DC WRAP: The Challenge Vendettas - "PizzaGate"

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

Welcome back again as we now WRAP up last week's episode of The Challenge Vendettas, before an all-new episode airs tomorrow. Last week saw the first female elimination that proved that even if you are new to both this show and to American fans, it doesn't mean you're no pushover which we saw in a Brit taking out the win over a fellow Challenge rookie. But the drama centered around food: pizza causing drama with the one who calls herself "Sneaky 'Ri" and a returning star & his new girl, and the week's challenge that saw us enter video game mode for someone who, if you ask him to get the job done in getting some food down your stomach, chances are you'll be fine.
   We'll recap last week's episode for you ahead, plus we'll have more on the momentum Mr. Two Kids has garnered since he got an expected second chance last season, which he has taken advantage of. And on the day after Music's Biggest Night, on ExtraTime we'll share with you the meeting of a six-time champion and a man who just returned to the top of the victory podium earlier this month, with one of music's top-charting artists. Stick around for that and baby news straight ahead.

DC SocialPulse: The Challenge Vendettas - "PizzaGate"

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse contains adult language, objectionable content & 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  @ TW / IG / YT

There's nothing more awesome than a Sunday Funday, and as you indulge yourself late on this weekend welcome to this week's 'Pulse of The Challenge Vendettas. And chances are, you're having some pizza while you're reading this diary and watching the NFL or NHL All-Star Games or golf as Tiger Woods makes his return. And it's also the key object of this week's episode.
   Last week in Spain, some romances flourished in seeing Natalie balance her new relationship with Bananas with trying to translate a game she mastered two summers ago into this tough environment that brought her into the Troika, and one of the British newcomers getting close to newly-single Nicole. For the game itself, another matchup between Cory and Nelson saw the ladder continue his elimination mastery, while Nicole also proved her tenacity in leveling a newcomer into the water below for the first girls' elimination week of this season.
   That person is Alicia, and her vendetta Kam and Natalie are the three girls up for the cut along with Melissa due to her foot injury last week, and you'll find out who she faces in the Ring this week. Also, that couple of two newly-single competitors from opposite ends of the Trifecta timeline begin to plan to take over the game, and those around them begin to try and break them up. And food is the theme of this week: both for the week's challenge, and something you love to have on Saturday nights or Sunday afternoons causing some drama in the house.
   You'll find out what happens there with all the action, reaction and interaction of Episode 4 of Vendettas ahead, along with lots of pizza talk. And after the Pulse, an emerging YouTube figure of sorts and someone who stirred the pot last year shares his thoughts on the controversy surrounding a social influencer and what he did that has cost him America's support.

Pizza, chains, Bradni and Logan Paul... it's all ahead on the Pulse of The Challenge Vendettas.

DC SocialPulse Extra: Before Vendettas Week 4

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse contains adult language and objectionable content. 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  @ TW / IG / YT

As you warm yourself up this late January's weekend, indulge yourself in all the cast interaction between Episode 3 and this week's Episode 4 of The Challenge Vendettas, before the main diary of the ladder comes your way later tonight.  Included: a Twitter beef between the mean girls and a girl who got her way in through a casting contest, and an ex gives advice to another ex on what to do with their clothes. Enjoy.

DC ExtraTime: Afroman in the Key

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

Welcome to the weekend and to our trip Inside the MTV Trifecta. There was plenty of drama this week on The Challenge Vendettas, and we'll have that covered for you coming up later. But first…

   The year 2001 is notable to most because of what happened that September morning, but there were some other things that happened in the second year of the 2000's. It was the year I got my high school diploma, when The Miz and Coral met on that boat en route to the The Real World Back to New York loft and Eminem took the stage with Elton John at the Grammys. The first year of the 21st century and the third millennium is the theme behind two of this weekend's ExtraTime stories, and we begin with some unlikely prospects.
   On Monday, a friend of the Trifecta in Teen Mom OG's Maci Bookout and her husband Taylor McKinney got to mark their one-year anniversary as man & wife, but then she made it public of her recent and heartbreaking miscarriage. Then, viewers stuck around as the kind of big-time drama synonymous with MTV reality series like The Challenge, Are You The One?, Real World and Jersey & Floribama Shore made its way to the sultry paradise that is Siesta Key, Florida. And just in case you're not in the loop, here you go…

DC WRAP: The Challenge Vendettas - #Banatalie

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

As we you segue way back into the weekly grind, something to cheer about this Monday is that tomorrow, there's a new episode of The Challenge Vendettas airing. Last week saw another twist being revealed to the group in those who win elimination get more power than ever, plus a popular symbol these days being the theme of the week's mission, and two romances emerge as the house is getting fully settled into this game that keeps on changing by the minute.
   Coming up, Things to Know will recap the past two episodes, plus we'll look at that twist and two others which will sure make this game much more interesting than it was at this stage in the early part of Invasion. And what happens when Sparta meets a duo who goes on a heist? Stick around after the episode coverage on ExtraTime as a man with abs for days meets the stars of one of the first big movies of the new year which dropped this weekend.  All that is ahead.

