Who Are These Newbies? - The Challenge: War of the Worlds: North America

EXTENDED POST - 21 Mins.
BY DC CUEVA                      

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

In exactly one week from tonight, MTV's The Challenge will take a flight on that magic carpet and enter "a whole new world" when War of the Worlds premieres smack dab in the middle of the week, a new & familiar night for the fifth major pro sport. Season 33 will see the show's big-name veterans begin the new year anew following the past year & a half's trilogy with a clean slate, as they will be competing with a totally new group of competitors who haven't competed on this stage before. And eventually, these newcomers will be paired up with the likes of CT, Cara Maria, Bananas, Wes and company in their quest for $1 million. It's with that group of newbies who are both known and unknown to a lot of you that offers the context to the latest installment of what's been a DCBLOG tradition of ours ever since we began covering MTV Reality in 2013.
​   Every season, one of those burning questions you and every other fan has at the beginning of any new season of The Challenge and 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 & respect they deserve and to ensure that you don't meet a new Challenger for the first time in the premiere. Through this manner, we have profiled 75 first-time competitors and returning veterans in the eleven Challenges we've blogged on here, and that number balloons up to what will ultimately be 86 people when the non-MTV reality stars who have come to EOTB USA, with part 2 of that series to be posted soon enough.

War of the Worlds is no exception when it comes to us here at DCBLOG giving the rookies their time in the spotlight and to offer some background, context, perspective and insight into those who are about to get their feet wet for the very first time in this, the fifth major pro sport. But Season 33 of The Challenge is also unique in its own way: for the fourth time dating back to Fresh Meat II in 2010, a single season will have 10 or more rookies donning the Under Armour uniform for the very first time. The last one came on Bloodlines in 2015 when Cory, Ex On The Beach single Nicole, Dario, Tony's brother Shane and Bananas' cousin Vince were the notables of a record 18 first-timers in the show's second trip to Turkey... the first one came on Battle of the Seasons II three years earlier when Nicole's cousin Nany and Zach made their debuts as part of a crop of 16 rookies.
   This time out, Season 33 will bring in another group of sweet sixteen: that's the number of rookies who make up the class of "Prospects" who've been flown in from both the United States and around the world who eventually will be paired up with sixteen Challenge veterans and relative newcomers in a pairs season where the team who emerges victorious will grab the lions' share of $1 million. This class of newbies -- one that makes up for more than half of the total cast -- ranges from two who joined the MTV family by way of the American version of Ex On The Beach and several from the global Shore franchise including one who will fly straight from Florida for his first Challenge, to several players who made their debuts in the summertime on Big Brother, and two highly-touted rookies who in reality are seasoned veteran competitors.

As we always do here, we'll take the opportunity to introduce this field of newbies for you here with how their original series' bios described them when they began to dive into the reality field, what happened on their original and subsequent shows -- including offer clips of those shows, and any extra info on them that might be of particular interest. Because the rookie field for this season is larger than usual, just as we've done for Ex On The Beach Season 2, we will be splitting this post into two parts: part one -- this very post -- will cover the players coming from North America, while part two which comes shortly after this one will focus on the international contingent.
   But... not every Prospect will be covered in these two posts: just as it was last season, we're giving a pass to those we've featured in previous WATN posts to spare us some time & expense. Thus, fellow rookies of this season, Bachelor Nation's Chase McNary and Big Brother alum Morgan Willett, will not be featured in this series after we profiled them during their season of Ex On The Beach along with Paulie... and to save space, we also combined two rookies into one section for the fact that they are siblings. And in case you're curious, simply search around to find out about the vets you're seeing for the first time if you're a newcomer to watching this series.

So, we're about to answer that question: "Who Are These Newbies of The Challenge: War of the Worlds?" After the jump, we'll commence our deep dive of fourteen of this season's rookie crop with a ladies man who has been roaming the streets of the Florida panhandle, and will have the luxury of continuing his 14-month MTV run continue by competing on his first Challenge and with someone who he knows very well as a resident of the same town they call home.

MTV Reality: Countdown to The Challenge - War of the Worlds

BY DC CUEVA                      

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

Hey there everyone, welcome to the weekend. We are nearly a month into the new year of 2019, and already there's been plenty going down in the never-ending world of wonder known as MTV Reality. This week is jam-packed: the Season 2 premiere of the sultry Siesta Key with an explosive birthday brawl and plenty of revelations, while a new VIP is joining Lindsay Lohan's Beach Club. There's also a lot of fighting on Ex On The Beach, while a girl group is taking the stage on Floribama Shore. We'll be covering all of those in the coming days here as we're about to hit an ultra-busy part of this first quarter of our busiest year ever of DCBLOG going Inside MTV Reality. That includes there's the headline act of this winter... to us and to most of you reading this on a winter's late Friday night.

