Did anybody else catch one of the Linzes pronouncing Elephant Butte, Elephant Butt?
And I still can’t tell those boys apart, except one of them has a normal sized head.
“It’s not a mound, it’s a butte.”
“And right purrty too!”
But yeah, Elephant Butt. BUt then, after observing the boys in question, hard to tell if it was a error in pronunciation or entirely intended. I’m guessing intended.
Because they’re from Florida, where everything is flat and boring, and they’re jealous?
Actually, though it’s hard to tell even in slo-mo, one of the rock piles the Weebils called “a pimple” looked like the slag heap from an abandoned silver mine, which do indeed pockmark the Utah/Colorado landscape like acne.
OK, I am highly concerned about rockle. We have not heard from her since last night’s travesty, and I’m very much afraid that it has pushed her over the edge.
rockle, honey, come join the grief counseling.
Heh. Funny thing about that … I was, uh … hmm, how shall I put this? … occupied … after dinner last night and fell asleep afterwards. I am embarrassed to admit that my priorities got out of whack for an evening. (Can you blame me? My husband cooked AND washed dishes!) But, I checked TiVo this morning and it’s recorded, so as soon as I get home today, I’ll watch. Pinky swear. Of course I had to check in here to see if my niggling suspicions were confirmed, which they were. Goddammit! This is turning into Colin-and-Christie-gate all over again, I fear. Good thing I put an extra bottle of wine in the fridge, because it sounds like I’m going to need it while I watch.
They did it strictly to piss me off. Although I can’t confirm this because I didn’t start watching the Race until the fifth season, I believe the Powers do it because they enjoy watching my head explode, like they did when Colin and Christie failed to be eliminated in the Phillipines, after the infamous “Broken Ox” incident. Sadistic bitches. I watch the show and buy the advertised products. The least they can do is stop messing with my head. Or show more shirtless Linzes. Or some shirtless Phil. Damn. What does a girl have to do to get some love around here, huh?
Y’know, I’m just getting tired of watching the Weavers and the mighty chip on their shoulder, and for that I blame the editors. Yes, I imagine the Weavers really are unpleasant people, but this is the Amazing RACE, dammit, and I’d appreciate an edit that shows a bit more racing and a bit less self-pity and carping about other teams. I’d be willing to stipulate that, yes, everyone hates the Weavers simply and only because they’re so upstanding and Christian if they’d just shut the fuck up about it and let the rest of us watch something other than the Amazing Woe-is-Us.
The Back Seat Report
"Over the River and Through the Woods…" - or, songs, happiness, and lots of familial love.
The Linzes (up from “Daddy’s driving”): It’s getting near the end of the show, and it’s time now to start spreading the rankings out. The Linzes come in first this week–they’re holding up well both mentally and physically, and they’re really concentrating on avoiding mistakes. The one they made this ep (not grabbing a number at “Elephant Butt”) was dumb, but not fatal. I have a difficult time believing they won’t make it into the final three, and I think they’ve got the best chance of winning it all. The one niggling reservation I have is that the producers of this Family Edition seem to have intentionally salted in tasks that favor teams with lower mass: think the buggy-pull from the first ep or the boat ride two weeks ago. The Linzes seem to consistently get the short end of that stick, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see a similar task in the finale. Cross your fingers.
"Daddy’s driving right now, hon." - or, a little tension and impatience, but still far from the breaking point.
The Godlewskis (holding steady): Y’know, I was wondering where the sisters got to when they failed to show up at the rappelling Detour. A production delay? I wonder if they’ll get a time credit at the beginning of the next episode? Anyway, the Godlewskis are clearly smart and focused, although they seem to have a problem with vehicles and maneuvering and maps, one which I foresee cropping up again later. They should, however, provide the Linzes with some stiff competition.
"Are we almost there yet?" - or, some whining and dissent, but no more than you’d expect.
