Random Tough Enough Bio Tidbit: Chris Ni. isn't just the "psycho southern Bapist" guy, he's also the "graphic design major with inner strength."  Again, I cheated. 

There might have been an open, but MTV can't tell time. My tape goes from Booker T (close enough to grab the ropes) about to give it up to the end of the "previously on Tough Enough."

Trax. We pick up right where we left off, right after Darryl got cut. Al's sad that they had to cut someone, but hopeful it'll give motivation to the rest not to get cut. Push ups. Chris Ni. says everyone was on edge that day - "it could've been any of us. I had it in my head that it could've been me." Sure. Hey, Paulina, you're supposed to lift up your legs on the push ups. No fair. Al makes Shadrick redo some exercise he didn't do right. Shadrick is going slow. He says he's the underdog right now.

Ring work - drop toe holds and somersault back bumps. We focus on Shadrick, of course - he's still not landing right. He keeps on coming down hard on his right side instead of landing flat back. Miss Jackie tells us that she hopes Shadrick does well; he's a nice guy and he wants it really bad. Adding this to what happened in to the preview and you can figure out what's coming.

Josh (wearing a Shawn Michaels T-Shirt) gets to be the example dummy for Tazz. He gets a single leg takedown, and Tazz shows how to apply a single leg and holds strong on to the leg. Al says he did a good job with the fall. Josh tells us that knowing this is a competition and that people will be cut, you have to work as hard as you can. Tazz and Josh do the takedown/leg hold again, and demonstrates how to turn it over into a single leg Boston Crab. Al say that Josh is at a slight disadvantage because of his size, but that just means he's got to work harder. Josh tries the single leg Boston Crab on Maven. 

More practicing the move. Nidia takes Chris Ni down, and Al tells them to stop right there. Not to point out Nidia's ever present nipples, but to point out that after three weeks of learning how to fall, Chris Ni. forget everything at once. Tazz: "This is horrible. This is why you run at Tori and at Jackie and they push you; to learn how to fall at any time. At any time! I could be in the god dam[bleep]n supermarket, and slip on milk in the frozen food aisle, I swear to god, and I fall the right way." Chris Ni. tells us that he thought he was going to come in here and breeze through everything via his natural ability and he's finding out that's not so true.

Mansion, and people talk on the phone. Nidia says she had a horrible day, and everyone's so beat up. Paulina says she's hanging in. We cut off Paulina before she says "I'm not sure if I can do it", I assume. Chris Ni. says he's just resting from a hard day. Chris No. says it's been a tough week, so they wanted to have a great time. 

Just to remind you that you're watching MTV, let's take the group to a strip club! The group (and Big) go to a place calls Lucky Chengs. Taylor says it was fun. Chris tells us that he's never been to a place with a complete transvestite staff. Nidia says that Big bought her a lap dance, and we get to see that. Taylor said they got a lesson in diversity in a positive way. The hostess (sure) convinces Greg (and Chris No.) to go strip. That's not really explained to well, but Greg decides to go do it, and goes down to his underwear. And then Chris No. does. Greg can pull of the stripper act much better than Chris can. You kinda wonder if either of them actually would bother if they weren't concerned with being judged 24 hours a day.

Then, and I'm getting really bored, they convince Maven to dress up in drag, and he decides to go do it. Hey look, it's a guy in drag! Maven dances on a stage, and Greg slips ones (maybe ones he made stripping) into his shoes. Nidia: "You're one hot woman!" Chris No. tells us Maven will never live that down. Chris Ni. "He makes a great looking woman, and I want his number!" Enough out of you. Back to the wrestling!

Trax. Tori's giving the kids hiptosses. We stop on Shadrick's again (oh no) and he's not doing it right. Tori sounds really frustrated and angry with Shadrick, because he's using her shoulder (her repaired shoulder?) to get over for the flip, and hitting her with her free arm on the way down. Shadrick says that he's thinking too much about what's on the line. Try again, and Shadrick does it again. Al and Tazz talk to him - he needs to get his head on straight. Break.

