Let the final begin! As The Challenge: All Stars Episode 8 opened, the remaining 12 competitors celebrated making it into the final in Argentina. Various cast members remarked about being in a final or winning it, including Darrell Taylor, who won each of the four finals he’s been to.
Jonna Mannion is going to her first final, while Mark Long is a two-time Challenge champ. Derrick Kosinski has won three. Jisela Delgado said in a confessional the check is as good as deposited for her.
In another scene, Aneesa Ferreira and Jisela tried to sort things out after their drama in All Stars Episode 7. Jisela was upset about how Aneesa told her she’d vote for Yes Duffy in the last deliberation but voted for Nehemiah Clark.
Aneesa explained that nothing she did was about Jisela personally. They seemed to be better after their talk, but Jisela said in confessional she’d still hold Aneesa accountable.
Yes was shown talking with KellyAnne Judd, telling her that some people are really good at tunnel vision. “Grind ’til you die,” Yes told KellyAnne Judd about some people’s mentality, adding, “Those people usually beat me.”
TJ Lavin gets the final started in Argentina
Host TJ Lavin greeted the competitors at the start of the final and told them it’s time to be put to the test. The Challenge champion will take home $500,000. TJ informed them it would feature a series of checkpoints over the next few days.
Each checkpoint is worth points, and they’ll get a new partner of the opposite sex for every mini-challenge. Competitors can’t work with the same person twice. At any point, if either partner can’t finish a mini-challenge, they’re both eliminated. The last-place team at Checkpoint No. 2 for the first day is eliminated.
Checkpoint No. 1 is a tangram puzzle, which they did individually. Alton finished first and waited by one of the canoes for the first lady to finish. That’s Aneesa, so they took off in a canoe paddling in the water. Darrell and Jonna completed their puzzles next, so they’re partners. Jisela and Derrick Kosinski are next, followed by a team of Yes and Jemmye Carroll.
Ruthie Alcaide and Mark were fifth. Eric “Big Easy” Banks couldn’t figure out his puzzle, as KellyAnne stood by a canoe. Aneesa and Alton took the early lead, followed by Darrell and Jonna. Big Easy finally solved the puzzle, so he and KellyAnne took off in a canoe.
Last place team eliminated at Checkpoint 2
Alton and Aneesa had the lead, with Darrell and Jonna behind them. Yes and Jemmye paddle hard enough to take third place away from Jisela and Derrick. Mark and Ruthie passed Jisela and Derrick to take fourth.
Alton and Aneesa’s canoe capsized because of all the water that got in it. Darrell and Jonna passed them to take over first. TJ was seen riding in a speedboat in the water as competitors were paddling.
Darrell and Jonna reached shore in first place, receiving five points each for it. Yes and Jemmye got second to receive four points. Mark and Ruthie took third for three points. Fourth place was Aneesa and Alton with two points each. Big Easy and KellyAnne get their fifth to take one point each.
That left Derrick and Jisela, who got to Checkpoint No. 2 last. TJ told them, “Thanks for playing” as they reached shore. Alton is bummed for them, as are their other castmates.
Derrick is upset because this was his first final in a while. He was craving competition and wanted to do some eliminations. Jisela said in her confessional she met people she needed to meet and “had a blast” on All Stars. She mentioned she would see Alton when he’s done.
Checkpoint 2 brings new teams in biking challenge
For the remaining 10 competitors, it’s on to Checkpoint 2 and new teams. Jonna was first place and chose her teammate first, so she took Yes. Darrell picked next and took Jemmye. Ruthie chose Big Easy. That left Mark as Aneesa’s partner and Alton as KellyAnne’s partner.
Competitors had to build bikes using the tools provided to them and then head to the next checkpoint. Darrell knows how to build a bike, but Jemmye doesn’t. The same goes for Aneesa and Jonna. TJ informed the competitors they’re going to be tethered together once they start biking.
Yes and Jonna took off in first place. Mark and Aneesa were in second place. Darrell and Jemmye took off next, followed by Big Easy and Ruthie. KellyAnne and Alton are last place. However, they pass Ruthie and Big Easy due to Ruthie’s bike tire not working.
Various competitors rode along fine, while others struggled due to problems with their bikes. Mark lost a pedal so they’re stuck. KellyAnne and Alton moved into second place. Jonna fell off her bike and said she was cramping up. They started walking with their bikes.
Checkpoint 3 features star puzzle, next teammate switch
Team Jonna-Yes reached Checkpoint 3 first. KellyAnne and Alton are second, with Aneesa and Mark in third. Darrell and Jemmye are fourth, with Big Easy and Ruthie in fifth. Checkpoint 3 was another puzzle, which involved a star with numbers that have to add up correctly on its points.
Yes solved it first, followed by Jonna, so they got five points each. Darrell and Jemmye were second, so they received four points each. Aneesa and Mark got three points each. KellyAnne and Alton received two points each. Ruthie and Big Easy got one point each.
They had to pick new partners again. Yes is first, and chose KellyAnne. Jonna picked Mark while Darrell took Ruthie, telling her, “I could carry your a**.” Jemmye is partnered with Alton, and Aneesa is with Big Easy.
The competitors got tethered together again for a “good old-fashioned sprint.” They must race together from the start to the finish line of this mission.
Some competitors got winded, including Jonna, Aneesa, and Ruthie. Darrell finally picked up Ruthie to carry her as Whitney Houston’s I Will Always Love You played in the background.
KellyAnne and Yes completed the footrace checkpoint first and got five points each. Darrell and Ruthie were in second place and got four points. Alton and Jemmye were in third place for three points each. Mark and Jonna took fourth for two points each, while Big Easy and Aneesa were fifth for a point apiece. Big Easy told Aneesa, “I’m proud as f**k of you,” and she kissed him.
Checkpoint 4 sees new teams, a puzzle, and a hot twist
TJ told them to choose new partners for Checkpoint 4. Yes chose Aneesa, while KellyAnne chose Darrell. Ruthie picked Alton, with Jemmye teaming up with The Godfather. Big Easy and Jonna were teamed up by default.
TJ blew the horn, and these new teams are tethered together. They head to Checkpoint 4, where they each had to eat a Carolina Reaper hot pepper there. After eating the peppers, they assembled a puzzle similar to their previous daily challenge, Escape the Room.
KellyAnne and Darrell took over first place from Yes and Aneesa. Jonna and Jemmye started to have trouble with their peppers during the run. Others start to have issues, too, including Darrell and Ruthie. Their teammates were worried it could cost them $500,000.
The episode closed with Darrell hunched over on the ground saying “I think I need a medic.”
The Challenge: All Stars episodes arrive Thursdays on Paramount Plus.