DC SocialPulse: The Challenge Vendettas - #Banatalie

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse contains adult language, objectionable content & 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  @ TW / IG / YT

As you warm yourself up this winter's weekend - and as tickets have just been punched for Super Bowl LII tonight, come step inside our house for Inside the MTV Trifecta at DCBLOG. And after the finales of Champs vs. Stars and Floribama Shore, for the time being it's just one show we're focusing on in The Challenge Vendettas, where things are now warming up while the weather outside is nothing but snow - at least if you're not in California, Florida or Hawaii.

   Last week in Spain, the competitors were given a wakeup call when TJ Lavin laid two twists on them in the Troika having power over the game each week, and those who get sent into elimination having to plead their case at a Inquisition dinner before their choice is given. Kyle found himself in a love triangle with Marie and Cara Maria, while he also finds himself right in the heart of the game after he finishes with Brad and Bananas in that Troika and has to help two champions pick who to put into the Ring.
   In a reprise of what happened on Dirty 30, Cory and Nelson are matched up in the season's first elimination, and this week they will battle to see who stays and goes. Meanwhile, another romance that's blossomed this early on sees the girl in it having to balance that with trying to prove that she can hang with everyone else. For another newcomer used to love British style, she finds comfort in someone fresh off a romance also as her vendetta questions her motives. And there's some oncoming traffic for this week's challenge taking place above water that incorporates a part of millennial life.

All the action, reaction and interaction of Episode 3 of Vendettas is coming up, along with a Bad Girl getting into the faces of the Real World bad girls, and a birthday for an original. All of that is ahead on the 'Pulse of The Challenge: Vendettas... and thanks for sticking with us here this weekend.

DC SocialPulse Extra: Before Vendettas Week 3

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse contains adult language and objectionable content. 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  @ TW / IG / YT

Welcome to the weekend, and to this week's trip Inside the MTV Trifecta at DCBLOG. To warm you up for this week's look at The Challenge Vendettas, enjoy all the cast interaction from between last week's episode 2 and this week's episode 3, before we bring you the 'Pulse of the ladder coming your way here tomorrow.

DC ExtraTime: Queer Eye with Karamo

Repost of an ExtraTime story previously posted during Champs vs. Stars, 

updated to include trailer that dropped this past week

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

With the cat out of the bag now of what will go down January 2nd, one of those who we'll be seeing on that Vendettas season is Devin, who we last saw be eliminated in the first Purge on Dirty 30, but earlier this year teamed with his AYTO perfect match Rashida to win AYTO Second Chances in Australia. After original host Ryan Devlin took his leave after the Season 5 collapse and before Terrence J. took over for Season 6, Real World Philadelphia's Karamo Brown hosted that spinoff, bringing us back memories of his time on Season 15 of the reality O.G., his lone Challenge, Inferno II, and him being reality TV's first African-American gay man. And Karamo is the focus of this ExtraTime which takes this story across the cable dial.

Karamo (2nd to left), with fellow QE hosts Bobby Berk,
Antoni Porowski, Jonathan Van Ness & Tan France.

If your mom happens to be an avid reality TV watcher -- which is the case of fellow MTV podcast host Brian Cohen and his mom Sue (@PlainViewSue), then likely her favorite cable channel is Bravo. It was once that snoozy, PBS-style channel airing high-brow programming like fine arts, film and something still on air today in Inside the Actors Studio with James Lipton. But once NBC Universal acquired the channel in 2003, it became home to reality series catering to both the housewives and the gay & lesbian community, led by The Real Housewives franchise.
   The show that helped spur Bravo's rise in cable land was Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, which premiered in summer 2003 and turned Ted Allen, Kyan Douglas, Thom Filicia, Carson Kressley and Jai Rodriguez -- aka the "Fab Five" -- into the channel's first big-name stars. With their passions of fashion, style, grooming, interior design and pop culture, as well as them all being "queer" in being gay, the Fab Five teamed with on a usually straight guy in giving his style, home and ways of life a new makeover. The series became a cultural phenomemon, won an Emmy Award and spawned an female spinoff.
   More than a decade after its Bravo version went off the air, earlier this year Netflix announced a new version of Queer Eye, with a new generation of the Fab Five to bring this hit series to the capital of all of your binge-watching. Karamo was lucky enough to be picked to be part of this new iteration as Jai's old role as the resident culture expert of the Fab Five, focusing not only pop culture but also building relationships and social interaction which has certainly changed since 2003 in us having 2nd relationships with our smartphones. He will be joined by groomer Jonathan Van Ness, fashion lover Tan French, food & wine expert Antoni Porowski and designer Bobby Berk, and this group will call Atlanta home instead of New York.
   Amidst the backdrop of the new America in these tense times and just a few months after fellow pioneer Will & Grace returned to the air, show creator David Collins says of the new Queer Eye, "It’s a new time with a new audience. If the original round was about tolerance, this time it is about acceptance." And given what happened on Karamo's Real World season of having a brush with the police and saying the N-word, he will have a moment to relive that when he and a local police officer will get to discuss relations between the cops and the African-American community.
   In talking to Entertainment Weekly, Collins adds of Karamo, "Karamo is just the epitome of style and taste and class. He’s so charismatic, he pulls you right in, smart as a whip. What’s beautiful about him is, he’s an amazing listener; he stops and really hears what everyone, what the guys are saying to him and then he’s able to really process that and bring it back. It’s really a beautiful gift of his."
   Given his broad TV resume since we first saw him move into that Real World house thirteen years ago, when Netflix announced Queer Eye's return Karamo was no doubt on that shortlist of those who would help to bring this show to a new generation. And given the qualities Collins mentioned in him, no doubt Queer Eye and Karamo Brown are a perfect match... it drops in February on Netflix.

