The episode opens with Da’Vonne and Bear returning to the house, and we see a meeting of the UK alliance. Bear is asking Theo, Kam, Cain, and Georgia who they should go for next and some scattered shouts for Wes are heard but the group seems to decide on Paulie and Ninja. They say they don’t want to run against Paulie and Ninja in a final and seem to resolve to vote them in no matter what. In another side of the house, Nany is rallying Kyle/Mattie and Jenna/Gus to go after the UK crew. Kyle distances himself from them, and they all seem to make a verbal pact to take them down.

This UK alliance could double as villains for ht next James Bond film.

People keep putting up the UK alliance as this massive threat, but to be honest I just don’t see it. With the way this format is structured, teams really need to have buy-in from their partners to make significant moves. Currently, the only team that seems to have both members of the pair on the same page is Kam and Cain. Not only that, but the two main “targets” of this alliance are Paulie and Wes, who both have allies within the alliance. Paulie’s primary alliance is Cara Maria (teammates with Theo) and he has ties with Da’Vonne (teammates with Bear) as well. Wes’s primary alliance is Hunter (teammates with Georgia) and was also called out by Zach due to a supposed alliance he had with Cara Maria and Paulie. Considering that, the UK alliance would likely have to get all three teams into the Tribunal to have a chance at making a “power” move which just isn’t all that likely.

The view from the VR headset.

We head to the mission for the episode, entitled Eye In The Sky. Each pair will be tied together, back to back. One member of the pair will be blindfolded facing forward, while the other member has on a VR headset that gives a view of what their partner would be seeing if they weren’t blindfolded. They then have to navigate around a structure in the fastest time to make the tribunal.

Hunter and Georgia about to finish the mission.

Crazy mission, but most of the cast were able to get the hang of it. Kyle/Mattie, Amanda/Josh, and Cara Maria/Theo did not make it; but everyone else was successful. It seemed as if people did better as the event went on, and I find it interesting how the show has gone with random orders for this season.

Kam/Cain and Da’Vonne/Bear attempting the mission.

When Paulie/Ninja and Nany/Turbo were going, Bear was doing everything in his power to distract them. The house returned the favor by shouting constantly as Da’Vonne/Bear and Kam/Cain were going, with Wes shouting that their harness was messed up. TJ announces the Tribunal as Wes/Dee, Jenna/Gus, and Da’Vonne/Bear.

Da’Vonne arguing with Bear.

The tribunal meeting opens and the contrast in styles of the three pairs becomes immediately apparent. Jenna/Gus say they want to pick Amanda/Josh. I guess Nany’s speech earlier in the episode that they needed to take out a member of the UK alliance didn’t hold much weight. Da’Vonne says she wants to pick Nany/Turbo, but Bear is not having it. Bear wants Paulie/Ninja, but Da’Vonne says she has an alliance with them. Bear doesn’t want to see them in a final, and while he and Da’Vonne are arguing Wes goes and grabs Kam/Cain. Da’Vonne grabs Nany/Turbo and starts crying, and Bear grabs Paulie/Ninja. Eventually, we learn Bear has won out with Paulie/Ninja, but Dee makes it apparent to everyone that Da’Vonne had no interest in doing that and Bear was the one who pushed it.

Paulie/Ninja in the tribunal ceremony.

The tribunal ceremony opens, and Kam/Cain are the first team in. Wes is quietly chuckling and doesn’t seem bothered by Cain taunting him. Amanda/Josh are next, and Amanda asks why they wouldn’t call in Cara Maria/Theo instead. Jenna/Gus get into a bit of a shouting match with them, and then we proceed to Paulie/Ninja. Paulie says he and Da’Vonne were in an alliance all last season, and if he needs to start to worry about them defecting. Bear continues to harp on not wanting to face Paulie/Ninja in a final, and that adjourns the tribunal ceremony. I don’t quite get how Kyle/Mattie slid by here without even a mention of their name. If Bear really wants Paulie/Ninja out, Kyle is very likely to call Paulie out and then one of the two teams (both of which have shown to be quite a force) would be gone. Plus, Wes was clearly just looking for a team to burn a vote on and that could have been one where Da’Vonne/Bear could have swung the vote that way.

Nany brokering a meeting between Jenna and Amanda.

We head to the club next, and on the way there Kyle and Mattie and Nany and Hunter all make out. With Nany and Hunter seeming to form a bond, that UK alliance is continually more complicated, and my skepticism of its effectiveness grows. Amanda and Nany are pushing for Jenna to throw in a UK alliance member. Their preference would be Cara Maria/Theo, but they seem as if they would want her to push for Kam/Cain as well.