We may be in between last week's epic NFL Conference Championship games and Super Bowl LIII, but the sports weekend's that now getting underway is a big one for fans in America and overseas, and it's not too shabby. How about this: Tiger Woods' first tournament since his win in Atlanta last fall, the NHL All-Star Game and NFL Pro Bowl, Warriors/Celtics and Kansas/Kentucky, the WWE Royal Rumble, finals of the Australian Open, the Winter X Games, and Arsenal/Manchester United in the FA Cup. There's also primetime PBC boxing, the finale of Bellator's heavyweight tournament, U.S. and Euro figure skating championships, horse racing's Pegasus World Cup, alpine skiing at Kitzbuehel in Austria, auto racing at Daytona & Monte Carlo, one-day international cricket, rugby sevens in Canada, and world championships in luge, team handball and indoor lawn bowling.
   It's indeed a big weekend of sporting events taking place here and around the world that makes you think that you'd only get a packed schedule like this during the Olympic Games. And it's with this in mind that just after the National Football League champion is crowned next weekend in another classic tilt between teams from Boston and Los Angeles (the second in five months after the Red Sox-Dodgers World Series and adding to the twelve Celtics/Lakers NBA Finals tilts), that the biggest international competition in this first half of 2019 will take place a few days later overseas, just as was last year when the world transitioned from Super Bowl LII in Minnesota straight to the Winter Olympics in South Korea. Once the Lombardi Trophy is hoisted by either the New England Patriots or the Los Angeles Rams in Atlanta - itself a former Olympic host city, the focus will shift to the African nation of Namibia for Season 33 of the show that's regarded as "the fifth major pro sport."

On Wednesday, February 6th, MTV's The Challenge will once again take over our screens with a season that its host T.J. Lavin has been teasing on social media lately will be a season that fans will not be disappointed with and touts as the show's finest work. In the aftermath of an eventful three-season trilogy that might have left a sour taste in many fans' mouths, this season will be very much different in many ways, as it will bring for the very first time an international flavor to the menu of this American tradition. The big name veterans & relative newcomers the show's fans have come to love will wipe the slate clean following the triplicate of Dirty 30, Vendettas & Final Reckoning as they will collide with a totally different group of Fresh Meat: this time, it's from outside their system and most of them come from outside the United States, though there are some familiar names too.
   It is the War of the Worlds: a brave new world for The Challenge, as TV favorites will collide as those from the MTV family will compete with those from the broader world of a reality genre that can give thanks to MTV for making a bevy of entertainment all possible. Imagine, major Challenge names and those from the global MTV Shore and Ex On The Beach franchises getting to compete alongside those who've survived being marooned on a beach, spent all summer in a closely-monitored house, navigated an treacherous obstacle course, and fell in love in a gorgeous villa. There is truly something for everyone as thirty-four competitors from around the world will battle their way through compelling challenges, surprising twists and much more in between in what MTV describes as "the grittiest, most hardcore season ever." And the handsome reward: the lions' share of a prize purse worth $1 million.

War of the Worlds represents the marquee attraction of the first half of 2018 to us at DCBLOG, and we will be your tour guide to covering Season 33 of The Challenge as only we can, and at every step from before the action begins until the big bucks are handed out come spring (or summer) time. And ahead in this preseason preview, we'll scratch the surface of what we can expect from Africa, as well as those who have been chosen to take this show global. And this is just the start: we'll later have our traditional introduction to the rookies who'll be taking their first steps come two weeks from now.
​   So, welcome on in... as always say here, get yourself comfortable, put on that Under Armour jersey and join in with us as we begin a new journey into The Challenge: War of the Worlds, ahead after the jump. We're so glad you're with us.

DC ExtraTime: Queer Eye's Lip Sync Battle Takeover

BY DC CUEVA                      

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

Ask the MTV Challenge fandom about who had the most successful 2018, and they'll give you varying answers. Maybe it could be the two ladies who took all the $1.5 million from the two Challenge seasons that went down last year in Cara Maria on Vendettas and Ashley M. on Final Reckoning. Maybe, it's Tony for him continuing on that torrid run with a finals berth, winning Champs vs. Stars II and scoring an engagement. Perhaps, it's his partner Bananas for him taking his talents to hosting 1st Look TV, The Miz in hosting CvS and having his own reality show, or Cory for appearing on two Challenges, Ex On The Beach and Teen Mom.
   But it's likely that you might overlook a person who, fifteen years ago, came to The Real World Philadelphia house as reality TV's first African-American gay man, and who has become one of the most-successful alumni in the franchise's history. After doing that season, a Challenge and an Are You The One? spinoff -- achieving a triple crown of doing shows relating to all three jewels of what we call the MTV Trifecta, Karamo Brown has become a bigger name in the pop culture landscape in the past twelve months, and it didn't involve him with doing something with MTV.
   A year ago, Karamo joined Antoni Porowski, Tan France, Booby Berk and Jonathan Van Ness as the new "Fab Five" on Netflix's revival of Queer Eye. Karamo serves as culture and lifestyle expert while the others focus in on food & wine, fashion, design and grooming, as they continued the proud tradition of the original Bravo series of the same name of over a decade ago. Queer Eye scored three Emmy Awards including Outstanding Structured Reality Program, all part of a historic night that saw them present one of the many awards to another LGBT pioneer, RuPaul's Drag Race.
   Along with that, Karamo was honored by the Human Rights Campaign with their Visibility Award, and took the stage at March For Our Lives weekend in Washington, D.C. when he shared his personal link to last year's school shootings in Florida: a friend of his was one of the victims killed in that Valentine's Day tragedy at Parkland High School, Brown's alma mater. He also joined with the Creative Coalition to lobby Capitol Hill for increased funding for the National Endowment for the Arts and got to meet President Obama. And last May, Karamo became engaged to his longtime partner, director Ian Brown.

