Who, you say? Well, that is a fair question. Frank sort of came and went, much like a lot of other flash in the pan contestants. The main difference is Frank was a freakin' animal at the Challenge. Rewatching my favorite Challenge, you forget just how dominant Frank was. And the crazy thing is his team sent him into the Gauntlet quite frequently. Quite a paradox. What made the season so great, in my opinion, was how an entire team turned against their best player, clearly caring more about not dealing with the alpha male aside from actually winning the competition. The rub of the whole thing was after trying to get rid of Frank (and his girlfriend Jillian (RW: X-Treme), he pretty much single handedly won the final Challenge for the Rookies, one of the biggest upsets in Challenge history.
Frank is one of my all time favorite cast members, not just for this season of the Challenge but also his two Real World seasons. But the Gauntlet 3 was the best season of the Challenge for more reasons than just Frank. But take my word for it, just ask....um.....ok just take my word for it backed up by some compelling arguments.
Cast
The Veterans side of the Gauntlet 3 was a Murderer's Row of talent. Top to bottom, they were stacked with an overabundance of alpha male personalities, psycho bitches, steroids, and even some yet to be discovered std's.
(Side note: While writing this, that incredibly annoying Mohegan Sun commercial came on. Seriously, name me a cornier, more irritating commercial.)
Here's the roster for the Vets:
Adam (RW Paris) Brad, C.T., Diem (Fresh Meat) Eric (Big Easy) Evan, Kenny, Evelyn, Paula, Robin, Danny (RW Austin), Katie, Casey, Coral, Beth (RW Los Angeles), and Johnny "Domestic Violence."
You basically had 5 alpha males running the show in Kenny, Evan, C.T. Brad, and Johnny "Domestic Violence." Anytime you can have a combination of 3 of those guys, you're in for a great season. And they had 5, including the formidable Kenny, Evan, "Domestic Violence" trio. Add an insane 'roided C.T. and it's pure awesomeness (my only regret this season is that C.T. actually made it to the end of a Challenge. When you put C.T. on the show, it should be in writing that he has to get drunk and sucker punch someone smaller than him).
The female cast was arguably even more impressive. Coral and Beth, the two veteran superstars who created more drama than all the other girls combined. Party girl Robin, who always hooks up and/or says something mildly racist, psycho Paula (who really is the Charlie Brown of the Challenges. And everyone who holds power in the show is Lucy pulling the football out), Casey, Katie, and most evil woman(?) in the world Evelyn. Not a single participant on the Veterans did not bring something highly entertaining and hilarious to the table. They were the "Ocean's Eleven" of Challenge casts. I mean, Johnny "Domestic Violence" got eliminated during the third episode! What does that tell you about the depth of the cast?
Rookies roster:
Frank, Jillian, M.J. (RW Philadelphia) Melinda, Rachel, Johanna (all RW Austin) Tyrie and Brooke (RW Denver) Zach Janelle and Tyler (RW Key West) Angel (RR Viewers Revenge, Ryan (Fresh Meat) and Derek (RR Viewers Revenge), and Tori.
At first look, not an impressive cast. And it was reflected in the show. There were clear leaders amongst the group who truly shined, but a lot of the others just weren't so great. But a lot of props goes to the incredibly annoying trio of RW Austin girls. As all the guys kept getting knocked off, the girls became increasingly manipulative as they all realized they had the power over the few remaining guys. I personally enjoyed this since we are so used to seeing the guys with all the power. Seeing Frank whine about being unable to get his way at all was priceless.
The Season
There were so many great plots throughout the season that it's tough to single out a few, but I'll give it a go.
The Frank/Jillian vs. the rest of the team plot: I'll admit I was on the Frank/Jillian side throughout the entire show, and here is why: During RW Vegas, Frank was digging Trishelle and she seemed to like him back. Then, roommate Steven swooped in and stole Trishelle away from Frank. The worst part is since Frank never actually had Trishelle, he couldn't really do anything about it. I can personally commiserate with that and have always liked Frank ever since. Jillian seemed like a good person and was quite attractive, plus she kicked ass during the show despite the long odds.
The Veterans realized early on that Frank was one of the best players. Unfortunately, the Rookies did not have that epiphany. In Episode 3, they sent in Frank versus Tyler, which Frank subsequently won. The Veterans then sent him in on the next opportunity, and Frank once again emerged victorious. He got a reprieve the following episode, but then the Vets shrewdly voted in Frank again. The Rookies, at this point composed of mostly girls who were not big fans of Frank's, chose to send in M.J. a former football player and the second best player left for the Rookies.
To those loyal readers of this blog, you know I tend to over analyze this show, discussing strategy and stats as if this was Major League Baseball. Well, very few moments in the show's history are as worthy of in depth analysis as the moment when the Rookies put MJ in against Frank.
