I just finished my rewatch of Total Drama Action, and I'm going to do a ranking of the fifteen competitors.
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NOTE: This is a ranking of their characters on Total Drama Action, NOT their characters on TDI or TDWT.
#9. DJ
I've never been the biggest fan of DJ, but I've never actually DISLIKED him either. He was a nice guy with a heart of gold, but was a bit bland compared to the rest of the contestants. He epitomizes this in TDA. I mean, in TDI he had his adorable relationship with Bunny. And he really shined in TDWT being the last one on his team for a few episodes. But in TDA, he was just kind of... there.
DJ did have one thing going for him though. His secret, illegal alliance with Chef. This was an absolutely BRILLIANT idea that gave both DJ and Chef characterization. We learned that Chef didn't always used to be so tough, and that DJ was a GREAT chef. DJ's guilt over having a secret alliance was really fascinating, and I think most everyone was rooting for him because of it. How would it feel to know that you were getting help in winning a million dollars, but you're screwing over all your friends because of it?
Alas, the plotline only lasted a few episodes. Filled with guilt, DJ quit the show. That was the really sad part, is that it could have gone SO MUCH FURTHER. We could have seen DJ actually become tough, but then turn against Chef. Or he could have become the actual mole of TDA, instead of Owen. With DJ, it would have been much more organic, because a realistic plotline was behind it. With Owen, it felt like the writers just threw him in for four episodes for no other reason than because they wanted more fart jokes. And DJ's guilt over being the mole could have triumphed over his wanting to win, leading to a much more satisfying, drawn-out conclusion. Instead, he quit about four episodes after the alliance was made.
DJ fits in with Izzy as a character I really, really liked... but whose actual substance and story line was cut short. The reason he ranks this high is because of all of the potential he had as a character in TDA, but he was the same fraidy-cat as always. The personal growth we saw when he was guilty were amazing, and land him in the top nine. But because he left so early, we didn't get to see all of what could have been.
CONTESTANTS STILL IN: Lindsay, Beth, Justin, Trent, Leshawna, Heather, Gwen, Harold
