Chris' voice spoke on a dark screen. "Previously on Total Drama…"
Followed by a surge of flashbacks to the previous episode…
"WHAT…IS HE…DOING HERE?" growled Emma upon seeing Chase's ugly mug again.
"I cannot BELIEVE Chase and his buddies are here," snarled Emma as a scene of Bowie throwing Chef's slop at Dexter played.
Followed by a scene of the boat carrying Caleb crashing into the docks, followed by Lia and Aviva talking.
"I'd especially like to get to know Aviva," said Lia from her confessional, "She seems really sweet and fun-erriffic and it also helps that she's cute and- wait am I facing the wrong way?"
The recap ended with Zee comforting Millie, "It's our first challenge, brah. I don't think we'll be doing anything too crazy, man."
Cut to the fierce-looking obstacle course Chris had prepared…
"Of course, I've been wrong before."
~~
*theme*
Hey, what's up, I'm here to slay
Don't know why the rest even bother to stay
I know the game and I brought the skill
Crushin' players' dreams, yeah, you know the drill
I wanna be famous!
I'll stay here til the day is won
Won't give up til the fight is done
You know I've got the skills to end this game
And the world will know my name
Cuz I wanna be famous!
Na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na
I wanna be! I wanna be! I wanna be famous!
I wanna be! I wanna be! I wanna be famous!
*whistling*
~~
(Commercial break)
The episode faded in upon the golden sands of the Wawanakwa beach, where the first challenge was about to unfold…
Two large rugs sat on the ground. One, a red rug, whereupon the Ferocious Trout stood. The other was green, and that is where the Frogs of Death stood.
Chris approached the two rugs with Chef in tow. Putting his hands on his hips, he spoke up. "Ferocious Trout, Frogs of Death," he called the teams' attention, "Welcome to your first challenge." The host now turned to his second-in-command. "Chef, give them the lowdown."
Chef nodded to Chris, before beginning to describe the challenge.
"This challenge is about learning to communicate and trust your new teammates," declared the tall cook. Priya and Millie gave each other a kind smile, while Bowie winked at an amused Caleb.
Chef took out a two-ended leash-like object, as the camera panned throughout the course. "Two players from each team will be tied together at the waist and navigate this course to collect two buckets of disgusting fish chum – then return to this tower," he pointed towards a wooden tower with two platforms roped to it on either side, "And place the buckets on their team's platforms."
Chase couldn't help scoffing. "That's it?" He chuckled a little, "I've done worse with my feet tied. This should be easy!" He didn't notice Priya palming her face at his assumption.
~~
Confessional: Priya
"Hasn't Chase seen a single episode of this show before?" questioned a bemused Priya, before wincing a little. "Man, the poor guy doesn't know what he's in for."
~~
"Chase is right," Chris now cut into Chef's explanation, "This challenge does sound easy. But would I be Chris McLean if there wasn't a catch?"
"Well, yes," Lia spoke up, "I mean, Chris McLean is your name, right?"
Chris simply gave Lia an unimpressed glance. Then he went on speaking as if nothing happened, "Well, as I'm sure you've noticed by now, the course is loaded with booby traps!"
Hearing Chris say this, Wayne and Raj couldn't help but giggle a little under their breath.
"H-he said booby traps," Wayne chuckled, trying his best to stifle as much laughing as he could.
"Shh, quiet," Raj urged him, still trying not to laugh, "The coach is talking."
Not noticing the Hockey Jocks' amusement, Chris pointed towards the horizon, where the campers could see all the different traps lying ahead…
"Randomly-scattered wooden posts, traps full of angry lobsters, messy mud puddles, pits full of hot coals, nests of murder hornets and m-"
"No! Sorry! Wrong!" Maddie interrupted, "They're actually known as Japanese Giant Hornets. They originated up in Japan before they mistakenly made it to Nor-"
"Nobody cares, Maddie," Chris rudely cut her off, looking irritated. Shrugging off the disruption, he continued to explain what'd happen. "You might think that these traps might be easy enough to avoid, but alas," He now pulled out some color-coded blindfolds, "We decided a little vision handicap would be ideal for a challenge like this one! So, all bucket-carriers will be sent in 'blind' if you know what I mean!" He allowed himself a little chuckle at his joke.
"Hey," Maddie chirped to Zee, who was casually sipping a soda, "Did you know that some spider species live their lives entirely without vision?" She folded her arms in excitement, "I guess the bucket-carriers will be living like them!"
Zee took pause from drinking his can of orange soda pop, "Sick, brah."
"Hey, hold on a minute," Maddie suddenly got a bit curious, "Where'd you get that soda, anyway?"
Almost spitting out his soda in surprise, Zee lowered the can from his mouth and gave it a quizzical look. "…I don't actually know."
Millie watched on in amazement as the two teens conversed. "Oh, teens these days," she laughed to herself, writing a little in her notebook.
~~
Confessional: Millie
Taking out her ever-important notebook, Millie told the cameras, "Whenever I see someone from my generation saying or doing something dumb, I write it in my notebook so I can use it for my research!" She took a moment to reminisce, "Just earlier today, I saw Zee drinking some of Chef's kitchen grease thinking it was orange soda, Chase walking around with straws up his nose, and Lia running up and down the halls with a pillow-case on her head calling herself Nappy-time-Woman!" A brief pause, then she cringed a little, staring at her writing hand. "My hand is already cramping…"
~~
Chef now picked the explanation back up again.
"Each blindfolded duo will rely on the voices of three teammates, who, from the top of these towers, will help them get to the buckets and back again safely." As Chef talked, we saw a group of interns demonstrating the challenge set-up to the 22 contestants.
"Once the buckets are on the platform, the remaining six teammates will carefully raise them to the top of the tower using these pulleys." A close-up of the pulleys at work emphasized what Chef was saying. "If they aren't careful, one side will raise higher than the other, their buckets will fall, and they will lose the challenge." To confirm this, the two buckets the interns had gathered toppled off their platforms…landing on the heads of the interns below, covering them in fish guts.
"The team that wins this challenge will dine on pizza and wings tonight," Chris declared. While Wayne and Raj did a fist-bump in excitement and Chase clapped his hands at the thought of getting pizza, Candy's face practically lit up like nighttime Las Vegas at what Chris just said.
