The Challenge: Battle of the Seasons - Discussion (Spoilers)

[QUOTE=V1man;308700]Wow, you must have a low tollerance for "*****es." :acute: I can't imagine Lacey ever being a significant enough presence to even approach my "*****" threshold. Your comments re deads and then FMers immediately thereafrter had my mind wandering toward the laughable thought of Mark Long in dreads. ([SIZE=1][FONT=Arial Narrow]I blame it on the heat. It may be 100 here today.) [/FONT][/SIZE][/QUOTE] I do have a low tolerance for "asterisks"es. Her irrelevance is annoying. But I was talking about the combination of Wes, Danny and Melinda. That's enough to make you want to commit "asterisks". What the "asterisks" does Mark Long have to do with FM? Don't confuse me. I'm already stupid.

I just wanted Danny to keep up him impressive streak of leaving pretty early, besides Gauntlet 3, which was a fluke, because the vets barely lost. I know that sounds mean, but he obviously isn't the well rounded player he thinks he is!

[QUOTE=CrazyRealityGuy;308711]I just wanted Danny to keep up him impressive streak of leaving pretty early, besides Gauntlet 3, which was a fluke, because the vets barely lost. I know that sounds mean, but he obviously isn't the well rounded player he thinks he is![/QUOTE] Danny has the reputation, but I have never seen anything from him that seems to support the reputation of thinking he is so much better than everybody else. I really don't follow him that much, but what is it that causes people to think that about him? I have never gotten that sense of a huge ego from what I recall having seen of him. Is it that he didn't do the Challenges for so long after his season?

[QUOTE=_tasha;308709]I thought the swear words were censored enough. Anybody above the age of 6 uses swear words... and if not you shouldn't be watching this "asterisks" anyway. I do have a low tolerance for "asterisks"es. her irrelevance is annoying. But I was talking about the combination of Wes, Danny and Melinda. That's enough to make you want to commit "asterisks". What the "asterisks" does Mark Long have to do with FM? Don't confuse me. I'm already stupid.[/QUOTE] Sorry, if you didn't read comments of mine at the time of Fresh Meat 1 and Viewer's Revenge (and why would you have read them, let alone remember), you would not know that BMP and MTV saw those new cast members as an extension of the Road Rules legacy; hence, Mark and FM are as one. Purists will disagree, of course.

[QUOTE=FishHooks;308715]Danny has the reputation, but I have never seen anything from him that seems to support the reputation of thinking he is so much better than everybody else. I really don't follow him that much, but what is it that causes people to think that about him? I have never gotten that sense of a huge ego from what I recall having seen of him. Is it that he didn't do the Challenges for so long after his season?[/QUOTE] During the Gauntlet 3, he said he was ruling the vets side and making all the calls. He also said he was stronger then all of the guys on a few different challenges. He doesn't seem like a bad guy, or even such a bas-***, but he tends to over-estimate himself.

[QUOTE=CrazyRealityGuy;308717]During the Gauntlet 3, he said he was ruling the vets side and making all the calls. He also said he was stronger then all of the guys on a few different challenges. He doesn't seem like a bad guy, or even such a bas-***, but he tends to over-estimate himself.[/QUOTE] Forgive me if I'm wrong, but wasn't it the host of the reunion that said he and Melinda were the "power couple" and he was calling the shots? I don't recall him every making that claim.

I'll say it now... Fresh Meat is totally winning/dominating, I can see it. :lazy:

[QUOTE=_tasha;308699]Not upset about Austin. They're all annoying *****es anyway... They should've had that one sexy guy with the dreads, on the team. But the longer Fresh Meat stays the worse it becomes. If Fresh Meat wins the entire challenge goes to ****... Even more so than it already has. At least Cara Maria is the silver lining in it all. :)[/QUOTE] The Rotten Meat are still in this? I thought they were gone.

