The Circle, The Challenge, The Real World! Also RHOBH + Marvel, and Survivor news
Dear newsletter friends,
This week, I realized where my obsession with Hoarders came from. It’s pictured here. I think that book may also why I cleaned my room all the time.
Someone also shared with me the greatest piece of service journalism I’ve seen in a while: An illustration of how far Stephen had to run to slap Irene during Real World Seattle’s most shocking and awful moment.
Okay, let’s get on to this week’s reality TV news, reviews, and recommendations.
Reviews and recaps
My thoughts about the end of The Real World Homecoming: New York and the beginning of The Challenge: All Stars
When a flood took out Survivor players’ camp—on camera! I remembered the flood but not much else about this episode of Survivor: The Australian Outback, and especially not its reward challenge.
My thoughts on The Circle season 2’s first four episodes, which I really couldn’t get a handle on. What did you think?
News
As Pajiba’s Dustin Rowles asked, “I guess we're just going to ignore the stalking now?” BuzzFeed’s Ehis Osifo created A Timeline of Colton Underwood’s Problematic Actions. Despite that, Colton is already filming a Netflix reality series.
Survivor may have a shorter season this fall
RuPaul’s Drag Race “contestants are spending anywhere from $4,000 on the low end to upwards of $20,000 on the higher end” just to compete on the show 😳
Meerkat Manor is back in June! It’s now on the schedule, along with several new and returning streaming and cable shows
More news
Season 3 of Tough As Nails is filming soon, and CBS has renewed it for two more seasons 🎉
This week’s premieres include Mark Wahberg’s new show and the return of A&E’s Biography, which focuses on WWE stars
Serena Williams is filming a series for Amazon “that follows her in both her professional and personal life”
Kids will create escape rooms on one of two new kid-focused Peacock reality shows
Joseph Guidry—a reality TV producer and director who EPed The Challenge and directed American Barbecue Showdown—won the DGA's Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Reality Programs award for HBO Max's Full Bloom.
The Real Magic Mike is coming to HBO Max, produced by the people who brought us Holey Moley. I’m in!
⭐️ Recommended
This piece on The Real Housewives and Bravo
This show, if you came of age in the 1990s like I did
This fun mashup of a Marvel movie and a Real Housewives of Beverly Hills argument
This NatGeo show, which is arriving at its halfway point Monday, and really picked up around this point (I saw half of its episodes before reviewing)
If you’ve watched The Circle’s first three episodes, this article about one of the catfish’s pictures came to be
Godzilla vs. Kong (HBO Max) and Thunder Force (Netflix), which are both very different types of dumb fun, but great ways to spend two hours.
That’s all I have for you this week. I hope you enjoy your TV—and everything else—this weekend!
best,
Andy
🌄 This is Reality in Focus issue 239, first sent April 16, 2021, and it’s ready for more homecomings.
💻 This newsletter is hand-crafted in Florida by me, Andy Dehnart, and is supported by reality blurred patrons and paid subscribers to this newsletter. Please consider becoming a patron or upgrading your newsletter subscription!
💌 If you like this newsletter, forward it to a friend! If you're that friend, you can subscribe here!
✅ Bookmark realityblurred.com and visit daily for the latest of my reality TV news analysis, reviews, and commentary.
📷 Photo of the Boulder Flatirons by Ryan Hoffman