The Amazing Race - Premiere Episode (7/6/04)

Cafe Society
1

I know there’s another thread discussing when the new season starts, but it was covering mostly prior season stuff to indoctrinate the newbies. :smiley:

I thought I might as well start a new thread to discuss what happened on tonight’s episode.

My impressions so far:

I hate Marshall and Lance already and want them to lose. Their comments in the car early on about how women couldn’t drive and weren’t very smart rubbed me the wrong way immediately.

I also can’t stand Brandon and Nicole (the actor/model biblethumpers) already either. Brandon totally ignored Nicole in deciding whether to walk or take a cab to the pier, and then got all sanctimonious about how he trusts in God to look out for them and lead them down the right path or some nonsense. Sure, because god cares whether you win a race for $1mm. There isn’t a rolleyes big enough.

I’m liking Charla and Mirna, as well as Jim and Marsh. I"m glad Jim got his knee taken care of, but I have grave doubts about whether it’s going to hold up long enough for him to stay in the race.

What do y’all think?

2

Looks like it’s going to be a good race…

Somebody explain the “Yield” to me? I sort of missed it when Phil explained it.

3

The first team to get to the “yield” can choose another team to stop. The chosen team has to stop for the count of an hourglass. The Yield can only be used once per team per race, so they have to decide if any given encounter with it is important enough to use it at that point.
In general, I’m rooting for Mirna and Charla, hoping Jim and Marsha go fairly far (mostly for Jim…Marsha seems awfully bitchy), and really, really hoping that Alison and Donny go all the way to the end and then lose, just so I can watch this particular iteration of their codependent, dysfunctional relationship fall apart in front of my eyes. The fact that he’s still with her after all the shit she pulled last summer is just…mindblowing. Then again, he doesn’t seem terribly intelligent, so…

4

Yay! now there’s only 1 Blonde girl/Dark guy asshole couple. I was getting them mixed up.

I’m still rooting for Charla & Mirna, and to a lesser degree Marshall & Lance. Atleast Marshall & Lance didn’t make any “midget” comments.

5

Wait for it. I am certain that it is coming. They are too rude not to do so.

6

I don’t have much to add except that lately I watch just about no TV at all. Last spring (or maybe it was the fall, I don’t remember) a friend who raves about this show had me over to watch an episode or two. As far as ‘reality’-type TV goes, I thought it was pretty cool.

7

I like Charla and Mirna but Mirna (she’s the, uh, non-little one, right?) struck me as something of a whiner. When she was bitching about the beef while Charla carried all of their belongings, strapped to her front and her back like she was a pack mule, I wanted desperately to smack Mirna, hard.

Alison (ex-Big Brother runner up) is annoying, but I’m still cheering for her and Donny. I don’t know why I like her, it is entirely without rationale, but there it is. I also really like Chip & Kim, the married couple from Orange County, Linda & Karen the “bowling moms” and Jim & Marsha, the father (who got the stitches) and daughter set.

The twins need to be the next eliminated, just because they’re annoying. Apparently in the next episode, they refuse to give up a cab that Chip & Kim grabbed first and delay both teams. :rolleyes: Really not digging them.

Also not hip on Brandon & Nicole, the Christian/beauty queen/model couple. God will guide us, therefore we don’t need to use a taxi? Uh, whatever, Brandon. They’re just a little too much. Colin & Christie have no personality whatsoever. I couldn’t tell you a single thing that they did, where they were in the order, nothing. They made no impression, they’re entirely charisma-free.

This is going to be an interesting season.

8

I dislike Marshall/Lance, Alison/Donny, Brandon/Nicole, and Mirna (Charla, the little person, seems nice enough). I hope Marshall and Lance are out very quickly. I really can’t stand that team. They seem like total A-holes.

