The Challenge: All-Stars Season 1 Episode 2 & 3 Recap 😉
Alright, y’all, Imma attempt to recap All-Stars episodes 2 & 3 in one blog so I can get back in the recapping GAME. I tried to keep them short & sweet… We’ll see how well that goes… Let’s dive in. 😉
We start the second episode with Ace just leaving upon losing to Laterrian in a pole-wrestling elimination. He was just so LOVABLE. I was really sad to see him go, I truly was.
I LOVE THIS SOUNDTRACK. A song by Naughty by Nature plays which sounds like a classic 90’s R&B bop as Laterrian celebrates his win back at the house with everyone congratulating him. Congrats, Laterrian!!!
Trishelle & Katie are in one of the bedrooms, sitting across from each other in the room. Trishelle’s in an ITM saying how Katie is her best friend, they’ve lived together, they were in each other’s weddings, etc. The point is – they’re close. Meanwhile, Katies in an ITM saying, “It’s interesting to live with an old roommate” now in her 40s. She says people will assume they’ve aligned as friends so no need to hide it… Definitely not as convincing on the “best friend” front here as Trishelle, and with that, we get set up for the fall between these two later in the episode.
During the next day, Derrick goes over to talk to Kendall whose doing yoga in the front yard. He greets her by saying, “Are you trying to break a record? How many times you can do yoga in a day?” Kendall says she’s been thinking about why she’s there. It’s not for the money, although she admits “that’s nice”. She says she came for her kids and show them she can do what she once did but better. Inspiring!
Later that night, Trishelle sits down to talk with Aneesa t for how she acted & the things that were said on their last season together, Rivals II (S24). They show a clip from the original fight, indicating Trishelle said bigoted things about Aneesa’s nationality & racial identity. The two escalated when Aneesa got upset saying, “Trishelle, what are you trying to say?!!!!”
But it was a really sweet interaction!! Aneesa telling Trishelle she appreciates the conversation but that she forgave her 9 years ago. It’s a really positive interaction! People learn! People grow! Things changeeeee, hunni, get into it!
Finally, it comes time for the second challenge of All-Stars which is a “good ole fashioned game of trivia” – Ancient Challenge History edition. TJ tells the challengers he’ll be asking them Challenge history questions, and with each question wrong, the challengers have to step forward onto thinner and thinner-looking cardboard footing, and eventually, they will fall through. Classic trivia, a fall into the water!
The best part of trivia is TJ laughing at all the challengers falling in, DUH. The TJ laughing literally just never gets old. It NEVER. Gets. OLD. ICONICCCCC.
For the guys’ heat, we get the classic TJ laughing his ASS OFF as challengers fall into the water. The guys go back and forth for a bit until there are only two competitors left – Teck & Nehemiah. They go for a couple rounds (not nearly as much as Aneesa & Ruthie go on to do), and there is one question that I love so much – TJ asks Teck what season Jemmye was originally from on The Real World… “New Orleans?” Teck replies. TJ confirms, “That is correct.” “FUCK, YEAH, JEMMYE, I LOVE YOU BABY” Teck responds in celebration. Jemmye calls back, “I love you, too!” I LOVE THE CHALLENGE LOVE.
Finally, though, TJ asks Teck what season Nehemiah won. Teck says, “I’m gonna go with my gut and say The Gauntlet”… TJ responds ‘The answer is… The Gauntlet”, Teck screams in excitement “FUCK, YEAH”… “Three”, TJ finishes… Teck’s face sinks and TJ explodes in laughter.
Teck falls through into the water, leaving Nehemiah as the winner of the challenge! Great work Nehemiah!!! I definitely see him being a contender, mostly believing in his physical abilities, but now it seems, Nehemiah may have a lot of different strengths to offer.
Once the womens’ turn at trivia, Trishelle falls first with only one incorrect question – TJ asks her, “What was Johnny Bananas’ first Challenge season?” She tells TJ, “I don’t give a fuck about Johnny Bananas”, to which TJ responds, “Well, that’s not very nice.” LOL, but my little Challenge nerd heart was singing because I’m like THE DUEELLLLLL SEASON 13333333333, THE SEASON OF LOVE WITH CT AND DIEM, WHO COULD FORGET, TRISHELLE??? Needless to say, Trishelle is the first woman to fall, sealing her fate as the first girl in the elimination.
