The Challenge Total Madness Episode 10 Recap And Power Rankings
The episode begins with the house returning from elimination, and Nany and Aneesa talking to Wes. Wes congratulates Aneesa, and Nany seems ok with being the only member of the Holy Trinity left. Josh makes a web call to his family, while Cory makes a call to his girlfriend. We also get a brief montage of Johnny and Wes’s history, hinting at something later in the episode.
TJ introduces the mission as Throne Off. Each competitor will be hanging onto a rocket which will shake after a strike is given, and then will drop after two. After getting a question correct, one can give a strike to another competitor. Once a competitor obtains two strikes, the rocket will drop eliminating them. Best of each gender gets the win, and also receives a prize from Burger King.
Pretty poor use of the trivia mission honestly. The whole appeal of the trivia is getting ridiculous answers like saying Muhammad Ali’s real name was Mahatma Ghandi and giving them options completely defeats that. The questions were also all over the place, which is not unique to this season but would be nice to see more of a through line in these things. Dee and Wes ended up getting the wins, and Wes made a deal with Rogan to bring him into the Tribunal as well. Burger King ends up giving Wes and Dee $5,000 each from Burger King, and a dinner for all three of them.
Dee, Rogan, and Wes all meet at the dinner table to eat Burger King. At the dinner, Wes mulls whether or not to go in, with Johnny looking like the probable opponent. Wes says he would look like a coward if he does not put himself in but would also look like he is breaking his alliance if he does. I think the calculation is a bit different than that. Wes and Johnny both will always attempt to make good tv along with good game moves, and the two of them in an elimination showdown would be undoubtedly good tv. Also, Wes has a significantly better track record than Johnny in eliminations while Johnny has a better record in finals. It would make a lot of sense for Wes to move his battleground with Johnny from a final to the elimination floor, it is just dependent on if he wants to take that risk.
At nominations, Johnny makes the statement that he would like to put himself in. Cory contemplates doing the same, but relents and the house agrees to let Johnny go in. Johnny humorously puts Wes’s name below his on the board and we continue to the next scene. Cory and Nelson try to needle Wes to put himself in against Johnny, and he does seem somewhat receptive.
We head to the bar scene for the episode, where Johnny has donned a Burger King crown and is mingling with Wes, Dee, and Rogan. Johnny tells Wes that they have similar skillsets at this point, so if it is a game they are both good at it is better to let each of them take out one of the weaker competitors than go after each other. There is some sense to what Johnny is saying, but I think there are a lot of games that even Josh could best them at so I would be weary of overrating their own abilities.
We get to the Tribunal, and they quickly resolve to call in Kyle, Swaggy C, and Cory. Wes purposely wants to leave Josh out to not give him the satisfaction of being a rival. Kyle really does not want to be called in and seems resolved to go into the last elimination whenever that may be; but Wes tells him it might be best for him to go in earlier. Swaggy C and Wes seem to agree both need to go in sooner rather than later, and Cory is fine with going in as well. After the Tribunal, Kyle complains that Johnny is much more clairvoyant in his alliances than Wes. This goes against what most cast members (including Wes and Johnny) have said. Johnny is typically known to keep a relatively tight alliance but only addresses strategic items as necessary, while Wes spreads his alliance out further but makes it apparent where each person stands. Kyle seems to be annoyed at the prospect of going in, and would rather keep to the last second possible to go in.
We get to Purgatory and see a drywall structure similar to what Johnny beat Jordan in on Free Agents. Cory, Swaggy C, and Kyle have uniforms on, but all eyes are on Wes for his decision. TJ asks if Rogan or Wes is going to step down to face Johnny, and Wes obliges. The crowd erupts in anticipation, as the two are set to compete in their first elimination on a main season of the show. TJ announces they are playing Charge The Wall. Each competitor has to bust through plates of drywall in an effort to find three batteries. First to find all three wins.
The horn sounds and the two immediately charge the wall. Johnny jumps up and kicks through it, while Wes takes a more standard approach. As the two progress through, Wes is working his way up one side of the wall while Johnny is more spread out. It seems to take a long time before either finds a battery, with Wes falling down when reaching the top. Johnny is finally able to find a battery at the top of the wall. Wes is able to find his first battery at about the same time as Johnny finds his second battery. Both have broken through all of the planes and are looking through them when Johnny finds his third battery. Wes is able to find his second, but is to no avail as Johnny puts his third battery in.
Johnny gets the win and is congratulated by the house. He calls it his most impressive win yet, and Wes somberly approaches the Banana man. They both embrace and Wes congratulates Johnny, who says he wishes he worked with him sooner. TJ shows Wes the exit but assures him he will be back soon, and Johnny returns to the house.
Eliminated
Wes: Sad to see the ginger beard man go. I find Wes to be the most consistently enjoyable personality on the show, so hopefully he can come back and improve.
Power Rankings
16) Melissa: Continues to hang around in the background for the most part.
15) Josh: Wes is gone, so Josh will no longer have the Bayern Munich to his VfB Stuggart (also, am very perplexed why Josh is mortal enemies with Swaggy for being aligned with Wes when Johnny has been working Wes all season).
14) Swaggy C: I stand by that I think he is much more than a layup for the more prominent names to go through, but he’s a rookie and the numbers are in crunch time.
13) Bayleigh: Similar story to Swaggy.
12) Nany: Her relationships can only take her so far, eventually she is going to have to win.
11) Kyle: Being just a solid competitor can only get you so far at a certain point.
10) Cory: He has a solid elimination track record but his lack of ability in finals prevents him from moving up.
9) Mattie: Her size makes her a hard topple in eliminations.
8) Aneesa: Seems likely to cost to the final and then not win while there.
7) Fessy: He is a towering human being who seems ready to dominate whatever he goes into.
6) Kaycee: Elite athlete, but still a rookie who really hasn’t had to do all that much.
5) Nelson: He’s probably the most likely to be put in again of the guys remaining with a Red Skull.
4) Rogan: Seems to have played this really well and looks to be Johnny’s main spoiler in a final.
3) Dee: She has been as messy politically as anybody but is a strong enough competitor to carry her forward.
2) Jenny: At this point it seems unlikely that an insurgency will get mounted against her and she should be clean to the final.
1) Johnny: The way this is set up, he should be headed to the final with an array of competitors who are either unproven or proven to be bad.
Extra Notes
o In addition to releasing a new song, Tori and Jordan are also making masks to sell to the public. Please check it out, as each mask bought will also result in a donation of a mask to workers on the frontlines. Always great to see Challengers supporting the community in this trying time.
o Not Challenge related, but if anyone is in need of objective and useful COVID-19 news, check out Nate Duncan and Ben Taylor’s COVID Daily News podcast. Easily the most unbiased news aggregation service I’ve heard and gives much useful information including best practices for the virus and projections on how things are developing.
Fantasy Scoring
o NOTE: I periodically go back and check through the scoring throughout the season, so these are liable to change. If you have specific matter you want to address, email rmcintyre1699@gmail.com.