[QUOTE=CrazyRealityGuy;308717]During the Gauntlet 3, he said he was ruling the vets side and making all the calls. He also said he was stronger then all of the guys on a few different challenges. He doesn't seem like a bad guy, or even such a bas-***, but he tends to over-estimate himself.[/QUOTE] Ok I didn't see that season, but everybody does that stuff for the camera and they don't get a bad rap for it. I always thought it was some myth based on some things that Nehemiah claimed to be true but I couldn't remember what it was.

Well when you really look at the Austin team. It just seems like a disaster anyway. Wes shows his behind too soon on these challenges and has lost his mojo long ago. Danny is a hothead who was never good on these shows. Melinda is his ex-wife and not a very good competitor either. Lacey is smart, but blunt and doesn't look like the athletic type. But that crazy New Orleans cast has made it atleast two places further than I expected. lol!

[QUOTE=lindsay88;308719]Forgive me if I'm wrong, but wasn't it the host of the reunion that said he and Melinda were the "power couple" and he was calling the shots? I don't recall him every making that claim.[/QUOTE] No see, the Gauntlet 3's reunion host came off like she didn't know **** about the show and was a complete *** to the veteran team during the reunion. She ASKED if Danny and Melinda were the power couple and Evan was like "...Danny and Melinda?! Are you kidding me?! No one listened to a word they said"

[QUOTE=Camille;308736] [B]But that crazy New Orleans cast has made it at least two places further than I expected. lol![/B][/QUOTE] You and me both. Brooklyn apparently too. Up is down and down is west on this challenge (which is a good thing for the show IMO).

[QUOTE=Camille;308736]Well when you really look at the Austin team. It just seems like a disaster anyway. Wes shows his behind too soon on these challenges and has lost his mojo long ago. Danny is a hothead who was never good on these shows. Melinda is his ex-wife and not a very good competitor either. Lacey is smart, but blunt and doesn't look like the athletic type. But that crazy New Orleans cast has made it atleast two places further than I expected. lol![/QUOTE] Same here! I had New Orleans out 1st, and Austin/Sydney going 1/2 overall. I had Cancun as my #3, but perhaps I should keep that to myself -to not jinx them. :girl_haha:

[QUOTE=V1man;308716]Sorry, if you didn't read comments of mine at the time of Fresh Meat 1 and Viewer's Revenge (and why would you have read them, let alone remember), you would not know that BMP and MTV saw those new cast members as an extension of the Road Rules legacy; hence, Mark and FM are as one. Purists will disagree, of course.[/QUOTE] But I was like 10 during FM so... But it does make more sense now. [QUOTE=wutzrenzi;308721]I'll say it now... Fresh Meat is totally winning/dominating, I can see it. :lazy:[/QUOTE] No... don't... no... no. I love Cara Maria... but no... absolutely not... I refuse. [QUOTE=Camille;308736]But that crazy New Orleans cast has made it atleast two places further than I expected. lol![/QUOTE] I actually like their team. Surprisingly enough.

[QUOTE=Camille;308736] But that crazy New Orleans cast has made it atleast two places further than I expected. lol![/QUOTE] I thought this too, until I went and rewatched some of NOLA and if you really look at them, Knight is a beast...big strong and athletic. Preston people stereotype, because he is gay, as someone who is weak, however he is pretty tall and looks like he could handle himself. Jemmye may be small but I bet she can be quick and fiesty. And Mckenzie is a swimmer and surfer and that takes a lot of athletic ability to do both of those...if you don't agree, go try it. They actually don't look that bad. Cancun, Fresh Meat and Brooklyn all appear to me to be extemely weak....especially Cancun, who I think is the weakest team this season. I will be shocked if they make it to the end...such duds.

