MTV's competition series The Challenge is still going stronger than ever after 36 seasons on air, so clearly the producers of the reality show are doing something very right. However, the fact that they've got an amazing rhythm going does not mean that there isn't room for improvement.
The show does a lot of things very well, but there are aspects of the series that could be changed and reinvented in a way that would drastically improve the competition and entertainment value of The Challenge. What is it that The Challenge can change to make the series even better?
No More Bananarama
Many players throughout the game have established themselves as faces of the franchise, but no one is more recognizable than Johnny Bananas.
However, as this Banana-free season has demonstrated, he sort of has a stranglehold on the narrative of every season he's on, and it feels like when he's gone the audience actually gets to see some new personalities develop. The show would be much better off evening out it's spotlight, and revolving each season around one particular player (whether it's Bananas, Wes, CT, or Cara) really diminishes the development of new star players.
More Independent Games
One of the best ways in which The Challenge exploits the long histories that so many players share is by teaming them up with each other in unique ways.
That definitely creates a fascinating dynamic, but it would also be good to see more seasons where the players don't have to rely on one another completely, and it's frustrating to see some players never even get a shot to perform at their real ability level solely because of who they're paired with.
A Better Money Spread
Lately, The Challenge has gotten in the habit of creating a lot of twists behind the money to supposedly make the competition more intense.
And allowing one player to steal money from another or making the vast majority or entirety of the prize money up for grabs for one person definitely intensifies things, but it also massively reduces most player's likelihood of winning anything at all. Making the "prize" for being eliminated first the same as coming in second or third in the final makes it even less likely that players will get into the game and really make it fun or entertaining in general.
Dis-incentivize Throwing In The Same People Repeatedly
One element of the show that has definitely made things more boring is the habit of scapegoating one player into elimination repeatedly until they're gone, and then repeating the process again.
It is of course beneficial to every player besides the scapegoat, however the knowledge that once a player is thrown in once, they're likely going to be thrown in over and over, makes it far less entertaining. The show has attempted to work around this with the skull concept, but that clearly still isn't having the effect that the show wants it to have.
Cast Players That Are There To Compete
Diversifying the players that appear on The Challenge is a good idea, but it seems like the show may have gone after contestants that are a bad fit for the show.
Namely, it feels like there are quite a few players who are there because they want to be on the show and raise their profile, not because they actually want to play the game, and having so many people who are just angling for camera time really bogs the show down.
A More Focused Talent Pool
While it's impressive that The Challenge is now pulling talent like professional athletes, and it says a lot that the competition can even be difficult for elite players, it also makes it feel like the playing field is a bit uneven.
For the competition to actually be interesting, the players need to be relatively easily matched, and watching an athletic battle between an Olympian and a former Real World cast member is just too large of an ability gap to be intriguing.
More Vets
The Challenge has clearly been going out of it's way to vastly expand it's talent pool in the last few years. Given that the show was originally the Real World/Road Rules Challenge, it did originally have a pretty short list of options for competitors, but that's also what made the show unique.
Having a competition series between players with years or even decades of history between them is what set The Challenge apart, and that's what the show needs to tap into again.
Less "Extremes"
The Challenge is a show that is excellent at upping the ante, and at this point it has increased the insanity of it's content to the point that The Challenge of today is barely recognizable in comparison to The Challenge of yesteryears.
However, at this point it feels like the series is using hat tricks like explosions, fire, fast cars, skydiving, and every other "extreme" idea that producers can come up with as a replacement for actual creativity.
More Creativity
While The Challenge's evolution into an athletic, extreme-sports style competition has certainly been intriguing, it also makes the series feel a bit one-note after seasons upon seasons of similarly intense challenges with flashy elements that aren't particularly inventive.
The show really needs to stop relying on making everything hotter, colder, longer, bigger, or badder, and really needs to go back to the drawing board and streamline their competitions. Challenges need to actually be creative again.
Safer Competitions
Something that most Challenge fans have picked up on for years is that as the competition has gotten more extreme, it seems like the cast members are in a lot more physical danger.
The amount of competitors that wind up getting medically disqualified from continuing on account of pointless injuries seems to be pretty steady, which is why the show needs to focus on creating challenges that aren't as dangerous for the contestants.