Real World/Road Rules Challenge

The Challenge has been an MTV staple for decades now. This show puts former reality show contestants (originally drawing from the Real World and Road Rules casts exclusively) against each other in physical challenges and/or puzzles, all while they are trapped living in a huge, amazing house. Alliances, politics, backstabbing, hookups, fights, and general drunkenness have also been known to ensue.

What separates The Challenge from other tv shows of similar nature is that contestants often return season to season, with some contestants having been on 10+ seasons. This allows storylines to continue across years. You might watch your favorite contestant rise from 'sweet rookie underdog'to 'multi season champion' to 'veteran bully'. Not only this, but the physical challenges (especially some of the eliminations and the Final challenge) are actually incredibly grueling and require those who really want a shot at winning to specially train year-round.

I was just an elementary schooler when The Challenge began, so I literally grew up watching some of these people and continue to into my late 20s. That's not to say you wont enjoy it if you jump right into the current season without te background experience- the current seasons have drawn lots of brand new contestants from UK reality shows which has introduced a whole new set of characters and a US vs UK dynamic which has totally ushered in a brand new era of the show.

The Challenge has it all- personable characters, ridiculous personalities, great athletes, high drama, endearing underdogs, malicious bullies, and a plethora of VERY attractive people. Phenomenal television.

"The Challenge" originated when MTV wanted to capitalize on its "Road Rules" and "Real World" franchises and the numerous young celebrities those two shows had created. Stars from each of those shows were pitted against each other. Over the course of thirty-three seasons, so far, its producers have looked for ways to keep it fresh, mostly by varying the cast. Like "Big Brother" and "Survivor" and "The Amazing Race" and other reality contest shows, they have pitted various factions against one another.

As in the original "Real World", the contestants are mostly attractive alpha types. Those who have been successful on the show(s) have returned again and again, creating careers. This means some of them have had their egos stroked for years and they bring romantic and rivalry histories with them. This baggage fuels attractions and personal vendettas. These are real contests, but they are also soap operas.

You can expect grueling competitions, plenty of chest beating, and juvenile hookups and alliances. For a prize of $1 million, these twenty-somethings will do almost anything.

The best competitors display heart, intelligence, and physicality.

These shows often come with their own "after shows", where an in-studio host asks probing questions about each episode and they show behind-the-scenes footage.

The Challenge has been around a long time and even though I'm not a big reality tv fan and only watch a few reality shows, this is great and has been the whole time! It started off with only Real World & Road Rules stars but has expanded over the years to include a huge variety of reality shows including shows like Big Brother, Survivor, Are You the One, etc. This show really does get addicting, especially once you get to know the players and get invested.

I have been a fan of this show sense the very beginning! I've seen every season and the shows TV station on Pluto TV is always on. It's insane how much I know about all the contestants and if you want to diss on my show you can leave no joke! I heard today on Facebook that this shows ratings are falling and I was shook because this is the best show I have ever seen and I don't know what I would do without it. I may not be able to watch it live because I'm always working but if I need to start arranging my work schedule to watch this show live to save this shows ratings I will do it. I honestly can't think of a season that I didn't absolutely love. I mean every contestant is a celebrity in my eyes if I ever met one of them if probably faint. I grew up with this show and it's a big part of my life.

The challenge is one of the only reality tv shows that I could still watch and enjoy till this day. It brings a whole roster of Real World, Big Brother, Survivor and other reality tv shows to compete for a hefty amount of money. Challenges and drama are why I enjoy this show and how it managed to keep my attention after all these years. The amount of real life drama and confrontation are unfathomable. The alliances that are formed add to this drama and are cutthroat. You hooked up with my chick? Guess what, lets settle it in an elimination. Two challengers get to fight for their right to stay in the house and whoever wins stays in the house. Whoever loses in an elimination goes home empty handed. Win a Challenge and you're blessed with power which comes in anyway shape or form for that season.