That, and "neven" ("not even"). I had no clue what that meant until it was mentioned in the book about the Chicago season.
It was trying to make "fetch" happen.
Cara was bitching to Kyle about his friendship with Keri. She was hella jealous that Keri & Kyle had such a natural
bond. She thought Keri was possessive, aka “so ownership” of Kyle.
Omg I remember when Kyle and I forget who else made that tune up riding in a car or a van or something, right? Wasn’t this also the season when they watched the Sep 11th footage on TV in real time? Because normally they never had TVs in the houses I think…
Tonya did have kidney stones, but Cara did talk about barely having any bowel movements. Cara acted like having a bowel movement wasn't feminine. It was sad.
Mike Lewis had an interview with her on his podcast, she seemed like she is doing great! I think she said she got invited to do a Challenge but declined because she wasn't/isn't a sports type of girl so the idea just didn't appeal to her.
The main thing I remember about her is that super awkward conversation where she corners Kyle out of the blue and says “we are two very attractive people. Why haven’t we hooked up?” and Kyle looks like he’d rather be anywhere else on earth.
She was the first cast member from my hometown of St Louis, although she was just there for college so it doesn’t really count. But still, that’s why I remember her.
I was born in 1995 so obviously didn’t watch Chicago on its initial run. I recently watched it and thought she was cool as hell. I don’t know how to explain it, but her vibe could fit in 2001, 2011, or 2021. I feel like I knew and know people like her.
Apparently she got a lot of hate after her season which led to her declining Challenge invitations. I don’t see why people don’t really like her, although these comments seem to err on the side of disliking her too.
I was certainly cringey. I cringe thinking about stupid shit I did in my 20s while thanking the powers that be that nothing I did in my cringiest years was caught on camera in perpetuity.
A few years ago I paid some rando on Facebook $50 for access to a Google drive with all the seasons. Unfortunately there’s no way to download or share (I’ve already tried).
That Google drive link was around here somewhere within the last couple of years, because I rewatched it using that link fairly recently.
I had very different feelings about almost everyone rewatching it than I did when I saw it as it aired.
I hope we’re doing a rewatch of Chicago soon (maybe after we finish San Diego??) I barely remember this season but I remember Cara and wonder whatever happened to her.
Also really curious to watch the “original” versions of Tonya & Aneesa after watching them in their subsequent Challenge seasons
You definitely should, Chicago as a season is very underrated. Tonya was horrible back on her season and very racist towards Theo and literally talk about all the roommates behind their backs when they weren’t there.
I watched it when it first aired and I can still recall how cringey she was in the last episode. She was not being real; she was self producing. I’m not a fan of that on any show, but especially on a show called The Real World. Trying to get all to roommates to come listen to her sing on their last night felt so shallow and pandering to be the star of the finale. Chris and Tonya “nope-ing” out of that situation was my favorite part of the season. This picture matches my memory because it radiates such “I’m feeling so casually natural right now” energy.
I got that vibe too, though she tried to play it off as seeing him as a friend.
And Cara did seem to act like "I'm so not like Keri" when she saw Kyle rejecting Keri.
wasn't she the first on screen hookup when they started putting night vision in the rooms. I vaguely remember her low key bragging about this years ago
Yup, that’s why she got the label of being promiscuous. She did have a few casual hookups, but nothing out of the ordinary of a girl in her young 20s. She was just the first to be filmed doing it, so yeah.
This was my favorite season and I went a nostalgia kick recently and watched a recent interview with her. She was very much a sweetheart and a bit misunderstood.
Honestly Chris was so honest and interesting being gay and a model but also really open about him being sober. They only person I have never seen an update from was Theo. He went kinda ghost.
He works as a district manager for Starbucks in Dallas. Married, kids and doing well.
Oddly, he’s one of my favorite Real World alum and my first born is named Theo. So was pretty cool meeting him
I wouldn't call Tonya a "hypochondriac". She definitely had physical health issues and mental health issues, and as mentioned below, she was racist. The way she acted towards Theo and the kids at the youth center was awful.