My favorite team is Chip/Kim and the Eliminated couple. At least Chip and Kim both seem like decent human beings. I also like the mothers, they’re pretty cool. It’s too early for me to pick who I actually think will win seeing as a lot of this game is luck. Give it a few weeks though.

9

Is Mirna the one teamed up with the little woman? She’s incredibly annoying. “You can do it! You’re just as good as everyone else! Come on, let’s prove them wrong!”

Meantime, her teammate just hefts the 50 lbs of beef and charges on after her big teammate gives up and starts crying. Shut up and work already!

10

Those twins really need to be slapped. “Andale, andale!” Grrr. You just know she got that from Speedy Gonzales.

11

Wow! Great first leg, lots of surprises. The “plane leaving earlier but arrives later” really shuffled up the teams, and for once the non-Xtreme detour option was the quicker one (or did they all get lucky?) I hope we can expect many more twists like this later in the season.

Thank God Dating Couple #1 is out. I can never keep those teams straight.

Lots of non-physical teams to weed out in coming weeks. Jim & Marsha will almost certainly be gone by next week, that leg injury isn’t going to do them any favors. I’m surprised that Linda & Karen are still in it – has any “sports mom” team finished better than last place? I don’t think so. The older couple has some gumption, but they’re no Teri & Ian. And while Charla’s got some upper body strength, let’s face it, if it ever comes down to a sprint, they’re finished. They fell WAY behind during the beef hauling.

Who’s the separated couple? I forget which one they are, but whoever they are, they’ll place second. EVERY separated couple that’s raced has placed second. It’s impossible for me to predict a winner, though, since there are no “alpha male” teams this year, and no “screaming Flos”…yet. :slight_smile:

12

I haven’t gotten everyone’s name down yet so…

I wouldn’t be so hard on the Bible Models yet. Yes, the guy did say that he was trusting God to guide them but it really had nothing to do with the taxi decision. That was obviously edited in from another interview and he did feel bad about making the decision on his own almost immediately afterward. I’m willing to chalk that up to heat of the moment stuff … for now. We’ll see if he keeps it up.

Mostly I’m amazed at the cousin to the little person. Did she really want to stop in the middle of The Amazing Race to play blackjack?? Wotta dingbat.

13

My thoughts:

The midget (is that the correct term? Dwarf? Little person? What’s the polite term?) has true grit and spunk. I want her to do well (she’s too damned slow to win, I’m sorry to say. Too many episodes (especially the finale) come down to a foot race. And, whatever else she can do, she can’t win a foot race) The way she lugged that side of beef was damned impressive (and she was smart enough to know that roulette isn’t normally a good risk) Her cousin, on the other hand, is Flo-light. She’s a moron, a whiner and a wimp. (Trust me toots, you’re not gettin’ mad cow disease from touching the beef. And it’s only 55 pounts. :rolleyes: Shuddup yer whining, ya slacker.)

I’m also rooting for the black couple…but I’ve got a vague sense that they’ve got the stink of loser on them. I couldn’t possibly explain why I’ve got that feeling, but I do. I really want to be proven wrong as I like 'em.

The new version of the Christian virgins have the plus of not being nearly as creepy as the Virgins from the last show were, but the disadvantage of being kinda dumber…(actually he’s dumber, not her–the “God is telling me to do this” line. Dood: you’re on a gameshow. God’s not all that interested in whether you win or not.) She seemed pretty bright.

I think that the obnoxious brothers are actually one brother who doesn’t say much and one who’s a boorish loudmouth asshole who takes pride in it. Five bucks gets ya that he says something like “I’m not being an asshole, I’m just honest/blunt and you can’t handle that” at some point in this race. He’s also a moron and I can prove it. ANYONE who says “I’m lucky at roulette”* is a moron. :smiley:

I like the Bowling Moms, but I don’t have a good feeling about their chances. I’ll bet they don’t make it to the half-way point

The military guy and his daughter (assuming his knee has a chance to heal) have a decent chance.

