Wednesday, November 16, 2016

DC ExtraTime: Early November 2016

Originally Posted in DC ExtraTime sections of DCBLOG's MTV Trifecta coverage
on November 6, 9, 12 and 16, re-posted here for the interest of readers.

BY DC CUEVA                     

As you prep for tonight's new episode of Real World Bad Blood, DCBLOG presents the ExtraTime portions from the past two weeks of our posts offering a look at the people and stories of the MTV Trifecta. Because those posts were so compelling and fascinating, for those of you who don't want to scroll all the way down to those stories - located always at the end of our 'Pulse diaries and the episode WRAP's, we're reposting them just for you. Enjoy these pieces of DC ExtraTime.




CATCHING UP WITH...
SARAH GRAYSON - GAUNTLET QUEEN

This summer when it celebrated its 35th anniversary, MTV relaunched the channel known then as VH1 Classic and brought it the MTV banner. The MTV Classic channel is now home to the slew of past MTV shows from the '90s and 2000's, joining the retrospective music programming and videos that existed there before the relaunch back on August 1st. Of course, this includes The Real World and Challenge franchise, and there have been weekend marathons of past seasons of both shows along with that first Road Rules season featuring a young Mark Long. A member of the alumni of that erstwhile third show of the Trifecta is the subject of this "Catching Up With..." profile.
   Season 12 of Road Rules in summer 2002 -- fourteen years ago -- saw that season's cast take a coast-to-coast U.S. trek, just as it was for that first go-around years earlier. This time, the group and their RV made stops at colleges and universities across America as TV's original reality competition series made its way along the Campus CrawlThey began their season with that Polar Plunge of diving into the cold water of the winter to grab the RV keys, then rolled a car like a movie stuntman, got down with the military at The Citadel, danced in front of hip-hop icons Outkast, got naked in New Orleans, had a gross-out dinner in Texas, and escaped straight jackets from high above. Before The Challenge brought this to a whole new level, this was as crazy as you can get on MTV...plus there was plenty of drama outside the missions, too.
   Along with all of this, when they lost to the legendary original Real World Vegas cast in a face-off challenge in their backyard, the cast managed to make up for it in typical Road Rules fashion by sneaking into the Palms suite and handcuff Steven to the same hot tub as his infamous threesome. And in the season's final mission, they were all blindfolded with their RV suspended above ground inside a maze, and with trust being key they all depended upon each other as they should in this team game and endured that epic final to earn their handsome reward of a trip around the world. Three members of that cast - DarrellRachel and Shane - would go on to become Challenge staples with each of them winning titles... and if the word on the grapevine is right we might as well hear from them again in the not-so-distant future.
   Towards the end of Road Rules' 8-year MTV run, the show took a cue from then-Viacom sibling CBS' revolutionary reality show Survivor and began implementing something that would ultimately make its way into Challenge world. At any point did the cast not complete a mission successfully, they would be put under intense pressure to get the job done in the very next time, or else. If they lost that one, they would have to vote off one of their castmates...this was the same scenario that would've played out on last season's Real World but ultimately saw the eighth roommate Dylan simply move in without someone getting voted off. It was that twist that befell the likes of Jisela & Kina and introduced us to Challenge stalwarts Katie & Tina. That's where we meet our subject.

When we first met Sarah Greyson that summer, she was a wide-eyed 18-year-old teenager who grew up in a wealthy family of doctors in her small Oklahoma town but shortly developed a spirit of being artistic and independent. During the summer after her freshman year in college, she refused to go by the rules of her parents by breaking curfew, and eventually she broke away from her family by becoming a waitress and survive on her own in working hard at that job. But in spite of being able to thrive when there was rough seas to endure, she nonetheless was very vulnerable. All told, she had everything money can buy except love, acceptance and the desire to be liked.
   From the outset on the Road Rules RV, it was clear that Sarah saw herself as the weak link of the group as her castmates were physically active and she was just here to enjoy the experience and not get sporty-like. But after some stumbles, she was able to prove herself as they progressed along the way. But in their 10th mission, the group rolled into Lubbock, TX - Texas Tech country, and went car surfing. The nerves got the best of them as several players weren't able to drive stick and ultimately lost the mission. Along with the possibility of voting someone off, there was also the choice of whether to vote someone off or give up the prizes & cash they accumulated up to that point. If having to do politics in the Challenge house is one thing, it's another to deliberate whether to give up someone they shared a strong bond with or to return their winnings to save that person. But in the end after pleads by Kendal for her to stay, Rachel changed her vote and Sarah packed her bags.

