DC ExtraTime: A Team MTV Christmas 2018

Photos & Videos Embedded Below Courtesy of Instagram

BY DC CUEVA                      

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

Very shortly, the year of 2018 will come to an end -- a year that, in an MTV sense, has seen the channel return to its glory days. More viewers are watching the channel than in recent times thanks to the channel doubling down on something it does just as well as doing music: reality TV. And we here at DCBLOG have been on top of every ebb and flow of the goings on of that world, with a specific focus on The Challenge, Are You The One, Floribama Shore and Ex On The Beach, and a few other shows to keep us busy in doing 272 blog posts... the most of any one year for our site.

The holidays are a time for everyone to come together to spend the last two weeks of the year to enjoy the magic of the Christmas holidays, party down the last hours of the year as what is taking place tonight, and look back on the year that was and plan ahead for the new year which begins in a matter of hours in the U.S. and has already begun in much of the world. For a handful, there's a lot of be happy about -- 23 people with 1,000,000 reasons, while for others they are just glad that they can finally put 2018 to rest.

For an MTV family that have had much to celebrate and so many headlines to create in the past 52 weeks, the Christmas week gave them the opportunity to open Christmas presents, spend time with family and even use the merriest day of all to reveal big life-changers. There have no doubt been a lot of news in the past week with the revelations of what happened to Paulie and Cara Maria, with Nelson's arrest, and Twitter drama in between. But instead of focusing on those, we'd thought about sharing with you the positive moments and those life-changers in this final ExtraTime of 2018.

DC SocialPulse: Ex On The Beach Season 2 - "Being Shady 101"

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse 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  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

As we enter the last 30 hours or so of 2018, we now present the 105th and last SocialPulse episode journal of this year, and the 272nd post DCBLOG has offered of what has been a busy and record-setting year for us going Inside MTV Reality. And for the tenth series this site has covered at least in part in the past fifty-two weeks, the weather is chill outside but the temperatures are rising for Season 2 of Ex On The Beach USA.
   Last week, an all-star cast of reality icons ranging from Farrah of Teen Mom and The Bachelor's Bad Chad to those from The Challenge, Are You The One, Big Brother and others joined with Romeo Miller in Malibu to begin a new season of MTV's global reality franchise. As is always the case in any reality dating show, romances popped up amongst the singles before the arrival of the first waves of exes in Didi from Malcolm's AYTO cast and Maya's ex Kareem. We learned about a pet bringing to an end one-half of Malcolm's romance and tensions brew with two of the singles.
   When the singles entered the house last week, there were only nine of them at the the masquerade party, and this week the tenth single will arrive at the mansion... and he or she will parachute their way into not just a house in the early lovey/dovey phase bit also a love triangle. If you watched the years-long stint our Teen Mom had, you know she can be fiery... and after what went down last week she may find herself in some drama once again with the house. And what happens when an Ex decides to stir the pot by spreading a nasty rumor?

After the jump, the Pulse of Episode 2 of Season 2 of Ex On The Beach, along with more of the drama involving one of last season's singles and his headline-making love triangle. Dive in...

DC SocialPulse Extra: Before Ex On The Beach II Episode 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  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

Welcome back Netizens.... we hope you're enjoying this last Saturday night of 2018. Tomorrow, we'll have the last SocialPulse diary of a record year for this DCBLOG site as we'll delve into Episode 2 of Ex On The Beach as a new single joins the house as well as another ex... and of course plenty of drama taking place with our singles and a few exes in Malibu.

Meantime, if you are part of the Twitter sphere then you know that this past week has been no ordinary one in a time where we would be enjoying this time off from the weekend before Christmas to right now on this last weekend of the soon-to-be old year that will soon past us by. For reasons that will be explained below in the thousands of posts to come before you here this late night, not only did Team MTV mark Christmas 2018 with family, friends and announcements of new chapters in their lives, it was also a week where drama exploded like the fireworks that will usher in the year 2019 in less than 50 hours.
   Of course, the Christmas weekend began with an MTV veteran turning himself into Austin Police for a robbery he committed years before he went onto his first MTV series. But what went down with Nelson in taking care of paying his dues for a crime he committed in 2013 would eventually become a footprint to the bombshell that dropped on Christmas Eve when it was reported that the latest MTV lovebirds, Cara Maria and Paulie, split up after his ex from The Bachelor revealed sensitive info about the Big Brother alum turned two-time MTV'er this year before he split with her and went with the two-time Challenge champ on Final Reckoning. Needless to say, this has been quite a week.