Also last year, a cable channel that began as The Nashville Network and then became The National Network and Spike TV evolved once again... this time as the Paramount Network: Viacom's first dive into premium-style programming. It's the home of one of last year's most-talked about dramas in Kevin Costner's Yellowstone, Younger with How Far is Tatttoo Far? co-host Nico Tortorella, and screened documentaries on Treyvon Martin and Paul Walker. But it didn't mess with Spike's biggest content: Cops, Bar Rescue, Ink Master, Bellator MMA, and a show that turned an often negative part of the music industry into a viral sensation.

   For a place that once hosted country music programming before CMT took over, Lip Sync Battle has become most-popular series in the long history of the network. The series concept may have been first conceived in the '80s, but Jimmy Fallon brought that idea into the streaming & iPod age to create a celebrity version of it, which became a staple of his Late Night talk show before he took over The Tonight Show. The idea is simple: two A-list celebrities facing off in a lip syncing battle of chart hits and classics over two rounds, and the winner being determined by an audience vote, gaining the LSB championship belt and bragging rights.
   Jimmy and creators of Lip Sync Battle, Stephen Merchant and John Krasinski, pitched their show to NBC and their cable suite, but after the Peacock passed on the idea it found a home at Spike, as it was going through another rebranding. The rest is history: with over 2 million viewers an episode, it became the network's most-watched series, and it helped to relaunch Paramount Network a year ago this past week with a live episode from the home of the Oscars, the Dolby Theater. Digitally, the LSB YouTube channel has amassed over 600 million views by its 2.7 million followers, and it has also become an global sensation being franchised in 16 overseas countries, plus a kid-friendly spinoff on Nickelodeon.
   The show is hosted by LL Cool J and Crissy Teigan, and those who've performed on LSB reads like a who's who: John Legend, The Rock, Emily Blunt, Mike Tyson, Queen Latifah, Justin Bieber, Deion Sanders, Iggy Azalea, Swaggy P. Nick Young, Eva Longoria, Jason DeRulo, Snoop Dogg, Chris Paul, Shaq, Wilmer Valderrama, Laverne Cox, Jay Leno, Ray Lewis, Sarah Hyland, Ricky Martin, Nicole Richie, Zendaya, David Spade, Fifth Harmony, Tara Lipinski & Johnny Weir, Pentatonix, Rob Schneider, Luis Fonzi, Charli XCX, Rita Ora and Pete Davison.
   Lip Sync Battle is only part of the latest revival of TV music programming: American Idol returned last year to try & regain the buzz from the one show that overtook it years ago in The Voice; the new buzz hit of the moment in The Masked Singer on FOX, and the other big musical staple of late night, the similar must-see Carpool Karaoke on The Late Late Show with James Corden.

Last week, Lip Sync Battle kicked off its fifth season by welcoming back Karamo into the Viacom fold for one night along with the rest of his Queer Eye Fab Five. The group gave ode to two divas: they performed to Britney Spears' "Oops I Did It Again" including her famous red cat suit, and did their very best to bring us back to last April and Beyonce's internet-breaking performance at Coachella. In case you missed it, the Queer Eye Five's performances are below for your enjoyment, along with the guys preparing for the big night and post-performance analysis.

- I AM DC
#DCBLOG

DC SocialPulse: Ex On The Beach S2 - "Jay Is For Jealous"

*** 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... hope all of you are recovering from what was an epic & eventful Championship Sunday in the NFL. And the good thing about this Sunday is, most of you have Monday off for the MLK holiday... glad you're staying up with us here as we take you to a part of the country that saw fate intervene and give the Rams a Super Bowl berth by way of a blown call and an OT field goal. We're talking about Southern California, venue for Season 2 of Ex On The Beach, and where lots of drama has already gone down and it's not reached the halfway point.

When we left Malibu previously, the house got shook by the entrance of not one, but three exes to the house: Corey's ex Sha dove into what's already a twisted love triangle... one which was enhanced further Morgan & Jay went on a date and her sister Alex crashing it. But the two other exes who came by are more well known to the MTV crowd: Malcolm's ex Nurys invaded the beach to again put him & Diandra under the same roof, while Nurys herself had to see her ex Nelson of Challenge and AYTO fame... and she wasn't having it, nor did her & Didi with Maya & Janelle.

For this week, the focus shifts for one of the singles to having their day in court and it's what happens when they come home that they show their support for them despite wide public disapproval outside the house. There is also a bit of jealousy when it comes to the love triangle that has those in the cubicles of a former Viacom corporate sibling watching this show very intently when an intimate truth gets put out there. And at our second elimination, we as viewers will understand once again that while we can expect the unexpected, sometimes history can repeat itself.

After the jump, all the action, reaction and interaction as we bring you the SocialPulse of Episode 5 of Ex On The Beach... Plus, we'll join some big name Challenge vets as they take over one of America's biggest attractions. Dive in, friends...

DC SocialPulse Extra: Before Ex On The Beach S2 EP5, and Lohan Beach Club EP2

*** 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

Happy Sunday Funday to all of you, as we're in the midst of this three-day extended weekend in honor of Martin Luther King Day. Yesterday, we had the Pulse of Floribama Shore as Codi's parents visited and Krazy Kortni had her wildest moment yet of kissing an elderly lady in the land of retirees. Later tonight, we'll be covering Episode 5 of Ex On The Beach, and this comes during a week that saw the countdown to The Challenge: War of the Worlds begin... quite a week it has been and not including all the related Twitter drama that's located below.
   Until then, here's a Pulse Extra covering the time in between episodes of, what was until Tuesday night at least, our main focus this month and will now share top billing with Challenge 33. Along with that, there's episode 2 of Lindsay Lohan's Beach Club as a guy who is helping to host those seeing The Chainsmokers and Dillon Francis at the Wynn on Pacquiao/Broner fight weekend in Vegas, but will surely need some Secret Service men protecting him for what we saw in Mykonos... and couples goals for two leading ladies in Staten Island. That all ahead here.