The internet couple doesn’t get the strategy…actually she doesn’t. If you’re in the front part of the pack, it doesn’t matter if you come in third or fourth and it’s stooopid, especially this early in the game, to intentionally make enemies and while I don’t remember the specifics, she seemed to be trying to.

The couple who actually won are either going to be really, really annoying (the preview of next episode makes it look that way) or they’ll settle down and be ok. I’m betting for annoying.

Most of the pretty boys/girls remaining have little-to-no personality yet. Which pair is the one that was on Big Brother?

That said, a buddy of mine figured something out: It was a good gamble to do the roulette part of the detour–did you notice that every couple who played it won? The way they set up the game, you have a 20 in 37 chance (actually four 5 in 37 chances, which isn’t quite the same apparently) of winning (not making money. You can’t make money in the long run at roulette–it favors the house) the detour. And it only takes about 5 minutes. It looked like it took about 15 minutes (including the elevator, etc) to do the zip-line challenge. And as spread out as most of the group was, it would have been a good risk. However, that’s normally not the case and you couldn’t know it in advance…the vast majority of challenges it’s better to do the fast one than the safe one. Not sure which challenge is which? Easy test: which is more interesting to watch on TV? Take that one! :smiley:

Anyone know why they’re starting with only 11 couples this time instead of 12?

And, after watching like a dozen promos for Big Brother, I gotta ask: what the hell is the goal? You have a bunch of people living in a house. And? How do you win? Kill everyone else off? :wink: Are there challenges? Is it just a popularity contest?

This looks like a good race, but my only quibble is that (so far, at least) there’s no instantly likable team. We had the brothers in race 3 and we had the clowns in race 4. This one? I dunno yet.

Fenris

*Depending on the specifics, the house has approx either a 2.7% or 5.25% advantage. Given that Blackjack (depending on the specifics) give the house a .3 -.6% edge for the standard options…

14

Already done. I think the version was “I’m not trying to offend anybody, I’m just being myself.” Close enough for government work (or reality TV).

15

Alison of Alison and Donny was on Big Brother. The most disgusting, foul-mouthed creature ever to occupy a TV screen. She’s already told Donny how stupid he is, how smart she is (after saying “I’m the brains and he’s the brawns”, which is a direct quote of even stupider Nathan from BB4) and has told him to shut up. That’s pretty mild for Alison.

You said it!

16

I consider myself a Christian, but I really hate when people trot out that “God will guide us to the finish line” or “God wants us to win” schtick. God doesn’t care who wins! It’s just a game! Stop with that God stuff, already. You’re making the rest of us sane Christians look bad!

Yeah, you’re right. Neither of them seemed very friendly towards anyone else. When they were on the one ferry (not the one with the timed tickets), he was giving everyone else who had gotten on after them really dirty looks, and she commented that “we got on FIRST!” as if that made some sort of difference.

I want to root for Charla and Mirna, because they’re from my town, but Mirna seems like a whiner. She needed to sling that slab of meat up on her shoulder, and just GO. Stopping every 10 feet was a mistake.
Every time they were running, it looked like Charla had something (a little net bag)hanging from her pack that was smacking her legs. She needs to fix that or it’s really going to mess her up at some point. She’s going to trip herself.

Can the Yield only be used once like the Fast Foward? Once a team uses it, that’s it, totally? But if one team uses it on, say Lance and Marshall, could another team use it on Lance and Marshall again the next week?

17

The box across the street from the hotel really messed up a lot of people.

Does the Yield replace Fast-Forwards this go-round? Phil never mentioned FF.

I want the Bowling Moms to win; IMO they’re the best-looking women in the race.