It was that haunting experience that inspired Sarah when she was asked to be on The Challenge: Gauntlet a year later in 2003. It would turn out to be her only Challenge appearance, but in a broader sense this was the equivalent of several Challenges for the feat she pulled off what might be the most improbable run to the winner's circle we have ever seen in the Trifecta... and we only thought what Mike and his AYTO Season 3 castmates did last year was an epic feat. That season, she found herself at odds with Team Road Rules, which included not only the aforementioned Darrell and Rachel, but also future comedian Theo Von, Veronica, Abram, Tina, Katie and future Grimm star Dave Giuntoli, among others.
   The ode of being a Challenge rookie is that you're sent in at first chance and would be kept on being sent in until you lose. Well, Sarah was sent in not only at the first try, but FIVE times during the course of the whole Challenge - which was one of the handful of old-school Challenges to take place in the U.S. in Telluride, CO, hosted by the late Dave Mirra. In an interview with MTV.com a few years back, Sarah admitted to wanting to be the first one out with a boyfriend she was living with in New York was anticipating just a quick fly-back after a quick business vacation. Instead, when she found out that her teammates wanted her out, she became, in her words, "a rebel with a cause."
   First, Sarah faced "Mr. Baby Come Tonight" - David of the first RW New Orleans, and she won that first one. Then in in her second elimination, she met his NOLA roommate Matt, and won that battle in the time where they had guy vs. girl elimination rounds. In her third trip, she had a rematch with Trishelle, and Sarah took down the fan favorite. The next week, she was at it again: this time with that punk-rock girl from RW Back to New York Rachel B., and she had her fourth elimination win. And in week 13, Sarah faced off with RW Las Vegas' Irulan, and grabbed another feather in the cap with her fifth elimination win.
   It was winning those five eliminations that grabbed the attention of just about everyone in the Rocky Mountains and they took notice of how not to underestimate anyone on The Challenge, even those who you think would not be athletic at first; ask Jenna, Preston and Team Princess what that feels like. Sarah survived the last regular mission to earn her ticket to the final, and in the end she joined a stacked Road Rules team who dominated a short-handed Real World team which included Coral, Mike The Miz and RW Vegas' Alton to take the crown.
   Sarah went into the elimination chamber five times that fall & winter, and came out of all five battles victorious: it's tied for the most elimination wins in a single Challenge season - Wes won five on his first Challenge - Fresh Meat I ten years ago - and ultimately placed third in the final. In this instance, Sarah not only went to the final but came away a champion: a $25,000 winner's check as proof. This is perhaps the greatest run to a Challenge title ever and maybe the ultimate underdog story in the history of the entire Trifecta, even when you account that her win came when the man would eventually win six Challenges was still attending Penn State.

Now, fast-forward some fourteen years after her first time on MTV, and Sarah has her focus on Hollywood. She not only reconciled with her family, she used that prize money to pay off her debts and to get an education which eventually got her a theater degree. That kick-started a post-MTV life that has seen her be part of seven films, many Broadway plays and lots of commercials. And this past season, it brought her to the most famous city in the world of animated television: Springfield, home of The Simpsons. For the most recent season of the longest-running animated series in TV history, she served as an animation production assistant behind the scenes for the show.
   During the most recent season of The Challenge, Sarah joined the inseparable duo of Susie and Sarah on the Brain Candy Podcast. There, they discussed the Road Rules vet's time on Campus Crawl, her time on The Gauntlet and all else. Check that out at thebraincandypodcast.com.