After the jump, a very special Pulse Extra covering the Twitter drama of the holiday week, and our traditional Christmas Eve & Christmas Day diary featuring the entire MTV family.

DC SocialPulse: Floribama Shore S2 - What Happens in Cabo...

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse 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  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

Hey there, this is the last weekend of 2018... and it's been one hell of a year and one whale of a week in MTV Reality as we get to bid farewell to the soon to be old year in less than 50 hours from right now on this Saturday night. And DCBLOG is bringing the curtain down on what has been 52 incredible weeks of non-stop entertainment, jaw-dropping moments, and our unique look at this whole wide world of sorts, starting here and now with week 2 of Floribama Shore's takeover of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.
   Last week, our bunch made their way from the Florida panhandle to the southernmost point of Baja California -- a two hours' flight from San Diego. For their second trip of this season after the jaunt to New Orleans, the gang hoped the drama stayed back in Panama City Beach, but it would not be when Kortni brought the drama with her to Cabo, especially unresolved issues with her and Jeremiah. And while Codi was taking off his pants twice, it would be Gus and Nilsa who would steal the show yet again when they got to flirt amidst the temptations of this Spring Break paradise.
   This week, the party rolls on south of the border and, once again for what seems to be the umpteenth time in the past 13 months, #GILSA is casting a glow over the Floribama kids. This time, it's our favorite book cover model who's in a precarious position in wanting to focus on the one who just won a twerking contest and local girls. The one who's been the most emotionally unstable one suffers a meltdown in the Mexican night, while Clark Kent decides to do what The Sitch did earlier this fall in facing off against food. And another faces their worst fears once again.

After the jump, it's week 2 of Floribama Shore's Cabo special. Dive in, friends...

MTV Reality: Who Are These Newbies? - Ex On The Beach Season 2: The Singles

BY DC CUEVA                      

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

We are now into winter and speeding towards 2019 with lots of goodies for the MTV fan: after a nearly two-year, non-stop block of seven regular & spinoff seasons, The Challenge is taking a much deserved break, as taking its place in the interim as this site's main focus is Ex On The Beach, as the loving feeling we've had with Are You The One gets turned upside down with Season 2 of the American version of this addictive MTV global franchise.

Ever since DCBLOG began covering MTV Reality five years ago, a seasonal tradition in our journey has been of answering a question you and everyone else have at the start of any new season of The Challenge and now Ex On The Beach: "Who Are These Newbies?". This longstanding philosophy of ours has always been to make sure that you, our loyal readers, get to know every Challenge rookie and returning veteran competitor, and every non-MTV reality newcomer to the EOTB house, by giving them the proper welcome and respect they deserve. To that end, 75 rookies or vets have been profiled here in the eleven Challenges we've covered, and it grows to 80 people when add the five non-MTV reality stars who came to the Ex house last spring. This number will soon exceed 100 by the time we begin the run-up to Season 33 of The Challenge in the new year.
   It might still be considered the new kid on the block in a field of shows which this site has revolved historically around The Challenge, Are You The One and Real World, but Ex On The Beach has now become a worldwide phenomenon thanks to its U.S. debut back in April and its overseas versions which have been an MTV international staple for five years. Both the American and original British iterations of EOTB feature reality TV castaways which includes those who are now initiated into the broader MTV Reality family starting with the season 2 premiere, including four from the British show who made their U.S. TV debuts on Vendettas earlier this year and will be joined by a few more next year. This time, the overall total of singles and exes who are occupying the luxurious mansion in Malibu is 28, but twenty of them have appeared on a prior reality series. And like what we saw last season, there is also room for regulars - an NFL player and a model among them.
   First off, some exemptions: as they are already part of the MTV family - and chances are you've watched their exploits if you're a regular viewer like this blogger, we're saved the expense and time writing about those who've appeared on MTV beforehand. They are Malcolm, Diandra and Nurys from AYTO Season 6, Jozea, Nicole and Nelson from The Challenge, EOTB 1 exes Angela and Tor'i, and the season's key figure in Teen Mom's Farrah Abraham and her ex, Simon Siran. Aside from Simon, we've covered each of the nine MTV'ers in at least some sort in past posts on here, so be sure to search around for more on them if you're that curious... and do check out past episodes on the streaming platform of your choice to see how they got to Malibu.

