The Amazing Race - TV Fanatic

The Amazing Race 20 Cast: Big Brothers, Clowns and More!

matt@mediavine.com (Matt Richenthal) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 11:44:53 EST

The Amazing Race turns 20 on February 19 and will celebrate the milestone with a cast that includes two former Big Brother contestants; married professional clowns; two border patrol agents and more.

The 11 teams will visit 22 cities and total over 40,000 miles on trips that take them through such locales as Paraguay, Azerbaijan and the German castle that inspired the one featured in Sleeping Beauty.

In no particular order, let's take a look at the 11 tandems set to compete for $1 million:

Dave Brown Jr. and Rachel Brown
Current occupations: U.S. Army Officer and Project Manager
Connection: Married

William “Bopper” Minton and Mark Jackson
Current occupations: Motorcycle Mechanic and Former State Inspector
Connection: Best Friends

Nary Ebeid and Jamie Graetz
Current occupations: Federal Agents
Connections: Friends

Brendon Villegas and Rachel Reilly
Current occupations: PhD Student and Event Hostess (Big Brother 13 winner)
Connection: Engaged

Joey “Fitness” Lasalla and Danny Horal
Current occupations: Trainer/Supplement Company Owner and Nightclub Promoter
Connection: Friends

Misa Tanaka and Maiya Tanaka
Current occupations: Car Buyer and Professional Golfer
Connection: Sisters

Dave Gregg and Cherie Gregg
Current occupations: "Ambassador of Laughters"
Connection: Married Clowns

Elliot Weber and Andrew Weber
Current occupation: Musician and Professional Soccer Player
Connection: Twins

Kerri Paul and Stacy Bowers
Current occupations: Program Coordinator and Self Employed/"Basketball Wife"
Connection: Cousins

Vanessa Macias and Ralph Kelley
Current occupations: Freelance Writer and Bar Owner
Connection: Dating

Art Velez and J.J. Carrell
Current occupations: Border Patrol Agents
Connection: Friends

And The Amazing Race Winners Are...

tiaradio@hotmail.com (Luke Dwyer) — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 23:08:52 EST

The finale of Season 19 of The Amazing Race, "Go Out And Get It Done," had the potential to be awesome... but was quickly devoid of excitement. The race designers put together a challenging leg that could have been very dynamic, yet two key mistakes eliminated any drama.

In recent seasons, the final leg has been known for having a great challenge. That is, some activity that regular people would not be able to do unless they were on something like a television show. In addition to being fun, often the challenge proved to be difficult and potentially race determining.

This season was no different, with what we can only assume was the fun Lear Jet simulator. Although the challenge did not determine the winner, it did eliminate one team. Jeremy and Sandy completed it on their first attempt and Ernie and Cindy only failed once. Amani and Marcus needed twelve tries, virtually eliminating them within the first 15 minutes.

What was disappointing about eliminating Amani and Marcus – beyond what would have been a tremendous celebration if they won – was that their knowledge of Atlanta might have been the leg more interesting. While trying to find Margaret Mitchell’s house - armed only with the clue that it used to be called "The Dump" - Ernie and Cindy figured it out while Jeremy and Sandy did not.

Worse yet, Jeremy and Sandy thought they had down, went to the wrong place (a former Home Depot now a furniture store called The Dump) and probably spent at least 20 minutes looking for a clue box they’d never find. This simple error essentially eliminated Jeremy and Sandy. The race became Ernie and Cindy’s to lose.

The first potentially terrific moment we were robbed of was at the Roadblock. Typing a simple note on an old type writer does not seem that difficult, but if someone else was in the room with Ernie, the pressure of not getting it right the first time would have built exponentially. Instead Ernie was calmly able to take his time, make a number of mistakes and still leave in first.

Next, the producers obviously put a lot of effort in to the final challenge. Suspended on a giant map, the teams had to navigate a rope though carabineers attached to countries on the map to trace their route. Cindy easily banged out the challenge, but watching Jeremy do it later shows that he was much faster than her. Again, if the duos are side by side we have some great moments.

For the last scene, CBS did its best to manufacture the drama. Hard to blame producers for trying after a fairly tame finale, but it was obvious that Ernie and Cindy were far enough ahead of Jeremy and Sandy that their navigational errors did not impact them. At least Ernie and Cindy had no idea where Jeremy and Sandy were, so their frustration and emotion was real.

