User:Fedora Kid/Ridonculous Race Rankings

=Total Drama Presents: The Ridonculous Race=



Character Rankings
NOTE: In regards to the four returning characters, they will be ranked here based on their performance/development IN THIS SERIES alone - separately from my rankings of the overall series.

19th: Ryan and Stephanie - Take Geoff and Bridgette from TDA, obsessed with nothing but making out with each other, and combine it with Lightning for the skin color and brand of ego-centric workout/exercise jokes, and bam: You have these two. That's literally it. A two-note duo thst presemts VERY few opportunities for drama OR humor. Then, with the obvious attempt at "drama" by making them suddenly dysfunctional (another page from the "TDA Geoff and Bridgette Playbook"), their antics became as repetitive as ever, and seemed a lot more like the Stepbrothers x10, which made it even worse.

18th: Mary and Ellody - Not the good kind of over-the-top like the Skaters or Bloggers; their ridiculously ostentatious language, combined with two extremely obnoxious voices and a painfully one-note song, all just makes them an overall unimpressive/unfunny pair, if not outright forgettable. That last one is honestly the best word I can think of, and is the main reason why, although this isn't my least favorite pair, I'd still easily call these two right here - Mary and Ellody, the Geniuses - the big losers of Ridonculous Race Season 1. Why? Because they are EASILY the most forgettable. At least the first boot, Tammy and Leonard, had the marginal benefit of one of those two being a returning contestant from the original series, while the second boot, Gerry and Pete, were definitely still unique and funny characters, in their own way. Those who were booted immediately after the Geniuses - the Hippies and the Bloggers - were much closer parodies of their respective stereotypes and had some dramatic focus in the episodes of their respective boots, and everyone from Boot 6 onward lasted long enough to make some sort of impact, be it good or bad. The Geniuses? Who's gonna remember them in a few weeks? No one.

17th: Taylor and Kelly - From their looks right off the bat, you'd think they're meant to be a parody of the "equally prissy mother and daughter" stereotype seen ALL over reality TV today (and I mean BAD reality TV, like the Kardashian stuff), and thus would get along more in their own shared villainy, and work together to anger others and be antagonists together. But nope; having them STILL somehow be at odds despite their very similar personalities just DOESN'T make any sense; and again, like Tom and Jenn, isn't over-the-top enough to the point where it's a clear satire of the stereotype, and instead is simply more infuriating rather than funny. They already did the "polar opposite parent and child" stereotype with Dwayne and Junior - why double it with these two when they're MUCH more similar? As such, the ending of their story was predictable, but not completely cliche and "closed book" as some may have expected, and in terms of when it happened, I think they definitely left at a good time.

16th: Don - The cliche and unnecessarily cruel "detached enough from the contestants and disregardful of their safety," with a small, but not funny enough, amount of vanity to him, ultimately make him a fairly uninteresting and boring host. At the same time, his mannerisms that convey a "pretty boy" mentality ("NOT THE FACE!") is rather jarring considering he was sold to us fans as a "survivalist/tough guy/challenge beast" who's supposedly already done all the risky and lethal challenges that the competitors are about to do. But fortunately, as bad, unfunny, and inconsistent as he is, he's not the focus of this show...for now.

15th: Leonard and Tammy - Two weirdos who think they actually have superpowers and whatnot just because they dress like it. About as cringeworthy as you'd expect. Funny only in the sense that there's laughing, but as we all know, you're not laughing WITH them...

14th: Tom and Jen - By the premiere, they started out as narrowly being my LEAST favorite pair (barely behind Ryan and Stephanie), since they just weren't caricatures enough to be decent parodies and thus simply came across as annoying. But by the Paris episode, they finally crossed that threshold of being delightfully over-the-top, like Jacques and Josee, to the point where they earned my approval.

13th: Chet and Lorenzo - Although the final result of any potential dramatic story from these two is a VERY predictable one, their constant and over-the-top use of slapstick is surprisingly enough to get a handful of laughs out of me every time.

12th: Carrie and Devin - I had eagerly been waiting for this interaction for SO long from this franchise. The stereotype of "boy and girl who are JUST friends, but BEST friends." In today's world especially, it's become all but impossible for a guy and a girl to become best of friends for years on end WITHOUT one eventually becoming attracted to the other; thus, this pair and their story are so REAL and easy to relate to. I was sincerely hoping that they'd bring a fresh wave of realism into the show...but roughly around the Hawaii episode, it started to become painfully clear that their interactions are gonna be extremely repetitive and often serve no purpose other than a few running gags, and thus will do nothing to advance their story or do justice to the stereotype in real life. Hopefully they can improve from here, but I really don't think so for the time being.

11th: Laurie and Miles - Just what I love from this franchise: A pair of characters based on a stereotype, and MULTIPLIED by 10. These two are obviously a rich satire of the "obnoxious hippie/environmentalist, politically correct and hyper-sensitive liberal" stereotype, which you often don't see done at all due to the general media having a left wing biase: From their EXTREMELY over-the-top environmental concerns and hilariously-dated outfits, to their worries of "cultural insensitivity," to taking out portions of whole words to make it less offensive (taking "meet" out of "meeting" just...because, I guess?)...it's all SO perfectly spot-on in satirizing the stupidity of hyper-sensitivity and liberalism in general, especially in today's youth culture.