•     •     •

BACKPACKING WITH (Sometimes) ISAAC

Traveling has always been an essential part of the Trifecta culture: seven strangers (and nowadays more) fly to a new city for a new living experience with the occasional trip out of town. Meanwhile, 20 singles ready to mingle travel to an exotic locale to look for love and money, and just as many people or more compete on the fifth major pro sport in places around the world with TJ Lavin. And thanks to social media, members of this community can post their whereabouts across this great vast nation of ours, sometimes out of it too. For one, this routine of flying all over the world like the rest of us is not just a regular occurrence: it's his passion and day job. But, this is not that one person (and his gold medal girlfriend) you would think it might be at first...
   Next year will be ten years since The Real World ventured into the Southern Hemisphere for the first time when Sydney, Australia hosted season 19 in 2007 -- the last one to have half-hour episodes and thus, an extended season of 20+ shows. There, we saw the romance of Cohutta & KellyAnne, future Challenge champ Dunbar, saw Shauvon choose her boyfriend back home (and was replaced by Ashli), and where Trisha pushed Parisa and was told "Enjoy your flight." One person who wasn't part of the house drama much is the subject to this week's ExtraTime.

When we first met Isaac Stout, he was that guy who from first glance was the bad boy but deep inside was full of artistic & musical talent and having a good time... a much different life than of when he battled drugs, alcohol and the law while he was young in his native Cleveland. His most notable moment in Australia was of stripping off all of his clothes and deciding to treat the fish tank in the Darling Harbour house as the Great Barrier Reef and going scuba diving inside of it.
   He's been on two Challenges -- The Duel II in 2009 and Free Agents two years ago -- and in both cases he flew under the radar with deep runs midway and only succumbed in elimination to past champions Landon and Johnny Bananas. And just like Mike of this season, Isaac also made a reality TV crossover: back in 2009 when his then girlfriend Noirin was on the UK version of Big Brother, he was brought in as the twist and stayed in with her in that famous house. But to think that his only travels have been to Oceania and Uruguay, the total number of frequent flyer miles he's racked up the past decade would be far more than just those three times on MTV.
   The group assignment in the Harbour City saw his cast work with a tourism company and the house was divided into two teams. Those groups then worked together to come up with the best tourism plan and the team that won took an all-expense paid trip around Australia. When everyone else flew back from this island continent, Issac stayed down under with the aforementioned Noirin (whom he met there and stayed together for sometime after) and the two traveled across a country that is as vast as the U.S. but also unique in its own way with the water, the outback and coastal metropolis.
   That started a passion for traveling that still drives Isaac nine years after that first trip abroad. His passport has proof of the many travels he's ventured on with the form of traveling known as backpacking. This way of budget-friendly independent travel sees a backpack become the entire luggage for a vacation longer than just your typical weekend excursion: public transportation and staying at a hostel is the norm, and where meeting locals is as important as the sightseeing, which often ventures into the wilderness. It's much different from the way of travel most of us are used to -- for my Vegas trip, me and my party had seven pieces of luggage including my own backpack.
   In documenting his adventures on Instagram and his own web series, Isaac has ventured to India, Thailand, Turkey, Uruguay, Australia, New Zealand and Puerto Rico, among others, to get a feel of what life is like outside of a prosperous nation that we live in here in the U.S.  Highlights of his adventures has seen him join a backyard fight club, have animal hearts for dinner, teaching art to a girls orphanage and enjoying the local festivals foreign countries have on offer. And he gets to enjoy all of this with just one pair of jeans.
   Inspired by the movement of the lists of things that people want to do before they die that was brought to public awareness by the guys of The Buried Life (which we profiled here two years ago), Isaac recently started the Bucket List Club, his own travel company inspired by his worldwide adventures and are now taking applications for people to join Isaac and venture co-founder Trey Humphries on their latest trip coming next year to Thailand. And for a glimpse of what his travels have been like, his YouTube channel offers a look at what a typical overseas trip is like for him. Check out the first two episodes embedded below.





