Reality Champions Rankdown 2.0

[*Chris]

JOSHUA ALLEN

SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE - SEASON 4

 

When it comes to So You Think You Can Dance, I’m generally a fan of anyone associated with the IVever crew - but there are exceptions, and Joshua happens to be one of them. If I’m being honest, Joshua never really wow-ed me during his time on the show. In fact, I pretty much preferred everyone else from his season over him, especially Top 12 onwards.  

 

A big part of Joshua’s success, in my opinion, came from his incredible partnership with Katee. Together, they delivered some unforgettable routines, from Nappytab’s lyrical hip-hop to their iconic "Hometown Glory" contemporary and even the Bollywood routine. But there was always that lingering question: how would he fare without Katee by his side? And while one could argue that he continued to thrive, I’d say he benefited a lot from being paired with other talented partners like Courtney (for their Rumba to "Hero") and Chelsie (for their Argentine Tango). Of course, Joshua’s journey ended as it began - with Katee by his side. He ultimately took home the win, to a certain degree of surprise as I don't think anyone expected him to be that popular, but for me, I felt the other three finalists were stronger overall and would have made a stronger winner & ambassador for SYTYCD.
 

However, my decision to cut Joshua isn’t just based on his time on SYTYCD. It’s also influenced by his actions post-show. Joshua was indicted for felony assault and assault with a deadly weapon, and even before that, he faced multiple charges of domestic violence. It’s difficult to separate his talent on the stage from these troubling actions off it, and ultimately, I can’t justify keeping him in the rankdown.

 

SAVING: SEAN PATRICK KELLY

Edited January 9 by *Chris

[.Rei]

On 1/8/2025 at 1:13 PM, *Chris said:

TYRA SANCHEZ

RUPAUL'S DRAG RACE : SEASON 2

 

Tyra Sanchez is best known for her time on RuPaul's Drag Race Season 2, where she quickly established herself as a frontrunner and one of RuPaul's favorites of the season. It's often been suggested that in the earlier seasons of Drag Race, winning was more likely if you aligned with RuPaul's personal vision of drag or closely mirrored her style. Frequently referred to as "The Other Tyra" throughout the competition, she ultimately won the crown without ever landing in the bottom - a first in the franchise’s history, though fortunately, others have since followed suit.  

 

That said, I can’t say I was ever a fan of her time on the show. I found her overrated and heavily favored by the judges, and I don’t think her run has aged particularly well. Throughout the competition, Tyra was often the subject of feuds with other queens, including Tatianna, who famously declared on the main stage, “I don’t think you’re seeing that Tyra is a complete b!tch” - considering all of Tyra's vile and disgusting comments over the years, I think most fans will now agree with Tatianna's assessment.  

 

Among the long list of her appalling and vile behavior over the years are incidents such as telling a fan to go kill themselves, posting a mock obituary of fellow Season 3 queen Morgan McMichaels that redirected people to her SoundCloud page, and leaking the personal phone numbers of other queens. In 2018, she was banned from attending RuPaul's DragCon in Los Angeles after being accused of making terrorist threats against the event. Most recently, she made disgusting and vile comments about The Vivienne following her passing.  When faced with calls to take accountability, Tyra consistently deflects blame, shifts responsibility onto others, or randomly decides to take an hiatus, hoping that people will forget about her actions. Time and time again, queens from RuPaul's Drag Race have tried to defend her, but at this point, most have reached their limit, unwilling to excuse her behaviour any longer.  

 

That being said, there’s a reason why she remains one of the most disliked winners in the franchise’s history.

 

SAVING: CAROLINE FLACK & PASHA KOVALEV

just saw their tweet after The Vivienne's passing and what a disgusting and vile human being!!!!

 

I'm ashamed to say that I was ever a fan of hers. They can go and f*ck themselves!!!

Edited January 9 by .Rei

[*Chris]

SHARON NEEDLES

RUPAUL'S DRAG RACE - SEASON 4

 

When Sharon Needles first stepped onto the runway in RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 4, she immediately stood out with her spooky and unconventional style. At a time when the show focused mostly on glamour and pageantry, Sharon’s edgy and alternative approach felt fresh and unexpected. Some might say Raja had already started breaking those barriers, but Sharon took it to a whole new level as she wasn't necessarily as polished as Raja was with her drag. Her presence made space for queens with non-traditional styles to compete and thrive on Drag Race.

