The Challenge Invasion has newbies coming from The Real World: Bad Blood. For a Real World season that had the biggest cast in history, we got an unexpected pick on The Challenge.

Namely, I would not expect Anika to be cast on the show. Theo I understand; he’s had a lot of drama and was a D1 athlete. On the other hand, Anika was never a focus on her season. She was certainly a nice girl and seemed to make friends throughout the show. However, I never saw Challenge potential, especially when we had eight girls to chose from on the season.

To be completely honest, I knew Anika was on this season before The Real World aired. I anticipated she’d have a big plot line, or at least be the center of some type of drama. That never happened, and Anika really coasted through the season and barely communicated with her Bad Blood. After viewing the Bad Blood season, I’d expect to see Tya, Jordan, Jenn, or the Stack sisters on the show before Anika. They all had plot lines and created a good amount of drama.

Perhaps Anika didn’t leave the greatest impression on The Real World, but is that necessarily a bad thing? We’re at a point in the show’s history where bloodlines and AYTO cast members are the norm. Most viewers aren’t familiar with their back stories, and most people on AYTO receive less camera time than Anika. Despite their lack of camera time, many of them has blossomed into central figures on The Challenge. While Anika could fizzle and create no impression, her success on The Challenge would be a great surprise and generate a nice underdog story.

How do you feel about Anika? Do you see potential in this newbie?