~~
Confessional: Candy
"Oh YES!" yelled Candy, clapping her hands (loudly) in excitement, "We have GOT to win this challenge. I would LOVE a pizza on my first day of Total Drama!"
~~
"Meanwhile, the losers will be sending someone home," Chris warned, causing the teens around him to flinch. That was not what they wanted…
"Alright, teams," Chef walked up next to Chris, "Time for you to decide your roles. You have five minutes."
"I'll take the blindfolded race," Chase told the Ferocious Trout, "I've done a lot of blindfolded stunts for my livestream."
Ripper spoke up, "I'll join Pretty Boy here!" He scooted next to the Daredevil, "I'm much better at running than most of you girls."
"Hey!" growled Aviva, "Brusco!"
"Well, I don't know what a brusco is," the Gross Bully shrugged nonchalantly, "I say Hat Dude, Chubby Girl and Bug Girl take the towers." He pointed towards Damien, Millie and Maddie respectively as he mentioned…well, what he imagined their names were.
"We have names, you know," sniffed Maddie disdainfully, looking unimpressed.
"Let's hustle, team!" Axel called aloud, leading everyone towards the towers.
Meanwhile, with the Frogs...
"Alright, team!" Dexter tried his best to take charge, "Wayne looks like a good runner and Nichelle is a stunt actress. They'll totally kick butt at the obstacle course."
"We won't let you down, Chief!" Wayne gave a cheerful salute to the Prankster.
"The rest of you," Dexter turned to his teammates, "Caleb, you look strong, so you help with the pulleys. Bowie, join me up on the wooden towers."
"Oh, I'm so thrilled," huffed Bowie, not wanting to be anywhere near the livestreaming punk.
Dexter turned to the rest of the team, "Raj, Julia, MK, Candy, Oliver! You guys help Caleb with the pulleys, or just stand around and look cool, I dunno."
"Whatever," MK gave a shrug, straightening her beanie while Candy scarfed down a spare lollipop she had on hand.
"Hey, wait!" Raj spoke up, "What about Emma?"
"Oh, that cow?" The Prankster gave a venomous glare to his ex-livestreaming partner, who glared right back. "She can go die in a ditch." Looking satisfied with his idea, Dexter turned around…only to turn and see Bowie glaring daggers into him. "…Or maybe she can be on the tower with us."
Emma simply growled in response, "I'm as unhappy about this as you are…"
"Yeah, well, feeling's mutual, cow," huffed Dexter, "Can't wait to vote your bum off."
~~
Confessional: Julia
Julia gave a withering scowl to the camera. "Okay, I try not to display too much negative energy in public, but that Dexter guy is really killing the vibe for me."
~~
Everyone on both teams had now taken their chosen positions. The six contestants on the towers gazed down at their waist-tied teammates, ready to give orders once Chris gave the go-ahead.
"Campers!" Chris called aloud, raising a starter pistol. "Is everyone ready?"
Everyone made sure to nod affirmatively, or, in Axel's case, give a determined salute.
"¡Estamos listos!" Aviva called back, giving a happy grin and a thumbs-up.
Chris gave a determined grin. "Then…BEGIN!"
BANG!
As Chris fired his starter pistol into the air, both Chase and Ripper and Wayne and Nichelle ran forward, listening to hear their teammates from on high.
"Stay straight!" Emma yelled to the Hockey Jock and Movie Star, "For eight feet, then go right!"
"Straight! Keep going straight!" Millie also shouted down at the Gross Bully and Daredevil, smiling as they obeyed. "Good! Now go left!"
Ripper heard this…and promptly turned right.
"Whoa, dude!" Chase called to Ripper, who screeched to a half, "She said to go left!"
"Her left is our right!" Ripper argued, before promptly dragging Chase rightwards.
Damien tried to intervene, "No, she means your other left-"
CRASH
Before they could hear him, Chase and Ripper proceeded to crash into the cages full of lobsters, kicking up a cloud of dust and sand. They emerged swarmed with angry lobsters pinching numerous parts of their bodies, yelping in pain.
"Ouch!" winced Damien, "That looked like it hurt!"
"No kidding," Aviva agreed, loud enough so Damien could hear, "Those looked like American Lobsters – more specifically the Homarus america-"
"NERD!" Ripper yelled back with a laugh, before flinching in pain as he felt one of the lobsters clutching hard onto his rear end with its pinchers. "HEY! Ow!" he barked, "No pinchy!" He reached for said lobster and, with some difficulty, pulled it away from his pants.
RIP!
Without Ripper realizing, the lobster managed to tear open his pants as he pulled it away from his behind, leaving it exposed to his unlucky teammates!
"Ugh!" Millie gagged, flinching and hiding her face, "Gross!"
"Dios mio!" groaned Aviva, "We do not need to see that!"
Zee simply guffawed. "Bum!"
Ripper and Chase simply carried on running, not noticing if anything was amiss with Ripper's clothing. This was until Ripper paused for a moment. "Hold up!" he told Chase, "I think my shoe's untied!" With this, the Gross Bully bent down, displaying his bare behind for everyone around him!
Millie and Damien cried out in utter disgust, closing their eyes and looking away. Meanwhile, Maddie simply stared on with a deer-in-a-headlights expression. She wanted to express her disgust too, but words failed her as she watched Ripper fiddling with his sneakers, oblivious to his revealed keister.
~~
Confessional: Millie
"Okay," shuddered the Bookworm, writing in her notebook, "I'm gonna be seeing that in my nightmares."
"Confessional: Damien
The Scientist was utterly flabbergasted and revolted. "NO!" he hollered, "No-no-NO! You can NOT put that on TV!"
Confessional: Maddie
The Morbidly Kindhearted was hiding her face in her hands. "I know, I know," she mumbled in embarrassment and horror, "I should've looked away, but…I just couldn't!" She threw her arms up, "It was like a car crash!"
~~
(Commercial break)
Ignoring Ripper's bare rear (though that was difficult), Chris turned his attention to the other team. "The Frogs of Death have the lead," he announced, seeing Wayne and Nichelle run ahead.
