The Challenge: Double Agents season 36, episode 13 recap: The fight for Fessy (ugh)

I guess it's only fair that after the incredible episode we got last week of The Challenge: Double Agents, we were due for a less exciting hour. And I do mean hour because The Challenge was literally only an hour-long this week. It's the first time all season that we didn't get an hour and a half mega episode, and I'm not happy about it! The Challenge giveth and The Challenge taketh away. But in an episode centered on people fighting over Fessy as their partner, I guess the shorter run time is a gift to us all?

The "night of hell" begins as the players discover what the overnight challenge teased at the end of last week's episode means for them: they're about to spend the night shackled to each other in a locked cage, where they'll be forced to complete "torturous" tasks. Right away, they have to endure loud noises and flashing lights before holding a heavy medicine ball "bomb." Nany's feeling the pressure to perform so she takes the brunt of the weight from Kyle, who doesn't want to do anything at all. Fessy wants to lose without making it look like he's throwing the challenge because he wants to be stolen and teamed up with anyone other than his current partner (and seeing how both Nany and Gabby are without skulls/easy targets to put into elimination — and they both want to steal Fessy if they win — that's probably going to happen this week ... ugh).

After two hours, the players can finally drop the bomb and dig into the eating portion of the challenge, a.k.a. my favorite part of every season. I know it's gross, but there's something about seeing these dummies projectile vomit disgusting food that makes me laugh. This time, they've got to choke down ram testicles and some kind of "arctic cheese juice" that I really don't want to know more about, but I have to say, there's a lot less gagging and puking than usual. It's the rookie girls — Amber B. and Gabby — who are struggling the most at first, but then Cory, Darrell, and Kyle all upchuck violently, and we're officially off to the barf races! Nothing will ever come close to CT's roaring vomit style of seasons past, and while this challenge doesn't enter the puke hall of fame, Cory really shines. I'm impressed with his dedication here — he really doesn't want to lose another partner!

Meanwhile, Fessy pretends he's too grossed out to eat anything and Aneesa calls him out beautifully: "Fessy's a bitch." He does some horrible acting, pretending to gag while spitting out the food. He says some BS about how Aneesa doesn't train and the final is all endurance so she's not ready for it, but he seems to be forgetting how he gassed out in the final last season. So who exactly isn't ready for the final, Fessy? He also makes some gross comment about how Gabby's eating a lot of the testicles so he won't "kiss her tonight" because her mouth is going to smell bad. He's refusing to compete in this challenge and then judges a woman for absolutely killing it? Despicable. Get this guy out of here.

As for CT and Kam, their first challenge together isn't going well. They're not communicating with each other (Kam can't understand his grunts!) and he's starting to wish he was with Big T for this challenge. Now that's an unexpected turn of events!

Kaycee and Leroy are the first to finish eating, and they move on to solving a math equation to unlock their shackles. Kam solves it for them from a few cages over and shouts the right answer to Leroy. Kaycee and Leroy move on to the next task, using hammers to break open cinder blocks to find a key. They unlock some of their chains and move on to scratch off a board for another clue while Cory and Gabby finally finish eating and work on the math equation. Leroy and Kaycee struggle to scratch the board hard enough to reveal the clue while Fessy helps Cory solve his math equation (we all know he wouldn't get it on his own), and Leroy and Kaycee finally discover they need to dig in the dirt for tools. Eventually, they dig up... nail files. The Challenge producers are having a ball with this one! Kaycee and Leroy literally have to file through a cable to open their cage. They finally reach TJ outside their cage for the final key to release the chains on their wrists, officially winning the challenge.

And while TJ is impressed with Kaycee and Leroy's "complete domination" and satisfied with Cory, Gabby, and CT's dedication to performing in this challenge, he's disappointed with everyone else. But Nany's not feeling worried since she thinks Leroy and Kaycee have her back and will help her get a skull.

Back at the house, we're tortured with footage of Fessy trying to flirt with Gabby (talking about how he's "very observant" and has "observed" Gabby's interest in him — looks like I'm the one barfing tonight!) and what's maybe the most shocking part of all this is that it seems to be working on Gabby. They make out in the kitchen and then a bedroom and then "cuddle" in a bed together. I guess we knew her judgment was questionable after she gave up the opportunity to take on tiny Amber M. in Hall Brawl, so this shouldn't be as surprising as it is. But come on girl, you can do so much better than this. And I think she knows it, too. "Oh my God, I'm so embarrassed," she says while laughing about it in a talking head interview.

