany tonight, along with the usual drama of the Reunion and the hilarity of the Clip Show. And also, the buzz for the new Real World season has begun as well, along with news that's just released of a baby for a popular Real World couple. And it's only part of a big night of reality TV, as Survivor 32 premieres tonight.

   We'll save a recap of this final and the season's homestretch for our final WRAP of this season here next week. But ahead, we'll have a Strategy Room look at where this all stands and any circumstances that will arise with the variable scenarios in play. Plus after reaction from me & other fans, some reflection on a theme that threads the three shows of the Trifecta and how it connects to something my family has as well, and there's yet another Team MTV baby too. Join In after the jump.

DC SocialPulse: The Challenge Bloodlines - "True Blood" (Finals PT 1)

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse contains adult language, objectionable content 

and spoilers for some readers. Viewer Discretion is Advised. Due to its long 

length, take frequent eye breaks if you're reading this top to bottom. ***

BY DC CUEVA                           

> @DC408dxtr / @DC408dxnow

Well, it's on. It's the final of The Challenge: Battle of the Bloodlines as we welcome you again to DCBLOG and The 'Pulse. We have had a most unpredictable season, which has culminated with an unexpected final three going for the $350,000.

   In Episode 11, we moved from Bodrum, Turkey to Berlin, Germany for the last challenge before the final. A race across speeding trucks saw Cory & Mitch notch a huge win to claim their finals berth in their rookie showing, and put in Cara Maria & Jamie into the Pit once again. Before they faced off with Aneesa & Rianna, the veteran ladies had it out in the Berlin night, while the show's oldest challenger also had it out with her cousin. In the end, Cara got the best of Aneesa to notch her third win, joining Jenna & Brianna and the guys in the final.

   This time, the focus shifts to a final challenge unlike any other, as unlike other finals that have taken place in a desert, a snow-capped mountain or at altitude, the Bloodlines final will take place in the heart of a major city for the very first time. Cara & Jamie, Cory & Mitch and Jenna & Bri all have their eyes on the lion's share of the $350K in the first part of the finale, which sees them head to a former CIA station somewhere in the Berlin area and where the unexpected takes place.

   We'll have all the action, reaction and interaction from the penultimate episode here, as well as some of the lead-up and aftermath as well. Note this doesn't include their reactions to Super Bowl 50, which you can check out in the DC Big Game post on my day at Levi's Stadium just before the big game. And if you can stick around for ExtraTime, we'll ask "Where Are They Now?" to two members of the Real World alumni as we begin the countdown to RW Go Big or Go Home.

- As we begin, please note there is explicit language in many of the tweets below, but they are kept uncensored in order to retain the heat of the moment. So if you are mature enough, please read with discretion. :-)
- Plus, if you haven't watched the episode yet, then do not proceed with reading this post. But need not worry...DCBLOG will compile all of these tweets into these posts after every episode so you won't be in the dark of how your favorites saw this all unfold.

So, Join In after the jump for the 'Pulse of EP12 of Bloodlines and the beginning of the Final in Berlin.

DC Big Game 50: Live at Super Bowl 50

A DCBLOG Sports Special

BY DC CUEVA                           

> @DC408dxtr / @DC408dxnow

Last week, we saw a game that was poorly played and saw the likely last hurrah for the great Peyton Manning. But watching the game itself paled in comparison to one of the biggest moments I've ever had as a longtime sports fan for 25 years. It was three days before Super Bowl 50 that I had the great pleasure of stepping foot on the very grounds that hosted the golden anniversary occasion of America's biggest sports event and an unofficial national holiday.
   Ask anyone what it's like of being in a big sports event, and they'll tell you it's the biggest and most surreal experience you'll ever have as a sports fan. And it doesn't have to be at the actual event itself...just being at any event that's associated with the game itself will bring that unique experience to those who don't have tickets. I've been to so many sports events since I went to a Warriors game as a 10-year-old in 1993 - spanning the four major sports. I've also mingled in Las Vegas at a boxing mega-fight when Manny Pacquiao faced Miguel Cotto during my 26th birthday weekend, where the atmosphere is just as energized. As a strong Bay Area sports fan, I've celebrated many championships for the local teams since the '80s Niners dynasty. But nothing matches having experienced being on site during Super Bowl week at the very stadium that hosted the Big Game at Levi's Stadium.

