Author's Note
I'm super excited to present this chapter to you all today. I really liked how it turned out, as I said last week, and I think it really does a good job of setting off the 'beginning of the end' of the season. And next week's episode is pretty good as well, and the final reward challenge of the season too.
But right now, there are reviews to address.
StayOuttaMyShed: Hmm...well...you'll probably get what I meant by that comment by the end of the episode, but I will explain it in the Post Script. And yeah, Harold and Lindsay really made this season in canon, and it's pretty disappointing that neither made it further. Oh, and how DJ supposedly killed Chris? Well, the 'murderer' story is that DJ bashed Chris to death with the pop can then dragged him off. What actually happened is that DJ freaked when the lights went out and accidentally threw the can at Chris. My apologies for not making what happened a little clearer.
bruno14: Hey, don't worry about it! And yeah, I figured DJ's win would be shocking since it was such an odd end to the challenge. But I think it works well overall.
acosta perez jose ramiro: Thanks as always for the review!
White Weasel: Thanks so much! I'm glad you've enjoyed how I'm writing the last few contestants. I've been doing my best to stay true to their characters while still exploring what can be done with them, and of course keeping a good level of humor throughout the whole thing. It's always nice to hear that people are liking my efforts.
Ali6132: Haha, yeah. The zombies in the badminton movie really did come out of nowhere, but I guess that makes the thing all the more interesting. As for what Scarlett's doing...well, you'll find out soon enough.
RedHornedUnicowz: Thank you! I'm glad you liked it, especially the plot twists I include that are different from canon as I've been trying to diverge the stories a bit more from their counterparts. And as for the legality of watching what is technically stolen property online...I'm fairly certain it's completely legal to watch, but if you try to, say, rehost it yourself you'd at least get a copyright violation/take-down notice or something. At least that's how i think it works, I'm no legal expert.
Guest #1: Yeah, Harold really made that episode in canon. And I'm sorry to hear you didn't like DJ winning the last reward; I hope you like this chapter better. As for The Ridonculous Race, I can say that the chances of me covering that series in the Shuffled universe are extremely low. There's so few returning characters that I just don't think the differences in my AU would be enough to majorly change The Ridonculous Race.
Guest #2: Well, thanks for letting me know!
Knifez: Huh, interesting...well, at the very least I'm glad you were honest about that. I don't really know what I can do to change things for the rest of the series, but at least I'm aware that it might be something to work on now. Other than that, I'm glad you liked last chapter. Not much else to say right now other than thanks.
POPGoesDaWeasel: Umm, I'm not really sure how you got Jo mixed up with Amy, but whatever... And to be fair, nobody noticed it in canon either. Scarlett at least figured out it was a fake, and it's not like anybody else knows what a dead body looks like.
FOWLKON: Your memory of the canon episode is a little off - Lindsay didn't use the cheese dust for fingerprints, she just noticed it on a napkin and realized that only Courtney could have left them, making her the killer. Also, the scene with Chris and his double at the end was in the canon episode as well. Other than that, though, I'm glad you enjoyed the episode, and I hope you like what happens next!
OMAC001: Haha, thanks. I'm still a little uncertain about how I handled things last time, but it's good to know that some people prefer my version.
Ddynamo: On the plus side to not having Harold around this season, it means I get to have fun with him in other ways. And I'm certainly glad you felt Scarlett and DJ made up for his absence. The finale is drawing ever closer, and I'm interested to see if and how any predictions change before then.
Invader Cole: No worries, no worries. I'm glad you liked the episode even though it felt different, and I hope you like the rest of the season as well. It's really getting close to the time where finale predictions will be thoroughly tested...
Star Saber21: Good to know I can still nail the humor! With a series like this, it's important to maintain a certain level of comedy I think. Anyway, thanks as always for the review, and I look forward to hearing what you and other have to say about this chapter.
Those taken care of, it's time for the weekly remidner of the ever-dwindling number of contestants:
Girls - Amy, Jo, Scarlett
Boys - DJ, Lightning
By the end of the episode, one name will be stricken from this list. Who will it be? Keep reading to find out, and enjoy.
- Fangren
Episode 21 – Rock n' Rule
"Last time, on Total Drama Action!" The opening scene immediately flashed from the long-distance shot of the film lot to the jock-ette biting into a breakfast taco then taking an egg-covered USB flash drive off her tongue. "Jo took a big bite of 'Who dunnit?' in our most mysterious episode yet! After the contestants cracked the code of Chris' mysterious message," Scarlett stuck the flash drive into an equally egg-covered PDA and the cast gathered round to view the video left by their host, "they stealthily had to fetch prints and DNA from each other." Amy opened the bank vault with a grin, then the footage cut forward to Jo and Scarlett sneakily obtaining the required materials from one another.
"A party reward on a train quickly turned into a hunt for my murderer." Chef was shown wheeling out the food cart, then the lights flickered off just as the cast approached the snacks. They came back on shortly, and Lightning pointed in horror at Chris 'dead body'. "Somehow, it was DJ who was declared Sherlock-iest of them all," the brickhouse's hapless discovery that he himself had been the 'killer' was replayed in part, "annoying Scarlett," the brainaic was shown pinching the bridge of her nose, "and infuriating Amy when he invited Lightning for some guy time at the movies." DJ was shown choosing the uber-jock to share his reward, and part of Amy's ranting confessional was shown. "Even though it turned out to be horribly awkward." The movie night was shown, with Lightning acting mildly annoyed by DJ's frightened cowering.
"Will Amy plot some evil revenge?" The recap ended on a still shot of a large screen set up by the amphitheater, currently showing a glowering Amy against a pinkish background. "Or will DJ finally bring her world down around her?" The mean girl's picture slid away, and was replaced by a sheepishly smiling and waving DJ against a light blue background. "Am I even cooler now that I'm alive again?" Chris asked as the camera cut to him eating popcorn with his rubber double. "Find out," his enthusiastic gestures accidentally knocked the dummy over, "on this episode of!" The scene flashed away again, now showing the host standing at his usual spot outside the cast trailers. "Total! Drama! Action!"
xxx
(Fade to Opening Theme)
Dear Mom and Dad, I'm doin' fine;
You guys are on my mind!
Ya asked me what I wanted to be,
And now I think the answer is plain to see!
I wanna be...famous!
I wanna live close to the sun!
Well pack your bags, 'cause I've already won!
Everythin' to prove, nothin' in my way;
I'll get there one day.
'Cause I wanna be...famous!