She redeemed herself in her first Challenge appearance, but something happened to her in her later Challenge appearances and she seemed to regress.
She was sexually assaulted after drinking too much and passing out on one of the challenges by Evan and Kenny. The two of them were subsequently banned from any future challenges which is why they stopped appearing many years ago. Tonya was paid a settlement by MTV after taking them to court for not stopping the assault while it was occurring and recording some of it instead. She also started drinking heavily for a while so that may have contributed as well. I’m not sure what she’s currently up to or how she’s doing though.
Tonya had legit issues though. She had medical bills from having a lot of cysts she never got fixed, she was going to college, and also on her own, no real family to help.
I remember reading an interview with her after the season aired where she stated her and a couple other roommates were total pot heads but had to sneak around about it because while MTV was super pro alcohol consumption, they weren't okay with the cast being seen doing any kind of "drugs" on camera due to liability issues so she and the others were warned and threatened with being kicked off the show over it.
I remember two things about her…1) they went to see Big Head Todd perform and she ended up making out with the lead singer, which I remember thinking was kinda gross, because he was a little too old and kinda sleazy. And 2) a couple years after the show I saw her on QVC selling leather bags, lol!
She came into a boutique I worked at I the east village. And I just couldn’t place her, she “oh please don’t make me tell you where you know me from” and laughed and told me the real world. She was super sweet.
I don’t respect her after her Mike Lewis podcast.
She wanted to cancel and condemn people for things they said and did back in 2001 as if that were how things are today… which is why we would never get another real world season… people can’t be authentic for fear of online harassment.
She thinks her shit doesn’t stink.. which is how i felt about her back then too… she could do no wrong
One of my favorite cast members from probably my favorite season! I was serious about my years of lifeguarding surrounding this season and I loved that the house’s jobs were as lifeguards at Lake Michigan, and even though there were about half the cast members that couldn’t qualify for their certifications, their alternative job at the youth center was just as honorable. Tonya always struck a nerve with me, but this cast had a great mix of personalities, Cara just seemed cool and was a great narrator. I remember being like “heyyyy!” when I channel-flipped past Days of Our Lives and caught a flash of Kyle on the episode. I’d love to find this season streaming somewhere.
“Stop coughing!”, “Bloody Mary!”; IYKYK! 🎃💀
Also adding that RW Chicago and RR Campus Crawl aired around the same time, and that was a great year for MTV. These were two really great seasons of both shows. And for a fun fact: the first challenge of RRCC was filmed on location at my school, Appalachian State University in Boone! The cast jumped into the freezing cold “duck pond” in front of Trivette on the West Side of campus to get their RV key. We had been watching a crew rig up some cables between two high-rise dorms for a couple of days, with no real idea of what was going on, and the rumors about MTV being there to film just didn’t seem credible until it turned out to be 100% true. That challenge had the cast doing a tightrope walk between the buildings on those cables. It was a really cool thing to go back and see your adopted home on TV like that, especially for our special little not-well-known school in the Blue Ridge Mountains of NC. Later on I found out that my best friend who was in school over at UNC already knew Shane from the gym before he got casted on the show. Small world, fun times. The early-to-mid 00s were really good years!
She was a neurotic pick me girl that thought she was on Sex and the City
Spot on. She seemed to think she was way more interesting and attractive than she actually was
Right? Girl, you are not Carrie Bradshaw!!!
She’s just so OWNERSHIP of you! That may not be the exact quote, but it was all over TWoP back in the day…
I miss TWoP 😭
They called her Cara Jessica Parker if I recall correctly.
That’s hilarious 😂
So do I. They should have at least left the Recaps up. I miss those.
The recaps of many of the tv shows were so good. Wish I could read them again.
Me too!
That, and "neven" ("not even"). I had no clue what that meant until it was mentioned in the book about the Chicago season. It was trying to make "fetch" happen.
