Real World/Road Rules Challenge: The Gauntlet, Episode 16: Beginning of the End

Previously on The Gauntlet: Theo G. tried to finish Dukes of Saturn as best as he could, fearing that the Gauntlet meeting would come down to him or Coral. She also tried her best, and Theo figured that she beat his time by 12 seconds. Jonny awarded the last $10,000 check to Real World, giving them $60,000 to Road Rules’ $80,000. Jonny also handed the Plate of Protection to Alton, putting Theo in danger of being sacrificed. Jonny handed the other PoP to Veronica. Her reaction? Like somebody jabbed her in the butt with a needle. Why did that get stuffed into the prologue? It’ll get lopped off in marathons. Veronica interviewed that she would’ve been sent to the Gauntlet if she hadn’t won the PoP. In the RR Meeting, Cara got voted in for the second time, and she hoped that she wouldn’t have to say goodbye. A cloud of angst choked the RW meeting, as Coral and Theo G. spilt the votes. It all came down to PoP-possessor Alton to break the tie. Would he stick with Coral, or send Theo in? Boy, I’m on the edge of my seat. It’s not like MTV showed us Cara and Coral in the final mission, right? Wait a minute...

RW Meeting. Coral insists she isn’t mad, but says would be unbelievable to her if she had to go into the Gauntlet again. Mike interviews that the pressure is on Alton, who holds the PoP. Alton is still sputtering, still channeling Dave during RR: South Pacific. “Coral is really our overall weakest player,” he interviews, “but I can’t take this opportunity away from her. She’s my friend. It’s an opportunity to win $150,000. That’s huge.” Finally, Alton makes his choice: Theo. “Sex doesn’t matter, man,” Theo interviews, “it’s your performance. Coral’s definitely my girl, and I have been doing a better job than Coral, period. But that’s just how it rolls, man.” Mike and Norman reassure Alton. He interviews that Coral is his girl, and he wants her to have a chance.

Watching this from home, I thought this was a bad idea. Yes, I analyzed the crap out of the situation and figured that Theo would be a better choice. Alton agreed with me, but he based his decision on entitlement, not strategy, which was a huge mistake. Coral already won her giant cardboard check two years ago on Battle of the Seasons. All Theo got from Battle of the Sexes was a number of prizes for being on the men’s side when they won missions. I would’ve sent Theo in because he stood a better chance against a random Roadie than Coral, not because she deserved more of a chance. Of course, hindsight is 20/20. That’s going to be a recurring theme in this and the next recap.

Gauntlet. Jonny welcomes everybody to the final Gauntlet. He reviews: the winner stays to get a share of the team bank, while the loser goes home with nothing. He brings Theo and Cara up to determine the final game. “All I’m hoping when I roll the [die],” Theo interviews, “is that I don’t get Deadman’s Drop. If I get Deadman’s Drop... I’m a dead man.” Just the way he says it, like it’s so obvious, cracks me up. Theo rolls, and his side cheers. Jonny raises the die to reveal Ride ‘Em Cowboy. Cara interviews that she’s a little nervous going in. Theo asks God to “let a brother win” while meditating. They put on the cowboy hats and jump on the bulls. Sarah gives Cara some advice. “In the name of Jesus,” Theo mutters, “let her fall first,” Okay, whatever. Dave interviews that Theo looks better on the bull, and he’s worried Cara won’t win this Gauntlet.

Once again, Jonny declares this to be the final Gauntlet. The remaining RW players stand up, holding hands. Nice show of solidarity there. Jonny blows his air horn to start things off. The bulls slowly start to buck. Adam stares, but not as hard as he did when Sarah was up there. Theo rides his bull, and I see that behind a nearby fence, some misguided soul is holding up a “GO REAL WORLD” sign. Soon, Theo’s bull starts spinning fast, while Cara’s steer moves a little slower. In one of her recaps, Sarah explained that the bulls operated differently for each gender, due to the difference in weight. That must have made some sense on Planet Bunim-Murray at the time. Then again, does anything make sense coming from BMP?

Dave says, “Cara’s doing quite nicely on the bull, and I’m going to give myself some credit for that, if you know what I’m saying.” Oh, yuck. Seriously, that’s way too much information from Dave today. Cara is actually smiling on the bull, while Theo’s ride is clearly possessed. He interviews that he was trying to hang on, but his arms were burning. He’s smacking the bull, while his teammates continue to hold hands. Roni interviews that Cara looks balanced on her bull. Soon, Theo slides off his bull. Game over. As RR celebrates, Coral bitchily mimics their gestures. “So apparently,” Cara declares, “I can ride a [bleeping] bull!” Theo can’t believe he lost. “This was my time to go home,” he interviews. “I’m going home with pride, and I’m going home with dignity. I’m only going home. I ain’t dying.” You know, I take back my fear of Theo coming back as a bastard in a third Challenge. The guy shows maturity, which is a rare commodity in reality show folk these days.

Denouement. Jonny reviews what happened, telling Theo that the loss hurt. You and me both, Jonny. “Theo was probably the best competitor that we lost in the Gauntlet,” Nathan interviews, slathering his body in I Told You So cologne. “I’m sure some of the people that voted for him are kinda questioning their vote at this point.” He does bring up a positive side: with fewer people, RW might have a better chance. Cut to shots of Veronica, Sarah, and Adam spinning a disc, looking like Adam’s off the meds. “Your final mission is on Sunday,” Jonny concludes. “Good luck.”

Back from commercials, I see that Theo G. didn’t get a farewell montage. Finally, I can compare him to Steve without any problems. Anyway, members of both teams celebrate as Coral reads the clues off the sponsor phone. Alton interviews that he feels great, and that his team showed RR that they’re a force to be reckoned with.

Sunset. Sunrise. A graphic tells us it’s the final mission day. RW members stretch and exercise outside. In the mansion, RR members look out to observe. Theo (only one left now) is worried about going into the final mission with more people. He talks to the others, trying to figure out how many Challenges ended with a distance race. Answer: every Challenge since Extreme. Sarah interviews that the others sent her to the Gauntlet because they don’t trust her to follow through in the end. Rachel figures that every mission that RR has lost has been physical in nature. And now it’s time for BMP to drag out the same damn negative Adam clip. “It’s blatantly obvious that Sarah is the weakest player, and that Cara is the second weakest player,” he interviews, clearly not as tired of his voice as I am. “There’s a reason they went into the Gauntlet. We were lucky that they beat somebody else on our team. Are we lucky that they came back?” The guy should consider himself lucky Sarah didn’t follow through with shoving her shoe up his butt. The editors, wacky funsters that they are, follow up Adam’s drone with a shot of Sarah shaking her head.