Another amazing LOL TJ moment – He asks Aneesa what was the name of the finals in The Ruins (S18), to which Aneesa starts to reply, “I don’t fucking know-” and TJ cuts her off, “Nope! It’s called the gold rush.” LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO.
In a horrible twist of cosmic karma, or maybe just Challenge gods, WHOEVER DID IT, this woman (Katie) hits her face on the water and it starts BLEEDING. Katie told TJ how anxious she was & how she already had PTSD from these water challenges since the last one she did on Cutthroat (S20) she hit her face & ended up with two black-eyes. :,(
Poor Katie got fucked, AGAIN. TJ obviously can’t contain himself as Katie screams expletives at innocent Challenge crewmen saying, “She’s so funny.” LMAOOOOOO.
When Kendal got out, she hopped on the wrong spot? And then didn’t fall through the floor? But then she just kind of walked around and sat by TJ’s podium???? It was very confusing and looked pretty shady.
Everyone else gets out until the last two left are Aneesa & Ruthie (my love). Aneesa & Ruthie go through a whole montage where they get every single question right & they make it seem like this goes on for a while. Ruthie finally gets the question from TJ, “Who won The Inferno III?” Ruthie timidly replies, “The Good Guys?” TJ’s says… that is incorrect. Ruthie takes a step up thinking it’ll probably be her last, BUT she steps both feet safely on the square without falling through. Derrick says in an ITM, “Ruthless Ruth!”
Finally, TJ asks Ruthie what were the two teams on The Ruins (S18)? And so Ruthie ponders the question for a moment but then responds, “I have no idea. I’mgonna hippity-hop”, TJ confirms, “Go ahead and hippity-hop for me, Ruthie.”
And with that, Aneesa wins the challenge!!!! Fuck yeah, Aneesa, experience takes the cake!!!!
Back at the house after the challenge, Trishelle, Aneesa, Katie, Kellyanne, and Mark Long are all standing around talking, trying to decide who they want to nominate for elimination to go against Trishelle. They go back and forth for a second, but Trishelle ultimately decides “I’ll let you guys decide”, then jokes how it should be interesting… Interesting take to not try to take the game more into your hands! Complacency is a bitch. 
Once at the deliberation, Jisela wastes no time and asks Kendal why she didn’t fall into the water today. Kendal starts on this whole soliloquy on how she messed up, but then she got confused, then she pauses and says, “Sorry, my mouth’s really dry – is there water?”
Jisela’s in an ITM saying, “I see this kind of behavior a lot, typically when someone is LYING about something.”
They go back and forth a bit more, and finally, Kendal says she’s voting Jisela since she was the second to fall in. Jisela kindly responds, okay, well my vote is Kendal. They go around the group where everyone resoundingly agrees “Kendal” to be the house vote for elimination. Teck tells her, “Don’t leave it up to the jury, I would have jumped off the side”. Derrick tells Kendal, “We all think you can do this”. And that settles it, it will be Trishelle & Kendal in the elimination!
This is where shit starts to hit the fan (devil emoji). Derrick is in Trishelle’s room and tells her they all voted in Kendal during the deliberation. Trishelle gets “upset” because her best friend, Katie, wasn’t the one to deliver the news. She says she should have come straight up to tell her. Katie defends herself, saying she was grabbing food, but then came straight up. It does seem like misdirected anger. Trishelle, what’s good??? The night continues where everyone seems to go from casually to not so casually drinking.
Fast forward to 4:00am, we see Katie storm out into the hallway screaming, “I’m not going to let you fucking talk to me like that anymore!” Cue more screaming, mostly on Katie’s end.