As for here, we'll be focusing on those who come to Ex On The Beach having been through the ringer of being on a reality TV series before, and who are now joining the MTV family with this season - thus making themselves eligible for The Challenge draft pool if the chance comes up to join Bananas, Cara Maria and friends. And since this season’s non-MTV crop is so big, for the first time we’ll be spitting this Newbies post into two: Part One here will cover the singles who entered the house last week, while Part Two covering the season's notable exes will be up afterwards separately. And as we did with Season 1 and starting with Vendettas, we've embedded clips of their past shows as well.
   The purpose of is to help you, the MTV fan, get to know to them, give you an idea of who they are, what they're about and the backstory of their reality resume before they came, or will come, to the EOTB house. Those featured here have something in common with a member of last season's cast having played for the heart of a beautiful girl who herself got heartbroken, two who spent long stays in the most watched summer house anywhere, and others who until last week were not known but now are on their way to further fame and gaining new fans among the MTV crowd.

   So once again, we at DCBLOG are here to answer that question, "Who Are These Newbies?", this time for Season 2 of Ex On The Beach USA.

DC SocialPulse: Ex On The Beach Season 2 - The Premiere

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse 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  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

It's Christmas Eve Eve, and as you are getting those gifts wrapped and that food ready, we at DCBLOG are at the launchpad of the show that will be our prime focus of this winter: Season #2 of the American version of MTV's global romantic reality franchise, Ex On The Beach. And after what we saw with The Challenge and Are You The One as well as now with Floribama Shore, "the Ultimate RelationsXXX show" should sure live up to its billing as it did when it arrived in America earlier this year.
   Last spring, Season 1 of Ex On The Beach brought us to the familiar MTV setting of Hawaii, where we saw seven reality and three ordinary singles take up residency with their exes in a format that was familiar to the global audience but new to the U.S. crowd. They sure gave us a lot of wild TV there as Cory took a break from The Challenge and parenthood to deal with Alicia and Taylor, saw Angela, Paulie and other stars make their MTV debut, and a lot more drama than you can handle as they had to deal with exes familiar and fresh emerging out of the water weekly.
   For Season 2, MTV has doubled down with an all-star all-reality cast headlined by -- whether you like her or not -- Teen Mom's Farrah Abraham for the MTV crowd, and for the broader reality field by two-time Bachelor suitor Chad Johnson. They are joined by Nicole from The Challenge, Malcolm from AYTO, Big Brother alums Corey & Morgan, the U.S. series' first gay castmates Jozea & Cheyenne, and past reality alums Maya & Janelle. And again, Romeo Miller is master of ceremonies as the series' format is the same as last time: exes arriving weekly and regular eliminations.
   This week, their experience begins for each of them as they arrive in Malibu, California as they will seek to find love in what they feel is a new kind of dating show... only, of course, for Romeo to break the news that this is a totally different kind of show with plenty of surprises awaiting them. Along with the usual first-episode "get to know you", initial romances pop up with the singles just before the first wave of exes arrive onshore. It's what happens when the exes arrive that we find out that small things as pets can cause love to go bust, among other things. We'll have that covered here.

First, if you're new to this site, welcome, get cozy and indulge yourself in our unique, insightful and distinctive look at some of your favorite reality programming, and the U.S. version of MTV's global franchise known as Ex On The Beach. That includes SocialPulse, which we got to do for the first U.S. EOTB season back in April - and have done for every episode of Are You The One?, The Challenge and Real World since summer 2013. This signature component of our MTV coverage showcases the other show taking place concurrent to when the episodes air each week: the social interaction among castmates, fellow MTV & reality alumni and fans as viewed by them in the Twitter sphere, part of the communal experience watching the show as it airs, and before and after too.
   These exclusive running diaries are specially designed, curated & pieced together in its uncensored entirety to bring the drama, hookups, jaw-dropping moments and more to you here as it took place in its original airings on Thursday nights as a service to all fans each weekend. Whether you're reliving it all over again on your DVR or on-demand, or if you don't have cable/satellite or streaming & are just catching up for the first time, you are covered here. In addition to those, we also offer our spin on the traditional weekly episode recaps with opinions & analysis, and through our site's other key element of ExtraTime - also focus on the people and stories of the MTV Reality world, both on- and off-camera and in and outside the bubble.

Now, the following is the action, reaction and interaction, and the actual posts of the cast of Ex On The Beach Season 2, fellow reality alumni and fans like you as they watched the premiere on Thursday evening, along with the day-before buildup and the aftermath to that 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.

Night one hook-ups, day-after invasions and plenty of love by the ocean -- and an arrest(!)... Welcome to the premiere Pulse of Season 2 of Ex On The Beach. Thanks for joining us... dive in.

