It seems Cara Maria arrived on Battle of the Eras in a new era of her own. As the game is winding down, it’s starting to look like it might be her flop era.
On episode 16 , we saw Cara Maria come in last place during a swimming challenge. She commented that she sucks at swimming, knew it was her weakness, and never thought she’d do well in Fire Plunge. This was a bit of a surprise because Cara Maria hasn’t been an exceptionally bad swimmer in the past. After all, she survived the swimming Purge on War of the Worlds 2.
Rachel, who has always been Cara’s friend, said that Cara Maria was doing so bad that it almost seemed like a mockery of the game. As a viewer, it was clear that she wasn’t excelling, but it didn’t feel like a remarkably terrible performance. However, her last-place finish did earn her a penalty at the next daily challenge.
Cara Maria had a very noteworthy start on season 40. She didn’t win the Era Invitational, but she came in second overall. Then, she won Take Shelter against Kellyanne. But the momentum slowed down after this. Not that she was doing poorly, but she really coasted in the middle of the pact. She avoided being a team captain/target for a long time, and when she was picked, she didn’t win, didn’t lose, and didn’t get sent to the Arena.
Admittedly, the laying-low strategy is a great one on a season like Battle of the Eras, but it also allows competitors to get forgotten. Cara Maria didn’t have many stand-out performances in the first half of the season, but it was good enough to get to the second half of the game. Normally, individual games are where Cara Maria shines. On Battle of the Eras, she’s only had one standout performance: her win on 40 Yard Dash.
We’ve seen some below-average performances by Cara Maria this season, like her disqualification on Building Bridges and her sixth-place finish during Duned. These showings didn’t impact her, but they didn’t showcase the same intensity that fans have become accustomed to seeing. Even on All Stars 4 she was asserting her dominance in the competition and making moves. This season she’s letting other people make the big decisions.
I think it’s fair to say Battle of the Eras hasn’t been Cara Maria’s most dominant showing (yet), but she was eliminated first on Fresh Meat 2. It’s kind of impossible for her to have a “flop” era when the bar is already set so low.
If anything, Battle of the Eras is her friendship era. Cara Maria’s been able to float by because she hasn’t had to prove herself. People like Derek, Michele, Cory, and Tori have worked with her, so losing a challenge hasn’t been the end of the world.
Cara Maria’s growth this season comes from her social game, and likely, this will put her on a good path in future seasons. Her mediocre daily challenge performance hasn’t been a detriment yet, but at the eleventh hour, it may be her downfall. She’s going into the (likely) last challenge with a penalty and a target. The odds of her facing the final elimination are quite high.
Even if that is the case, Cara shines in eliminations — but she’s the first person to admit that they are risky and should be avoided whenever possible. But the game isn’t over, and if Cara Maria wins something else before the season concludes, Battle of the Eras could go down as her ultimate redemption era.
Stop Being Polite 