DC ExtraTime: Team MTV Meets A Teen Mom

From The Challenge: Champs vs. Pros Week 4

Because of the sensitive nature of the subject, 

comments have been turned off in this post.

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

Tomorrow, Thursday June 8th, sees yours truly head down to Southern California for the first time in over a decade, and the first time in exactly 20 years that I stepped foot inside Disneyland. The reason for this is that my niece is celebrating her 9th birthday this weekend, and she and us will mark it in a grand way inside the Magic Kingdom. That leads us to this piece of ExtraTime in having a birthday party… but for this one, it isn't exactly Disney-level family appropriate, shall we say.
   After posting our WRAP on Monday, if you got to see this site and our DC@TUMBLR page, you might've seen a repost from two years ago where we looked at the brief relationship between Kiki from Are You The One? Season 3 and Ryan Edwards, ex-husband of Teen Mom original girl, and a friend of the Trifecta, Maci Bookout. We reposted it in light of news the past week of Ryan admitting himself into rehab amid speculation of him encountering drug use, continuing a wave of bad luck for those in a franchise that began eight years ago this summer when the girls were 16 & Pregnant.

Another one who has had her moments since that summer of 2009 is this week's ExtraTime subject. The world first got to meet Farrah Abraham on season 1 of 16 & Pregnant as that girl from Omaha who, like fellow MTV alum and Nebraskan Laura of Real World St. Thomas, was a high school cheerleader. But she became pregnant by the time the summer of 2008 had arrived and had awaited all nine months for her baby to come, but tragedy struck just before the big day: her boyfriend of two years, Derek Underwood, was the victim of a fatal car accident over the holidays. And while she marked the birth of daughter Sophia two months later, there was no doubt an emptiness that Derek was not there in person to witness this ultimate life-changer… something that still haunts her to this day.
   On Teen Mom and its current OG iteration, viewers have seen Farrah's evolution: her having breast augmentation surgery, going down to South Florida for college, and parents Debra & Michael getting a divorce after Farrah had an argument with her mom which turned violent. When the show went on hiatus in summer 2012, Farrah released a music album and a memoir entered My Teenage Dream Ended, found herself behind bars for a DUI violation, and did both a season of VH1's Couples Therapy and made headlines in a memorable stint in the UK Celebrity Big Brother house. Then, just as it was with Dustin on Real World Back to Vegas, rumors spread of her being part of an adult sex tape which made her a millionaire but after getting drugged and raped came back to bite her in being affiliated with this pleasure industry. No wonder why there remains a solid hatred for her among fans and even among her co-stars in the Teen Mom family.

As rumors of drama with her mom and her on & off boyfriend Simon swirl (and her dating an AYTO alum which we will look at this summer), plus her on WE TV's Family Boot Camp also, this past weekend Farrah was in New York for her 26th birthday as well as shooting an Teen Mom reunion. And fitting enough for someone deemed the queen of this show whether people like it or not, Farrah celebrated her birthday in grand style in clubs in the Big Apple.

   Along with daughter Sophia, the guest list for the festivities included some from all three shows of the MTV Trifecta. Representing The Challenge was the 3rd place finisher on Invasion Nicole, while holding up her end for Real World was newly-single Jennifer from the Bad Blood season. But the largest representation came from Are You The One?: there's the original - Brittany from Season 1, the newbie and someone who knows what it's like to be the least liked person on her cast - Alicia from Season 5, and the perfect match - Giovanni & Francesca from Season 4 and AYTO Second Chances, and one of those involved in steals down in Australia. The picture of them is located above.

- I AM DC
#DCBLOG

DC FORUM: Reality Debrief 2017: Mid-Year Edition - Part 1

The views & opinions expressed in DC FORUM are only of its hosts and

do not necessarily reflect the views of DCBLOG or affiliated parties.