10th: Gerry and Pete - By the premiere, they were seriously my absolute favorite simply for being the funniest, in names, stereotype, banter, interactions, designs, the whole nine yards. However, even then I acknowledged that they had little potential for serious drama and development, and would likely be nothing more than comic relief and cannon fodder that would not make it past the first six boots (and that was being generous). So was I shocked to see them go so early? No. Was I disappointed? A bit, although their humor did get pretty old by the episode of their boot, so I was OK with it. I still rate them highly, though, for the uniqueness of their overall character and type of humor - definitely symbolic of the diversity (particularly in age) that this series brings to the table.

9th: Crimson and Ennui - At first, their monotonous and dry style of humor was good for some constant running gags about the delivery of some of their lines, or perfectly mediocre reactions to things happening around them. Although the Transylvania episode was the first to feature them as the stars and thus highlight their humor, it was the Finland episode where they truly began to shine, with the most unexpected curveball of their "unGothing" allowing them to have a whole new layer added to both of their characters, to successfully (pardon the pun) flesh them out, and to make their humor all the more enjoyable.

8th: Jay and Mickey - What can I say? The "geeky little misfit, totally-unprepared-to-handle-this-adversity" stereotype of underdogs is one that I just never get enough of, and these two do it well for me because they're nnot EXACTLY the same, per se. Mickey wears a helmet, Jay doesn't; Mickey is a little bit more eager to charge head-on into the competition and win, while Jay is more concerned over safety. If they were BOTH just two equally wimpy nerds, it would be kinda redundant, but there's just enough differences here to keep them entertaining enough. They ultimately left at about the right time, maybe a bit earlier than expected, but I wasn't complaining too much.

7th: Jacques and Josee - These two are PERFECT parodies of the "overachiever, perfectionist skater" stereotype. Seriously, their ridiculously insane brand of over-the-top behavior and one-liners is played up to a TEE, and ultimately create two caricatures that I don't think will EVER get old. And that's actually really rare/hard to achieve, even in an animated show; characters that are TOO over-the-too such as Leonard and Tammy don't work, and characters that aren't over-the-top enough like the Geniuses also don't work...but these two pull it off perfectly - from the way they ALWAYS wear their obviously fake, sh**-eating grins when not talking, to Josee's obsessiom with winning and subsequent angry twitches when they don't...it's all so perfect. And I can also appreciate these two for the fact that, just as Ezekiel in the original series was the sole stereotypical Western Canadian in a Canadian show (with his clothes, accent, and "Eh's"), these two are thopposite stereotype representing Eastern Canada, with their French accents, names, and melodramatic behavior. Priceless. And even THEN, beyond their mannerisms in dealing with other teams, the dynamic between them is also really solid - tiny little Josee clearly wears the pants in this partnership, constantly throwing shade Jacques's way about his shortcomings while refusing to acknowledge her own, coupled with her hilarious aforementioned rage fits. These two are probably the closest thing to a villainous pair in this season, in terms of their ruthless competitive nature and willingness, if not eagerness, to step on as many toes or trip as many rivals as necessary in order to win.

6th: Dwayne and Junior - These two present such a realistic relationship that is SO common and easy to relate to, even though it's used a lot more in other media: The older, lamer father tries to interact with/bond with/impress his "cool" young son, who regularly scoffs him but starts to appreciate his dad's talents and devotion, while the father similarly begins to understand his son. This is a relationship that is ripe for both laughs and emotional moments. However, like Carrie and Devin, this interaction, at first, was largely not done justice by its Total Drama treatment - sure, Dwayne had a lot of funny moments and we could perfectly understand Junior's embarrassment, but some of the jokes were definitely hit and miss, and their first major attempt at "dramatic" focus in the Africa episode really took them down in my list. Plus...Junior/Carrie? No.

5th: Rock and Spud - At first, I thought this pair was gonna be a (pardon the pun) one-note duo with only random air-guitaring and other types of "rocker" jokes, with no potential for a dramatic storyline (like the Goths or Tennis Rivals). Yet the sudden twist of their dysfunctionality, with Spud often being lazy and holding them back, and Rock's subsequent response to said laziness and his efforts to motivate Spud, was actually a good twist that I genuinely didn't expect from these two, and thus fleshed out their characters just a bit more.

4th: Emma and Kitty - Despite looking somewhat identical, these two are drastically different without being cartoonishly polar opposites, like Amy and Samey. And with their differences, although Emma is clearly a bit more mentally dominant and unintentionally hurtful to Kitty, she's still not necessarily presented as a villain - there's decent arguments to be made supporting both sides, thus making this not such a typically one-sided relationship like, again, Amy and Samey. Plus, Emma got even more development that made her character all the more meaningful with her relationship with Noah. But even then, the true star of these two pairs is Kitty, and I feel her prominence helps one person more than anyone else in this entire series: Stephanie Anne Mills, her voice actress. Honestly, Ms. Mills' talent is used WAY more perfectly with Kitty than with Lindsay. As we all know, Lindsay is literally just the stereotypical dumb blonde. Sure, she had her stories - from her conflicts with Heather, Justin, and Courtney, to her friendship with Beth, to her relationship with Tyler - but overall, her entire personality is that she's dumb. And Mills did a great job with that, but I feel her range is increased with this character instead - because contrary to how she's presented, Kitty is certainly not dumb, or even naive. She's bubbly? Sure. Light-hearted? Yeah. Fun-loving? Absolutely. But she's not dumb - any bit of "dumbness" she may have is mainly because of her love of selfies and how she's contrasted with her obviously booksmart and competitive older sister. But from her multiple interactions, which included giving solid advice to Carrie in relation to Devin, and Noah and Owen in relation to Emma and even the competition overall, Kitty has proven time and time again that she's a much more three-dimensional character that she appears, and is pretty much THE breakout star of this season.