Josh and Cain arguing.

Back at the house, the arguments escalate where Cain and Amanda start getting into it. Things don’t go for long before Josh gets in the middle of it and tries to calm things down. Instead, things get even more heated and Cain starts going through Josh’s stuff. Josh is of course not pleased and security splits them up.

Amanda is not entertained by Gus.

This takes us to the Killing Floor, where we get to see who will be voted into elimination. Bear is first to vote, and he goes for Paulie/Ninja. Da’Vonne is next, and she goes for Kam/Cain. She seemed to have an alliance with Kam/Cain, but she also seemed to with both other teams as well putting her in a very tough position. However; Jenna, Gus, Dee, and Wes all vote for Amanda/Josh, putting them in elimination. Wes explains he voted for Amanda/Josh and is betting on if they come back they will have a larger vendetta against Jenna/Gus then they would he and Dee. After much thought, they decide to go against Kam/Cain in elimination. This matchup had kind of been hinted at throughout the episode, so it is not surprising to see these two teams in elimination one way or another.

Amanda/Josh building a lead on Kam/Cain in Uphill Battle.

TJ tells the teams this elimination is called Uphill Battle. The teams hold onto a bar and must work their way up a slide-looking structure with pegs on each side. It is essentially a salmon ladder and looks like a reverse version of the elimination Adam King and CT beat Nehemiah and Evan in on Rivals.

Josh falling during the elimination.

The elimination starts, and Amanda/Josh get out to a lead. Cain seems to be almost too big for the elimination and struggles to position himself correctly on the ladder. Amanda/Josh initially are moving very well, getting into a rhythm and continually building a lead on Kam/Cain. However, as they move up and the width of the area expands, Josh is having a difficult time keeping himself up on the bar. He seems to be struggling to hold his weight and had to use both sides of the area to secure himself. They get seemingly within inches, but the area gets too large and they lose their balance. They tumble down to the bottom, which TJ says ends their time and all Kam/Cain have to do is get to the pegs they got too. Kam/Cain, slowly but surely, are able to move themselves up and get to the pegs, giving them the win. TJ dismisses Amanda/Josh, and that closes the episode.

Eliminated

Amanda/Josh: They received a lot of flak, but I quite enjoyed this pair, both made for good TV and I’m disappointed we didn’t get to see more of them.

Power Rankings

9) Jenna/Gus: They made the tribunal this week, but also made a puzzling move once they got there and the rest of the teams above them have a more proven track record.

8) Kam/Cain: While they won the elimination, it wasn’t a particularly impressive win, and they haven’t been the best in missions so far either.

7) Da’Vonne/Bear: So far, they’ve been one of the surprising pairs of the season. However, Bear does seem to be on everyone’s nerves and is a strong bet to go in whenever they aren’t safe.

6) Kyle/Mattie: It was weird to me they weren’t brought up for elimination at all if I was in the Tribunal, I’d be trying to get them to take out Paulie/Ninja whenever I could.

5) Cara Maria/Theo: Their size difference seems like it could cause some problems, but their track record and clean political make-up keeps them at five.

4) Nany/Turbo: Turbo just has an aura about him where doubting him seems foolish, and Nany has impressed this season as well.

3) Paulie/Ninja: Drop a spot due to being a target, stay where they are because it is hard to see how they get thrown in unless they are called out.

2) Hunter/Georgia: Being in the UK alliance and Wes’ main alliance as well keeps their political game strong, and they have been dominant in competitions as well.

1) Wes/Dee: To be honest, I think any threats by the UK alliance should be taken with a massive grain of salt and Wes looks like he is in as good of shape as ever. Dee has been no slouch either, and they look to be in as good of a position as ever.

Extra Notes

· Apparently, the Amanda/Cain/Josh issue stemmed from an incident on the bus ride from the club; not house politics. Amanda points that out here. While this season has been outstanding so far, forcing a mission and elimination into every episode has had negative effects in that a ton of content seems to have been left out. It was pretty obvious to see this coming, and hopefully, MTV will release an extended cut or something of the episodes after the season for dedicated fans such as myself.

· Wes made the rounds on podcasts this week, including the Saniac Podcast, the Smashing Heads Podcast, and the Challenge Mania Podcast. All are great and be on the lookout for an appearance between everyone’s favorite ginger and the Banana man on the Maury show coming soon.

Fantasy Scoring