- I AM DC

DC WRAP: Champs vs. Stars - Second Half Review

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

On this MLK Day, welcome back as we now bring you this week's WRAP before tomorrow's hour of The Challenge. Vendettas is just starting to heat up, and we'll recap last week's episode next week, as our policy dictates that any episode ending without resolution - the recap of that week's episode is carried into the post covering the following week's episode.
   But the entirety of this week's recap is devoted to the second spinoff season pitting the very best of The Challenge with those from the sports and entertainment worlds, after Champs vs. Pros early last summer. On that November night where a long regular season finally came to an end in Dirty 30, a newfound tradition continued along as Champs vs. Stars began, and saw the likes to Terrell Owens, Shawn Johnson and Lil' Romeo challenge Cory, Jenna, Zach and co. The Champions truly dominated this season despite some early exits and a replacement coming in, and it was no surprise that an almost perfect season ended in them being bathed in confetti.
   It's a custom for us that whenever a finale airs in any of the shows we cover, then that show is given the full focus of that week's WRAP. That's the case for Champs vs. Stars, and ahead Things to Know will recap the second half of Champs vs. Stars with our top 5 moments from the back end of the season, along with a final look at how the teams fared here. That's all ahead.

MTV Trifecta: Floribama Shore - The Season 1 Finale

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

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

As you all wrap up your Sunday and this first extended weekend of the new year continues along - most especially in both Jacksonville and in Minneapolis, welcome back to this week's ride Inside the MTV Trifecta. And while we got to crown winners on Champs vs. Stars and the Vendettas game becoming more twisted in this week's escape from reality, the week's biggest buzz in the MTV world comes to us by way of Panama City Beach, Florida and the season 1 finale of Floribama Shore.
   Last week, we were all reminded of how sometimes, the unexpected takes place and can happen in the worst possible way -- which was what happened to Codi when his grandpa died unexpectedly and the house did what they can to comfort him. Meanwhile, Jeremiah's friend Josh came by to see Nilsa and that didn't turn out as well as expected, and petty differences and tensions continue to mount as they head towards the end of their summer.
   And as their time in Florida comes to an end - and with the role of family being prevalent with Codi, this week the housemates invite the people who've followed their growth for one last blast of summer: their parents. Fitting for a season that's brought back the Shore franchise in grand style, you won't believe what goes down when people older than them decide to have fun. And as always, them leaving the house brings back memories, trials & tribulations, laughs & lessons of their summer.

After the jump, Jeremiah, Codi, Kortni, Aimee, Kirk, Nilsa, Candace and Gus say farewell to an unforgettable ride in Panama City Beach... it's the Season 1 finale of Floribama Shore.

DC SocialPulse: The Challenge Vendettas EP2 and Champs vs. Stars Finale

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse contains adult language, objectionable content & 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  @ TW / IG / YT

As you get to enjoy this Sunday Funday on this first three-day weekend of 2018, welcome back to DCBLOG's trip Inside the MTV Trifecta and the first of two posts on your Sunday, as we cover a Double Shot of The Challenge.
   Last week, Vendettas began with a cast full of feuds and rivalries arriving in Spain looking to settle things on the field. And out of the block was something we usually see at the end: an overnight challenge that saw the players being tested with a grueling trek up a mountain. Despite being newbies not only to The Challenge but to American fans, the British Invasion ruled Week 1: Joss winning that first misson, and Kyle winning over the ladies in the house, while newly single Brad and Bananas scored romances with new ladies once they moved into their house.
   This week in their first standard daily challenge week, more game-changing twists are revealed to the group, including one that gives power to not only the one who wins but also a couple others who will have control over who they want their revenge. For a budding romance that took place between Kyle and one of the girls in the house, it finds itself in some odd places with an enemy of hers. And for a house already full of clashing personalities, this is just the beginning to what promises to be an even more intense season than it was last summer & fall.
   Meanwhile over on Champs vs. Stars, last week was the always interesting last challenge before the final, which saw the players compete as individuals and those who topped the field not only win their way into the final but also had control over who goes to the final with them. This week sees the leaders reveal their verdict, and those last three standing on both the Champs and Stars sides will compete in one last examination of agility, tenacity, endurance and strength. The team who emerges victorious go the spoils and $150,000 for their charities.

You'll find out who reigns victorious there and who gains power in Spain, as all the action, reaction and interaction of Challenge Tuesday is straight ahead. Also, find out some shocking revelations from one competitor over one's supposed on-air absence, and birthdays for a few of Team MTV.
   All of that is coming up, as we bring you week 2 of The Challenge Vendettas and the finale of Champs vs. Stars.

DC SocialPulse Extra: Before Challenge Vendettas Week 2

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse contains adult language and objectionable content. 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  @ TW / IG / YT

With this, DCBLOG's 600th post, we have this Pulse Extra to cover the time in between the Premiere of The Challenge Vendettas and Week 2 of both that and the finale of Champs vs. Stars. Enjoy all the cast interaction before we bring you the 'Pulse of both of those shows coming up later tonight after tonight's NFL divisional games.