3rd: Geoff and Brody - Double the surfer dude, double the likability, coupled with the occasional presence of stupidity or failure in the actual competition for additional laughs.

2nd: Owen and Noah - These two are a perfect example of the "opposites attract" pair in terms of best guy friends. Noah's deep, monotone voice and dry, sardonic humor contrasts PERFECTLY with Owen's light-heartedness, booming presence, squeaky voice, and over-the-top sense of humor to create a VERY enjoyable pair, and one of the FEW examples in this overall cast of a pair of two opposites rather than two people who are almost identical. Plus, Noah's development with finally getting a crush on someone was already interesting enough, but it was WHO he got a crush on that made it so much more enjoyable.

1st: Sanders and MacArthur - Not gonna lie, these two are HILARIOUS. Think two female Brick's, with slight elements of Jo/Brick to their interactions but with not nearly as much of a conflict. Their athleticism makes sense, but isn't over-the-top in a godplayer style, and their antics are pretty funny enough without trying too hard. Plus, I can TOTALLY see the way in which they're meant to be a parody of the 2013 film The Heat with Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy: Sanders (Sandra?), the skinny one, strictly adheres to the rules and is more uptight, while MacArthur (McCarthy?), the fat one, is cruder and more willing to break the rules. But see, unlike something that, say, the Scary Movies might do where they strictly parody something that's recent in an over-the-top manner that will undoubtedly become dated in a year's time or less, this succeeds in parodying something recent (as recent as two years gets, at least) in a manner that's JUST subtle enough that this pair of characters will stand the test of time in their own right, and thus are hilarious enough without depending solely on people understanding the source material they're parodying. Plus, their (mostly MacArthur-driven) rivalry with the Skaters is comedy GOLD.

Character Opinion Rankings
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Fun Tidbits In Regards to Ranks, Then and Now: How I rank all the pairs now, vs. how I ranked them as of the premiere. The amount by which they changed (be it increase or decrease) and what position they changed from to their current one.

Key:

Italics: Was the biggest decrease Bold: Was the biggest increase

1. The Cadets +1 (from 2 to 1) 2. The Pros +5 (from 7 to 2) 3. The Surfers +7 (from 10 to 3) 4. The Sisters +5 (from 9 to 4) 5. The Rockers +6 (from 11 to 5) 6. Father/Son +0 7. The Skaters -3 (from 4 to 7) 8. The Twins -5 (from 3 to 8) 9. The Goths +4 (from 13 to 9) 10. The Tennis Rivals -9 (from 1 to 10) 11. The Hippies -3 (from 8 to 11) 12. The Friends -7 (from 5 to 12) 13. The Stepbrothers -1 (from 12 to 13) 14. The Bloggers +5 (from 19 to 14) 15. The LARPers -1 (from 14 to 15) 16. Don -1 (from 15 to 16) 17. Mother/Daughter -1 (from 16 to 17) 18. The Geniuses -1 (from 17 to 18) 19. The Daters -1 (from 18 to 19)

All of the bottom five (LARPers, Don, Mother/Daughter, Geniuses, and Daters) all fell 1 spot due to the Bloggers rising 5 spots (the only pair to rise from "Oppose" to "Support"), even though two (LARPers and Don) moved up from "Oppose" to "Neutral." In addition, three pairs (Rockers, Goths, and Stepbrothers) all rose from "Neutral" to "Support." The 10 pairs that all started out in the "Support" section remained there.

To see the original rankings for yourself, as they were only after the premiere and before the season started airing, go here: http://totaldrama.wikia.com/index.php?title=User%3AFedora_Kid%2FRidonculous_Race_Rankings&diff=1203451&oldid=1200277

Individual Character Countdown
My official rankings of the RR characters shall be in pairs. HOWEVER, if I WERE to rank the characters individually, it would probably be something like this:

NOTE: Characters who, to me, are pretty much literally the same shall be ranked together.

1 - 9: Love

1. MacArthur 2. Noah 3./4. Geoff and Brody 5. Owen 6. Kitty 7. Emma 8. Rock 9. Spud

10 - 17: STRONGLY Like

10. Dwayne 11. Josee 12. Junior 13. Jacques 14./15. Jay and Mickey 16./17. Crimson and Ennui

18 - 28: Like

18./19. Gerry and Pete 20. Laurie 21. Sanders 22. Miles 23. Carrie 24. Devin 25./26. Chet and Lorenzo 27./28. Jen and Tom

29 - 31: Neutral/Tilt Dislike

29./30. Leonard and Tammy 31. Don

32 - 35: Dislike

32. Taylor 33. Kelly 34./35. Ellody and Mary

36 - 37: Hate

36./37. Ryan and  Stephanie

Couple Rankings
6th: Ryan and Stephanie: They were doomed for failure from the moment they were introduced. As I've said before, their introduction simply had them being "Geoff/Bridgette in TDA + Lightning's workout humor." Nothing but "jokes" involving either exercise or how much in love they were. But then it took a turn for the even worst, and they started hating each other quite suddenly and for NO reason whatsoever. Not only was this tension predictable (Again, see Geoff/Bridgette in TDA), but it became downright annoying, repetitive, and lazy as their antics were literally the same: 98% insults, 2% random compliments implying a make-up, only for them to not make up. It was even worse than before, and can only lead to a perfectly predictable conclusion.

