Challenge Chat

It's another badass Mission on a lake in Iceland won by everyone's favorite team. That sets up a college-like celebration in the Ice Bar complete with shotgunning beers and flip cup. Another competitor goes home early but this time it's solely their choice and not due to an injury or health issue. Before we get two guys facing off in the crater, there is a security breach which leads to a cliffhanger going into next week's pivotal episode.

Much to Devin's dismay, the Big Brother alliance is alive and well while the world's most dysfunctional team (Nam and Lolo) continue to bicker like an old married couple stuck together in quarantine. We might have our first hook-up of the season, maybe? The fun mission involves digging in the black sand at a beach like Icelandic dogs. There are only three women's gold skulls left (and no men's gold skulls) so predictably two women face-off in the crater. Finally, Amber B gets a fun new nickname.

There are three gold skulls left for the women so after an always entertaining round of trivia (complete with not one but two shameless plugs for Burger King), we get to see a Big Brother alum take on a Challenge veteran in the crater. Please don't hate me for the terrible Pitbull reference that I make at the end of this episode, quarantine has definitely rotted my brain.

Everyone battles it out in a mud pit, followed by a men's elimination in the crater for the last gold skull for the guys. Our least favorite man finally (after four seasons!) gets his first elimination win but it's mostly because his opponent couldn't even solve a slide puzzle that most kids could figure out. Ugh but at least next week there is TRIVIA!

It's getting down to it and with a guys elimination expected on the horizon, Leroy and Kaycee win the daily challenge thanks to most of the men not even trying for some silly reason. If you've been paying attention (namely last week), who they send in is no surprise. What follows in the crater is where it starts to get really interesting.

Ashley "Millionaire" Mitchell's return to the game is predictably bumpy since most of her friends and allies are long gone. The underrated team of Jay and Theresa have their moment in the sun and the Killas-Kam and Kyle (said in Kyle's awesome British accent)-show that they are a duo to be feared, for as long as they are still together.

Out of nowhere, Natalie has to leave for a personal reason so her gold skull is back in play and Ashley (who she had eliminated in the 1st episode) returns in her place. The younger women want to get rid of Tori so after Big T and CT win the challenge (Mission Down), Aneesa and LeRoy are the compromised agents while Tori and Devin are selected to go into the crater. It's a women's elimination night so two more close friends-Aneesa and Tori-are pitted against each other with Aneesa coming out on top. Also, Big CT energy which is totally a 2021 vibe!

Devin and Tori are the only team to successfully complete a terrible competition involving drones so they win by default. Nobody finds out until the last second that it's a guys elimination so Tori sticks to the plan that she made with Fessy to send him in for his gold skull. Nelson and his supposed friend face-off in a brutal Hall Brawl. No matter the result of that, the damage has already been done to Fessy's reputation in the game.

Another Challenge champion goes down in flames as Wes gets pitted against his "best friend" Devin and gets sent home in a one-sided elimination. Stop me if you've heard this before but Josh also gets drunk and acts a fool. One of our favorites-Nicole-has to leave after injuring her shoulder. Finally, two words: Big CT!

NESN.com's Lauren Campbell and I talk about CT becoming the first Rogue Agent on Double Agents (the title of this season). We reflect on the many mistakes made by Joseph-who we'll probably never see again at least on this show. Meanwhile, Lolo and Nam are into each other but it doesn't help that they are both extremely awkward. Finally, Kyle destroys Joseph to earn the second red skull and he swaps Nany for Kam (while Josh goes with Nany and the dream alliance of CT and Big T happens).