DC WRAP: The Challenge Bloodlines - "Tear This Wall"

BY DC CUEVA                           

> @DC408dxtr / @DC408dxnow

Well, the NFL season has wrapped up and soon enough, so will another season of The Challenge. Battle of the Bloodlines will soon be a thing of the past, and last week we had some clarity to this unpredictable season with the last regular mission before the final, as well as both in-fighting and tension with the season's favorite see Aneesa falter once again before the final. Now Cara Maria & Jamie, Cory & Mitch and Jenna & Brianna remain as we prepare for a two-part finale starting tonight.

   As this site is pressed for time due to Super Bowl 50, we'll be saving the Things to Know recap for our Finale WRAP, but we do have time to again head into the Strategy Room to look at where they stand as the final kicks off. And along with Winners of the Night, afterwards on DC ExtraTime we'll remember the life of former MTV Challenge host and action sports star Dave Mirra, and celebrate the newest baby in Team MTV. All that after the jump.

DC SocialPulse: The Challenge Bloodlines - "Tear This Wall"

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse contains adult language, objectionable content 

and spoilers for some readers. Viewer Discretion is Advised. Due to its long 

length, take frequent eye breaks if you're reading this top to bottom. ***

BY DC CUEVA                           

> @DC408dxtr / @DC408dxnow

Welcome once again to DCBLOG's ongoing coverage of The Challenge: Battle of the Bloodlines. With everything that's happened, it's hard to believe that we're heading towards the conclusion of this season as we have reached the season's Final Four.
   Last time in Turkey, the game changed back to the original pairs format as the originals & their bloodlines reunited, just in time for the toughest test yet. A grueling endurance mission and mini-final tested stamina and patience which identified who had the best and the least chances of winning. Despite Cory's leg almost going out, Mitch put him on his back and came away winners. And then, they bravely voted in Johnny Bananas & Vince in to face Cara Maria & Jamie but the redhead prevailed, just before the group changed their destination.
   This time, the game arrives in Berlin, Germany as the final four teams of Cara & Jamie, Aneesa & Rianna, Cory & Mitch and Jenna & Brianna arrive for the last challenge before the final. There, they, two trucks and a few cars take the competitors on a stunt-filled joyride with finals berths awaiting them. Plus, simmering tension among a pair and then two veterans with pent up anger towards one another finally gets unleashed, with all roads lead to an epic showdown.

   Of course, we'll have all the action, reaction and interaction from this final regular mission and Pit from both the cast and fans, plus the usual lead-up and aftermath as well. This includes Johnny Bananas heading out to Aspen for the madness that is the Winter X-Games.

- As we begin, please note there is explicit language in many of the tweets below, but they are kept uncensored in order to retain the heat of the moment. So if you are mature enough, please read with discretion. :-)
- Plus, if you haven't watched the episode yet, then do not proceed with reading this post. But need not worry...DCBLOG will compile all of these tweets into these posts after every episode so you won't be in the dark of how your favorites saw this all unfold.

So, for stuntmen and simmering tension, Join In after the jump for the 'Pulse of EP10 of Bloodlines.

DC Big Game 50: DC Inside - Football on Television

A DCBLOG Sports Special
BY DC CUEVA

> @DC408dxtr / @DC408dxnow

As the countdown to Super Bowl 50 moves into high gear by way of the Broncos and the Panthers arriving last week and them in full prep mode for Sunday, the preparations are in overdrive for the biggest event in American sports. But it's a more meaningful Super Sunday as usual, as it is the Golden Anniversary of the blue ribbon event of the National Football League, being held in the heart of the golden state of California.
   DCBLOG continues its special DC Sports series, DC Big Game 50, as we focus on the NFL and America's national passion of football. And after we looked at the preparations a team goes through in the week leading up to game day, today we turn to a different kind of prep. As Denver and Charlotte map out their plans, another team has been preparing for Super Bowl 50 for the past week. And that would be of the team at CBS Sports, who have been given the assignment of airing this year's landmark game, just as they did for the first one back in 1967 in Los Angeles.

