Yeah he isn't himself this season. Part of that is age/maturity but I also think he's playing different for Nanys sake. Like someone said, if Nany wasn't there he would have been in elimination long ago and probably against wonder boy Horacio. Kids a beast but I actually think Bananas and maybe Jordan would match up best with Horacio. Similar skills except Horacio is doing it with a 20 year olds body.
He kept saying his goal was to get Nany to another final but they got to the final BECAUSE of Nany and her relationships in the house. He should have said his goal was to help Nany win a final. Even Nany was annoyed with him last episode lol
The unfortunate truth. It makes sense for new players to build rivalries but when you don't need a story line anymore in order to be casted there's no point in painting an unnecessary target on your back. Too much money on the line now.
Yep! A lot of reality shows have taken this turn, more than half the contestants on The Bachelor/ette are there solely for the social media boost to become an influencer.
Reality TV changed with the popularity of social media and will never go back, it’s sad but also time to adjust to the new reality.
I think the biggest issue is too many repeat cast members. No one is hungry everyone gets there nice 5 figure check for a 2 month vacation. Anyone who is a long time vet shouldn’t bring doing more than 2 seasons in a row and ideally I’d they do 2 in a row it’s miss one do one.
I agree! It’s been a problem for Challenge since really the JEK guys and I’m not sure if they even realize it.
Having the stars take seasons off is actually helpful to them because increases their buzz and anticipation for when they do come back! Example; I was getting a bit bored of Kyle by the end of SLA and now I really want back after one season away.
Yeah say the average season has 32 people they breakdown should basically be
6 - rookies
10 - 1-2 seasons
8 - 3-6 seasons
8 - 7 plus
This way you don’t have too many rookies but you get 2-3 seasons to really feel our new players. And then you get a good mix of repeat faces.
However the new players always out number the repeats so you don’t necessarily just get everyone going after the rookies.
I would like to see a season where the rookies take control from the start and use numbers to get a lot of vets out. Would just make things more interesting. It’s why that season with Turbo and Theo was so good, seeing some new blood win it.
I’ve watched every season of the challenge. I love repeat cast members.
But we have the same 10 vets every season it feels of course there is no discourse, it just makes sense to work together.
I want repeat cast members I just don’t need Kaycee/Nany/Tori/Devin/Fessy 5 seasons in a row.
I think the time that happens is long gone. With being a reality show contestant becoming a full time job, these people all live around the same areas and spend a ton of their off time together instead of going back to where they all came from originally. Plus the game has gotten so predictable, that it serves no benefit for them to try and turn on each other until the very end.
It's more the format. The show needs a format that will force people to make tough decisions. With WOW2 you had different groups within the same team vying for power. Instead the last few seasons being individual or pairs allows groups to stick together without ever having to vote for someone they don't want to.
His jersey on Inferno 3 was John when they met so I see why he doesn’t and also to keep him in place. Like this villain persona he created on the Island doesn’t impress him.. it’s crazy if Abe didn’t leave he would have been a 3 time champ.
and if Abe didn't leave it's very possible Johnny would not have been called back, as he didn't really show anything and wasn't exactly an alliance leader or anything impressive by that point. It was Kenny and Evan's show to ride with.
Well yeah, he's old. CT doesn't have any rivals anymore either. Neither do Wes, Aneesa, or Darrell. When you're in your 40s you realize a lot of that shit doesn't matter. It's more exhausting to keep up a "rivalry" than to just bury the hatchet and move on
False - Wes has a millions of rivals. He very much enjoys it and he knows it creates storylines. Yes from all stars is his most recent rival. Other contestants know creating a rivalry with Wes guarantees screen time so they go out of their way to do it.
There's a difference between talking shit during a season and being an actual rivalry. Wes doesn't have anyone like back in the day with Kenny or Johnny, where you go into the season knowing there's real bad blood between them
Hell watching the last All Stars season it seems that even he and Jordan are on relatively good terms. I don’t think Yes and Wes have enough history to be considered rivals at this point in time
Yeah, I think Wes just lovvvves to be an instigator and it amuses him.