Speaking of real emotion and frustration, the look on Ernie’s face when it sunk in that he and Cindy had won was awesome. You could really see the sense of accomplishment that must come from winning The Amazing Race. t’s a feat that can’t be replicated when winning CBS' other big reality show, Survivor. The winners there often seem simply relieved.

]My final grade for Season 19 of The Amazing Race is a B. The majority of the legs and destinations were good, but not great. The cast was likable, but beyond Andy and Tommy, nothing spectacular. The finale was a dud and that’s always going to bring the feel of the season down.

The only good part about the end of one season is the start of another. The 20th season of The Amazing Race is set for this winter, so check back in with TV Fanatic and @LilLukeD for more reviews and analysis.

More from this episode:

I love Marcus, but his football analogies started to get stale. I know his time in the NFL really defines who he is, but you’d like to see a bit more creativity about of him.
What an awesome clue “44 – 715 – 74” was. I’m surprised that Ernie and Cindy figured it out at all. Try Googling it yourself and see what comes up. Nothing to do with Hank Aaron.
Best quote of the season was saved for last. From Phil on the final mat to Marcus: Promise me one thing: you will never become a pilot.

The Amazing Race Review: What An Ending!

tiaradio@hotmail.com (Luke Dwyer) — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 21:38:32 EST

If your heart did not beat faster during this week’s episode of The Amazing Race, "We Are Charlie Chaplin," then either you don’t like the show or don’t have a pulse.

What fans of the series were treated to here spanned the gamut of emotions, culminating in one of the most dramatic finishes ever.

The first challenge of the leg gave the promise of one filled with twists and turns. Clues that require the teams to talk to the locals and use some problem solving are always far more interesting than any that essentially say: Go here. As expected, one team, Andy and Tommy, were unable to get the clue correct and fell from first to last.

As exciting as the opening challenge was, it was short lived. Any separation the teams created was eliminated by the flight to Panama City, which had all four teams. Why does the race waste such great challenges right before an equalizer like a flight?

The Roadblock in Panama City was incredibly scary and thus awesome to see. However, it did nothing to help any of the trailing teams catch up. Things seemed equally bleak when the first three teams chose the ‘Salt’ option of the ensuing Detour.

Amani and Marcus breathed life in to the Detour by choosing the other option, only to be driven to the same one as the rest of the teams. Surprisingly and ultimately intelligently, they did not panic and just complete the challenge they were at. They made their driver take them to the ‘Filet’ option and passed Ernie and Cindy and Jeremy and Sandy in the process.

What appeared like it might be a boring episode suddenly became interesting. The leg saved its biggest challenge for last: finding the name of the Pit Stop with their only hint being the destination of some dancers.

As Andy and Tommy directed their taxi cab to the wrong destination, suddenly anything became possible. Amani and Marcus seemed to have a chance to leap from last in to first, but couldn’t figure out where to go either. When the remaining two teams finished the Detour, my heart started racing.

The teams were so close and yes so far away. Everyone had the Pit Stop in their mental sights but had no idea where to go. Andy and Tommy were hopelessly lost. Ernie and Cindy seemed headed down the same path. Jeremy brilliantly drew a picture of the destination and his cab driver was able to figure out. Amani and Marcus remained at the Pit Stop.

Each team was heading in a different direction, something that must be a The Amazing Race first. With only one team heading in the right direction – and not even remotely being convinced of that anyway – the leg had dissolved in to the biggest mess we’ve ever seen. It was awesome!

Just as quickly as the tension and excitement developed, it evaporated. The cab drivers of Ernie and Cindy, Jeremy and Sandy and Amani and Marcus were all working together and Jeremy and Sandy’s cab driver directed the others where to go. Despite not being able to figure out the clue, Ernie and Cindy and Amani and Marcus were heading to the final leg.

This left Andy and Tommy out of the running despite winning six legs during the course of the race. Afterward, I’m sure they were furious to find out exactly how they lost. Sure, they made a mistake, but Ernie and Cindy and potentially Amani and Marcus (it wasn’t clear) were able to make the same mistake.

It is a mistake The Amazing Race will not let happen again. The rural cab drivers used at the start of the day knew each other and likely talked about what was going on the entire time. They’re just trying to help one another, having no idea that they’re messing with a race. There’s no way the race will be designed with such a potential flaw in the future.

