MTV's The Challenge has long evolved from its Road Rules beginnings into a Survivor-style show with a rotating cast of characters that is the epitome of a guilty pleasure. Following the most recent season, Invasion of the Champions, the show was immediately followed up with The Challenge: Champs vs. Pros. This special charity competition is new for the show and I must admit, I had my doubts. After all, what makes reality competition shows so entertaining are the recurring characters, drama and mind games.
These characters, love em or hate em, are what make the show what it is. All of the politicking, backstabbing, manipulation and cutthroat mental warfare that goes into these games makes each new season compelling and different from the last. I was concerned that this limited charity event, while entertaining from a competition standpoint, would lack this fire. These are professional athletes, with sponsors to look good for and images to maintain. Granted, these aren't exactly A-level stars like LeBron, Brady and Serena who are brands unto themselves. But it was reasonable to assume that these pros would try and maintain a buttoned up demeanor. Enter Lolo Jones.
Lolo Jones DGAF.
Lolo Jones may have been born to do hurdles, but she was made for The Challenge. It has been a while since a new person on the show has been as exciting and entertaining to watch as Lolo. She has the perfect mix of no filter, competitive ferocity, selective self-awareness, arrogance and physical ability that make her ideal for this show.
Even the other competitors, on both teams remarked about the force that is Lolo Jones:
"I think that Lolo girl is the most intimidating because she has a bigger mouth than Johnny Bananas and that's hard to do"-Ashley M.
"If I were the pros, I would be really worried about the wrath of Lolo Jones"-Candice Wiggins
"Lolo is scary as fuck."-Gus Kenworthy
Two episodes in, Lolo has already shown her challenge worthiness in several ways. She started talking trash right away and you see that her dial actually starts at 11. She took offense to the 'random' drawing that sent her into elimination and proceeded to get into a shouting match over it. During a friendly flag football game she was overly competitive and wound up sitting out and threatening to leave. At her elimination, Lolo stood in front of the wall, fists clenched, head lowered, rocking back and forth and pawing at the ground like a bull preparing to charge. The very notion of losing is so offensive to her on such a primal level that every competition is life and death. Even after smoking Candice, in true challenge fashion, she was vocally sour about having to go to elimination in the first place. The wrath of Lolo Jones indeed. She is an absolute nightmare for anyone that has to go up against her. This makes her incredible to watch.
Already two episodes into this short six-week special, and with a new episode tonight, Lolo is already the clear star of this mini-season. While the 'reality' part of reality TV is always up for debate, one thing is clear, real or staged, Lolo's personality, full of piss and vinegar is tailor made for The Challenge. Here's hoping she lasts until the end and MTV finds some way to bring her back for something like this in the future. Lolo Jones is nothing if not a character and she is easily the most exciting, entertaining new challenger this show has seen in ages.
The Challenge: Champs vs Pros airs Tuesdays at 9/8c on MTV.
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