The Challenge: USA Recap: A Former Champ Turns Into An Unlikely Underdog — But Did He Or She Survive Elimination?
Wes Bergmann has been a lot of things throughout his 20-some-odd seasons on The Real World and The Challenge: a groupie collector, an obnoxious loudmouth, a lovable villain, comedic relief. But never once has the guy been classified as an "underdog." Then again, he's never competed against such a formidable collection of newbies.
When Sunday's episode begins, the animosity between Cassidy and Wes continues as she calls him a conniving snake and a few other choice words. Wes tells us she's an ankle-biting dog, and vows to break up Team Survivor. But by the end of the hour, these two are in for some big surprises.
Meanwhile, Dusty throws a temper tantrum, which proves that the dude can't hang in a Challenge house. After making a handshake deal with Alyssa L. in the last episode, Dusty somehow comes to the (wrong) conclusion that Tiffany and the two Alyssas put his name into the Hopper. (Dude, Alyssa S. didn't even vote last time! She won the challenge. PAY ATTENTION.) So he does what any total rookie would do and starts talking smack about Tiffany to everyone, which she soon hears and confronts him about. Chalk it up to Operation Hat Trick because these CBS cats are straight trippin'. Which is exactly what the Vets wanted.
DAILY CHALLENGE | It's time for TJ's favorite! If you've seen even just a handful of Challenge seasons throughout the years, you know know what that means: Trivia!
In "High-Q," each team will be on its own platform suspended 35 feet above the water. They can answer the questions as a team, but if they get it wrong, their platform will tilt, making it harder for them to stay on. Teams remain in the game until all their players get tossed into the chilly waters below.
A few notes:
-Cory can't pronounce the last name of perhaps the most famous director on planet Earth — Steven Spielberg
-Michaela is very much acquainted with the Hinge app and says that, "a man needs to come find me"
-The name of Canada's capital remains a mystery to everyone (sorry, Canada)
-No one knows that Jack White is the lead singer of The White Stripes and I am personally offended
-TJ's cackling brings me unbridled joy
-The Red team ladies think that William Shakespeare was born in... Italy
Blue's platform gets tilted twice before Red and Green can flub an answer, but Red is the first to lose a member in Dusty. Tyler, Wes and Alyssa S. follow shortly after and Green is donezo. Tiffany tries to hold on as the last member from Red, but she ultimately falls. Blue team, FTW!
NOMINATIONS | It's not looking good for Wes, says Bananas, seeing as the four Survivor players from Blue have the majority and will likely do whatever the heck they want. But with no other female Vets around to use as a scapegoat, Survivor turns its eye on Big Brother's Tiffany and Alyssa S. When all is said and done, Wes and Tiffany become the picks for elimination.
Wes gets to work. He asks everyone who will lend him an ear to vote for a female, but they see through it. Later, in a conversation with Bananas and Dusty, Wes gets emotional. Not about getting thrown into elimination, but because he has a child on the way, this very well could be his last Challenge ever. (I really hope that's not the case.) It seems like the daddy-to-be is cooked, but who will he be forced to face?
THE ARENA | The Secret Vote results are as follows:
Alyssa S.: 2
Michaela: 1
Chanelle: 1
Dusty: 7
The night's match-up is: Wes vs. Dusty. In "Crank Shafted," one player stands on a giant wheel, while the other uses a series of cranks to try and knock him off. They will each get a chance on top, and the player to stay up the longest wins.
Wes methodically unties two of the cranks and gets Dusty off the platform relatively fast. When Dusty gets to the crank, he gets all knotted up and seems to struggle a bit more. He pops in the smallest crank and goes straight to untying the second steering wheel. That strategy seems to pay off. Everyone thinks Wes is a goner. Bananas even comes down into the sand to pay his respects to his fallen comrade. Wes tells Dusty he won and acknowledges that it's simply time for him to go home.
Until TJ announces that Wes won. By 37 seconds. The Elimination King lives to see another day! (Sorry, Cass.) Wes then makes a genius move: He swaps positions with Chris, and joins Bananas, Tori — and Cassidy! — on Team Blue.
Were you as shocked as I was that Wes survived that Arena? Do you think he and Cass can squash their beef now that they're on the same team? Hit the comments!