(Na-na nanananaa, nanana-nanaa, na-nananananaa)
I wanna be! I wanna be! I wanna be famous! (Na-na nanananaa, nanana-nanaa, na-nananananaa)
I wanna be! I wanna be! I wanna be famous! (Na-na nanananaa, nanana-nanaa, na-nananananaa)
(Fade to Episode)
xxx
The episode opened with a shot of the sky, a small flock of birds flying off into the distance before the camera panned down to male deer grazing in a grassy field. Somewhere off-screen somebody began to whistle a jaunty but slightly off-beat tune, attracting the deer's attention. It was joined by a couple chipmunks poking their heads up from behind a rock and a large tuft of grass, but the animals soon lost interest and darted away.
The scene quick-panned over to the area outside the communal bathrooms as the door slammed open, scaring another male deer off. The whistler revealed herself as Jo when the jock-ette strolled outside, her hair soaking wet and wearing nothing but a towel wrapped around her body. She continued to whistle proudly as she strutted along all the way back to her trailer, bursting inside and immediately attracting the attention of her roommates.
"You're in an unusually good mood this morning," Scarlett commented as she put the finishing touches on her bun. The camera panned over to the jock-ette, and the brainiac's gaze followed.
"What can I say?" Jo shrugged, grabbing another towel and quickly rubbed her hair dry. "I just had a good night's sleep for once."
"I don't know how," Amy said snidely as she applied mascara in front of the room's mirror, Scarlett's eyes following the camera as it moved back across the room. "I know if I were you, I'd be worried about Lightning turning DJ against you. You know how guys are."
Jo snorted, the camera focused on her head as she pulled her sweatshirt on. "Sure. That's why you stayed up all last night trying to convince yourself the big guy wasn't gonna take you precious boy-toy away."
"WHAT?" Amy shrieked in outrage. "I'll have you know that Lightning would never turn on me! He's in love with me," her rage quickly melted into a dark smile, "which is more than anyone will ever say about you."
Jo pursed her lips and scowled, the camera pulling back to show her fully clothed. "Oh hey, take shots at the tough girl for not having a boyfriend. Real original." She rolled her eyes, then added "And it doesn't change the fact that Lightning has too big of an ego to fall for you batting your eyes forever," she mockingly mimicked the motion. "And the moment he wises up, you can kiss your butt goodbye."
"Hmph!" Amy turned her nose up and away from the jock-ette. "Even if that does happen, you'll be long gone by that point."
"Keep tellin' yourself that," Jo told her.
Amy shot an expectant look at Scarlett, who shrugged halfheartedly. "I'm not exactly an expert on romantic attractions, so don't expect me to give you any insight." The cheerleader scowled deeply.
/
The shot cut outside, then panned over to the guys' trailer and zoomed inside to Lightning and DJ.
"Uhh, thanks for hearin' me out last night, dude," the uber-jock told his roommate awkwardly. "Lightning ain't really good at talkin' 'bout his feelin's, and he would appreciate you not goin' around tellin' people about 'em."
"No problem, man," DJ replied with a smile. "I get how it is-"
He was interrupted by the sudden sound of drums coming from outside the trailer. The camera cut to what was obviously Chef Hatchet playing a set at a fast pace, then to the doorways of each trailer as Scarlett, Jo, and Lightning stepped out with annoyed looks on their faces.
Chef was shown playing again for a second, the camera pulling back to show Chris standing nearby with a bland smile on his face that turned into a wince when Chef finished his set with a sharp crash of the cymbals.
"Nice of you to join us," the host said after quickly recovering; the camera pulled back again to show all five castmates gathered around him. "Today's movie genre is," he looked aside to Chef, "drumroll please!" The hulking drummer obliged, but went on longer than the host anticipated. "Okay, Ringo," Chris said in annoyance, "spotlight's not big enough for the both of us."
Chef looked at the host, then stopped the drumroll. "Today's movie genre is," Chris began again, only for Chef to start the drumroll back up – but end it when the host swiftly glared at him. "The Rock n' Roll Biopic!"
Lightning's face lit up and he whistled in awe. "Sha-dang! Almost as good as the sports movie."
"I know, right?" Amy chimed in with forced enthusiasm. "I bet you'd make a great rock star. In fact, we'd make a great rock couple!"
The overachiever did not look impressed. "Uh, how's Lightning gonna be a rock star when he's busy spendin' all his time winnin' for the various teams he's gonna be on?"
"Oh, uh, right," Amy said quickly.
xxx
Lightning opened his confessional by shaking his head and making a few tutting sounds. "Girl shoulda known better. Lightning might like rock n' roll movies, but that doesn't mean he wants to be a rock n' roll star."
xxx
Scarlett sighed deeply. "Once again, a movie genre I have no interest in."
"Not musically inclined?" Jo asked tauntingly.
"I am, just not in rock music," the brainiac answered matter-of-factly. "I'm more partial to-"
"Yeah, time to shut up now!" Chris interrupted with a brief scowl. "Now, any good Rock n' Roll Biopic starts with a kid from humble beginnings," he explained with his usual smile, the shot pulling back out to show the full cast, "drawn into the seemingly-glam world of rock music. After overcoming enormous hardship, the kid gets a break, and makes it ginormous! Bigger than me, even!" He motioned to himself with a smug look on his face.
"The kid is then drawn in to a scandalous world of stuff I'm not allowed to talk about with sixteen-year-olds," he continued. "Things that lead to dangerous addictions, multiple divorces, the occasional night in the joint, and an untimely death. While sitting on a toilet."
xxx
Rather than the makeup trailer confessional, the static cut the scene to the control tent where Chris was already waiting with a somber look on his face. "Please, do not try any of the aforementioned at home," he pleaded to the camera, "or I will be sued. And, would be unable to afford the maintenance of this fabulous smile!" A lilting tune played as the camera zoomed in and the host smiled, his teeth twinkling in the light.
xxx
"A few things that any certifiable rock god needs to know that I can talk about?" he resumed his explanation as an electric guitar riff began in the background. "You need to know how rock out on the guitar," he mimed strumming a few notes, "work the paparazzi," he put on a pair of sunglasses, "and trash a hotel room." He tossed the shades away and laughed. "Any questions?"
"Do we actually have to play guitar?" DJ asked, raising his hand.
"Did you actually get real paparazzi?" Amy followed up quickly and excitedly.
"Are you actually gonna answer our questions for once?" Jo snarked third.
"You'll see, no, and yes," Chris answered smugly, pointing to each contestant in turn. "Tricked ya, didn't I?" he told the jock-ette, tapping the side of his head a couple of times. "You're gonna have to get up way earlier to outsmart me."
"Dude, you wake us up too early as it is," Lightning told him.
"I know," the host replied, still smugly. "Anywho, I have an announcement to make!" The glee in his voice rose with each word, quickly alarming the castmates. "Because I'm the host, and can do whatever I want, I've decided to bring someone back to the show!"
All five pairs of eyes widened.