With the clear favorites out of The Amazing Race, the final leg is anyone’s to win. I can’t pick between Ernie and Cindy and Amani and Marcus. What I do believe is that Jeremy and Sandy will not win. If I had to pick, I’d take Amani and Marcus. Picking with my heart for sure.

More from this episode:

Interestingly, the addition of Tin Tin to the episode was not a promotional ploy. There’s a Tin Tin movie coming out soon, but we were not subjected to any product placement-like advertisement for the movie.
The only good thing about the train ride and plane flight being an equalizer is that no time was wasted showing the travel. Normally, I love that part of the legs, but in this case seeing more of the ending was worth it.
The way Phil congratulated the final three teams, didn’t you think it was possible Andy and Tommy were not eliminated and we were going to have a final four? It would have felt cheap afterward, but they did a great job of building the tension.

The Amazing Race Review: Sad To See Them Go

tiaradio@hotmail.com (Luke Dwyer) — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 22:38:46 EST

We’re getting down to the end of the 19th season of The Amazing Race and the four remaining teams have certainly earned their spot. This week’s episode, "Release the Brake," challenged the duos to prove they still belong.

Towards the end of the episode, with elimination seemingly inevitable, Bill said that he and Cathi likely surprised themselves will how long they stuck around. Safe to say they surprised 95% of us watching the show. Finally they encountered a leg that was difficult, long and lacked a catch up point for the older couple and it did them in.

That’s not to try to take anything away from “Ma and Pa,” as they were affectionately nicknamed by their fellow racers. Only once were they the beneficiaries of luck; just the one non-elimination leg at the very beginning of the race. They had two second place finishes with one of them after being double U-turned.

Bill and Cathi epitomized one aspect that has made this season of The Amazing Race so great: the teams have been very easy to root for. Most of the contestants on the show have been nice and entertaining. The early “villains," Kaylani and Lisa, turned out to be far more tolerable after a difficult first leg.

Laurence eventually became the racer that we rooted against because of his brazenly sexist and patronizing comments. However, if Laurence is the worst racer on the season, that’s a pretty good cast.

Of the four remaining teams, I’d be okay with any of them winning. Not that I’m rooting for the entire quartet, but often there’s at least one team that I absolutely do NOT want to come out victorious. That’s not the case this season.

It will come as no surprise that I’m cheering on Amani and Marcus. I’ve been open about them being my favorite for a while now. As a huge sports fan, I’m biased towards the former NFL player, but beyond that they’re very entertaining. Marcus always has a great comment every week.

Similarly, Andy and Tommy are easy to root for. They’re entertaining, easy going and very good. Amani and Marcus may be number-two in my book, but Andy and Tommy are a close second place.

As for Ernie and Cindy and Jeremy and Sandy, I wouldn’t be upset if either team won. I just don’t find them as intriguing. If I had to pick between the pair, I’d take Ernie and Cindy simply because Sandy has contributed very little to her team. Perhaps that’s a reason to cheer; Jeremy has carried the team and deserves it more than anyone else.

Unfortunately for Bill and Cathi, they’ve been eliminated. But if they had not, they’d slide in behind Andy and Tommy and ahead of Ernie and Cindy on my rooting chart.

The Amazing Race Review: It's Speedo Time!

tiaradio@hotmail.com (Luke Dwyer) — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 22:35:21 EST

As I watch each season of The Amazing Race, I wonder if the show will ever get stale. There are times when it seems like episode after episode follows the same format: Clue-Roadblock-Detour-Pit Stop.

But any worries were thrown out the window with this week’s episode, "It's Speedo Time." The leg did a great job of mixing up the types of challenges the teams faced, where they had to go and how they had to get there. We were even treated to what was almost a major mistake.

Initially, I was worried about the leg. The teams started with a reasonably simple Roadblock that was following the format many episodes follow. Any resemblance to a regular episode ended immediately thereafter.

Traveling to Legoland was a great place to visit. Andy said “I was a Lego maniac as a kid, so I was psyched” and I couldn’t have agreed more. Legos were a staple of my childhood playtime and I know I was not the only one.

Anyone expecting a Detour at Legoland was wrong, as the teams were given the interesting assignment of putting together a Lego puzzle while riding tea cups. Once again, The Amazing Race has hit my personal jackpot. I love tea cups.

Outside of my personal preferences, the challenge itself was great. Try to put together a puzzle while spinning inconsistently and the puzzle ends up being the clue to their next destination. I love anything that’s not a traditional tear open clue.