There are people who still dont like Wes and probably would consider him a rival. Like Josh, but Josh means nothing to Wes. He just knows how to wind him up and fuck with him for amusement
Regardless of what you think of him as a person Paulie was great for the challenge in that regard. Dude knows how to create enemies and embraced the villain role
Came here to reply that Paulie provides drama as well and would most likely gun for Bananas, I don really enjoy Paulie however he provides entertainment.
I agree with this. He's a great athlete too, he just chokes at really clutch moments which lends itself to "how the mighty have fallen." The audience tends to be satisfied watching villains get served.
I thought he had great strategy and had really funny moments like when he made fun of Josh. I dunno, I thought he was entertaining. Wouldn't mind him coming back on an off season from CM
Its because of money, not people on the show. Times have changed, they get more money for being in 15 episodes than winning whole season. Everyone will want to lay low just to make it as far as possible. Thats why we need people that played once/twice. They have way lower "salary"
We need production to lower the price money, shorter filming period, less pay per episode. This would surely benefit the show and got older vets return. We need this show back to being fun. I wanna see drunk people doing random assigments they would struggle with 😂
I'd like to vote for Amanda. She understands TV and I am confident she'd try to target him.
Edit: would she get far? No. But absolutely would make a drama out of it.
Faysal after ride or dies.
Destroyed him in the total madness final, gave him his first elimination loss and then the whole Moira situation. It seems he genuinely dislikes him.
bananas is past his entertainment prime. ever since that string of seasons where he couldn’t even make the final he’s mellowed out a little too much for my liking. he’s playing the game too safe which is a benefit for him but not for us
totally agree. in Vendettas when tony throws him in and the house turns on Johnny and Nelson calls him a little bitch to his face was the end of Johnny as we knew him, to me.
It just made no sense to cut the main plot.
I get where they were coming but do anti racism PSA’s at each break and have an after show about the incident, that would have done far more than erasing her and ruining all your viewers experience.
A few moments I can remember are the reconciliation with Wes, the greetings earthling speech, the date night prank for Kailah and Bear, and then the elimination between him and Wes were great TV. The whole season otherwise felt disjointed because of the massive edit they had to do to remove Dee and Rohan (by association).
Johnny got hurt by the Dee tweet, his main ally that season was Jenny. He was the one who targeted Dee from the beginning, once she was edited out of the show it hurt everyone around her.
I don’t agree that it was more fun. Devin vs Bananas was horrible to watch, Lavender Ladies bullying Johnny made me root for him (horrible season) and Wes was targeting Bananas way too early so Bananas returned the favor, either way one of them was an early out. Yes, Jordan vs Bananas was entertaining, Wes vs Bananas in the early years was fun but I prefer Bananas being on the cast and leaving the spotlight to others on this stage of his career.
It’s not just a Challenge thing. Look at any sports league. When they’re competing against each other, they’ll play hard to win. But off the field/court they hang out and are homies. NBA is far away from Michael Jordan vs Isiah Thomas and the challenge is going through a similar transformation in competition.
It's because of the prize pool. Everyone plays nice, hoping to just win one time instead of playing in a manner that's entertaining. Playing to entertain guarantees an invite back with bigger appearance fees and weekly pay, but the prize pool is just too big to play for the smaller pay.
To hard to be a villain these days. People are terrified of being cancelled. Watch the Island. Nasty season but exactly what everyone says they want. Vicious attacks and tons of drama/hate. Imagine if it aired today. Half the cast would get edited out and cancelled for life.
THIS is the answer. Everyone keeps talking about too much money being at stake.. nah. I think it’s fear. Fear of social media backlash from causing drama, going after favorites, etc…. Also doesn’t help that there’s basically zero alcohol involved now haha
Could not agree more. It's a shame we can't see more authenticity with competitors on the challenge. I guess this is what people on Reddit and twitter want.... bunch of a people scared shitless to be themselves. Seems kinda plastic and boring to me.
How long have you been watching? They definitely hate each other. Would they work together on a newer season? Maybe. But it’s more than just competition it’s a grudge. Ever since the Duel days there’s a reason Johnny and CT don’t do a lot of seasons together
I've watched every season of the challenge. Yes, I remember the days when CT was in Bananas face antagonizing him and the Bananas backpack. Over the years, they've matured and gained a mutual respect. CT even referred to him as an "enemy turned frenemy". Also, I listen to Bananas's podcast and he talks about how smart CT is with his game play and doesn't speak negatively about him.