A DCBLOG Discussion

WITH DC CUEVA & ANDREW KIRK  

■ @DC408Dxtr / @CSUGradAKirk

Hey there, as DCBLOG is taking you Inside the MTV Trifecta, and we hope you're enjoying our coverage The Challenge XXX, as the game is on once again down in Central America - and we'll have more on Episode 8 from this past week coming up a little bit later. But on this second weekend of September - and if you got some time in between all the NFL action that's taking place today, it's time for this special edition of a DCBLOG wintertime tradition: the Reality Debrief with DC Cueva and fellow reality TV fan, webcast host and friend Andrew Kirk.
   This summer slate of reality television, headlined by the likes of Big Brother and, of course, The Challenge, has been going on for some time, providing a much needed respite from what has been another eventful few months in this world we live in. And here, we'll take this opportunity to look back and take stock on all that took place in the run of programming that took place in the first half of 2017 in reality TV in the moments, the people and beyond during this break in our usual weekly coverage covering the social media reaction, the particulars and our look at the people of this site's principal beat of covering the MTV ecosystem of The Challenge and its related sisters.
   This is the first of two parts which we will have to discuss the MTV Trifecta, and later this month we'll review The Challenge: Invasion of the Champions, the Champs vs. Pros mini-season, and the current Dirty 30 season with thoughts on the season so far as it is at its halfway point... We'll be talking to fellow Challenge blogger Allan Aguirre coming up then. But first, we'll be devoting this first part to Are You The One? as Andrew and I will look back at Season 5 from earlier this year, as well as AYTO Second Chances which followed the chaotic ending in the Caribbean... all as Season 6 is now less than two weeks away.

So, join Andrew and I -- or better yet, Cueva & Kirk -- after the jump as DC FORUM presents Part 1 of Reality Debrief 2017: the Mid-Year Edition.

DC ExtraTime In-Depth: Bananas vs. Wes - The Backstory

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

Happy Memorial Day to all of you from DCBLOG, as we continue our look Inside the MTV Trifecta. And we are now into the homestretch of, what will ultimately be, a nine-month journey that began in Seattle, and after crisscrossing the globe to the Caribbean and then to three countries in the Asia/Pacific region, has brought us back to the West Coast and to Southern California, venue for The Challenge: Champs vs. Pros.
   For Challenge fans, there have been reasons to be excited the past several months: all-time beast CT becoming a two-time champion on Invasion of the Champions, underdog Ashley M. upsetting Camila to become the biggest surprise champion in more than a decade, and a lot of drama south of the top of the victory podium in Thailand. And of course, there is this special treat of those three, as well as seven other champions joining them to face off against ten professional athletes to see who is the best, while also letting twenty different charities and causes become the true champions of this season in all the money won here going to them on behalf of those competing on Champs vs. Pros.
   But at the top of the heap has been a bevy of one-on-one elimination battles that has gone down both in Asia inside the Fortress, and in the Cali sun for this special Challenge spinoff series. And this past week saw the latest Champs vs. Champs battle, which also marked the first-ever faceoff in an elimination arena between two of The Challenge's best-known competitors, and winningest players. That is the subject of this latest edition of ExtraTime In-Depth, where in the wake of this past week's battle, we focus on The Backstory of the rivalry between Johnny Bananas and Wes Bergmann.

DC WRAP: Challenge Champs vs. Pros EP. 2 & AYTO Second Chances Finale

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

As you get to enjoy the middle day of your Memorial Day weekend this Sunday, we have the WRAP to bring you here to look back on the week in the MTV Trifecta. This past week saw the finale of Are You The One? Second Chances in the confirmation of a man who saw a trip to Australia to enhance his legend, and together with his match from the South made easy work of the competition. And he can also be proud of what happened the previous night on The Challenge: Champs vs. Pros, as the guy he grew close with in the mansion they called home last year had his most satisfying moment ever on this franchise in beating his rival in another epic Champions elimination.

   We'll be covering both of them here in this truncated edition of the WRAP, ahead after the jump.