The trip to Legoland was followed by a three country excursion from Denmark to Germany to Belgium. They mixed up where and when teams expect to travel. After seeing the clue at the start of the leg, Cindy commented that they were spending another leg in Copenhagen. Nope.

Although the teams ended up leveling because of the train ride, making the teams drive to Hamburg and then take a train to Brussels provided opportunity for teams to get separated. Heck, Cindy tried really hard to do just that by losing her tickets on the second train, but was bailed out by the laissez-faire Germans.

Once in Brussels the five remaining teams are subjected to one of the most absurd challenges we’ve ever seen on the race. I loved it. They even made the challenge difficult, something I didn’t expect. That’s what made it even more amazing that Amani and Marcus completed the challenge on their first try.

The biggest surprise of the leg was left for last. Going in to the Pit Stop I guessed that this would be a two-part leg. Despite my premonition, Phil threw me when he said that Amani and Marcus were the winners and I didn’t see his next act coming when he handed them their clue. Great stuff.

More from this week:

Why does Marcus always seem to wear orange? Is there some personal meaning for him? It’s not the school colors of his alma mater, Bradley, or where he current coaches, a public high school in Alabama.
Andy and Tommy started spinning their cup faster after they completed the puzzle at Legoland. I would have done the same thing.
I thought Ernie was the best body building poser of everyone. I was surprised he got so much criticism on their first try.
Even the name of this week's episode was awesome.

The Amazing Race Review: The Teflon Team

tiaradio@hotmail.com (Luke Dwyer) — Sun, 13 Nov 2011 23:37:48 EST

This week’s episode of The Amazing Race, "Super Shady," certainly wasn’t the prettiest leg of racing we’ve ever seen.

The teams’ loss - due to an inability to navigate - became our gain, giving us a dynamic episode where three different tandems seemed certain for last place at different points.

The first team that seemed doomed was fan favorites Amani and Marcus (are they fan favorites? Or just my favorites?). Certainly the married couple did not deserve to stay in the race. This isn’t the first time they’ve dodged bullets, either. They’re becoming the Teflon Team because nothing seems to stick to them.

Their first and most egregious error was getting complacent about the flight from Amsterdam to Copenhagen. There was a note in their clue that they were not required to use the flights provided to them and somehow that was not the kick in the ass that they needed to go look for better flights.

Thanks to Jeremy and Sandy’s visual error at the tower, Amani and Marcus are able to catch up, despite being well over an hour behind the leading tames. However, Amani and Marcus quickly repay the favor because of Marcus’s stubbornness about asking for directions. Just as quickly as they dug out of the “inevitably in last place” hole they were back in it.

But you can never count out Jeremy and Sandy when it comes to the “inevitably in last place” slot. The pair must have felt Amani and Marcus were trying to one up them by getting lost and went and did the same thing themselves. Sandy did her usual terrible job of navigating, giving them a stranglehold on “inevitably in last place."

Facing a Detour and more navigation, Jeremy and Sandy were a lock to finish last place, right? Nope, Laurence and Zac took a page out of Jeremy and Sandy’s book and got lost themselves. They overcame the Double U-Turn and had clear sailing (nice pun, huh?) towards a safe fifth place finish until we learn that they don’t know how to get back to Copenhagen.

Fortunately for Sandy, Jeremy did know how to get back. Most importantly, he knew how to get back without any help from her. It was hilarious to watch his frustration with her umpteenth navigational error and impressive to watch his ability to stifle his anger. Perhaps most shocking was her seeming ambivalence to what should have been a fatal error.

What we ultimately learn was that not only did Laurence and Zac get lost, they got really lost. We’ll get a more exact figure next week when we see how far behind Jeremy and Sandy start behind Amani and Marcus, but Laurence and Zac professed on the mat that they were lost for hours. Sounds like Jeremy and Sandy might have been able to overcome another Sandy navigational gaff anyway.

As much as I’ve killed Sandy this season (deservedly so) I was happy to see Laurence go. Initially I was excited because of his English accent (everything is better when spoken in an English accent). As the season grew on he became patronizing, sexist and annoying to watch. It was time for him to go.