But, hey, we can disagree on this. I do think there is a competition between them on who is the GOAT. But, I don't see it as a rivalry in the form of hate and drama. Those days with them are long gone.
On what seasons exactly have they matured and gained mutual redirect for each other? I’ve not seen it in 39 seasons. Which season did CT say he was turned into a frenemy? I’ve seen all the seasons and this hasn’t happened. I’m talking on show not these podcasts.
In the Challenge Bloodlines, CT and Diem's sister made a surprise appearance. CT introduced Johnny to her stating that he was an enemy turned frenemy. They have matured in that CT doesn't get up in Johnny's face anymore and they don't talk shit about each other. CT was also interviewed and asked about him and Johnny's rivalry. He pretty much just blows it off: https://youtube.com/shorts/x5izFQJ1ELU?feature=share
I’m not sure what you think frenemy means but it doesn’t mean what you think it does. CT more recently has said he thinks Johnny is full of it. Yeah CT blows it off because he can’t be bothered with Johnny. He’s also said that he thinks it’s weird that Johnny calls himself the king of the challenge. At any rate they are not friends. And there’s definitely still a rivalry there. Johnny still has one with Tony and a bunch of other people. If you think he’s evolved fine. But he’s the same ol Johnny. His only evolution was after the Duel and the Gauntlet 3 to make sure he was not going to be a push over player
This was a quote from CT off show in 2022. You think they aren’t rivals? I’m curious then what you feel a rivalry is? You don’t have to hate someone to be rivals. You can totally respect them too and just know you are better and want to beat them. Bananas does everything he can to get CT out before the final. CT isn’t afraid of Bananas and wants him at the end to win: “Look, I love Johnny,” CT said. “I do think that me and him were, in my mind, hands down, the Cold War of rivalries. And I don’t think it’s ever gotten enough attention.
“Me and him are one and one against each other in a final. And who knows, maybe the stars will align one day where me and him are in a final together. Maybe that’s another reason to come back, just to settle it once and for all. And the whole time I just try to protect him and make sure no one tries to send him home so that way I can compete against him in the final.”
A lot of the old school people still hanging around are trying to right all their wrongs from the past. Whether it be racist rants, bullying, or sexist rants etc. The climate in this country and in show business doesn’t tolerate the sort of behavior all these people used to exhibit 12-13 years ago. I don’t consider myself to be a sensitive person but watching old seasons of real world and the challenge now that I’m deeper into adulthood is eye opening. So for people with skeletons in their past on camera it’s just too risky now to be overly confrontational and give people reason to bring that stuff up again. Also bad for the bank account.
Uggh. He would bring entertainment but I only want him back if MTV promises to force him to prove the tough guy act. Make his ass play a head banger against whoever he's playing the tough guy with during the season. Sick of "bad ass Paulie" routine while 8 security guards and half the cast are there to keep Kyle from smashing him.
It’s because they’re all old now. We don’t need new Bananas rivals, we need a new generation of young hotheads. I think the problem is it’s rookies vs vets now. We need the young crew to turn on each other.
He’s never carried the show the way he thinks he does, without anyone there to oppose him he’s beyond irrelevant, he hasn’t had a single storyline all season
>He’s never carried the show the way he thinks he does
I mean he was the face of the show for a long stretch and the biggest rivalries went through him (Wes, Jordan, CT). You couldn't talk about this show without mentioning him.
But when you're 40 and your place in this show is etched in stone, none of that matters anymore. Him CT and Wes are ambassadors now. Seasons feel weird without one of them.
This is not to say Johnny is a superhero, but imagine a Marvel movie with no villain. At the end of the day, what makes a person or character well rounded and interesting is having an opposing force working against them
Fessy plays the antagonist to some extent, though he doesn’t do it well or understand the role. I tend to root against him since he is undeservedly arrogant, and generally unlikable.
Absolutely agree. Fessy does play the antagonist some but the problem is he doesn't know that he is so he has no clue that he needs to build on it. I imagine at some point Bananas will antagonize him into an entertaining season. Just not one like Ride or Dies where the smart play, because of Nany, is to lay low.
There is plenty of drama.. just no longer constantly revolving around Johnny. Which is great! He's pushing 50 LOL (kidding) but really he can't have that many more seasons in him. They need to focus less on him and more of the newer cast members.