All of a sudden, Dexter's voice sounded from on high. "Watch it!" he yelled, as Wayne and Nichelle noticed the unmistakable sound of buzzing. "There's a hornet nest ahead of you!"
"Murder hornets!" Chris corrected smugly, "Don't forget the murder part. It offends them."
~~
Confessional: Maddie
She looked grumpy, "Okay, I get that bugs can be scary, but do they have to give these beautiful insects such stupid names?"
~~
"Just stay low and keep moving," urged Bowie, as the Hockey Jock and Movie Star crouched down while passing underneath the nests, hoping they didn't aggravate the hornets.
"If I get stung," Nichelle asked, loud enough for Chris to hear, "Can you make sure it's not on my face?"
"Um," a befuddled Chris responded, "No?"
~~
Confessional: Dexter
"I HOPE she doesn't get stung on her face," worried the Prankster, "She's a totally hot-bum babe, and if you're a girl and not hot," he folded his arms with an unpleasant grin, "What use are you really?"
~~
Unfortunately, enough, one hornet got aggravated enough to fly towards Wayne and jab its stinger into one of his hands.
Wayne's reaction was immediate. He leapt up in pain, inadvertently sticking his head into one of the nests! "YEOWCH!" the Hockey Jock hollered, feeling the full fury of a thousand angry vespids, "These things got sharp teeth!" He ran off in a panic, dragging Nichelle behind him as she also got a few stings…including many to her face.
~~
Confessional: Maddie
She looked unimpressed. "Sharp…teeth?" She palmed her face. "Does nobody know entomology in these parts?"
~~
"Chase! Ripper!" Millie coached her teammates, "Move forward at a 45-degree angle!"
If Ripper's eyes were visible, he'd have rolled them. "I don't speak nerd," retorted the chubby boy.
"I think she means this way," Chase told his teammate, running ahead. Ripper began to follow…until he walked into a rake, which sprang up and hit him in the face!
Aviva couldn't help wincing at this, sucking air through her teeth. "Eso va a doler…"
Nobody was prepared for Ripper to double over in pain, showing his bare behind to the teens yet again!
As the Trout cried out in disgust, Bowie's heart-shaped shades shattered at the disturbing sight. "Emma!" he cringed, "Do not look at Ripper right now!"
Emma didn't listen, and soon her eyes met upon the unpleasant sight. "Ew!" yelped the Party Girl, "Turn around!"
~~
Confessional: Bowie
He looked downcast. "That Ripper guy was so ugly my beloved shades broke!"
~~
Hearing Emma call "turn around!", Nichelle and Wayne slowed down a bit.
"Hey, wait a minute," the Movie Star wondered, "Aren't we supposed to get the buckets?"
"Not you," Bowie clarified, "She was talking to Ripper!"
"He tore the back of his pants RIGHT open!" moaned Emma, still reeling from the sight.
"There is a FULL MOON out there!" the Basketballer yelled, equally disgusted.
"Ooh, a moon? Where?" Lia overheard Bowie, and looked skywards.
"Psh," Dexter snorted, rolling his eyes. "What's the big deal, Emma? Got a problem with bums?" He gave a mean-spirited chuckle, "Oh wait, no…cause you can't POSSIBLY have a problem with yourself!" He broke out into cruel laughter. Emma silently growled, while even Bowie gave the Prankster a glare.
~~
Confessional: Bowie
"I don't mean to judge," huffed the Basketballer in irritation, "But Dexter isn't doing much to make me fond of him."
Confessional: Millie
"Let's see," Millie thought aloud to herself, writing in her notebook once more. "Ripper's the kind of schmuck who bullies nerds while not being much good at anything, Lia is either oblivious to what's happening or just seems completely nuts…oh, and Dexter is pretty unpleasant to say the least. Am I glad I'm not on his team." She paused a bit, before giving a weird look to the camera. "I think I should've brought more than one notebook."
~~
"Things are evening up," narrated Chris as the four runners rushed forward.
"C'mon, Nichi," Wayne told his teammate, "We gotta pick up the pac-OOF!" Just like Ripper, he promptly ran into a rake, which sprang up and bashed against his nose, while Nichelle accidentally ran into him.
"Guys!" Bowie called to them once he knew they could hear him, "Take your time!" As Emma nodded in agreement, he continued "Remember, slow and steady wins the race!"
"I dunno man," Caleb interjected, "I feel like we should pick up the pace a bit." He promptly slicked back his hair a little, getting adoring glances from both Emma and Bowie.
"I think he's got a point," Emma admitted, not thinking straight as the sight of Caleb's radiant body took over her mind.
"Yeah," Bowie shrugged, "Caleb's right." He turned and yelled to his teammates, loudly urging "MOVE, MOVE, MOVE!"
Nobody noticed, but MK watched Bowie and Emma gazing at Caleb above her, before allowing herself to roll her eyes.
~~
Confessional: MK
The Pickpocket gave a half-hearted shrug, confessing "Okay, so Caleb's pretty hot, but…" She breathed out through her nostrils, "I'm really not sure what those two are fussed about. He's basically just another teammate with a big buff body." She flushed a little, "Then again…I've never really had luck with dating anyway. All the guys I've asked out have never really seen me as anyone worth keeping. So I guess it's a me problem." She gave an awkward smile to the camera as she finished talking.
~~
"You heard Bowie," Wayne told the Movie Star, "We gotta keep mov-whoa!" Not noticing where he was, he promptly ran crotch-first into one of the wooden posts Chris had scattered around the beach!
"Oof!" winced Bowie.
"Yikes!" flinched Oliver.
Even Chris gave an amused cringe. "Ouch!"
To everyone's surprise, though, an unfazed Wayne simply backed up from the post. "It's all good!" he reassured, "I'm wearin' a cup!"
"Huh," chirped Emma in pleasant surprise, "Good thinking, Wayne! Keep moving!"
~~
Confessional: Raj
"You see eh," the close friend of the Hockey Jock began talking, "Being hockey fans like us, you see a lot of painful injuries and hurties and a LOT of crotch damage." He folded his arms with a confident smile, "So we know to be prepared!"
