Andy DehnartIn 2022, CBS and Paramount expanded MTV’s The Challenge franchise by creating a spin-off for the broadcast network: The Challenge USA.
It featured first-time Challenge players from Survivor, Big Brother, The Amazing Race, and Love Island, and, of course, host T.J. Lavin.
Alas, while season one started with potential, it was marred with shocking claims about bad producing—and just bad challenges, ironic for a show called The Challenge.
But season two did a 180, turning into a show that moved closer to the MTV version (with the inclusion of Challenge vets).
I’d absolutely recommend season two as some great competition television, and character arcs that continue from previous seasons of CBS reality TV shows.
If season one is worth watching, it’s only as a lesson in how to take a great idea and run it into the ground.
Here, in one place, are my recaps from The Challenge USA 2 seasons one and two—and hopefully future seasons!
The Challenge USA season 1 recaps
The Challenge: USA episode two had a climbing + spelling challenge and a spinning + memory challenge—and a major blindside.
The Challenge USA dropped its players off the side of the same building yet again, but then things got interesting as one of the show alliances decided to target a winner.
The Challenge: USA’s winners decided to go after one of their allies, leading to a high-tension final challenge and setting up next week’s “A Civil War” episode.
The showdown between Survivor winners Tyson and Sarah disappeared, leading to a rather bland and boring episode of The Challenge: USA. David, though, was ready to “shift the dynamics of the house,” so guess what he did?
Tyson was paired with Sarah on The Challenge: USA, but the only real drama came from Leo and his girlfriend, despite Cayla’s valiant attempt at making people as “on edge as possible.
On The Challenge: USA episode 9, a Connect Four challenge gave the players a chance to sabotage each other, while the Fab Five, led by Sarah, faced off against Alyssa and Angela.
The Challenge: USA made Challenge history with its final, but not for reasons that its Survivor, Big Brother, Amazing Race, or Love Island players will brag about. The Challenge’s producers shouldn’t brag, either.
The Challenge USA season 2 recaps
The Challenge USA’s first two episodes were considerably better than last year’s wreck of a show. But instead of Survivor, BB, and Amazing Race new to The Challenge, we have a bunch of Challenge alum.
On The Challenge USA 2 episode 4, a Survivor winner proposed what a Challenge alum called “an insane plan,” while a Big Brother winner tried to get his way and use words.
Let’s talk about The Challenge USA episodes 5 and 6: Did Wes’s plan to take out Survivor and Big Brother players work? Or did it backfire? And will Dusty’s annoying audition for future Challenges pay off for him?
The individual challenge’s winner was deprived of the ability to defect to a better team at the end of The Challenge USA 2 episode 7. But will this twist change how people are playing?
“Too Cool for Spool,” The Challenge USA 2 episode 8’s elimination challenge, lasted for hours before there was a winner—and the producers did not expect that. Here’s what really happened behind the scenes.
The Survivor alliance became a target on The Challenge USA 2 episode 9, but it was one Survivor who made themselves a target and the subject of relentless dunking by other players and the editing.
In The Challenge USA 2’s second double elimination, alliances started fracturing, and one player made a decision that will affect all future seasons of The Challenge. Probably.
The Challenge USA 2’s players covered themselves in oil for this week’s challenge. But would anyone make a move when it came time for nominations?
“I’m pissed, because so many people are playing it safe right now,” Cassidy said during The Challenge USA 2 episode 12. Agreed!
The Challenge USA 2 players faced one final challenge and a double elimination on episode 13. Who made it to the finale, and who spent all episode crying because he’s a terrible player?
Who won The Challenge USA 2’s vastly improved second season? Bananas, Chanelle, Chris, Cory, Desi, Fessy, Michaela, Tori were all in the running, literally, for $250,000.