5th: Junior and Carrie: Creepy? Yeah. Out of nowhere? Yeah. But thankfully short-lived? YES.

4th: Brody and MacArthur: This is literally a joke. It was literally built off a one-line joke (Brody's line about MacArthur "crushing" on him), which was dropped, and then suddenly referenced several episodes later. Zero chemistry and no development, despite it being two of my Top 4 favorite characters in the season.

3rd: Mickey and Kitty: Cute? Maybe...kinda...I don't know. A bit out-of-nowhere? In the context of that one episode, not quite...but referenced ever again or built upon? Never.

2nd: Carrie and Devin: Once again, pretty much exactly what I said in my rankings of these two as a characters. The whole concept of "lifelong opposite-gender best friends inevitably seeing one friend develop feelings for the other" is definitely something that's more common, but rarely talked about, in teenage society, and thus could really use the Total Drama treatment. But this relationship VERY quickly boiled down to the SAME repetitive antics of Carrie doing one of three things: 1) Swooning over Devin over the confessionals; 2) Seeking advice from others on what to do with Devin, even though they ALL said the same thing; 3) Trying and failing, somehow, every time, to tell Devin how she feels. Eventually, it finally did start to move in one clear, linear path once the reveal of Shelley cheating on Devin came about, and that was kind of an improvement...but even then, the running gag of Devin just going through the five stages of grief quickly got old and offered only a handful of laughs here and there, while doing only slightly more to advance Devin's character, and solidify Carrie as depending solely on Devin in order to have her own personality.

1st: Emma and Noah: By far and easily the ONLY couple this season that truly worked; and not only did it work, it was AMAZING. To see Noah FINALLY develop feelings for someone was a long-awaited event, and the person he falls for couldn't have been more perfect. Naturally, he'd fall in love with someone who's booksmart, strict, occasionally sarcastic/snarky (like him), and ultra-competitive/over-achieving. It all made perfect sense, and although the start was a bit rocky (Noah just staring dumbly at her), when it took off - It. Took. Off. Their adorable interactions as they both gradually realized their feelings for each other, all the while nudged along by both Kitty and Owen, all created some of the most adorable moments in the entire season. Were there some hiccups and inconsistencies? Yeah, there were - Emma and Kitty doing a COMPLETE 180 in New Zealand so that Kitty became the competitive one and Emma became the starstruck one, namely - but what story doesn't have them? It was perfectly acceptable in the end, because this couple was and is AMAZING.

Couple Opinion Rankings
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Episode Rankings
17th: My Way or Zimbabwe - First off, a MASSIVE glaring problem with the episode was the obvious fact that four teams got the TOTAL shaft in screentime. It took a whole NINE minutes for the Goths and the Sisters to literally even appear, and an even longer ELEVEN minutes for the Stepbrothers and the Pros to show up – and even then, none of these four teams got ANY dialogue except for maybe a handful of lines here and there. All of that, needless to say, was pretty jarring, and the first time in this season that it was an obvious problem. Second: It was WAY too obvious that the Father/Son were gonna lose the challenge, right up until those last few seconds – and even then, once it became apparent that they weren’t gonna come in last and the Skaters were gonna lose instead, then it was equally as painfully obvious that it would be a non-elimination episode, because the Skaters, as the clear main antagonists at this point, were obviously not gonna be eliminated this early. Even then, for an episode that was clearly focusing on the Father and Son, their interactions and antics really weren’t at their best in this episode, which would’ve made it all the worse if they WERE eliminated. Third: This episode featured the most obligatory focus on the Daters yet, and this was the episode where I had finally had enough of their repetitive and ridiculously predictable antics, with little to no hope that they’d finally be eliminated in this episode. Fourth: Coupled with the aforementioned COMPLETE lack of screentime and dialogue for the Pros and the Sisters (in addition to the Goths and Stepbrothers), it came as an extreme disappointment considering the cliffhanger ending of the previous episode, in regards to developments concerning Noah and Emma – naturally, I was expecting that story to be continued, and maybe even come to a head in this episode. So obviously, it was very distracting that it wasn’t even mentioned or shown once in the whole episode. Fifth: The return of the ever-creepy attraction of Junior to Carrie, which was thankfully (though supposedly) shot down for good by the end of the episode. If there’s one marginally good thing about this episode, it was the fairly brief return of the dynamic between MacArthur and Sanders, almost as if to remind us that it’s not just MacArthur carrying this team (in both the competition and the humor), and to show that there ARE differences between the two of them…but even that was far too short to be a saving grace. All-in-all, easily the worst episode yet, hands-down. Half a point goes to the aforementioned MacArthur/Sanders dynamic returning, and another half-point goes to what I guess I’d technically call a good twist (the fact that the Father and Son WEREN’T eliminated), even if it was still poorly executed. 1/10

