'The Amazing Race' recap: Almost the end
Here's Bucky with the week's look at The Amazing Race:
(Guest Recapper’s Note: Commenters kindly pointed out last week—and correctly so—that I have been letting my personal bias creep into my weekly recap. This week, I'm going to try to be more objective about all the competitors and not overtly root for the determined, honest, competitive, intelligent, gorgeous and all-round wonderful Megan, who in many ways reminds me of both Wonder Woman and my sainted grandmother.)
This week’s leg begins differently than the past ones: teams will compete in Prague, last week’s Pit Stop, so there won’t be any leveling of advantage by waiting around together at the airport.
Megan & Cheyne set off at 9:24 p.m. to get their first clue, which sends them to a museum. Here, in a room that has a couple hundred ringing telephones, one competitor from each team will have to answer phones until he/she mentally “collects” five letters. Cheyne insists that Megan perform the task, proving he is not the dope I’ve been accusing him of being. Megan gets the five letters pretty quickly.
Sam & Dan are the next to depart.
After collecting all five letters, the competitor must report to an office, fill out a lengthy questionnaire (designed to make them forget the letters they collected). At the bottom of the questionnaire are boxes where the competitor must unscramble the letters and form the word “Franz,” a reference to Prague native and author Franz Kafka.
Megan gets it on her second try. Just reporting the facts here…
The Globetrotters depart the Pit Stop and Sam & Dan arrive at the museum; Dan will perform the task.
Brian and Ericka depart the Pit Stop last.
The Globetrotters arrive and Big Easy begins the task for his team. Dan is struggling and asks Big Easy if he wants to work together, unscrambling the word. Big Easy agrees.
Megan & Cheyne get their next clue and head to a cryogenic chamber, which is a big freezer where the temperature gets down to -180 degrees. Spending time in here is supposed to be healthy for you, according to Phil’s narrative. The teams will have to strip down to their skivvies and spend two minutes in the big freezer. If they survive, they move on to the next task. If they don’t, well, I guess they get to hang out with Ted Williams and Walt Disney.
Big Easy and Dan struggle with unscrambling the letters; Brian & Ericka arrive, but must do their Speed Bump first for not being eliminated last week. This consists of going to an all-night club, learning how to mix an absinthe drink, then chugging it. We learn that Brian doesn’t drink liquor. Oh no!
Big Easy and Dan struggle with unscrambling the letters.
Megan & Cheyne make it out of the big freezer alive. There were no cameras or microphones in there, so I cannot report with accuracy whether Cheyne whined the entire two minutes.
Big Easy and Dan struggle with … wait! Dan thinks he has the answer … and he does! But does he give it to Big Easy? Nooooooooooooo. The jerk tells the Globetrotter the first letter and then leaves. (Is there anybody who didn’t see that coming? Huh?)
Brian & Ericka finish the Speed Bump and get to the museum, where Brian begins the telephone task, while Sam & Dan head to the big freezer.
Megan & Cheyne arrive at the Detour which gives them the choice of: Legend (build a golem, which is a sort of a religious scarecrow, only bigger and heavier, which they will then have to push a long way to a synagogue) or Lager (deliver 30 glasses of beer—on server’s trays--across several city blocks to a pub filled with unruly soccer fans.) Megan & Cheyne choose Legend.
Sam & Dan get to the freezer; Brian answers phones. (Unlike the other competitors, who just pick up the phone and wait to hear if there is a letter spoken, Brian actually answers each and every phone with “Hello?”) When he gets the five letters, he takes some time to make a list of potential words … very smart.
Big Easy continues to struggle with figuring out “Franz.” Megan & Cheyne build their golem. Sam & Dan unfortunately survive the big freezer and head to the next task.
Brian, using his organized method, gets “Franz” pretty quickly; he & Ericka head to the next task. Big Easy finally gives up. He and Flight Time decide to take a four-hour penalty. “WHAT? You gotta be kidding me,” I yell at my television.
Sam & Dan arrive at the Detour and do Legend. Brian and Ericka arrive at the big freezer and when they enter—I mean, the very second they enter…Ericka says her ankles are frozen. The freezer door isn’t even closed yet.
The Globetrotters wait.
