If “close but no cigar” had a human Challenge equivalent, it might look like Nany. The Real World: Las Vegas export consistently plays solid games, only to watch them unravel at the 99-yard line.
But things seemed to shift on the latest Double Agents episode, and now that Nany’s officially claimed her Gold Skull, is it her luck finally changing, and could Season 36 be hers for the taking?
After Devin and Josh were both eliminated as part of a shocking Challenge Security Breach, players began to feel especially hungry for the win…that is, until they were introduced to the next mission, “Survive the Night.” As part of the game, players — equipped with very little information — were chained together, trapped in cages and told they needed to escape.
How, exactly? By eating ram testicles, munching on fermented shark and solving a few math equations before breaking out of their cells with small saws.
Naturally!
Long story short: Most of the game’s players weren’t so down for the buffet…that is, except Kaycee and Leroy, who chewed through the mission like it was cotton candy and racked up their third win as partners.
It was a disappointment to Gabby, Nany and Big T, each of whom had yet to earn a Gold Skull. But with her two biggest allies in positions of power, Nany was convinced she’d finally get a shot to win an elimination round, her first since Rivals III.
“Season after season, it’s the same song and dance: I go home right before the final,” Nany said. “For me, this is everything.”
Thankfully for Nany and Gabby, things went exactly as planned: Gabby and Cory earned the house’s Crater vote, while Leroy and Kaycee nominated Nany and Kyle. And in “Ring of Spies,” Gabby and Nany learned they’d have to be as swift as they were strong to snatch the win.
In the best-of-three game, Nany and Gabby had to race to a suspended ring in the middle of the Crater, grab it and return it to a designated home base, plowing through their opponent en route if necessary. And for Gabby, a personal trainer, the game seemed a sure thing, as she carried Nany and the ring all the way to her post to earn her first point.
“There’s this moment where we lock eyes with each other,” Gabby said. “I need to stop playing nice.”
But something shifted after Gabby’s first point: Nany got tough too. Typically one to get frazzled by an early speedbump, Nany, instead, used the misstep as fuel, gritted her teeth and fought.
“In past eliminations, the moment I feel like I’m losing, I become mentally defeated,” Nany said. “This time, I refuse to let that happen.”
And after one of the best elimination rounds of the season, and two come-from-behind points, Nany won, earning the final women’s Gold Skull.
“Words can’t even describe how I feel right now,” she said as she broke down in tears.
Now, Nany, who proceeded to steal Fessy as a partner from Aneesa as part of her prize package, is in a solid spot. So can she keep riding the wave and win The Challenge? Or is it too soon to call, and is there still a chance she might stumble before it’s all over? Share your thoughts, and be sure to check out the next Double Agents episode Wednesday!
