Challenge Casts: Anything Goes

molds13;45183 wrote:
I didn't mind him on Fresh Meat, but it seemed like he kept getting cockier and cockier each season he appeared on. The last time, he was almost unbearable with how disrespectful he was.

That is the issue with many (not all) of the Fresh Meat kids. We didn't get a full season focused on them like the other cast members that participate in these challenges. Rather, we learned about them in piecemeal fashion which meant their true personalities in many cases did not have time to rise to the surface. They were fighting with 16-30+ other people for air time over 30 minute episodes - and then were sent home. Once they attended a few more challenges, a better idea of who they actually were was formed - but still no where near as in depth as a multi Real World/Road Rules episode arc that was dedicated to a standard challenge cast member (sometime in the past.) The bad news in Evan's case was the more I saw him, the less I thought of him. I know more about Baya from last Wednesday's Real World episode as a person then I know about Evan, even after all the shows he has been on. The reason? On challenges all they do is drink and do battle. There is no focus beyond the game, fights and hookups. No insight into personal goals or who these people really are. This leaves the majority of the Fresh Meat kids as perpetual challenge placeholders as we await robust characters to be created on the Real World farm and sent down the pipe...

RW561015;45172 wrote:
I am not focusing on the elimination rounds only when I talk about Alton, or any other competitor. I also was not making an argument that he is better than CT. I don't think it would be an easy win for CT going up against Alton, though. If you watch The Gauntlet (1), Alton did very well on the missions. He only did one gauntlet, so it would be hard to judge him on that, anyway. I just watched an episode of The Gauntlet, and Alton won the lifesaver for Vertical Limit. From what I remember, he also won more lifesavers and did well on other missions. He was very much so a strength for his team and just one of the better guys in that challenge overall, RW or RR. Alton and Landon, if you pay attention to the missions, were the only ones to complete that one mission where they had to walk across the line with a rope between their partner. Alton also lowered his body down in the pit to let Landon climb up him so that his team could win that pit mission. He also did well in most other missions. Even if you look at elimination rounds, just pay attention to how FAST Alton climbed up that net. That's what is impressive, not who he beat. He was just amazingly quick. Not quick compared to who he went against, but just plain quick. I think he could have beaten anyone in that Capture the Flag endgame. That challenge didn't focus enough on individual evaluation, so I can see a good amount of focus on the eliminations, but Alton doing Capture the Flag was just great on his own, and that's why people count that as an achievement for him. Alton is also one of those guys who does a variety of things, like rock-climbing, surfing, skateboarding, etc. I think it helps him in the challenges. Yeah, I would say he has "gone down" some since his mostly lackluster performance on I3, but he's not someone I see as a weakling or even an OK competitor. I still think he's a good competitor.

I second this. On Gauntlet 1 he won 4 out of the 8 lifesavers, the most out of all the players. On Gauntlet 2, I think he was a complete freak of nature! He just climbs those cargo nets in mere seconds! He was a great captain and had great team spirit thats why his team won in the end. On I3 his performance went down, but he still did well in some missions. He was also a major force on his team.

Bacchus;45184 wrote:
That is the issue with many (not all) of the Fresh Meat kids. We didn't get a full season focused on them like the other cast members that participate in these challenges. Rather, we learned about them in piecemeal fashion which meant their true personalities in many cases did not have time to rise to the surface. They were fighting with 16-30+ other people for air time over 30 minute episodes - and then were sent home. Once they attended a few more challenges, a better idea of who they actually were was formed - but still no where near as in depth as a multi Real World/Road Rules episode arc that was dedicated to a standard challenge cast member (sometime in the past.) The bad news in Evan's case was the more I saw him, the less I thought of him. I know more about Baya from last Wednesday's Real World episode as a person then I know about Evan, even after all the shows he has been on. The reason? On challenges all they do is drink and do battle. There is no focus beyond the game, fights and hookups. No insight into personal goals or who these people really are. This leaves the majority of the Fresh Meat kids as perpetual challenge placeholders as we await robust characters to be created on the Real World farm and sent down the pipe...