Megan & Cheyne finish their golem and start trucking it down the street to the synagogue. Cheyne whines the entire way. C’mon … you commenters who defended him last week can’t do the same this week. He whined the entire way … ”Oh, it’s soooo heavy” … and Megan has to keep encouraging him and telling him how to push the thing down the street.
Sam & Dan begin building their golem, and start arguing and bossing each other around. Dan knocks it over at one point, breaking its arm, which gives Globetrotter fans everywhere hope that when Sam & Dan deliver it to the synagogue, it will be rejected—who wants a broken golem?—and they will have to start over.
Brian & Ericka arrive at the Detour and decide to do Lager, because Brian “used to be a server.” The Globetrotters wait.
Megan continues trucking both the golem and Cheyne down the street. Sam & Dan argue. Brian & Ericka begin the Lager challenge. Sam & Dan argue. Megan & Cheyne deliver their golem to the synagogue and head for the Pit Stop. Sam & Dan argue.
Brian & Ericka start delivering their first two trays of beers and, in the middle, drop most of them on the sidewalk. Three survive and they hand carry these to the pub.
The Globetrotters wait.
Sam & Dan finish building their golem and start trucking it to the synagogue. More arguing and yelling ensues. Of course. Along the way, they ask a taxi driver for directions to the synagogue, and follow his directions. This, too, gives Globetrotter fans hope—that the taxi driver steered them wrong.
Brian & Ericka continue delivering beers, having to negotiate crowds of drunks in the streets who think the beers are for them.
Megan & Cheyne arrive at the Pit Stop, where Phil and a very beautiful Czech woman in a red dress tell them they are the first to arrive. Cheyne launches into some blah, blah, blah about what a good team they are and how they work together well. What a dope. Sorry. He is.
The Globetrotters wait.
Brian & Ericka continue to deliver beers, arguing about whether they should change to the Legend challenge, giving Globetrotter fans everywhere hope, etc, etc. Ericka wants to switch but Brian doesn’t. Brian prevails.
Sam & Dan get to the synagogue and the judges accept their golem. I guess they figure a golem with a broken arm is even scarier than a regular golem. Sam & Dan head to the Pit Stop, where Phil and the lady in red tell them they are the second team to arrive.
Brian & Ericka keep plugging away; by and by the Globetrotter’s penalty ends and they head for the big freezer, after having sat out for four hours.
Brian & Ericka finish delivering the beers as the sun is coming up over Prague. They have worked on this challenge for the better part of the night. They head to the Pit Stop, where they find Phil alone. The lady in red has given up and gone home. Phil tells them they are the last team in the finals.
Big Easy & Flight Time arrive at the big freezer, but their instructions say to go to the Pit Stop, where Phil boots them out of the race.
Let’s have it: What did you think of this week’s episode? And who do you think will win the whole shebang next week, when the race finishes in Las Vegas?
Comments
First, it was a little weird that they got the first clue, which sent them to the Spanish Synagogue, only to be sent to the museum. The only point of that first locale was to set up the Speed Bump.
I can't imagine what's it's like to shoot Absinthe. Sipping it is wild enough.
Tasks like the freezer thing make me crazy, because they're not really tasks at all. The players are little more than ballast, having stuff done to them. It's akin to the "sit in a race car while someone else drives/ride down a zip-line/ride in a rollercoaster/sit in the centrifuge" sort of thing we've seen many other times.
I don't think it would have necessarily saved the Globetrotters, but I'd be curious to know why the broken golem was acceptable.
Phil also broke precedent by telling Brian & Ericka that they were "the third team to arrive" rather than "Team Number Three". Usually that suggests that he wasn't about to check them in. False Drama! They did do a nice job of making up a huge time difference; they started almost two hours off the lead. Of course, there'll be an airport bunching next week, so whatever.
Posted by: Claude | November 30, 2009 2:29 AM
I can't believe everyone didn't get "Franz" on the first try. Also, what's up with the Kryocentrum temperature. On the clue it said -180 degrees, but on the Kryocentrum billboard it said -160 degrees, and the only temperature reading they showed was -134 degrees. -134 is still freakishly cold.
Posted by: Phil | November 30, 2009 8:49 AM
Sam & Dan broke their golem! What was this nonsense with the rabbi inspecting the product if he was going to accept a broken golem??
