Challenge Final Reckoning Episode 2 Recap: Count the Rings
How did the episode begin? Watch this clip:
The Redemption House gets to watch the fight between Kailah and Melissa. Most were enthused to see a team exit the game. Jenna, though, is upset because Kailah is her #1 female ally. This twist is fun, it might not be fair, but it’s still fun at the end of the day.
At the House
TJ informs Melissa and Kailah they will be eliminated and Kam and Kayleigh will be forming a new duo. Kayleigh is hyped to be paired with one of the best players in the game, Kam is less enthusiastic as Kayleigh is one of the worst players. As they leave the house, Melissa has little remorse, while Kailah is in tears, disappointed by her actions. It is a tough loss for Kailah because she already has an army of haters ready to go after even when she succeeds. Melissa is a villain who got to dip because she fought and not because she sucked at the Challenges.
Life moves on in the house. Paulie and Cara are flirting, she is super into him. Brad asks Cara how she feels about Kyle as an ally and human being. Cara tells Brad that everything out of Kyle’s mouth is a lie (Cara might be biased). She says it sucks that you can love and hate someone on the same team. Cara Maria and Marie are a total embodiment of this statement as majority of the house is divided on them. The episode has a heavy dose of Cara Maria, Faith, Kyle, and Paulie. Faith and Kyle are getting more into each other, making Cara jealous. Paulie is shocked to see the Challenge Champion heartbroken over the British pirate. Kyle and Paulie do not like each other, it is unclear whether either actually likes Cara Maria, but it is clear that neither want Cara’s attention. As bad as Cara has looked this season, she still deserves better.
acts as voice of reason and tells Cara it is fine to show her emotions. It is better to voice her feelings and thoughts rather than holding onto them and being passive aggressive. The moment was cute. When Angela arrives with the clue to the next challenge, everyone pelts her with pillows, a Challenge tradition. Angela takes this as an insult and leaves the room yelling and cursing at people. Faith is upset because Angela continues to put a target on her back. Although Bananas incited the prank, he is the first to talk her off a cliff and flirts with her. He thinks she is hot, and she sees a strong competitor who she can use. Zach jokingly states “well she isn’t that tough if a pillow could break her.
Redemption House Interlude
In The Redemption House, Britni and Chuck are working out their relationship issues with hints of sexual tension here and there. It would be much more interesting to watch if they were in the main house. It is the only real side-plot in the Redemption House.
Back to The Game
The morning before the Challenge, Bananas talks to Faith about his potential partners. He has no clue what he does to alienate people. This was actually funny. Natalie discusses her dislike of Kayleigh, as Kayleigh outed Natalie on social media. Natalie reveals she is currently dating a girl and is pansexual. It’s a strong moment for Natalie to be completely open. Kam knows Natalie is a strong competitor and she has to go for her before she goes after Kam for being partnered with Kayleigh.
The Daily Challenge
Players are hooked up to a harness and have a team platform. The Swinger will hurl themselves into open air collecting rings and bringing them back to their partner. The Pusher needs to grab their collected rings and pull their partners back in. To succeed in this challenge, you need some athleticism, if you are agile and a good jumper then you should have a major advantage.
Before they begin, Bananas needs a partner… BAH GAWD, is that Tony Raines’ music.
Bananas and Tony are not happy to be partners (actually, they totally are). Bananas does not like Tony trying to step in as the star of the show, and Tony hates how corny Bananas is. Really, they are playing it up for the camera.
First Round Results:
Heat 1 (Swinger/Pusher)
1st Brad/Kyle: 11 Rings
2nd Angela/Faith: 9 Rings
3rd Kayleigh/Kam: 7 Rings
4th Veronica/CT: 5 Rings
5th Sylvia/Joss: 4 Rings
6th: Amanda/Zach: 1 Ring
The Co-Ed teams thought they could simply hurl their smaller female partners in the challenge. It was not a successful strategy whatsoever, especially for Amanda and Veronica who are 5'3 and 5'1 respectively. Brad dominates, Angela/Faith surprise people, and Veronica/Amanda’s ropes get tangled for a solid minute at one point.
My problem with this Challenge is that Zach/Amanda are a massive distance away from the rings compared to a team like Faith and Angela. MTV did not calculate this one properly. The radius is not equal on all sides.
Heat 2:
1st Brad/Kyle: 11 Rings*
2nd Bananas/Tony: 11 Rings
3rd Shane/Nelson: 7 Rings
3rd Paulie/Natalie: 7 Rings
5th Cara/Marie: 6 Rings
6th Derrick/Tori: 3 Rings
Derrick shits the bed on this challenge by not climbing back up on the platform every time he returns to Tori. He also does not listen to her at all. Bananas is primed to win the Challenge and grabs his first nine rings at a fast pace. Shane and Nelson see this and decide it better for Bananas not to win. If you watch closely, Nelson waits for Bananas to go and shoots Shane in a direction with no rings. Shane is holding the top of his harness to ensure his gets tangled with Bananas.
Shady Shane is in prime form. Bananas and Tony are still able to retrieve 11 rings, but Brad and Kyle do it quicker to win the Challenge.
After the Challenge, TJ reveals that only the winners (Kyle and Brad) are safe. Kyle is dead-set on voting Paulie in, based on his allies (Tony, Zach, Faith, etc), he has the votes.
MVP — Kyle Christie
He has Cara Maria completely out of whack and jealous because he is into Faith. His partner single-handedly won him the first challenge, and the girl he is hooking up with (Faith), put up the third best overall score in the challenge. Everything’s coming up Kyle.
LVP — Derrick Henry
After being the star on Ex on the Beach, the man has had no camera time and is now being cursed by Tori for being useless. Derrick took a giant L this week.