"Umm, loud cough of interruption?" Amy said in outrage, moving her fist to her move to mime the gesture she was saying aloud. "I had to win a lawsuit to get on this show, so how come someone else gets to come back on just like that? Did they sue too? Who could even do that and win?"
"I hate to agree with her," Jo added, "but she's got a point. The only person I can think of who could make a case is B, but he already settled."
"Yeah, it isn't B," Chris told them bluntly before turning a stern gaze to Amy. "But more importantly, I feel it's time to make a correction. You see, Amy has been lying to you all." The mean girl immediately looked nervous. "Although she did try to sue the show for wrongful dismissal, she lost. Miserably."
"Figures," DJ muttered.
"Knew it," Jo chimed in.
"I had assumed as much," Scarlett admitted.
"Even sha-Lightning figured that out!" the overachiever added.
"However," Chris said loudly over the teens, annoyance quite visible on his face, "because I figured she could stir up a lot of drama, I let her on anyway. And for awhile," he paused to chuckle to himself, "I gotta say she was worth it. But lately?" He shook his head in disappointment. "Lately, Amy's just been annoying me. So that's why I decided to bring back.." he motioned to the side, the castmates turning their attention as Chef began another drumroll.
"Oh no...," Amy whispered in horror, skin paling and eyes going even wider. "Please tell me you're not..."
The camera quick-panned over to what looked like an empty field as a trapdoor slid open in the ground. From it came, of all thing, the mouth of a cannon, and when the drumroll stopped it fired.
"EEEEEEEAAAA!" something blonde and reddish shrieked as they were shot through the air towards the cast, a hectic tune playing all the while. The camera quickly cut to DJ as his brow shot up, and he hurriedly moved to catch the returnee in his arms.
"Her sister, Samey!" Chris gleefully announced, raising his hands into the air as a celebratory 'ta-da' sort of sound effect played.
"H-hi...!" a rather disheveled-looking Sammy said, looking deep into her boyfriend's eyes.
"Hi," the gentle giant replied a broad smile forming on his face.
While Lightning, Scarlett, and Jo looked merely stunned, the camera panned to the left of them to show a slack-jawed Amy. "Samey?!" she repeated in outrage. "You brought Samey back?!"
"What can I say," Chris told her, "she actually got kicked off the show unfairly a couple times. I figured: why not just let her come back before she asks your daddy's lawyer buddies for help? Saves the show some legal hassle."
"Hey, I'm fine with it," Jo spoke up.
"Lightning don't care one way or the other," the uber-jock declared, earning a sharp look from Amy.
"Although it will prolong the game," Scarlett reasoned aloud, "I see no point in objecting to it."
"Oh, thanks," Sammy told them mildly.
xxx
"So, I wasn't exactly planning on suing the show anytime soon," Sammy admitted in the confessional, rubbing her arm sheepishly. "The last thing I wanna do is be more like Amy. But after what happened on the Aftermath, I guess the fans really wanted to see me finally stand up to my sister," she said with an anxious laugh.
"Also," she added with a thoughtful look, "the producers want me to find out if Scarlett's really been cheating. Apparently they haven't had any luck figuring it out themselves, so they asked me to be their mole. I, umm, technically can't win the competition, but if I do what the producers ask me too they'll pay me. So, y'know," she smiled nervously at the camera, "here goes everything!"
xxx
"Alright people," Chris told the cast, Sammy now lined up between Jo and Chef and exchanging a fierce glare with her sister, "time for your first big gig! Meet me at the big stadium in ten minutes," he walked past Amy and Scarlett, the latter following him with her eyes but the former still glaring off-screen, "you can't miss it!"
Chef came running after him moments later, his drum kit banging and clanging as he carried it over his shoulder.
/
The footage skipped ahead to the six teens walking along some sidewalk. Jo was out in front, followed by Sammy and DJ who were holding hands and smiling at each other, then Scarlett who was looking around searchingly, and at the end a furiously pouting Amy and mildly annoyed Lightning.
"Where the heck is the stadium, anyway?" Jo asked.
"You'd think we'd have used it by now," Scarlett added. "I suppose we'll have to accept being late."
"I said ten minutes!" Chris suddenly said, looking at his wristwatch irately. "Not ten hours!"
The teens were shown walking up on some stage in front of a vividly-painted Rock-themed backdrop, complete with skull, fire, and guitars. "You told us to meet you at the big stadium," DJ explained. "This is just the Gilded Chris Award theater!" The camera pulled back, revealing that it was in fact the amphitheater – the rock-themed stage bad been set up on it, as well as the large screen seen during the intro recap at the start of the episode.
"And you might get dumped!" the host countered sternly before a smile reformed on his face. "Not bad. First step to becoming a Rock legend is to show up late for your own show."
"We would've been here sooner is Samey hadn't gotten us lost," Amy spat.
"Umm, I didn't get us lost," Sammy countered, "you slowed us down by walking like a turtle." The anger in the younger twin's voice took seemed to take Amy aback, but she quickly composed herself into a snarl.
Chris exchanged an annoyed look with Chef, then resumed his hosting demeanor. "For your first challenge," he told the cast, "you're gonna be rockin' out on the guitar!"
DJ immediately raised his hand. "What if we don't know how to play the guitar?"
"Or any instrument?" Jo added with her hands on her hips. "'Cause I'm not exactly a band geek if you catch my drift."
"Yeah, I already figured that none of you would be able to read music anyway," Chris explained. "So instead, you'll be playing a guitar-shaped peripheral. The notes will be represented by colored notes on the screen, which correspond you your guitar." He motioned up to it, and it showed an image of a fake electric guitar with flashing colored spots on the neck.
"You will play simultaneously, during which you'll be eliminated." The camera cut back to the group shot of the host and six castmates. "Every time you make a wrong note, bzzztt!" He mimed getting an electric shock.
"You're gonna electrocute us is we make a mistake?!" DJ asked in alarm.
"Me? Electrocute you?" the host repeated slowly and impishly. "Of course not!" The six players looked momentarily relieved before Chris added "The guitar will electrocute you!" The castmates gasped, and the host laughed. "But don't worry, you'll live!" he told Jo. "Though you may never be able to play the piano again."
"Who cares? I can't even do that now," the jock-ette said.
"Or play sports," Chris added, cracking a sly smile at the end.
Jo's face fell into an unamused glare. "Ha ha, very finny," she told the host.
He rolled his eyes. "Some people just don't appreciate classic comedy."
xxx
"The last time I played an instrument," Scarlett told the confessional camera, "I ended up hitting a note that causes muscle cramps. I wasn't allowed back in band class after that," a small smile formed on her lips, "but I was able to find more subjects to continue the research on."
xxx
"Are you ready to rock out?!" Chris asked excitedly from his director's chair as an electric guitar riff played.