DC SocialPulse: Floribama Shore S2 - "You Had Me at Beer"

*** 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

Well, here we are at the first three-day weekend of 2019, and we're glad you're kicking it off with us at DCBLOG as we now go into a big week in MTV Reality, including double trouble on Ex On The Beach and at the Lohan Beach Club - which we'll have have here ahead. This week also saw the start of the countdown to Season 33 of The Challenge, and we'll kick off coverage of that here next week... and one of those who'll be taking their talents to the War of the Worlds is a member of the cast of Floribama Shore. But there's some business for he or she to take care of in Panama City Beach before they join TJ Lavin and co. come February 6th... more on that at the end of this post.

As for what's going on now, last week the roommates finally came home from their eventful escapade to Cabo, Mexico along with some baggage... in the form of Nilsa still holding a grudge from having her nose smashed on that last night in paradise. If flowers say that you're sorry, than Kortni ignited a new trend of using something special to apologize when she bought a pizza with the words "I'm sorry" spelled out in the cheese. In a season and a series that has had its fair share of tear-jerking moments, that apology pizza again gave us reason to have that Kleenex box handy.

If what happened with Candace's parents coming by to mark the end of summer last season was something, then was Codi's turn to welcome his parents for a surprise visit, and this week Daddy Butts will encourage his son to get another try to do something he tried to do earlier in the summer of trying to push things forward with a newly single Candace after her breakup with Gator Jay. It's what happens there that Gus once again gets emotional by way of the parents coming to town. And if we thought we had seen everything from Krazy Kortni... well, we're proven wrong yet again.

After the jump, it's the Pulse Episode 8 of Season 2B of Floribama Shore. Welcome to the weekend...

DC ExtraTime: Fun Times with AYTO's Stephen & Julia

BY DC CUEVA                      

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

This weekend marks the fifth anniversary of the premiere of Are You The One?, which premiered after bedtime on January 21, 2014... one of the many shows to receive the launchpad of airing after the Teen Mom franchise. AYTO marked MTV's first entry into modern romantic reality television, and has brought its own share of big moments, memorable couples and cast members, and through the science of matchmaking has brought together dozens of perfect matches.

This past year, those who believe in reality TV love were dealt three blows to this philosophy when AYTO fan favorite couples Zak & Hannah of Season 3, Gianna & Hayden of Season 5 and Alivia & Kareem of Season 6 all called it quits... but there's hope for the lone couple to remain together from the most recent season of Season 7 in Chicagoan Cali & Miami guy Tomas. And all couples from this series all strive to be the next Amber & Ethan Diamond - the only couple that's a perfect match, are happily married, and are proud parents to two kids.

One of the small handful of couples who are still together years after their MTV fame have ended is Stephen McHugh and Julia Rose from the Season 4 cast of 2016 which introduced everyone to Tori Deal (who herself has become one-half of an MTV power couple with Challenge champ Jordan Wiseley). Stephen & Julia met in Hawaii three years ago and hit it off almost from the beginning, even as the intentions castmate Giovanni had for her led to a blowup at one matchup night.

For a moment, Stephen & Julia weren't together: a revelation on a TRL After Show during Season 5 revealed that, while in Las Vegas, he had gotten close to Hannah Fugazzi from the only cast to not win the jackpot for getting all the perfect matches in order. But time did heal, and very quickly before everyone knew it, the Philadelphia native and the beauty from the South were back together... and they still are today. Perhaps, engagement rings and/or parenthood are next up for them.

Last month, Stephen and Julia posted on their YouTube channel videos of them having fun as a couple who, while they are not a perfect match as the matchmakers had it, but are one in any other way. That includes pulling their own blindfold trick before it became the world's latest viral sensation when she fed him food like he was a young baby. Also included, a prank she got to pull on him, some waxing of his body, and doing their own imitation of the game show Minute to Win It.

And lastly, the couple got to do a Q&A to answer fan questions on why they have lasted as long as most AYTO couples, among other things.

- I AM DC
#DCBLOG

The Look: Siesta Key - Welcome Back to Paradise

BY DC CUEVA                      

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

For those who were dreaming of snow outside your window on Christmas last month, there's probably a similar feeling of sentiment for those who are just wanting to escape the cold right now after you've just packed away your holiday decorations. It's especially true for those of you who live in New York, Chicago, Canada and everywhere else where the high temperatures on a given January day can vary day by day, but most likely you're freezing in multiple layers going to and from work and school... though you can agree that it's nice cuddle weather for some binge watching, too.

If you happen to be one of those people - and who happens to also be an MTV Reality fan, there is some good news coming your way. Next week sees the long-awaited and highly-anticipated return of one of cable's most buzzed-about series the past few years, and one that helped to spur MTV's overall rise from just another run-down TV channel bitten by the mass exodus to binge-land, to one that now has the industry talking about this one-time music video outlet turned TV hub of the millennial generation. And it is the show that was inspired by a show that introduced a new sub-genre of reality TV: the reality soap... and it will provide a fitting bridge to the latest MTV reboot come spring.

