Game Show Newsnet - The Real World/Road Rules Challenge: The Ruins

Recapper's Note: My computer had caught a bad virus and had to take it to a repair shop to get it fixed. It took them over a week to get it fixed, but it was done. My apologies for the unexpected delay.

Previously on the show, the champs smoked the challengers in the Burning Bridge challenge. In the Ruins celebrations, Darell stepped up and pick Danny as his opponent while Katie picked on newcomer Sarah. At homebase, Veronica pushed Tonya to the breaking point, and the players were shocked when Tonya pushed back, automatically sending her home.

In the "Oh-Ring" Ruins Elimination Round, Sarah pulled off an upset, sending a shocked Katie home. Then Danny lost his grip and was sent home by Darrell.

With troublemakers Katie and Tonya off their team, the champions are left with 11 players while the challengers are down to seven. Here's a breakdown of their cash winnings so far...

CHAMPIONS TEAM
Darrell - $6,400
Derrick - $4,400
Evan - $4,400
Ibis - $4,400
Johanna - $4,400
Johnny - $4,400
Kenny - $4,400
Susie - $6,400
Syrus - $6,400
Veronica - $4,400
Wes - $4,400
GRAND TOTAL: $54,400

CHALLENGERS TEAM
Brad - $2,000
Casey - $2,000
Cohutta - $2,000
Dunbar - $2,000
Kelly Anne - $4,800
Kimberly - $2,000
Sarah - $6,400
GRAND TOTAL: $21,200

The episode begins with the players finally getting a day off and seeing the sights of beautiful Thailand. The challengers have three guys on their side and the champs have seven guys on theirs and this is when things get very complicated. Those players will have to survive by the skin of their teeth. The players are about halfway through the challenge and the game is going to get really shifty. There are friends that will have to go up against one another and the game is going to get really ugly.

Veronica thinks that the entire house will be a lot more calm since Tonya and Katie are gone, but it definitely affects her game. There is so much that went on with Cohutta and KellyAnne that was left unsaid, but there were still feelings that they can't just draw. As far as KellyAnne's relationship with Cohutta goes, it unfortunately didn't work out, but they're good friends.

Back at homebase, Johanna is trying to separate and draw the line between her personal life and team life with Wes. But it proves to be difficult for Johanna and Wes is making her life a living hell. Johanna would rather not have Wes talk to her at all then be flip-flopping on their friendship. But Wes feels like Johanna is not caring as much as about their friendship as he does and doesn't know why he expected anything different.

Wes tells KennyAnne that Cohutta gets frisky when he's drunk, but she doesn't believe that. Things between Cohutta and him are interesting, they are very cool one-on-one. But according to Wes, the problem is that Cohutta forgets his place in this world. Wes also thinks that Cohutta forgets he was practically never KellyAnne's boyfriend and forgets she's his girlfriend now. Wes then tells KellyAnne that if he goes into the Ruins, he'll go against Cohutta. KellyAnne can tell Wes that she doesn't want him to, but she can not tell him he can't. Wes has a lot of respect for Cohutta, but knows he doesn't stand a chance. Wes wants to go from being the renegade to being the bounty hunter in this game.

Here comes the next clue.

Hang on tight! Tomorrow's challenge will be a real party. Be ready in your team uniforms.

Johanna talks with Susie and Ibis about plotting to throw Veronica into the Ruins and go against KellyAnne. It's not Johanna's fault that she doesn't like KellyAnne, she happens to be a strong girl who she doesn't want on the other team. Veronica had just overheard that conversation, so she then goes to Evan for help. Her conversation with Evan was overheard by Susie who is sitting on the patio below the one above. Susie knows Veronica is desperate and she outsmarted her. Veronica said to Evan he told her that he would never vote for Susie. Now Veronica sees this as a matter of being screwed over. Evan knows that Veronica is an old-school cat with old-school ways and wants to see if she can have a big bite to go with her loud bark.

It's time once again for nominations for possible elimination. And after deliberating, they've decided on...

Champions: Veronica, Johanna, Ibis, Evan, Kenny, Wes
Challengers: Brad, Dunbar, Cohutta, KellyAnne, Kimberly, Casey

Challenge: Block Party (w/apologies to GSNN staffer Jason Block, and his podcast)

Each team has a lane with a 15-foot pole with a gong at the top on one end and their team building blocks on the other. The concept of this challenge is for the teams to use their blocks to build themselves a stairway tall enough to reach the gong. However, there's a catch; there'll be two guys and two girls from the opposing team holding on to the poles. They must be removed from them and be taken back to the starting point before a team can start building. Once a 'defender' has been successfully removed from a pole, they then join their team to play offense. Since the teams are lopsided, only the nominees of each team who were get to play in this challenge.

The first team to ring their gong will split another $20K, and a snowboard for each of their players.

For the challengers, Brad, Casey, Cohutta, and KellyAnne are the pole defenders while Dunbar, Kimberly, and Sarah are the pullers. For the champs, Evan, Ibis, Veronica, and Wes are defending the pole while Johanna, Kenny, and Susie are the pullers.