Katie goes into the kitchen area and begins talking to Arissa saying how she can’t be the punching bag for Trishelle just because she’s going into elimination. Jisela & Aneesa are huddled in the corner, LMAO. Suddenly, Trishelle comes bounding in with Jemmye by her side, and Trishelle says, “Jemmye, would you like to say?”, Katie replies, “Do you need a sidekick? You can’t speak for yourself?” Trishelle protests, “I can speak for myself.” Katie challenges, “Okay, let’s try it.”
Trishelle goes on about how she was always there for Katie but Katie doesn’t have her back. Katie challenges, “What way have you had my back?” Trishelle responds, “My entire life that I’ve lived with you.” Lmao, DAMN.
They go back and forth a bit more with Katie finally concluding, “16 years ago, that’s what we’re talking about, let it go!” Trishelle responds, “You let it go, bitch”, something about wiping your ass, and finally concluding, “To me, you have to ride or die. This one is weak, and I don’t like that.”
Katie’s in an ITM with tears saying how this whole interaction makes her very sad because she’s been friends with Trishelle for a long time, but she wants her to be her punching bag, which isn’t fair. True! Katie leaves the room and the altercation mostly ends except Trishelle tells Jislea & Aneesa, “She has no friends, and I have tons, so it’s fine.”
The next day they go straight into the girl’s elimination. TJ calls down Trishelle, the loser of the women’s trivia to face Kendal who was voted in by the house. TJ asks Nehemiah if he wants to use the lifesaver and save Kendal from elimination as the winning guy competitor. Nehemiah responds it was a house decision to vote in Kendal so he will not be using the lifesaver. That settles it, Kendal vs. Trishelle in elimination.
TJ goes on to explain how they’ll be playing another classic Challenge elimination game – the jungle-gym-rope game. Notably played on Invasion of the Champions (S29) (maybe notably by me because I am obsessed with that season, lmfao) by CT & Darrell two legends in the game. CT, the notorious king of ropes, won.
Essentially, first you have to work to tie the rope as jumbled as you can around this jungle gym. After 20 minutes, you switch gyms and now have to untangle your competitor’s rope.
Now that the challengers at hand are Trishelle & Kendal, I’m thinking it seems like a decently fair match-up. Kendal probably is in better shape, but Trishelle does have some size on her. I can’t tell if size will prove to be an advantage in this situation, where being nimble and agile (like Kendal?) will likely help them move faster & quicker through tying up the rope.
TJ blares the horn to start the challenge and the girls are off. It goes essentially just like that – Kendal ends up moving a little quicker than Trishelle and ultimately, pulls through the win. At least there was no brutal slamming of human bodies into the ground. I like this elimination, you can’t exactly tell how close they are until the very end.
Trishelle leaves the game, the first woman to do so, with Kendal being the first woman challenger to have won an elimination on All-Stars.
And with that, Kendal keeps intact her perfect Challenge GOAT score/record – 100% across the board – 100% of the games she’s played (1, The Inferno (S8)) she’s won, so then obviously 100% of the finals, and then she was in one elimination, which she also won – 100%. Now + another 100% as she pulls through with her second elimination victory.
The Challenge: All Stars Episode 3 Recap 🙂
Moving right along to episode 3! 🙂
The episode starts like it starts every week, with the “Previously on, The Challenge” with Teck & Ruthie reprising their naked swimming from their original Real World season in Hawaii in nineteen ninety-MOTHER-FUCKING-NINE.
Last week, the episode reminds us of the Challenge history trivia game played by all the competitors. Trishelle fell in first for the girls, & then Kendal messed up & somehow wouldn’t fall in. Nehemiah won for the guys giving him the lifesaver. The rest of the players nominated Kendal to go into elimination since she didn’t do the challenge right (lmfao). Katie & Trishelle get into a fight because Trishelle says Katie doesn’t have her back. Once at elimination, TJ calls down Trishelle & Kendal to compete. Nehemiah doesn’t use the lifesaver. Kendal wins the elimination & sends Trishelle home. Bye, Trishelle!!! Here for a good time, not a long time at all!
Everyone celebrates Kendal back at the house after the elimination. Maybe a bit of an underdog?? Good work, Kendal!