18

Tossled Blond Jesus Boy and his Pet Stick have got to go. His I-have-testicles-therefore-I’m-in-charge attitude just grates on me. Can’t say much about his arm candy because she didn’t really have a personality. Other than Don’t-I-Look-Good-in-a-Tiara. Kinda hoping that God uses them as an example of how losing horrilby will teach them humility. :smiley:

I liked Charla and Mirna until the beef - then Mirna’s “Phil is so hot” comment. Glad I have TiVo. Phil’s face when she hugs him is so funny. Kinda like he had to hug his Grandma. I’m leaning toward the Twins.

19

Yeah, while I still would prefer they go back to more challenging “clues”, I did like the way that getting on the second flight actually got you there faster. Nice switchup. A few other random thoughts:

  1. The one daughter should have at least carried the meat for a short distance for her wounded dad. While she may not have been able to lug it the whole way, she could have spelled him for a while.

  2. I also would have given the roulett a try…doesn’t really take that long, and most importantly, mulitple teams can play at the same time. Although it did look like two people could cross the first zip line at the same time.

  3. Have these people never watched previouse seasons of TAR? There is never, never a time when you just walk in, and start doing a task, without a clue…idiots.

  4. I think I’m going to like the “Yield” option…it appeals to my sense of “screw over the other guy”

  5. The “you can do anything big people can do” stuff is going to get old pretty quick. I’d prefer you demonstrate your ability by actions, instead of saying it over and over again.

  6. Christians are going to get old praising God all the time.

  7. While I appriciate that they try to make it a diverse group, fact is that this is a pretty physical race, most older couples just can’t keep that level of effort up for the duration. I wish they’d lower the ages of the oldest pair a bit. Mid 50’s I’d say for a cut-off.

All in all, still think this is the best show on the air in the “reality” genre. I can’t believe this show struggles to get renewed, and the dreck that is “Big Brother” seems to be going strong.

20

Ha! I’ve been waiting for this premiere for months.

Not sure yet who my favorite team is. I think Chip and Kim (the black couple) might have the edge – they seemed to recover pretty well from their near-disastrous error of missing the clue box. Or maybe the Bowling Moms (oh, man; drop the custom-printed tees, though). They played pretty well in a leg that seemed to favor younger, stronger people. Or, speaking of leg, maybe Jim and Marsha (the old guy and his daughter). Crap, running around with 35 stitches in your leg? Gotta admire that.

On the other hand, it’s easy to see who my least favorite team is: the two brothers. They just emit that asshole vibe.

Y’know, I was prepared to hate Big-Brother Alison and Donny, but I don’t, really. They weren’t really unpleasant to any of the other teams, and, even though they’ve got a self-described dysfunctional relationship, it’s like, they know that, and so they just work around it. Which is an odd attitude, but, hey, whatever works.

And finally, Charla and Mirna: I’m hot and cold about them. Mirna (the tall one) has these impressive mood swings. She can be super-excited (I thought it was funny she got all excited about the possibility of playing blackjack). But she can also be a cry-baby, as noted above. And what’s with her feeling of entitlement, that other teams ought to be helping them? She’s like “no one is helping us, so I’m not going to help them.” Well, first of all, if you want to join up with another team, how about making the first overture yourself? And second, it’s a race for crying out loud! No one else is under any obligation to help you, dummy! They want to beat you! Sheesh.

Anyway, I regret the loss of the fast-forward (I’ve heard that there will be two or three, but only two or three, legs this race with the FF). But still, this leg was fun to watch.

I found it odd that every team opting for the roulette wheel actually won. I wonder how detailed an explanation of the odds were included in the clue, because, as long as there weren’t a couple teams right behind you, the 20/37 chance of skipping the zip line completely looked like a good bet. Which is unusual, normally the non-scary options bring an obvious time penalty.

Liked the little bit of airline misdirection, that not all the teams twigged onto. Earlier flight lands later. Ha!

Can anyone tell me if Tuesdays is the official time for TAR, for the rest of the run? First it was Wednesday, I think, then Thursday, then Sunday(?), and now Tuesday. And I notice there is another TAR (a rerun? Is this true?) on Saturdays.