Real World/Road Rules Challenge: The Gauntlet, Episode 17: The Last Roundup

Before I tag and bag this season, I just want to give special thanks to MTV.com. In case you didn’t see it, they had a shot of Coral on the ground, clearly not having a good day. The caption: “Who will win on The Gauntlet? See Coral struggle for life in the final showdown.” I don’t adore her that much, and even I thought that was tasteless. Shame on MTV.

Previously on The Gauntlet: Two minutes and thirty-seven seconds of prologue, all of it from last week’s episode. Given how things end up shaking out, that time could’ve been used better. Here's what we get: Sarah is getting nervous about Gold Rush. Coral starts getting fatigued. Mike goes insane at her flagging health.

We pick things up with footage from last week, where Coral is lying down, Alton is talking to her, and Mike is growling for her to get up. Coral wants to be left behind, interviewing that she blacked out and things were beyond her control As Mike lifts her up, we get the same surreal camera shot that ended things last week. When it’s adjusted, Mike and Alton are supporting Coral. Mike calls to Norman, asking him for his opinion. Norman interviews that the team will have to eat the ten-minute penalty, and makes an executive decision to leave her. Coral waves her teammates away. As Nathan gets informed of the decision as he runs out in front.

Gold Digger. Nathan starts digging for the lock box, and RR is still at it. Adam and Theo are on shovel duty while the others take a breather. Dave interviews that they’re exhausted and they’re trying to get oxygen. Sarah gets her back massaged by Veronica, who tells her that she can breathe all she wants tonight. Yeah, or else Sarah might waste her time solving dirty crossword puzzles with Theo. No, I’m still not letting that go. “Ten minutes is a long, long time,” Mike interviews. “We have to make that up now, because Coral couldn’t handle it.” Finally, Darrell pulls up the box, while Adam and Veronica snag the puzzle pieces. RW gets their box, as Mike and Alton smear the camera lens with dug-up dirt. Hope the cameraman got hazard pay.

While this is going on, a woman slowly walks up to Coral with an oxygen mask. Back at Gold Digger, Alton grabs the box. Coral gasps into the mask. Nathan interviews that RW has to catch up to RR and beat them by at least ten minutes. He adds, “It seems our backs are against the wall at this point.”

Coral, now on the brink of tears, is getting attended by two medics. She interviews that she can’t breathe, the sight in her left eye is gone, and her toes are numb on her right foot. She continues to gasp for air.

RR runs towards the next obstacle, Dough-Nut. Turns out I overestimated how tall it was last week. It’s only a few feet off the ground, but the problem is that only one person at a time can go through it. Immediately, RR starts lifting themselves through the tire. Sarah interviews that they’re hauling ass, but RW is even with them. Adam gasps that they’re going too slowly.

Darrell is worried about Cara, Sarah, and Veronica. Why doesn’t he ever think about Rachel like that? It's not like she’s any better in missions. “I don’t wanna hear just because one of them dropped out you can now,” Darrell interviews. “We're all gonna finish this together.” RW goes through the tire just as RR leaves. Mike interviews that RW has four strong guys, and they will catch RR. Both teams walk and jog to the next stage.

Elsewhere, Coral is still gasping for air. You know, I sometimes want bad stuff to people to people that I can’t stand. Coral’s ordeal might make me rethink things in the future. A medic calls in the emergency. The lady thinks Coral is suffering an allergic reaction, and asks for an Epi-Pen. To the uninitiated: if you are in Coral’s situation, you jam the Epi-Pen into your thigh. It provides you with a dose of adrenaline to keep you from going into shock before you go to the hospital. Having been to the hospital under lesser circumstances, I can tell you that an Epi-Pen is NOT something you screw around with. One of the medics asks Coral if she’s allergic to anything, and she shakes her head. But soon, she’s able to gasp “spider.”

The medic tells her to calm down. We switch to a camera on the ground. Coral is still gasping. “Stay with us,” the medic tells her. “Try to breathe.”

Another medic: “She stopped breathing on me.” Fade to commercial.

Coming back, the editors replay the last few seconds. Cut to the contestants running. Back to a guy calling an ambulance in. More running. Mike screams for his team to hustle. Rachel interviews that the teams are neck and neck. “But there’s one very important detail,” she smiles. “They don’t have Coral.” One of the medics talks to Coral.

Next obstacle: Loop the Loot. A puzzle piece is floating in the middle of the pond, and the teams must retrieve it using ropes on both sides. Adam yells directions to Theo as they slowly pull the piece. Nathan and Mike follow suit on their piece. Mike interviews that he has a fear of losing, but he’s willing to go into that fear. Theo and Adam get their piece to move on. Theo interviews that RW has five people and they can pass RR quickly. I’m guessing that interview was conducted before the mission.

Adam runs and yells at his teammates to go. Meanwhile, Nathan is cursing Mike for pulling on the rope too much. Eventually, they manage to grab their piece. The editors pipe in Missy Elliot’s “Pass the Dutch,” as RR runs in the lead.