DC SocialPulse Extra: Prelude to Ex On The Beach Season 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  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

Hello again, hope you're enjoying your Saturday night. Our view of the premiere of Season 2 of Ex On The Beach is still to come here, as a new group of singles invade Malibu to be followed by the first wave of exes from their past. Before that though, a Pulse Extra.
   Often times the lead-up to any episode - most especially the premiere - is so big, that we have to split the timeline journal up into multiple parts, with the main one covering the episode to be featured later in its own post - and to save space and logistics. To that end, this Pulse Extra will feature the week-long buildup to it, along with in this case the 2018 finale of The Challenge in both parts of CT's wedding special, as well as the launches of new seasons & shows in the next MTV cycle... we'll explain two of them following the diary which, in turn, follows the jump break.

DC SocialPulse: Floribama Shore S2 - Cabo, Cabo, Cabo

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse 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  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

Merry Christmas weekend to one and all, and to a big week Inside MTV Reality as, while we are nearing the end of 2018, it's the beginning of the winter cycle of shows. Ahead here, the return of the "Ultimate RelationsXXX Show" as Season 2 of Ex On The Beach kicks off, plus CT's big day as he gets married and the finale of Cheyenne & Cory's first Teen Mom season. But as you are likely taking a break from your busy last Saturday shopping day, we're here to offer a touch of sun from south of the border as the gang of Floribama Shore invades Mexico.
   Last week saw the latest chapter in the Gus & Nilsa show when he was spotted bringing girls from out of town home and into his bed, which of course led to a bit of drama with her, and all embolden by help from Nilsa's closest ally Aimee. Meanwhile, things suddenly got sour in what happened with Kortni in the car that led to sudden tension with her and Jeremiah. Meanwhile, after going through plenty of learning about it, Candace finally decided to let Gator Jay turn himself loose and cut him off. And the group then decided to once again bolt from Panama City Beach to somewhere new.
   With them all ready to take their second trip of the season outside the Panhandle, this week sees the group take their talents down south to Mexico, and to Cabo San Lucas on the southern tip of Baja California. They are hopeful that the drama in PCB will be left behind there as they look to have a good time south of the border, but a dark cloud being brought there by one of the girls could dampen things off the plane. And with what has transpired over the course of the whole season (summer included), our favorite Floribama couple aims to keep whatever they had back home in Florida.

After the jump, it's Cabo, Cabo, Cabo as Floribama Shore goes on the road again to Mexico, plus a look at an AYTO original taking their talents to... the wild, wild west(?). Thanks for joining us...

DC ExtraTime: Someone You Should Know - Big Brother's Swayleigh

BY DC CUEVA                      

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

Chris "Swaggy C" Williams & Bayleigh Dayton,
with BB host Julie Chen (center; from CBS)

As we enter the Christmas portion of what is referred to in the social media verse as "cuffing season," love is in the air for reality TV fans. A new season of Ex On The Beach begins in a matter of hours from now with an Are You The One? love triangle and reality villain Chad Johnson being part of this season's cast of singles. Former NFL receiver Colton Underwood is waiting in the wings as the next leading man on The Bachelor, while one of the most controversial reality shows ever created, Temptation Island, will return in the new year.

Finding a couple who met on a reality show and them making it work after the cameras turn off is about as rare as the matchmaking process that those who follow AYTO as much as this site does can attest. But when true love is found, everyone has reason to celebrate: Amber & Ethan Diamond are the epitome of relationship goals to fans who handicap who are perfect matches while their original show airs... and they're one of a handful of those who have made love work in the long run among couples that met on a reality television series.

For 2018's romantic reality success story, the couple of our focus here met inside the most scrutinized summer house in this country: dozens of cameras and millions of eyeballs fixed on every move, televised and edited to viewers every year. One was a representative from the Midwest in an event ExtraTime focused on back on Tuesday, while the other is (like just about everyone in this blogger's family) an avid basketball enthusiast who shares a nickname as one of the NBA's most celebrated non-megastars. Their story of them meeting in the house and everything that occurred since has been well documented, and it's what happened when they left the house that is sure to be one of 2018's biggest reality TV moments.

And with the help of another couple who also met on reality TV and are still together a year later which they met last week, here's our chance to introduce you to Someone You Should Know: the couple from Big Brother 20 known simply as #Swayleigh.

DC ExtraTime: Before They Were MTV Stars - Lauren The Pageant Queen

BY DC CUEVA                      

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

In the past five years, the state of West Virginia has proudly laid claim to being a hotbed for leading ladies of MTV Reality shows. All has to begin with a show that had a short but sweet one-season run: Buckwild - which gave us Shae, Anna, Cara, Salwa and Katie, who is also good friends with Teen Mom's Leah Messer. Real World Ex-Plosion introduced us to Ashley Mitchell, who brought her knack for being a firecracker to The Challenge and now has two titles under her belt whether you like her or not. And last year, Alexis Eddy came to Are You The One? Season 6 and was part of the season's most twisted love tale of her and Keith... and who is also linked to a serial killer case.