The Bransens (up from “Janie”): Yeah, Wally’s still slow, I know, I know. I just don’t see the Bransens winning it all without some major luck–they don’t seem to match up physically with either the Linzes or the Godlewskis, and don’t seem any better mentally. However, luck plays a big part in the final episode, so if they can avoid elimination next week they’ve got as good a chance as any. They weren’t really threatened this episode, and they seem way more mentally stable than the Weavers, so I’m putting them ahead of the Weavers this week.
"Dad… Janie’s on my side again!" - or, conflict, bad feelings, things just not going right.
The Weavers (down from “almost there”): This episode was “the worst day of their life.” Think about that… OK, then, I was betting on this being a non-elim, and clearly there was a pretty good possiblity that it was. I don’t disagree with Ma Weaver’s strategy of assuming it was an elimination–with the lowered expectations, if it is an elimination, then you’re not awfully disappointed, if it isn’t, then it’s an unexpected bonus. However, she went way too far, and now the Weavers are just out of it mentally. They’re not excited, they’re not driven, they’ll be more apt to make mistakes. Mistakes like taking the wrong Detour, and also driving the winding slow route, I should point out. That was dumb, dumb, dumb on multiple levels–the time to gamble is when you’re clearly in last place and can only go up, not when you’re in second. A perfect example of being focused on the other teams, and not focused on the Race. I expect, if they’re eliminated next week (which seems likely), we’ll be treated to a tearful interview of how it was so hard to race when everyone else is so mean. Free Clue from the Clue Box: Shut up and Race.
"Dad… Jimmy made poopy-pants in the back seat." - or, near disaster, and a whole lot of clean-up required before getting back on the road.
OK, I thought about putting the Weavers here, but truth be told, if they’re in the final four, they can’t be that bad off.
"ALL RIGHT, I’M TURNING THIS CAR AROUND RIGHT NOW!" - or, out of the Race and on their way home.
The Paolos: Out!
The Gaghans: Out!
The Schroeders: Out!
The Aiellos: Out!
The Rogerses: Out!
The Blacks: Out!
Next week: Ma Weaver goes batshit crazy. Ho hum.
[sub]Props to Mullinator.[/sub]
Dinner and dishes equals “occupation?” Man, being single sucks.
/hijack
It seemed like Ma Weaver was trying to convince herself that no one has ever “unliked” them before, what with all the gesturing to herself and over-the-top voice.
That yield was completely useless. The Weavers are good TV and the producers knew it. It confirms what I’ve suspected for a while now–they make up which legs are non-elim legs on the fly. Oh, the Weavers are last? Well, we’d better make this a NEL!
If Phil had kept his mouth shut at the pit stop, then we may have seen a team actually quit on the mat. How great would that have been? I agree that Jeff Probst would’ve said, “Don’t let the door hit you in the ass…”
That GoditalkaLot woman reminds me of someone at work. She’s super skinny, talks in circles non stop, has a nasally, annoying voice and the same mannerisms. I can’t stand having to ask her a simple question, because it becomes a 15 minute ordeal to get answer.
Man, I need a revigorating, enjuvenating ice cream now. Do you think that will be the next TWOP now or never T-shirt? 
I liked how the Linzes made silly hand motions at the Evil Weavers while passing them, and Mama Weaver got all bent out of shape.
EXCUSE ME?!? Who was throwing trash and food at other racers just last week? Bitch.
I was kind of hoping Phil would call them on the rudness remarks, and ask exactly why they think no one likes them, and ask about the food-throwing incident.
Well, since all the females here (and Otto) are drooling over the Linz boys, I think Megan is all yours.
It does for me. My husband is a great guy, and he does a lot of useful stuff around the house, but he hates doing dishes. I certainly appreciate the effort he put in.
That cracked me up–mostly because the Linzes weren’t giving them the finger or anything, and the effing Weavers acted like it was mortally offensive.
I honestly can’t wait to see some sort of interview with these people after they see why everybody hates them so much. And I seriously hope the effing Weaver girls are sitting at home on Tuesday nights as horrified at their own choice of wardrobe as we are.