In July 2017, MTV dipped its feet into the sand of the small Sarasota, Florida suburb of Siesta Key, where it discovered a group of those who as kids grew up watching Lauren Conrad and Kristin Cavallari on Laguna Beach and The Hills, and whose lives were just as fascinating as their California counterparts. The same production team behind Laguna was brought on to bring their magic touch from the West Coast to the East Coast, and to a new group of those who despite being slightly older were looking to break out on their own into a new era as adults during the most exciting summer of their lives... while not escaping the drama taking place in the town they call home.

Siesta Key reintroduced everyone to the kind of addictive, guilty pleasure television that had people buzzing a decade ago with Laguna/Hills' unique mix of big drama that glues even the teen-friendly audience in, as well as a cinematic filming style and a bold musical soundtrack to boot. And Tuesday night, the world will be welcomed back to a place judged to the best beach in America for another season in paradise, where the group is a year older, where love will now be taken to a new level, and where old and new will collide to spark some fireworks. But to understand what's coming next in the Key, you gotta look back a little bit to where this journey to Season 2 began... which was long ago.

The Look: Made In Staten Island

BY DC CUEVA                      

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

Last week saw the much-anticipated debut of the year's first big-buzz premiere on cable of Lindsay Lohan's Beach Club, which was a top-trending Twitter topic on the same night our President gave his first speech from the Oval Office. Next on the MTV docket are new seasons of Teen Mom 2 and Siesta Key, and the next new MTV series to bow in these first weeks of 2019 is the latest to land the ever-coveted "timeslot bump" -- a new series that's given the spot of airing after the baby mama drama, just as the modern-day Laguna Beach had when it debuted.

If you sift through the pile of press releases, cast bios and clippings this blogger compiles on the shows I watch & cover and use as research material for this site, you'll find that there are a small handful with something in common. Two competitors from the past year & a half's trilogy of The Challenge come from there... so do three members of MTV's most-popular series ever. It even links them to people outside this bubble such as Martin Sheen, Alyssa Milano, Christina Aguilera, Method Man, Bebe Rexha and Pete Davidson, who seemingly had a most-eventful 2018.

They were all born on that largely-forgotten part of New York City known as Staten Island. This is where Real World alums and later Challenge staples Marie from St. Thomas and Nicole from Skeletons in Chicago call home. Vinny and Angelina from Jersey Shore also call this secluded island of sorts home, where Mike The Situation was born, and it's also home base for fashionista Victoria from season 1 of Ex On The Beach, as well as the Wu-Tang Clan. And yet, it has long been forgotten by the bright lights of Manhattan and everything else in New York City.

Now, after seeing some of its natives go onto MTV Reality shows -- and following in the footsteps of other shows from parent company Viacom, Staten Island is now home to the latest new MTV series to generate a bit of controversy even before its first expanded look at the show and its cast were released. Ironically enough, the show has a link to another much-loved show on MTV's older sibling, and whose ancestors date back to one of the darkest eras in modern American history.

Tonight, MTV will welcome its viewers to this often overlooked part of the Big Apple, and offer a look at those breaking away from their past and who are Made In Staten Island.

DC SocialPulse: Ex On The Beach S2 - A Triple Invasion of The Exes

*** 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

This second weekend of 2019 is now in its final hours, and we're glad you're wrapping it with us as we at DCBLOG now turn the attention to Season 2 of Ex On The Beach. And if things haven't reached a fever pitch more than a quarter of a way through, it sure has now in Malibu.

Last week, the mom of the house, Farrah, was not exempt from getting shafted as she went down to the Shack of Secrets and found her ex, Simon, waiting for her there... and almost as quickly as she can snap her fingers, she sent him home as victim of the season's first Cut or Crush elimination. It's not just Simon's entrance that had everyone buzzing: Murray's ex who those in the LGBT crowd got to watch on What Happens At The Abbey, Cory Z., invaded the beach and set his sights on breaking up a would-be romance with him and Cheyenne.

But with everything that's gone down in the first three episoes, it has nothing on what goes down this week: not one, not two, but THREE exes will invade seaside here in episode 4... two of them are familiar to us as they were on previous seasons of Are You The One? and one of them has become a Challenge force. Meanwhile, two Exes decide to gang up on try and take down one of the singles and their posse. And when the season's first getaway date brings a single & ex to a nice restaurant dinner, they have no idea a surprise will be waiting for them. And of course, there's some spooning.

After the jump, it's a Triple Invasion of The Exes on Ex On The Beach, plus two Bachelors go at it on Twitter, a Miami invasion for a few of the castmates, and the never ending drama of Paulie & Cara.
Thanks for staying with us here for the 'Pulse... dive in.

DC SocialPulse Extra: Lohan Beach Club Premiere and Before Ex On The Beach S2 Ep4

*** 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

The MTV week that was of the first full week of 2019 saw Cheyenne & Cory's first season on Teen Mom conclude as well as what we had here earlier of Codi's parents and an apology pizza mark the Floribama Shore group's return to Florida following the trip to Cabo. But before we bring you the Pulse of this week's Ex On The Beach on Sunday Funday, something special for those checking us out this late Saturday night.
   This week saw the debut of the winter's most anticipated new MTV show, Lindsay Lohan's Beach Club. And in the premiere, Lindsay and her business partner & close friend, Panos Spentzos, will get to open up shop on their new Lohan Beach House resort in Mykonos, Greece. There, they'll be joined by a team handpicked by them of nightlife pros from America's hottest clubs for the summer, and they'll find out that working with this "Paradise Boss" will be anything but a breeze in this European Rivera.
   While DCBLOG offered our traditional non-Trifecta preview of the season, aka The Look, before its premiere on Tuesday night, instead of just recapping the episodes like everyone else does we'll be integrating social reaction to Lohan Beach House into these Pulse Extra diaries, just before the main one covering EOTB is posted afterwards, as we consider that show to be our main focus for this winter. That's only part of a pre-diary that also includes reaction to Surviving R. Kelly, the premiere of The Bachelor, and much more... that's all ahead.