~~
The teams were still even. At this point, it was anyone's game.
"Guys," Maddie cautioned Ripper and Chase, "There's a mud puddle ahead! You should go around it!"
Chase appeared unimpressed. "A mud puddle? Really?" He gave a laugh, as he and Ripper simply walked forward. "I think we'll be fi-" No-one could hear what Chase said next, as he and Ripper sunk right into the dirty depths.
"Uh-oh," Chris snickered, "Unlike Julia's social media posts, THAT was deep!"
"You're, like, really funny," muttered an unamused Julia under her breath.
~~
Confessional: Candy
"I dunno what Julia's worried about," Candy gave an awkward shrug, "I know some people get joy out of 'deep' stuff, but I never really intended to make deep stuff on TikSchlokk, y'know?" She put her chin on her hands, "I just like to entertain my Candites by eating crazy stuff for them. I just want them to have fun, you dig?"
~~
Ripper and Chase pulled themselves out of the deep mud, choking out globs of dirty matter.
"Just keep moving, you two," Maddie urged, "You got this!"
"THEY COULD'VE DROWNED!" a panicked Damien yelled. "YOU DON'T JUST SHRUG THAT OFF!"
"You got this!" Emma told her own teammates from the other tower, "Keep going straight!"
"Yeah! Keep going!" encouraged Dexter, "You got this!"
Hearing his friend and his ex's voice, Chase responded almost on instinct. "Thanks, babe! Thanks, Dex!"
"You're welcome, my dude," chuckled Dexter.
"HEY!" raged Emma, "I was NOT talking to you!" She practically glared daggers at the Daredevil as she went on ranting, "YOU are doing HORRIBLE, and you are NOT allowed to call me 'babe' anymore!"
"Oh come on, babe," Chase moaned, "Why are you so mad at me?"
What came out of Emma's mouth next was loud enough for the whole of Muskoka to hear…
"ARE YOU KIDDING?!"
~~
Confessional: Bowie
Bowie chirped in excitement, clapping his hands. "Here's where we find out what he did! I bet he kissed another girl one-hundred-percent." He sighed and casually laid back against the wall, "Straight couples, am I right?"
~~
No-one expected to hear what Emma said next…
"YOU CUT THE BRAKES ON MY CAR!"
Not that Chase noticed, but the Ferocious Trout and most of the Frogs of Death went up in horrified gasps upon hearing this.
"Um…" murmured Oliver awkwardly, "Yeah. That's what happened."
~~
Confessional: MK
MK looked disgusted. "What. The. Heck."
Confessional: Lia
Even she seemed to look uncomfortable. "I mean," she stuttered, "I try to be optimistic but that...that's just plain rude."
Confessional: Bowie
The Basketballer looked disturbed, clearly not expecting this response. All he could really say was "Straight couples are messed up!"
~~
"You're still mad about that?!" griped Chase as he and Ripper approached where the buckets were standing, sounding as if he almost didn't understand why such a prank would be a sore spot to her.
Emma had to try not to leap down and bash her ex's head open, "Of COURSE I'm mad! I could have DIED, and moreover, you made me crash into a pet store!"
"You what now?" Bowie stuttered in surprise, remembering when Emma talked about donating money to an animal hospital.
Dexter fixed a glare on his ex-roommate "Seriously?!" he complained, "Are you STILL not over that little prank?!" He pointed a finger right in her face, "Why won't you just get over it already?!"
"Why won't you SHUT UP?!" retorted Emma, pushing Dexter's hand out of her face. "That stupid prank is why I'm donating 25% of the million to an animal hospital!"
"Wa-wa-wait," MK cut in, "I thought you said half?"
"I thought you said half," Emma imitated the Pickpocket, "Tomayto tomahto, either way I'm donating some of my winnings!"
Nobody noticed how Chase and Ripper rushed through the obstacles with their buckets in hand, directed by Millie, Damien and Maddie, and approached the tower while the Frogs argued.
~~
Confessional: Aviva
"How long was Emma stuck in a relationship like that?" gulped the Latina, "I feel for her. I mean, I don't really…wanna talk much about it," She blushed a little, "But…let's just say I feel some form of kinship."
Confessional: Oliver
"I won't lie," the Stunt Artist couldn't help but look uncomfortable, "Even at the time of recording, I wasn't sure how to feel about cutting Emma's brakes. I mean, I covered it up for the cameras, but…" he sighed, "I didn't really want Emma to be hurt. Or those pets, for that matter." He scratched his chin in thought, "I'd like to tell my teammates, cuz I do wanna make things right with her, but…" He palmed his face. "After the way Dexter's been behaving, would they even wanna listen to me?"
~~
"So, uh, guys," Caleb spoke up, "I'd hate to interrupt Emma's venting, but…" He pointed awkwardly to Chase and Ripper, who were now approaching the Ferocious Trout's platform with the buckets of fish chum in hand!
"Chase and Ripperpants are placing their buckets on the platform," Chris narrated, "The Frogs are gonna need to step it up big time if they want to win this!"
Forgetting Emma and Dexter's argument, Bowie yelled as loud as he could to his teammates. "NICHELLE! WAYNE! RUN!"
"…Run?" Nichelle responded, "In these shoes? Are you crazy?"
"I got an idea," Wayne told the Movie Star, "Give me your bucket and get on your back! I'm a piggyback champ!"
MK looked baffled. She gave Raj a questioning look. "Seriously?"
"It's true," Raj confirmed, "Wayner's won the Prince Albert Piggyback Tournament three years straight!"
~~
Confessional: MK
"Yeah," MK chuckled, sounding amused at the thought. "There is no way that's actually a thing.
~~
The remaining Ferocious Trout were already hard at work hoisting their buckets of chum up to Damien, Millie and Maddie.
"Come on, Priya," Axel told the shorter girl, "Pull!"
Wayne rushed back to the towers as fast as he could, giving a cry of "Hoot! Hoot!"
"Don't give in now!" Axel encouraged Priya, "Keep pulling!"
Little did the blindfolded Wayne realize that he was running towards the fiery coal pits.
Bowie did, though, "Oh no! They're gonna hit the hot coals!"