There was a point at which Cheyne was talking to the camera, bragging about what a clever game strategy they have. Yes, as a matter of fact, Meghan Does It All is an excellent strategy. That was before she had to ask him to stop yelling at her during the transportation of the golem.
When the first Pit Stop was a word puzzle, I knew that The Trotters were going home. But, probably because they know how a team works, Big Easy beat himself up about not being able to figure it out and Flight Time said, "Nah, just not your thing..."
OK, I'm for Brian and Ericka. I hope the last leg includes a cliff for both Cheyne and Dan to fall off.
Posted by: Eve | November 30, 2009 10:11 AM
I hope Megan and Shane...err Shayne....err Cheyne win. I can't stand either of the other 2 teams, and can stand half of their team (I'm siding with Bucky, don't care what everyone else says!)
Posted by: Chris in KS | November 30, 2009 10:21 AM
I felt embarrassed for the Globetrotters. In all my years of watching TAR, I have never seen a F4 team give up that easily. Even if Big Easy never heard of the name Franz before, instead of accepting a 4 hour penalty he could have tried every possible word combination until he got it right in less time. It was only 5 letters.
Meghan and Cheyne have run a great race, but my goodness they are an uninspiring team. At least their predictable win would be well deserved.
Sam and Dan are the only team in F3 I don’t want to see win. Knowing how the Globetrotters went out without a fight, I'm not terribly upset at Dan for skipping out without giving Big Easy the answer. I’m more upset that I have to sit through another episode of them whining like 3 year olds.
I like Brian and Ericka. Her sassiness can be somewhat off putting, but the way Brian brings the calm you know everything is going to be all right with this team. Unlike Meghan and Cheyne, team jungle fever is easy to root for. They must’ve had some good karma coming their way in time for the race because they should have never been this close to F4 let alone F3. I hope they have enough fight to pull out an unexpected win – it would top off a semi-decent season.
Rumor has it that Jeff and Jordan from Big Brother 11 was spotted at LAX over the weekend filming TAR 16.
Posted by: michele | November 30, 2009 11:31 AM
Glad to see no bias in this week's review! :)
Seriously, what's a review without bias and a little snarkiness? Worthless, that's what - great job.
I'm rooting for Brian and Erika even if Brian reminds me of Peyton Manning, who I like except the Colts beat the Ravens this year. I loved the way Erika was ready to go off on the drunks when they wanted to take the beers out of her hands. Don't go there, boys, you will not win!
If Meghan and Shame (whatever) win, I'll be happy for Meghan, but I hope she doesn't have to take ALL those trips they've won with his whiny little tush.
I hope Eve's cliff is big enough to include both of the Bickerson Brothers. If they fought like that growing up, it's amazing they made it to full-size adulthood. As their parent, I would have slapped the silly out of them and probably stunted their growth by a few inches. Can you imagine a holiday dinner with them? Sam, you carve the turkey this way! Dan, stop telling me what to do; you aren't helping the situation. But Dan, we can't eat it if you carve it like that... and on and on and on...
Posted by: Mar | November 30, 2009 2:50 PM
Dear Bucky: Thanks for trying "to be more objective about all the competitors and not overtly root for the determined, honest, competitive, intelligent, gorgeous and all-round wonderful Megan." The operative word above is "trying", as in "trying my patience!"
There's a reason all of the other teams have called her "sneaky", but people see what they want to see, I guess. I don't dislike her, but she's not anyone I'd place on a pedestal. With only one more episode to go, maybe she'll smile at least once. She does, however, make me think of Wonder Woman, too, because I wonder what you all see in that woman. I see a "controlling sneaky bitch," but I'm not straight, either, so maybe her feminine wiles haven't pulled the wool over my eyes.
"Does the team that comes in #1 the most times each leg during the race usually win the whole thing?" That is a question I wondered about, since Barbie & Ken, I mean Meghan and Cheyne, have been seen as the team to beat here, so I looked up the information.
That turns out not to be true.
The final winning team has won, without also winning the most legs along the way, SEVEN times. THREE other times the winning team was tied with the most wins with another team. FOUR times the team that won had the most wins. The team with the least wins who won it all were Eric & Danielle, the hybrid team on the All-Star edition. The only leg they actually won was the most important one, the final leg!
Bickering brothers besides, Bucky, I'm rooting for the McMillen's, but any of them wouldn't bother me this season.