Aside from the guy they also refer to as "Sometimes" Isaac in reference to the in-house talk shows he, LaToya and Brandon N. co-hosted during Free Agents, the many travels the people of the Trifecta have ventured on are varied and unique. Of course, from the many pictures he's posted on his Instagram, Johnny Bananas has gone to so many countries, often with girlfriend Hannah Teter and of course the 13 Challenges he's been on...but he's not alone.
   Last year during Bloodlines, we told you about RW Back to New Orleans alum and three-time alum Preston spending an entire summer in Southeast Asia which opened his mind to the harsh reality of what those in third-world countries have to live through on a daily basis. His fellow NOLA castmate, Eric, has also racked up a considerable passport: the Middle East, Italy, Panama, South Africa, the Dominican Republic, Swaziland, Belgium, Monaco, the Netherlands and Italy - mostly in working as an world affairs specialist. And longtime Challenge vet Eric "Big Easy" has been a staple of the annual revelry known as Spring Break, and now operates his own travel company catering to the students who look forward to every March for all the fun of that rite of springtime.
   And as we post this to you, filming of the next seasons of The Challenge and Are You The One? are ongoing overseas in two of the countries mentioned in this post, and rumor has it that the ladder will have its own Challenge spin-off coming up very soon. Not only is the Trifecta busy this time with all of these travels in this time in between both the summer and Thanksgiving travel rushes...my parents will soon go on yet another vacation on the heels of our Vegas trip (they just love flying, BTW).


•     •     •

BRITTANY's SOCAL TAKEOVER
Now, a positive note with a ray of sunshine amidst the gloominess of the past week and of the serious nature of the Forum post above. As filming of Season 5 of Are You The One? just wrapped up and rumors of their own challenge circulating around the grapevine, a member of the much revered Season 1 cast recently spent the past month in Southern California and has gotten to mingle with some of Hollywood's best as well as familiar friends.
   Brittany from AYTO Season 1 has immersed herself in the entertainment world since we last heard from her on Exes 2. And over the past month, she exchanged the cool and relatively calm nature of New England for the sunny, fast-paced and more vibrant vibe of L.A., and we'd like to share with you some of her adventures, courtesy of her Instagram and Twitter @Brittany_Baldi.

First, anyone who's in the know of the showbiz world head to the numerous avenues of information on entertainment: various sites, twitter hubs and mobile apps such as Entertainment Weekly, TMZ, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Billboard Magazine, the tabloids and the like - among others. And of course, there's those those entertainment newsmagazine shows on TV that air each weeknight - generally before network primetime. This includes the show EXTRA, which has been on-air for over 20 years and currently calls Universal Studios Hollywood home base. Brittany watched a live taping of segments for that show, and met up with Extra's two current hosts: that Saved By The Bell heartthrob Mario Lopez (left), and co-host Clarissa Thompson.