More from this episode:

The “climb the tower, search for your clue” challenges are always fun. This week was no different, giving us Jeremy and Sandy’s mistake.
How ridiculous did everyone look with all the makeup caked on them at the Roadblock? Amani almost looked like she had white skin. Makes me wish Marcus had done the challenge. There’s no way they would have had size appropriate clothes for him.
I have no problem with Ernie and Cindy U-Turning Bill and Cathi. The grandparents were mad, but it wasn’t personal. Ernie and Cindy would have U-Turned whoever was behind them.
Similarly, kudos to Bill and Cathi for covering their ass and U-Turning someone they knew was behind them. They had no idea how long the other side of the U-Turn would take and this guaranteed they were not the only ones who would have to do it.

The Amazing Race Review: Let's Get Physical

tiaradio@hotmail.com (Luke Dwyer) — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 23:02:01 EST

Whether intentional or not, the theme of this week’s episode, "Move Goat," was physicality. Deep in the heart of Africa every aspect to the leg rewarded those who were fit and, most importantly, could make the correct decisions under the stress of exercise. It was awesome.

Shortly in to the leg the difficult nature was obvious. The Roadblock had the selected team member transporting a person on a bike with two seats to a destination both difficult to find and of a significant distance away. The distance speaks for itself in the challenge, but by forcing people to stop and ask for directions the challenge became more difficult because they had to keep restarting.

Next up was Detour where the option was a challenging canoe ride (Dugout) or transporting an obscene amount of cargo off a boat and on to the shore of Lake Malawi (Lugout). The Lugout option seemed so difficult; I wondered why it was included. Who would choose Lugout over Dugout?

It turns out I was both naïve and wrong. The latter came true when Amani and Marcus ripped through the Lugout option and actually passed Jeremy and Sandy who were struggled with the canoe. However, I think the main reason Lugout was a Detour option was because of the Double U-Turn.

The Double U-Turn would become even more interesting than normal when the u-turned teams, after finishing the canoeing, realized they had to go lug everything off the boat. The leg had already been difficult enough and we definitely would have gotten some great reactions.

Not only would the reactions have been great, but the theatre would have been great as well. Two teams, likely side-by-side managing one of the more physical challenges the show has seen. The drama could have even been heightened even more if Amani and Marcus had been U-Turned having done the seemingly harder Detour option already.

Imagining how much fun we could have witnessed with the double U-Turn becomes the only disappointing aspect to this week’s episode. We didn’t get to see anyone U-Turned. If Laurence and Zac had beaten Amani and Marcus to the Double U-Turn, certainly Amani and Marcus would have turned around and U-Turned Jeremy and Sandy or Justin and Jennifer. Alas, all we can do is guess what would have transpired.

Regardless of the way the leg played out, why were Laurence and Zac the only team that used it? Sure, Amani and Marcus knew at least Jeremy and Sandy were behind them, but why not U-Turn them just in case? They have no idea what remains in the episode, they may need that time later. Same goes for Jeremy and Sandy. They know Justin and Jennifer are behind them, hit them with a U-Turn, just in case.

The best part of the leg came at the end with the dramatic long run up the dirt road and driveway. The Amazing Race has conditioned me not to believe their attempts to build drama, but for once it actually happened. I suppose the wait was worth it because that was a phenomenal ending. Also, kudos to Andy and Tommy for not apologizing for beating Ernie and Cindy. It’s a race!

The Amazing Race Review: Not Very Challenging

tiaradio@hotmail.com (Luke Dwyer) — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 22:02:48 EST

This week’s episode of The Amazing Race, "We Love Your Country Already; It Is Very Spacious," was filled with many of the things we love about the show. Exotic locations, beautiful scenery, emotional moments and even a fun twist at the end.

Unfortunately, there wasn’t too much drama. So long as the teams could follow instructions – admittedly, not a guarantee – there were only minimal opportunities to gain ground on anyone in front of you.

The prime example of this tenant for this week was Amani and Marcus. The duo got off the plane in sixth place, did both challenges flawlessly and finished seventh. The only reason they dropped in the standings were because of two poor cab rides.

Point being, I would hope that the challenges live up to their name and are actually challenging enough where if teams complete them quickly, they gain ground on ones who don’t. None of the teams this week struggled significantly (if at all) with the Roadblock or either leg of the Detour.

Our moment of drama this episode was provided by the twist at the end where teams had to carry their beds a significant distance from the transportation truck and deliver them to the Pit Stop. The wrinkle that two teams, Justin and Jennifer and Bill and Cathi, didn’t realize was that they had to pay their truck driver for the transportation.