"Sha-yeah!" Lightning responded, raising a fist up high as the viewpoint shifted to show the contestants up on stage with their peripherals in hand. "Time to light it up like lightning in a thunderstorm!"
"Brief and loud, just like you," Jo quipped, causing the uberjock next to her to blink in brief confusion.
"And...rock on!" Chris declared, the background music suddenly stopping as the castmates were shown looking up at the screen as one. They were lined up in order with Amy on the far left, then Scarlett, then Sammy, Jo, Lightning, and lastly DJ on the far right.
The large screen's guitar began to flash as a hard rock song started up, and the contestants began to play. Scarlett was focused on first, her face drawn into a look of concentration as her fingers rapidly struck the buttons on the face of her skull-shaped guitar. The camera then panned over to Lightning, playing at a similar pace on his black v-shaped instrument though with more enthusiasm. He took a few steps forward, then began to jump around a bit in an over-the-top fashion.
"Looks like Lightning's really getting into the rock n' roll groove," Chris commented before the overachiever started making short hops backward across the stage. Not looking where he was going, he ended up crashing right into Scarlett – a screeching wail on their guitars sounded the two falling to the floor in a heap.
"Watch where you're going!" Scarlett irately told the boy on top of her.
"You watch where you're sha-goin'!" Lightning countered.
They were promptly electrocuted by their peripherals, and the camera cut to a chuckling Chris. "Looks like they both shoulda been watching the music to me. Looks like we've got our first two losers!"
The flashing notes on the monitor were shown again, followed by a split-screen of the twins playing similarly well – Amy on a red-and-white electric guitar, Sammy on an acoustic-like peripheral. After them, the camera cut to DJ playing, of all things, a banjo-shaped peripheral. He was biting his lip and trying to concentrate, but by the sounds playing around him it was clear he was struggling. A few seconds later, a flat note sounded as the banjo electrocuted him.
Jo was the next to be focused on, playing what seemed like every other note on a peripheral patterned like the Union Jack. "This bites," she muttered to herself, "but at least I'm still in this. Just gotta pick up the pace a little and..." She began hitting more and more notes, her confidence and smile growing with each one.
Until her guitar exploded in a puff of smoke and sparks. She coughed lightly as air cleared, and the camera panned over to the twins – the only two left standing.
Each was playing surprisingly well, and every so often their eyes met one another in a mutual glare. "I hope you're ready to lose this just like you always do!" Amy told her sister.
"Hah, not today." Sammy replied in a somewhat awkward, mostly level, and definitely spiteful tone. Amy frowned, and the two continued to duel. The camera cut from a close-up of one peripheral to the next, fingers hammering away on buttons without any noticeable mistakes. The four losers were shown off to the side of the stage, still lightly smoking but obviously enjoying the show.
"You got this, Sammy!" DJ called. "Show her what you're made of!"
"What, a weak little worm wrapped up in ugly?" Amy said snidely. "Why don't you just face facts. You're always gonna be second best, and coming back on here isn't gonna prove otherwise." The camera focused on Sammy's face as she listened to her sister talk; her expression fell quickly into depression and lack of confidence. "As impossible as it sounds, you're only gonna make yourself look even worse, Samey."
With that word, Sammy's expression steeled with anger. "My name," she hissed, playing a few hard notes on her guitar. "Is not," she grabbed the peripherals by the neck. "Samey!" She swung her guitar hard at Amy; the mean girl shrieked and moved her guitar to block, and the two collided with a loud and off-key wail followed by a distinct snap as the two peripherals broke.
The music stopped immediately. "Nice job, Samey, you broke both guitars!" Chris told the two in an even tone.
"Oops..." the nice twin said sheepishly.
"Impressive, both of you," the host told them. "But! The winner is..." The camera pulled back as Chef began a drumroll behind the host. "Samey!"
"WHAT?!" Amy roared in outrage. "You're letting her win over me?! She didn't even play that well, unlike me!"
"Honestly?" Chris told her with a frown. "I really couldn't tell the difference between the two of you while you were playing. It seemed to me like you were hitting all the same notes."
"Hah! Looks like they really are twins after all," Jo laughed.
Sammy smiled, but Amy just fumed harder. "You still didn't tell me why I lost! I mean, hello? She stopped even trying at the end so she could attack me."
"Ehh...," Chris said, giving a so-so gesture. "Didn't look to me like she stopped trying. Although if she had, the winner would've been easier to decide – if there's one thing rock stars don't do, it's try. But since everyone here did," he motioned over at the other four who were watching with generally perplexed looks, "I decided to go with whoever made the flashiest finish. And in this case, it was Samey breaking two guitars."
"Wow," the nice girl said with a smile. "In a way, I guess I owe my win to you, sis," she told Amy with a slightly mocking tone.
Amy grit her teeth and stomped off stage, Chris stepping up on it shortly after. "We'll be right back," he told the camera, "as soon as Amy cools down with a hot bath and Samey gets a taste of life in the almost winner's circle."
(Fade to Commercial and Back)
The scene faded back in to a slew of camera flashes, courtesy of three people – one of which was clearly a yeti – raising their devices above a silhouetted crowd. Chef was shown at the end of the red carpet in his tux just as the limousine of losers drove up, and the camera panned across the mostly excited castmates. Chef opened the limo's door, and Chris stepped out in his baby blue tuxedo.
"Welcome back to the Rock n' Roll Biopic edition of Total Drama Action," he told the cameras, speaking into a microphone as he approached the cast. "Now, in order to become a true rock immortal, you must know how work the paparazzi."
A few dramatic notes played as the scene moved slightly, showing the amphitheater-stage in the background beyond the silhouetted crowd. The red carpet lay in front of the fake crowd, leading to a small building set on the left with a star on its door.
"The first part of your second challenge," Chris said as a few standees popped out of the ground at the end of the red carpet and slid down, "is an obstacle course of fans, photogs, groupies, and autograph hounds." The four standees were shown in a close-up: on the left was a tan-skinned young woman with mid-length hair and jean shorts holding a pen and pad of paper; next was another young woman dressed like an 80s-era groupie; to her right was a fat, stubbly white guy with a polka dot shirt, reporter's hat, and camera; at the far right was a third woman, with ginger hair, white skin, and a camera in her hands as well.
"You'll start at the Lame-o-sine," Chris told the cast. "Walk up the red carpet," the camera panned away to the left, "past the obstacles," the camera cut to the obstacle course, "and finally backstage." The shot panned to the backstage set with the star on the door. "One of you will win. The rest will be celebrity roadkill. Samey," he approached the girl, "for winning the first challenge, you get our backstage pass," he handed her a pass, "so, you'll start halfway."
xxx
"Shame this isn't a real backstage pass," Sammy told the confessional camera, the pass already around her neck. "At least it looks like one." She looked down at it, and began to read. "All Access Membership, Buff and Tone Spa?"