   As we post this on Wednesday, November 16th, last night was the season premiere of the sixth & final season of MTV's mega-hit Teen Wolf as well as new show Sweet/Vicious. On Monday, Brittany and her season 1 castmate Simone represented Team AYTO at a Southland Dave & Buster's for a premiere viewing party where they and the casts of both dramas watched the premieres a day before the rest of us. On the picture to the right, Brittany and 'Monie got to hang out with TW stars Tyler PoseyDylan SprayberryKhylin Rhambo and Cody Christian, among those who attended which also included Shelley Hennig, Charlie Carver, Holland Roden and S/V stars Taylor Dearden and Eliza Bennett, among others. Their AYTO colleague, Ryan, is co-host of AfterBuzz TV's Teen Wolf after-show, which you can check out at AfterBuzzTV.com.
   Speaking of the Wolf, a post like this would not be complete in not including anything related to Teen Wolf without mentioning about the guy who now refers to himself as the "Wolf Pack." We're not talking about the group from Real World Skeletons or what we saw on the Bad Blood premiere but rather Giovanni from the last Are You The One? season over the summer, and someone who's also a big Teen Wolf fan as well. There in that picture to the left, he's right there with Brittany in the pool there in L.A. - it's much better being in a pool in 70 degree weather in November than being in the cooler atmosphere and often dreary conditions of the Northeast at this time of year. Since AYTO, Gio not only has released a line of hoodies with his Wolf Pack name on it, he's also dropped some additional music on his SoundCloud, which you can check out here.
   On the same night as the Bad Blood arriving at the Real World house in Seattle and the Cubs winning the World Series in Cleveland, reality TV honored its best at the Reality TV Awards at the Avalon in Hollywood. Brittany and Simone were joined by the aforementioned Challenger Jordan as they represented Team MTV, along with the Godfather Mark Long who co-hosted the online red carpet show, and the trio presented an award at the big show. Big Brother win Best Guilty Pleasure Show, while BMP production Born This Way won Best New Show. Lighthearted Entertainment - the team behind AYTO - were also honored with their always revealing show Dating Naked being singled out for Most Unique Concept, while The Amazing Race added Best Overall Show to its many Emmys.
   And last but not least... well, you very much can't include a post on Brittany without making a mention about her ex in the mansion in Kauai and then in Costa Rica. Towards the end of her month-long stay in SoCal, Adam flew into town and they did a few hikes up the way in the Hollywood Hills, including stops at the Griffith Observatory and of course having money shots of the famed Hollywood sign. Oh, how far these two have come since moments such as having an argument on one of their getaway dates in Hawaii and all else that took place in that great first AYTO season. Adam himself also got to hang out with fellow castmate Wes and, from a SnapChat post yesterday, his perfect match Shanley. Of course, I've had the great opportunity of following the Season 1 cast's entire run from the very beginning (they filmed that season at this time 3 years ago), and we'll be covering Season 5 for you here when that kicks off, plus the rumored spin-off taking place also in 2017.


•     •     •

FASHION FILE: A TEAM MTV HALLOWEEN
Last week before this country became Cubs crazy and anticipated the end to the campaign, the attention was on the annual tradition of people like us dressing up and becoming kids for a time in going trick or treating all over the neighborhood for Halloween. With trick of treating now in the hands of my kids, once again my custom was to pass out candy to the people who came to the door where I live. But, there were people in the Trifecta who once again dressed up for the various parties and events surrounding this unique holiday. It wasn't an easy thing to pair down the list of the many who dressed up for this October 31st into the ten that made the list (in no particular order and with their Instagram photos linked to their names), but we begin with the two recent members of the Trifecta to say yes to the question they got recently of "Will you marry me?"