DC SocialPulse: Floribama Shore S2 - Meet The Parents

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

DC ExtraTime: A Real World Original Invades Ridiculousness

From during The Challenge: Champs vs. Pros;

slightly edited from its original version

BY DC CUEVA                      

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

A few weeks ago in marking the 25th anniversary of the longest running show in MTV history, DCBLOG took a look back at a memorable sophomore season of The Real World when, 24 years ago, the show went west to Los Angeles. There, we joined Challenge icon Beth Stolarcyak and country pioneer Jon Brennan as they caught up with roommates Dominic Griffin and Irene Berrera and revisited the same house by the beach where their journey to fame began, part of the path the show and MTV has helped in form of entertainment that has become a ubiquitous part of pop culture.
   The most notable member of that Season 2 cast never had a chance to compete on a Challenge, but she has become one of The Real World's most successful alumni and a trail blazer in the reality TV genre. And over a week ago, she returned to her MTV roots to sit down with the panel who, each week, join one of the channel's most well known names for a look at hilarious videos and plenty of opportunities to laugh.

Tami Roman came to that 1993 Real World season from White Plains, NY as part of a female girl group and a career goal to host her own talk show. She also came there as someone who might not be able to do a Real World season in current times: a married lady as wife of NBA player Kenny Anderson. Growing up, though, was much different: her mom once worked three jobs at the same time to help pay the bills, but when the elder Roman was left unemployed she and her daughter were left homeless and had to endure life on the streets of New York. That humble past helped Tami become strong and independent while also appreciating the finer things in life.
   As we showed you in our RW Los Angeles retrospective, she was picked up on an RV ride along the way by Jon and Dominic, which brought them cross country to Los Angeles, where they were joined by Aaron, Beth S., Irene and David. For someone who was born to be on camera and had already had some modeling experience, it was, of course, on Real World there that her vivacious, no-nonsense personality was first seen in front of a national TV audience. She watched that first season in SoHo thinking it would be a cool thing to be one of those seven strangers living in that house, and little did she know that she would help cast a mold for others to follow in bringing that "Don't give me any s___" attitude to this show and to MTV's reality programming.

   Old school fans will still remember the first notable house fight to take place on The Real World when tensions between the guys and girls led to comedian David deciding to pull the covers off her bed, and exposing her to just her underwear. That led him to leave the house, becoming the first RW roommate to be evicted. But Tami is also remembered for allowing cameras to capture a very personal moment: on the 20th anniversary of the Supreme Court's landmark Roe vs. Wade decision, Tami allowed cameras to capture a personal moment when, while she was pregnant, she decided that it wasn't the right time to become a mom this early. And she made the tough and personal choice to have an abortion… the first time something like that was captured on television.

   And in the same manner as both those who joined this world by way of the romantic experiment, Tami has also had the chance to do shows produced by both production firms behind the three shows of the Trifecta. On her Real World season, cameras documented her doing an episode of the early '90s dating game show Studs, which was produced by Lighthearted Entertainment, helmed by Howard Schultz - who created and executive produced the first two seasons of Are You The One? as well as VH1's Dating Naked.

Tami has gone on to bigger and better things, even after the highly-publicized divorce of her and Kenny Anderson which ultimately brought her to a career in television and movies, as well as starting her own lines of hair supplies and cosmetics. This has seen her appear on several few TV shows and sharing a set with Courtney Cox, Kevin Hart, Terrence Howard, Vivica A. Fox and Empire's Taraji P. Henson before landing her ultimate gig.

   In 2010, Tami was chosen to be one of five main cast members for VH1's Basketball Wives, which documented the lives of being (or in Tami's case, once being) the spouse of an NBA player, and the show continues airing on MTV's older sibling today - even as she has become partner to boyfriend Reggie Youngblood. In addition, Tami & Reggie also appeared on WE Network's Marriage Boot Camp: Reality Stars, and has a large social media following: over a million followers on both Twitter and Instagram.
   And over a week ago after taking time off in the aftermath of the death of his beloved security guard friend Christopher "Big Black" Boykin, Ridiculousness and host Rob Dyrdek returned for its summer run. And in one of the episodes, Tami was invited to sit on the couch alongside Chanel and Steelo Brim in watching all of the hilarious web videos submitted each week and shown to MTV viewers afterwards. Below is their picture from Instagram.

- I AM DC
#DCBLOG

The Look: Lindsay Lohan's Beach Club

BY DC CUEVA                      

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

Tonight sees MTV's first big premiere of the new year and second of the winter following the pre-Christmas premiere of Season 2 of Ex On The Beach. The channel has been on a roll in the past two years for many reasons too many to mention, and of all the premieres it has planned for the first quarter of 2019, this is the one those who are dressed a little more formally than most at 1515 Broadway are betting their attention on.