16th: Lord of the Ring Toss - This episode truly marked THE point of no return for me. I had said before that multiple previous episodes brought me closer and closer to having had enough of the Daters and their antics…this one was what broke me. From boomeranging themselves, to repeating…what each other says…like three-year-olds. Are you f***ing kidding me? To me, that marked the moment where these two officially crossed into “pure hatred” territory with no possible chance of redemption, all due to three things: 1) A perfectly predictable story outcome that couldn’t possibly change or further develop either of them or their relationship; 2) Ridiculously stupid, unoriginal, annoying, and childish antics that reflects lazy writing; And 3) Pure inconsistency, once again, within each episode - hating each other for 98%, briefly complimenting each other for 2%, then going back to hating each other in the next episode JUST to repeat the same cycle over and over again - that is just downright infuriating. In any other season of Total Drama, the focus meant either the Surfers or the Daters would finally go. But once the Surfers came in first, I genuinely had hope that they would go right back to the old cliché, if even for just this one episode, and finally boot the Daters. But then, as those last few minutes closed in, it finally hit me once again: Non-elimination. And sure enough…it was. Now it was finally crossing back into World Tour territory – not so much where the host himself is obviously controlling eliminations just to keep around people he’s obsessed with, but the show itself is clearly making the Daters the creators’ pets, and I couldn’t be more infuriated by that fact. How anybody, literally ANYbody can hate the Stepbrothers but be OK with the Daters is BEYOND me, since they’re far worse than the Stepbrothers at this point (at least the Stepbrothers, as two dudes, had constant slapstick to provide some laughs – these two have nothing and are FAR more immature). And as such, this episode hyper-focusing on the Daters truly is what makes it so terrible, especially since pretty much every other team took a backseat (especially the Sisters and Pros, and heck, even the Cadets and Skaters). The only good things were the Surfers’ story (where they not only escaped what seemed like inevitable elimination, but they even brilliantly defied what the Skaters were trying to do and thwarted them, while also developing their own relationship further) and the Goths, who were once again quite hilarious. Carrie and Devin, once again as repetitive as ever, were only good for bringing out humorous interactions with the Goths. Also, I guess an additional plus is this episode FINALLY giving us some variety in the characters’ designs, in the forms of their various winter clothing. 4/10

15th: Bjorken Telephone - This episode was truly the first that felt a bit more like a cluster-you-know-what, in that some teams hardly got any focus, while others got a bit more, but still not a lot. This episode mostly belonged to the two Parent/Child teams, and the Hippies - while the former two were both perfectly predictable, the Hippies were at their absolute best, IMO, especially towards the end. But overall, just an OK episode. 7/10

14th: I Love Ridonc & Roll – Yet another episode that, in my opinion, belonged to the Goths. For the second time now, they were getting the “inevitable edit” boot, except this one was the total opposite of their edit in Transylvania. For the first time, we get to really see their characters fleshed out (literally), and have at least some humor from them that wasn’t totally Goth-related. More focus for the fourth consecutive time on Noah and Emma, which was good as usual (although by this point started to become a bit repetitive), but left us hanging with a potentially devastating cliffhanger in regards to the future of their relationship. Really the one other pair that was good in this episode was the Rockers, and although I was fairly sad to see the Twins go, I wasn’t incredible disappointed – they left at probably just the right time. 7/10

13th: Down and Outback - This episode was easily one of the funniest yet in terms of sheer non-stop physical comedy; from the antics of failing to catch rabbits, to the running joke of accidentally destroying more crops, to Devin getting injured a lot…it was all non-stop laughter for well over the first half. Other than that, not a lot of dramatic focus to go around this episode except for the Skaters continuing to increase their villainy by targeting both the Cadets AND the Surfers. It was definitely much more fitting for the sake of defying the cliché to have the Stepbrothers go in this episode, since the last one was clearly their high point, on top of the fact that, to me, their antics weren’t nearly as enjoyable since they started liking each other, so it was definitely their time to go. But nevertheless, it was a nail-biting cliffhanger between the Rockers and the Stepbrothers that had me jumping for joy when the Rockers were saved…ONLY FOR IT TO BE A FREAKING DOUBLE ELIMINATION? SERIOUSLY? That was SO stupid, random, COMPLETELY unnecessary, and I feel that it just wasn’t right for the Rockers to get the shaft NOW since we haven’t had a truly Rocker-centric episode in a while; it just felt so…so…rushed, more than likely just to make up for two consecutive non-eliminations beforehand. But even through my anger at losing the Rockers, I still had to give credit where credit is due: It was a HUMONGOUS twist that no one could’ve EVER seen coming. But my personal biase still gets in the way just that much over losing the Rockers, coupled with the episode’s attempt at actually returning to the JOKE from the Beijing episode about Brody thinking that MacArthur was “crushing” on him…AND ACTUALLY MAKING IT A THING? SERIOUSLY? I seriously forgot about that joke, just as I’m sure most other viewers did, so it was EXTREMELY jarring to go back to that continuity now, on top of the fact that Brody/MacArthur is just…no. The last two hits to the episode would be the complete lack of the Father and Son and the continued antics of the Daters, which finally crossed into pure inconsistency in this episode. Although the Goths were pretty funny in this episode, too. 7/10

12th: New Beijinging – This one clearly belonged to the Rockers, and I was actually perfectly OK with that. They weren’t the most amazing, but I was still satisfied with what they did and how their partnership was explored here. Plus, another VERY clever misuse of the infamous “inevitable boot” edit that the Rockers were supposedly getting, only to be saved by it being a non-elimination round. Once again, there was also some good focus on Noah and Emma’s budding relationship, and although the awkwardness was real in a lot of Noah’s screw-ups, it helped to make the relationship seem a lot more realistic. Some more jokes from the Skaters, the Father/Son, and the Friends, but it still felt like quite a few pairs were significantly lacking in this one. 8/10

11th: Mediterranean Homesick Blues - Unlike the first three episodes, this was the first one that felt like it didn't succeed in giving adequate focus to all teams. On the contrary, this episode definitely belonged to MacArthur (not even the Cadets, just MacArthur), Dwayne/Junior, and, towards the end, Brody/Geoff. A good batch of people to take the spotlight? Absolutely. Plus, this episode continued the trend of genuinely keeping it a mystery as to who would be eliminated, between said Surfers, the Best Friends, and the Geniuses. In addition, this episode reslly seemed to prove that Don will definitely NOT be like the host of the original series, and WILL enforce any and all competition rules without showing favorites. However, a brief hit to the episode (that, strangely, never came up again), was the hinting at the attraction of Junior towards Carrie (just...no). 8/10