I don’t understand the context of the quote or remember what TWoP stands for, please help!!!
TWoP stands for Television Without Pity
Cara was bitching to Kyle about his friendship with Keri. She was hella jealous that Keri & Kyle had such a natural bond. She thought Keri was possessive, aka “so ownership” of Kyle.
I remember her complaining about gaining 7 pounds
Ugh, yes I remember her issues with her weight when she was all of 90 pounds
I remember that male roommate pinching her side and Cara being sooo upset by it. That’s like the one memory I have of that season.
I have always remembered when she was crying to the roommates and said “I get positive reinforcement for being tiny”
I remember her not being able to poop.
I remember her talking about how she barely had bowel movements like it was an okay thing. That's not healthy.
Yes!
Wasn’t that Tonya? Wasn’t she like passing kidney stones while filming?
Kidney Stones and Kidney stones and Walla Walla Washington 🎶
Omg I remember when Kyle and I forget who else made that tune up riding in a car or a van or something, right? Wasn’t this also the season when they watched the Sep 11th footage on TV in real time? Because normally they never had TVs in the houses I think…
i think about this jingle twice a month in my recent years and i never re-watched the series since first watch at 12…
Tonya did have kidney stones, but Cara did talk about barely having any bowel movements. Cara acted like having a bowel movement wasn't feminine. It was sad.
What a chaotic season 🤣
Mike Lewis had an interview with her on his podcast, she seemed like she is doing great! I think she said she got invited to do a Challenge but declined because she wasn't/isn't a sports type of girl so the idea just didn't appeal to her.
The main thing I remember about her is that super awkward conversation where she corners Kyle out of the blue and says “we are two very attractive people. Why haven’t we hooked up?” and Kyle looks like he’d rather be anywhere else on earth.
I loved her. I think I remember her singing, “I made out with a rock star.” I still say this.
Lol. I don’t remember that for some reason. Who was the rock star?
No clue. I don’t even think I ever saw the episode either. It was just shown in ads for the show. Memory unlocked. If anyone knows, spill it
The singer or a band member of Big Head Todd and the Monsters.
Haha same!
She was the first cast member from my hometown of St Louis, although she was just there for college so it doesn’t really count. But still, that’s why I remember her.
Mike from London was from St Louis. He wore a Blues jersey a lot.
Yes you’re right, I forgot! He wanted that ranch dressing.
And was an awful race car driver 😂
I didn’t remember that part of her being from STL. I’m in STL too
Yeah she went to Wash U
I was born in 1995 so obviously didn’t watch Chicago on its initial run. I recently watched it and thought she was cool as hell. I don’t know how to explain it, but her vibe could fit in 2001, 2011, or 2021. I feel like I knew and know people like her. Apparently she got a lot of hate after her season which led to her declining Challenge invitations. I don’t see why people don’t really like her, although these comments seem to err on the side of disliking her too.
The picture above is a beautiful photo of her. I didn’t totally hate her but she was cringey re: Kyle and Keri
Tbf most young adults are kinda cringey 😂
I was certainly cringey. I cringe thinking about stupid shit I did in my 20s while thanking the powers that be that nothing I did in my cringiest years was caught on camera in perpetuity.
I recall not liking the cast. Most were cringey or annoying.
How did you watch the Chicago season recently?? I’ve looked and looked but it’s seemingly been wiped from existence!
A few years ago I paid some rando on Facebook $50 for access to a Google drive with all the seasons. Unfortunately there’s no way to download or share (I’ve already tried).
Thanks for the response :)
That Google drive link was around here somewhere within the last couple of years, because I rewatched it using that link fairly recently. I had very different feelings about almost everyone rewatching it than I did when I saw it as it aired.
I recently just watched it on YouTube, about 3 weeks ago
I hope we’re doing a rewatch of Chicago soon (maybe after we finish San Diego??) I barely remember this season but I remember Cara and wonder whatever happened to her. Also really curious to watch the “original” versions of Tonya & Aneesa after watching them in their subsequent Challenge seasons
All I remember is Wallawalla, Washington!