The very purpose of the show is to win, and you win by making sure you have as many of your best players in the final challenge as possible. Frank understood this. He also wore glasses during a elimination challenge, so let's not heap too many praises on him. The four remaining guys were Frank, MJ, Ryan, and Nehemiah. Ryan was saved from elimination by the Vets. During the actual challenge, Nehemiah was god awful. During the entire season, he was average. The clear choice between sending in either Nehemiah or MJ to go against Frank was Nehemiah. The females decided they would rather kick Frank out rather than give themselves the best chance to win. They put their two best players up against each other. I'll be honest that during the season it was often tough to defend Frank, but after seeing that move, I immediately supported Frank. How would any of us have fared having to constantly argue against that idiocy daily. Frank wound up winning, and a good competitor was sent home regardless.
Jillian, unfortunately, was even more screwed over by her team. The Vets voted her into the Gauntlet the first two times, and she won. Frank clearly did not want to see his girlfriend go into the Gauntlet again, and he made it clear that Jillian should not go in three consecutive times. The fair thing to do would have been to give her a break and have another girl selected. However, the Rookies had previously decided that whoever was put into the Gauntlet would get to choose their opponent. Janelle was selected, and she wanted Jillian. Frank pleaded and whined and through a temper tantrum, but the girls were insistent that she go in (of course, so they wouldn't have to). I'm not saying Frank did it the best way, but if my girlfriend was being put in danger yet again, I would do everything to try to prevent that from happening, including whining, crying, and maybe soiling myself. I really like her is all. Jillian amazingly won again, and finally she was saved from all future Gauntlets. But the damage had been done. Seriously, was no one thinking long term here? "Let's seriously piss off our best guy on the team so that at best, he holds a significant grudge, and at worse, his girlfriend goes home, and he throws challenges." Real smart, ladies. The amazing thing is that they actually won it all, mainly because Frank and Jillian made it to the end. Irony, huh?
Frank vs. Tori plot A subsection of the Frank/Jillian vs. team plot was Frank vs. Tori. I have to say Tori came out awful in this challenge. When her team voted her in versus Melinda (her bff) she responded by saying she was going to throw the rest of the challenges. Real good team attitude there. She was offended that someone had the gall to treat the Challenge like a game show and vote her in. Sorry, Tori, but the rest of the team doesn't care that she's your friend, just like you didn't care that Jillian was Frank's girlfriend. I lost complete respect for her, which I know sounds weird since just being on the show lost my respect. But still, it did. Later on in the season, Frank made a deal with Adam that if he threw the Challenge for the Vets, the Rookies would save him. Frank made a mistake of not informing the rest of his team, but still, they should have agreed with him. After all, he was only carrying the team. Sure enough, the Tori-led faction of the team decided to vote in Adam. Frank was livid and finally snapped. He cursed out Tori, and I really hope than 1 million people stood up and applauded at that moment. Great television. I remember watching that and going "Yeah, ef you Tori!" Man, I'm waaaaaay too invested.
That was the main drama surrounding the Rookies team. There were a few other tidbits that are definitely worth mentioning:
Melinda hurt her head during a challenge, then used that as an excuse to not get voted into the Gauntlet. Later, the Veterans vote her into the Gauntlet. She demands to go against Jillian, which is grossly unfair since so many others have not gone in and Jillian has gone in three times. Melinda further screws herself by stating if it isn't Jillian, than she will throw all the challenges. Doesn't Melinda realize you don't negotiate with terrorists? It's a policy for the Real World producers. Naturally, the rest of her team votes Tori in for extra spite. Tori doesn't want to fight against Melinda, but is convinced to by Brad. After winning, she declares that she hates her team and doesn't want to see them lose. That lasts for about an episode.
Frank vs. MJ: As mentioned, Frank is pitted against the bigger and stronger MJ. He is realistic in saying he probably is going home. His team agrees as this is clearly a move designed to send Frank outta here. The actual Gauntlet involves tying a rope to each player's ankle and then trying to pull your opponent across a line. Frank is a relatively smart cat, so he devises a plan to dig himself into the same and hope MJ tires himself out. MJ is a relatively dumb cat, so he immediately starts pulling and tiring himself out. Slowly but surely, Frank wins and everyone except for Jillian is bummed out. Personally, I viewed this as Frank's coming out party (and only in a semi-gay way). Until now, he was viewed a good competitor but not someone you would necessarily not want to go up against under any circumstance. After this win, he established himself as a true alpha dog, along the likes of Alton and Derrick. They are two good guys who rely solely on their physical skills and intelligence to win Challenges, not manipulation. Frank could have coasted to another $250,000 by just being that awesome competitor that the people who organize alliances would want in their camp. It happened with Derrick on the Island. He stayed out of the drama and coasted to the finals by being a nice guy who TJ Lavined it on Challenges. Frank is overall a good guy who cares about fairness a little too much. If he could check his emotions, he would be a guaranteed winner. Yet since the Gauntlet 3, he has not appeared on a Challenge, while Jillian just completed Fresh Meat 2.
Tomorrow, I will be doing Part 2, profiling the Veterans. Stay tuned....
Quote:
Frank: Fuck you, Tori! Seriously, go fuck yourself.
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THAD LUCKINBILL FROM THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS FAVOURITE SHOW CNN
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