For this year's season of AYTO that aired this fall, two castmates came to us from that state whose most famous tune is "West Virginia is for Lovers". The most notable was aspiring lawyer, hardcore conservative and self-described "liberal dancer" Cam Viney - who scored a romance with fellow dancer and former Seahawks cheerleader Kayla Umagat. The other was Lauren Roush, who wasn't featured as much as most everyone else during the Season of Fate, all while the attention was on the power couples who hampered the house's chances until late in the game. But nonetheless, Lauren is as beautiful as the sunny vibes of the Hawaiian islands that again hosted MTV's guiltiest pleasure.

But you probably don't know that AYTO was not Lauren's first time on national TV, and the first time she got to seen by viewers across the country came at an event that aired on a network with a broader reach than any cable channel, and where the contest was of determining not who was a perfect match but of who is the best woman judged out of a field of 51 contestants instead of just less than half of that number. And in a strange coincidence, the man who she met ten times at the always nerve-rattling convention of a matchup ceremony happened be the host that night, and one other lady also vying for the ultimate goal became a reality star herself the same summer as Lauren.

Lauren's quest to become a Pageant Queen is this site's latest installment of Before They Were MTV Stars, which takes us to one of the most unique parts of Americana, where the biggest prize is a crown... one for which was just crowned a few days ago halfway across the globe.

DC SocialPulse: Floribama Shore S2 - "A Whole Lotta Yikes"

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse 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  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

Hey there, welcome back... the year may be winding down, and here things are fairly calm for a short time: the meaningful part of the year in The Challenge has wrapped with just a special attraction in all-time bad boy CT getting married, and Cheyenne & Cory's first run on Teen Mom OG to come tomorrow. But before the madness that is Ex On The Beach returns in a few days, things are just heating up down in Floribama Shore and in Panama City Beach.
   Last week, the rest of the house got to learn about the hookup that shocked everybody when Nilsa got cuddly with Gus in bed, and it led to some awkwardness with the two after the fact. For Kortni, she decided to take a gamble by telling Jeremiah how she feels about him. But at night's end, Nilsa was able to catch feelings once again, but when she got home from a club she had no idea of what was to come next for her crush.
   Gus stayed back at the club where he got flirty with several girls on vacation from Iowa and the temptation to bring one of them home became too great to overlook. And this week, the latest saga of #GILSA will play out as our local girl will have to deal with it, with the help of her closest friend in the house. Also, what is next for Candace in wanting to cut ties with her boo thang? Will there be a chance for Kortni to finally get next to Jeremiah? And where will our group travel to next?

After the jump, the answers to these questions on The Pulse of Floribama Shore. Enjoy friends...

DC ExtraTime: Ice Ice Baby

BY DC CUEVA                      

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

This Thursday night, MTV will unleash the sequel to its American version of the channel's global phenomenon, Ex On The Beach, as another set of MTV and non-MTV reality stars will take up residency for what they think will be a memorable vacation. That is, until the news will get to them that those who will be joining them in Malibu, California are people from their past who they thought they have kissed goodbye forever and are back for revenge & a second chance. And this season will debut during the merriest time of all, and five days before Christmas.

It is the holiday season, and we are in the midst of what is by far the most lucrative season for both consumers and retailers... that means, money, money, money for the retailers and buyers. But imagine, what if you were given the opportunity to win $10,000? Cool, you might say almost 99% of the time especially with how pressed for time we are right now. But in this instance, there's a catch to this: you have to face your fears to win valuable spending money to buy those last-minute Christmas gifts with not many shopping days left until Santa Claus delivers those gifts under the tree coming the morning of December 25th.

For this story, it involves the man who’s arguably the most notorious man in all of YouTube: one-half of a set of brothers who have generated millions of followers and dollars, and even greater buzz both positively and negatively. The other person of our focus was part of the only cast in history of her original show to not win money, was part of the inaugural class of singles of the newest member of MTV's reality schedule and has more exes of those who’ve been on these shows than your usual sweetheart next door. And the challenge they are facing is having to go into a pool usually used in the summer that's freezing cold, with the last person standing winning that pile of Benjamins.

So, what happens when these two worlds collide all for the sake of Internet glory? This is what happens when they answer the question, "What would you do for Ten Grand?" The answer - three words: "Ice, Ice Baby."