Sammy gave the camera a confused look, but was even more surprised when Chris – seemingly shirtless but with a towel around his shoulders – leaned into the shot. "Yeah, I'm gonna be needin' that."
xxx
The footage resumed with a shot of Amy, Jo, Sammy, DJ, and Lightning sitting in director's chair at the end of the red carpet, their eyes on the limo off-screen.
"Okay," Chris said from his spot next to Lightning, "Scarlett, you're up first." The camera panned to the limo as the door opened and the music began to build into the usual tense and fast-paced challenge piece. "Aaannd...action!"
Scarlett ran out like a bolt. "Scarlett's on the move," Chris commentated, the shot cutting to the brainiac as the fat man standee popped up in her path. "A paparazzi!" Scarlett quickly frowned and ducked slightly, avoiding the camera's line of sight without losing her momentum. "Quick maneuvering!"
The brainiac didn't so much as look back as she kept charging ahead, and was soon stopped by another standee – the shorts-wearing girl. "Autograph hound!" the host announced. "Will she sign?" Scarlett stopped and seemed to consider it for a second, then waved her hand in a polite decline and moved on. "She won't! Too busy for the fans."
Only a few more feet down, two more standees popped up – the red-haired woman and the fat man again. "Ooh! The tricky pap-cam-fan attack!" Chris said with a sly look. "Will she make it?" Scarlett paused in front of them just long enough to crack a light smile as they each took a photo, and curtly waved them off and resumed her sprint. "Scarlett takes the easy route with a light smile-and-wave combo."
The brainiac kept running, not even glancing when the groupie standee popped up. "Followed by a cold shoulder to the groupie!" Chris commented. Next in her path was a standee of a smirking white man in a white shirt with a bag hung on his outstretched hand. Scarlett paused to consider it for a moment, then took the bag and moved on. "And a clean swag-bag-grab!" the host said as the standee retreated into the ground. "Nice!"
A few moments later a waiter popped up holding a tray of what looked like some kind of small sandwich. Scarlett lingered once again before swiping one of the hors-d'oeuvres and leaving. "And a snack to go!" Chris said as the standee slid back down.
"Final obstacle: the vet!" the host said as a standee of a large and imposingly bald white man popped up just in front of the door.
The brainiac eyed him up and down. "If you don't let me through right this instant," she said in a demanding yet matter-of-fact tone, "I'll make sure you're living on the streets by tomorrow morning." She smiled confidently as the bouncer-standee promptly retracted, and the background music peaked triumphantly.
"Spoken like a true power-player," Chris said as Scarlett ran into the backstage room. "Nice moves," he added, walking up to her from the opposite side of the set as she finished her hors-d'oeuvre. "And good call on grabbing the swag. Lucky for you, you get to keep what's inside."
With a curious look on her face, Scarlett dug through the bag she was holding – and quickly took out a book with a picture of Chris' smiling face on the cover. "My autobiography," the host explained to her, "Volume I."
xxx
"The swag was...mediocre, at best," Scarlett calmly confessed. "I'm surprised he didn't include a mirror with his face on it so we could always see it when we looked at ourselves." Her joking demeanor was quickly dropped when a hand mirror with Chris' picture plastered onto the reflective surface was tossed onto the counter in front of her. "Really?" Scarlett asked in disbelief.
xxx
"Samey, you're up!" Chris told the nice twin, the two standing a little ways up the red carpet together. "Remember, you get to skip the Lame-o-sine and half the red carpet." He motioned down the carpet to the limo, and the camera panned back a few feet to show Amy, Jo, DJ, and Lightning still sitting in their chairs. "Annndd...action!"
At the host's words, Sammy got into position and dashed down the red carpet. The fast-paced challenge music resumed, and the cheerleader was quickly confronted by the pair of photog standees. "The tricky pap-cam-fan attack!" Chris narrated as Sammy slowed down. "What's the girl gonna do?"
Smile meekly and wave at the standees as she walked past, as it turned out. "A smile-and-wave, fairly textbook move from the younger twin," Chris commented as the girl in question picked up her pace briefly before getting stopped by the autograph hound. Sammy paused in a moment's indecision, then smiled and signed the notepad. "And she follows it up with a not-so-quick autograph!"
The groupie popped up next, and once again Sammy kept a reasonable pace while smiling and waving at the cardboard girl. "Another smile-and-wave," the host said, the camera cutting to the contestants that were still waiting – DJ was watching with a broad grin; Jo and Lightning more-or-less uninterested; and Amy seething with anger.
Sammy came upon the waiter, hesitated with her hand outstretched towards the plate of food, then shook her head politely and walked away. "Another pause, but she decides against the canapé!" Next came the man holding the gift bag. Sammy tapped her chin in thought for a moment, then smiled and took it. "But she takes the swag!"
Lastly was the bouncer, and the nice twin came to a complete stop in front of him. "Umm, can you let me in?" she asked hesitantly; the standee doesn't move.
"Looks like she's been held up!" Chris said, now narrating from the backstage set.
"Okay, I get that this is your job and all," Sammy said with a slight edge in her voice, "but I have a backstage pass, see?" She held up the pass around her neck. "You have to let me in." For a few moments it seemed like the bouncer wouldn't budge, but soon enough the standee relented and Sammy breathed a sigh of relief.
She walked backstage with a smile on her face, and was immediately greeted by a grinning Chris. "Glad to see you've finally made it," he told her. "Though I gotta say, you seemed like an amateur out there. Way too much dithering, you gotta be decisive if you wanna rule the rock world!"
"Oh...," Sammy said in flat disappointment.
"Better luck next time," Chris told her. "Next!"
/
The scene flashed back over to the limousine as the door opened and DJ stepped out. He waved at the camera with a grin on his face, then started making his way up the red carpet with continued waves to the crowd. He soon came across the first standee – the fat photographer – and smiled broadly right as a flash went off. Now dazed, he stumbled forward a step and bumped into the standee with enough force to snap the cardboard cutout in two.
"Oops! Sorry!" DJ quickly said, picking up the top half of the standee and leaning it against its lower body. With a sheepish smile on his face he backed up...and immediately knocked into the woman photographer, breaking it as well. "Oops! Sorry!" he repeated, picking that standee's pieces back up, then continuing on his way only to break the autograph-seeking standee as well.
The shot cut to an unamused Chris. "Oops! Sorry!" DJ's voice echoed followed by another crash, and the host looked at the camera. And so continued the gentle giant's trail of destruction, his voice becoming more and more anguished with each iteration. "Oops! Sorry!" Crash. "Oops! Sorry!" Crash. "Oops! Sorry!" Crash. "Oops! Sorry!" Crash.