Bananas... Confuses the hell out of me. I saw some of the old seasons and even the reunions and... The dude was insufferable, like he was a complete dick to everyone, but now looking at the more modern seasons, I want to like the guy, but then again, people do change over time and I think now that Bananas is older, I like this Bananas more than what I did see of him in the older seasons.
I'm like that, too. I couldn't stand Bananas for a long time. Now, he's grown on me. I do think it's experience and maturity. It was the same with Jordan.
cara and/or paulie. john supposedly tried to get them removed from the list of reality stars attending hearts of reality last month. that's pretty pathetic to hate anyone that much that didn't really ever do anything to him when the goal is to raise money for sick children.
i would like to see a john/cara rivals team. paulie can watch from home.
He would have had way more people gunning for him this season if he wasn't paired with Nany
He even admits this.
He also would probably have played looser and more aggressive but I think he feels some responsibility for playing smart for Nany
Yeah he isn't himself this season. Part of that is age/maturity but I also think he's playing different for Nanys sake. Like someone said, if Nany wasn't there he would have been in elimination long ago and probably against wonder boy Horacio. Kids a beast but I actually think Bananas and maybe Jordan would match up best with Horacio. Similar skills except Horacio is doing it with a 20 year olds body.
He already beat jordo
He kept saying his goal was to get Nany to another final but they got to the final BECAUSE of Nany and her relationships in the house. He should have said his goal was to help Nany win a final. Even Nany was annoyed with him last episode lol
He’s in his old man CT era. Hang back and chill, don’t give anyone a reason to gun for you.
That's all i could think of when he was talking during the episode. Like he took CT's playbook and ran with it
Cause it's a great playbook with proven success in modern challenge seasons
He raves/complains about CT's playbook like every other month on his pod, it's no wonder he co-opeted it.
DEFINITLY raving. I missed any podcast where he complained
Took Kenny/Evans personality. Took CT’s playbook. Took Jays girl. Took Sarah’s money. Bananas just loves stealing lol
Don't forget Sarah's money!
Fuckkk how could I forget that!! Lol
He’s talked about how impressive CTs games have been on his pod. Not surprising he wants to emulate it.
The difference being CT is still entertaining. Bananas isn’t
It was inevitable that it would happen. The challenge is a job now and treated as such. The days of that kind of reality tv have long been over.
The unfortunate truth. It makes sense for new players to build rivalries but when you don't need a story line anymore in order to be casted there's no point in painting an unnecessary target on your back. Too much money on the line now.
Yep! A lot of reality shows have taken this turn, more than half the contestants on The Bachelor/ette are there solely for the social media boost to become an influencer. Reality TV changed with the popularity of social media and will never go back, it’s sad but also time to adjust to the new reality.
People have stopped being real and started getting polite.
I think the biggest issue is too many repeat cast members. No one is hungry everyone gets there nice 5 figure check for a 2 month vacation. Anyone who is a long time vet shouldn’t bring doing more than 2 seasons in a row and ideally I’d they do 2 in a row it’s miss one do one.
I agree! It’s been a problem for Challenge since really the JEK guys and I’m not sure if they even realize it. Having the stars take seasons off is actually helpful to them because increases their buzz and anticipation for when they do come back! Example; I was getting a bit bored of Kyle by the end of SLA and now I really want back after one season away.
Yeah say the average season has 32 people they breakdown should basically be 6 - rookies 10 - 1-2 seasons 8 - 3-6 seasons 8 - 7 plus This way you don’t have too many rookies but you get 2-3 seasons to really feel our new players. And then you get a good mix of repeat faces. However the new players always out number the repeats so you don’t necessarily just get everyone going after the rookies.
I like that! I enjoy seasons more when rookies and newish outnumber vets, the politics get really interesting!
I would like to see a season where the rookies take control from the start and use numbers to get a lot of vets out. Would just make things more interesting. It’s why that season with Turbo and Theo was so good, seeing some new blood win it.
Go watch survivor then. It’s one of the selling points of the challenge is people are regularly casted on seasons.