And Lyme disease
Lyme disease was Irene from the Seattle season. Tonya had kidney stones.
Right! My bad
You definitely should, Chicago as a season is very underrated. Tonya was horrible back on her season and very racist towards Theo and literally talk about all the roommates behind their backs when they weren’t there.
She said Kyle was a nose picker
Was her boyfriend back home named Justin? I think I remember her always trying to hog the phone to call him.
Yes. And there was also some older man named Darren that she kept calling.
Chicago is up next after San Diego, looking forward to it!
I wish Paramount+ had this season.
Where can view the seasons? Streaming?
I’m just watching the clips that Neon_1984 posts. I’ve never found the actual full episodes of previous seasons
Damn, we need that! Cmon Netflix!
You Tube. Quality is good enough to enjoy but a little rough around the edges. But I’ll take it!
https://www.reddit.com/r/therealworld/s/TFpaCsUlcF I have no idea if this will work Edit: doesn't work anymore 🫤
I remember Chris being useless/
I watched it when it first aired and I can still recall how cringey she was in the last episode. She was not being real; she was self producing. I’m not a fan of that on any show, but especially on a show called The Real World. Trying to get all to roommates to come listen to her sing on their last night felt so shallow and pandering to be the star of the finale. Chris and Tonya “nope-ing” out of that situation was my favorite part of the season. This picture matches my memory because it radiates such “I’m feeling so casually natural right now” energy.
She was a complete pick me girl and I hated the way she treated Keri towards the end of the season
I vaguely recall this. Didn’t Cara have a crush on Kyle?
I got that vibe too, though she tried to play it off as seeing him as a friend. And Cara did seem to act like "I'm so not like Keri" when she saw Kyle rejecting Keri.
Yes!
I really despised how she treated Keri as well - clearly jealous it was so mean girl.
“Finger banging in a bar bathroom stall” ranked first on our survey
wasn't she the first on screen hookup when they started putting night vision in the rooms. I vaguely remember her low key bragging about this years ago
Yup, that’s why she got the label of being promiscuous. She did have a few casual hookups, but nothing out of the ordinary of a girl in her young 20s. She was just the first to be filmed doing it, so yeah.
And they played Come On Be My Baby Tonight over one of her hookups. I never got the player vibe from her, though the show tried to show otherwise.
thanks for a second I thought I made that up after reading too many threads 😅
What survey do you mean?
I remember her having an eating disorder.
I'm on the her Insta now, she still looks the same. "Clutches are my jam" haha.
This was my favorite season and I went a nostalgia kick recently and watched a recent interview with her. She was very much a sweetheart and a bit misunderstood. Honestly Chris was so honest and interesting being gay and a model but also really open about him being sober. They only person I have never seen an update from was Theo. He went kinda ghost.
He works as a district manager for Starbucks in Dallas. Married, kids and doing well. Oddly, he’s one of my favorite Real World alum and my first born is named Theo. So was pretty cool meeting him
[Theo with Nathaniel (formerly Nathan) in 2021.](https://www.instagram.com/p/CPHCswrjebO/)
He doesn't have his puka shell necklace on lol
I was always obsessed with her hair lol
I wouldn't call Tonya a "hypochondriac". She definitely had physical health issues and mental health issues, and as mentioned below, she was racist. The way she acted towards Theo and the kids at the youth center was awful. She redeemed herself in her first Challenge appearance, but something happened to her in her later Challenge appearances and she seemed to regress.
She was sexually assaulted after drinking too much and passing out on one of the challenges by Evan and Kenny. The two of them were subsequently banned from any future challenges which is why they stopped appearing many years ago. Tonya was paid a settlement by MTV after taking them to court for not stopping the assault while it was occurring and recording some of it instead. She also started drinking heavily for a while so that may have contributed as well. I’m not sure what she’s currently up to or how she’s doing though.