I really like this post Bacchus. I had never though of it in such a way, but it has put a new perspective in my mind. I never realized that. I think that is why most of the Fresh Meat cast have such a bad rep with viewers. We never really saw much of them, but what we get to see now is them being complete idiots, and acting like they run the show. I think it takes a truly good edit, example: Evelyn on The Island, to show that they are some nice, decent people. But personally, it still seems like I wouldn't like most of them even witht the edit, just based on what we have seen of Kenny and Evan. I think what turns me away from them, is the fact that it seems like they believe they are just as important, and in some cases, better than the actual cast which isn't necessarily true. Maybe if they focused more on playing the game, then they could become somewhat important and could possibly receive a better edit.

Bacchus;45184 wrote:
That is the issue with many (not all) of the Fresh Meat kids. We didn't get a full season focused on them like the other cast members that participate in these challenges. Rather, we learned about them in piecemeal fashion which meant their true personalities in many cases did not have time to rise to the surface. They were fighting with 16-30+ other people for air time over 30 minute episodes - and then were sent home. Once they attended a few more challenges, a better idea of who they actually were was formed - but still no where near as in depth as a multi Real World/Road Rules episode arc that was dedicated to a standard challenge cast member (sometime in the past.) The bad news in Evan's case was the more I saw him, the less I thought of him. I know more about Baya from last Wednesday's Real World episode as a person then I know about Evan, even after all the shows he has been on. The reason? On challenges all they do is drink and do battle. There is no focus beyond the game, fights and hookups. No insight into personal goals or who these people really are.

While this may be true in some cases, I don't totally agree. The challenges show us a lot more than "drink and do battle." The challengers are faced with more unique opportunities to show us their true colors-- aka who they really are. What with alliances, backstabbing of friendships out of greed, good vs bad sportsmanship, courage under fire (or lack thereof). Kelly Anne is a prime example, on RW Sydney, we got to know Dunbar as described by you above (because of his Temptation Island subplot) but the Kelly Anne edit was kind of blah. But on the island she was severely tested and pushed to her limits and I know much more of her true colors from that. Svetlana is another example. On RWKW she seemed like a typical young-rich-spoiled brat that spoke w/o thinking and got laughed at, but on The Duel, she seemed much more together for a girl her age. (1 on 1 "after shows" help) Obviously it helps when you don't get sent home early on challenges. My take on Kenny hasn't changed much since his debut on FM.

While this may be true in some cases, I don't totally agree. The challenges show us a lot more than "drink and do battle." The challengers are faced with more unique opportunities to show us their true colors-- aka who they really are.

Your argument references people who we already have a base of knowledge concerning (i.e. Kellyanne and Svetlana) being THEY WERE ON THE REAL WORLD. They understand the editing process by the time they reach the challenge and usually they account for that one way or another (either suck up to the camera to look good or take the opposite approach and play for air time.) Of course the more you see someone the more you will learn about them. I was talking specifically about the fresh meat kids. Most of them got less than 5 or 10 minutes of real air time for the season. How much can you tell me about Linette, Johnnie or Chanda? Also, there is no reality context on a challenge. It is a game, so you get game behavior. p.s. Your first take on Svetlana was the correct one.

Bacchus;49636 wrote:
p.s. Your first take on Svetlana was the correct one.

****IT!!! I was afraid of that. I was hoping that she was growing up, after all-- that stupid "Sweet 21st Birthday" show didn't paint her to be all that bad, which I think is the editor's main directive for all the "Sweet 16" spoiled brats.

flawed;49639 wrote:
DAMMIT!!! I was afraid of that. I was hoping that she was growing up, after all-- that stupid "Sweet 21st Birthday" show didn't paint her to be all that bad, which I think is the editor's main directive for all the "Sweet 16" spoiled brats.