Man, those Linz’s make so many mistakes when driving, I’m losing my confidence in them. At least they’re happy. Couldn’t believe the Desperate Housewives had so much trouble turning around. Looked to me like the road and the off-road were one in the same.
My fav moment: When one of the Linz brothers looks at the bear and says:
[bear_voice]“would you like a pic-a-nic basket?”[/bear_voice]
Boy, was that bear a ham. Utah looked great, and looked to me like God *did * spend a lot of time there…as opposed to Florida?? I thought that was pretty mean when they followed the ‘drop a house on us’ comment with the close-up of Ma Weaver. And was a close-up really necessary? No mas! I think Ma Weaver isn’t as bad as she seems, but those kids are getting worse.
We saw Florida riding those bikes and then getting to their finish, reading their next clue. Next thing you know they’re in their car. How’d they get from the finish to their car that fast? Was it a loop?? Looked like fun to me, nice hard packed dirt and beautiful scenery.
Damn, 4 posts late on dibs on Megan. Story of my life.
The way he was reading the clue, under his breath, I don’t think it was intended. If they say something they think is funny, they make sure it’s loud and clear.
Bart the Bear is a big movie star bear. The exact titles of his filmography escape me at the moment, though.
I agree that the Weavers worst sin is unappreciating natural beauty. I guess to them, if it’s not flat and fetid swampland, it’s not worth looking at.
I realized this episode that I’m actually starting to be able to tell the people apart.
40 is just too damn many to sort out. Now that we’re down to 16, I can start to tease out individuals from the whining mass.
The dramatic irony in some of the results really does make one wonder if the whole race is not rigged for dramatic effect.
“Hmmm, polling suggests that the audience would like the Weavers to be eliminated, so we’ll splice in the Pit Stop footage where they get mugged…”
Of course, if that were true, Rob and Amber would have won.
Wally Bransen reminds me of the tortoise in the old Bugs Bunny cartoon who moved slow as molasses but always won. What the hell was he thinking? "I’m a-feared of heights and speed, so I’ll go on a show that’s known for bungee jumps and end-of-the-road sprints.
On the subject of the Weavers, the less said at this point, the better.
rockle, does this mean you’re a Red Sox fan?
And how.
I find it interesting that there is so much hatred put toward the Weaver’s in these threads, to the point that those who are complaining about them are acting much more cruel and evil than the Weaver’s ever did. I’m not defending the family – they have been rude many times, and they appear to be suffering from a huge persecution complex (probably brought on by the death of their father, and them apparently not handling it very well). They also appear to be very judgmental, and this makes it worse because they claim to be strong Christians (who shouldn’t be so judgmental). But we sure are judging them here, aren’t we, so are we any better? Also, the kids are young, so some of this rudeness we are seeing from them is typical teenager bad attitude.
I’ll also admit that I’m biased because I am a huge underdog supporter and I hate it when anybody gets ganged up on and made to feel excluded. Probably has something to do with the wretched clique mentality so popular at high schools (including mine). Still, I would take the Weavers over the Linzes (or as I refer to them, Abercrombie and Bitch) any day of the week.
It’s hardly just us here at the SDMB, Psycho Pirate. The TWOPpers are all but lynching the Weavers in effigy. They’re just completely unsympathetic, whining, rude, nasty, false Christians.
I’m a horrible person, and I know it. I’m sure if I were on television, most of the viewing public would hate me, as well. It’s their hypocrisy that makes me angry–calling other teams rude while throwing apple cores at them and insisting they’re good Christians even as they revile someone who was trying to comfort them during what must have been an emotionally-trying Road Block. In their defense, they appear to be a very tight-knit family, and they’ve hardly argued through the whole race, but that doesn’t make me like them, and it doesn’t necessarily make them either good people or good Christians. Being devout is entirely different from being good.
The Weavers, that is. The TWOPpers are unsympathetic, rude and nasty, but they hardly claim otherwise.