 

Throughout the season, Sharon proved she wasn’t a one-trick pony. From her creative runway looks to her bold Snatch Game performance, she showed she had what it took to win. And, of course, there was her unforgettable fight with Phi Phi O’Hara. Their exchange - Sharon calling Phi Phi a “tired-ass showgirl” and Phi Phi snapping back, “Go back to Party City where you belong!” - became one of the most iconic moments in Drag Race history. Whether their drama was real or played up for the cameras, it captured the raw energy of those early seasons - the current drama on recent seasons can't measure to the drama of the earlier season. When Sharon was crowned, it felt like a turning point for the show. Her win didn’t just make her a star; it helped bring Drag Race into more mainstream spaces. She even landed the cover of OUT magazine and became a fan favourite on Tumblr - which is how I first discovered the show.

 

For years, Sharon Needles was a fan favourite for her unapologetic individuality and spooky aesthetic, and all of this despite her tendency to avoid accountability for some of her more controversial behaviour and offensive outfits. However, everything changed in 2020ish  after the fallout from the Season 12's S.P. situation. Allegations of grooming and serious misconduct surfaced, brought forward by a former fan – you can read a report on the situation here. These claims revealed a troubling pattern of behavior that had reportedly been an open secret in the Drag Race community, and WOW Presents was made aware of it. Despite this, Sharon continued to book gigs and secure contracts, receiving praise in some circles. But the public backlash grew louder, and the situation became impossible to ignore. The revelations prompted other queens to speak out about their experiences with Sharon; Local queens shared stories of toxic encounters, while Monet X Change and Bob the Drag Queen labeled Sharon one of the most problematic queens they’d ever worked with. Dida Ritz, who appeared on Season 4, also spoke out, recalling Sharon’s use of the N-word on set to refer to the Black queens, which occurred multiple times during their season.

 

Once a favourite of both fans and the Drag Race production team, Sharon is now seen as one of the most disliked winners in Drag Race history. Her continued refusal to take responsibility for her actions has made her estrangement from the franchise more apparent, especially since Sharon hasn’t been acknowledged on Drag Race’s social media since 2021. It’s clear now that Sharon's time on the Drag Race stage is likely over.

 

SAVING: JINKX MONSOON (ALL STARS 7)

[*Chris]

5 minutes ago, .Rei said:

just saw their tweet after The Vivienne's passing and what a disgusting and vile human being!!!!

 

I'm ashamed to say that I was ever a fan of hers. They can go and f*ck themselves!!!

And she keeps tweeting more stuff.... 

 

 

Edited January 9 by *Chris

[FrogLenzen]

Bryce Leatherwood

 

Sorry to this man, but I will not be watching his audition like I usually do for Voice cuts. I just have to go off of looks and style. This is a white man in a cowboy had and holding a guitar, and thus I feel very secure making this cut. There are Voice winner names that I do recognize and plan to stay away from in general this round, but Mr. Leatherwood's moniker did not ring any bells for me. Presumably this gentleman plays guitar and sings country music. Not my favorite type of singing show winner and if American Idol is any indication he may also be extremely mediocre. But I don't need to commit to an opinion since I haven't heard him sing.

 

Save Denys Drozdyuk

[FrogLenzen]

Marissa Jaret Winokur

 

Poor Marissa got shut out of the DWTS Mini Rankdown just this month. Not a great couple weeks on the boards for this Tony winner. She won the first (? i think) season of Celebrity Big Brother US. She beat out RTV legends like Omarosa and randoms like James Maslow. Ross Matthews was the runner-up and a lot of reddit thought he should have won and that the season sucked in general. I know Ross from Drag Race and he's certainly not a fan favorite on the panel by any means but I enjoy him enough. I bet I would have been rooting for him over Marissa. Was she ever cancelled for something? I feel like maybe? I can't keep track tbh. 

