The Amazing Race: Unfinished Business post
Pay attention: LIECHTENSTEIN IS SMALL.
Zev & Justin: Oh God. I mean, all credit to these guys for making it to the end of that fondue, but Chris and I had just eaten a huge dinner and were feeling a bit sick anyway. Having to sit and watch two people eat a huge vat of cheese fondue and one of them stop midway to chunder really didn't help matters. I think they've probably learned their lesson now, though - that's two legs in a row they've really struggled with an eating challenge. Admittedly in this case, it didn't hold them back from finishing in first place. I bet they're just hugely grateful no one u-turned them - imagine doing the luggage-hauling task with a belly full of warm cheese and bread. Groh. Anyway, best moment of the episode: that shot just before the ad break of Justin throwing up into a bucket and Zev staring dead-eyed into the camera, too full of cheese to think properly. Hee.
Kisha & Jen: Woo! I got worried for these two several times on this leg - Jen losing her map on the Roadblock was the first one, but I liked that she solved it by teaming up with Justin and offering an equal exchange: he lets her see his map, she helps him out with directions. (And seriously, how bad must things be if you need Jen to help you with directions?) Then I worried for them on the Roadblock because they switched options, then I worried for them again because they seemed to have an incredibly erratic approach to dishing out that luggage (although, as it turned out, not nearly as erratic as Flight Time and Big Easy's). And yet somehow, they emerged from all of that having run a comparitively clean leg and came in second for their troubles. It's a shame they didn't make first, because I really think they've earned one now, although maybe they're just planning to be one of those teams that wins the only leg that counts: the last one. I hope so, anyway, because they're my favourite team left. Also, I feel Kisha was robbed of an episode title quote with "I'm not going to be able to poop for a week."
Kent & Vyxsin: I'm amazed they made third - I'd never have guessed that from their performance early on in the leg. Vyxsin did seem to go to pieces a little bit on the Roadblock, but she made it through in the end and got the answer right. She and Jen are both slight question marks for me - it's hard to know if they got the answer right by themselves or were just lucky enough to be near someone else who got it right and overheard it, but on the evidence available I'm willing to give them both the benefit of the doubt. Kent was typically whiny on the detour, but at least it was pretty funny, especially when he complained that he couldn't run back to the station and Vyxsin told him to get in the card and she'd pull him there. They're probably the weakest team left, and probably have been for a while now, but I'm glad they're still around because I like them a lot and can't help rooting for them. I just wish they'd get a little bit of their TAR12 mojo back.
Gary & Mallory: Again, these two looked like they might be in trouble a few times - they got one of the few speed bumps in TAR history that actually required a bit of thinking (maths thinking, just to make it worse) and it looked like they were going to struggle with it, but it didn't actually seem to slow them down too much. Still: best speed bump since Jodi & Christie painting an elephant in TAR14. They also looked like they'd struggle a bit with the luggage, since they dawdled so much loading their cart that Jet & Cord had arrived before they left (Mallory's unenthusiastic "Oh. Hello." was hilarious), but they seemed to pick up speed somewhere and made it to a very respectable fourth on a tough leg. I was disappointed, but not entirely surprised, that they didn't U-turn anybody. Mallory's just a bit too "goshdarnit" for such behaviour.
Flight Time & Big Easy: Flight Time's one of the only racers who it seemed definitely sought out other people's information to finish the Roadblock, but I sort of don't mind. I mean, if the other racers liked them enough to help them out, that's sort of fair enough. I don't really get this "OMG NO INFORMATION SHARING" mentality that some TWoP posters have. Then again, they want penalties for everything, so I think they're pretty much just massive killjoys. These guys seriously effed up the detour, with delivering the wrong cases and then returning without enough tags, and I honestly thought from the editing that they'd get to the U-turn last, so I was glad when they beat the Cowboys to it. I don't blame them for using it, either - I mean, the Cowboys would've gone out either way, but they didn't know that at the time, and it was very much a "kill or be killed" situation. I would've done exactly the same thing in their position. And hey, it eliminated a team I dislike, so yep: all good with me.
Jet & Cord: DANCE PARTY! They were done in for a number of reasons on this leg: it was kind of dumb of Jet not to stick with Gary when he already knew he'd gone massively out on the measuring Roadblock - sure, he didn't know Gary would have the right answer, but at least if they'd stuck together, he would've at least not been the only person stuck at the back of the pack. And therein lies their problem: they were too keen to keep themselves away from the others. They bitched a little bit in the confessionals about being left out of the big group friendship, but it does seem like that was at least partly self-assigned. They didn't particularly want to befriend the others; they were the same in TAR16. Jet reacted to their U-turning with all the class I expected: bitching about it, and claiming that it "doesn't say very much about [the Globetrotters]" that they were the only team to U-turn somebody. Hey, Jet? Yeah, over here. It also doesn't say much about you that you were the only team anyone considered U-turning. You can dress it up as "fear of a strong competitor" all you like, and I'm sure that was at least part of the reason behind it, but I'd say that Zev & Justin, Kisha & Jen and Gary & Mallory are arguably as strong as you were, and nobody tried to U-turn them. At least they had time to squeeze in one final "oh my gravy" before they were sent packing. And it made Jordan Pious very happy, which is a highly acceptable outcome.
And this means that I like every team left in the race - hooray! Obviously there are some teams I like more than others (given the choice, I'd like either Jen & Kisha or Gary & Mallory to win, and I'm a little bit less keen on The Globetrotters after one of them peed on a library), but I can get behind a victory from everyone remaining. Thumbs up. Also, just to make this interesting, now that the Cowboys are out, none of the remaining teams made the final in their original race...