   It seems as if this game was invented in 1869 with the premise that it would be the perfect sport for it to be shown on a medium that was invented several decades later and be the perfect sport for television in just about every aspect. But what goes into bringing that excitement into your home?  It's the subject of this first edition of DC INSIDE, which will take the opportunity on occasion to go inside some of the various aspects of the entertainment and sports you and I love.

   After the jump, DCBLOG takes you Inside Football on Television: the Perfect Combo.

DC WRAP: The Challenge Bloodlines - "Out For Blood"

BY DC CUEVA                           
> @DC408dxtr / @DC408dxnow

DCBLOG welcomes you again to another edition of DC WRAP for The Challenge Bloodlines. We're in the thick of Super Bowl week, but we're also in the thick of things on this Challenge as it is into game mode and the season is coming down to a showdown in Berlin, Germany and $350,000. The final stretch run begins tonight.

   Last week, we moved back into the pairs format used in the first two weeks, and the week's challenge saw the pairs' patience and resolve tested with a grueling mission combining skill and endurance...a mini final. We also had the season's biggest moment to date with a game-changing elimination that saw two veterans that I had meeting in the final meeting much earlier in the last Pit prior to the group's move to Berlin for the final and a last mission & Pit before the season's last act.

   As you prepare for tonight's episode, we'll have the Things to Know recap of the past three weeks in looking back at key storylines that emerged late in our stint in Turkey. Following Winners of the Night, we'll head back into the Strategy Room to look at the final four teams with an interesting fact about the one team that missed out that you'll find only here on DCBLOG, as well as a theme that has emerged in recent Challenges past that could happen yet again.
   And after 'Pulse fan reaction, a triple dose of DC ExtraTime: we'll look delve more into the person whose name was written on Johnny Bananas' arm during his Pit battle, the tight-knit bond of Cory & Mitch, and a former friend of one of pop radio's iconic shows returns to plug her upcoming trip to Las Vegas. All that is ahead after the jump, so Join In then.

DC SocialPulse: The Challenge Bloodlines - "Out For Blood"

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse contains adult language, objectionable content 

and spoilers for some readers. Viewer Discretion is Advised. Due to its long 

length, take frequent eye breaks if you're reading this top to bottom. ***

BY DC CUEVA                           

> @DC408dxtr / @DC408dxnow

With January now in our rear view mirror and Super Bowl week has arrived, welcome again to DCBLOG's coverage of The Challenge: Battle of the Bloodlines. With everything that's happened, it's hard to believe that we're heading towards the conclusion of this season as we have reached the season's Final Four.

   Last week in Turkey, we saw the season's last team challenge where many a competitor went underwater and lost their patience in the sea. Once again Abram's bloodline Mike volunteered and most thought with his poor performance Vince would go in, but Bananas' ways saw Cara Maria's bloodline Jamie get voted in. Both combatants faced off with CT and Zach and were no match, but by time, Jamie hung tough and sent home the Boise brothers.

   This week, the game changes back to the original pairs format used in the first two weeks and as the originals & their bloodlines reunite, the toughest test yet comes. It's a grueling endurance challenge and a mini-final as it tests stamina and patience before the big one, and provides a rather stunning outcome in the end. And what awaits those who survive both that week's challenge and elimination battle is a new locale where the cash awaits them.

   Of course, we'll have all the action, reaction and interaction from this final week in Turkey, plus the usual lead-up and aftermath as well, and includes plenty of snow talk too. Then on DC ExtraTime, we'll share you two pictures of both comedy & wildlife.

- As we begin, please note there is explicit language in many of the tweets below, but they are kept uncensored in order to retain the heat of the moment. So if you are mature enough, please read with discretion. :-)
- Plus, if you haven't watched the episode yet, then do not proceed with reading this post. But need not worry...DCBLOG will compile all of these tweets into these posts after every episode so you won't be in the dark of how your favorites saw this all unfold.

So, for the 'Pulse of a game-changing week in Challenge land and more... Join In following the jump.