 

Save Robbie Kmetoni

[FrogLenzen]

Tony Vlachos - Cagayan

 

Tony is on the front page twice and I've consulted with my secret panel of experts and they determined that this iteration is the one that should exit the game at this time. Tony came back for an All Winner season and won the whole thing, making him a rare Survivor contestant with 2 wins. So he must be a formidable contestant! Apparently he's a cop. His 2nd win was actually his 3rd appearance on Survivor and he's going to do Australia vs The World this year. He just can't get enough. The only way to kill him seems to be having Queen Sandra personally orchestrate his exit. We shall see how the Aussies handle him

 

Save Lex Ishimoto

[Alex95]

6 minutes ago, FrogLenzen said:

Tony is on the front page twice and I've consulted with my secret panel of experts and they determined that this iteration is the one that should exit the game at this time.

I would like to see these “experts” credentials because I don’t know what Survivor they’re watching if they’re putting WAW Tony over Cagayan.

[Solaris]

@*Chris still has one more cut for the day!

[*Wallace]

I really enjoyed Joshua's run on SYTYCD. Season 4 is amongst one of my favorite seasons.  His partnership with Katee was fantastic and he had a lot of strong routines with her and had strong routines with other people as well. I also enjoyed Sharon's run more than I expected as well. Even though Sharon doesn't really seem like my type of contestant, or so as I was just getting into Drag Race during my binge watch of it. 

 

It's a shame with stuff that happened after their runs that soured them as people. Though gosh, I feel like I still am learning new stuff regarding Sharon's controversy (granted that I don't follow or keep up with it).

[*Wallace]

Ah yeah, Bryce is definitely a good choice to cut from The Voice. He was the only other winner left that I didn't care for at all. He did have some decent performances here and there, especially towards the end of his run. But he was just another mediocre country male singer winning these singing shows over more interesting/engaging contestants.

Oooh lol Marissa was something else on Celeb BB. She was a fun lolzy character and I did really like her friendship with Ross. I liked her initial friendship with Shannon, which they mentioned having on DWTS, but then Marissa quickly betrayed her and I wasn't here for that. I do think Ross was a much better player and should have won over Marissa though. I know a lot of the fandom thought that. 

Tony is definitely a great Survivor player, of course as he's won it twice, including the All Winners season. He's someone whom I feel that grows on me over the years? I don't think I was that big on him during his time on Cagayan, but I feel he's grown on me the more I think about him from that season. He can be really fun and chaotic but at the same time, he can be a little extra. But hey, it all works for him.  

[*Chris]

TYLER CAMERON

SPECIAL FORCES - SEASON 2

 

I’m not cutting Tyler because I dislike him—far from it. My issue lies more with the fact that his inclusion in this rankdown doesn’t hold up against the other winners. I’ve already mentioned that I’m not a fan of the show’s format, nor do I find its concept particularly groundbreaking. To me, it feels like a knockoff version of I’m A Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here, which, honestly, I’d watch over this show any day. What surprises me is how long it took to have Tyler Cameron back on our screens - for a long time, hje was the fan-favourite contestant in the entirety of Bachelor Nation, so it’s wild that this is the show he chose for his big return. He could’ve gone for something that would have more of an impact, but I guess the producers of this show banked on his popularity to boost their ratings.  Ultimately, Tyler’s inclusion just doesn’t measure up to the competition here, although he ended up winning, so I’m cutting him from the rankdown.

 

SAVING : JEANICK FOURNIER

Edited January 10 by *Chris

[*Wallace]

Lmaoo the latter comments of how Tyler could have done any other reality show but chose Special Forces.  hahaha that is true. But Tyler unshockingly did really well on Special Forces and did well with most of the challenges. Though him trying to use his charm/flirt with one of the female was quite an embarrassing/cringe and hilarious moment on the show.  But I also loved the friendship he formed with JoJo Siwa from it too.

[*Wallace]

Cut: 
Dorian Hunter
Ashley Nell Tipton

Save:
Amber Riley & Derek Hough
Luke Jacobz & Jorja Freeman
 

[*Wallace]

Dorian Hunter (MasterChef, Season 10)

 

For my firs two cuts for today, I'm going to cut from two shows I haven't cut from and from my very little research, people whom I don't think were fan favorites of their season.... at least from people on here. So hopefully these cuts won't hurt. Let's start off with Dorian Hunter.