In one of the bedrooms post-elimination, Jemmye talks to Nehemiah about being in an alliance, stressing the importance of political play in this game. Nehemiah admits the political aspect of the game isn’t something he’d really thought about. He pretty much seems quickly convinced this alliance would be a good idea. Jemmye’s got the moooooooves like Jagger, that took, like, one second of convincing!!!! She got that PP, I can just tell (platinum pussé).
The next morning, Beth and Syrus are sitting out on the lawn looking out at this beautiful lake discussing nicknames of everyone in the house – Ruthie, they list “Ruth on Fire, “Ruth, Ruth, Ruth”, Kendal is “Ken-doll” (Lmao, this one I’m, like… okay, lol), & Beth is “Beth to Death”.
They go to Jemmye next & Beth has to pause and fawn over Jemmye, saying how much they get along, how smart Jemmye is, and how they have gotten really close. She says Jemmye’s “always gonna have momma’s back.” Well, I’d love that to be truth, Miss Beth, but only time will tell!
Teck jumps into the lake naked & cue the old Real World clip of Ruthie & Teck jumping in the pool naked while Teck screams, “I’m naked! I’m naked!”
Ruthie’s in an ITM multiple times throughout the episode talking about how close her & Teck are and how much she doesn’t want to see him go home… Hmmmm, well your luck may have run out today, Ruthie!
The challengers all meet TJ for the challenge & they see the huge ice chunks set up as they walk in. Many of them immediately recognize the challenge or some similar iteration of it we’ve seen. The challengers have to melt this ice block with only their bodies. Cue the clip of the challengers all in their young 20’s a la Battle of the Sexes II (S9), the women in bathing suits & the guys with their shirts off, all rubbing up and down trying to melt the ice.
Everyone is broken into groups of four (which I heard in a podcast (Challenge Mania) TJ picked the teams from a hat, so IDK how it wouldn’t be fair). TJ tells them the guy team captains are at risk of going into elimination if their team loses, & the winning guy team captain will be safe from the elimination. The winning girl team captain will get the lifesaver with the option of saving the house’s vote from elimination. See teams below 🙂
I like how they kinda went back to the old format of The Challenge a lot of these players would have played – The loser of the daily challenge going straight into elimination used to be the main format of the game for a long time. In the early 30’s seasons, they developed the “Tribunal” component which basically added a more Survivor/political-social aspect to the game… (you didn’t have to go in even if you were the worst performer in the total challenge with everyone). Regardless… The Challenge really used to be about PERFORMANCE. For god’s sake, you have to remember you have to damn near be a marathon runner to win a final!!
TJ blares the horn to start the challenge & they all start doing a bunch of weird shit to try to melt the ice, LOL. Aneesa’s in an ITM saying, “I’m no stranger to humping. I’m no stranger to riding. No stranger to being wet. To me, just sounds like some ammateur porn!” They bounce up and down on the ice, hump it, ride on it, use each other as saws, LMAO. It’s fascinating to see, I’m not sure what my strategy would really be here. Darrell and Teck both apparently PEED on the ice, EWWWWWW.
It’s taking foreveeeer to melt the ice. Arissa puts her hands up to the sky with her fingers in a triangle frame, and she says in an ITM she’s “Asking the sun to come out”, and calling on her ancestors to help her bring the sun out… It’s all intense, and then we cut back to Arissa holding her triangle frame in the sky with the song, “What If God Was One of Us” playing, and I’m like lMFAOOOOOOOOO, WHOEVER DID THIS, LMFAOOOOOOOOO.
Teck says in an ITM he’s all about the spirits, but she shoulda talked to the spirits before the challenge cuz he needs her to be dumping water on this ice, LMAOOOOOOO. LOL, TECK, DON’T GO.
After what seems like a couple of hours trying to melt the ice, TJ brings the challengers hammers. WTFFFFFFFF! All the guys take initiative and start chipping away like freaking Paul Bunyans, and I’m, like, DAMNNNN.
Jemmye says in an ITM she’s memorized seasons 1-36 and could tell them to you, just, *snap*, like *snap*, that *snap*. Jemmye, Mark, Beth, and Alton are the first to free their four shields from the ice and start to put them in order (I don’t think they have 36 but maybe like… 10 ish?).