DC ExtraTime: Asaf The Chef?

An ExtraTime Follow-Up from July 2017

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

In between Champs vs. Pros and Dirty 30, we spotlighted one of the most unique and versatile MTV people we've encountered in the last five years: Asaf Goren. He first made his TV debut in 2015 on FOX's So You Think You Can Dance, then the next year made his way to Are You The One? Season 4 with Tori and co. He even gave a smooch to a girl who's become a Challenge superstar in the making, and also dressed as a girl himself and planted a kiss to another guy in the Hawaiian house.
   Along the way, Asaf also popped up on Second Chances, appeared in a Britney Spears video, walked the runway at New York Fashion Week, and went on a date with Farrah from Teen Mom... he even showed his affection for his #1 fan - his mom. We devoted an entire post to Asaf and to his many talents last July, but last week he returned to TV but in a place no one would expect him to see, but only added to the many facets of someone who, it's safe to say, is the jack of all trades.

Asaf (left) on Worst Cooks in America (Pic: Food Network)

With romance, dancing, modeling and music, and having been cast in three TV series, it seems Asaf has done just about everything you can possibly imagine. But that doesn't include being a chef… that all changed last week when Asaf popped up on yet another reality competition show when he became one of the contestants on the newest season of Food Network's Worst Cooks in America.
   The show brings together novices who might not know a thing about making quality food and often excel more at microwaving food than putting on a apron, and turning them into skilled cooks with the help of renowned chefs Anne Burrell and Tyler Florence. Each season, they lead two teams of recruits in a culinary boot camp with improving their skills being at the forefront. By the time the season ends, the one who's victorious wins $25,000 and bragging rights to their mentor.
   Asaf is no doubt the most well-known member of a group chosen to try their luck at becoming masters of the kitchen. His opposition ranges from a local sportscaster from Cleveland and a pair of twins, to grandparents and a drag performer all intent on turning from the worst cook to the best cook of this bunch, which airs Sundays on Food Network. Asaf states, "I can dance, I have a great personality. I know how to make the party start. The only thing I definitely cannot do is cook." And one interested viewer to his debut was Season 4 castmate Cam who tweeted at @CamBruckman, "Wait @asafgoren1 is now on “Worst Cooks In America” ...atta boy! 😂"

And from we last saw him go on that date with Farrah after his time in Australia ended right up to now as he goes onto his fourth(!) reality series, Asaf has also pushed his XTRDNRY brand on social media. Coinciding with the premiere of Worst Cooks, embedded below is his latest music video, "Come Again," along with another video "Back N Forth"... his YouTube channel also has a track dedicated to his mom who was featured in our bit on Asaf last year.

- I AM DC

The Look: Siesta Key - The Drama Continues

"The Look" Follow-Up from July 2017

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

Okay, so this person is one who loves what this site calls the MTV Trifecta, where The Challenge and the shows that feed into this fifth major pro sport are prominent in this one's social engagement with the MTV family. And of course, the shows are the principal focus for this very site and offers so much for me to watch, research and then write on for all of you to enjoy.
   But can it also be known that I also have some sort of guilty pleasure that I'm even afraid of making it public on Twitter? It's something that when it began, there was some negative press surrounding it for certain reasons... but the drama, the intrigue, the characters and the backdrop of it makes it, along with another Florida-based series, a worthy successor, or least a filler of sorts, to The Real World. And like I did for a show which I watched back 14 years ago which inadvertently introduced social media to yours truly, I've loyally watched and live tweeted every episode.

When The Challenge XXX began last summer, another MTV series that debuted that same month of July helped reintroduced a sub genre that MTV invented back in 2004: reality drama, or a docu-soap. Channeling the chill vibes of Laguna Beach and The Hills which made Lauren Conrad and Kristin Cavallari stars, Siesta Key became the slightly grown up version of both those shows taking place all the way out in Florida. Following in the footsteps of Catfish, Are You The One and just this winter with Floribama Shore in scoring the ever-coveted post-Teen Mom timeslot, Siesta clicked with fans as MTV's highest-rated new series in years, and returns after its winter break next week.
   Like its California predecessors, this show features all of what made Laguna and The Hills so addictive and popular for six years: an elite group of wealthy and relatable friends, big time drama, stunning filmography and a cool musical soundtrack. It has stayed true to that laid-back beachy feel that made those shows famous, while also giving these college-aged people more opportunities to explore what everyone their age goes through as adulthood began. And there was that unwelcome bad publicity when one found themselves in hot water due to shark videos that emerged before the premiere, though in the end they were wrongly accused and escaped unscathed by the mischief. But as they say, "haters gonna hate" -- that only helped fuel even more buzz where, luckily, the focus has been on the on-screen activities itself, and the drama it brought us last year.

DC WRAP: The Challenge Vendettas Premiere and Champs vs. Stars EP7

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

As you get through your Monday blues here on 1/8/18, welcome back again as DCBLOG now takes the chance to Wrap up last week's double shot of The Challenge before tomorrow night sees a pair of champions crowned in the SoCal sun and more of a game that began last week get into the groove in Spain. In Europe, Vendettas began with the competitors ascending 1400 feet to the summit of a rock formation in the Mediterranean that saw a rookie of all people emerge victorious. And back home in the States, the competitors went underwater to determine who would go to tomorrow night's final for a chance to give their charities a belated but great Christmas gift that saw familiar people go into the final along with two who are just warming up towards a run of upstaging the champions.
   Coming up, we'll recap last week's Vendettas episode in looking at the week's top moments, reveal our top players of last week's premiere and forecast the chances for the field for the Champs vs. Stars final. And afterwards on ExtraTime, we'll trek back home to join the MTV world's newest parents for a visit to the parents... that's all ahead.