[QUOTE=TSPKM2;308768]I thought this too, until I went and rewatched some of NOLA and if you really look at them, Knight is a beast...big strong and athletic. Preston people stereotype, because he is gay, as someone who is weak, however he is pretty tall and looks like he could handle himself. Jemmye may be small but I bet she can be quick and fiesty. And Mckenzie is a swimmer and surfer and that takes a lot of athletic ability to do both of those...if you don't agree, go try it. They actually don't look that bad. Cancun, Fresh Meat and Brooklyn all appear to me to be extemely weak....especially Cancun, who I think is the weakest team this season. I will be shocked if they make it to the end...such duds.[/QUOTE] I don't think Cancun is weak at all--primarily because I think CJ & Jonna could be able to carry that team--and Jasmine is a fighter

[QUOTE=_tasha;308745] No... don't... no... no. I love Cara Maria... but no... absolutely not... I refuse..[/QUOTE] Not sure how much weight Big easy has lost, but he can slow this team down in a Final during the running portion if he's still the same. Aside from that they look pretty good.

[QUOTE=Nightwolf;308690]Give me ANY instance where Melinda did anything "impressive" of the history of the challenge. I can name plenty of times where Melinda **** the bed and can't come up with a single time where she did anything useful.[/QUOTE] The vets on the Gauntlet 3 considered Melinda to be one of the three strongest women there along with Jill and Tori.

[QUOTE=kvm1977;308769]I don't think Cancun is weak at all--primarily because I think CJ & Jonna could be able to carry that team--and Jasmine is a fighter[/QUOTE] I agree, I have no idea where someone could possibly call them "weak". They easily have the best communication and least animosity amongst their team out of every team there, CJ I bet is gonna be one of the top males this season, same going for Jonna on the female side, and if you look at Derek's recent photos, he is a lot bigger than he used to be. I still stand behind Cancun being the strongest team on this challenge. Not saying they couldn't be eliminated cause anything can happen, but it would shock me. As much as I hate to say it, I don't see the FM team as weak either. Brandon is a tough competitor who can hold his own in eliminations, even Derrick has said so. Camila has proven to be a very good competitor (I dislike her, so giving her credit is tough but it needs to be done). Cara Maria is not as weak as people make her out to be, but I wouldn't call her strong either. And Eric is a wild card, never know how he's going to perform but I would say he's the FM team's achilles heel. It's very difficult to be "surprised" that certain teams are still there because A. we only know two teams who aren't there anymore and B. we have no idea about the rules. I will say though, Brooklyn and NOLA are definitely on the bottom of my totem pole because looking at the other teams, they just seem too tough, even St. Thomas. I'm hoping Ashley and Sam are good competitors and I'm excited to watch the San Diego team compete. I would love it if the elimination order went: Brooklyn, NOLA, Fresh Meat, St. Thomas and have the final three teams be Cancun, San Diego, and Las Vegas. If the final was only two teams (which I'm predicting it will be) I wantto see Cancun vs. either of the other two. I am also hoping and kind of expecting eliminations to be set up so that, after a coin flip, one of the teams sets up match-ups so that it's guy vs. guy, girl vs. girl, guy vs. guy, girl vs. girl and whichever team has the best record wins the elimination. Unless they break them into guy-girl pairs to compete, I just can't picture 8 people competing in an elimination together, unless it's a race but that would be so disappointing.

We don't know what the missions are like yet. They may be crazy like they have been recently, or they may be old school where it's not as much about who works out the most. If they're still crazy, it's probably going to come down to who has the best girls, which if I had to guess is probably the Fresh Meat team. St. Thomas could be good as well but I won't make a prediction either way on them yet. I'm still curious though if the final will be as ridiculous as the last two have been. If they are, I'm not sure if any of these teams would be able to finish one.

