The Challenge World Championship Episode 9 Recap: 10 Biggest Takeaways

The 9th episode of The Challenge World Championship is in the books. You probably have some thoughts, so let’s compare. Instead of giving a simple summary, I decided to focus on the 10 Biggest moments/takeaways from the 9th episode.

10 Thoughts on Last Week

I didn’t publish a blog last week because I was busy and wasn’t inspired much by the episode. Congratulations to Amber on the pregnancy; sad to see her go. Ben has now been DQ’d on both seasons due to health reasons, and it’s frustrating because he was playing a messy game. We didn’t get to see him deal with the repercussions of his actions fully. Between Ben and Jonna, it sucks we don’t get closure on some of the biggest storylines/characters of the season.

Even worse, we now have a pairing of Kaycee and Troy that’s so boring that the only duo I can imagine being duller is Kaycee and her brother, whose name she doesn’t even know. Last week was another display of Challenge producers not understanding what made the original trivia episodes great. And then Benja & Jodi lost an elimination they probably wouldn’t ever win.

9 Transformers Commercial

The Transformers trailer went on for so long that I forgot what show I was watching and closed the tab I had this episode on.

8 Terrible Daily Challenge

There was nothing fun about this daily challenge. I’m sure the competitors had fun, but because they never showed us any of the
times players were setting, we had no concept of who was doing well in the moment. Plus, it adds a sense of doubt over who actually won the daily challenge, making whoever does not seem as impressive.

The only interesting part of the daily challenge was when Emily and Tori’s cars tipped over, and even then, it became unimportant moments later.

7 I Guess Jordan & Kaz won

Jordan & Kaz win the daily challenge. It’s not a surprise, as they are an excellent team. Although, there is part of me who thinks production might have picked them to win to stir the pot. Giving them the win could’ve led to some fake drama over whether Jordan would save Tori or Kaz would potentially save Theo. As well as the subplot of whether Kaz will break her promise to Tristan. Additionally, it keeps the Danny vs. Tori & Jordan storyline.

Kiki & Darrell came in last, which was a bit of shock as there was no indication as the daily went on that they did poorly.

6 Nominations

Each week the nominations become the Tori & Danny show, where their dysfunctional relationship takes center stage. With Jordan & Kaz safe this week, their alliance got their ducks in a row, nominating Tristan & KellyAnne and guaranteeing they’ll go in by also nominating Tori, knowing Jordan won’t let her go in.

KellyAnne tried to scramble, and even Kaz tried to see if Jordan would let them save Tristan in case it was a Hall Brawl where Tori & Danny could easily win. Nope, Jordan wouldn’t even entertain it.

5 The Soundtrack is a big downgrade from All Stars

They have sprinkled in some good songs here or there this season (we got Linkin Park in this episode during the boring daily challenge). As a whole, the soundtrack has been very generic this season. The music has elevated so many moments and episodes in the All-Stars seasons. This season, it feels painfully generic and cookie-cutter.

This blog makes it sound like I HATE this season. Honestly, I don’t. But I do feel indifferent, and it’s not a great feeling when I have to come back and write a blog. It’s easier to criticize than to fake enthusiasm. Which leads me to something I am passionate about.

4 Kiki is my favorite human being

I’ve loved Kiki since her first confessional on The Challenge Australia. And somehow, find myself loving her even more every week. As a competitor, Kiki shocks me every week because no matter the game, she throws herself into it and thrives. From Pole Wrestles to gross juice chugs to being a trivia wiz, Kiki does it all. And she does it all while keeping her posh Barbie image because that’s who she enjoys being. Kiki carries herself powerfully because she knows she’s powerful and deserves to get treated as such.

This week Kiki mentioned being a survivor of domestic violence and talked openly about it to give a voice to many others who are struggling/have struggled. It means so much because she is such a badass person who feels like Superwoman. Yet, even she’s had to deal with some shitty stuff. I fucking love Kiki, man. Also, I adore her commitment to keeping a clean home and her utter disgust over the pigs she lives with.

3 Chopsticks

In partner seasons, I love these eliminations because it requires legitimate cooperation and patience.

Darrell & Kiki weren’t on the same page to start. Kiki wanted to go fast, except Darrell’s balance skills aren’t the best, so they struggled at first. Once Kiki let Darrell take the lead and got at his pace, they crushed it.

On the other side, KellyAnne & Tristan opened strong. Then we saw their height difference, and nerves began to kick in, especially as Darrell & Kiki caught up.

Ultimately, it all came down to the tangerine puzzle, and Darrell & Kiki pulled it off. It was a great win for their duo, as KellyAnne & Tristan have won the comps this season. Darrell & Kiki have some momentum to them. If they can get to that Final, they’ll be dangerous.

2 KellyAnne is a Legend

Pretty simply, I’m bummed to see KellyAnne go. KellyAnne is everything you want in a Challenger: she is a tremendous physical competitor, is chaotic, messy, and is willing to play the game. During some of this season’s lulls, KellyAnne put the show on her very defined shoulders at times, and now without her, I worry about what the show will be from here.

1 Who is going to make the Final?

We only got two more daily challenges till the Final.

Darrell & Kiki and Kaycee & Troy have the biggest targets on them. Kiki got thrown in on Day 1; she and Darrell have seen their allies get picked off the last few weeks, so they must be ready to fight. Kaycee has got thrown in twice already, and Troy was in the misfits’ alliance with Kiki when Amber was his partner.

After them, Jordan & Kaz have decent targets on them because Jordan is a massive threat in the Final. Yes & Emily have gotten many votes thrown on them this season and could get left on the outside of their alliance if certain teams win/final in last in the upcoming dailies.

Hilariously, both Tori & Danny and Sarah & Theo have not won a daily challenge this season, yet haven’t seen an elimination, and unless they come in last, I think each of their squads has a great chance of making the Final.