The Gold Team (Jemmye, Beth, Mark, & Alton) finish first all thanks to Jemmye!!! Mark says in an ITM they broke a couple shields but he stills thinks they can win.
Cutover to Darrell, he say’s he’s been studying seasons 1-36 and it’ll come in handy today. Nehemiah, Easy, Katie, & Jisela call for a check but TJ tells them it’s not correct.
Darrell, Kendall, Syrus, and KellyAnne (The Silver team) are the second ones to finish the challenge. Ruthie’s team finishes 3rd (the Grey Team, including Yes, Teck, & Arissa). And lastly (as far as the “safe” teams go) Derrick’s team finish 4th out of 5 teams (the Black Team – with Laterrian, Aneesa, & Jonna) leaving the last place team as the Copper Team with Nehemiah, Easy, Katie, and Jisela.
This means… Nehemiah will be going into the arena. OMG, I LITERALLY SAID ARENA LIKE IT’S FUCKING HUNGER GAMES, LMAOOOOOO. Okay wait… I checked and it really is called the arena (by the man TJ himself!!!)… DAMN. Talk about fall from grace considering Nehemiah just won the previous week’s challenge!!!
At the end of the challenge, Teck is jabbing at Nehemiah saying something about his house burning down, and I’m like, this is Teck, this is all fun and games, no? But then Nehemiah starts to get legitimately mad, and, I’m, like oh shiiiiit.
TJ says the first to finish was the Gold Team, who start celebrating, then TJ cuts in, bUT I told you you couldn’t break shields which you broke two,… SO the Silver Team wins the challenge – Darrell, Kendal, KellyAnne, & Syrus.
Darrell is safe from elimination and Kendal, the women’s captain, has the lifesaver power where she can save the house vote from having to go into elimination.
The house now has to go home and deliberate to decide who they’ll send into the elimination against Nehemiah. Back at the house, Nehemiah tells Mark in a bedroom (they presumably share?) that Teck made himself an enemy today & now he’s his target to go into elimination against. Mark is, like, oh shiiiiiit.
At the actual nomination ceremony, the challengers all file in from their beautiful mountain walk to take a seat on the stumps. Teck starts it out for everyone and says, “My name’s Teck Money from The Real World & I gotta keep it real at all times. I know we hungry and tired, so I’m gonna put my name into the hat and it is what it is.”
Derrick says, “That’s how a fucking man does that shit”. Derrick says it’s legendary. Jemmye’s in the immediate next ITM saying, “Nothing pisses me off more than people who volunteer themselves for elimination. Don’t volunteer.” LMAO. Make these people say your names”. Ruthie says in an ITM “It would be devastating to lose Teck”.
SIDE NOTE – Jisela is popping OFF with all these fits, I see you, guuuuuurl. Prob my fav fits of the season but… IDK, don’t hold me to it YET. Big contender.
Cue the party scene!!! (Omfg, sweet Jesus, I would give a couple fingers, & even toss some toes in there as a bonus, if you could just PLEASE let me LEGALLY & SAFELY GO TO A PARTY WHERE I CAN GET SWEATY AND BE STUFFED SHOULDER-TO-SHOULDER, OH GOD, HOW I YEAAAAAAARN.)
It looks like they go out to some sort of bar or something??? They leave the house??? WHAT IN THE POST-COVID-TIMES IN THIS??? Omg, they have a backyard clerb too just like Double Agents (S36), which the final just premiered, look for the finale recap coming soon 😉 ), but LMFAOOOO. DAMNT IT. I LONG FOR A BAR FULL OF STRANGERS. Whatever, “house parties” are still fun as FUCK long as everyone gets LITTY.
Ruthie and Kendal talk about the lifesaver power & try to predict how it could work based on previous seasons they’ve played. Kendal says on her season if you used the lifesaver, you were the sole person to find their replacement so she sent herself in… Righteous Kendal, how righteous!!! But still, she won, so it’s bad-ass instead of naive-ass. Ruthie says on her season, she didn’t have to choose the replacement.