I just feel like anybody who "thinks" Cancun is the strongest team or is a strong team is substituting the word "wants" for "thinks." Everyone keeps saying that CJ is going to be some big force in this challenge, some strong athletic individual that can't be stopped. I would just like to point out that being a college athlete means nothing, having muscles means nothing (in these challenges). Are we just going to void out CJs performance on FM2, because I actually watched that season and he was terrible. He was terrible in missions and he was EXTRA terrible in the only exile he went into. I mean it's cool if you like him and you want him to do well, but going based on what we know about him and his "challenge abilities," he sucks. Derek? He went home first on Cutthroat, voted in before Big Easy and he lost to Brandon. I'm not saying Brandon is a bad competitor but I dont think Brandon is a good competitor. Yeah he won 3 Gulags but he won against 3 weak players. Derek has proved nothing and he is probably one of the smaller guys this season. I actually think he will probably be THE weakest male, physically, this season. Someone tell me why everyone is holding Jonna up on some high pedestal like she is some Olympic athlete? Yeah she won Endurane when she was 13 years old, but the competitions weren't something to brag about physically. And...uh that was over a decade ago too. Her and Jasmine kinda sucked on Rivals...I think they were last or 2nd to last in almost all the missions except the 1st one and that was because 2 teams DQd. People say Jonna kicked butt on the puzzle in her elimination on Rivals...but from what I remember none of the 4 girls could figure it out and had to have help from the people on the sidelines. She hasn't shown anything too great, actually she was kinda bad on Rivals. Jasmine is the smallest girl there. She has been nothing but weak on her past two challenges. She smokes, she has a lack of endurance, and she is a hot head that cant keep her cool. So yeah...Cancun is WEAK.

CJ didn't suck on Fresh Meat II...aside from his inability to do puzzles. He and Sydney weren't winning competitions but no one other than one team really did. They were average throughout--I think you're just focusing on his poor showing in the exile because he couldn't solve a puzzle a 6 year old could. Jonna and Jasmine did not suck on Rivals at all. The won the first mission for starters and never finished last. They were consistently average throughout. Can you name a challenge in particular that you thought they were poor in--other than "Hammock Crawl" which none of the female teams finished within the time limit Jonna figured out the puzzle all by herself--none of the other teams were rooting for them other than maybe Mike & Leroy and they weren't about to get involved. Now, it wasn't that difficult of a puzzle but to try to discredit her for figuring it out seems kind of desperate. Jasmine's absolutely insane but she's been decent in competitions--not great, not horrible---adequate. I'm guessing you dislike them as people and that's impacting your opinion of them because, other than Derek, your points lack validity

[QUOTE=Nightwolf;308788] I'm still curious though if the final will be as ridiculous as the last two have been. If they are, I'm not sure if any of these teams would be able to finish one.[/QUOTE] For once, I absolutely agree with you. I just have a gut feeling that this final will be one to be reckon with.

I would say the weakest team left is NOLA because Knight had a knee problems and was a little out of shape when we last saw him, Preston may be Tall but he is extremely skinny and doesn't look like he has any strength and he is extremely dramatic much like Jemmye who if she doesn't go into a drunken fit and hit someone is extremely short and also based of her season seems to have no strength. The saving grace would be the athletic but space cadet Mckenzie who is about the same size of Jasmine. Overall on paper and they would be the weakest team to me. With the added bonus that Knight cheated on Jemmye which is like the cherry on the sundae. The strongest team? I would say there isn't one. Every other team I see has at least one person I think would hold back the others in the final. Team Brooklyn- Devyn Team Cancun- Derek Team Vegas- Nany/Trishelle Team San Diego- Sam Team St.Thomas- Laura/Trey/Marie Chet surprised me on Cutthroat and J.D is a Dolphin trainer so he is like crazy fit, Sarah for the most part is usually held down by a bad partner - notice the season she had no partner she made it to the finals. C.J, Jasmine and Jonna all did average on FM2 and Rivals. Dustin and Alton were top competitors on their season. Frank, Zach and Ashley regularly worked out throught their season. Robb was a basketball player which requires endurance, coordination and a little bit of muscle. Not surprised to see Austin leave, Wes should stick to individual challenges because it gets kinda old like Beth where everyone against you for the simple fact of your past (there are only 5 people that have actually done a Challenge with him and to my knowledge, C.J is the only one that holds any ill feeling toward him), I feel like the rookies came in this with a sense of entitlement like we want it to be the rookies turn which will promise to be annoyong if so and If there is a Season 24 it should be interesting to see who makes the cut.