It was another hard-fought battle, but the champs add one for their victory column. According to their calculations, each of them gets $1,820 into their individual accounts and a snowboard.

Back at home base the champions opportunities of trying to cut Wes lose are getting smaller by the day. Going into their deliberations, the champs have a plan that's set in stone. They want to get Veronica and KellyAnne into the Ruins.

Veronica, Johanna, Ibis, Evan, Kenny, and Wes are in the deliberation room. Wes chooses Cohutta as his opponent thinking it's an easy win. Wes says it is not for the money situation, but it's for the fact that he finds Cohutta annoying. Then the team chooses Veronica to go against KellyAnne into the ruins. Veronica could potentially lose if she goes into the Ruins against her and feels hurt by what's going on. Then Wes comes to her defense, but Johanna sees this as defending his girlfriend, KellyAnne. Ibis is keeping her mouth shut and letting the plan get its show on the road.

The deliberation time is up, and the champs now have to vote for the girls. Three votes pointed toward Veronica against KellyAnne while two votes went toward her against Kimberly. Evan votes for Veronica going against Kimberly which didn't sit well with Johanna. Because they are deadlocked with the girls, the rest of the champs come in, and decide as a whole without further deliberating. Those votes were 6-5 in favor of Ibis playing against Kimberly. Ibis is stunned and Veronica is happy at how the match-ups were eventually made.

Wes obviously wants Cohutta out of this game and he has a long line of sending people home as fast as he changes his underwear. Ibis is upset at the rest of the champs and fights with Johnny about what happened in the deliberation room. After having that fight, Johnny vows to stay silent. But he proves to be a bane in Susie's existence as she can't stand the sound of his voice and doesn't think he's a nice person.

Because Derrick was one of the champs who voted for Ibis, she prefers to not talk to him. Although Derrick feels bad about it, the bottom line is that Veronica has been doing a better job in the challenges than Ibis.

Wes' actions are putting Johanna and KellyAnne in a predicament. Johanna is the ex-girlfriend and she broke up with Wes a long time ago. KellyAnne should not have to have been hearing this as it seems that talking about your exes is a no-no. KellyAnne describes having to watch the exes as totally obnoxious.

KellyAnne thinks Wes has some severe issues that he needs to work on, especially Johanna. But as far as Wes is concerned with her, he doesn't understand what friend would act the way that she does and still asks him to respect her. Wes is sorry that KellyAnne is put in that situation and although he's so mad at Johanna that it makes him sick, he still loves her. Wes thought Cohutta was kind of getting sweet on KellyAnne or something like that. But Cohutta doesn't really want to talk about it, because he's not nothing more to say on that matter.

Elimination Round: Spool

The players involved must weave a rope through an obstacle course, under and over bamboo poles. The first one to weave their rope through the course and ring their gong wins.

The first heat involves Wes and Cohutta, in which according to Brad, was a match-up that was supposed to happen in terms of their history in the challenges. The champs, especially Johanna were not rooting for Wes after what he's done in the challenge. However, a few of them were rooting along with the challengers against Wes. This heat ended in an upset and Cohutta gets a big win, much to the shock of KellyAnne who was hurt by it.

This is the first time Wes had to say he has lost, and it was really tough for him to swallow. Cohutta keeps his $2,000 while he also takes $6,220 from Wes, razing his total to $8,220. According to Johanna, people like Wes are so used to thinking that they are winners and that nobody else can take him out. Johanna is hoping that Wes' loss will make him more humble. And after opening his heart to the remaining champs, Wes leaves knowing he still loves his teammates. However, the champs are happy they no longer have to deal with Wes.

It's now the women's turn with Ibis playing against Kimberly. Kimberly got the task done first while Ibis' chance to get back in the game went by the boards. Kimberly takes $6,220 from Ibis, who ends up being the next of the champs to be sent packing. Ibis won't mind leaving behind most of the people in the game. She then tells us that everything doesn't have to be about screwing people over and sometimes it's about helping each other, because ultimately they are a team.

Back at homebase, Johanna seems really confused about how she felt about Wes. Johanna doesn't care about KellyAnne and still has not figured out why she dislikes her. KellyAnne no longer has sever dislike for Johanna, but at the same time they aren't on the same team, they aren't on the same page, and they aren't friends. KellyAnne still wants to go against Johanna.

CHAMPIONS TEAM

Darrell - $8,220
Derrick - $6,220
Evan - $6,220
Johanna - $6,220
Johnny - $6,220
Kenny - $6,220
Susie - $8,220
Syrus - $8,220

GRAND TOTAL: $61,980

CHALLENGER'S TEAM
Brad - $2,000
Casey - $2,000
Cohutta - $2,000
Dunbar - $8,220
Kelly Anne - $4,800
Kimberly - $8,220
Sarah - $6,400

GRAND TOTAL: $33,640

To see this episode in this entirety, go to theruins.mtv.com.