The Challenge is a game about relationships. It loves to showcase alliances, friendships, and romances — then the rivalries and exes when things go wrong.
In some cases, viewers are invested and enjoy watching the storylines. In other cases, the relationships become matter-of-fact and don’t consume too much screen time. Then, there are the relationships that never seem to end.
Across the show’s 50+ seasons (including spinoffs) we’ve seen some relationships that get drawn out for waaaay too long. After endless back-and-forths, viewers can become exhausted by the repetition. In fact, it’s not an uncommon scenario, and these storylines significantly overstayed their welcome.
10. Aneesa & Winning
Few people have a Challenge career that spans as far back as Aneesa’s. She once had a lot of potential, and people were rooting for her when she nearly fought her way to the final on The Duel. But, things went downhill from there. For a long time, people didn’t give up hope. Aneesa would do a season or two, then take a year or two off, and viewers hoped she’d return in better shape. Since Total Madness, she’s been a staple on the show. She got to her first final in 14 years on Ride or Dies, but she was walking rather than running. Then, an injury took her out of the game. After 16 appearances on the main series, we no longer believe Aneesa when she tells us losing is not an option.
9. Paula & Dunbar
From The Island until Battle of the Exes, there was a weird relationship between Dunbar and Paula. The two would hook up, Dunbar would make promises, then Paula would get screwed over and be very vocal about it. Even when Paula wasn’t on The Ruins the relationship played a role in Dunbar’s story as he pursued a romance with Kimberly. The worst part, many of the details weren’t clear to viewers. For example, Paula yelled “did you get paid?” at the Cutthroat reunion after Dunbar won. Unknown to MTV viewers, Dunbar allegedly sacrificed his winnings when he violated his contract to appear in an adult film.
8. Devin & Bananas
On Rivals 3, Wes hated Bananas so Devin followed suit. Then, the feud took a hiatus until Vendettas when Devin orchestrated a plan to get Bananas out of the game. Admittedly, this was pretty entertaining, but the endless taunts after Devin’s victory got really old, really fast. Things took a dark turn on Final Reckoning, but the two apparently apologized off screen prior to Ride or Dies. On that season, they worked together (just like Wes and Bananas on Total Madness), so all viewers see is Devin serving as an extension of Wes.
7. Paulie & Cara Maria
Off-screen, these two seem to have developed a lot, and exceeded expectations by staying together for five years. But, this level of support wasn’t the same when they last appeared on War of the Worlds 2. At that point, they came into the game with an “us vs. everyone” attitude. Everyone in the house knew they were an item, oddballs, and “lone wolves.” The ultimate cringe moment came when they entered a Challenge house and pointed to all the spots where they could have sex.
6. Aneesa & Tori
We get it… these two are best friends. But, it feels like we’ve seen them protect each other ever season, no matter what, and their allies are just expected to accept that they’re BFFs. The friendship was semi-interesting when Big T managed to make them face each other in elimination on Double Agents, but beyond that, this just feels like two entitled friends.
5. Amber & The Big Brother Alliance
As viewers, we want to tell Amber to forget about these people. Since Double Agents, the alliance that consists of Faysal, Kaycee, Josh, and their friends (including Devin, Tori, Aneesa, and Nany) have worked somewhat closely with Amber, but they threw her under the bus as soon as things got tough. This became clear when Faysal sent her into the Lair on Spies, Lies and Allies, but she kind of worked with them on Ride or Dies. Recently, Kaycee stayed on the World Championship due to Amber’s kindness, though some may say that Kaycee is undeserving of this gesture.
4. Kyle & Paulie
This rivalry extended throughout Paulie’s entire tenure on the main series Challenge, and while it never came to a blow-out, there were a lot of almost-fights on the show. The theatrics make it hard to remember that Kyle had ended things with Cara Maria by the time Paulie debuted on the show, and Paulie was fully aware of the former fling before pursuing things with Cara Maria.
3. Nany & Kaycee
By all accounts, this relationship is in a good spot right now, and the couple are happy together. The semi-scandalous beginnings on Total Madness have been buried in the past, and viewers keep watching the two protect each other and avoid serious confrontations. Even when they faced each other in an elimination during Spies, Lies and Allies, Nany just gave up to let Kaycee succeed.
2. Wes & Bananas
During The Ruins, this feud seemed very real, and it got interesting when the two were forced to work together on Rivals due to their alliances. On Rivals 2, they were back to hating each other, and subsequent seasons felt like competitions to see which player could outperform the other. Viewer started to lose count, and after a dog and pony show on Maury, the two decided to be allies on Total Madness — a truce that extended on to The Challenge: USA 2.
1. Tori & Jordan
It’s funny to recall a time when this relationship was kind of hidden, but the couple went public about their romance prior to War of the Worlds 2, the season that would show their engagement. Then, they broke up prior to Spies, Lies and Allies. This started an endless string of arguments, and it really came to a head on Ride or Dies. The two semi-rekindled things, then they fought, then they forgave each other. Every time the show’s edit teased a betrayal, the ex-fiances would remain loyal when they had to vote. This flirtatious alliance carried onto the World Championship when they both made the final.
Stop Being Polite 