People need to know/remember that CJ threw the exile against Landon on FM2 so that he could learn it forwards and backwards. I feel like Derek did decent in his elimination round against Brandon on Cutthroat. He has also apparently added some muscle weight so in theory, he should be a better competitor than he was on Cutthroat.

[QUOTE=TheFeedMachi;308806]People need to know/remember that CJ threw the exile against Landon on FM2 so that he could learn it forwards and backwards. I feel like Derek did decent in his elimination round against Brandon on Cutthroat. He has also apparently added some muscle weight so in theory, he should be a better competitor than he was on Cutthroat.[/QUOTE] I haven't seen in pictures of him taken recently, but I have seen some in the past that looked like Derek was becoming a little too fond of bdub platters.

[QUOTE=Npresh24;308799]I would say the weakest team left is NOLA because Knight had a knee problems and was a little out of shape when we last saw him, Preston may be Tall but he is extremely skinny and doesn't look like he has any strength and he is extremely dramatic much like Jemmye who if she doesn't go into a drunken fit and hit someone is extremely short and also based of her season seems to have no strength. The saving grace would be the athletic but space cadet Mckenzie who is about the same size of Jasmine. Overall on paper and they would be the weakest team to me. With the added bonus that Knight cheated on Jemmye which is like the cherry on the sundae. The strongest team? I would say there isn't one. Every other team I see has at least one person I think would hold back the others in the final. Team Brooklyn- Devyn Team Cancun- Derek Team Vegas- Nany/Trishelle Team San Diego- Sam Team St.Thomas- Laura/Trey/Marie Chet surprised me on Cutthroat and [B]J.D is a Dolphin trainer so he is like crazy fit[/B], Sarah for the most part is usually held down by a bad partner - notice the season she had no partner she made it to the finals. C.J, Jasmine and Jonna all did average on FM2 and Rivals. Dustin and Alton were top competitors on their season. Frank, Zach and Ashley regularly worked out throught their season. Robb was a basketball player which requires endurance, coordination and a little bit of muscle. Not surprised to see Austin leave, Wes should stick to individual challenges because it gets kinda old like Beth where everyone against you for the simple fact of your past (there are only 5 people that have actually done a Challenge with him and to my knowledge, C.J is the only one that holds any ill feeling toward him), I feel like the rookies came in this with a sense of entitlement like we want it to be the rookies turn which will promise to be annoyong if so and If there is a Season 24 it should be interesting to see who makes the cut.[/QUOTE] Yep, like soooo crazy fit, it's not even funny. He and Chet are definitely super strong men!