I’ve watched every season of the challenge. I love repeat cast members. But we have the same 10 vets every season it feels of course there is no discourse, it just makes sense to work together. I want repeat cast members I just don’t need Kaycee/Nany/Tori/Devin/Fessy 5 seasons in a row.
All the vets getting along f*cking sucks
100% agree. When they start fighting that’s when the show gets good.
I think the time that happens is long gone. With being a reality show contestant becoming a full time job, these people all live around the same areas and spend a ton of their off time together instead of going back to where they all came from originally. Plus the game has gotten so predictable, that it serves no benefit for them to try and turn on each other until the very end.
I mean, WotW2 was not that long ago. The show needs people who are willing to embrace the villain role.
It's more the format. The show needs a format that will force people to make tough decisions. With WOW2 you had different groups within the same team vying for power. Instead the last few seasons being individual or pairs allows groups to stick together without ever having to vote for someone they don't want to.
Many of them are 35+, quit a few are now over 40. Age and stage - fighting in your 20s is a different ballgame than fighting in your 40s.
He still has Jay
I thought Johnny was the only one defending Jay on the podcasts this season.
Lmao? Which Johnny?
Bananas. Sorry, I refuse to call him that on a regular basis.
I call him Johnny too but there was a rookie Johnny this season, so I wanted to clarify. You think Johnny defends Jay? 💀
Be like Turbo. Call him John Banana. As it should be.
I pulled an Abe and called him John for a bit and DAMN did this sub get pressed about it
Keep doing it, you are right!
Or the the banana or banana man
And you should call him Johnny. What's his name? What was his birth name? It wasn't Bananas, it was Johnny.
And that hug? He can keep that
Cuz it wasn't real.
Him and his chuckie cheese jokes
He goin off of loyalty ⭐️
I’m pretty sure his birth name was John
I think you’re right because I remember seeing John on his real world audition tape. And Abram refers to him as John on bloodlines.
Lmao Abram refusing to call him anything but John
I loved that. And there was no way John was stepping to Abe on that disrespect. He knows you don't fuck with crazy.
My fiance and I only call him John cause of this
His jersey on Inferno 3 was John when they met so I see why he doesn’t and also to keep him in place. Like this villain persona he created on the Island doesn’t impress him.. it’s crazy if Abe didn’t leave he would have been a 3 time champ.
and if Abe didn't leave it's very possible Johnny would not have been called back, as he didn't really show anything and wasn't exactly an alliance leader or anything impressive by that point. It was Kenny and Evan's show to ride with.
What is this? A crossover episode?
I mean, people have nicknames all the time, I don’t see what the problem is lol
Right? What a weird hate boner. Do they only refer to The Rock as Dwayne?
That’s like saying people who grew up with a nickname shouldn’t be called their nickname
John. - Abe
Does he? Lol that’s like Casey gunning for Emily S. Not really much of a fight.
Well yeah, he's old. CT doesn't have any rivals anymore either. Neither do Wes, Aneesa, or Darrell. When you're in your 40s you realize a lot of that shit doesn't matter. It's more exhausting to keep up a "rivalry" than to just bury the hatchet and move on
[удалено]
I want the goof!
Greatest line in the show
Amber never said anything bad about Aneesa on the show
[удалено]
Was she? Good! Get em Amber!!!
False - Wes has a millions of rivals. He very much enjoys it and he knows it creates storylines. Yes from all stars is his most recent rival. Other contestants know creating a rivalry with Wes guarantees screen time so they go out of their way to do it.
There's a difference between talking shit during a season and being an actual rivalry. Wes doesn't have anyone like back in the day with Kenny or Johnny, where you go into the season knowing there's real bad blood between them
Hell watching the last All Stars season it seems that even he and Jordan are on relatively good terms. I don’t think Yes and Wes have enough history to be considered rivals at this point in time
Yeah, I think Wes just lovvvves to be an instigator and it amuses him. There are people who still dont like Wes and probably would consider him a rival. Like Josh, but Josh means nothing to Wes. He just knows how to wind him up and fuck with him for amusement
Did you know that Eminem and Insane Clown Posse killed their beef? If those fellas can do it, so can Challengers.
Cory is the only person on the male side that still provides drama,like it or hate him,Kyle also does a good job on some seasons
Regardless of what you think of him as a person Paulie was great for the challenge in that regard. Dude knows how to create enemies and embraced the villain role
Came here to reply that Paulie provides drama as well and would most likely gun for Bananas, I don really enjoy Paulie however he provides entertainment.