What you didn't see was the result of the editors' continuing effort not to show you why she was destined for rehab.

wut about Jesse frum Fresh meat? Didn't he get like 2 minutes of airtime?

flawed;49639 wrote:
I was hoping that she was growing up, after all-- that stupid "Sweet 21st Birthday" show didn't paint her to be all that bad, which I think is the editor's main directive for all the "Sweet 16" spoiled brats.

Yes congratualtions Svets, you managed to not look as bratty and spoiled as your 16-year old counterparts. A. reality experience, B. she was 5 yrs older, C. MTV probably didn't want to reduce the popularity (Voted hottest chick) of this possible valuable, marketable commodity. What makes me wonder is why she what do such a ridiculously stupid show in the 1st place. Talk about a sell-out. Hopefully the paycheck was worth it. Svetlana: "This is my last big party, then I can quit partying for good and concentrate on Med School. Cold Wind of Reality: "Yeah right"

While I admit there are some cast members I generally dislike (which is most likely due to editing) I have only ever had one complaint about a casting choice. Ever since I found out Piggy was originally on The Inferno 1, I can barely stand to watch it. I just can't believe they replaced her with Christena from RR South Pacific. I like her and everything, but Piggy was and has always been entertaining, while Christena, in my own opinion, was not. I'm sure it had something to do with timing, but still.. Piggy>Christena. Perhaps I was just disappointed because then it would have been a complete team of RR ladies that I loved. I know this is completely biased... but that was my one complaint:wink:

Rookie047;49855 wrote:
While I admit there are some cast members I generally dislike (which is most likely due to editing) I have only ever had one complaint about a casting choice. Ever since I found out Piggy was originally on The Inferno 1, I can barely stand to watch it. I just can't believe they replaced her with Christena from RR South Pacific. I like her and everything, but Piggy was and has always been entertaining, while Christena, in my own opinion, was not. I'm sure it had something to do with timing, but still.. Piggy>Christena. Perhaps I was just disappointed because then it would have been a complete team of RR ladies that I loved. I know this is completely biased... but that was my one complaint:wink:

Well, to be fair, MTV had no choice. I mean yes they could have chosen someone other than Christena, but no matter what, it wasn't going to be Piggy. She was THERE with them that first day and then chose to leave on her own, whether it be for family issues or drugs (I remember reading several different rumors, who knows!), she was leaving. And Christena was new meat at the time so that could have been a factor in her being chosen. Actually, I was watching Inferno the other day, and you can make out Piggy's fro in the background of the first episode haha.

LMAO at people thinking the Miz and Alton would be competition to CT. Miz got worse and worse at challenges the bulkier he got. CT left him in the dust when they were on the same team on I1 when Miz was at his peak, and on I2 when Miz bulked up, CT absolutely smoked him. And the only events Alton really excels at are climbing events, and suffice it to say CT is no slouch when it comes to those events either. He zips up and down ladders and other contraptions on these with no problems. One guy isn't even strong enough to pull a woman through the water with a fishing pole and the other guy pushed a legit 185-200 pound guy (Brad) like an absolute ragdoll. I don't know if you guys remember the mission on the first Duel where they had to jump across back & forth to the matresses. Those matresses were 10 feet apart for the guys, and CT made the jump across easily and landed on both feet with plenty of room to spare. Just to show how impressive that is, go to the NFL's website and look at the broadjumps the rookies did at the combine. Very few guys got over 10 feet and these guys are professional athletes in the making.

I remember that Duel Mission. I lol'd hard when Robin fell hard (bless her heart).