​

MTV Reality: Countdown to Ex On The Beach USA Season 2

BY DC CUEVA                      

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

As we speak to you now, we are in the midst of the winter holidays, and we're ten days away from Christmas as we enjoy the sight of snow and Santa Claus. But if you're in Australia, it's summer and it's likely you're reading this right on the sand just like those out in Hawaii. It's with this in mind that we at DCBLOG usher you into the winter portion of the MTV Reality season as we'll soon say farewell to what's been an unbelievable 2018 for us covering these shows on here, and usher in the new year of 2019 with our busiest year to come on here following what will be a record output of over 250 posts by the time the New Year's Eve ball drop occurs.
   For what we have right now and ahead: Floribama Shore is into the fall portion of Season 2 with plenty more shenanigans to come from both Florida and from a second place our Panama City Beach bunch will travel this coming week. There's also Lindsay Lohan's Beach Club, as the queen of the Mean Girls will oversee her newest European beachside resort with hot girls & guys helping her out. Nev Schulman is into a new era of Catfish as he embarks on new stories to investigate without Max Joseph at his side, while the lovely kids of Siesta Key will come back into our lives from paradise. And there's other stuff in the next few months to keep viewers happy and us here busy, before a new season of the fifth major sport and the return of the O.G. of reality TV arrives on our screens.

But in the wake of the longest season in the history of The Challenge and our latest Are You The One? cast riding a late wave to $1 million, what can be better than those? How about the sequel to the wildest romantic reality show ever created. Ex On The Beach will be our main focus this winter as after what we saw with a dating show alum win and then get burned by a partner's $1 million decision on Final Reckoning, we shift our attention to what MTV describes as "the Ultimate RelationsXXX Show." And one of those that guy considers a brother from another will take his talents from The Challenge to Malibu, CA... with a few pit stops nearby to help babysit the baby girl of a Young Buck turned "Teen Dad."
   After entertaining audiences in the U.K. and overseas with a concept inspired by the first twisted Real World season almost five years ago featuring that dad Cory, earlier this year Ex On The Beach arrived in the U.S. as MTV's first international franchise to have a version localized for the world's most coveted television market. He and AYTO alumni joined with those from other non-MTV reality series to bring Ex to America and to the Hawaiian islands, and not only introduced the large Jersey Shore audience to MTV's special brand of reality TV, but also gave a new definition to the romantic reality genre: drama and fireworks aplenty... all triggered by the sight of an ex-boyfriend & girlfriend invading the beach like Jaws.
   Ex On The Beach will return for Season 2 this coming Thursday with much to live up to, all after seeing a snake scare the dad not once but twice, a makeout sesh with a bad girl and a chocolate man in the confessional, a rejection by a Bachelor, and so much more as they introduced this wild format to U.S. screens. And the only thing that can possibly top what we saw in the estate Justin Beiber spent one summer in... is a season that can match the kind of explosive drama of that first season, and whose players are an all-star lineup of reality stars both known to MTV fans and to the broader crowd who have followed them since they were first going for a rose, to be head of household and even make love with a person of the same sex.

There will sure be a lot of makeups, breakups, heartbreak, and a whole lot of love, drama and craziness to go down right by the Pacific Ocean. And we here at DCBLOG will again be here to bring you all of that as we follow Ex On The Beach with every step from this preseason preview that you're reading right now, right through the last Cut or Crush deep into the new year... all from our unique vantage point. And ahead, we'll introduce you to our new (almost, that is) class of reality stars chosen to live in a house thinking they're on a new dating series only to get catfished, plus introduce any of you watching this for the first time to what this show is all about. And this is just the start: later, we'll offer our customary introduction to this season's Newbies as we'll introduce the non-MTV reality stars of this season just before or shortly after they move into the fabulous house in Malibu.
   So, welcome on in... grab your swimsuit, some popcorn and Join In with us after the jump as we preview Season 2 of the American version of MTV's Ex On The Beach. Dive in...

DC SocialPulse: The Challenge Final Reckoning - The Reunion Part 2

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse 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  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

Welcome back... on Sunday, July 8th, we published our preview post of The Challenge: Final Reckoning with our usual selection of brief capsules of the teams, what to expect from the season and more... now 154 days later here in Sunday, December 9th - almost five months to the day of that and on the 14th anniversary of this blogger's biggest fandom moment of meeting Linkin Park, DCBLOG brings the curtain down on our coverage of Season 32 of the fifth major pro sport and, in turn, the summer & fall portion of our MTV Reality coverage here.