DC SocialPulse: The Challenge Vendettas Premiere and Champs vs. Stars EP7

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse contains adult language, objectionable content & 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  @ TW / IG / YT

As you all enjoy your first Sunday Funday of 2018, welcome back to DCBLOG's first trip Inside the MTV Trifecta of the new year. And as the NFL begins its playoffs this weekend, a new season of the fifth major pro sport, better known as The Challenge, gets underway as Season 31 commences in Southern Spain, and we at DCBLOG are proud to kick off our sixth year covering this entertaining and fascinating world of the MTV reality ecosystem.
   After the most elaborate, cutthroat and lucrative season in Challenge history in Dirty 30 -- the $1 million one to be exact, Season 31 picks up right where that long season left off as a group of some of the biggest characters from what this site calls the Trifecta all come together in Spain to settle some bad blood through a word fairly new to most Americans called "Vendettas." This season sees rivalries renewed, from one that was fueled in the ladder part of last year between two girls with red and blue streaks in their hair, to another that pits a six-time champion with both the MTV world's newest dad and the one they call the "Puppet Master," and everything else in between. And for the first time in Challenge history, competitors from non-MTV U.S. shows are joining The Challenge from both a summer sensation and from Britain who are making their MTV debuts.
   First things first, it's the premiere which will feature the usual fanfare of the competitors moving into their new surroundings -- in this case in Marbella, Spain, and the toast by the man they call Bananas that officially christens their stay overseas. But right off the bat, the competitors are faced with a daunting task right at the beginning: an overnight challenge like the ones we've seen in final challenges over the years, and a rigorous trek up a 1400-foot mountain in the Mediterranean Sea - one best known to most Americans as the logo of one of the country's top Fortune 500 companies in the Rock of Gibraltar. And while the aura of revenge is on the minds of many, the feeling of love sweeps its way into the house as two people newly single after breaking things off with their significant others - one of them a champion - make their move on the first night in the house.
   Coming up, DCBLOG will have all the Action, Reaction, and Interaction from this opening episode of Vendettas... the first Challenge Tuesday of the new year. We'll also have the next to last episode of Champs vs. Stars as big twists rock the last pre-final challenge and the two sides go underwater to determine who earns spots in next week's dash for the cash. And after the 'Pulse on ExtraTime, we bring up the topic of a vegetable of all things... not because of food, but for the subject of the latest installment of Before They Were MTV Stars.

First, as we commence this new Challenge and new year… if you're new to DCBLOG and visiting for the first time, welcome and get yourself comfortable. If you're a fan of The Challenge or any of the other shows we at this site call the Trifecta, then we're the place for those who want more from TV's most distinctive, entertaining and exciting reality programming. The 'Pulse is an signature feature presenting the other show that takes place concurrent to the madness of what we're seeing on TV each week: social interaction between castmates, alumni and fans from Twitter as part of the unique, communal viewing experience.
   Each weekend, we offer these exclusive running diaries -- all specially designed, curated & pieced together in real-time & unfiltered by yours truly -- as part of our weekly series of comprehensive posts, with all the action, drama, hookups and all else captured as a classified record on here. The 'Pulse is our service to all fans -- both those who just want to relive the episodes from the social verse again, and those of your cord-cutters who didn't experience the buzz back on Tuesday and are here to catch up for the first time, posted to you here a few days after it airs and carefully compiled while you're catching up on it all between then and now.
   This is only part of DCBLOG's all-encompassing and top-class Trifecta coverage: with episode recaps, thoughtful and in-depth analysis, and our other important element of original stories called ExtraTime, we go beyond the hype, the headlines, the hookups and the drama to offer a uniquely different look at this great series, TV's most fascinating reality ecosystem and the people and stories of this world. And this longtime MTV fan who loves The Challenge as much as you do and who's good friends with a lot of the castmates, proudly brings you this unique, insightful, distinctive and well-acclaimed coverage right here. So, we hope you enjoy what we offer here.

Now, let's get down to the business at hand: the following are the actual tweets of the cast, alumni and fans as we got to see the premiere, along with the buildup to, and the aftermath of, the first episode.
• 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.

A new season begins, romance, going swimming, and broccoli... it's all ahead on the Pulse of the Premiere of The Challenge Vendettas, and Episode 7 of Champs vs. Stars.  See you after the jump.

DC ExtraTime: AYTO's Alexis - Out and Proud

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

As the NFL playoffs begin - and after something similar took place in the first Wild Card game just earlier today, exactly one month ago tonight came the MTV Trifecta's equivalent of 28-3… that was the lead the Atlanta Falcons held in the 3rd quarter of Super Bowl LI. Of course, a 25-point lead that seemed safe would evaporate in the biggest comeback in the history of the NFL championship game when the New England Patriots won their fifth Lombardi Trophy in the first league title game to go to overtime since 1958. Along with 3-1 series leads being squandered in the previous year's NBA Finals and World Series and saw decades-long title droughts end for the Chicago Cubs and Cleveland sports fans, the word "comeback" defined sports in 2016 and 2017. But perhaps there was one comeback that overtook all of them, and it did not take place in the sports world.