Posted by: Martin Pal | November 30, 2009 3:05 PM
I was just teasing with you Martin Pal. I appreciate your comments and contributions (such as the historical information, above)as does SarahKK, I'm sure.
SKK: For shore!
Posted by: Bucky | November 30, 2009 4:07 PM
I was TIC-ing myself, B&S!
Just in case -- TIC -- shorthand for tongue in cheek--I'd never seen that internet abbreviation before until this week!
A DETOUR:
Since the previews show the finale is taking place in Las Vegas, I want to note that a few weeks ago I told a friend that a good task would be for the racers to be given a specific amount of money in a casino and have to gamble it all away in a specific game--like blackjack, slot machines, or roulette, for example. If, on the first go around they lose all the money, good, they get the next clue. If they WIN any money, they either have to go to a second place to gamble it away, or they have to go buy something specific with it. Like a souvenir, etc. In this case, winning isn't everything. (!) So, when I found out they were ending up in Las Vegas, I was like, I wish they'd do that! Although "odds" are they won't...oh, well, just babbling.
SKK: That is a hilarious challenge idea. Love it!
Posted by: Martin Pal | December 1, 2009 3:38 PM
Hey, if im in Dan's position, I would definitely did the same thing. More interested in winning the race rather than helping someone and later have to struggle competing to be in the final three. A smart move there. With their combined winning strategies in place, Sam and Dan will win this race. Hate when people being too nice on TV. So stereotype!
Posted by: Franz' friend | December 1, 2009 6:37 PM
My favorite thing in this whole episode is when Brian and Ericka were carrying their second round of glasses and a woman on the street tried to grab a glass. All of Ericka's "pagent queen poise" disappeared and she yells at the girl something like - You better not girlfriend or I am going to bust your face. It was really funny and refreshing to see that side of her.
We were very sad to see the trotters go, but when I saw that challenge I knew they were in for trouble thinking back to the problems they had with the suitcase lock combination challenge earlier in the race.
And Bucky, I agree completely about Megan. She is an amazing racer despite her partner.
Posted by: etucker | December 2, 2009 10:13 AM
I rewatched the last episode to see what it is about Meghan you guys like so much and why you keep dissing Cheyne. It was mentioned that Ericka complained the minute she got into that cold chamber, "My ankles are freezing." Well, Meghan did the same thing, but I guess if you like her it's not complaining, "My gloves are freezing." Cheyne was saying supportive things.
And during the Golem task she was every bit as arguing as Cheyne was, but you guys call it whining from Cheyne and Meghan was being helpful.
I still say go back and watch those two legs they came in 5th and 6th and tell me that Meghan is all that. Cheyne was very supportive of her while she was melting down. Of course she is going to be nicer when you win prizes and come in first!
As I've said before, I don't find much fault with her, either, but let's have some PERSPECTIVE, please! If you only like her "because" she's hot, admit it, but don't put down her partner or put her on a pedestal to justify it.
I'm rooting for the gay brothers because they're gay and so am I, and I think Sam is cute, too, but that doesn't mean I'm gonna absolve Daniel from his whiny antics and the bickering. And Daniel at least admitted as much after the Golem task. He said, "I acted like a jerk through that whole thing." And I agree with Sam's response, "Yes you did and it's pissing me off." Like most of us.
You guys remind me of Siskel & Ebert when they'd give thumbs up to a film because the lead actress turned them on. (One example I can think of is Nastassia Kinski in the film Waitress, I believe.) That can be a legitimate reason for liking a film, sure, but admit the reason. Don't try to call it "art", though, as justification.
Posted by: Anonymous | December 2, 2009 5:14 PM
Hey, it's a big tent we have here in "Reality Check - The Amazing Race Department."
There's plenty of room for supporters of all the finalist teams (even though we installed that life-size marble statue of Meghan rolling out hay bales in the middle of the tent.)
Everyone is welcome and valued.
Posted by: Bucky | December 3, 2009 9:20 AM
I seem to remember Meghan crying through most of the Hay Bale event.
Visually, I think Meghan is hot, as Bucky seems to think also. I think vapid is a good term for her. The only emotion she seems to show is frustration.
