User blog comment:Rhonda the stalker fan!/Total Drama 30 Day Challenge: Day 10/@comment-1441098-20180713020634

I'll be more specific in a sec, but my favorite thing about TDWT was just the first stretch of episodes from Egypt to London. I really think that's the best stretch the series has ever produced, since it's got EVERYTHING. Some of the more overexposed characters either got shoved out early when they were growing stale (i.e. Duncan) or got new plots/interactions/development to keep them from growing stale (Heather, Owen). The traveling theme was awesome, the songs were unironically great, and visiting a new country each episode really benefitted the challenges/interactions. The two new characters fit in perfectly, and although Alejandro's Villain Stu-esque nature was a liiiittle too much later on, he was a great foil for the other, weirder characters on his team. Speaking of that, the three-team dynamic felt new and fresh, and even though there was a team entirely made up of fodder, the other two had so much to offer and their interactions were always hilarious.

And finally! Let me just say that the idea of bringing back some of the most underutilized characters in the series (Noah, Tyler, Cody, and Ezekiel) and fleshing them out was AMAZING, even if it was more in theory than in practice. They really made Tyler, Noah, and Cody feel like real, important members of the cast, and allowed each of them to shine so well (with Noah becoming one of the most popular characters in the series, Tyler being a huge fan favorite, and Cody... well, existing, I guess). I'm not going to get started with what they did to Ezekiel (that's my LEAST favorite part of TDWT!) but at least his showing in the premiere was one of the funniest one-episode appearances I've seen. Even though things got a little more unbalanced later on when it was just the Heather/Alejandro plot ft. Sierra and the love triangle, this first stretch really just made TDWT feel like an ensemble cast, and a great one at that. Everyone had at least one funny moment per episode and it just felt so new and fresh.