Bucky;50059 wrote:
LMAO at people thinking the Miz and Alton would be competition to CT. Miz got worse and worse at challenges the bulkier he got. CT left him in the dust when they were on the same team on I1 when Miz was at his peak, and on I2 when Miz bulked up, CT absolutely smoked him. And the only events Alton really excels at are climbing events, and suffice it to say CT is no slouch when it comes to those events either. He zips up and down ladders and other contraptions on these with no problems. One guy isn't even strong enough to pull a woman through the water with a fishing pole and the other guy pushed a legit 185-200 pound guy (Brad) like an absolute ragdoll. I don't know if you guys remember the mission on the first Duel where they had to jump across back & forth to the matresses. Those matresses were 10 feet apart for the guys, and CT made the jump across easily and landed on both feet with plenty of room to spare. Just to show how impressive that is, go to the NFL's website and look at the broadjumps the rookies did at the combine. Very few guys got over 10 feet and these guys are professional athletes in the making.

Are you related to CT or just obsessed with him? The only time you ever post is if something is said about CT.

Zachary;50061 wrote:
I remember that Duel Mission. I lol'd hard when Robin fell hard or was it Beth (bless her heart).

It wasn't Beth. As for CT, this is my monthly reminder to read spoilers for The Duel, if you are presently curious about him. There is something in a couple of the threads about him.

tjhallow;50062 wrote:
Are you related to CT or just obsessed with him? The only time you ever post is if something is said about CT.

Oh my god, there was once this guy on IMDB boards that was just like Bucky. Anyway, people praise CT way too much.

Once they attended a few more challenges, a better idea of who they actually were was formed - but still no where near as in depth as a multi Real World/Road Rules episode arc that was dedicated to a standard challenge cast member (sometime in the past.) The bad news in Evan's case was the more I saw him, the less I thought of him. I know more about Baya from last Wednesday's Real World episode as a person then I know about Evan, even after all the shows he has been on. The reason? On challenges all they do is drink and do battle. There is no focus beyond the game, fights and hookups. No insight into personal goals or who these people really are. This leaves the majority of the Fresh Meat kids as perpetual challenge placeholders as we await robust characters to be created on the Real World farm and sent down the pipe...

Evan, Kenny, Eric and even Ryan just think they are G-d's gift to man, because they did a few challenges. And even with all the challenges they did, we still don't know much about them. I mean you can tell if they changed physically, but personality wise you can't really tell. Since FM was their first challenge, they all tried to put on the nice, funny guy persona, but as the challenges went on, you can tell they dropped it and pretty much act like jerks. But do people really know anything about them? You see them in a challenge setting, which is not a good setting to know someone! It's true do people even remember Jesse, Linette, Aviv or Johnnie?

If people didn't remember Aviv why would they be asking for her on other boards to do challenges? Linette can get on the first elevator straight to hell for all I care. Johnnie was okay but he didn't do much. Jesse was there for drama...

Zachary;50071 wrote:
If people didn't remember Aviv why would they be asking for her on other boards to do challenges?

Besides those 6 people... I have nothing against Aviv. Just know nothing about her from a handful of minutes of air time. I'm sure somewhere there is a campaign for Kristen from RRVR to be on a challenge too. That doesn't mean it will ever happen.

Bacchus;50072 wrote:
Besides those 6 people... I have nothing against Aviv. Just know nothing about her from a handful of minutes of air time. I'm sure somewhere there is a campaign for Kristen from RRVR to be on a challenge too. That doesn't mean it will ever happen.

Agree. If you didn't make a positive impression on Jacquie French at MTV, all the campaigning in the world will be meaningless. She approves the cast and is impervious to extraneous influences.

Kristen definetly deserved to be giving a chance, same with the guy with the hair, Jerry I think.

V1man;50078 wrote:
If you didn't make a positive impression on Jacque French at MTV, all the campaigning in the world will be meaningless. She approves the cast and is impervious to extraneous influences.

I kind of figured that. Petitions never work. Unless it enviornmentally related or something like we used to do in school.

Bacchus;49636 wrote:
p.s. Your first take on Svetlana was the correct one.