Zev & Justin: Oh God. I mean, all credit to these guys for making it to the end of that fondue, but Chris and I had just eaten a huge dinner and were feeling a bit sick anyway. Having to sit and watch two people eat a huge vat of cheese fondue and one of them stop midway to chunder really didn't help matters. I think they've probably learned their lesson now, though - that's two legs in a row they've really struggled with an eating challenge. Admittedly in this case, it didn't hold them back from finishing in first place. I bet they're just hugely grateful no one u-turned them - imagine doing the luggage-hauling task with a belly full of warm cheese and bread. Groh. Anyway, best moment of the episode: that shot just before the ad break of Justin throwing up into a bucket and Zev staring dead-eyed into the camera, too full of cheese to think properly. Hee.
Kisha & Jen: Woo! I got worried for these two several times on this leg - Jen losing her map on the Roadblock was the first one, but I liked that she solved it by teaming up with Justin and offering an equal exchange: he lets her see his map, she helps him out with directions. (And seriously, how bad must things be if you need Jen to help you with directions?) Then I worried for them on the Roadblock because they switched options, then I worried for them again because they seemed to have an incredibly erratic approach to dishing out that luggage (although, as it turned out, not nearly as erratic as Flight Time and Big Easy's). And yet somehow, they emerged from all of that having run a comparitively clean leg and came in second for their troubles. It's a shame they didn't make first, because I really think they've earned one now, although maybe they're just planning to be one of those teams that wins the only leg that counts: the last one. I hope so, anyway, because they're my favourite team left. Also, I feel Kisha was robbed of an episode title quote with "I'm not going to be able to poop for a week."
Kent & Vyxsin: I'm amazed they made third - I'd never have guessed that from their performance early on in the leg. Vyxsin did seem to go to pieces a little bit on the Roadblock, but she made it through in the end and got the answer right. She and Jen are both slight question marks for me - it's hard to know if they got the answer right by themselves or were just lucky enough to be near someone else who got it right and overheard it, but on the evidence available I'm willing to give them both the benefit of the doubt. Kent was typically whiny on the detour, but at least it was pretty funny, especially when he complained that he couldn't run back to the station and Vyxsin told him to get in the card and she'd pull him there. They're probably the weakest team left, and probably have been for a while now, but I'm glad they're still around because I like them a lot and can't help rooting for them. I just wish they'd get a little bit of their TAR12 mojo back.
Gary & Mallory: Again, these two looked like they might be in trouble a few times - they got one of the few speed bumps in TAR history that actually required a bit of thinking (maths thinking, just to make it worse) and it looked like they were going to struggle with it, but it didn't actually seem to slow them down too much. Still: best speed bump since Jodi & Christie painting an elephant in TAR14. They also looked like they'd struggle a bit with the luggage, since they dawdled so much loading their cart that Jet & Cord had arrived before they left (Mallory's unenthusiastic "Oh. Hello." was hilarious), but they seemed to pick up speed somewhere and made it to a very respectable fourth on a tough leg. I was disappointed, but not entirely surprised, that they didn't U-turn anybody. Mallory's just a bit too "goshdarnit" for such behaviour.
Flight Time & Big Easy: Flight Time's one of the only racers who it seemed definitely sought out other people's information to finish the Roadblock, but I sort of don't mind. I mean, if the other racers liked them enough to help them out, that's sort of fair enough. I don't really get this "OMG NO INFORMATION SHARING" mentality that some TWoP posters have. Then again, they want penalties for everything, so I think they're pretty much just massive killjoys. These guys seriously effed up the detour, with delivering the wrong cases and then returning without enough tags, and I honestly thought from the editing that they'd get to the U-turn last, so I was glad when they beat the Cowboys to it. I don't blame them for using it, either - I mean, the Cowboys would've gone out either way, but they didn't know that at the time, and it was very much a "kill or be killed" situation. I would've done exactly the same thing in their position. And hey, it eliminated a team I dislike, so yep: all good with me.
Jet & Cord: DANCE PARTY! They were done in for a number of reasons on this leg: it was kind of dumb of Jet not to stick with Gary when he already knew he'd gone massively out on the measuring Roadblock - sure, he didn't know Gary would have the right answer, but at least if they'd stuck together, he would've at least not been the only person stuck at the back of the pack. And therein lies their problem: they were too keen to keep themselves away from the others. They bitched a little bit in the confessionals about being left out of the big group friendship, but it does seem like that was at least partly self-assigned. They didn't particularly want to befriend the others; they were the same in TAR16. Jet reacted to their U-turning with all the class I expected: bitching about it, and claiming that it "doesn't say very much about [the Globetrotters]" that they were the only team to U-turn somebody. Hey, Jet? Yeah, over here. It also doesn't say much about you that you were the only team anyone considered U-turning. You can dress it up as "fear of a strong competitor" all you like, and I'm sure that was at least part of the reason behind it, but I'd say that Zev & Justin, Kisha & Jen and Gary & Mallory are arguably as strong as you were, and nobody tried to U-turn them. At least they had time to squeeze in one final "oh my gravy" before they were sent packing. And it made Jordan Pious very happy, which is a highly acceptable outcome.
And this means that I like every team left in the race - hooray! Obviously there are some teams I like more than others (given the choice, I'd like either Jen & Kisha or Gary & Mallory to win, and I'm a little bit less keen on The Globetrotters after one of them peed on a library), but I can get behind a victory from everyone remaining. Thumbs up. Also, just to make this interesting, now that the Cowboys are out, none of the remaining teams made the final in their original race...