10th: Maori or Less - This episode was definitely solid with its focus mainly on the Father/Son and Noah/Emma, with additional focus on the Surfers, the Friends, the Cadets, and, unfortunately, the Daters as well. I especially found Dwayne and Junior to be at their absolute best yet in this episode, from their genuinely emotional moments towards the end to their interactions with the Surfers – I previously would’ve expected them to go in this episode, but then I realized, this is the Ridonculous Race that I’m watching. So naturally, they’re still in. Noah and Emma were certainly adorable in this episode and once again came to a head with Emma’s revelation to Noah at the end…however, I had two major complaints about their interactions at this point: 1) Have the writers just completely forgotten Noah’s declaration at the end of the Finland episode that he was putting Emma behind him and focusing on the game? Like, did that just…not happen? And 2) OK, so as adorable as Emma and Noah were in this episode…all that they did seemed REALLY backwards in relation to their characters, even dragging Kitty into this backwards mess – Emma is the one now obsessed with Noah, even to the point of asking Kitty to take a picture of the two of them together, and KITTY is the one focused on the game? Seriously? Like, a MAJOR 180 that was pretty jarring. However, I still found their interactions and focus enjoyable enough, so it wasn’t TOO big of a hit to me. Once again, the Goths were nowhere to be seen in this one, but that wasn’t too big of a deal. Also: What was up with this episode’s weird emphasis on putting characters perfectly sideways so that we were always seeing their profiles? Emma, Noah, and Kitty, namely – it’s something we SHOULD be more used to seeing, but this seemed, to me, to really be the first time that this series did this. 8/10

9th: Little Bull on the Prairie - After several episodes of the Father and Son getting a TON of focus (namely the Africa episode and the preceding New Zealand episode), it was finally their time to go – and I’ll be honest, I felt that their story ended exactly as it should. Cliché? Pretty much. But still well-done, properly balanced between funny and emotional? Definitely. This episode once again was great with faking it out since I thought the Surfers were gonna be toast (though the whole “jinx” running joke with the Father and Son was still kind of a giveaway). The episode also did a fantastic job with bringing the Noah and Emma story back to the foreground only in the very end, and I feel that the end of their story is truly coming soon. Other than that, still a pretty good episode with more hilarious Noah/Owen interaction in addition to a bit of focus on the Cadets. 9/10

8th: Brazilian Pain Forest - This episode was spot-on with the nonstop physical comedy and giving an adequate focus to just about every pair. I also enjoyed the increased development and focus in regards to Taylor and Kelly, as well as the interactions between the Twins and the Sisters. Also, the episode featured yet more mentions of the possibility of alliances and other gameplay aspects. Although said alliance between the Twins and the Sisters was ultimately just a one-episode gag, I feel that there will definitely be more possible alliances to come, since this wasn't their first attempt at an alliance, and as the number of contestants continues to drop, the need for an alliance will only become even more necessary. In addition, several other pairs got even more focus and development, such as the Hippies and the Rockers, both of whom were at their best yet in this episode; especially the enjoyable little dilemma of Laurie discovering that she actually likes meat. Lastly, this episode finally proved that the time delay penalty won't necessarily always be just a build up to those with the delay still crossing the finish line, and that anything can happen. Also: Additional bonuses for several clever references to surprisingly modern memes, such as "ratchet" and "nailed it!" 9/10

7th: A Tisket, a Casket, I'm Gonna Blow a Gasket - Non-existence of the Mother/Daughter and Best Friends aside, the highlights of this episode were the increased focus on the Bloggers, the Stepbrothers, the Rockers, and the Goths, as well as Geoff and Brody's interactions with both the Sisters and the Stepbrothers. Plus, a brief but glorious comeback in the Skaters vs. Cadets rivalry, and MAJOR bonus points for the COMPLETELY unexpected curveball of...of...Noah and Emma. The one downside was the continued shoving down our throats of the Daters and their now Stepbrother-esque behavior. 9/10

6th: Hawaiian Honeyruin - Although the episode started off slow, in that it was just more average like "Mediterranean," it significantly improved in the second half. To me, this episode marked a clear turning point of the season, moving the focus away from the challenges and physical comedy to the storylines and interactions, with the stories of Kelly and Taylor, Ryan and Stephanie, and Carrie and Devin all coming to a head in this one. Although I was, as usual, thoroughly tired of Ryan and Stephanie's repetitive antics, I surprisingly enjoyed Kelly's revelation to Taylor at the end, and how Carrie and Devin's almost dramatic moment left the door wide open with a classic "To be continued." Even beyond these stories though, this episode truly felt like the first where different contestants actually had conversations with each other, and the golden thread here was Kitty, at her absolute best talking to Carrie, Owen, and Noah. The continuation of the curveball story of Noah's crush on Emma was fairly disappointing, with more dumb stares rather than what I expected (Noah and Emma sharing snide remarks, as is their usual brand of humor, thus highlighting their similarities), although Noah's confessional was a nice taste of what I was expecting, and can hopefully expect in the future. I also thought Don was at his best yet in this episode, with him FINALLY displaying his so-called "tough man" bit by walking on the hot coals (something the previous host would NEVER do), and also his quite hilarious line towards the end ("International, actually - we're huge in Croatia"). 9/10