Jemmye tells Nehemiah she wanted Big Easy instead of Teck to go into elimination & she half tries to convince Nehemiah to tell Kendal to use the lifesaver and call in Easy. SHIIIIIIIIIT. I kinda think this could happen at first…. Oh shit. Kendal’s drunk on power… She’ll definitely give this idea a swirl of a taste around in her mouth, lmfaoooo.
She’s talking to KellyAnne at one point who has to tell her to keep her voice down, lmaooooo. Kendal’s just going OFF.
That night, they do a count down of 10-to-1 (like, in some song) ending with Nehemiah in Jemmye’s bed & Kendal innocently asking, “Are you guys gonna make out?” Jemmye replies, “No, you creep.” HAHAHAHHA. But low key… maybe, yes? JK… unless?
Outside on the patio, Aneesa is saying something about how Ruthie plays these games insecure. Ruthie comes out at the same moment & tells Aneesa to “Go fuck yourself.” Ruthie says in an ITM if it’s not a big thing, it’s a constant thing, with Aneesa ignoring her in conversations, or just completely ignoring her altogether.
Ruthie is still going off in her rage and tells Jonna, “I really really hope good people fucking win finally.” Jonna says in an ITM “I feel like Ruthie is a little bit of an outsider”, & gives her a hug and tells her, “Then beat her.”
The morning before the elimination, Teck & his roommates (Laterrian, Jisela, & Aneesa) joke about not wanting to lose him as a roommmate. Aneesa is getting changed & tells Teck he can look forward to coming back to all of “this”, LMAOOOOO. All of their friendships are so CUTE, I LOVE THIS.
It’s finally elimination time & TJ first calls down Nehemiah who was the team captain for the losing team in the “Melt the Ice” challenge. Then TJ calls down Teck who was voted in by the house after he self-volunteered himself.
Kendal tells TJ she’s not using the lifesaver to save Teck from the house vote, even though she did heavily flirt with the idea.
TJ explains the elimination to Nehemiah & Teck – They’ll both run to break their respective tiles in this jungle-gym type contraption (half white diamonds, half orange).
He holds up the horn like he’s about to start the elimination… but he pauses… says he has something for them (Is it just me, or does TJ seem to be getting a lot of inspiration from The Shining “Here’s Johnny” scene with his evil laughing at pain???? lmaooooo –
A “Carolina Reaper”, the world’s hottest pepper, in which they’ll have to eat TWO of them before competing in the elimination. They both eat it begrudgingly and with a few pukes in between.
They’re about to start when TJ asks them how they’re feeling. Teck responds with the beautiful gesture of his middle finger. TJ loves this of COURSE & cracks up laughing, telling Teck, “That’s the best answer I’ve ever heard. Thank you for that.” LMAOOOOOOOO. TJ’s laugh makes this show, str8 uP.
It was one of those eliminations were I can’t really tell who’s ahead or not/it’s really close the whole time? They even get the ceiling tiles at the same time, and are seemingly running back to their rope circles at the same time, completing in a photo finish. Ultimately, Nehemiah wins the elimination sending the LOML (love of my life, jk… unless?, Teck?), TECK, home. And I’m, like, NO CHALLENGE GODS…. WHYYYYYYYY!!!!!!! I’m happy for Nehemiah, of course. I like him, slash, I think he’s a contender to win the whole thing…. But still. Teck was so funny. Omg, I’ll miss you so much, Teck Money. ;,(
Thanks for reading this recap!!!! I know it is late. I know All-Stars is only on Paramount plus. This is a beautiful metaphor for life (capitalism) – When life tries to put up walls ( a capitalistic society sucking you dry at every opportunity & turn), you break them down (cave & purchase Paramount+ to view All-Stars). I forget where I heard this but, “When life gives you lemons, just be glad it gave you anything at all.” LOL. SOOOO, IDK why I got all Home-Goods-Midwest-White-Mom’s-Signs on us but… I digress. Anyways, thanks for reading. 🙂 Follow me for more Challenge recapping & analysis content. 🙂 THANK YOU!
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