"Don't worry!" Emma called out, "Keep running, Wayne! I'll tell you when to jump!"
"NO!" Dexter shouted aloud, "Don't listen to a backstabbing cow like her!" He fixed a glare, "She'll only get you hurt like she did to my homeboy Cha-"
"THAT'S IT!" screamed the Party Girl, and before Bowie could say anything, she leapt upon the Prankster and started pounding his face in!
"UGH!"
"OWCH!"
"GET OFF OF ME!"
"UNHAND MY PONYTAIL!"
"NOT THE FACE!"
"Uh, Emma?" Wayne called to her, not noticing what was happening, "When do we ju-YEEAAAAAAAAAARGH!"
Too late, Wayne realized he was standing upon the flaming coals, and both he and Nichelle promptly went into a panic. Wayne helped in pain as he ran off, his shoes having caught fire, and Nichelle accidentally fell butt-first onto the fiery coal pit, also yelling in pain.
~~
Confessional: Bowie
"Well," the Basketballer uttered after an awkward pause, "That could've gone better."
~~
In the Frogs' confusion, the Trouts finished pulling the platform carrying the chum buckets up to Damien and Millie, who picked them up and gave one another a victorious grin. "The Ferocious Trout have won the challenge!" Chris declared.
While the Frogs groaned, all 11 of the Trouts went up in cheers. Damien and Millie high-fived, followed by Damien and Maddie. Scary Girl did a dance to herself while Zee pumped his fists in excitement. Lia and Aviva found themselves throwing their arms around one another as they cheered – only stopping when they realized what they were doing.
"Uh, sorry," giggled the Quirky Loon shyly, blushing like crazy, "I don't mean to hug without consent."
"No, no," the Inventor bashfully replied, also blushing, "It was fine."
As Wayne and Nichelle, still screaming, rushed to the mud puddle in an attempt to douse their flaming body parts, Chef turned to the two teams.
"Ferocious Trout, Frogs of Death," the buffed black man ordered, "Head to the dining hall for your meal. The Trout can enjoy their reward feast."
"And Frogs of Death," Chris spoke up now, "Take this as an opportunity to discuss who to vote off. One of you is headed home tonight."
"It's game over, boys," Wayne groaned in disappointment, covered head-to-toe in mud, "It's game over…"
(Commercial break)
After the challenge ended, the 22 teens were now headed for the mess hall to enjoy (or not enjoy) their dinner.
The mood of the Frogs was low as they marched towards the mess hall, trailing behind the Trout.
A certain Dreamboat in particular wore a rather annoyed expression as he thought back to what happened on the towers between two of his teammates.
"This is garbage!" Caleb thought to himself in annoyance, "If Dexter hadn't started something with Emma, we might've had this in the bag."
His thought process was interrupted by the sound of soft sniffles. He turned around, and saw a downcast looking Candy, looking like her eyes were about to erupt with rivers of tears.
He felt a little bad. He remembered at the start of the challenge, Candy seemed awfully excited about the reward…one she would no longer be getting. "Hey…" he spoke softly, "Are you alr-"
Before Caleb could even finish his sentence, Candy abruptly buried her face in his peach sweater-vest and loudly bawled. Initially startled, the tall, buff boy eventually let go of all reservations and embraced the Competitive Eater in a hug, telling her "It's okay. Let it out."
~~
Confessional: Caleb
"Is Candy overreacting? Sure," Caleb admitted, "But I can bet she means well, and she seemed really upset. I felt like SOMEONE needed to be there for her."
~~
Once she'd finished blubbering unpleasantly, Candy pulled back from the hug, wiping her snotty nose with one of her wrists. "I-I'm sorry," she apologized, "It's just that…I really, really wanted that pizza meal…" She took some shaky breaths, "But not only will we not be getting any pizza, but we have to get rid of someone…"
"Hey now," Caleb gently comforted the pink-haired influencer, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sure we'll win another challenge soon, and I know someday, you'll, uh, get that slice of pizza you want." He chuckled a little, "Or whatever other food you're craving."
Candy wiped her tears from her face, also laughing a little. "Thanks, Caleb. You're right." She pounded her fists together in determination, "We'll win a challenge sooner or later – and then," She squealed in excitement, "I'll REALLY get to sink my teeth into something tasty!"
At this point, both tall Dreamboat and small Competitive Eater raised their fists to the sky, giving a simultaneous cheer, "Go, Frogs of Death!"
~~
Confessional: Candy
"Caleb seems really cool," chirped the influencer cheerfully, clapping her hands. "Not only is he, well, hot, that's obvious," she laughed a little, "But he's also super chill and nice and I'll bet you a year's supply of McDamiens Big Maxes that he'll be a total physical powerhouse in challenges down the line!" She thought aloud to herself, "I hope we can be good friends!"
~~
At dinner, while they did the best to ignore the sounds of the Ferocious Trout enjoying their reward dinner, the Frogs tried their best to ponder upon a good candidate for elimination that night…
"Look," Bowie kicked off the conversation, "We all know this isn't exactly easy, but we need to kick off someone." He scanned his eyes around his ten teammates. "Anyone got any ideas?"
"Well," MK chose to voice her opinion, "I think it should be Little Miss Primadonna here." She pointed a thumb towards an offended-looking Nichelle. "She seemed to care more about her own looks than finishing the challenge."
"Hey, SOMEBODY needs to be beautiful!" retorted the Movie Star, glaring at the Pickpocket. "If you're gonna vote off anyone, vote off the blonde bozo over there." She now pointed towards Emma, who couldn't help but flinch. "She spent half the challenge butting heads with Dexter."
"You get me!" Dexter yelled boisterously, "Look guys, who are you gonna believe? A backstabbing cow like her, or me? It's not like that cow is good at anything anyway."
It took all of Emma's patience to not pound Dexter's face in. "UGH!" she growled, standing up in fury, "You're…blaming…ME? When all you did all challenge long was be a jerk to me?"
