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TV Media Weekly | Aug. 30 - Sept. 5, 2014 in the Fates challenge. Christian Sochor triumphed in the inaugural Fates challenge, leaving his team- mates Patrick Higgins and Katie Smaluk to the mercy of the other Paladins, each of whom had to choose which fellow hero to save. Patrick garnered the most support from his companions, making Ka- tie return her piece of the Sunspear as she became the first to be elimi- nated. Following their training session, the Paladins are invited to an audi- ence with the ruler of Sanctum, Queen Ralia (Susanne Gschwendt- ner, "The Fairy Who Stole Eyes," 2006). After their conversation is interrupted by an injured soldier, the queen decides danger is close and the heroes need some intense training. The competitors partici- pate in a tournament on horse- back, taking on a variety of differ- ent combat styles and weapons. In the second challenge, it is Shondo Blades who comes out on top and receives the Mark of Dex- terity. Ashley Guerrero and Jim Cur- ry end up in the bottom three, join- ing Christian, who is in danger of elimination for a second time. Jim saves himself in the Fates chal- lenge, and the Paladins decide to save Christian, banishing Ashley back to our world. By Jacqui Wiens TV Media T he line between reality and non-reality television has al- ways been a bit blurry. The genre has been plagued with accusations of scripting inter- actions, coercing their subjects into taking atypical actions and even predetermining the outcomes of various shows. ABC's recent venture into the re- ality genre is sending up smoke signals that obscure the line alto- gether, as "The Quest" takes 12 brave Paladins into the mystical Everealm, where being knighted is more than a formality and where ogres, dragons and dark lords loom menacingly. Step inside the adven- ture as the Paladins fight to free Everealm when a new episode of "The Quest" airs Thursday, Sept. 4, on ABC. Dragons? In a reality series? It does seem absurd at first glance, but while the contestants — called Paladins — will be interacting with actors, their actions and abilities will determine the eventual "one true hero" who will take on the evil Verlox to save Everealm. "The Quest" is an ambitious series that aims to seamlessly merge our world with a fantastical realm. The imaginary world is inhabited by various species pulled from the pages of fantasy novels, as well as the essential castle full of good hu- mans sheltered from the evils of the outside world. At the start of the series, the he- roes arrive in Everealm and are greeted by the Fates, the mysteri- ous beings who summoned the Paladins from our world to save the magical dimension. The Fates — played by Stephanie Budden- brock ("Risse im Beton," 2014), Florence Kasumba ("Tatort") and Mai Duong Kieu ("Roughtown," 2014) — reveal that their world is under siege by a dark being known as Verlox (Doug Tait, "Pair of Kings"), and 11 of the 12 king- doms have already fallen under the might of his onslaught. The heroes venture to the final free kingdom, led by Crio the Dreamer (Jan Hutter, "Joyeux Noel," 2005), arriving at Castle Sanctum to hear the history of "The Quest" from the Grand Vizier (Marcello De Nardo, "My Best Ene- my," 2011), chief among the queen's advisers. As the Grand Vizier explained, a similar group of 12 heroes defeat- ed Verlox 1,000 years ago using the Sunspear. Verlox was banished back then, but has since made his way back to Everealm. The new Paladins each received a piece of the Sunspear from the Fates and must now train and compete amongst themselves in order to become the one true hero. The morning after their arrival at Castle Sanctum, the Paladins are sent to the training yard under the watchful eye of Sir Ansgar (Peter Windhofer, "Silk Road," 2008), head of the Royal Army. Working in teams of three, the champions use their skills and teamwork to take down fake enemies. Bonnie Gor- don, one of the Paladins from the winning team, was nominated by her teammates and awarded the Mark of Leadership, the first of the small badges the contestants will wear to indicate they won a chal- lenge. Back on the reality side of this fantasy series, the losing team of three must eliminate one of their members. As with all the future challenges, the competitors receive one last chance to save themselves Marcello De Nardo and Susanne Gschwendtner star in "The Quest" By the fates Reality and fantasy collide in an ambitious 'Quest' 2 | Cover story CHANNEL GUIDE Comcast Walton Cable- Vision Sammo ns of Indiana Tipton Cable TV Oak Hill Cable Swayzee AT&T U-Verse

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