Half of the unique contestants have now gone dwelling on The Problem: All Stars Rivals. On Wednesday (March 19) night time’s new episode, it was Ashley Kelsey and Dario Medrano who discovered themselves packing their baggage after being defeated in a puzzle elimination by Nany Gonzales and Turabi “Turbo” Çamkıran. They got here fairly near profitable the each day problem, which noticed them coasting off of a cliff on a four-wheeler, but it surely was Adam Larson and Steve Meinke who received it accomplished the quickest, and Ashley and Dario discovered themselves focused in the home vote.
Ashley and Dario had an fascinating story to share this season; whereas a number of the different “rivals” pairings had been by way of extra minor tiffs, they had been in a long-term relationship with each other that led to heartbreak. They every got here into the season with different long-standing private relationships — Ashley with fellow Actual World: San Diego alums Frank Sweeney and Sam McGinn and Dario with real-life bestie Leroy Garrett — however that didn’t assist them keep away from the world. In actual fact, Dario’s choice to show his again on Leroy and companion Devin Walker led to an explosive blowup between Dario and Devin that may’ve put them at odds with others in the home.
So how was it for the 2 to attempt to forge a brand new relationship collectively as teammates this season — all whereas navigating a home filled with OG Problem veterans? And what didn’t we get to see about their time on this season? TV Insider chatted with each to seek out out.
On their present relationship standing…
Dario confirmed, with out mincing phrases, that these two are simply associates at this level. “Ashley and I are associates. That’s form of what that’s. And she or he’s elevating her daughter, doing an ideal job. I’m in South Florida, and yeah, there’s nothing between us,” he defined.
Ashley confirmed as a lot as effectively, including, “The factor is, I’m in such a special place now. I’ve a baby and I take that very critically. I don’t simply let anyone into my life. I haven’t even dated since me and her dad broke up, and I’m like, ‘You reside in Florida, logistically this isn’t gonna make any sense anyhow,’ and that was one thing that was buried within the grave… I feel we’re in place now that we’re simply associates, and we will talk now, and I feel that’s approach higher.”
On their reactions to being paired collectively…
“I used to be sick. I used to be bodily unwell,” Ashley stated of her preliminary response to discovering out she’d be with Dario this season. “It was as a result of I hadn’t seen the person so lengthy. Six years of no communication. I’m speaking like, ‘Bye,’ walked out the door. I haven’t seen him, talked, nothing. So I used to be like, ‘My coronary heart,’ you realize what I imply? And particularly as a result of he was somebody that I actually liked, so I’m like, ‘Oh gosh, I don’t know the way that is gonna go.’”
For Dario, the response was rather less dramatic, although. He stated he skilled “confusion” over the pairing however added, “I simply hadn’t seen her in so lengthy. I didn’t know what to anticipate… I wasn’t essentially fearful as a result of I knew that she was an excellent good individual and there wouldn’t be any confrontation.”
On how they realized to be companions differently…
Despite the fact that they didn’t rekindle something romantic on All Stars, Ashley and Dario did type a strong crew mentality collectively and left in a greater place.
As Ashley defined, “I all the time knew we might work effectively collectively as a result of we truly had been a extremely good partnership in life like once we had been collectively. There’s clearly the explanation why we didn’t work out, however I knew that was by no means going to be a problem. However what the difficulty I assumed was going to be is that we weren’t going to speak very effectively as a result of we didn’t actually hang around exterior the sport. So I preferred that like all through our journey, that form of modified and shifted from us simply taking part in within the challenges and form of going our separate methods in the home to us like truly consuming dinner collectively, and he cooked me like breakfast. So it was a pleasant little transition. You may see the evolution occurring [throughout the season].”
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On the alliance we didn’t see…
Followers of Actual World: San Diego and Battle of the Seasons could be questioning why Ashley didn’t get extra of an help from Frank and Sam, however in response to her, there was extra to the story than met the attention.
“We had been working collectively the whole time. I feel individuals simply didn’t see it,” she stated. “Within the elimination the place I went within the first time, I truly advised Frank to say our title proper there in entrance of all people as a result of I knew we had been getting into, and I used to be like, ‘Say our title. Don’t put your playing cards on the market. That’d be so silly.’ Everybody heard me say it… He was truly actually upset as a result of he was like, ‘I’d not need anyone to ever suppose that I’d try this to you as a result of I completely wouldn’t,’” she defined. “We had been working collectively rather a lot nearer than it seems… However it was so good to have them again as a result of I additionally realized it was good to have my quantity ones the place I knew they had been going to have our backs it doesn’t matter what. Within the sport, you’ll be able to say that you’ll, however like to really really feel in your coronary heart that they’re not gonna go towards you is like the perfect feeling within the sport.”
On the drama that ensued with Leroy and Devin…
Dario went together with a plot to ship Leroy and Devin in, which led to an explosive confrontation with Devin. So does he remorse his transfer? You betcha!