Dorian Hunter is a 45-year old Creeler from Cartersville, Georgia, who competed on and won the 10th season of MasterChef, which aired from     May 29 through September 18, 2019. Oh I'm seeing that this season features fan favorite Nick DiGiovanni, whom is someone even I have heard and know of as I've seen him cooking on various talk shows over the last few years. Anyway, it looks like Dorian did well throughout the season and had a good track record on the show but it looked like some others did better.  She did get a lot of IN (safe) placements and some high and low placements. She did earn immunity 4 times throughout the season - which I see are on Episodes 4/5, 15, 17 and 21. I would take it that the WIN are the highest honors of the season and it took her quite awhile to win some challenges. She had 4 wins under her belt, which begun on Episode 13... and then went onto win challenges on Episodes 14, 16, 21 and 22. So it took her a little while to find her footing but she eventually got there.  

Dorian made it to the Final with Sarah Faherty and Nick DiGiovanni. For the entrée meal, Dorian prepared applewood smoked short rib with a potato and horseradish gratin. This was good enough to get her to the Final 2. Then for the dessert meal, Dorian prepared a lemon blueberry tart with blueberry and cream cheese filling, a toasted meringue topping and pecan crust. I would say that sounds tasty but I am such a picky eater that maybe it wouldn't be my taste per se but it sounds like it would be good. Dorian impressed the judges enough to earn the title of that season's MasterChef title, where she won $250,000, the trophy and training at the three judges' restaurants. Well done to Dorian there! I have no idea what she's up to now but I hope she is doing well with her cooking career! Oh and a google search tells me that Dorian is the first African American female winner of the show.... which goes against the cuts I would usually make, lmao.  Ugh I feel bad for that. So I'll just save the first and only African American female winner of another show to make it a little better.

Saving: Amber Riley & Derek Hough

 

[*Wallace]

Ashley Nell Tipton (Project Runway, Season 14)

 

For my second cut of the day, I'll cut Ashley Nell Tipton, from what I've gathered doesn't seem like much of a favorite from the Project Runway fans or so, I hope I'm right about that. Ashley Nell Tipton is a designer who competed on and won the 14th season of Project Runway, which aired from August 6 through November 5, 2015. Oh wow, Ashley's track record sure is an interesting one. She started off really strong with winning the challenges on Episodes 1 and 3, which were the Mad Dash Mayhem and Shut Up and Sew challenges. She was safe on Episodes 2 & 4. Then after that, wow her run was a real rollercoaster. She was placed low on Episode 5. Then she played high on Episodes 6 & 7. She placed low on Episode 8 and placed high on Episode 9. Then Ashley had a rough few weeks where she placed low on Episodes 10, 11 and 12. It seems like she barely survived those episodes. I guess there was a non-elimination on Episode 13 as everyone advanced that episode. Ashley made it to the final against Candice, Edmond and Kelly and won over them. From what I've seen it seems people disagreed with this win. I'm inclined to disagree as well as I am seeing and feel like Kelly and Edmond have had a better and more consistent track record. Even 5th place Candice's record maybe was on par with Ashley's. Oh well, well done to Ashley winning her season. I hope she is still doing well and earning lots of success with her designing career.

 

Saving: Luke Jacobz & Jorja Freeman

 

[.Rei]

4 hours ago, FrogLenzen said:

Tony Vlachos - Cagayan

 

Tony is on the front page twice and I've consulted with my secret panel of experts and they determined that this iteration is the one that should exit the game at this time. Tony came back for an All Winner season and won the whole thing, making him a rare Survivor contestant with 2 wins. So he must be a formidable contestant! Apparently he's a cop. His 2nd win was actually his 3rd appearance on Survivor and he's going to do Australia vs The World this year. He just can't get enough. The only way to kill him seems to be having Queen Sandra personally orchestrate his exit. We shall see how the Aussies handle him

 

Save Lex Ishimoto

Both Tony wins were brilliant

[*Chris]

6 hours ago, *Wallace said:

Cut: 
Dorian Hunter
Ashley Nell Tipton

Save:
Amber Riley & Derek Hough
Luke Jacobz & Jorja Freeman
 

Noted. 

