The Challenge 40 Battle of the Eras Player Preview: Tina Bridges
Authentic Reality TV. Those are the words that come to my mind when I think of Tina. They’re fond words because when Tina is on my screen, I’m usually laughing, smiling, and even sometimes cringing and eye-rolling, but overall, I’m thoroughly entertained. Sometimes, I wish we could take some of Tina’s personality, charisma, and lack of filter and disperse it onto her fellow competitors.
In the early days of The Challenge, Tina was one of the best players in show history without the title of Champion. She went to multiple Finals, won some big eliminations, and was part of one of the most iconic alliances in show history. While I don’t think Tina is on the same level competitively anymore, she more than makes up for it with the laughter, joy, and loudness she brings to the show. Seriously, I didn’t know my TV could get that loud before Tina.
Tina’s Cheat Sheet
Introducing Tina:
Tina made her Reality TV debut in 2003, coming on as a replacement for Cara Zavaleta on Road Rules South Pacific. Now, let’s all take a moment to remember how hot Cara Z was/is. Actually, let’s look at a photo or two of her to really soak it in.
What were we talking about? Oh yeah, Tina. After her Road Rules season, Tina’s Challenge debut was The Gauntlet 1. She had a 5-episode run before losing to Coral in elimination, which, if you’re going to lose, it’s better for it to happen against a legend.
Tina returned for Battle of the Sexes 2, where she really began to prove herself as a competitor socially and strategically. This season, Tina outlasted 14-vote outs to make it all the way to the Final Four. Hilariously, she ended up voting out her future Mean Girl besties, Rachel and Veronica, this season and was the deciding vote to knock out Rachel specifically. Unfortunately, Tina came up just short of the Final as she was the last woman voted out.
On Battle of the Sexes 2, we saw the beginning of Tina’s beef with Tonya, which would continue on The Inferno 2. It was on Inferno 2 that we saw the iconic Mean Girls trio form. Tina proved to be a solid competitor. She beat Robin in elimination and then went to her first Final. The physical rigor of The Inferno 2 Final was much greater than any Final prior, and Tina was not prepared for it. She and Tonya both struggled mightily and brought their teams down.
We would see Tina get some redemption on Fresh Meat 1. She and Kenny formed a dysfunctional pair that was high comedy. As the game went on, they were clutch under pressure. They won two eliminations, beating Katie & Big Easy and then pulling off a historic upset by taking down Theo & Chanda. It’s important to note that now famous comedian Theo Von was, at one point, one of the best players on The Challenge and arguably a Top 5 player from the first ten seasons. After that elimination win, they won the final daily challenge to guarantee themselves a spot in the Final. They finished 2nd in the Final, losing to the formidable duo of Darrell & Aviv. 2nd Place in the first-ever true partner season is nothing to scoff at.
I do scoff at Tina’s whiffed punch attempt at Beth on The Duel 1 that got her DQ’d. If you’re going to get DQ’d for violence, at least throw a better punch! For a while, it seemed like that would be the last we’d see of Tina as a full-time competitor. We did see her on Cutthroat as a “Heavy Hitter.” Tina ended up taking the hits as Theresa & Tori defeated her in the backpack elimination (Back Off Me). There were rumors of Tina possibly appearing on seasons like Invasion and Dirty 30.
Finally, we got Tina back into our world with the All-Star spin-offs as she ripped off three straight seasons. On All-Stars 2, Tina had a booming immediate impact as a personality. She looked vibrant, was funny in confessionals, and performed decently in the first couple daily challenges. It was probably too hot of a start as Tina blew a gasket, and once she began to struggle, she made a scene, then quit because she didn’t like who she was becoming. Tina returned for All-Stars 3, where she reunited with Veronica. Together, they joined/formed the Treetop alliance along with Sylvia, Kailah, Jemmye, and Roni. With the numbers on her side, it should’ve been a smooth sailing season for Tina. Except Tina couldn’t keep herself out of elimination as she finished 2nd to last and then came in last in the first two dailies. She beat Cynthia in an elimination and was gifted a win as Melinda was out due to injury. Then, in the third daily challenge, Tina sustained an injury that DQ’d her from the game.
For All-Stars 4, we got the full Mean Girls reunion, as now Rachel was back. Tina felt out of her depth this entire season despite having her friends. She was consistently in the bottom group during daily challenges, which didn’t help the alliance as she brought little voting power to the table and was constantly in danger. When Tina did try to politick and help Rachel, her words often had an adverse effect. In the end, Tina had to face Kam in elimination, where she was swiftly knocked out of the game.
Although she’s struggled competitively these past few seasons, Tina has been electric television since returning. I’m glad she’s here for Season 40 because we need some comedic relief, and she’s an actual legend of the game.
Skills and Physical Strength:
Straight up, I’m not sure what Tina physically brings to the table these days.
While Tina has a scrappy and fierce personality, she’s still relatively short and undersized athletically. Over a decade ago on Cutthroat, we saw her get outworked physically in elimination by thin women (Theresa and Tori), which makes it difficult for Tina to have any success trying to wrestle or tackle someone like Tori, Kaycee, or even Olivia.
Tina’s had some wildly bad daily challenge performances on All-Stars and no longer seems super comfortable in heights or balance-based comps. Her cardio was terrible when she attempted to run Finals nearly two decades ago — so I’ll go out on a limb by saying that we shouldn’t expect Tina to win any footraces or marathons.
SSMP (Social, Strategic, Mental, and Political) Game:
All-Stars 2 and 4 exposed Tina’s inability to play the game politically or, at the very least, to adapt to adversity. I’ll give Tina credit strategically because Tina has always been a player who is willing to make big moves. Like on All-Stars 2, she quickly nominated Jodi after earning power. In turn, though, the first moment after Tina got nominated for an elimination, she folded faster than a $4 Old Navy T-shirt. Instead of keeping her cool, Tina banged pots and pans and quit her elimination against Melinda. Making a scene and then not even facing the consequences is just weak.
Socially, Tina should have some allies entering this game, most notably Rachel. Veronica’s absence might be better for their games because on All-Stars 4, they leaned too heavily on each other, and in the process, they got left out of the loop of multiple votes. Having a #1 loyal ally is great, but it’s also important to branch out and form other bonds.
In terms of the mental game, Tina used to be good at puzzles. However, we have yet to see this skill set translate to All-Stars.
Eliminations & Winning Potential:
In her original run, Tina was a player who thrived in elimination. Tina wouldn’t get nervous when the bright lights were on; she’d just lock in and compete. We didn’t see that at all in her elimination with Kam on All-Stars 4. I think Tina might still have that dog in her, and she could do well in some wacky carnival games. If Tina gets thrown into anything overtly physical or a headbanger, I don’t like her chances against 85% of this cast.
I will say that if Tina wins an elimination this season, the celebration she has afterward will be one of the most explosive moments of the season.
Can Tina win? No. She hasn’t been to a Final in 18 years, and when she did, her cardio wasn’t near the level needed to win. I love Tina; this is not her season to win.
Tina’s Overall Rating: 70/100
Previous Ratings I’ve Given Tina:
All-Stars 3: 77/100
