This is how a reality show should end.
After a season that was arguably dominated by the fighting between Jennifer and Nathan, in the end "Nice Guys" TK and Rachel took home the prize on The Amazing Race. In what turned out to be a tooth-and-nail fight to the finish, all three teams were worth rooting for -- a rare and exciting occurrence on any reality show. The fact that mellow couple TK and Rachel won was extremely satisfying, proving that calmness and a level head may be the most important tools any team could possess on this exciting race around the world.
And how exciting it was! Ron and Christina held an early lead, and threatened to run away with the win, before Rachel figured out the difficult final road block just minutes before Christina, essentially securing the win. Kudos to Ron and Christina, who ran a very strong final leg, and really did grow as a team and as family members over the course of the race. The fact that Ron could talk about how proud he is of her daughter just moments after she had essentially lost them the $1 million showed how much he truly had changed. This is what makes Race special -- pre-existing relationships can grow and flourish, all in the midst of breathtaking surroundings and a competitive environment.
I was a little surprised that Don seemed to turn on Nick a bit in the final leg. Granted, Nick did forget the gear at the store and took forever to finish the puzzle roadblock, but Don seemed cold to Nick throughout the final leg, which seems a bit unfair considering how much Nick labored for his grandfather throughout the race. Still, they were a truly likable pair.
All in all, it was a pretty solid season of The Amazing Race, with a very satisfying conclusion. Hmmm, perhaps this is why the show has won five Emmys in a row...
Read more on The Amazing Race and Big Brother, including 'What Impact Will The 'Donato Effect' Have on Big Brother 9
Monday, January 21, 2008
The 'Nice Guys' Finish First on A Very Satisfying End to the Amazing Race
Monday, January 14, 2008
With Nathan and Jen Gone, Three Likable Teams Remain on The Amazing Race
The bickering Bickersons are gone!
With the elimination of Nathan and Jen on last night's episode of The Amazing Race, we have something we haven't had for years -- three moderately likeable teams competing for the final prize!
TK and Rachel, who started the leg of the race three hours after the rest of the teams and also had to contend with a "Speed Bump" due to coming in last place during the previous non-elimination round, managed to escape defeat to join Ron and Christina and Don and Nick as the final three teams. And while Ron and Christina have had their ups and downs throughout the race (mostly thanks to Ron's badgering of his too-patient daughter), all three teams have at least some redeeming qualities that would make them worthy winners.
Which could not have been said about Jen and Nathan. From basically the very beginning of the race, these two yelled and screamed at each other, moped and whined, and were generally pretty miserable and annoying. I wouldn't have been surprised if they had ended up winning the whole thing, as they are in good physical shape, and annoying teams like this have won in the past. -- think Freddy and Kendra fttirom a few seasons back. I'm not ashamed to admit that seeing them eliminated before the final leg of the competition brought a smile to my face.
So who should take home the million dollar prize? Ron and Christina seem to have hit their stride late in the race, keeping the family tension to a minimum and scooping up a couple of first place finishes in the process. Ron has certainly grown over the course of the race, and you can see that he has learned a lot about communicating with his daughter. Will they be able to keep their streak going and win first place?
TK and Rachel, meanwhile, have shown that slow and steady can, in fact, win the race, and they're hoping their mellow attitudes will propel them toward the finish line. And how about Don and Nicholas? I wouldn't guessed these two would have been out weeks ago, but they've found a rhythym that works for them, and they don't scream and yell at each other (an undervalued quality), and now they are actually in contention for the prize. Who would have thunk it?
Who do you think should win the Amazing Race? Is it the same team you think will win the Amazing Race? And are you as happy as I am that Jen and Nathan are gone?
More Amazing Race
Monday, January 07, 2008
Shocking or Not-So Shocking: TK and Rachel Saved By Non-Elimination on The Amazing Race
Going into last night's episode of The Amazing Race, I was sure it was going to be a non-elimination round. There are still a a few episodes left until the finale, and only one non-elimination leg has been used so far, so it seemed like a no-brainer that the last place team this week would be given another shot.
But then the editing threw me off!
As TK and Rachel arrived at the pitstop, more than three hours after their competitors, they started showing sappy interviews about how happy the mellow pair are with each other, and how pleased they are with the job they did on the race. It seemed like they were surely being given their "goodbye package."
And then Phil told them they were safe. Fooled again!
Here are a few other shocking and not-so-shocking moments from last night's show:
SHOCKING: Ron didn't scream at his daughter Christina during the whole leg!
NOT-SO-SHOCKING: That resulted in them doing better in the race. Imagine that -- getting along = more success!
NOT-AT-ALL-SHOCKING: Jennifer and Nathan screwed up their chance at a first place finish by bickering.
TOTALLY SHOCKING: They seem to have finally realized how negatively their fighting is impacting their ability to perform.
0% SHOCKING: The previews for next week show them fighting -- again.
A BIT SHOCKING: How well 68-year-old Don continues to perform on the race.
ALSO A BIT SHOCKING: What a great, patient grandson Nicholas his. His parents must be proud.
The poll below is a continuation of last week's poll. As of tonight (Sunday), TK and Rachel are leading the pack for favorite Amazing Race team. Let's see if after this week's show y'all still feel the same way. (Don't worry if you've already voted and have changed your mind...you can change your vote, too!)
We'll keep this poll going until the end of the season, and see if Idol Thoughts reader loyalty changes. Should be interesting...
Click for more Amazing Race
Wednesday, January 02, 2008
CBS' Scheduling of The Amazing Race Stinks!
I hate to start 2008 with a chip on my shoulder, but sorry CBS -- you and your Sunday scheduling of The Amazing Race have pissed me off one too many times!
I, like many other throughout the country and world, decided to take advantage of the Monday/Tuesday Christmas/New Year combination, and took a nice long vacation. I was surprised to see that CBS had decided to air new episodes of The Amazing Race on December 23 and 30, considering how close these days were to the holidays, but I figured I would Tivo them, and since there was little else on TV during the holiday weeks, I could watch them and catch up when I got back. I guessed that at least one of the episodes would be a non-elimination, but I imagined it would give me a good reality-TV fix headin' into the New Year, and I was looking forward to it.
Well...
Last night I sat down to dive into the Race, and what do I find? That football overruns, for the umpteenth time this season, have delayed the start of both episodes! Argh!!!
Why, CBS, why? I get it, football scores huge ratings, and it's a live sporting event whose end time can't be predicted. But I'll bet that if we took a look at the season, more than 75% of the episodes have started late due to football, which means those who are not watching the show live will have the ending cut off. And nothing is more frustrating for an avid viewer of reality television to have the ending cut off. There has got to be a way to schedule this show so that this doesn't happen -- every week. I mean, come on!!
Click for more The Amazing Race
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