Mansion. Maven is on the phone, to his mom, I guess. "There's gonna be on episode of the show that you can not watch." "Why?" "Uh, that night we went out to a restaurant, it turned out to be a drag queen restaurant." Maven tells us his mom's proud of him. Maven tells his mom that he dressed up like a girl and his mom think that'd be pretty funny. Maven says it was pretty funny. Not as funny watching it on TV, I guess. Maven tells us his mom is really supportive and happy for him. Maven's mom worries about his back, and Maven says he's not worried about it. Maven's mom swears, in joke, at him, and he surprised, but then thinks it's funny because she said the wrong word. Of course, when the conversation is centered around a swear word, it's bleeped out enough that you can't tell what the word is. Best guess? Dyke (and given MTV's anti-hate campaign, that would explain why it'd get special attention.)

Big is here, with tapes of RAW and Smackdown. Chris Ni. says they're no watching more for the technical things, not just the entertainment value. He imagines himself on TV - maybe not as strong as those who are there, but there, and it pushes him. Big asks why Josh isn't here: "He talks about this thing more than anyone." Nidia (and someone else) says that Josh can't watch this with people. Paulina says something but the sound from the TV drowns it out. I think Shadrick says that Josh doesn't like watching with casual fans. Or maybe Josh is a casual fan. I dunno. Big calls Josh into the room, while Josh tells us that Big got the wrong idea about why he doesn't watch with them. Josh tells Big that he doesn't like watching it with other people. Big: "Why?" Josh: "I dunno." Hey, you had your chance. In the midst of this discussion and loud TV playing, Taylor is asleep on the couch. Josh says that people will say that, when he's watching it with the group, people will say one of the wrestlers took the bump wrong, but they're just learning what's going on these guys have been wrestling for years, "That's ridiculous. Pisses me off." Hey, this argument seems familair. I think they made Josh stay and watch with them. 

Morning and the mansion. It wouldn't be an episode without people sleeping. No one on a couch, though Chris No. might have fallen asleep in the hot tub. No shots of people fixing food. Maven calls in to check on his mom - she's recovering from extensive bone marrow cancer in January and he's worried about her. She seems to be okay. Maven says his mom is his life - she's everything to him.

Trax. The contestants get 24 hour notice of the next cut. Today's the big day - or their chair will be over there. Chris Ni. is worried that the next cut will be him. Into the ring, everyone bumps. They put a crash pad into the ring, and have people run into an armdrag bump. Al gets mad after Shadrick's screwed up one too many times, and threatens to sit him down if he continues to take bumps like that. 

Next thing we see, Shadrick's talking to the camera after obviously having cried. He's sad that he's not preforming as well as he knows he could be. Miss Jackie comes over and talks to him - he can do this, maybe not as well as everyone else right now, but he knows he can do it. Al and Shadrick talk (before the Miss Jackie talk? His tears are still there here, but not in the last cut) - Shadrick says that the pressure is getting to be to much. Al: "Pressure's not gonna go anyway. It's gonna be there. It's gonna be worse. You don't even know what pressure is. You don't know what it's like, performing in front of 20,000 people and knowing that Vince McMahon is back there, watching that monitor, and if you screw up, you're gonna hear about it, on a live TV show that goes across the entire nation. That's pressure, Shadrick. If you can't take this pressure, how are you going to be able to take that? How bad do you want this?" "I mean, I really do want it bad." "Then get back in the ring, and giver yourself, not me, one hundred percent." They shake, Shadrick goes back in, and does okay on his next two tries.

Time to take the crash pad away and do it on the mat for real. Chris Ni. jumps too much and lands on his head. Then he doesn't even jump in a try with Shadrick, thinking about that last landing too much. Al tells Chris that he's got to stop a bunny hop. Armdrag with Taylor, and does it bad again. We hear Chris Ni. talking about not being all he thought he would be. Al says that if Chris keeps doing that, he's gonna hurt himself or someone else - do it any more and Al's not gonna let him have that oppurtinty. Shadrick and Chris team up to make a horrible one, but Al's happy they did that. "Now you know exactly what you've been doing to everyone else!" Al would like them to continue to do that to each other so they can learn what it's like to be everyone else dealing with them. Break.