5th: None Down, Eighteen to Go - Part 1 - Very quickly, this episode set the tone for the season: All work, no play. VERY little focus on interactions between different teams, and no real focus on any strategic element (other than Mickey and Jay's BRIEF mention of possible alliances), while the physical aspect completely dominates the scene (understandably so). Thus, the episode relied solely on those inter-team interactions as the sole source of any possible humor, and that was always either a hit or a miss. Hopefully there WILL be more time to focus on such ignored aspects as intra-team interactions and the few characters who didn't speak, since this IS only the premiere, and the sheer amount of characters can only go down from here. 9/10

4th: Shawshank Ridonc-tion - A solid rebound from the disaster of the last episode, this one returned to the very delicate balancing act of once again giving adequate focus to every team (except the Goths, which has become perfectly normal and acceptable for them at this point). Dwayne and Junior’s interactions were much more enjoyable in this one, and I also really liked the Stepbrothers’ interactions as well – they too were getting what appeared to be the “Inevitable boot” edit, only for them to come in a solid second in yet another cliché-defying twist that was much better executed and more satisfying than the previous episode’s attempt at doing so. Also, this episode was the first (and best) yet to adequately balance out both the dynamic between Sanders and MacArthur (which was focused on MUCH more in this one than the one before) AND the Cadets’ rivalry with the Skaters, which came to a very satisfying head in this episode. THIS was yet ANOTHER twist that was MUCH more unexpected and thus, much more impressive to me: Since the previous episode was a non-elimination, I never thought, not in a million years, that they’d actually do a SECOND consecutive non-elimination episode; Thus, when it actually came down to the Skaters vs. the Cadets, in this one episode where their rivalry was clearly at its most intense, I seriously thought that the Cadets WERE gonna be eliminated (again, since I knew the Skaters, as the main villains, were NOT gonna go this early), and I was gearing up for it as it was happening. And then…bam; non-elimination, for the SECOND time in a row. Easily one of the best twists in Total Drama history, as far as I can recall, and one of the most intense in terms of competition and rivalry in recent memory. Couple that with another nice little bonus in regards to Carrie/Devin…not because of their usual antics (which were perfectly the same as previous episodes, honestly), but because Devin was FINALLY starting to develop his own personality in this episode. Plus, another little bonus for the ridiculously cheesy fan prediction of Shelley cheating on him with her tennis instructor actually COMING TRUE, which was a delightful little twist that almost seemed like fan service. 10/10

3rd: Hello and Dubai - Think the amazingness of the preceding Hawaii episode, except even more. That entire opening scene was a whole 7 minutes of many different people just TALKING. This was the kind of laid-back, development and interaction scene that we needed, and haven't seen the likes of since the Kauffman and Thornton days. Once again, the stars of this episode were clearly the Pros and the Sisters, with the relationship finally becoming everything it needed to be: Not only did they form an alliance, but Noah and Emma finally had more moments that weren't simply Noah staring at her - they shared genuinely sweet moments (him saving her), they shared jokes ("dollar store" FTW), and they even talked in the background, just to show how casually they were getting along. And all with Owen and Kitty continuing to provide the humor as the matchmakers. Couple that with an acceptable ending to the story of the Mother and Daughter, and the continued hilariousness of the Twins, and this episode was definitely a solid one, where even the continued focus on the Daters' bickering, or the complete absence of the Cadets, wasn't enough to hurt it. 10/10

2nd: French is an Eiffel Language - Pretty much all the same perfect beats as the previous two episodes. Plus, two more perks to take away from the episode. One, the Goths' blankness finally beginning to work in their favor. Second, the Fashiin Bloggers finally starting to become the obviously over-the-top parody caricatures that I wanted them to be, bumping them up in my rankings. Although my (then) favorite pair was eliminated, they were starting to (pardon the pun) get old very quickly, and it was either them or the Reality Pros (another favorite of mine), so it was definitely their time to go. 10/10

1st: None Down, Eighteen to Go - Part 2 - This episode was pretty much the first time in the series where a "Part 2" episode was not only a solid follow-up to the premiere that came before, but actually even better. All of the characters who were good before were just as good, or even better, here; while the few characters who were bad were still the same, but rarely had as much focus. A handful of pairs got even better and developed further, like the Father/Son and the Sisters, and the meat of the overall episode was improving upon what made the first episode so great: The interactions between OTHER teams, in addition to inter-team interactions, and said different teams bouncing off each other perfectly. Also, two more things to take home from the episode: First, that HILARIOUS sound effect when Dwayne first reacts to the soup; Second (and more long-term), the birth of the Cadets vs. Skaters rivalry. 10/10

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=Season Rankings=

TBA: Total Drama Presents: The Ridonculous Race - Just like the preceding season in the original series - Pahkitew Island - this debut season of a brand new series did the seemingly impossible, and breathed a whole new round of fresh life into a franchise that seemed to be getting tired of itself. Obviously, with a ton of new characters (a whopping 36 in total), this seemed like a pretty daunting task for the same team of creators that had just done three consecutive mini-seasons of 13 episodes, with no more than 14 characters a pop. But this season managed to balance it out perfectly - with more than enough inter- and intra-team interactions to balance out the comedy between slapstick, bickering, and wildly opposite personalities bouncing off each other for nonstop fun.