[QUOTE=TSPKM2;308790]I just feel like anybody who "thinks" Cancun is the strongest team or is a strong team is substituting the word "wants" for "thinks." Everyone keeps saying that CJ is going to be some big force in this challenge, some strong athletic individual that can't be stopped. I would just like to point out that being a college athlete means nothing, having muscles means nothing (in these challenges). Are we just going to void out CJs performance on FM2, because I actually watched that season and he was terrible. He was terrible in missions and he was EXTRA terrible in the only exile he went into. I mean it's cool if you like him and you want him to do well, but going based on what we know about him and his "challenge abilities," he sucks. Derek? He went home first on Cutthroat, voted in before Big Easy and he lost to Brandon. I'm not saying Brandon is a bad competitor but I dont think Brandon is a good competitor. Yeah he won 3 Gulags but he won against 3 weak players. Derek has proved nothing and he is probably one of the smaller guys this season. I actually think he will probably be THE weakest male, physically, this season. Someone tell me why everyone is holding Jonna up on some high pedestal like she is some Olympic athlete? Yeah she won Endurane when she was 13 years old, but the competitions weren't something to brag about physically. And...uh that was over a decade ago too. Her and Jasmine kinda sucked on Rivals...I think they were last or 2nd to last in almost all the missions except the 1st one and that was because 2 teams DQd. People say Jonna kicked butt on the puzzle in her elimination on Rivals...but from what I remember none of the 4 girls could figure it out and had to have help from the people on the sidelines. She hasn't shown anything too great, actually she was kinda bad on Rivals. Jasmine is the smallest girl there. She has been nothing but weak on her past two challenges. She smokes, she has a lack of endurance, and she is a hot head that cant keep her cool. So yeah...Cancun is WEAK.[/QUOTE] Here we go. Just because I want Cancun to win, doesn't mean I completely overlook the potential they have to perform very well, which I am fairly certain they will. To call them "weak" on the points you made is pretty ridiculous. -Like someone else pointed out, CJ threw the Exile to Landon, so you can't use that as a valid point. The most ridiculous thing you said in your entire post is that being a college athlete and having muscles means [B]nothing[/B]. That's like saying having legs means nothing in a foot race. If you know how to condition yourself and you are a well-balanced individual like every college athlete (especially one who trains for the NFL and is/was on call) must be, you have an advantage over others. -Your case on Derek is also full of holes. He went in before Eric? Yeah, how many Veterans are thrown into the first elimination over the Rookies? Especially one who's friends with the rest of the team. Even Emily, arguably the strongest female to step foot on a challenge, was thrown in before Jenn because of status. You might not think Brandon is a good competitor, but did you face him in the Gulag? No, but Derrick did and he gave Brandon a lot of credit and said he gave Derrick a good battle. And Derrick is one of the most intense and toughest competitors on these shows, I think his word is pretty solid. Take a look at the photos below, Derek isn't the same guy, physically, that he was before. And the second picture is almost a year old and he didn't have any set-backs. I think people will be surprised. [url=http://vevmo.com/vbimghost.php?do=displayimg&imgid=11757][img]http://vevmo.com/imagehosting/32104e7ab5994fda7.jpg[/img][/url] -Jonna and Jasmine are not weak, especially for their size. They are both very smart (especially Jonna, even Jasmine said so), and Jonna is also strong for her size. I mentioned before, go watch the Jungle between these two and Laurel and Cara Maria, yes J & J got destroyed, but Jonna did make it difficult for Laurel to take her down, and even Cara Maria said that they did well. Another thing about Jonna is that she doesn't let pressure get to her. Right before the Jungle, Sarah told Jonna that she could beat her in anything, Jonna walked away, didn't make a big deal of it, shrugged it off and took it out in the Jungle. Not everybody could do that. With Jasmine's drive to win and her fiesty-ness, they are a good pair. And again, what people aren't realizing is how well this team [I]should[/I] be able to communicate. I honestly don't see them having any issues with each other amongst their team, and honestly I'll say it, I feel like Jonna is probably the smartest female on this challenge (right up there with Sarah) and I definitely think she can lead this team very well. And like kvm said, despite what you say, Jasmine and Jonna did not do bad on Rivals, winning a mission, winning a Jungle, never coming last in a mission, then losing right before the finals to the biggest female on a challenge when everybody is expecting you to flop from day 1? That is not a bad performance. Obviously anything can happen. We don't know how eliminations go, or how challenges are gonna go, but Cancun is NOT weak and I would be very surprised if they are seen as a weak team on this challenge.

Normally I don't engage in "my guy is better than your guy" discussions, but since I know all but 6 people on this challenge, I'll offer this perspective: Derek is a young Tyler Duckworth, physically. The picture of Derek above is very similar to the guy I saw in Vegas last Sept. Beyond that, his is highly social. Everyone at Vegas Bash liked him. The same cannot be said for others on this challenge. Likeability is an intangible quality that in some circumstances can save you from having to test your skills against someone the group thinks is more likely to prevail against you (or your collective team). Frankly, comparisons of challenge X vs challenge y stuff have absolutely no statistical relevance. Unless the same group of people are competing in nearly identical events a minimum of about 20 times, you can't really build a sufficient database to create a probability table with a respectable margin of error. And, then, you really can only predict how one will do in like, not dissimilar, competitive tasks. [SIZE="1"] (I do actually remember a surprising amount from those grad school statistics courses I was forced to take.)[/SIZE]