[*Chris]

Cut: 

Day26

Isaac Caldiero

Piglet/Nick Lachey

 

Saving:

Claudia Sandoval

Erin Robertson

Jinkx Monsoon (Season 5)

[*Chris]

DAY26

MAKING THE BAND 4

 

When it comes to Making the Band and their inclusion in this rankdown, Day26 is arguably the least successful group to emerge from the franchise. I’ve never watched the show, but I’m basing this on the fact that I’ve at least heard of O-Town and Danity Kane, and know some of their songs. The band, formed on Making the Band 4, consisted of Robert Curry, Brian Angel, Willie Taylor, Qwanell Mosley, and Michael McCluney. They were featured across three seasons of the show between 2007 and 2009. Their debut album, released in 2008, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, which, to be fair, is more successful than the majority of winners from American Idol, X Factor, and The Voice. Their second album also charted respectably, but their singles failed to make a lasting impact, never really breaking through. By 2012, the group announced their breakup, with each member planning to pursue a solo career. However, none of them seemed to find much success on their own. While all the members are technically still “active” in the music industry, Day26 has struggled to maintain relevance seen with groups like Danity Kane or O-Town.

 

SAVING: CLAUDIA SANDOVAL

Edited January 10 by *Chris

[*Chris]

PIGLET / NICK LACHEY

THE MASKED SINGER 5

 

Do I think Nick Lachey as Piglet is the worst winner in The Masked Singer history? No, but he’s definitely not my favourite either. Honestly, his win left me pretty indifferent, especially when you consider that JoJo - the JoJo, not JoJo Siwa - was on the same season as the Black Swan. JoJo completely annihilated her competition with every single performance, making Piglet's victory feel like a waste when JoJo was literally doing one of her comeback in the industry.  From the moment Nick started singing, it was obvious who he was, and he benefited from a season where the contestants got to sing more than three times - something we don’t get with the more recent seasons' format. If I had to pick a favourite performance of his, it’d probably be “Speechless” by Dan + Shay, though I wouldn’t say it really stood out in the grand scheme of that season of The Masked Singer. Also I won’t lie - part of my meh feelings about Nick Lachey as Piglet might be influenced by the fact that he and Vanessa annoy me on Love Is Blind and The Ultimatum - but clearly not enough as I still watch those shows . But yeah, as I've seen at the start, Piglet ranks pretty low on my list of winners of the show - he’s just not someone I’d have handed the win to, especially with JoJo being right there.

 

SAVING: JINKX MONSOON (SEASON 5)

Edited January 10 by *Chris

[*Chris]

ISAAC CALDIERO

AMERICAN NINJA WARRIOR - SEASON 7

 

American Ninja Warrior isn’t a show I’d normally watch, nor do I think I’m its target audience - it leans heavily into a certain heteronormative vibe, and honestly, how many of us are tuning in? I doubt the show has the same cultural weight as some of the other reality TV shows in this rankdown. With all that said, cutting Isaac Caldiero felt like a fair cut.  Let’s talk about Isaac: he’s a former busboy, rock climber, and carpenter who competed on American Ninja Warrior multiple times, including seasons 5, 6, 7, and 10. His standout moment came in season 7, when he cleared all four stages of the National Finals course. He won the title after a tie, thanks to his faster time, which can probably be credited to his rock-climbing background.  But even with a win under his belt, I wouldn’t recognize Isaac in a lineup of other Ninja Warrior contestants, which just show how impactful his win is. And just like that, Isaac is cut, and with him being cut, American Ninja Warrior is wiped from the rankdown.

 

SAVING: ERIN ROBERTSON

Edited January 10 by *Chris

[*Diana]

7 hours ago, *Wallace said:

Dorian Hunter (MasterChef, Season 10)

Noooooooo

[*Diana]

8 hours ago, *Wallace said:

Cut: 
Dorian Hunter
Ashley Nell Tipton

Wtf actually 

[FrogLenzen]

Ninja Warrior is from yours truly  I cry every episode  I got Ninja Warrior into a rankdown for the first time