Dario revealed that he and Leroy have cleared the air about his participation in that plot, however he nonetheless needs it wouldn’t have occurred. “We’re nonetheless very shut. He stated to me that there was nothing that I might have accomplished or would do that may ever change our relationship, however that actually bothered me,” Dario stated. “All I might do is admittedly clarify the place I used to be coming from and my thought course of so far as simply taking part in the sport. If I might return, I’d positively change some issues. Hindsight is 20/20. It’s by no means a illustration of how I really feel about him, our relationship. It wasn’t malicious, it wasn’t. It wasn’t like I voted him in. I simply want I’d have given him a heads up, and it was only a egocentric thought, however all you are able to do is transfer previous it, acknowledge it. We’ve spoken about it in depth. And that i’s simply a kind of issues. We’ll transfer on.”
As for Devin, effectively, Dario defined, “I received just a little emotional. I feel within the second, particularly when it’s somebody you care about, you’ll be able to let your feelings get the perfect of you, and that’s form of what occurred. Devin was simply searching for his crew, and I perceive that, and I simply form of misplaced my cool in that second, however that’s actuality TV. ”
Ashley, alternatively, thinks Devin deserves a share of the blame for his or her shouting match: “I by no means noticed that pool scene till I watched it on TV. I didn’t even know that it occurred, however that’s the place the communication was just a little rocky with me and Dario as a result of I didn’t know he had form of outed himself in a approach. He was by no means making an attempt to gun for them. That’s the large false impression. He simply knew that Frank was going to make it occur, and he was making it occur as a result of everybody collectively within the full home needed it to occur as a result of we wanted one of many two groups gone. Did we choose them to remain? After all,” she stated. “It made it appear to be he was actually concentrating on on Leroy, which he wasn’t. And the entire struggle began with him having a dialog with Leroy about what was happening — as a result of it form of got here out just a little bit, clearly as a result of he’d outed himself I clearly now see that — however Corey [Lay] stated one thing. In order that they had been having a dialog, after which clearly Devin came to visit, and the entire thing began when he was simply form of making an attempt to simply discuss to Leroy as a buddy. And I feel it didn’t must escalate. If it simply stayed between them, then I feel Leroy would have been like, ‘I get it. I get what’s making an attempt to go down in the home proper now.’”
On dealing with Nany and Turbo within the enviornment…
Ashley and Dario emerged victorious of their first elimination bout towards Corey and Massive T, however that also didn’t give them a confidence increase once they went in towards Nany and Turbo.
“I used to be not assured in that elimination, and it form of confirmed,” Ashley stated. “I’m excellent at puzzles, however I didn’t go first, and we thought we had been gonna have like in all probability 5 – 6 rounds. We thought it was gonna go rather a lot longer, so we thought I’d be capable to form of like get in there, however since I didn’t go first, Dario had the puzzle extra, and he’s not assured in them… And we had been getting into with Turbo, who’s the puzzle king, who whips by way of this stuff so quick, which we had simply witnessed with Fessy and Amber, and that’s form of what he does in all of the Survivor reveals. He performs these puzzle video games, so I used to be like, ‘Oh nice.’ They usually’re such a powerful crew. Nany has received 1,000,000 eliminations. So clearly my confidence was fairly minimal in there, and I feel it translated just a little bit.”
“I knew that they had been an ideal crew. They’ve been across the block. Turbo is sweet at virtually all the things, so is Nany,” Dario added. “So I knew it was gonna be a troublesome matchup. However puzzles aren’t essentially my robust go well with, so it wasn’t a sport that I felt assured about as soon as I noticed it. However these are two worthy opponents, and should you can beat these two, then it might have given us loads of confidence to form of proceed ahead.”
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On being a part of All Stars and attending to play with some true OGs of the present…
Ashley has been part of The Problem since Battle of the Seasons in 2012, and Dario first joined in 2015 with Battle of the Bloodlines. So each have been round for greater than a decade, however nonetheless, being on All Stars meant competing towards a number of the present’s most senior vets, and each mirrored on that have.
“It was an ideal expertise. It’s a big selection of ages. I used to be on the youthful facet of the group, however total, everybody’s coming from totally different walks of life,” Dario stated. “Lots of people have children and households, and a few of these guys I grew up watching. So it’s an excellent cool expertise. It was an ideal expertise, and total, it was an ideal good thing to be part of.”
Ashley had the same sentiment, saying, “It was truly actually cool as a result of I had by no means met Katie [Cooley]. So what’s what’s humorous — and which is a destructive too for me — is I hadn’t watched her gameplay. I had clearly seen Veronica [Portillo] in Champs vs. Professionals, however I wasn’t there very lengthy along with her, and I nonetheless didn’t get to see her gameplay there. And I used to be like, ‘Oh you sneaky factor!’ I didn’t know that’s what she’s nice at. I didn’t know she’s nice at inflicting the chaos. Katie, I had no thought. I went again and watched some issues afterwards, and I used to be like, ‘You’re just a little loopy individual!’ However she’s so candy and like loving, and I liked her a lot. It was actually enjoyable to get to play with some those who I by no means thought I’d, but in addition I ought to have like accomplished just a little extra analysis. I wanted to know a few of their previous gameplay as a result of it does assist to know form of who’s screwed somebody over earlier than.”
The Problem, Wednesdays, 9/8c, MTV