While I certainly don't have the same information or basis that you have to reach that conclusion I would have to agree. I've been watching these challenges for years now and as result of this I have my personal favorites and Beth is one of them. I still can't get over the fact that Svetlana "beat" Beth on The Duel. Well we all saw that Beth clearly won and that Svetlana got away with a win based on a technicality. I still remember Svetlana's attitude at the reunion show wanting to make it seem like she had kicked major *** in the challenge when the truth is that she simply got lucky. I remember laughing when she said that she had stayed there fighting against Beth when I remember seeing Beth barely grabbing the pole, as soon as Beth decided to start pushing the pole, Svetlana was done. Svetlana's unnecesary and uncalled for disrespect towards Beth in that reunion show to me showed who she truly was. PS Cant comment much on Svetlana's B-day party on MTV because I've never been able to stomach watching it.

One of my favorite cast members for the challenges is Beth and I feel that people don't give her the credit that she deserves. I think she's proven to be a good competitor and not only on an athletic level but also, and most importantly on a strategic and mental level. When I see Coral, Rachel, Veronica, Jody, and some of the so-called "strongest girls" doing well in a challenge in which most of the people in their team are plotting against them, I'll have for them the same respect I have for Beth. When Coral was an outcast in a challenge for the first time, she clearly couldn't handled it and left. Miss "girl who invented the game" went almost alone on the last season of RR (with Shane) and only lasted one week on the rv. Rachel might prove me wrong in The Duel II, but then again I certainly don't know what the dynamics were for this challenge let alone the results. After Inferno III, I also have a lot of respect for Evelyn. I feel that Evelyn paired up with Beth in some type of alliance would be unstopabble. As for which guys I think are the strongest, it's very hard to tell. I think that Mark from RR1 and Eric from RW1 are probably stronger competitors than most of these guys that I see that people keep mentioning. Strategywise, I simply cannot see for the life of me how could CT, Even or Kenny beat any strategy that Mark or Eric can come up with (and once again by strategy I don't mean just forming alliances). CT might be physically strong, but everything else about him makes him a VERY WEAK competitor in my honest opinion. With those tantrums of him, it's pretty clear that he cannot handle pressure. I might be biased since I've never been exactly thrilled by his character on tv, but I honestly don't think that CT is that strong competitor that so many people seem to think he is.

Dannyboy;50658 wrote:
One of my favorite cast members for the challenges is Beth and I feel that people don't give her the credit that she deserves. I think she's proven to be a good competitor and not only on an athletic level but also, and most importantly on a strategic and mental level. When I see Coral, Rachel, Veronica, Jody, and some of the so-called "strongest girls" doing well in a challenge in which most of the people in their team are plotting against them, I'll have for them the same respect I have for Beth. When Coral was an outcast in a challenge for the first time, she clearly couldn't handled it and left. Miss "girl who invented the game" went almost alone on the last season of RR (with Shane) and only lasted one week on the rv. Rachel might prove me wrong in The Duel II, but then again I certainly don't know what the dynamics were for this challenge let alone the results. After Inferno III, I also have a lot of respect for Evelyn. I feel that Evelyn paired up with Beth in some type of alliance would be unstopabble. As for which guys I think are the strongest, it's very hard to tell. I think that Mark from RR1 and Eric from RW1 are probably stronger competitors than most of these guys that I see that people keep mentioning. Strategywise, I simply cannot see for the life of me how could CT, Even or Kenny beat any strategy that Mark or Eric can come up with (and once again by strategy I don't mean just forming alliances). CT might be physically strong, but everything else about him makes him a VERY WEAK competitor in my honest opinion. With those tantrums of him, it's pretty clear that he cannot handle pressure. I might be biased since I've never been exactly thrilled by his character on tv, but I honestly don't think that CT is that strong competitor that so many people seem to think he is.