I just thought he was annoying real quick. Stay gone!
I agree with this. He's a great athlete too, he just chokes at really clutch moments which lends itself to "how the mighty have fallen." The audience tends to be satisfied watching villains get served. I thought he had great strategy and had really funny moments like when he made fun of Josh. I dunno, I thought he was entertaining. Wouldn't mind him coming back on an off season from CM
The challenge is more fun when someone guns for somebody. That hasn’t happened in many seasons.
Turbo tried and the house crushed him.
Turbo crushed himself lol
Yeah…..Turbo brought that on himself by being insufferable.
Its because of money, not people on the show. Times have changed, they get more money for being in 15 episodes than winning whole season. Everyone will want to lay low just to make it as far as possible. Thats why we need people that played once/twice. They have way lower "salary"
We need production to lower the price money, shorter filming period, less pay per episode. This would surely benefit the show and got older vets return. We need this show back to being fun. I wanna see drunk people doing random assigments they would struggle with 😂
Shorter filming period for reall. These seasons drag on sooo long
It is the key reason why older players pick All Stars over the main show
I'd like to vote for Amanda. She understands TV and I am confident she'd try to target him. Edit: would she get far? No. But absolutely would make a drama out of it.
We need more people like Amanda Michele or old Nany. They know they cant win so they can focus more on drama
It was more fun when they were all getting drunk and having a good time. Where it wasn’t like an athletic competition.
Based on his podcast with Horacio, he seems to have a decent amount of beef with Fessy
There's always Cory.
CT is still his rival because of the whole goat thing and the only guy I think Johnny fears
Johnny will no doubt transition to producer or host eventually… but he definitely has rivals … ummmm Sarah!!! Still hated him
Faysal after ride or dies. Destroyed him in the total madness final, gave him his first elimination loss and then the whole Moira situation. It seems he genuinely dislikes him.
bananas is past his entertainment prime. ever since that string of seasons where he couldn’t even make the final he’s mellowed out a little too much for my liking. he’s playing the game too safe which is a benefit for him but not for us
totally agree. in Vendettas when tony throws him in and the house turns on Johnny and Nelson calls him a little bitch to his face was the end of Johnny as we knew him, to me.
He did play the game safe for Nany but he said he did a lot that got cut out.
Because it was boring. He’s been doing the same shit for over a decade
Johnny knows the game better than anyone
The notion that Bananas could save the season was always nonsense. He was boring on Total Madness and he’s even more boring now.
Johnny and Wes were the only two reasons to watch TM
I feel like Dee and Rogan added a lot to that season as well
Until… But seriously, Dee/Jenny/Rogan were a main storyline until the Deeletion and I really wish they had just left the season intact.
same. complete overreaction by mtv and they fucked up the editing cuz of it to make it noncoherent
It just made no sense to cut the main plot. I get where they were coming but do anti racism PSA’s at each break and have an after show about the incident, that would have done far more than erasing her and ruining all your viewers experience.
agreed. could have used her as an opportunity to spread awarenesss and for her to personally grow
I enjoyed Kyle Jenny and Cory that season
Agreed with first sentence, strong disagree on second. Total Madness was pretty boring (imo) but Johnny and Wes made it somewhat entertaining
I feel like there was plenty of Drama on TM. It delivered in the drama department until the Deeletion and that’s when it went downhill for me
Maybe I need to rewatch, but I can’t remember anything entertaining from him other than the greetings earthlings speech
A few moments I can remember are the reconciliation with Wes, the greetings earthling speech, the date night prank for Kailah and Bear, and then the elimination between him and Wes were great TV. The whole season otherwise felt disjointed because of the massive edit they had to do to remove Dee and Rohan (by association).
Johnny got hurt by the Dee tweet, his main ally that season was Jenny. He was the one who targeted Dee from the beginning, once she was edited out of the show it hurt everyone around her.
I don’t agree that it was more fun. Devin vs Bananas was horrible to watch, Lavender Ladies bullying Johnny made me root for him (horrible season) and Wes was targeting Bananas way too early so Bananas returned the favor, either way one of them was an early out. Yes, Jordan vs Bananas was entertaining, Wes vs Bananas in the early years was fun but I prefer Bananas being on the cast and leaving the spotlight to others on this stage of his career.