Back it was announced in the heat of the summer last July, this was one of those rare instances where the big buzz show that was revealed to everyone to great interest on social media was not a direct reboot of an old show like what we've been used to in the past couple years, but a new original idea. This one involved one of the biggest & most-buzzed about stars in showbiz the past two decades, whose life has been in the public eye ever since for both her outstanding career in film, TV and music, and what's happened to her outside of it.

Of course, it's Lindsay Lohan... and she is the boss lady for the latest in a line of new business ventures she has opened up as she goes from actress & musician to now adding entrepreneur to her broad resume. She has generated buzz for this new venture a couple times: her dance at an outdoor party on the beach became one of last year's big viral sensations, and a rough night of her attempting to lead away the kids of a homeless lady was captured on camera on Instagram Live. And it came after the revealing of a new MTV show bearing her name, as she returns to the public limelight with tonight's premiere of perhaps the winter's biggest buzz show.

But she is hardly the star of all this... there are several others who will share the spotlight with Ms. LiLo, as they have been chosen for their social, business and party skills, and who will help the one with one of last year's most popular dances make her own mark in turning Mykonos into the place to be. It has been described in the media as MTV's own take on the show that brought Faith Stowers to the MTV family in Bravo's Vanderpump Rules, but this show promises to be very much different in every other way, especially with someone with a greater appeal to millennials than a Real Housewife.

It may be January, and except for those in Australia this is that time of year where we're all freezing. But we're a full week into the new year of 2019, and tonight sees America and the world come to a new paradise across the Atlantic: Lindsay Lohan's Beach Club.

DC SocialPulse: Ex On The Beach S2 - Extra Hot Drama in Malibu

*** 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 the end of the weekend, and a Sunday that saw two NFL playoff upsets, monsters everywhere rejoicing at Lady Gaga winning a Golden Globe, and a first look at the farewell season of Game of Thrones. And for many of you, tonight feels like a Sunday as it's the end of a long two-week holiday break before you all go back to college, school and to work tomorrow... and what better way to bring it all to an end now than with a Pulse of Ex On The Beach.

Two weeks into Season 2, we've seen just about as much drama packed into a couple weeks as it did the first time out for MTV's "relations___" show, but not all the Singles were there when it began. That changed last week when Corey became the last OG to arrive, and he dove into a love triangle with his Morgan and her other ex Jay. Meanwhile, Farrah became a mom -- quite literally -- when she led a scheme against Kareem... this came after Murray began to stir the pot about him with a nasty rumor and hurt feelings towards Maya that may turn into something more.

The Mom, of course, is the key figure of this season to the MTV fan, but as those who've watch this show know - no one's safe. This week, she finds herself going down to the Shack of Secrets where a big surprise will await her. It's not the only Ex entrance to take center stage, as an Ex of an Ex will pop up on the beach with ambitions on wrecking havoc on a romance that's been developing early on, as well as expose some lies as well in the SOS. And the season's first Cut or Crush will go down this week, with the first Ex to get the heave-ho from Malibu at night's end.

After the jump, it's the Pulse of Episode 3 of Season 2 of Ex On The Beach. Thanks for sticking with us here... dive in.

DC SocialPulse Extra: A Team MTV New Year's 2019

*** 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

Hey there, hope this first weekend of the new year is going well. The big attraction of the MTV Reality week -- and for now, the winter -- is just to come with our Episode 3 Pulse of Ex On The Beach as the first Cut or Crush elimination looms ahead for our Season 2 friends.

Until that is posted later on tonight, indulge yourself in how Team MTV got to spend the final weekend of the year of 2018 that's just past and the first two days of 2019 as they rung in the new year. That includes the confirmation of a bittersweet breakup of an MTV fan favorite couple, Cory & Cheyenne on their first Teen Mom OG reunion, an emotional anniversary, a Challenger defending herself, a birthday for the Barbie Beast, and a first look at Lindsay Lohan's Beach Club. And of course, New Year's posts from the entire MTV crew including, if you can spot carefully, those who will be joining the membership not too long from now.

DC SocialPulse: Floribama Shore S2 - The Cabo Party Rages On...

*** 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 webbers, and if we have not spoken yet... a Happy New Year to you from DCBLOG. We are over 100 hours into 2019 with a lot happening in our world this first weekend of the spankin' new year, but in MTV Reality things are just tapering off from a December to Remember. And we are just days away from the year's first big premiere in Lindsay Lohan's Beach Club... we'll take a look at that, along with a familiar face invading Ex On The Beach later on here.
   First, this New Year's week has been a rather awesome one for three-eighth's of the cast of Floribama Shore: Nilsa, Candace and Codi all got to celebrate their birthdays this week, although for Nilsa this has also been a bittersweet one on the day that she turned 25 years old.  And this came in the middle of a time where, through the magic of television, they are rolling along with an eventful trip down to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.
   When we left them last week on the tip of Baja California, things once again revolved around two people: Gus and Nilsa, and what happened with him getting to see a girl he had seen in the club and his feelings for her. Meanwhile, Kortni suffered another meltdown in the streets of Mexico, and it's after she gets put down that she broke down in the bathroom. But now everything was all drama: Jeremiah followed in what The Situation had this summer in deciding to have an eating challenge which he succeeds in, but only gets rewarded the equivalent of $10 -- 200 Mexican pesos.
   For this week, if you saw the Floribama crew on Ludacris' reboot of Fear Factor before & after becoming MTV stars, they've had to put up with creepy crawlers, sand, and hanging by a helicopter over a lake. That last task that faced Jeremiah & Nilsa last summer offers the context to what they & the group will have to muster in having to face a bungee jump down into the canyon beneath. As we saw in New Orleans as well as Season 1, there's a tendency that the last night of anything for the FBS group will not be a memorable one: it may be the case again as they prepare to leave Mexico.