Finally he arrived backstage, slumped down and looking severely downtrodden and tearful. Chris shook his head at the boy in disappointment, while Sammy placed a consoling hand on her boyfriend's shoulder.
/
Chris and Chef were shown standing by the bouncer which had been duct taped back together courtesy of a roll in Chef's hands. "Next!" Chris called, and the camera panned down the red carpet – showing that the other standees had been similarly repaired. Jo was the next out, and she smirked confidently.
The challenge music resumed once more, and the jock-ette took off at a sprint. One by one the standees popped up along the carpet – the two paparazzi fans, the autograph hound, the groupie, the swag-bearer, and the waiter – and all were met with the same response: absolutely nothing. Jo ran past each and every one without so much as a glance their way, and when she got to the bouncer she merely kicked him in the chest, snapping it in two in a separate spot than before, then walked through the door backstage.
"How was that for a record time?" she cockily asked the host and his assistant. Chris just shook his head, and Chef readied another length of duct tape.
/
The limousine was shown again, and a drumroll led up to Lightning bursting out the door and rolling into a flexing pose. "No need to wait y'all, sha-Lightning has arrived!" he announced to the world before standing up and strutting confidently down the red carpet. He struck a few poses for the pap-cam-fan-attack, then walked off with a chuckle.
"Oh yeah, sha-Lightning has got the goods!" he told himself before being stopped by the autograph-seeker. He looked her up and down, then walked off with a dismissive handwave. "Sorry girl," he told her, "you want Lightning's autograph you gotta pay." The groupie was next, and he gave her a quick wink-and-finger pistol combo before moving on. The waiter and swag-handler he shook his head at and waved off, and he scoffed when he saw the bouncer.
"Make way for the Lightning!" he said, barging past the musclebound standee – but not actually breaking him again. He stepped inside, and bumped fists with a smiling Chris.
/
Finally Amy's turn had arrived, and in place of the normal challenge music she was accomapnied by a more trendy techno tune. She stepped out of the limousine with a confident pose, and walked down the red carpet with an air of utter superiority about her. She stopped at the two photographers and posed for many, many pictures, then signed her autograph at the next standee without even stopping.
She strutted the rest of the way down the red carpet, waving at the groupie then swiping her swag bag and an hors-d'oeuvre without blinking. At the bouncer she finally stopped, gave the man a slightly mocking smile, then raised her hand to him, turned up her nose, and moved past him completely. She enetered the backstage set with a confident grin, which widened when she was met by a somewhat reluctant thumbs-up from the host.
/
A few more pictures were snapped by the hands raised above the fake crowd, and the camera pulled back to show Chef eagerly handing an envelope to Chris on the red carpet. "And now, the moment you've all been waiting for!" he announced, turning to the castmates as the background music became tense. "The photographic evidence! Let's see your best shots, shall we?"
The viewpoint moved over his shoulder as he took a stack of photographs out of the envelope. "Scarlett evaded," the top picture showed the brainiac just barely in he corner of the frame; "Samey hesitated," the first picture was slid off, revealing a shot of Sammy looking uncertain about something underneath; "DJ crashed...natch," the next photo showed the brickhouse falling towards the camera with a panicked look on his face and the boy himself was shown smiling sheepishly; "Jo dashed," the only thing of Jo in the picture was her right foot as she ran past the paparazzi; "Lightning posed," the uber-jock's picture showed him flexing his arms and smirking; "And Amy posed harder." The final photo showed the mean twin in the middle of a wink and kiss blown to the camera.
"Which means we have a winner!" Chris declared, dropping the pictures back into the envelope. Each contestant was shown looking expectantly, but when the host announced "Amy!" the camera panned to her as she cheered and pumped her fist.
"Hah! In your face, Samey!" she said, jeering at her sister.
"What? Lightning was robbed," the uber-jock protested.
"Hey, I did the best job avoiding those goons!" Jo added.
"Who said you were supposed to avoid the photogs?" Chris asked slyly. "The paparazzi means exposure, and although Lightning's run was good, Amy exposed herself better with her fan management." The camera briefly cut to the uber-jock glaring at the host in annoyance.
"Amy wins an advantage in the next part of the challenge," Chris continued, "where you'll compete for invincibility."
xxx
"Hah!" Amy barked out a laugh. "That'll teach Samey to think she can just waltz back on the show and expect to beat me. I've been better than her all my life for a reason you know."
xxx
"Finally," Chris said, having changed back into his usual outfit, "the ultimate rockstar challenge: trashing the hotel room." The camera pulled back, revealing that the host and cast were now standing in an entirely different set, one made up to look like a rather drab-colored hotel room with a single red full-sized bed.
"You've got thirty seconds on the clock," the host continued, "with Amy getting an additional ten for having won the first part of the challenge." The camera focused in on the mean girl as she smiled smugly, with Jo rolling her eyes nearby. "Aaaaannd...action!" Chris quickly stepped away from the set, and the six castmates slowly dispersed around the room.
The scene pulled back, transitioning to the few from the control tent monitors watched by Chef Hatchet, who'd also changed back into his standard attire.
/
The campy whistling tune began as the contestants went to work trashing the place. First up was DJ as he hesitantly approached a table with an old-fashioned rotary phone and a pencil on it. He brought a finger to his lips for a brief moment, then picked up the pencil and dropped it on the floor. Turning his attention to the telephone, he grabbed the handset and set it down on the table a little ways away from the base.
The shot cut to Chris and Chef inside the control tent; the latter looked at the former, and the host shook his head disappointedly and wrote something down on a notepad.
Next was Scarlett, who was systematically dismantling a tall chest of drawers. Disregarding the lamp, picture frame, and mirror on top of it, she instead removed each drawer one by one. Dumping whatever minor contents they had onto the floor, she then tossed them over her shoulder. Chris was shown with an unexcited expression before jotting down a few more notes.
The scene cut next to a bare couch, seemingly devoid of any contestants until it shuddered and suddenly tipped forward. Sammy stood up from behind it, and wiped the sweat from her brow with a smile.
She was promptly hit in the back of the head by a tray of food, and the camera quick-panned over to a laughing Amy. She was standing by a room service cart and twirling a metal cloche in her hands. Turning her back on her sister she tossed the dish cover through a nearby window, breaking the glass.