The next day, Cory brings up the topic of Tori to Fessy, dropping a mention that Tori told him "things weren't always so great," referring to her engagement to Jordan (which ended after this season was filmed). Fessy says he can't help the way he feels but he can't "cross that line" since Tori "has a man." This whole conversation is so cringe, especially after seeing photos that confirmed Tori and Fessy went on a tropical vacation together after this season was filmed/her engagement with Jordan ended. "I think Tori and Jordan are going to call it quits, you and Tori are going to give it a go, you guys will probably date for a year, then you and Tori can escape to Mexico," Cory says. He was almost right, except for the order of events! And talking about this the morning after Fessy and Gabby hooked up is just so gross. Fessy is trash.

At Club COVID that night, Nany reaffirms how she wants to go into this elimination against a rookie, a.k.a. Gabby, because as much as she pretends she's not scared, Nany will always be scared to compete in eliminations. It's disappointing how she's never really evolved as a competitor, no matter how many seasons she's done.

Deliberation

Nany kicks off the conversation by asking everyone to allow her and Gabby to compete against each other in this elimination. Gabby asks to be the house vote, knowing Leroy and Kaycee will have Nany's back. This is all very civil and boring. Darrell point-blank asks both women if they'll switch partners if they win, and Nany and Gabby stay quiet and smile. That instantly sets Kyle's alarm bells ringing. Fessy's smiling and Aneesa's scowling. Nany even asks Aneesa how she would feel if someone stole Fessy, and Aneesa says she just wants to get to the final with a partner who has a gold skull. The groundwork is already being laid.

After the vote, Leroy and Kaycee learn that Gabby and Cory are indeed the compromised agents. And they agree on throwing in Nany and Kyle. The real drama will come after whoever wins picks their new partner. Out in the weight room, Fessy keeps talking about how Aneesa isn't ready to win a final, but we all know Fessy isn't either. I'm so sick of him talking s--- on Aneesa. How many times has this seasoned vet proven herself to the male players, season after season? She may not be the best female competitor on this show, but she's proven herself to be way better than this rookie guy who gassed out in his only final appearance and resorted to dirty tactics in a Hall Brawl elimination he supposedly was "made for." And Aneesa is already feeling down because she's got a history of being screwed over right before the final. But she still tells Nany to "do what you gotta do, just don't f--- me." My heart is breaking for Aneesa. She deserves so much more respect than she's ever been given.

Elimination

Walking into The Crater, the elimination setup is clearly what gave Kyle his gold skull against mustard-licking Joseph (remember him?!). That feels weirdly poetic for Nany, his partner, to now compete in that same challenge! Let's just hope Gabby doesn't eat mustard first.

Elimination challenge: Ring of Spies. Players leap for a ring hanging in the center of the Crater and then wrestle/race it towards their side. Best of three, wins.

Before the elimination begins, Nany's already crying thinking about how many times she's lost in eliminations. Not a good sign! In the first round, Gabby starts off with a huge jump that gets her to the ring first, and she races to her post before Nany tackles her. It's a fight in the sand as Gabby keeps pulling Nany closer to her post. CT even asks, "Is Nany giving up?" as Gabby gets her first point. People on the sidelines are shocked.

The second round begins and Nany's feeling worried. But she gets the ring first and keeps pushing towards her side as Gabby tries to pull her back. It turns into Pole Wrestle as the women trade off for who has the advantage. Nany finally pulls away and gets her first point, tying it up. The next point decides it!

The final round is lightning fast — Nany gets the ring off a massive jump and dodges Gabby, giving her an easy path to her pole. Nany breaks down in tears when TJ announces that she won. And as Gabby leaves, she yells that she'll see Fessy "when the final is over." Except he's going to see Tori, so... yikes. As for Nany, no surprise here but she steals Fessy as her partner. Aneesa picks Kyle over Cory since Kyle has a skull already, and he's about as excited as Fessy was to be her partner. That means Cory and Big T are now partners — meaning his curse of sending partners home is probably going to continue (sorry, Big T).

Challenger of the week: Kaycee for the best joke of the episode when she yelled while eating the ram testicles that it's the closest she's ever been to balls before. To say I laughed would be an understatement.

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The Challenge: Double Agents recap: The fight for Fessy (ugh)

Deliberation

Elimination

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