All Stars Rivals has its share of flaws, but production did a pretty good job securing rivalries that had legitimate tension. Prime example: Kellyanne & Sylvia. While the team only survived three episodes, we saw a complete story arc.
These two met on All Stars 3, and the rivalry stems from the fact that Kellyanne’s alliance (primarily with Kendal) opposed the Tree House alliance that Sylvia was a part of. Though the Tree House had power often, when Kellyanne won a challenge she threw Sylvia into the Arena — even though Sylvia proposed a very one-sided deal with Kellyanne.
Sylvia left the season cussing out Kellyanne, but that was the end of their story until All Stars Rivals. So, their strained history is mostly captured on film and rooted in the game. This meant that the partnership wasn’t uncomfortably personal, but it’s not like they’d moved past their feud.
So, when the two were forced to work together, they were very mismatched. Presumably, they had poor communication during Frenemies (we didn’t see much of them, but they didn’t do well). Then, Sylvia’s fear of heights stopped them from completing Edge of Glory, even though Kellyanne was eager to do the challenge. Finally, they started to improve in Ball Buster as they started to communicate better.
Their differences manifested themselves in a blow-out fight on episode 2, and that was enhanced with the confessionals where the girls were comparing each other to dogs.
By the time the two girls were competing in the Jungle, they seemed to be on the same page. Even though they didn’t win, they recognized their similarities and could communicated better. But, they lost and were forced to go home. However, their exit montage served as a memorable and comical departure.
Since doing the show, Kellyanne and Sylvia have started a friendship, so clearly their feud wasn’t that deep, and that’s generally a good thing on a Rivals season. We don’t want to see people work together if it causes emotional turmoil for one person.
Kellyanne and Sylvia are both competitors with a lot of potential. On a season like Rivals 1 or 2 where they would have only competed against other women, they would have been dark horses. Instead, a high-potential female/female team went home to a male/male team.
If the Rivals theme is ever revisited, a team like Kellyanne & Sylvia should serve as a template. They arrived with a clear back story, the team wasn’t so lopsided that one person would have to carry all the weight, and the competition forced them to work through their drama. Even though they’ve patched up their relationship, I have no doubt that conflict would have reappeared if they lasted longer in the game. That’s what we want, teams that can succeed together or self-destruct when they’re opposing each other.
Stop Being Polite 