   Back on December 6th, the cast of Are You The One? Season 6 was faced with almost a sure bet that they would join the Season 5 cast of earlier last year as the only two casts in the show's history who did not win the money. They had just one Truth Booth perfect match all season long which they didn't get until late in the season and didn't get over the halfway hump in a matchup ceremony, and most of the house were resigned to possibly having a losing feeling. And like previous casts, they had to deal with no-matches staying together, despite somehow avoiding a blackout and losing money. But with one last roll of the dice by a guy who put on a monkey costume and scaring the girls one night, those stigmas were all overcome in the single biggest comeback in AYTO history: ten lights lit in the 10th matchup to go 11 for 11 and they walked away with $1 million.

There were a lot of notable figures that occupied that house in New Orleans, from resident players Malcolm and Michael to fan favorite romance Clinton and Uche, and who can forget Tyler and Ethan and their perfect match song being the most popular on the New Orleans hit parade? But Season 6's breakout female star was West Virginian Alexis Eddy, who had the unbearable task of having to put up all season long with New Jersey frat guy Keith Klebacher. This included her beloved teddy bear Bridget being taken away from her and being sent to a final resting place on an outdoor grill on the season finale.
   He orchestrated the strategy that brought them cash, champagne and confetti, but feelings between him and Lexi were blown away both on social media and then on the reunion, There, he scored a girl who had her heart broken not once but twice: Brazilian beauty Carolina Duarte of Season 5, who saw her match Hayden pull a Bananas-like move and stole $60,000 from her on Second Chances, something that may happen again and often on Vendettas perhaps sooner rather than later.

IG @lexoquence

It did not take long for Alexis to rebound from seeing her NOLA crush get cuddly with a girl who loves the iPhone and kicking butt… and in fact not only did she score love with someone after the show, but made social media buzz and some history with it too. And while the biggest news that went down during the holidays for the MTV community was of Challenge star Cory, Amber & Ethan of AYTO Season 1 and Jersey Shore's Ronnie revealing big baby news, Alexis' news was more meaningful even though it almost got lost in all the parent news.
   On the day after Christmas, she revealed an Instagram post that revealed with five pictures that read, "Guess what, (explicative)? I'm Gay!" Her IG caption added, "Thanks for always loving me, even when I don't love myself   ❤️  ." The photo revealed Lexi with her girlfriend, Morgan, in West Virginia as she came out as a bisexual.
   She became the first AYTO cast member to make it public that they are in love with someone of the same sex, something that in the present setup of the show would be practically impossible. This comes after she got to hook up with several guys during her time by the Bayou, and acted with the same kind of wild and crazy that her fellow West Virginian, Ashley M., has done on her Real World season of Ex-Plosion and at least part of the last five Challenges -- winning Invasion last year... not to mention cast of the forgotten but memorable 2013 show Buckwild.

   On Tuesday a few weeks after the season concluded - and after engaging in some Twitter sparring with Carolina's friend and one no stranger herself to AYTO heartbreak, Shannon Duffy (who's also the girlfriend of Alexis' perfect match, Anthony Martin), Alexis took to Twitter for a thread, which was later deleted, of just exactly how she was swayed the other way, and of how there is a much deeper relationship she has with Morgan than what most thought at first.

"If you would've told me 8 years ago that I'd be dating my very best friend, I would've probably laughed in your face. I am eternally grateful to be in a relationship with someone who I can say genuinely knows me better than I know myself.
   She has been by my side through all the trials & adversity I went through. She held me while i cried when I got my heart broken by my first "love". We snuck my parents alcohol into my room and locked the door to get drunk for the first time...
   We googled how to make a bowl out of an apple, and she smoked weed with me for the first time. 😂 She held me while I cried for months after my cousin was convicted. We finally professed that our love for each other was way more than friendship once we got to college.
   We struggled through drug addiction together. She held me as I broke down when I realized we had a problem. She held me as I cried because I was in so much pain once we got to rehab. She held me when I cried once we got of rehab because we finally were back to ourselves.
   And... to be completely honest... she's the only one who's ever really made me feel like things were going to be okay. No matter what. She's home for me.  I love you @moclyde11  ❤️   "

♥ TWITTER @Lexoquence

That thread made reference to the events that took place near to Alexis' heart before going on AYTO and received just a brief mention on the season in reference to a tattoo on her back: as reported by In Touch Weekly during the season, Alexis is the cousin of convicted murderer Sheila Eddy, who was involved in a much-publicized murder case involving Sheila and friend Rachel Shoaf who killed friend Skylar Neese back in summer 2012 , and both killers are currently locked away on 15-year prison terms for their roles in the killings. The case also attracted much national attention inspiring a Lifetime movie and garnering coverage on Oxygen's Snapped and past subjects of ExtraTime stories in Dateline and Dr. Phil... more on that in a future post.
   The news of Alexis coming out, of course, came as a huge surprise to a lot of people, but given her outrageous persona it wasn't a surprise to her either. As they say, Love Wins.