In the control tent Chris nodded to himself and noted something down, and the scene cut back to the set. Looking around for something else to smash, Amy missed Sammy as the younger twin came up from behind and whacked her in the back of the head with a couch cushion. The nice girl laughed and the mean girl glared as the campy tune came to an end.
xxx
"Did you see that?!" Amy told the confessional camera in outrage and disbelief. "How could she do that to her own sister? Like, she's always been the worst but she's seriously been pushing it since she got back."
xxx
Sammy spent the entirety of her brief confessional giggling so hard she blushed.
xxx
Hard rock took over the background music as the footage cut back first to Chef and Chris watching with interest, then to Lightning as he dropkicked a small television set out of the room. The uber-jock then grabbed a nearby potted palm by the trunk, swung it around like a hammer, and sent it flying through a wall. He grinned and pumped a fist, and Chris was shown nodding in approval.
The shot of the set pulled back as Lightning's eyes were drawn to the as-yet untouched bed in the middle of the room. The twins were dueling with paintings they'd taken off the walls in the foreground, Scarlett was unpotting a plant in the back left corner, and DJ had apparently moved the desk he'd been at earlier to the other side of the room. The rock music ramped up as the shot focused in on the bed; Lightning made to grab it, but looked suddenly surprised and backed off slightly.
The bed swiftly rose, and the camera angle shifted to show Jo standing under it with a victorious look on her face. Lifting the massive piece of furniture over her head, the jock-ette turned around and tossed it at the back wall without thinking. Both Scarlett and DJ had to quickly duck out of the way, and the bed crashed entirely through the wall; the whole thing fell over seconds later.
With the others briefly stunned into silence, Jo jumped up and grabbed a boom mic, snapped it off with a small shower of sparks, then threw it across the room like a javelin. Lightning barely ducked out of the way in time, and the metal pole embedded itself into the far wall.
xxx
"What," Jo asked the confessional camera in a cocky tone, "did you seriously think I was gonna let Lightning or one of the Wonder Twins take this one too? As if," she scoffed. "I may not get music or the paparazzi, but trashing a room is something I can do."
xxx
The footage cut back again just as Jo dusted off her hands and placed them confidently on her hips. The shot pulled back showing that nearly everything had been destroyed save for the side walls and the table DJ was still carrying. The other five contestants looked at it, but before anyone could make a move Chris stepped up with a stopwatch in his hand and called "Time!"
"Amy, you now have an additional ten seconds," he told the mean girl. "Go!" He pressed the button on the stopwatch, and Amy immediately leapt onto the sole remaining table. As she hammered desperately on it, the other two walls slowly started to fall to the outside, and the crash when they hit the ground startled the cheerleader.
"Aaaand you're done!" Chris happily announced, clicking his stopwatch again. "Of course, since thanks to Jo there wasn't much left to destroy, I didn't think you'd get far anyway." Amy glared at him. "Which means, Jo wins invincibility!"
He raised his arms, and the jock-ette pumped hers. "Yes! Finally!"
"Now," the host said in a more impish tone as he folded his arms behind his back, "you've gotta decide who gets booted from the band!" A dramatic chord played as Sammy and DJ exchanged a nervous look.
/
A deeper track began to play as the footage flashed forward to a shot of the full moon shining brightly over the film lot. The camera panned down to Sammy and DJ just as they broke apart from a kiss and smiled at each other.
"You have no idea how happy I am to be back here," Sammy told her boyfriend. "I have gotta go do a few things right now though," she pointed back over her shoulder, "but I'll be back soon, okay?"
"Yeah, I gotcha," DJ told her.
xxx
"I've already gotten into an alliance with DJ and Jo," the nice twin explained in the make-up confessional. "We'll be voting for my sister tonight. I want to give them as much help as I can, especially if Scarlett really is cheating. Since I don't think they were able to convince Lightning to break up with Amy yet, tonight's vote should be a tie. And if it isn't?" A conspiratorial smile slowly formed on her face. "Well, the producers have given me a hidden camera to try and watch Scarlett with. I'll try to sit behind her tonight, so if she tries anything I'll know."
"So anyway..."
As she continued her confessional, the music slowed down and deepened as the camera pulled back outside, then panned around the trailer to show a wide-eyed Scarlett with her ear pressed up to a drinking glass held against the wall. The camera focused in on her eyes as they narrowed dangerously.
/
The scene quickly flashed away to the communal bathrooms just as a toilet flush rang through the air. It was followed briefly by the sound of running water, and moments later Jo walked confidently out the door. She paused to stretch her arms as the door swung shut, and with a dramatic musical spike Scarlett was revealed to be standing against the wall behind where it had opened out to.
"Good evening," she said plainly.
"Gah!" a startled Jo replied, quickly turning around to see the other girl. "What do you want?" she asked harshly.
"Not much," the brainiac answered while stepping forward and adjusting her glasses slightly. "I merely wanted to compliment you on your win today. Here I had thought you'd entirely lost your competitive edge."
Jo quirked an eyebrow. "What do you mean I've lost my edge?"
"Well, ever since you became more...," she paused as though searching mentally for the right words, "team-oriented, your strategic and physical gameplay has suffered. In fact, I'd say you're a shadow of how you were last season."
"I lost last season, remember?" Jo scowled. "My playing better with the others this time around just means I've gotten better. Sharper, even."
It was Scarlett's turn to raise and eyebrow. "In that case, I suppose you already understand why DJ is the correct choice to vote out?"
"What are you-" the jock-ette began to ask in outrage before Scarlett cut her off.
"Need I remind you that his loyalty will always be to Sammy over you," the brainiac explained. "With both in the game, you can't stay allied with them for long. And even if you do win tonight's tiebreaker and vote out Amy, you can't honestly expect that Lightning will side with the two of us. We both know he doesn't listen to reason, and if anyone will be able to persuade him to vote one way or another it'll be the only other male left in the competition."
Jo just scowled at the brainiac in silent anger.
"As you haven't come up with a reply, I'll leave you to consider my proposal," Scarlett said calmly as she began to walk away. "I trust you'll make the right decision."
She walked off screen, and the music turned tense as the camera focused on Jo's tightly-clenched fist.
/
The Gilded Chris Awards began with all their usual fanfare. "Now, for total drama," Chris said from his podium as soon as the intro sequence ended. "Six left, one must go!" He held up three fingers on each hand, then swapped them out for his left pointer alone. "And, it won't be Jo." He pointed to the castmates in the stands, and the jock-ette seemed to force her smile. She was sitting in the middle row next to Scarlett, with Sammy and DJ above them and Amy and Lightning below.
"Or Samey for that matter, as she's only just returned," Chris added. The nice twin smiled while her sister glared, but all six teens held up their voting devices.
The music became low and tense as the camera zoomed in on Sammy, who quickly pulled out a small camcorder from behind her back and pointed it at the row in front of her. She and DJ cast their votes and smiled at each other, then looked at Jo as she did the same, looking oddly nervous. The camera panned to Scarlett who voted with a smirk, then down to Lightning and Amy as the latter furiously pressed the screen of her device several times.