Mansion. In a bedroom, Taylor and Josh discuss the next cut. Taylor isn't sure how they decide. Josh guesses that Shadrick will be the next person. Taylor doesn't want to see anyone - Josh doesn't want to it either, but that's who he thinks. "Either him or me." Oh, Paulina's there too - she tells Josh that he cracks him up, and to shut up. Taylor asks why he think that just because he's smaller, they're gonna cut him? Josh said he was told that if he was 6' 3", this would be a lock.

Downstairs, Paulina and Shadrick are practicing. You may be wondering how Paulina can be in two different places at once - I'm wonder when she found time to change her clothes. Shadrick tells us that his dream is to be in Professional Wrestling. Maven is over to advise. Shadrick doesn't know what's holding him back, because he knows he can do all of these things.

Back at Trax, the trainers (Al, Tori and Miss Jackie) discuss the next cut with Big. Josh. Miss Jackie likes him, because he tends to work hard and he's a good bumper. But at times, he tends to get lazy. Tori says that Josh "is going through a phase where he tends to be very aloof" and maturity is very important. Chris Ni. AL says that yesterday he saw some improvement but today was just tragic. Tori says he's got some physicality - but his head goes somewhere at times. Al says he could develop into something, but it's sleep. Shadrick. Al says Shadrick is afraid of failing. Miss Jackie says that his crying got to her. Miss Jackie starts to retell the story and she starts crying for him - "it got to me, it just did." Al says that maybe, he could pull something out, but that's a big maybe.  

Chris Ni. and Paulina (who switched roles this week - Chris is unsure of himself, Paulina is the sounding board), talk in the living room. He's worried about his armdrags. Chris figures it's either him or Shadrick, which is pretty self aware. He was doing fine till two things - hiptosses and armdrags. Chris is talking but Paulina's more interested in checking her e-mail. Paulina suggests he just had a bad day, but he's not so sure.

Morning. Here's people making and eating food! The drive to Trax is very quiet and two seconds long. Al gives a similar speech to last week, and says this is the hardest decision he's ever made. Al tells them that if they're cut and they really want this, don't let this be the end of it. Same red tag deal as yesterday.

Locker rooms. Nidia and Paulina have no fear opening their lockers, but Locker Cam shows Taylor peaking in one of the slits to make sure nothing's there. The girls are all relieved. Chris Ni. sees nothing and he breaths a sigh of relief. The Locker Cam shows that, even before Shadrick finished opening the locker, Maven was staring into it, expecting to see what he and Shadrick saw - the red tag. Greg tries to be real coy about checking the locker but again is caught gawking. So is Chris No. Shadrick starts saying his good byes to the guys. He seemed to be ready for it. And then he goes and hugs the girls good bye. Shadrick calls everyone by a shortened version of their name - Josh is J, Maven is Mave, Taylor is T, there's so much about him we never knew. Hugh for Jackie too, and she's crying again. Hug for Tori, and she tells him to take care. And a hug for Al - he tells him that he really appreciated the talk yesterday. Shadrick says that he's not gonna give up, just going at a slower pace. Big walks him out. Look at the mic shadow ruin this moment!

Shadrick: "I bonded with these people and it's hard to compete with people you've bond with. It'd be like, you know, it's like competing against your best friend over something, I could never compete with a best friend over something. You know, that'd be hard, you know. I really did enjoy each and every one of them, you know."

Al tells them that it was hard, but it's gonna get harder and harder. The expectations will be higher, or their chair will be the next chair he'll have to fold up and take over there, as he does the same to Shadrick.

Next Week on Tough Enough. Nidia: "It's Kurt Angle!" A paper marked M.R.I. Paulina tells us that she hurt her knee and didn't really tell anyone about it. "You guys are going to Paradise Island, the Bahamas." Josh says that Chris No. takes advantage of him being smaller and seems like a bully/