Their errors allowed Andy and Tommy to slip in to first place (the second time they’ve won a leg because of another team’s error) and gave us Amani and Marcus fans some hope that they would not finish last. We were not rewarded, but at least it was interesting.

Despite the lack of drama, this week’s episode made up for it with some great moments. The non-elimination aspect of this leg led to a great scene with Amani and Marcus tearfully being thankful for being left in the race. They want to use their experiences to help them set a good example for their special needs child.

Similarly emotional were the great scenes at the children’s school with the racers building toy trucks for the kids. All four teams who did the Not Grown Up challenged were touched by the moment, expressing their satisfaction with helping out the kids. Jennifer said she was going to have her kids make the trucks in class and Tommy commented on how great it was that the kids can play with something so simple.

Finally, there is always something energetic when the race makes its way to Africa and this week followed that trend. Certainly the moments in the tobacco warehouse were filled with awesome energy from the workers. What a great scene at the end with Marcus finishing the Roadblock last and the workers encouraging him on.

More from this episode:

Can anyone recall a single thing Sandy has done to help her team? Jeremy might as well be running the race by himself. At the Detour this week Sandy was frequently shown just watching Jeremy work.
Not that I’ve ever been on the race, but when I’m theoretically picking which side of the Detour I’d do when the teams are choosing, I always adhere to the mantra that you choose whichever side is cool. Bungee Jump or Long Walk – you jump. Play with African school kids or sew – you play with the kids. Doesn’t matter what the actual challenge is.
She's a very nice person and obviously a hard worker (she kicked useless Sandy's butt in the bed carrying) but Cathi's voice is hard to listen to.

The Amazing Race Review: Surprise Ending

tiaradio@hotmail.com (Luke Dwyer) — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 22:34:07 EST

We don’t know how many teams are in front of us and how many teams are behind us.

Without knowing it, Marcus’ comment while riding in to Bangkok turned out to be perfect foreshadowing for a tremendous ending to the leg. The 19th season of The Amazing Race has been a lot of fun and this week’s episode, "I Feel Like I'm In The Circus," continued that trend.

Despite a solid start to the leg which included an unexpected back to back Roadblock the real drama for this week did not occur until the last third of the leg. With the aforementioned two Roadblocks complete the teams scrambled to find bus transportation for a 500 mile trip to Bangkok. There were plenty of options and the separation and confusion that occurred because of those options gave us our phenomenal finish.

In terms of shaking up the standings at that time, the two biggest decisions revolved around the same bus. Laurence and Zac and Ernie and Cindy each found the express, first class bus, but Laurence and Zac panicked about first class transportation and ditched their bus. As Phil would say at the Pit Stop, the decision almost cost them the race.

What was particularly interesting about Laurence and Zac’s decision was that it was the second poor decision of the episode. Earlier, at the second Roadblock, Laurence felt that they did not need to take notes of how the spirit house was put together. He somehow blamed Zac for not being able to remember the intricate house, but the mistake was really Laurence’s.

When it came time to get on the bus, Laurence found the faster bus, but Zac felt the rule about not flying first class applied to traveling anywhere in first class. Having already suffered a penalty for en error earlier in the race, they decide to get off the bus and get a second class ticket on a later bus. Errors in judgment by both Laurence and Zac would drop the father/son duo from the lead pack and a possible first place finish to a tenuous sixth place finish.

Ernie and Cindy, on the other hand, made the first mistake, but did not make the second. Similar to Laurence, Cindy had the nerve to get annoyed with Ernie when he couldn’t remember the spirit house set up even though it was her idea (what is with these people, really?). Fortunately for the couple, despite being alone on their bus, the paranoia that they took the wrong form of transportation didn’t enter their mind.

What ensued after the teams boarded five different buses to Bangkok made the episode tremendous. For reference, here’s a timeline of what happened.

4:30 pm: Andy and Tommy, Justin and Jennifer and Jeremy and Sandy depart on a second class bus. Laurence and Zac get on a first class bus at the same time.
4:45 pm: Laurence and Zac get cold feet over their first class tickets, get off and run back to the bus station.
5:30 pm: Amani and Marcus and Bill and Cathi board a second class bus. Ernie and Cindy board a first class bus.
8:00 pm: Laurence and Zac board a second class bus.
Later that evening (no time given): Liz and Marie board a second class bus.

Ernie and Cindy’s first class leap-frogged them ahead of the lead pack. Did they know that? Nope. Did any of the teams know where they stood after delays? Nope. That’s what led to a tremendous finish.

