The highly anticipated reality show “Beyond The Edge” premiered last night (March 16), and country music hitmakers Lauren Alaina and Craig Morgan left reality TV junkies in pure disbelief.
The “Getting Over Him” singer entered the dangerous competition in full force and with a positive attitude. While working off her team members’ strengths and weaknesses, the “American Idol” alum brought her team to victory with her impressive puzzle-solving skills.
While Alaina excelled in episode one, Craig Morgan’s military qualities did not go unnoticed. During the first challenge, each team made their way through quicksand-like mud. As his team struggled to swim, “The Real Housewives of New York City” star Eboni K. William got stuck within the muck. Thankfully, Morgan rescued her and encouraged the TV personality to forge forward.
Morgan’s risk-taking personality did not come as a surprise, as he was a soldier in the United States military. While serving, he worked alongside the CIA in Panama and combatted sex traffickers in Thailand.
In just one episode, the CBS binge proves that it is the most dramatic, suspenseful, and mind-blowing celebrity game on TV. Keep scrolling to learn more about “Beyond The Edge” and catch up on the action-packed premiere.
About The Show
Nine celebrities brave the Panama jungle in the new “Survivor”- style reality show, “Beyond The Edge.” The group of A-listers step outside their comfort zones and face brutal conditions to raise money for their chosen charities. For two weeks, the contestants are encouraged to team up to compete in rigorous challenges and embark on adventures while surviving in horrifying weather conditions.
“Beyond The Edge” is not your typical competition show, as there are no judges or eliminations. In fact, each participant has the power to remove themselves from the competition by ringing a bell to signal that they are ready to go home.
For each day the contestant withstands and for every difficult challenge they win with their team, the celebrity will earn money for their desired foundation. At 14 days, the two top earners will compete against each other in one final adventure for the championship title. The winner will score the most money for their charity.
The Host
Mauro Ranallo – Showtime Sports Announcer
The Teams
Blue Team:
Craig Morgan – Country Superstar/ Charity: Operation Family Home
Paulina Porizkova – Supermodel/ Charity: ACLU Foundation
Eboni K. William – “The Real Housewives of New York City” Personality/ Charity: Safe Horizon
Ray Lewis – Super Bowl MVP/ Charity: John Hopkins Children’s Center
Mike Singletary – NFL Legend/ Charity: Changing Our Perspective
Red Team:
Lauren Alaina – Country Superstar / Charity: The Next Door
Metta World Peace – NBA Champion/ Charity: Artest University
Jodie Sweetin – “Full House” Actress / Charity: Girls INC.
Colton Underwood – “The Bachelor” Personality / Charity: Colton Underwood Legacy Foundation
Team Captians
Blue Team Captain: Paulina Porizkova
Red Team Captain: Jodie Sweetin
First Adventure
The competition was hot right from the start, as Mauro Ranallo asked the beloved celebrities to pick two team captains as their “epic first adventure.” Supermodel Paulina Porizkova became the head of the five-member blue team, and Hollywood actress Jodie Sweetin took charge of the four-person red team.
The first challenge was a physically and mentally draining task, as they had to travel through the exotic Panamanian jungle with poisonous animals and creepy crawlers to win $20,000 for their charities. While supporting each other, the red and blue teams had to swim through open water, muddy swamps, and push a crate on rolling logs through the wilderness.
The members had to grab the supplies in the crate and manage to place them on a real-life mule. Following the rigorous mission, they had to carefully paddle out into a blue lagoon filled with wildlife to obtain directions on how to put together a puzzle.
Both teams dominated the first three undertakings quickly, but the blue team fell short when they had to decide to take a short or long route to a secretive clue. The team went against their captain and decided to take the short path – leaving them behind in the competition.
The red team featuring puzzle mastermind Lauren Alaina helped speed up the process with the clue in hand. The country music artist shared that she enjoys solving puzzles when not on the road touring.
The Winner
The red team took home the win for the first challenge. Each member of the group received $4k for their specific charities. The red team did not just walk away with money, but they scored themselves a luxury spa day as a bonus. However, everyone received $2K for surviving the day in the harsh living conditions.
The Nightly Meeting
Once the challenge was completed, both teams returned to basecamp.
Following every daring competition, the group meets to debrief and express how they are internally feeling. During the honest and open conversation, Eboni K. William confessed that she feels like she’s holding back her team. Peace declared that he was afraid of the dark, Underwood was terrified of the lurking animals, and Paulina contemplated whether or not to ring the bell.
With the support from one another, they all decided to stay and stick it out.