"Well, it's deserved, isn't it?!" hissed the Prankster, also standing up and glaring at the Party Girl. "Even back when we DID live-stream together, you were always the boring one who couldn't compare to us boys, you're ALWAYS saying that our pranks are too 'mean' and 'dangerous' and you're STILL whining about that car prank?!" He stormed on up to Emma, "Well, I'm tired of dealing with your attitude, and frankly, nobody, Chase or otherwise, deserves to put up with a vapid, stupid, brainless twerp such as yourself!"
Emma shrunk back a little as her ex-roommate spat the venomous words at her, and her teammates couldn't help cringing in sympathy.
~~
Confessional: Emma
"I…" Emma tried to say something, but she just sighed. "Keep it together, Emma," she quietly told herself, before pounding her fist into her palm. "Dexter. Is. Going. Down."
Confessional: Oliver
"Man…" groaned the Stunt Artist, "I know Dexter is my friend, but…that was just mean, even if Emma DID dump our pal Chase."
~~
"Okay, you've made your point," Bowie told off the livestreamer, "Now let's at least try to finish our dinner before we drag anyone off to the firepits."
Julia nodded in agreement, "We hear you, Bowie. #KeepItTogether."
As everyone dug back into their slop, Bowie quietly whispered to Caleb, "I think I know who I'm voting off."
"I hear you," Caleb nodded in agreement with the Basketballer.
On the other side of the mess hall, the mood with the Ferocious Trout was much higher, as Chef brought them plenty of wings and pizza to dine upon!
"This is AWESOME!" cheered Chase, enjoying the smell of the pizza Chef had brought to their table, "I love pizza!" He scarfed down a piece in almost no time flat, before continuing "I think 50% of my blood is pizza sauce by now!"
Millie was preoccupied with removing hunks of pineapple from one of the pizza slices she had. "Eugh," she cringed, "I like pizza unless some bozo puts pineapple on it. I'd rather have anchovies on a dessert pizza."
"Oh, what do you know, bookface?" snorted the Daredevil, "Clearly you don't know how to appreciate the art of pineapples upon delicious cheese-covered slices of pastry."
"Oh, I'm so disappointed in myself," Millie muttered in absolute sarcasm.
"I'll eat the pineapples," Axel casually told the Bookworm, "I need as much fruit in my intake as possible for the apocalypse." With that, the Doomsday Prepper started chomping the hunks of pineapple Millie had removed from her pizza, to her confusion.
~~
Confessional: Millie
"Man," chuckled the chubby brunette, writing Chase and Axel's comments into her notebook, "Where DID Chris find these people, anyway?" She now gave an unimpressed glance to the camera, "I'm just hoping I don't have enough of Chase and shove my pen up his nostrils by the fourth challenge. He's not doing much to endear himself to me."
Confessional: Lia
"Chase is kinda mean," admitted the Quirky Loon sheepishly, while lying down on the toilet. "Like, he makes me feel sorta uncomfortable. Almost as uncomfortable as I did that one time I wore high heels on my ears for the da-OOF!" She accidentally fell off the toilet, crashing to the floor. "Ow, I fell on my hallux!" the blonde whined from off-camera.
~~
On the opposite end of the table, Priya had locked herself into a conversation with one of her teammates.
"So," asked the Trained Athlete, "You're a fan of bugs?"
"Creepy things in general, really," Maddie answered in a casual tone, playing with some chicken bones from the wings she'd eaten, "But yeah, I especially have a soft spot for all things creepy and crawly."
"That's really cool," chirped the shorter girl, "I'm a little embarrassed to say, but my parents made me EAT live bugs all the time as part of my lifelong training for Total Drama." Noticing Maddie's utterly baffled and disturbed face, Priya quickly added with a blush, "Not that I enjoyed it at all. In fact, I'd like to get to know bugs WITHOUT having to…well, you know…"
Shaking off her disturbed reaction to Priya's revelation, Maddie perked up and put a hand on the younger girl's shoulder. "Glad to hear that."
~~
Confessional: Maddie
Scratching her head a little, Maddie told the audience "You know, I'm not sure if I feel more sorry for Priya or the bugs she ate." She glanced aside, looking uncomfortable. "Hearing what she says about her upbringing…I'm kind of questioning her parents' caretaking skills."
~~
That evening, as the moon rose into the sky, while the Ferocious Trout partied near their cabins for the night, the Frogs of Death made the long, painful walk to the campfire to meet Chris for their first elimination ceremony. Their minds echoed with worry and fear - they just didn't want to be the first ones gone...
As the eleven of them took their seats, Chris walked over to join them, Chef following close behind. "Frogs," the host greeted them, "Welcome to the first elimination ceremony of the season." He began to pace around the campfire, "As you might know, every time you lose a challenge, you must decide to vote out a camper you feel is holding your team back. Every camper who is not voted out," The host picked up an unmistakable white candy that sat on a plate nearby, "Will receive a marshmallow of safety." He tossed it up briefly, before catching it. "The one contestant who does not receive a marshmallow, I'm sorry to say, will be hea-"
"Heading to the Dock of Shame to be picked up by the Drone of Despair and flown away from the island and they can never ever come back, ever?" Bowie finished for him, looking bored. "Come on, everyone on this island except Damien has seen Total Drama before, we get what's happening."
"Fine," sniffed the host disdainfully, "Kill the tension, why don't you?"
Chef now stepped forward to explain potential reasons for elimination.
"Emma," he called to the blonde girl, "You let your emotions get in the way and it cost your team the lead." The poor Party Girl looked down in shame.
~~
Confessional: Emma
"Okay, I messed up," squeaked the blonde sheepishly, before her tone turned sour, "Because of Chase and Dexter!" She quickly shook off her anger, though, and promised, "But from now on my focus is on helping my team win."
~~
"Nichelle," Chef now turned his attention to the Movie Star, "Wayne risked everything to try and win it, but you slowed him down because you were concerned about your looks." Nichelle cast an apologetic glance towards Wayne, who gazed back in sympathy.
~~
Confessional: Nichelle
"Um…yeah!" Nichelle threw her arms up, "No-one else was gonna care about my looks for me! And don't play like I wasn't trying to win…" She winced as she pointed at her rear end. "My bum caught fire!"
~~
"Dexter," Chef now turned to one more contestant, who furrowed his brows at the burly cook. "Your poor attitude is wearing down on everyone and your treatment of Emma, well…" Even Chef couldn't help but send the Party Girl a sympathetic glance, "It just ain't right."