Chris looked to his right, where Chef was waiting in his pink dress holding a number of statuettes. "Alright!" he announced. "The Gilded Chris Award goes to Jo and Samey!" The first two statues were tossed, and the girls caught them easily.
A dramatic pause, and the host called out the next to names. "Scarlett and...Lightning!" The brainiac and uber-jock accepted their awards eagerly.
A few tension-filled notes played as the camera focused first on DJ, then on Amy. Neither looked surprised, and they quickly narrowed their eyes at one another.
"Only one left," Chris said as the music began to rise. "The final Gilded Chris goes to...," The bottom two stared at the host more nervously than before, Sammy was shown biting her lip and crossing her fingers nervously, and Chef was shown staring darkly ahead with the last award in his arms.
"Amy!" the host announced as the final statuette was tossed into the mean girl's overjoyed hands. "DJ's going bye-bye!"
The gentle giant stood up and gasped. "But...but how? Why?!" he asked in disbelief. "Jo, did you seriously vote me out after everything we've been through together?" He cast the jock-ette an accusatory look, and she didn't meet his eyes.
Before he could say anything else, he was swept into a hug from his girlfriend. "Oh, DJ!" she cried. "I'm sorry this happened...I wish I could've done more to stop this, but please," she whispered as she broke the embrace, "don't blame Jo for what happened. It wasn't her fault, believe me."
The gentle giant moved a suspicious and skeptical look from Sammy, to Jo, and back. It softened, "I wanna believe you, but how-"
Sammy put a finger to his lips to quiet him and said "I know what happened, but I can't tell you right now. Just...trust me when I say you'll find out soon, okay?"
DJ looked deep into her, and smiled. "Okay," he told her, "I trust you." The background music broke out into something light but sad as the two shared one a kiss. It lingered until the much-annoyed host loudly cleared his throat, and the two lovers broke apart.
/
The traditional solemn and sombre departure music began to play as the footage flashed forward to DJ heading out down the Walk of Shame. He lingered as the others gathered nearby, and he turned to face them. "Sammy, I just wanna say I love you and I hope you go all the way to the end." He waved at the girl, and she blushed and blew him a kiss. Grinning, he turned his attention to Jo – though she still wouldn't look him in the eye.
"As for you...good luck, Jo, you're gonna need it." He extended his hand to the jock-ette, and after a moment she took it wordlessly and shook it. The two former teammates finally looked each other in the eyes again, but Jo quickly looked and walked away leaving DJ confused.
"And Lightning," the brickhouse turned a smile towards the sole remaining young man. "Brother, make sure you figure out what's best for you." The overachiever pursed his lips for a moment as though annoyed, but soon nodded at his sometimes-rival and former roommate.
"I guess this is goodbye then!" DJ said, finishing with a wave and a grin as he started walking down the red carpet again.
/
The scene skipped ahead to him giving one last wave before getting into the loser's limousine and speeding off, and Chris McLean walked into view and the main capstone theme began to play. "And on that note, TDA says goodbye to it's most lovable player. Tune in next time for another hot rockin' episode of, Total! Drama! Action!"
Though the music faded out, the scene did not. Instead, the camera slow-panned back over to the amphitheater, then cut up close to Sammy, now sitting alone in the top row of the bleachers. Wiping away a few tears from her cheeks, she took out her secret camcorder and checked what she'd recorded.
The camera zoomed in on her face as it rapidly changed from mild expectation, to furrow-browed confusion, to wide-eyed shock. She gasped sharply, dropped the camcorder, and ran off; the scene did not follow her. Instead, the viewpoint moved to get a better angle on the playback screen.
A series of dramatically booming notes played in succession as the shot zoomed in to see a paused image which clearly showed Jo, eyes firmly on her voting device, pressing the button next to DJ's smiling face.
(Fade to Credits)
/
/
/
/
/
/
[Bonus Clip]
Although DJ was smiling widely at the camera, his expression soon quivered and failed. He hung his head and sighed sadly, then looked right up into the camera. "Sammy just got back, but now I have to leave? How wack is that."
He sat up a little straighter. "I wonder what she was talkin' about though, about not blamin' Jo?" he wonered aloud. "Did she learn somethin' when she was out of the competition? She musta." DJ suddenly looked down thoughtfully, and rubbed his chin. "Come to think of it, this isn't the first elimination that didn't make sense a lotta sense. First there was Beardo, and then...was Dawn's boot a mistake too? And is that what happened to me?"
DJ shook his head a couple times, then slumped down adn held it in his hands. "Man, I can't even begin to figure this out. All I know is someone better fill me in, and soon. But until then," he looked up at the camera with a smile, "I just gotta root for Sammy. Keep her in my thoughts, and look forward to seein' her beat her sister and win this competition." He held up the half-heart pendant she'd given him so long ago and kissed it.
Author's Note - Post Script
So, I expect this to be one of the more controversial chapters of this season, and perhaps even of the series as a whole. There's been a lot of different opinions about the 'mole' plotline from canon amongst the reviewers; some were looking forward to who I brought back, other wanted me to do away with the point entirely, and still others were ambivalent. In the end I decided to go through with what I had planned originally, which was to bring back Sammy, but give her a bit more reason to be here.
Specifically, I decided to give her the goal of investigating Scarlett as I quickly realized that there'd be no way she wouldn't have remembered the accusations against the brainiac. Obviously, she ended up unwittingly blowing her cover, but that won't be the end to this storyline.
Oh, and as for why I thought this chapter was one of the best things to come out of keeping B over Topher? It was entirely due to the fact that I had originally planned this elimination to be another 'fixed' one - the second, in fact, since Beardo's. But once I decided to keep B, I needed to have Dawn's elimination be suspicious, and I ended up deciding against overdoing the plotpoint by having Jo actually and intentionally vote out DJ. That action, and the consequences it'll bring, are something I've really enjoyed writing.
Speaking of DJ, sorry to his fans out there. I know a bunch of people were expecting him to be a finalist, but it just wasn't meant to be. He's one of my favorites, but that doesn't mean I'm going to keep him around if I have a very good reason to have him let go.
So with DJ gone and Sammy back in the game, even if she isn't technically in the running for the win, I'm eager to hear what you all think. Let me know with a review, and I'll see you next week!
- Fangren
Appendix: TSA Eliminated Contestants
Geoff - (Tied for 15th Place)
Bridgette - (Tied for 15th Place)
Shawn - (14th Place)
Alejandro - (13th Place)
Sierra - (12th Place)
Beardo - (11th Place)
Topher - (10th Place)
Sammy - (9th Place; Returned But Ineligible for Victory)
Beth - (8th Place)
Dawn - (7th Place)
B - (6th Place)
DJ - (5th Place)