Ahead, the pulse of the final week in Cabo for Floribama Shore, plus a remembrance of a close friend of the group on a bittersweet birthday. Welcome in...

DC ExtraTime: Sir Chuck, Two Footballers, and That Ty Guy

From during The Challenge Invasion

BY DC CUEVA                      

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB

February is a busy month for sports fans: of course two weeks ago the New England Patriots pulled off the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history, by a mile, in stunning the Atlanta Falcons in Houston. This weekend is the NBA All-Star Game, taking place in New Orleans this year on short notice after a controversial state law forced the events out of Charlotte. NASCAR's Daytona 500 is not that far away, and we've also had college basketball, Australian Open tennis, All-Star Games and much more. And the 2018 Olympics begin in 51 weeks from now - evidence being Bob Costas passing his NBC host duties to Mike Tirico, the World Alpine Championships, and an Olympic hopeful, snowboarder Maddie Mastro, giving me an Instagram follow while in Korea for test events ahead of next year's Games. Along with the launch of this Challenge, this offers the backdrop for this piece of ExtraTime, where the person in focus has met a few well-known athletic luminaries.

When we met Ty Ruff on Real World D.C. back in 2010, he came to the District straight out of college. Having being abandoned by his biological parents, Ty was moved around all over Baltimore in foster homes before being adopted at age 5, eventually growing up in a neighborhood he compares to one seen on HBO's The Wire. Being one who relies on just himself, Ty considers himself smart, handsome, athletic, opinionated, funny, and tempered sometimes.

In the house in DuPont Circle, he became close to Emily shortly after moving in and they had an attraction that stayed throughout the season, which challenged the both of them emotionally and physically. He also pushed a Denver cartoonist famous for wearing panda hats in the house, Andrew, off the balcony by the side of their house, and sending him to the hospital. Then, Ty emerged onto The Challenge on Cutthroat where, not surprisingly, he got into words with Gulag master Brandon, which saw them get paired up on Rivals I. There, Ty was also the target of a fight that took place on the first night where Back to Vegas' Adam R. threw a punch at him which sent the bad boy (and now, new dad) home. Then on the first Exes, he got close to Challenge stalwart Paula causing a riff with Emily, but he overcame that to win 3 eliminations en route to a 3rd place finish. And on Rivals III, Ty & Leroy were recipients of a win by a DQ, then lost a close battle to Jordan & J-Deezy Marlon.

Since Ty moved out from the cold of Connecticut to the sunny climate of SoCal, he has had the opportunity to meet three notable people, all having played on the biggest stage in their various sports and also having done broadcast work as well. And you can't ask for a better first subject in offering these photos from his rarely-used Twitter, @The_Ty_Ruff.

● First, the aforementioned NBA All-Star Weekend is taking place this weekend, which again was planned for Charlotte until North Carolina's HB2 law intervened. In 1991 in that city, Charles Barkley had one of his best days of his NBA career when he received the Most Valuable Player award. Sir Charles enjoyed a stellar career as a member of the renowned 1984 draft class along with Michael Jordan, Patrick Ewing, John Stockton and Hakeem Olajuwon, all of whom (along with Brazilian basketball legend Oscar Schmidt) would join him in the Basketball Hall of Fame and wore the USA colors at the Olympics - the first three as part of the '92 Dream Team. And though he's never tasted an NBA title, Barkley's shining moment has been of spending over 15 years with Kenny Smith and host Ernie Johnson on Inside the NBA on TNT. And few years ago, Ty met with Chuck at one of those events when the legend wasn't in Atlanta alongside them and Shaquille O'Neal.

● Second, another Hall of Famer who's transitioned to television is Michael Strahan. The NFL player was drafted by the New York Giants in 1993 and in the salary-cap era was one of a handful of players to spend his entire career with one team. Few defensive ends in the league had the kind of dominance Strahan had during his career, being named Defensive Player of the Year three times either in the entire league or in the NFC, and considered by many the gold standard at his defensive end position. Strahan would stick around long enough to receive a Super Bowl ring when the Giants upset the undefeated Patriots in Super Bowl XLII in 2008 where had a sack and two tackles in what turned out to be his last game, with having the all-time career and single season sack records. And shortly after, he would join the FOX NFL Sunday pregame show, followed by a stint as co-host on Live with Kelly Ripa and on Good Morning America. Ty also met with Michael too.

● Finally, as Strahan was a constant for Big Blue, a quarterback from Syracuse was emerging to become the face of their bitter NFC East rivals. Donovan McNabb played in the NFL for 13 seasons, and was picked by the Philadelphia Eagles in the 1999 NFL Draft, becoming their starting quarterback. Under his wing, the Birds won five NFC East titles, went to five NFC title games, and stood strong in Super Bowl XXXIX in stretching the defending champion Patriots to the limit. McNabb became the club's all-time leader in all major passing categories and his career total rushing of just under 3,500 total yards is sixth all-time among QB's when being forced to rush rather than pass. After stints with in Washington and Minnesota after injuries derailed his career, McNabb turned to broadcasting, first with NFL Network, then with FOX, and now with beIN Sports' and ESPN Radio. And like Sir Charles and Michael, Donovan has also met Ty, also.

- I AM DC
#DCBLOG