Finisher

Josh should seriously just quit The Challenge forever. You will never live down a humiliating defeat like that.

Never really got the Jordan hate. Yeah, he's kind of an arrogant douche but he has ALWAYS backed it up. Just a very high level competitor.

Agree it would be nice to see Leroy win one. Seems like a legit good dude. Unreal how this show has you caring or hating some of these people.

Bill Needle

He's with a bunch of people who constantly need their ego stroked, and not only is he not interested in doing that he could not care less what they say about him in retaliation. He needs nothing from them which makes them powerless over him. It drives them crazy that he cannot be manipulated by the usual means, and he cannot be beaten in the challenges. So they hate him (unless he is indirectly working for them).

What I don understand from Jordan is when he calls players out for playing a 'cowards game.' Well, duh. To be fair though everyone who has the numbers against them says the same thing.

Finisher

I meant I don't understand why viewers hate on Jordan.

And yeah, people on the wrong side of the numbers always bitch and make it out to be more than what it is. Credit to Paulie, he hasn't been on many seasons, and has already become a boss type.

Bill Needle

Ah, I see. But I think there's plenty of viewers he rubs the wrong way for the same reasons. They identify with certain players and their feelings about him.

leeta

I love watching Jordan. Hope he and Tori win it all.

With so few players left on the UK team, some of them very strong, it looks like they ought to think about working together as a team and try to be the last ones standing.

mh4268

Yeah, the UK team looks pretty strong now. I wouldn't be surprised if they win it now.

Also I found it hysterical with Joss crying about how why couldn't he have been swimming with anyone else, including Georgia, and they cut to him throwing Georgia into elimination and her foreshadowing what will be his fate. I do like Joss, he does seem to actually be a good guy (which doesn't necessarily help in this game), and it does stink to get this far only to lose because of your inept partner.

Spiderbite

Forgot to mention Joss in my earlier post. It was awesome watching him weep since he made his own bed and voted the strongest females in. I laughed my ass off at that. It just shows you that you never know what to expect in this game but also voting in your strongest players in seasons where The Challenge is a team game can fuck you up. But then again, if you watched any prior seasons of The Challenge, you should have known that already. Don't these newbies do any homework?

Regarding the Jordan hate...if you saw his Real World season or the first couple of times he was on The Challenge, you should get the hate for him. He was an insufferable dick. But he has matured some since those days and is definitely more likeable now. Plus he backs up his shit much better now than he did then.

Joeboo835

Did they ever explain how the money will be paid out? Does the winning team just split it up equally?

leeta

Glad CT came to his senses.

Too bad about the outcome of the elimination challenge.

Has there ever been a Finals with this many people??? I sure don't remember one.

dex14

Not in a long time.

Finisher

Well that was fucking awesome. The instant karma on Joss and now Paulie was insanely satisfying.

Spiderbite

I love to see guys like Paulie crash and burn. Talked so much shit and now can't back it up at all. Talking about everyone else over-training and that he is "peaking at the perfect time." Such a douche.

Maybe he will become likable over time. I used to dislike Zach but have come to like him (most of the time). Funny to see him doing so well. He lost most of his early years beefcake muscle but is in way better shape now than when he was also crying not too long ago in a final.

And Cara is insufferable. Ugh.

Hope they penalize the U.S. team for taking their bags off the gurney. I could have sworn I heard TJ say you had to keep them up there. If CT hadn't gotten that 10 minute penalty, the U.K. team may have never seen the U.S. team before sundown. Hell, they still might not.

dex14

Absolutely hilarious.

Bill Needle

Paulie's ego pretty clearly sent him far beyond what he was capable of doing in order to 'save' his team. Cara has just become a miserable person.

Doesn't it seem almost unfair that because team US had more players they were required to carry an extra 40 pounds for 16 miles? The rules were such that having more players was a trivial advantage to begin with, and then:

• It's the same flimsy gurney but now carrying much more weight. It was clearly far more difficult to maneuver/balance the gurney with the extra weight.
• It isn't like they can swap out all four carriers, and when they do swap in a female she will have a much more difficult time than the females on the other team. Look at the UK team...Dee only carried on ONE leg. Their gurney was lighter and easier to handle such that their stronger players could go far longer without a break.
• The reason the US team had more players was because they won a lot more. And not only do they not get an advantage for dominating all season, they are effectively penalized.

I'm guessing this wasn't addressed in this episode because it will remove any believability that the outcome is in doubt once they are penalized. The UK team sat for 10 minutes and the US was nowhere to be seen. But then again the 'advantage' in the next stage could be something seemingly trivial like a 5 minute head start for finishing an hour ahead on the first stage.