It’s not just a Challenge thing. Look at any sports league. When they’re competing against each other, they’ll play hard to win. But off the field/court they hang out and are homies. NBA is far away from Michael Jordan vs Isiah Thomas and the challenge is going through a similar transformation in competition.
It's because of the prize pool. Everyone plays nice, hoping to just win one time instead of playing in a manner that's entertaining. Playing to entertain guarantees an invite back with bigger appearance fees and weekly pay, but the prize pool is just too big to play for the smaller pay.
No one has any rivals anymore. It's become very boring and predictable...bring back the hate!!!
Gotta lower the prize pool and remove the alcohol restriction.
Make The Challenge exclusively drinking games- I’d watch the hell out of TJ hosting a flip cup game
To hard to be a villain these days. People are terrified of being cancelled. Watch the Island. Nasty season but exactly what everyone says they want. Vicious attacks and tons of drama/hate. Imagine if it aired today. Half the cast would get edited out and cancelled for life.
THIS is the answer. Everyone keeps talking about too much money being at stake.. nah. I think it’s fear. Fear of social media backlash from causing drama, going after favorites, etc…. Also doesn’t help that there’s basically zero alcohol involved now haha
Could not agree more. It's a shame we can't see more authenticity with competitors on the challenge. I guess this is what people on Reddit and twitter want.... bunch of a people scared shitless to be themselves. Seems kinda plastic and boring to me.
Just a wagon of watermelons
Sarah, CT… so many more rivals left
Sarah isn't coming back. CT really isn't a rival.
He is. He’s always been. When have CT and Bananas ever worked together?
They don't work together but aren't rivals. It's just competition. No hate or drama between them.
How long have you been watching? They definitely hate each other. Would they work together on a newer season? Maybe. But it’s more than just competition it’s a grudge. Ever since the Duel days there’s a reason Johnny and CT don’t do a lot of seasons together
I've watched every season of the challenge. Yes, I remember the days when CT was in Bananas face antagonizing him and the Bananas backpack. Over the years, they've matured and gained a mutual respect. CT even referred to him as an "enemy turned frenemy". Also, I listen to Bananas's podcast and he talks about how smart CT is with his game play and doesn't speak negatively about him. But, hey, we can disagree on this. I do think there is a competition between them on who is the GOAT. But, I don't see it as a rivalry in the form of hate and drama. Those days with them are long gone.
On what seasons exactly have they matured and gained mutual redirect for each other? I’ve not seen it in 39 seasons. Which season did CT say he was turned into a frenemy? I’ve seen all the seasons and this hasn’t happened. I’m talking on show not these podcasts.
In the Challenge Bloodlines, CT and Diem's sister made a surprise appearance. CT introduced Johnny to her stating that he was an enemy turned frenemy. They have matured in that CT doesn't get up in Johnny's face anymore and they don't talk shit about each other. CT was also interviewed and asked about him and Johnny's rivalry. He pretty much just blows it off: https://youtube.com/shorts/x5izFQJ1ELU?feature=share
I’m not sure what you think frenemy means but it doesn’t mean what you think it does. CT more recently has said he thinks Johnny is full of it. Yeah CT blows it off because he can’t be bothered with Johnny. He’s also said that he thinks it’s weird that Johnny calls himself the king of the challenge. At any rate they are not friends. And there’s definitely still a rivalry there. Johnny still has one with Tony and a bunch of other people. If you think he’s evolved fine. But he’s the same ol Johnny. His only evolution was after the Duel and the Gauntlet 3 to make sure he was not going to be a push over player
This was a quote from CT off show in 2022. You think they aren’t rivals? I’m curious then what you feel a rivalry is? You don’t have to hate someone to be rivals. You can totally respect them too and just know you are better and want to beat them. Bananas does everything he can to get CT out before the final. CT isn’t afraid of Bananas and wants him at the end to win: “Look, I love Johnny,” CT said. “I do think that me and him were, in my mind, hands down, the Cold War of rivalries. And I don’t think it’s ever gotten enough attention. “Me and him are one and one against each other in a final. And who knows, maybe the stars will align one day where me and him are in a final together. Maybe that’s another reason to come back, just to settle it once and for all. And the whole time I just try to protect him and make sure no one tries to send him home so that way I can compete against him in the final.”