I would say for a female competitor in TAR she's above average. But, I would say several editions back, the Beauty Queens that made it to F3 and should have one, were both much stronger and more attractive!!(Check it out Bucky!!). If you watch all the episodes, which I wonder if Bucky has.....you'll find Cheyne pulling more than his share, with Meghan trotting behind. I think their strength is that they aren't bad at anything, and good at some things. But, it's obviously a team effort. Maybe Bucky is just a hater because someone else has his "Reality Girlfriend"???
Still, for me, I hope that Cheyne and Meghan win. Because as Martin points out... the team that dominates the competition, usually does not win. I have seen several times where the final leg of the race is so unlike the other legs, and some team who never fared well... gets lucky and wins. What I would like to see is that the final Vegas leg be representative of the previous legs. And, if that were the case, then I wouldn't mind if either of the other 2 teams defeat Cheyne and Meghan.
Posted by: Paul O'Reilly | December 3, 2009 2:59 PM
This is for Bucky!!!
I share your love of Meghan, but I think you're blinded by the curves!!!
So...here's the breakdown by episode of our TAR leading team.
Leg 1: Cheyne finds the license plate...in 4th place. Tokyo and Cheyne does the wasabi bomb, now in 1st place. Lead their group thru heavy Tokyo crowds. Cheyne asks for directions that put then in 1st at the Pit Stop.
Leg2: Vietnam... arrive at the mud pits 1st, Cheyne tells Meghan how to get done the quickest. At this point, Meghan still listening to Cheyne so they leave 1st. Meghan looks great in mud!!!
At the Road Block....Meghan's turn. She has some trouble and slip from 1st to 6th at the duck herding Road Block.
Leg3: Ho Chi Minh City... Meghan's poor Road Block gets team off to slow start. Cheyne does hiding trick and grabs the clue from the Water Dragon the fastest... team moves up 2 spots. At the Detour (Child's Play) having to move heavy animals, stronger team mates prevail... Cheyne pulls team up to 2nd place. But, Meghan still looks good all sweaty!!!!
At the Road Block. team enters at 2nd place and finishes 2nd. Going to the Pit Stop, they're in 1st. But, have to race Globes.... Cheyne gets there 1st, but both the Globes pass Meghan and they have to settle for 2nd!
Leg 4: Cambodia, they start in 2nd... Meghan looking quite cute and busty in a new outfit!! Yeah!!
Cheyne finds the secret correspondant, now in 3rd place. At the Detour, they choose wrap as most people do. Bit of needle in the hay stack, and they fall to 5th place. Go to the easiest Road Block (Be a Monkey) so, of course, Meghan does this one. They finish in 5th.
Leg 5: Dubai. Cheyne decides to take a risk and do the Fast Forward. It pays off big time. Cheyne completes the Fast Forward straight to an easy 1st place at the Pit Stop. Meghan's 1st crying episode as she's afraid for Cheyne and her lack of control!
Leg 6: Dubai still. Road Block is physical... so Cheyne does it. Rows to the yacht, gets the watch clue. Opens the briefcase straight away... they stay in 1st place. Detour and the Hooka challenge. Meghan starts to lose it in the heat (second crying episode)... Cheyne keeps her together. But, all is good b/c Meghan pulls out her hottest swimsuit yet for the infamous water slide!!!
Leg 7: Amsterdam. Meghan does this Road Block with the Tower of Bells. She gets considerable help from Sam, but they both get passed by Matt. They go to the Detour and do the Farmer's Game. Meghan flounders hitting the ball, but Cheyne more than makes up for Meghan's lack of golf type skills! Cheyne carries team to a 2nd place finish.
Leg 8: Stockholm. Cheyne does the Fright ride, and the ring toss that keeps them in 2nd place. At the Detour, Meghan insists on filling one bag at a time at the Dynamite site. This poor decision on her part drops the team to 3rd. Meghan complains about Cheyne not "working with her"!!! They go to the Hay Bale Road Block. Meghan finially pulls her weight, even though she gets a little lucky to find the ribbon before Sam who's doing more work than she is. Third crying episode, I was afraid she was going to give up! However, she still looks good all sweaty!!!
Leg 9: Estonia and they're in 2nd heading into the Road Block...Solve the Secret Mystery. Cheyne does this Road Block... solves it first and gives them an overwhelming lead. They go to the muddy volleyball Detour with a huge lead. Cheyne and Meghan each score 2 pts. and with one service fault by the Estonians, they rush off to an easy 1st place at the pit stop.
