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The Fox reality show Kicking & Screaming pairs hardcore survivalists with people who have little experience in the outdoors. Now that Eagle Scout Terry Fossum has made it deep into the show, I’ll recap every episode until he’s eliminated.
New episodes air at 9/8 CT Thursdays on Fox. Note: The show is rated TV-14, so parents are cautioned against letting children under the age of 14 watch unattended.
Scouts become more confident with each night spent outdoors.
The same, apparently, is true of the camping novices on Kicking & Screaming. Six episodes in, with just four teams remaining, it’s becoming harder to tell the outdoorsmen from the newbies.
Terry Fossum, an active Scouter from the state of Washington who competes wearing his field uniform, has seen this transformation in his partner, Natalie, a professional gamer.
“Things have changed so, so, so much since day one,” he says. “It’s amazing. Day 1 we had novices. We don’t have any novices in camp anymore.”
OK, great. But is that enough to keep Terry and Natalie in the competition and fighting for the top prize of $500,000?
Let’s find out. Press play on your favorite neoclassic piano CD as I serve up your complete recap of Kicking & Screaming Episode 6: “Real Men Cry.”
Spoilers follow.
Pack your bags
Who’s ready for a hike? Host Hannah Simone tells the teams that they’re moving their camp from the river to the beach.
It’s about time, really. When you think Fiji, you think the beach. So this move is a definite upgrade.
Hannah tells Ben (an Air Force specialist) and Juliana (a model), winners of last week’s elimination challenge, to pick a team to send to this week’s elimination challenge. They pick Jason (a former Recon Marine) and Elaine (an etiquette expert).
Elaine thinks Ben and Juliana made a mistake and should’ve sent Terry and Natalie, who “are getting stronger with each competition.”
At this, Terry and Natalie exchange a silent glance that says “who, us?”
Winning would be sweet
Winners of this week’s prize challenge will get the following: piles of candy, fresh fruit, a white chocolate fountain, ice cream and at least three cavities. The sweet spread is enough candy to keep any Scout awake for 96 hours straight.
Joined at the hip (literally), teammates make their way through an obstacle course to reach something called the coconut cauldron. Translation: It’s a bin full of coconuts.
They’ll need to gather as many as they can before shooting at a target with a giant slingshot.
First team to hit the target gets the prize and is safe for another week. The last team heads to the elimination challenge against Jason and Elaine.
Terry and Natalie start off slow and never quite recover. They’re headed to the elimination challenge, but Terry is optimistic.
“It’s never great going in for the elimination, but, again, we’re a strong team,” he says. “We’ll go out there and do our best and whatever’s supposed to happen is going to happen.”
Wilderness survivors
A new camp needs a new shelter. But this time, the tables have turned.
The novices build the shelter while the survivalists gather supplies — palm fronds, sticks and branches.
Terry is impressed. He says he’d trust any of these amateurs, especially his partner, Natalie, in the wild. Maybe there are some future Wilderness Survival merit badge counselors among them?
“These guys could now kick butt on most of the population for survival skills,” Terry says.
Divas? There aren't any of those here! #KickingAndScreaming pic.twitter.com/ZYqiB8tDF0
— Kicking & Screaming (@KickScreamFOX) April 14, 2017
Time for some honesty
Each contestant tells a fact about themselves that nobody else knows.
I’ll be 50 next year, one woman reveals. Another opened up about his recent breakup with his fiancé. Then it’s Terry’s turn.
“I composed and performed a neoclassic piano CD that went up to the International Space Station,” he says.
Oh. Oh wow. That came from nowhere, Terry. Is there anything you can’t do?
‘Every single ounce’
“Today we go to our second elimination challenge,” Terry says. “Our goal is they have to carry us away on a stretcher because we’ve got nothing left. Because we gave every single ounce of it during the challenge.”
The winning team stays in and gets to pick a team to send to the next elimination challenge.
The losing team, in a twist, also stays in! Yep, nobody’s going home tonight.
The challenge is pretty cool. Each team member gets a multicolored pole. Working together on opposite sides of a tile, teammates press those poles against the tile to hold it aloft.
Imagine using two pool cue sticks to hold up an iPad. It’s kind of like that. (Just imagine. Don’t actually try it.)
Winning will require patience, calm nerves and communication. Naturally, Terry is encouraging throughout.
“It’s too easy to mess up on this one when you’re moving your hands,” he says. “It’s truly all about communication, and we were communicating throughout the whole stinking thing.”
Every 10 minutes, the players have to move their hands farther down the pole — and farther away from the tile. Each move makes it more difficult to keep the tile aloft.
Terry and Natalie keep talking throughout — previewing each move and swapping words of encouragement.
“Teamwork makes the dream work,” Natalie says.
“That’s what I’m talking about,” Terry says.
Forty minutes in, it’s time to move even further down the pole. Now each team member is about six to eight feet from that tile. Oh good, and it’s starting to get windy as well.
And like that, Jason and Elaine drop their tile. Terry and Natalie have won another elimination challenge.
What does that mean? That means they get “ultimate power” next week. Yes, ULTIMATE POWER.
What would food, a shower, and a good night's sleep feel like 4 @TheZombiUnicorn & @TerryLFossum ? AIN'T GONNA HAPPEN!#KickingAndScreaming pic.twitter.com/rlgBxdPWGV
— Terry L. Fossum (@TerryLFossum) April 13, 2017
With two episodes to go, they’re still in this thing. That’s the good news.
The bad news? The margin for error is shrinking.
Stray observations
- As the contestants ate dinner, I spotted a Dutch oven. Nice. I have to assume Terry had some sort of role in making dinner that night.
- Just how many people have been watching Terry make his fellow Scouters proud on national TV? Last week’s show had 1.96 million viewers. That’s a lot of eyeballs.
Missed an episode?
Watch full episodes and learn more about Kicking and Screaming here.
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