The series also brought Total Drama back to its roots - again, just as Pahkitew did - with a ton of characters who were delightfully over-the-top parodies of various stereotypes - both in reality TV and life in general - to the point where it perfectly captured the very essence of satire that the original series' very first season set out to do - from the Ice Skaters, to the Fashion Bloggers, to the Hippies....the list goes on and on. This subsequently resulted in the series also, in those first handful of episodes with the sheer ton of initial characters, focusing primarily on comedy rather than drama, just as it was supposed to do, thus maintaining a light-hearted feel rather than heavy and unnecessary melodrama.

In addition, one way in which this series was a true departure from the original, for the better, was that the creators finally put a TON more effort into coming up with new designs by the truckload - and not just for all the new characters, but the locals in the various locations as well. Finally, this series improved upon the glaring mistakes of World Tour in that it finally acknowledged the obvious need to have a presence of locals in the various locations they went to, in order to diversify the overall field of designs and to make the show feel that much more real, by reminding us that people exist outside of the cast - from the venders in Morocco to the taxi drivers and artist in Paris, the abundance of new and interesting designs was yet another well-needed breath of fresh air.

Also, I would turn to an amazing blog from a long-gone amazing user: Nalyd Renrut's A Rope of Sand, AKA, the review blog of Season 6 of Total Drama, Pahkitew Island. In it, this wise user detailed two major problems with the later seasons (namely Pahkitew, but also a problem that was noticeable in Seasons 4, Reloaded, and 5, All-Stars). The first is a significant number of gag characters, or what I like to call "one-note characters;" characters who are literally just one joke and nothing else, and that's their role in the series - In TDR, it was Staci, B, and Lightning, among a few others. In TDPI, it was even more noticeable, with Beardo, Leonard, Ella, Rodney, Max, Amy, and kinda Topher. This series, however, does an AMAZING job of balancing that out to a much more reasonable level. Sure, there ARE still some one-note gag characters - the LARPers, the Tennis Rivals, the Geniuses, the Surfers, and the Twins being the main examples - but for the most part, a vast majority of the characters were either much more three-dimensional and fleshed-out characters from the get-go (the Sisters and the Father/Son, among others), or were surprisingly fleshed out over time (the Goths and the Rockers) or in the episodes of their boots (the Hippies and the Bloggers). Thus, although many characters were indeed successful parodies of certain stereotypes, they still felt like actual CHARACTERS instead of just one-note gags. The second main problem the great Mr. Renrut pointed out, ESPECIALLY in Pahkitew, was a significant lack of multiple interactions, and instead mostly just one-on-one/pair interactions: Jasmine/Shawn, Amy/Samey, Dave/Sky, Max/Scarlett, etc. In the original seasons, we had people like, say, Gwen and Trent, who were in their own relationship and enemies of Heather (and sometimes Duncan), but also friends with Cody, DJ, Bridgette, LeShawna, and Owen. Duncan was enemies with Heather and Harold, had a love-hate relationship with Courtney, and was friends with Geoff and DJ. Multiple interactions among multiple different people, all to give a much greater dynamic feeling to the overall cast. This series, once again, went right back to the roots of the franchise's origins and gave us SO many interactions in addition to the obvious interactions between teammates: Kitty was friends with Carrie, Noah, and Owen, but also had spats with Taylor and the Skaters, in addition to her interesting dynamic with her older sister Emma. Geoff and Brody had interactions with the Twins, the Stepbrothers, and the Cadets. Junior had his brief crush on Carrie, as well as interactions with Devin, the Daters, and the Surfers, while Dwayne had brief, but meaningful engagements with both Kelly and Brody. On many occasions, particularly those filler scenes of other teams waiting on the plane or otherwise just traveling and not actually competing, there was always a TON of interactions that really made it feel like one big group rather than just a bunch of pairs...even though the teams ARE just a bunch of pairs. Perfect.

And one other MAJOR, and I mean MAJOR, problem that even the original seasons like TDI and TDA suffered from, was not only corrected in this series - it was smashed into a million pieces and swept off a cliff by this series. A long-standing problem that I like to call "the inevitable boot edit." Cases where one particular character just SUDDENLY gets so much focus in the episode of their boot, either with it being made painfully obvious how bad they are in the challenge (Eva, Noah, Izzy, Sadie), or just getting a TON more dramatic focus than usual (Trent, Lindsay, Geoff)...and those are just examples from TDI alone. Far too often, it would become painfully obvious who was gonna get the boot, thus reducing the enjoyable viewing experience of each new episode. But this series? This series completely DESTROYED those notions, and it all started as early as the Mediterranean episode, where the Surfers really seemed to be getting the kind of edit that signified a boot, only for it to be a pretty shocking twist with the Geniuses instead getting the boot. It was all, however, further solidified in stone in the Transylvania episode, where I felt that the Goths, the Stepbrothers, and the Rockers all got JUST as much focus, if not more focus, than the pair that was doomed in this episode, the Bloggers. It seriously did belong to the Goths to the point where it seemed obvious, ESPECIALLY when they broke the rules just to let Ennui ride inside the coffin, but they survived to see another day. Another perfect example was the Finland episode, where both the Goths AND the Rockers got the obvious focus to the point where both seemed likely to go, only for the largely-ignored Twins to instead get the boot. Other examples include the Rockers in Beijing, where the episode being a non-elimination was the great twist even despite them coming in last; the Father and Son in Africa; and the Hippies in Iceland. So all in all, this series continually kept it a genuine mystery as to who would go in each and every season episode, continually defying the usual "inevitable boot edit" cliche and shocking us at each turn with practically every single elimination.

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