DC SocialPulse Extra: Six Days to Vendettas

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

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

Welcome back... Ahead, the premiere of Season 31 of The Challenge as Vendettas from all over the map -- both geographically and in the reality TV world -- take flight in Europe, but first we have this very special appetizer...
   For many MTV fans, there is nothing like the lead-up to a new season of a show they love the most... same goes for the casts of the shows who bring the magic into our homes and into our screens. In the case of MTV reality series, this is most especially the case: those who are new to this world become, as we always like to say around here, kids over the holiday season awaiting Christmas and what Santa might bring to them under the tree. The feeling becomes old hat for those who go on to do many of these shows, but being able to be part of some
   We'll be offering you the six-day countdown to The Challenge: Vendettas on this SocialPulse Extra, offering you all the interaction of the cast as they anticipated this week's premiere episode, which we will cover for you here later today. Also, this prelude to Season 31 of the fifth major pro sport also coincided with the final week of 2017, and thus we're including New Year's Eve and New Year's Day here - which also includes a birthday for the one and only Barbie Beast.
   Enjoy this special Pulse Extra, plus something special for the holidays after the jump.

MTV Trifecta: Floribama Shore - "Drunken Words; Sober Thoughts."

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

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

As you all begin this first weekend of 2018 - and many of you on the East Coast are enjoying this blast of winter, welcome to the first of our weekly episode posts of the new year as DCBLOG goes Inside the MTV Trifecta. This week sees the beginning of a new season of The Challenge, and we'll have the opening act of Vendettas and the penultimate week of Champs vs. Stars straight ahead. But first on this Friday night, we begin with the appetizer to the main course by way of Panama City Beach, FL: Episode 7 of Floribama Shore.
   Last week - or Christmas Night for that matter, a friendly bet between the resident bromance of Gus and Jeremiah turns into a sour one when the duo engage in a wager of who would want to hook up with Nilsa's friend, Katrina... only for that to turn sour when news of that spreads. But it's Aimee who was the star of the night as she was treated like a Queen for a Day on Aimee Appreciation Day: pedicure and a dinner for the Princess Goddess Mermaid.
   This week - New Year's Day night, the tensions that have marked the house since they moved in continue to mount, as petty differences may threaten to tear the house apart as they wind down their summer stay in Florida. However, an unexpected death in the family for one housemate brings them down to earth and back home for mourning, and the guy who Nilsa has been seeing returns... and will he be able to make it a long-term thing with her?

In a moment, our look at the penultimate week of our stay in the Florida Panhandle as we begin this first trek in 2018 in MTV land with Floribama Shore. And as they say, welcome to the weekend.

The Challenge Vendettas - Who Are These Newbies?: British Invasion

Following is an excerpt from DCBLOG's "Who Are These Newbies?" post for The Challenge Vendettas posted earlier today, reposted in the interest of our mobile-first users.

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

🇬🇧  THE BRITISH INVASION 

IG @ChallengeMTV, photo enhanced

In the year of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee and a truly historic 2012 for British sport marked by the London Olympics, a group of five lads from England and Ireland known as One Direction performed for the first time in America to 15,000 screaming girls in New York, and it became the second coming of The Beatles. Now as the United Kingdom enters its last full year in the European Union, another quintet from across the pond are about to take their first step towards becoming true global stars by conquering the United States through competing on The Challenge and as almost complete unknowns to most Americans.
   Earlier this summer, a standout of the Pros side on Champs vs. Pros was Olympian and celebrity competition vet Louise Hazel, who made her mark by choosing a lime with Lolo Jones' name on it and initiated the American's stellar season. While you were busy watching Dirty 30 and AYTO Season 6, some of your MTV faves spent an early holiday vacation filming a new U.S. version of the U.K. series Ex on the Beach, which we discussed about here in November, for which you can it describe as a cross between AYTO and Cory's Real World Ex-Plosion season, and where a few of the EOTB-US cast hung out in New York to ring in 2018 last night. And the Shore franchise made its return this winter with Floribama Shore ahead of the original Jersey Shore cast returning for a vacation miniseries later this year.
   All of these events offer the backdrop to our last group of newbies, and this latest British invasion: four members of Ex on the Beach from two seasons (or series as UK TV fans refer to them) of that show will join with a member of Geordie Shore to make their American television debuts. Below is their introductions to their Stateside cousins, and some of the videos below contain adult language.

The Challenge Vendettas - Who Are These Newbies?: Big Brother

Following is an excerpt from DCBLOG's "Who Are These Newbies?" post for The Challenge Vendettas posted earlier today, reposted in the interest of our mobile-first users.