~~
Confessional: Dexter
"WHY is everyone getting on my case for this?!" yelled the Prankster in fury, "I just hate that girl! What's the problem with expressing your hatred for a worthless piece of s-"
~~
"Okay, everyone," Chris told the 11 teens in front of him, "It's time to cast your votes. Report to the confessionals."
~~
Confessional: Emma
The chubby blonde scribbled wildly upon a picture of Dexter.
Confessional: Dexter
The bearded, tattooed man smirked as he drew devil horns and a mustache upon a picture of Emma. "Say goodbye to the trashbag," he told the camera.
Confessional: Bowie
"Get him OUT of here," groaned the Basketballer, crossing out Dexter's picture.
Confessional: Nichelle
Silently, the Movie Star crossed out a picture of Emma.
Confessional: Oliver
The Stunt Artist looked worriedly between a picture of Emma, and a picture of Dexter, wondering what to do…
~~
"Okay," Chris announced as the eleven teens returned to the firepit. "You've all cast your ballots, and the votes have been counted." He picked up a plate holding ten marshmallows. "If you get a marshmallow, you're safe. If you do not, well, you know what happens…dock of shame time, baby."
"Like I said, we know," mumbled Bowie in a bored tone.
"Who'd you vote for, Rajie?" Wayne turned to his close friend.
"You, bro!" chuckled Raj, "How about you, Wayner?"
"You, dog!" chirped the hat-wearing Hockey Jock, before both gave each other a happy fist-bump. "Hope we win!"
Chris gave an unimpressed glance at the two hockey players. "Seriously, you two?" he questioned in disbelief, "You're supposed to vote for who you want to eliminate. As in, not win?"
"Oh, that's our bad," admitted Wayne, blushing in embarrassment.
"Sorry, Coach," apologized Raj, rubbing the back of his head.
"Ignoring that…" Chris moved on, "It's time. Here we go." He picked up the first marshmallow. "The first marshmallow goes to…"
…
…
…
"…MK."
The host tossed the marshmallow to the Pickpocket, who caught it with a smirk.
"The next marshmallow goes to…Bowie."
Bowie caught his marshmallow, flashing a smug grin.
"Julia."
Catching her marshmallow, Julia clutched it to her heart in a display of gratitude.
"Candy."
She'd barely held it for a second before stuffing it into her mouth.
"Caleb."
The Dreamboat casually caught his marshmallow, before smiling towards Candy, who smiled back at her new friend.
"Wayne and Raj."
Both Wayne and Raj caught theirs together, before fistbumping with a quiet "hoot hoot!"
"And Oliver."
Oliver took off his hat and caught his marshmallow in it, smiling awkwardly.
The three remaining teens – Emma, Nichelle and Dexter – were starting to quiver in worry as they stared at the two remaining marshmallows.
"I have only two marshmallows and three campers," Chris declared, "One of you is heading home very soon. But I'll tell you who isn't heading home just yet…"
…
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"…Nichelle."
Breathing a sigh of relief, the Movie Star caught her marshmallow and gave a grateful smile to the host.
"You are all safe," Chris told the nine contestants currently holding marshmallows.
He now picked up the last marshmallow and held it high for all to see.
"This…is the final marshmallow of the night," Chris spoke in a chilling tone of voice. "Whoever does not catch this marshmallow…must immediately walk the Dock of Shame and leave the island."
Emma and Dexter were both shivering in anticipation, praying that they would be the ones catching that final marshmallow, as Chris' voice echoed loud and clear through the campgrounds…
"The final marshmallow goes to…"
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
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…
…
…
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…
…
…
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"…Emma."
In an instant, Emma ran forward to catch her marshmallow, before giving a cheerful "YES!" She whipped around, sneering triumphantly at the shellshocked Dexter, "SUCK IT, Dexter!"
Baffled and upset, Dexter rose from his seat in rage. "B-but…how?!" he yelled, "How and WHY do you want to keep EMMA over ME?! You guys want to keep that BACKSTABBING HEARTBREAKER instead of a skilled homie like me?!"
"How? Why?" Bowie spoke up, glaring at the Prankster, "You're asking us how and why we could keep her?" He stormed over, "Well, maybe it's because Emma is a well-meaning girl who's been through your stupid pranks for the sake of you and your dollar-store-peacock friends getting internet clout to the point where you somehow thought CUTTING THE BRAKES TO HER CAR would be a funny thing to do, and you have the AUDACITY to get mad at Emma for being upset about something that could've gotten her seriously hurt! Ever think about THAT?" The normally-chill Basketballer gazed fiercely at the scared livestreamer, who was trembling wildly. An amused MK applauded the tall black boy.
"Okay, break it up, everyone," Chris cut in, "There's only so much more of this gross bearded dude I can stomach."
"We hear you, dude," Caleb nodded in agreement.
"LET'S SEND THAT SUCKA HOME!" bellowed Candy, once more ignoring how Nichelle and Julia covered their ears.
We now cut to the Dock of Shame, where Chris herded a grumpy Dexter to the end of the dock. While he had first arrived at the island at this location just earlier today, now he would be leaving.
"This is so freaking dumb," hissed Dexter, still bitter over his elimination. "What do those people know? 90% of them will fall apart without me anyway."
"Sure," Chris told him in the most sarcastic tone he could manage, "You tell yourself that."
As the Drone of Despair approached him, Dexter gave a low groan. "I just hope that Chase and Oliver are able to avenge me-EEEEEEEEEEEE!" He promptly squealed like a girl as the Drone picked him up by his pants, giving him a major wedgie as it carried him around the docks.
As this happened, Oliver stuck his head out of a nearby bush, wincing a little as he saw his roommate's fate – but, deep down, he felt some form of pride.
~~
Confessional: Oliver
"Okay, okay," sighed the Stunt Artist in embarrassment, taking off his hat and sunglasses. "I was one of the people who voted out Dexter. Look, I KNOW he's my friend," he sadly glanced downwards, "But I just cannot with his attitude right now. I actually still kinda like Emma and…I wanna make things right between us. I know she probably won't wanna forgive me, and I'd understand that, but…" Another sigh. "It's worth a shot, I guess."