There is no question that if Evelyn and Beth are ever on a challenge together again, they will be openly aligned with each other. Since her next challenge will likely be her last, Beth will likely not again agree to be BMP's ratings punching bag and she will openly align with her friends. Who those friends actually are will probably surprise and perhaps even shock many veteran watchers who never spend a second wondering about the back story. Hell, BMP will probably be shocked too, since they have no clue.

Dannyboy;50658 wrote:
One of my favorite cast members for the challenges is Beth and I feel that people don't give her the credit that she deserves. I think she's proven to be a good competitor and not only on an athletic level but also, and most importantly on a strategic and mental level. When I see Coral, Rachel, Veronica, Jody, and some of the so-called "strongest girls" doing well in a challenge in which most of the people in their team are plotting against them, I'll have for them the same respect I have for Beth. When Coral was an outcast in a challenge for the first time, she clearly couldn't handled it and left. Miss "girl who invented the game" went almost alone on the last season of RR (with Shane) and only lasted one week on the rv. Rachel might prove me wrong in The Duel II, but then again I certainly don't know what the dynamics were for this challenge let alone the results. After Inferno III, I also have a lot of respect for Evelyn. I feel that Evelyn paired up with Beth in some type of alliance would be unstopabble. As for which guys I think are the strongest, it's very hard to tell. I think that Mark from RR1 and Eric from RW1 are probably stronger competitors than most of these guys that I see that people keep mentioning. Strategywise, I simply cannot see for the life of me how could CT, Even or Kenny beat any strategy that Mark or Eric can come up with (and once again by strategy I don't mean just forming alliances). CT might be physically strong, but everything else about him makes him a VERY WEAK competitor in my honest opinion. With those tantrums of him, it's pretty clear that he cannot handle pressure. I might be biased since I've never been exactly thrilled by his character on tv, but I honestly don't think that CT is that strong competitor that so many people seem to think he is.

Put Evan and CT on a team and put Eric and Mark on a team and have them face off in like 16 different challenges. I guarantee Evan and CT lose no more than 2 or 3.

Zachary;50079 wrote:
Kristen definetly deserved to be giving a chance, same with the guy with the hair, Jerry I think.

I don't know if MTV will actually allow these two to be on a challenge considering they aren't officially "Road Rulers" because they never actually made it on the bus. Tori, Angel, and Dan were on a challenge(s) because they all made it to the bus.

comedyrp;50692 wrote:
I don't know if MTV will actually allow these two to be on a challenge considering they aren't officially "Road Rulers" because they never actually made it on the bus. Tori, Angel, and Dan were on a challenge(s) because they all made it to the bus.

No kidding. One's allowed to dream. :heart:

V1man;50671 wrote:
There is no question that if Evelyn and Beth are ever on a challenge together again, they will be openly aligned with each other. Since her next challenge will likely be her last, Beth will likely not again agree to be BMP's ratings punching bag and she will openly align with her friends. Who those friends actually are will probably surprise and perhaps even shock many veteran watchers who never spend a second wondering about the back story. Hell, BMP will probably be shocked too, since they have no clue.

Thanks for the insight V1man, I really cannot wait to see Beth again on a challenge and hopefully finally achieving a much deserved win. Gauntlett 2 was hers to lose and she simply chose not to go against Aneese in what she considered a degrading gauntlett. No girl on that challenge could've beaten Beth in a reverse tug of war. Where I feel that she was definitely robbed was on The Duel. In my opinion she beat Svetlana fair and square and idc about some stupid rules the decided to come up with to alter the results. I know you probably can't say too much but are you suggesting that some of these castmembers who always join the I love to hate Beth fanclub are actually friends with her in real life? I know she's suggested this on the past on her blogs on MySpace.

Bucky;50691 wrote:
Put Evan and CT on a team and put Eric and Mark on a team and have them face off in like 16 different challenges. I guarantee Evan and CT lose no more than 2 or 3.

It is my understanding that [spoiler deleted] are on the next challenge. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.