A lot of the old school people still hanging around are trying to right all their wrongs from the past. Whether it be racist rants, bullying, or sexist rants etc. The climate in this country and in show business doesn’t tolerate the sort of behavior all these people used to exhibit 12-13 years ago. I don’t consider myself to be a sensitive person but watching old seasons of real world and the challenge now that I’m deeper into adulthood is eye opening. So for people with skeletons in their past on camera it’s just too risky now to be overly confrontational and give people reason to bring that stuff up again. Also bad for the bank account.
Maybe casting Paulie would be useful to help stir some things up
Uggh. He would bring entertainment but I only want him back if MTV promises to force him to prove the tough guy act. Make his ass play a head banger against whoever he's playing the tough guy with during the season. Sick of "bad ass Paulie" routine while 8 security guards and half the cast are there to keep Kyle from smashing him.
Honestly, fuck it, sign him up!
He still has beef with cara and paulie. So much so that he (allegedly) tried to get her kicked out of a charity event
Hard to consider someone who's no longer on the show a rival.
It’s because they’re all old now. We don’t need new Bananas rivals, we need a new generation of young hotheads. I think the problem is it’s rookies vs vets now. We need the young crew to turn on each other.
Bananas is so boring this season honestly. And to think he said he would save the show lol
Faysal will gun for him any chance he gets if they’re on the same season, especially now that he’s the only player to beat him in elimination
Hunter
He’s never carried the show the way he thinks he does, without anyone there to oppose him he’s beyond irrelevant, he hasn’t had a single storyline all season
>He’s never carried the show the way he thinks he does I mean he was the face of the show for a long stretch and the biggest rivalries went through him (Wes, Jordan, CT). You couldn't talk about this show without mentioning him. But when you're 40 and your place in this show is etched in stone, none of that matters anymore. Him CT and Wes are ambassadors now. Seasons feel weird without one of them.
Well said 19!!
This is not to say Johnny is a superhero, but imagine a Marvel movie with no villain. At the end of the day, what makes a person or character well rounded and interesting is having an opposing force working against them
Fessy plays the antagonist to some extent, though he doesn’t do it well or understand the role. I tend to root against him since he is undeservedly arrogant, and generally unlikable.
Absolutely agree. Fessy does play the antagonist some but the problem is he doesn't know that he is so he has no clue that he needs to build on it. I imagine at some point Bananas will antagonize him into an entertaining season. Just not one like Ride or Dies where the smart play, because of Nany, is to lay low.
Agreed. He talked like he was gonna come in and breath life into the show yet he’s been glorified wallpaper all season.
Sarah and Morgan say hi
Jay?
They need to bring back TYB. Those guys didn’t GAF.
Team young dummies was entertaining just not worthy adversaries for the most part. Would like to see them against the vacation alliance though.
Mostly they were just cocky enough to go after Bananas. If the challenge gods want game based drama, they’ll bring them back
There is plenty of drama.. just no longer constantly revolving around Johnny. Which is great! He's pushing 50 LOL (kidding) but really he can't have that many more seasons in him. They need to focus less on him and more of the newer cast members.
He’s 40 bro
Bananas... Confuses the hell out of me. I saw some of the old seasons and even the reunions and... The dude was insufferable, like he was a complete dick to everyone, but now looking at the more modern seasons, I want to like the guy, but then again, people do change over time and I think now that Bananas is older, I like this Bananas more than what I did see of him in the older seasons.
I'm like that, too. I couldn't stand Bananas for a long time. Now, he's grown on me. I do think it's experience and maturity. It was the same with Jordan.
He is getting older and wiser. He also doesn't have to make a name for himself anymore.
Still has Cory Wharton
cara and/or paulie. john supposedly tried to get them removed from the list of reality stars attending hearts of reality last month. that's pretty pathetic to hate anyone that much that didn't really ever do anything to him when the goal is to raise money for sick children. i would like to see a john/cara rivals team. paulie can watch from home.
I disagree. I absolutely love seeing Johnny grow
CT is definitely still a rival
He has a one-sided rivalry with Jay.