So I posted the twist for the upcoming “Real World:Ex-Plosion” season a couple of days ago, and I’d like to share my initial reaction to this change with everyone who reads this blog.
As a long time viewer of the show, it’s obvious that the past few seasons have been under performing. For a show that has been on for 28 season it should be expected to see The Real World hit some highs and lows, but the lows over the past few seasons have been really low.
So I agree that it seems logical to introduce change to the format of the show. But I have to wonder if exes was the best move to make. This isn’t the first time the exes theme has been incorporated into The Real World/ Road Rules/ Challenge franchise. Just two years ago production was filming a challenge named Battle of the Exes which reunited pairs of exes. The major difference, of course, being that these exes met on a different show within the franchise.
The initial interest in Battle of the Exes surpassed the initial interest in the previous challenge. So I can see why production would gravitate toward a theme that was already successful.
So for this season, I do think the “Ex-plosion” theme is fitting. People have commented that this is a dramatic shift in the format of The Real World, which it’s intended to be, but I don’t think it completely strips the show of its roots. It’s not like real people don’t have exes. In fact, it’s not like this is the first season where roommates had relationships prior to entering the house. Plus we know that the original 7 roommates will live together without their exes prior to their arrival. This allows for genuine relationships among the cast to form without the ex theme interfering.
It has also been noted that Big Brother used an ex theme 9 years ago. I think this show serves as a great example for what The Real World ought to be. They’ve introduced twists into the cast, but the twist varies with the season. This allows the show to maintain an identity without a specific twist become a central part of that identity.
So I’m really excited for this twist and I view it as a welcome change. But I’d like to know what you guys think. Please vote in the poll or comment below!
Stop Being Polite 
Big Brother and The Challenge are competition shows with people having to deal with and work with their ex in-order to compete and win. The Real World isn’t a competition show so seven strangers being introduced and then 7 more strangers being introduced who know one of the cast mates just seems a little messy.
JUst 5 of the exes agree to do it
I think it’s a due change. They needed something to change it up and bring life into it. With the world the way it is today, nothing that previously caused controversy in the RW house would cause any waves today. The social experiment is no longer an experiment, it’s simply society. This will however bring some life into the show because in the real world, everybody has exes. Not only will we get to see these 7 different personalities live together, once they start their bonds we get to really see how they are due to the exes. It’s hard to act like someone new and get a fresh start when your ex is standing behind you poking you with a stick, contradicting any fallacies being spewed. Needless to say, I’m excited lol.
Not to mention that we now have a new 12-14 new players for a challenge while a previous Real World would only get us 7-8.