The Reunion of this season is on - and while there's the usual drama and explosive fireworks that now define these end-of-season get-together's, there's more to come with our cast and host Dolph Ziggler, stepping in for The Miz. Last week, our friends and enemies got to dissect the shocking moment of the finale of Ashley stealing Hunter's money, the alliances of the LL's and the TYB's crumbling after they aligned to take over the game, and the various beefs that emerged during this long season.

The most notable of all of these is that of Bananas and Devin, and this week sees more of their staredown from what could have been a notorious pairing had it not been for the ladder flying back home to tend to the death of his late father. Also, Britni drops in to discuss what happened with her and Brad, discussion of the boss move by Kam and birthday girl Sylvia, and #TeamCaraMariE and Paulie. And when you think that this season has been full of drama, it all concludes on a high with one proposal you gotta see.

After the jump, the Pulse of Part 2 of the Final Reckoning reunion, along with the juicy scoop of a Challenge super-fan being exposed. Enjoy it, folks...

DC SocialPulse: Floribama Shore S2 - "Hunch Punch"

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse 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  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

Hey there, hope you're enjoying your Saturday night - especially if you're a fan of Oklahoma football after another Heisman Trophy win as are fans of the Atlanta United after their MLS Cup victory tonight in the South. Someone who calls that city home is Kirk, and he is part of the cast of Floribama Shore... and this week it's Week 2 of the fall portion of Season 2.
   Last week, we were welcomed back to Kirk's second home of Panama City Beach where we picked up with him and the group finding themselves in a precarious position of facing their biggest enemy: Kortni's estranged boyfriend Logan. After a fight at the bar where he eavesdropped on them and a next day visit to the barber shop, soon enough Logan was slapped with a restraining order. And we saw Gus get emotional, girl code being broken, and the inevitable eventually happening.
   There, Nilsa decided to sneak into Gus' bed and they were under covers... and this week, the shockwaves of that will no doubt radiate in the Shore house. For another budding romance in the house, her friend decides to let it all lay out on the table in telling the guy we'd like to call Clark Kent how she feels about him. And the feels get back to, you guessed it, our resident couple as she catches some feelings and he turns his attention to sorority girls on a vacation down in PCB.

After the jump, the Pulse of Floribama Shore. Nice to have you here for the fun...

DC SocialPulse: The Challenge Final Reckoning - The Reunion Part 1 (Backtracked)

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse 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  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

It is the first Friday of the last month of the year, and wherever you are this weekend the holiday spirit is certainly in the air. It's something that's very much welcome for all of you who follow the fifth major sport, as we have reached the final stage of our view of all things MTV Challenge in 2018 and the end of the summer & fall cycle of our journey Inside MTV Reality of this, DCBLOG's fifth year going around this beat here. And regardless of how you feel about this long season finally being over, the characters we've seen and the drama & competition that's taken place, it's certainly been a hell of a ride.
   So much has happened over the course of the length of a full NFL season -- twenty-two weeks in all from when this began in July up to now here in the early part of the holidays in parallel with the Kickoff game in September all the way to Super Bowl Sunday in February -- that we really don't need to recap much of this season or what happened previously as we usually make mention of in opening salvos like this one which begin each of the SocialPulse episode diaries, but you can agree that what happened at the end of the finale is certainly into the discussion of the most memorable moments of this site's incredible journey of over 800 posts on MTV matters.
   With what happened with Ashley and Hunter winning Season 32 and her stealing the entire $1 million purse still fresh in everyone's mind, them and most of the cast who made it past the halfway point in South Africa are all rested up and ready to dish out everything that went down this season for yet another two-part reunion special. From the biggest backstabs and blow-ups to hookups, secrets and beyond, the cast will rehash all that took place this season... and with The Miz on assignment shooting his next movie, WWE wrestler Dolph Ziggler steps in as host. And the good thing about all this: we already know who's the champ... it's the drama with the entire cast that will take center stage.

After the jump, it's the Pulse of Part 1 of The Challenge Final Reckoning Reunion, along with Thanksgiving for the MTV family... glad you're with us tonight as we bring the curtain down on 2018 in The Challenge on DCBLOG. And welcome to the weekend, folks.

DC SocialPulse: Floribama Shore - The Season 2 Fall Premiere (MEGA)

*** Advisory: DC SocialPulse 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  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

Hey there, it's December and we're now into the winter cycle of the 2018-19 broadcast calendar which will take us into the new year, and for which it will be headlined here by Season 2 of Ex On The Beach which premieres before Christmas. Tonight saw part 2 of the always explosive season-ending reunion for The Challenge, but since it began last week where luckily we won't have to wait until the very end to see who wins Final Reckoning — we'll be covering that get-together right here in a few days. But for now, our focus is on something that comes outside of what we call the Trifecta.

