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I’ve been rewatching old seasons of The Real World and the new spin-off seasons where they reunite the cast to re-argue old conflicts in the same house they lived in decades ago. The combination is a heady mix of nostalgia and horror. Flashback: I’m fourteen and pacing around my childhood home. Everyone is asleep and I’m watching Ruthie black out on The Real World: Hawaii, nervous about transferring to public school, listening to the locusts buzz. Today: I’m thirty-five and pacing around my house in LA. Some fifty year old is getting his ribs broken in gladiator combat on The Challenge. Fame is a trap. All these TikTok kids are fucked.
Jun 14, 2022
Related Recs
I didn’t watch reality competition shows growing up. So I never understood the hype around Survivor or The Amazing Race. But let me tell you how HOOKED I’ve been watching reality competition shows as of lately.
I got into the latest season of The Traitors because I’m such a fan of Gabby Windey. Yet my attention shifted when all of the contestants were hyping up the Survivor contestants, especially Boston Rob. I basically went down a rabbit hole about this guy being an iconic gamer and oh boy… I GET IT. The level of grit and tact needed is beyond me, and Boston Rob and Amber just gracefully do it on Survivor All-Stars. Also, they’re such a beautiful couple who are still together after 20 years and have 4 children! Even the most romantic storylines can happen in reality competition shows.
Would I be able to handle being on a reality competition show? I think I can actually haha. But would I actually do it? Mhmmm no, I’ll stick to watching more reality competition series.
Feb 21, 2025
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There are two seasons on Hulu and then a channel on Pluto tv that plays all 40 seasons on repeat, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You can tune in whenever and probably the same exact thing will be happening: people throwing themselves into the water off of really high platforms or rolling around in the dirt at the behest of a very blasé former bmx professional, then getting really drunk and screaming at each other at night. There are women accusing each other of not having their head in the game and one really handsome guy who is probably evil. There is a man whose legal name is John who everyone calls bananas. The same people come back season after season, sometimes they’re enemies or friends or in love. It’s very stupid. I am entranced.
Jan 27, 2025
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Even though I am a certified Bravo Boy™, I do have a soft spot in my heart for MTV’s reality programs. My best buds and I have spent hundreds, if not thousands, of hours watching the Real World, the even better spin-off The Challenge, and of course, Are You The One. The show is basically about a bunch of young, hot people who all “suck at relationships” and are trying to find their Perfect Match: another contestant on the show, predetermined by the producers but unknown amongst themselves, who is meant to be their ideal romantic partner. I’m in it for the shitty laser effects, the snarky host Ryan Devlin, and of course, the never-ending drama. If you’re in need of a mental vacation, check out the first two seasons streaming on Netflix now.
Dec 8, 2020
Top Recs from @sean-monahan
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This document was more or less the codex for K-HOLE. Genius text over teenage smut. Girls riding horses nude on the beach. Recently, I watched the Netflix documentary on the brand. Wow, nothing got deeper in my lizard brain than Bruce Weber and naked 18 year old Jamie Dornan. A fun tidbit is that the editor of the magazine went to college in my hometown. Suddenly the sexy lax bro’s cavorting in front of the roomie white clapboard lake house made so much sense. I love it all even more now.
Jun 14, 2022
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Cocaine is the best drug. It really sucks that people keep ODing from the fentanyl laced batches. I feel like Nancy Reagan having to “Just Say No.” Can we legalize this already? Your phone is almost certainly worse for your health. I remember a friend smuggled some blow in a book from Brazil. It was pink and fabulous. Barely a hangover the next day. Let’s just be real and let people make their choices and have their fun.
Jun 14, 2022
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Arguably Brett Easton Ellis’ magnum opus. I love that he sued Zoolander for stealing his IP and won. It’s a story about a male fashion model who becomes a terrorist. As in other Easton Ellis books, there is a mantra: “The better you look the more you see.” This is deeply true. Beautiful people are punished by being exposed to all the most horrifying things in the world. Epstein…need I say more?
Jun 14, 2022