~~
The Drone of Despair was now carrying Dexter off into the nighttime horizon.
"Wasn't sure how that drone thing was gonna work out," Chris chuckled in amusement, "But now that I've seen it in action, I like it!" He turned to the camera. "That's all for our premiere! We're down to 21 as one camper has taken his acrimonious leave! And though his run may have already ended, the fun is just beginning for everyone else! What's in store for challenge number two?" He now pointed at the camera, "That's for me to know and you to find out, next time on TOTAL! DRAMA! ISLAND!"
But we aren't done yet...it's time to see how the last 21 campers are holding up...
The Frogs were now heading back to their cabins. While Emma cheerfully talked to Bowie, thanking the Basketballer for standing up for her against Dexter, Candy hung back a little, staying by the side of Caleb.
"Thanks again for cheering me up earlier," the Competitive Eater told him in gratitude, "I needed that."
"Hey, I'm the kind of guy who likes seeing his buds happy, what can I say?" the Dreamboat gave a casual shrug. "It's good to meet some awesome new people here." He gave a bit of a nervous side glance now. "There is one thing I'm a bit worried about, though…"
"What's that?" asked the curious influencer, putting a hand on his side.
Taking a shaky breath, Caleb explained, "Well…I'm just hoping that when merge comes, people won't see me as a threat." He rubbed the back of his head, "I know I might come across as a bit physically intimidating, but I didn't really come here to win."
"Neither did I, really," shrugged the pink-haired girl, "I'm just here to hang out with my Candites and entertain people, you feel me?"
"Totally," responded the buff boy, "I'm just here to meet some new people."
"Well, if it means anything," Candy gazed up at her taller friend, "I'll make sure the team doesn't vote you out. Cuz…I think you're pretty cool, and I'd hate to see you get kicked out simply cuz people see you as threatening."
Although Caleb had met a lot of cool people in his life before, he had to admit…what Candy had just promised was very touching. "Wow," he quietly responded, with a grateful smile, "Thanks, Candy." He took the girl's hand and shook it, "I'm glad I got to meet someone like you here."
"Samesies!" chirped the Competitive Eater in response, before giving the Dreamboat a hug. "I think we make a pretty good team already!"
They were unaware that Bowie had seen what was happening unfolding through passing glances as he talked to Emma.
~~
Confessional: Bowie
"Interesting," the Basketballer chuckled to himself, "Looks like I'm not the only one making some early alliances." He rubbed his hands together, "I suppose we'll just have to see how far those two go…"
~~
As the Frogs of Death returned to their cabins, the Ferocious Trout were still partying it up in celebration of their victory.
"Dudes and dudettes," Zee spoke aloud to his ten teammates, raising an orange soda. "I propose a toast for our victory. To the Ferocious Trout!"
"Ferocious Trout!" came the happy shouts of Damien, Chase, Ripper, Priya, Millie, Lia and Maddie, who all shared some happy high-fives. Even Axel smiled proudly at her teammates' celebration, while Scary Girl simply danced on the roof, singing her team's name.
Only a few feet away, Aviva was lying back on the grass, smiling as she heard her team's cheers of victory. She gazed towards the stars, twinkling above her, and started to think to herself...
"Chris…Martin…Koki…Jimmy…" She thought back to her four teammates. "I wanna make you proud." The twinkling stars reflected in her brown eyes, as she gave a sad smile while thinking about her friends…and her past. "I know the past has been tough for me, but…" She sighed to herself in satisfaction. "With the help of my new friends, I know I can rise above it. I know I can make it far."
"I'll do this for you, team," Aviva spoke quietly, as if her teammates could hear her, "I'll win this for you. That's a promise."
...
Votes:
Dexter – 6 (Emma, Bowie, Julia, Candy, Caleb, Oliver)
Emma – 2 (Dexter, Nichelle)
Nichelle – 1 (MK)
Wayne – 1 (Raj)
Raj – 1 (Wayne)
...
Author's Note:
And that's a wrap on the two-part first episode. Dexter's attitude got too much for the Frogs to bear, and home he went. I feel like he will DEFINITELY not be popular with readers lmao…but, he WAS basically intended to be the cast Hate Sink. After all I needed an early boot so I can have fun with the characters I have stronger plans for. Will Oliver evade the same fate as his former roommate? He seems determined to at least make things right with Emma before he goes – time will tell if he will succeed in that mission…
Now for the elephant in the room: Caleb staying. I felt bad for him getting kicked out early in canon, though it was an excellent strategical move by Bowie, and I've always been curious on how he'd be if he got to stick around for longer. So, I made some plans, and I think you guys can come to like him. But even though he's not going home first, I STILL managed to fit "This is garbage!" in there for the memes lol
Speaking of which…some friendships are already forming. The obvious example likely being the bonding between Caleb and Candy. It's a pretty amusing "opposites attract" dynamic in my mind – Caleb is chill, laid-back and quiet, while Candy is wild, adventurous and LOUD. It's just a perfect dynamic in my mind and I can't wait to write more of it.
Only thing that kind of bothers me about this episode is the disproportionate focus on the Frogs of Death, oops. But it won't last this way! There'll be plenty of time to shine for the Trout in the future. And with how it's coming together so far, I think chapter 3 will be a perfect example of that.
Anyway, my favorite characters to write so far have been Ripper, MK (though she in particular is one of my top 2 of the cast so eh, not too surprised there), and to my own surprise, Millie – I just had TOO much fun writing her reacting to the shenanigans of the teens around her, haha. XD Though, I am aware of her divisive reputation with the fans, but I DO have some changes in mind for her character arc, so watch this space – I think you'll be surprised.
I'm probably forgetting something, but yeah – that's our two-part premiere! As before here are some questions for my reviewers:
1. What did you think of Dexter's elimination?
2. What changes do you think will happen in the elimination order?
3. With a chapter of hindsight, what do you think the future ships will be now? (I think one might be obvious by now lol)
4. Who do you think is going home next?
Until then, this is Me™ signing off! Remember, watch Milo Murphy's Law for clear skin!