   It was one year ago at this time that MTV's turnaround into respectability rolled into fifth gear with the debut of a new show that molded the channel's biggest hit ever with a touch of southern style and some realness too. Floribama Shore marked the return of MTV's global Shore franchise to American screens, spawned by Jersey Shore which returned in conjunction with the launch of this series shortly after... and it was made possible for myself to add this franchise to both my viewing and blogging schedule by way of Kyle going from Geordie Shore U.K. into The Challenge. And it's because of what's ahead in 2019 that we are now upgrading our episode diaries covering Floribama to the SocialPulse name we christen other series we consider of big importance each week... it's now officially a major series here at DCBLOG.

After an enormously successful first season last year, Season 2 of Floribama Shore began back on July 9th – the night before the premiere of The Challenge 32, and already there's been a lot taking place with Aimee, Gus, Nilsa, Jeremiah, Kortni, Kirk, Candace and Codi in Panama City Beach. The summer half of this season had a lot going on down in the Florida Panhandle: #Gilsa rekindling things, Candace inviting over her boo thang, a pregnancy scare, tears and pranks aplenty, a first-ever out of town trip to New Orleans and of course, a few fights both in and outside the house to add to what we got to experience the first time around twelve months ago.

   And since we last left our Floribama friends back in October, there was another one of those fights that broke out in a local bar, which involved Kortni's boyfriend Logan and continuing their downward spiral after all that's been taking place with the both of them. That's where the second half of this season picks up with what promises to be just a crazy a night of hangover-like madness as the night Jeremiah celebrated his birthday - that included an arrest that wild night. And as it turns out, it's not the end of this saga... which may see the cops take this into their hands. For our favorite book cover model, he again is also at the heart of drama with the two local girls in this cast, and he also gets to reveal what he got to reveal to the girls earlier this year. And there's also a double date, too.

For those of you who are familiar with our coverage of The Challenge/Real World franchise, Are You The One and the show which will offer Floribama's lead-in on Thursdays in Ex On The Beach in a few weeks, the SocialPulse is DCBLOG's exclusive look at all the action, reaction and interaction of all the episodes as seen from the Twitter sphere. We've been offering this service to all fans - both those who want to relive the interaction again or just catching up for the first time - since our MTV posts began five years ago, spanning almost 30 seasons and over 300 episodes covered since then. That includes both Season 1 and the first half of Season 2 of this Floribama Shore run which, traditionally, has kicked off our weekly posts to then be followed by the rest of our posts. But with this time in between meaningful episodes of the Trifecta, for the very first time it is our main focus.
   So welcome on in and welcome back to Panama City Beach as it's the Pulse of the Season 2 Autumn premiere of Floribama Shore just ahead. Dive in...

DC ExtraTime: An Exposé of the GOAT

BY DC CUEVA                      

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

Tuesday night, we saw the first half of the two-part reunion for The Challenge Final Reckoning, where most of the cast joined host and WWE wrestler Dolph Ziggler to hash out leftover drama from what went down in South Africa... as mentioned earlier here, DCBLOG will be covering the last act of this long season on here next week. But while viewers were watching Hunter and Ashley have it out, Cara face Faith & Angela and Devin get into it with his biggest vendetta, perhaps the biggest drama of the night took place not in that Times Square studio, but on social media.

In our five years covering MTV Reality, we offer you the fans a front-row seat to the other show that takes place at the same time as the show as it is airs each week. Through our SocialPulse diaries which have covered every single episode of The Challenge since Rivals II, the entire run of Are You The One?, the twists that have turned The Real World on its head and much more, every big moment of the shows that get us talking have been covered through the Twitter sphere. That includes the latest jaw-dropping moment of Ashley stealing the money from Hunter in the Final Reckoning finale.

Social media is, has and always has been an outlet for fans to make their voices heard about The Challenge and everything related to MTV Reality. This includes agreeing or disagreeing about cast members, suggestions and complaints being directed to the big wigs, and interacting with the cast which often gets heated among fans and the cast. And of course, there are the Twitter Stans who are nothing but obsessed with these shows and its people, and will do whatever they can to defend their favorites and go after fellow fans in this always heated and intense social environment.

It's with this in mind that while the Final Reckoning reunion was airing, a Twitter user decided to take their hate for the six-time champion of this series, Johnny Bananas, to a whole new level that caused everyone to drop their jaws by this mic drop. And a couple days after the the first part of the fun-fest aired, a respected Challenge blogger also took the opportunity to vent about the man who, until two days before Thanksgiving, had the biggest jaw-dropping moment in Challenge history.