IG @TrishelleC
● TRISHELLE: First, twenty-five years ago saw Disney release the film Beauty and the Beast and for Halloween night in New Orleans, Trishelle and her fiancĂ© dressed up as Belle and the Beast from that movie when they attended the live Broadway play. She captioned on Instagram, "The illusionists from Broadway. Great show! #beautyandthebeast #halloween #belle"
● JASMINE: This was the first Halloween for Jasmine as a mom, and for the first October 31st for baby Madeline and the RW Cancun/Challenge vet, the newly engaged mom dressed up as a blue Crayola crayon while the daughter dressed up as an adorable bunny and her fiancĂ© just put on an anonymous mask.
● ROBB: With the election season means lots of late night political satire and Saturday Night Live steps up big time. Not anything political in this bit, but of course it's also football season and lots of school pride. Robb from RW St. Thomas and his girlfriend dressed up as the Spartan Cheerleaders made famous by Will Ferrell and Cheri Oteri back in the '90s.
IG @MaddiChanning
● MADISON (and Baby Harper): For Madison, this was her first Halloween as a mom and she had the best of both worlds. First, she dressed up for a party as Minnie Mouse with the mouse ears and got to hang out with other fellow costumed people in Austin. Then for Halloween night itself, she dressed up as a kitty while baby Harper dressed up as a strawberry.
● SHANE: In the days before welcoming the newest addition to his family which we'll explain shortly, Shane decided to put on some makeup and become someone from the movie & TV show Scream. He applied blood to the right side of his face and he became anything but that baby-faced brother to his bloodline brother Tony.
● RW BAD BLOOD: For the girls of this season's Real World cast, Anika dressed up as a skeleton for her Halloween festivities (some other RW girls also had the mouth she had on in her IG pic. For Jordan, she channeled the ultra popular app SnapChat which I joined recently and decided to just get a dog's nose and ears and become a dog, mirroring its ubiquitous dog filter. And for Katrina & Anna, the sisters just went simple and donned Scream masks with knifes in their hands.
● AMBER & ETHAN (and Scarlett): This was the second Halloween for the daughter of AYTO's First Couple, and for Amber & Ethan they dressed up as characters from Pixar's Monsters Inc. as their Snapchat story documented Scarlett and them walking around the Texas neighborhood. When the Diamonds got home, and before she went to bed, the two surprised her while in their costumes.
● BRITNI & CHUCK: For another AYTO couple that's stayed together since that Hawaiian experience, for Britni & Chuck from Season 3 last year they dressed up as superheroes in the Atlanta night: he donned the Superman "S" (albeit upside down), while she decided to dye her blonde hair brown and become Wonder Woman.
IG @RivGio
● TORI & GIO: A movie to watch in 2017 is the Power Rangers Movie, and for the newly-single Tori she got to dress up as the Pink Power Ranger as she marked the drop of her new EP 37 - with a third eye of course. She was joined for the party by Giovanni who became a Teen Wolf and donned a wolverine mask just before that show begins its final season, while Prosper dressed as just himself.
● CURTIS & JENNI: Lastly, there's that AYTO 2 couple who matched up after they came home from Hawaii. Last we spoke of them here was on the Season 3 preview and since then Jenni has moved from her native Minneapolis to join Mr. "Do What You Love" in San Diego. And for their first Halloween in Surf City, they dressed up as a pirate and his girlfriend.

•     •     •


A NEW BABY, AND A NEWLYWED
Before we wrap things up here, we want to congratulate two members of Team MTV on two life-changers that took place over the weekend which seems now far away but still are great moments nonetheless that means so much than what's happening right now.
IG @ShaneJRaines
● First, the Raines brothers - Tony and the aforementioned Shane, welcomed in the new member of their family as Isla Rose Raines was born this past weekend. This is the second time in over 260 days that Tony has had to go through the humbling moment of becoming a father, and likewise for everyone in their inner circle. Shane captioned on Instagram, "Beyond excited my baby niece is here and she is happy and healthy as can be. So proud of my brother @t_raines and @alyssamgiacone for becoming such amazing adults and now parents. I couldn't be any happier right now! My niece is finally here you guys!!!! #IslaRoseRaines #Rainesbaby #uncleshanelovesyou" And in a post earlier today, the younger brother added, "Word cannot explain the feeling that these two beautiful babies bring to me. I'm so proud of my big brother for helping bring such beautiful baby girls into this world. I'll be forever grateful for these two girls, thanks again for making me such a proud uncle! #HarperLondon #IslaRose #Sisters #family #uncleShane #NationalSiblingsDay"
● And second, we send congrats to Challenge veteran Evan Starkman, who got to say "I do" to his fiancĂ© this past weekend down in Mexico. Fellow friend Kenny Santucci, as well as RW Sydney alum Trisha Cummings, were there to witness the two-time Challenge champ tie the knot, with the former being best man, of course. We send our congrats to them and the brothers.


•     •     •

A reminder to rejoin us here this weekend when we look at Episode 7 from Seattle, plus in the coming days we'll be offering our first ExtraTime Long-Form of this cycle when we'll be taking a look at the extraordinary bond between The Challenge's winningest player and a person who's defied the odds in the spirit of a Challenge legend.  See you later tonight on DCNOW.

- I AM DC

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