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

🏠 BIG BROTHER 

Once upon a time, MTV and CBS were corporate siblings under the Viacom umbrella... one of the first mega-conglomerates in the media world before the companies went their separate ways in 2007. Last year saw a partial reunion of sorts for the two companies when America's Next Top Model crossed the old Viacom way from its longtime home on CBS' younger-skewing sister network The CW to MTV's older sibling VH1. Now comes another crossover between the most-famous eye in television and a pioneer in a thing called cable TV... and with all due respect to Tyra Banks, this one takes on a greater profile among those in the reality TV world.
   Except for one who prefers MTV and sports during those dog days of the calendar from Memorial Day to mid-September, it's likely that avid reality TV fans like you spend your summer watching Big Brother. Everyone except yours truly knows what that show is all about: 16 house guests enter the house after the summer solstice, spend 100 days being fully isolated from the outside world and have just each other to rely on, while those who watch either on CBS or the live feeds watch over them as if they're fish in a fishbowl. Of course, $500,000 goes to the one who becomes victorious in the end, and no wonder why all of you in that big fan base who live for that show love flooding my Twitter feeds with all of your commentary while I was just busy doing my blog work on the MTV world.
   As for those who are making perhaps the biggest crossover into The Challenge than what the AYTO kids did going to Exes 2 or Magic Mike making his jump from the love fest to Real World last year, they have something in common: like those we have seen on any MTV reality series BB fans got to see them get into a relationship for the camera that's best known as a showmance, then saw the usual manipulative gameplay we see all the time there make its way between them. Below is an example of both of our representatives being part of one of those Head of Household competitions - in essence, a daily challenge - that determine control of the house.

The Challenge Vendettas - Who Are These Newbies?: Team MTV

Following is an excerpt from DCBLOG's "Who Are These Newbies?" post for The Challenge Vendettas posted earlier today, reposted in the interest of our mobile-first users.

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

💔 ARE YOU THE ONE? 

First, we begin with Are You The One?, where a year ago this month that the cast of Season 5 got their chance at love and money. Unfortunately and very infamously, what happened at the very end of that season was one of the more shocking moments we've seen in recent MTV history when they became the first to not win the money. But after we saw Derrick H. have further bad luck on Second Chances and Dirty 30 (including letting a gorgeous girl in Tori Deal get away) and two girls from that season, Carolina & Shannon, score Keith & Anthony from Season 6 who did win the money very miraculously, three people from Season 5 now have a second chance to not only join Hayden in the money club, but also encounter what happened at the midway point of that season where a betrayal that took place there has brought them overseas to settle things.

MTV Trifecta: The Challenge Vendettas - Who Are These Newbies?

SPECIAL EXPANDED EDITION
BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

Happy New Year to all of you from all of us at DCBLOG, and as you enjoy these first hours of 2018 welcome back to the second of our two preseason posts on The Challenge: Vendettas. And for those who follow the MTV Trifecta, despite the confetti that fell last night to ring in the new year there's nothing but calm ahead of the storm as tomorrow night, Season 31 of this fifth major pro sport will commence. Those on a mission of revenge will get a chance to play it out on the playing fields of southern Spain, and we at DCBLOG will again be along to bring you all the angles of this season in our unique and insightful manner.
   Before or shortly after any of these Challenge seasons begin, it's always been our philosophy that we at this site want to ensure that you never meet a new or returning competitor for the first time on the premiere, and to give them the proper respect & recognition they rightfully deserve rather than get tossed to the side in favor of the fan favorite veterans. This allows us to go in-depth and provide more background & context on those who take their first steps on the fifth major pro sport, part on our distinctive, storytelling-oriented approach to covering this MTV world.
   This serves a purpose for those hardcore fans to get to know the newcomers to this season, and new viewers of this show to learn more about the veterans returning to this game. It represents a key part of our Challenge coverage having profiled each & every new competitor since we began covering this show with Rivals II back in 2013. For those new to this show or just need a refresher, check out our posts from Seasons 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29 and 30. And for this season, it's in its own dedicated post after we've let you soak in the entire cast with some of your favorites earlier in our preview.

As for this season, more than a third of this cast of Vendettas will be stepping foot inside the fifth major pro sport for the first time, as ten new competitors will be making their debuts... none of them coming from a past Real World season. For half of them, this will mark their very first time on American television as they look to conquer the final frontier of the entertainment world's most coveted & lucrative market, while two are making a monumental crossover from a staple of summer TV into a longtime one on cable. And they are also being joined by a Challenge icon who made his MTV debut 14 years ago this month, and who returns to this game, also 14 years after competing in his first Challenge back when it was just a step-cousin to Real World and Road Rules.
   From a trio who experienced the ultimate heartbreak in the history of their original show and got themselves into a love triangle, to those who share a common feeling with the Trifecta's newest baby daddy of having to live with exes, to something that happened in your favorite summer guilty pleasure on a network that was once MTV's corporate sibling, there are past issues that have given reason for them to don that Challenge shirt for the first time. And for that veteran? It is a Twitter beef, of all things, that has seen him return to this world for the first time since he became a champion eight years ago, and whose first time on MTV came when many of this season's Challengers were still going to elementary school or had to rely on flip phones for their mobile communication.

Back in early October, we devoted an entire post to what we called "Another Invasion of The Challenge?" when filming of Season 31 was just starting overseas and after rumors had surfaced of those from Big Brother and MTV's UK castmates are joining the Trifecta family. It was something that surprised most everyone but didn't come as one to this blogger's close friend and fellow reality TV superfan, Andrew Kirk. But now that the big moment is some 24+ hours away, as the new year begins we at DCBLOG will get the answer the one question you Challenge fans love to ask this time of year before it all begins: "Who Are These Newbies?"
   After the jump on this special, expanded edition of our traditional preseason introduction to the latest newcomers and returning star of the fifth major pro sport, we'll meet this season's rookie class including, for the first time, clips from their original shows. We hope you join us there.