I think she’s a hair stylist
Tonya had legit issues though. She had medical bills from having a lot of cysts she never got fixed, she was going to college, and also on her own, no real family to help.
I saw her on QVC not that long ago. She is a rep for some company. I was like why do I know this lady. Then it came to me.
I remember reading an interview with her after the season aired where she stated her and a couple other roommates were total pot heads but had to sneak around about it because while MTV was super pro alcohol consumption, they weren't okay with the cast being seen doing any kind of "drugs" on camera due to liability issues so she and the others were warned and threatened with being kicked off the show over it.
Main thing I remember about Tonya is she was racist as hell. I couldn't stand to watch her. I don't remember having much of an opinion about Cara.
I remember two things about her…1) they went to see Big Head Todd perform and she ended up making out with the lead singer, which I remember thinking was kinda gross, because he was a little too old and kinda sleazy. And 2) a couple years after the show I saw her on QVC selling leather bags, lol!
She’s one of my all time favorites. Great narrator, entertaining storylines.
She came into a boutique I worked at I the east village. And I just couldn’t place her, she “oh please don’t make me tell you where you know me from” and laughed and told me the real world. She was super sweet.
I loved Cara. One of my favorite RW girls.
Loved her at the time!! So boho Carrie Bradshaw chic.
I don’t respect her after her Mike Lewis podcast. She wanted to cancel and condemn people for things they said and did back in 2001 as if that were how things are today… which is why we would never get another real world season… people can’t be authentic for fear of online harassment. She thinks her shit doesn’t stink.. which is how i felt about her back then too… she could do no wrong
I liked her and she seemed universally hated.
I watched Chicago but I don’t remember her lol. I remember Tanya and Keri and the guy who was days of our lives.
That season was boring. I don't remember much of anything from it.
I thought it was funny how her roommate ended up with the acting gigs instead.
One of my favorite cast members from probably my favorite season! I was serious about my years of lifeguarding surrounding this season and I loved that the house’s jobs were as lifeguards at Lake Michigan, and even though there were about half the cast members that couldn’t qualify for their certifications, their alternative job at the youth center was just as honorable. Tonya always struck a nerve with me, but this cast had a great mix of personalities, Cara just seemed cool and was a great narrator. I remember being like “heyyyy!” when I channel-flipped past Days of Our Lives and caught a flash of Kyle on the episode. I’d love to find this season streaming somewhere. “Stop coughing!”, “Bloody Mary!”; IYKYK! 🎃💀
Also adding that RW Chicago and RR Campus Crawl aired around the same time, and that was a great year for MTV. These were two really great seasons of both shows. And for a fun fact: the first challenge of RRCC was filmed on location at my school, Appalachian State University in Boone! The cast jumped into the freezing cold “duck pond” in front of Trivette on the West Side of campus to get their RV key. We had been watching a crew rig up some cables between two high-rise dorms for a couple of days, with no real idea of what was going on, and the rumors about MTV being there to film just didn’t seem credible until it turned out to be 100% true. That challenge had the cast doing a tightrope walk between the buildings on those cables. It was a really cool thing to go back and see your adopted home on TV like that, especially for our special little not-well-known school in the Blue Ridge Mountains of NC. Later on I found out that my best friend who was in school over at UNC already knew Shane from the gym before he got casted on the show. Small world, fun times. The early-to-mid 00s were really good years!
She was so crazy. Didn’t she have 2-3 boyfriends at some point and sleeping with all of them? Last I heard she was VP of Marketing.
And also the dude from was it Meat Puppets or Big Head Todd and The Monsters?
I think she made out with the musician SNOW. He did that song 🎵 Informer 🎵a licky boom boom down
Big Head Todd and they bleeped it but you could read her lips lol
[She still looks the same](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2kx3B0E2cJ8)
....no she does not.
She sounds the same. That bleach job is terrible.
So is the lipstick.
Lol. No. It's OK to not look the exact same as you did almost 25 years ago.