Spiderbite

Bill, I had some of the same questions you have regarding the way they are balancing the two teams out. It does appear so far that you have almost an advantage for lesser people like the UK team has.

Less weight on the gurney. Less people to miss the math problem (though we saw that didn't help them ). Less people to have to eat the nasty stuff and do the challenges. The UK team should be cruising like they are without having Paulie to pass out to get them there. But it is also a big advantage to have more people to swap out on the gurneys even with the weight difference. And wasn't it just 40 pounds more? That's only 10 more pounds a person. Granted that is more weight on the gurney but the way the US keeps dropping their gurney to the ground, it is no wonder it was quickly becoming worn out and not because of the extra weight. The UK team now is pound for pound, the stronger team (due to their US players ).

U.S. is suffering right now because it is as Zach said...they got rid of most of their strongest players. If Tori and Jordan were still on the US team in place of two of their other players, they would not be struggling as much. Paulie & Cara's strategy (and overconfidence) clearly bit them in the ass. And we don't know what else is in store for the teams. There could be more challenges coming where having more players is a benefit. But then again, the swim challenge the other day definitely benefited the larger team and they got smoked by Jordan on that one.

Bill Needle

I agree with everything you wrote except for perhaps the bolded part. It would be an advantage if they could swap in and out whenever they wanted, and I think that is how it should have been. But because of the swapping restrictions any advantage is virtually eliminated. And then throw the extra weight on top of that making the gurney much harder to handle and more prone to falling apart and I think it now moves into becoming an actual disadvantage. It really seems that the first stage of the Final was set up such that they were effectively penalized for dominating the first 90% of the Challenge.

Spiderbite

I don't know. If Paulie wasn't flaming out like he is, him, Leroy and Zach could have just swapped out a girl every leg and no big deal. It's the exact same situation on the UK team except they only have two girls to swap out where the US could actually swap out a different girl for each leg.

How much was the extra weight?

They probably should have had one or the other. Extra weight but able to substitute any time or no extra weight and only substitute after every leg. Having both is likely pushing it a little too far. But again, if the US team was stronger, I really don't think it would have been an issue. The producers probably thought that the US team was going to run away with it and make for an uninteresting final, made their rules and then Paulie shit the bed and fucked their "fair & balanced" final up.

Bill Needle

I believe 40 pounds (two extra players).
That's exactly what I was thinking. They were handicapped for having extra players, but any advantage was already virtually negated through the rules of the comp.

Bill Needle

Just saw that on Dec 18 that the Reunion episode runs 2 hours. Oh, let me be more specific: the Reunion Part 1 runs 2 hours.

dex14

Happy with the results, though bummed Tori couldn't make the final 4.

You couldn't write it better with Paulie being the #1 muckracker and failing.

dolphinboy

I’m actually glad Tori didn’t make the final 4 because I can’t stand Jordan and if she made it, he’s getting $500,000 instead of $250,000. I don’t deny he’s an incredible competitor but I just can’t stand him.

Glad CT won. That was just great because he’s come such a long way and it wasn’t an easy season for him to have to play the way that he did and he doesn’t exactly seem like he’s got other great ways of supporting his family so I would have been happy with his win even if Cara wasn’t with Paulie and hadn’t gone a bit crazy.

Ashley seems all kinds of gross and she just missed the top 4, but she’s really a pretty terrific competitor too and she certainly doesn’t look like she would be.

I can’t understand why there would be a maximum time on the puzzle on the final leg. I understand earlier you need them to prevent possible separation that makes it a total blowout that editing can’t even fix but on the final leg I think one team should have had to complete that.

I won’t watch the reunion. Even from the brief clip these people just seem awful and while they certainly all have their good sides I’m sure, they are not a group of remotely smart people and, boy, are they petty, mean and hypocritical.

windom

It's pretty bad that no one had to actually complete the final puzzle to win.

I feel bad for Leroy, but maybe it's time to hang it up and find some other way to earn a living? I guess just being on The Challenge must pay something though.

dex14

Is he not a garbage man anymore?

They do get appearance fees.

Finisher

Is this Jordan's fourth win? Glad he won.

Second half seemed way easier than the first. And while I'm pleased by results the US team did get totally screwed by the more weight and essentially being penalized for dominating the season. Things were just wonky there.

Nevertheless I like how Paulie and Cara's nonsensical plan backfired.

Rogan and Joss seem like more than just friends.

boogieman03

Loved seeing the UK team pop champagne with quick cutaways to Pauli’s and Cara crying. 👍🏽😂