DC WRAP: Champs vs. Pros Premiere, Invasion Reunion & AYTO 2ndChances EP9

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

It's Tuesday, but not any ordinary Tuesday as we are heading towards the beginning of summer for many of you. And we at DCBLOG are back with you again to Wrap up this past week in the MTV Trifecta before new episodes air tonight.
   Last week saw the last act of an unpredictable Challenge season, the beginning of a special summer attraction full of Champs & Pros, and the last regular mission on AYTO Second Chances. We saw a lot go down on the Invasion Reunion hosted by a true Trifecta icon, an Olympian who's been doubted all her life respond in a big way, and saw how it all ended unfortunately for a budding perfect match.
   We'll recap it all for you here before we proceed with Act 2 down in SoCal and the Australian finale tomorrow night, along with a couple specials as well. Then, on the topic of having seen her fellow friend return to our MTV airwaves this past week, we'll catch up with a Challenge stalwart and Road Rules veteran as she now looks forward to a new addition in her life. That's all ahead.

DC SocialPulse: Champs vs. Pros Premiere & Challenge Invasion Reunion

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

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

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

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

Welcome to the weekend, as we now enter the late part of spring and race towards the summertime. And when it's the weekend, it also means one thing: DCBLOG taking you Inside the MTV Trifecta. And we kick things off with a transition of sorts in the fifth major pro sport as we head towards the conclusion of this cycle of covering this great passion of ours on this site: one the final act of the season that was in Thailand, and the other - the beginning of something unique.

   This week sees the kick off of a special six-week mini season of The Challenge in Champs vs. Pros, as NFL star Victor Cruz takes over for TJ Lavin as host of this season full of all-stars from all around the sports world as they take on seven champions we just saw on Invasion of the Champions plus three more making their return. Here, it's Olympic athletes, NFL stars, and an icon of fight sports, taking on the likes of Bananas, Wes, CT, Cara Maria, Camila and others in the SoCal sun for not just glory but also charity as well.

   But first, as the co-feature to this week's Challenge Tuesday, there's the always-entertaining conclusion to any season of the Trifecta: the Reunion, and for The Challenge, it's Invasion of the Champions with a true MTV icon. And to help commemorate the 25th anniversary of Real World this weekend - Season 10 Back to New York alum turned WWE Champion Mike "The Miz" hosts the big show as many of the castmates gather to discuss rivalries, friendships, hook-ups and more from Thailand... and plenty of drama too.
   Coming up, all the action, reaction and interaction of this Double Shot of The Challenge and the surrounding buzz from this week, including Mother's Day. And on this graduation weekend for many of you, after the Pulse on ExtraTime we'll catch up with a Real World'er from a few years back who was part of a fan favorite couple and has now experienced that feeling of getting a college diploma.

First, as we commence this miniseries… just in case you're joining us for the first time here by just finding us here - then welcome in and get yourself comfortable. If you're a fan of The Challenge, or its feeder shows Real World and Are You The One?, then DCBLOG is the place for those who want more from the MTV Trifecta. And The 'Pulse is an signature feature offering a look at the other show that takes place concurrent to the madness of what we're seeing on TV: the social media interaction between cast members, alumni and fans from Twitter. It becomes equal to the big show as they wrap themselves around the communal viewing experience of watching themselves on TV.

   Presented each weekend to kick off our weekly wave of posts, these exclusive running diaries are specially designed, curated and pieced together by yours truly in real-time - tweet by tweet and uncensored - to bring the hookups, drama, action and all else to you here. This is a service to all of you fans - both those who just want to relive the action, reaction and interaction in real time, or for the many who might not have experienced the buzz at the time of the episodes' ET airing and want to catch up in these diaries, posted to you here after it airs on MTV wherever you are.

   The Pulse is just part of DCBLOG's all-encompassing Trifecta coverage: with episode Wraps, thoughtful & in-depth analysis, and ExtraTime original stories, we take you beyond the drama to cover the people and the stories that take you beyond the hype, the headlines and the hookups. And it's presented by this long-time MTV fan who loves these shows as much as you do, has become good friends with a lot of the castmates, and now translates that passion into this site.

Now, the following are the actual tweets of the cast, alumni and fans as we got to see the premiere, along with the buildup to, and the aftermath of, the premiere and the Invasion reunion.

• 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.

Drama on stage, drama on the field, drama in the house, and a graduation... it's all coming up on this DC Challenge 'Pulse Double Shot.