Leg 10: The infamous first Prague leg. They take the slow "lines" course, and end up virtually tied with the Globes for the lead. They were going to work together, but Cheyne eagle eyes a taxi that vaults them into a large lead. The Theater Road Block sees Cheyne take on the task, find the miniature mandolin first. They go straight to another easy victory!!
Leg 11: Start 1st and never relinquish. Meghan finally really pulls out a good Road Block and finishes the Franz Kafka Phone test first, by a wide margin. At the Detour, they choose the safer Legend course. Cheyne almost fouls things up by trying to carry the Golum virtually by himself. Meghan talks him into trusting her to carry an equal amount of the load. Again, another easy victory.
Like you said Bucky!!! Meghan carried Cheyne the whole way!!
NOT!!
But, clearly Meghan looks better clean, sweaty or muddy!!! I completely agree!!!
Posted by: Paul O'Reilly | December 4, 2009 6:20 AM
Excellent work, Paul. Could you work up a simliar summary for Sam & Dan and Brian & Ericka? That would be very helpful to prepare for the finale.
SKK, you clearly have the wrong guest recapper for this. No, really...I'm not being sarcastic.
Posted by: Bucky | December 4, 2009 10:37 AM
Hey Bucky, got something better than a recap...
But first I would say that although I think Cheyne more than pulled his weight... I am not saying Meghan is dead weight. Quite the opposite! If I was to pick a female partner to try and win TAR... I would select either Meghan or Tiffany.
With the guys, there are several strong players. But, you would want to select one who doesn't blow up, lose his cool, or completely "flub" a task. Top choices would be... Cheyne, Brian, Sam, or Herbert (Flight Time).
That being said... I wouldn't say Meghan and Cheyne are shoe-in winners at all. Martin has pointed out that the team that dominates usually does not win the final leg.
I can think of 2 reasons why this is... which should give hope to fans of Sam & Dan, and Brian & Ericka.
In the past... the last leg has often been completely unlike any of the other legs in the race. So, the strengths of a team that got them all those victories earlier... do not pertain to the skills needed to win the final. Personally, I don't like that!! I think the Final Leg should be completely representative of the earlier legs, much like the last leg in Prague. Then, if another team just has a fantastic day, hats off to them!!! Otherwise... Meghan and Cheyne would slaughter the other teams.
The second reason, seems almost unavoidable. The Final Leg usually (or is that always??) returns to the USA. The competition seems completely different here than abroad. There isn't the confusion, which I think makes TAR exciting. Weird taxi drivers, strange money, unable to communicate with the locals, completely unfamiliar with the geography!!! (Hey Dan, is Prague a country or a city???)
I think this is a huge disadvantage to Meghan and Cheyne. If you watch the episodes again, this team is constantly making up time because of these intangibles. They do perform Road Blocks and Detours as good as most teams. However, they are also getting to the Road Blocks and Detours as one of the first 3 teams!!!
Meghan and Cheyne will lose this advantage on home soil. This will make the Detour and Road Block that much more important... which could be advantage Sam & Dan!!!
I would like to see TAR end in a foreign country, so that all these intriguing elements are still there for the Final! Where communicating with a taxi driver could make a difference. Or, getting lost, or having trouble reading a map in a foreign language slows a team down.
This won't happen though. One, I think they like the "Circle". Start in USA, finish in USA. It gives somebody "closure", not me, but somebody. Secondly, I don't think they want to pay for all the other teams to fly to some far off place to greet the winners!!! Airfare is expensive these days!!!
I think they should have a Semi-All star TAR where a Huge Fan gets to select an all-star from a previous edition to team-up with!!! Hello CBS???? Call me!!
Posted by: Paul O'Reilly | December 4, 2009 3:12 PM
I think that's great analysis, and I think your comment about finishing in the USA is absolutely on point.
(I don't know, thinking about it now, why it's so important to have all the other teams at the finish anyway. It isn't like they do a live wrap-up show a la "Survivor. The other teams stand around and clap.)
CBS...listen to Paul.
Posted by: Bucky | December 4, 2009 7:14 PM
LOL you guys!
Posted by: Martin Pal | December 5, 2009 2:24 AM
Indeed a good analysis and a great job.
Posted by: nancy princeton | December 26, 2009 2:12 AM