What does matter brings us back to Marcus’ comment. The best reactions on the show are at the Pit Stop and Amani and Marcus delivered in spades this week. The neatest part about this finish is that we, the viewer, knew they were in first, but they didn’t. I knew they’d go nuts at the news and took the time to raise the volume a little bit and was rewarded.

The excitement didn’t end with Amani and Marcus. Bill and Cathi did their best to out do Amani and Marcus by getting equally as excited at the news that they…missed out on first place by mere minutes? Ok, they were probably thrilled to learn they were not eliminated, but I also think part of their celebration was for Amani and Marcus. What great sportsmanship.

Justin and Jennifer went the other way with their fourth place finish. They assumed that being the first group to finish out of the lead pack would have given them first place. Perhaps their reaction wasn’t as exciting, but it was great television to see their disappointment.

Finally Phil did his best to ham up the ending for Jeremy and Sandy the same way he nailed Liz and Marie last week. For the second straight week he convinced a team that they were going home without actually telling them as much, only to pull the rug (or mat, perhaps?) out from under their feet and give them the good news.

Nothing against Jeremy and Sandy (well, actually, she’s kind of lame) but the only thing that would have made this episode perfect was if Liz and Marie had somehow manage to be as far behind as they were, have no money and not be eliminated. Can you imagine how they would have reacted? I think they would have broken the standard set by Amani and Marcus only hours earlier.

The Amazing Race Review: It's All Changed

tiaradio@hotmail.com (Luke Dwyer) — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 23:08:39 EST

On a random December night in 2001, I stumbled across the finale of the very first The Amazing Race and was immediately hooked. This week’s episode, "This Is Gonna Be A Fine Mess," returned to one of the coolest places visited in that first season: Phuket, Thailand.

Many things about the race have changed since that first season. There’s usually only one Fast Forward per season now vs. one every week back then. U-Turns, Express Passes and Speed Bumps would not be created for several seasons.

Far more has changed for Phuket, Thailand. As mentioned on the show, the deadly tsunami that ravaged Thailand in 2004 devastated Phuket and much of the tourist places in Thailand. For a country that relies so heavily on tourism, the impact was greater than it would have been in many other areas of the world.

Only seven years have passed since the tsunami and it was great to see that at least Phuket, if not Thailand itself, had come a long way in repairing its previous way of life. Phuket was as beautiful this week, in season 19, as it was back when the original jokers, Kevin and Drew, were eliminated.

Keeping with our theme of comparing this week’s episode to the first season, one subtle change that has bugged me in more recent seasons is the chance to catch up via hours of operation.

This week Andy and Tommy and Laurence and Zac were bailed out for not booking the correct flight by the hours of operation of the pier in Phuket. The placement of tasks that have hours of operation after flights – which can separate teams – that level the playing field has made the show seem a bit more controlled in recent seasons.

Back in the first season hours of operation mattered more and actually impacted the race. One of my favorite examples was on the third leg when Rob and Brennan completed one task before it closed, but did not get past the subsequent task before it closed. The teams behind them spent the night thinking Rob and Brennan were way ahead, but had no idea that they only gained a 20 minute advantage or so.

Fortunately this leg made up for a disappointing hours of operation leveling with a great Detour. From a competitive perspective it is always shocking when a team switches from one challenge to another. Often it leads to elimination. This week, we saw three teams switch and all of them avoided finishing last.

Many changes from season 1 to 19 have been for the better. One great idea that race composers have come up with is incorporating a benefit to the area that the racers are visiting from their presence.

Thus, the only disappointing part to the Detour is that the teams were able to opt out of helping to repair the coral reef. More the half of the teams started with the coral, but only two finished. From a competitive perspective, I understand why they did. However, I would have preferred if the challenge did not have options so every team had to contribute.

More from this week:

I was hoping there was more to the shape of Thailand drawn on the clue being shown repeatedly early in the episode. I love tricky clues. Alas, not this week.
Why didn’t Andy and Tommy and Laurence and Zac book all of their travel before leaving for Jakarta? Unless the rules have been altered about changing their flights, they could have purchased better a flight in Jakarta if they had found one.
Laurence and Zac clearly over thought the final directions to the Pit Stop. There’s no way anyone else was giving their driver coordinate-based directions.
Did anyone else think of Goonies when the teams found Soap Island with the coin with the holes in it?