The Amazing Race Finale 9/21 (Spoilers, if you haven't seen it yet)

Cafe Society
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Once again, the God Squad chooses the wrong detour, keeping their streak alive. (Didn’t matter, as it turns out that the detour is followed by an airport bunchup.)

(OT…I was reminded of Jerry Seinfeld’s routine about the luge – that it’s the only sporting event that you can do well in, involuntarily. You can strap someone to a luge & push him down a hill, and he might win an Olympic medal.)

The last-place-penalty of taking the team’s money isn’t turning out to be much of a Big Deal. Panhandling in a tourist spot / resort hotel might be embarassing but it didn’t slow anyone down.

Looks like the race to the finish benefited from some really creative editing to heighten the tension…but I don’t care. IT WAS GREAT!

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The problem was that they had already checked their boxes in Calgary, and those boxes had already been check through on a different flight to Dallas. They didn’t have those boxes with them while they were arguing with the United ground staff. They could probably have asked that their boxes be taken off the AA flight, but since they were trying to get on a different flight, that would have delayed them even further. It would also probably have merited a little more special attention from TSA.

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Gotta give Chip credit – he did his damnedest to disprove this!

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I totally agree with this. Either eliminated the take-the-money-away twist for teams that come in last in non-elimination legs. . . or, don’t allow begging. It’s demeaning and kind of negates the whole point of the penalty.

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What a bunch of us were saying last night is that they should allow begging, but not until your time for the next leg has started. Having the money ahead of time defeats the purpose.

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We may be talking about different things. The question was “why check it and not ship it.” And I think the answer is that they couldn’t have shipped it even if they wanted to. It was too early in the morning. They could have ditched it in a locker on arrival, but that wouldn’t have solved the problem they ran into, namely, that they could not travel on a flight other than the one on which they had checked baggage. (Do airports even have lockers post 9/11? I haven’t had to use one, so I wouldn’t know.)

They could have kept the stuff with them and ditched it on the way out, but that would have added a delay.

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There was some creative editing, but not that much, I think. They showed Chip and Kim driving away from the maze just as Colin and Christie were driving in. And C&C actually bumped into Team Blue Lagoon in the maze. At the finish line, it looked like Phil was still in the process of interviewing our beloved winners when Colin and Christie showed up.

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Well, I could go for that.
Didn’t it actually seem that C&C’s begging produced MORE money than the other three teams were given at the start of the penultimate leg?

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Great Show…Great Episode. Loved the ending. Finnaly a team that I actually liked won. Even if it was by the barest of margins. Personally, I would have just pitched the stuff I didn’t need at the airport, instead of trying to check it. I remember one team doing that last season I think…just getting rid of a whole bunch of crap they had been carrying. Ended up with like…one tiny bag each I think.
One thing I’ve been trying to remmeber about the Yields. Does anyone remember if every time they showed a Yield that the players passed if it was a non-elimination leg? To me that would make it more acceptable. So that way if you Yield someone, they might be last, but it won’t actually cause them to be eliminated. Or put the yield earlier in the leg, so that a bunching location is after it.

I give props to the bowling moms for not giving up…don’t know if I could have done that cliff climbing thing. If they had had 10 more minutes, they might have made it.

I like the idea of not being able to beg before your start time the next day. Good suggestion!

I am so going to TARCON next time…of course I’ve been saying that for the past 3 seasons.

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So alst night, we had a community meeting at 6:30, followed by doggy training class at 8, and the L&O:SVU premiere at 10.

So AR finale went on the ol’ VCR, and I almost made myself late for work watching it this morning.

WOW!

In reverse order:

Linda/Karen: Go Moms! I knew it was all over as soon as I saw the Roadblock challenge. At first disappointed in their sheep-like pursuit of C&C Abusic Factory, I was cheering when they veered off and found the right flag (whose appearance I had neglected to note when the first pair of teams went through). But neither of them are climbers, and I knew that no 20-minute lead was going to be enough to beat Colon. Oh, well. They went farther than any other all-female team, and that’s a good milestone.

And I bet their children have been following them around the house with bugged eyes and dropped jaws every Wednesday morning for the last 2 and a half months.

Brandon/Nicole: Man, I had a SERIOUS Blue Lagoon flashback watching Brandon’s Whitefro billowing underwater as he hunted for the clam. And then there was the shot of the clouds, as though God were saying, “If you could look up here and see Jesus with his arms open, you’d be DYING, not winning a race, you jackass! Third place for you!”

Colon/Christie: Jeez, one would be wise to be miles away when the ol’ Christie claws come out, huh? The last several episodes have shown a new side to her. Those two deserve each other. And Earl the Driver, ya wouldn’t be a fellow native Bostonian, would you? Great moves!

Chip/Kim Of the three remaining teams, this is the only one I would have wanted to see win. The first non-white twenty-something winners! Somewhat incongruously, however, they could be the team least likely to need the money. They live in the super-expensive Coto de Caza neighborhood of Rancho Santa Margarita, and the opening shots of the episodes suggest they have a NICE home there. Still, more power to 'em!

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Another thing. AR finally found its audience this summer.

So if CBS is giving it a TBA start date, it’s because they finally woke the hell up and said, “Why the fuck are we putting our big, Emmy-winning hit show on Saturday night?” look for a QUICK schedule reshuffle to give it a better time slot very soon.

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Actually, I thought that this was yet another really good detour this season that was hard to pick which one was right. Yeah, luge is faster but not by much and the bikes are convenient. But at the same time you have to be able to handle them. I suspect that C&C probably could have done the bikes faster than the luge.

There were a lot of tasks this season that weren’t immediately apparent which one would be faster due to factors of location, how many teams could do it at the same time, safety gear, and luck. And I really liked that. Just about every detour had an option that immediately appeared faster but I could see how the other one could be very quick for the right team.

Chip and Kim kept wiping out because their center of gravity was too high and too far forward. They could have mitigated this a bit by having Chip in back but they would have a harder time with this than the other teams.

Other things that worked in TAR5:

The locatins were incredible. Those legs in Egypt and St. Petersberg were some of the coolest legs ever and the race planners got some really striking and unique locations.

The racers were good. Not just Colin and Christie though they clearly put the most work into race strategy. Once things started moving just about every team showed at least one really clever move.

Things I want to see different next time:

More navigating and thinking challenges. There were a handful but they were rare. Extreme sports makes for one good shot but a lot of racers trying to outdo eachother in finding their way makes for a good sequence. Maybe to reduce the demand the taxi driver break the law stuff they contestants could be provided with vehicals more often and forced to drive themselves. The navigation is where a lot of teams break down and it makes for a better race.

The Fast Forward back. I know why it was cut but it helps the competition to have it in there.

The Yield was a non-factor and it can be dropped. It was too difficult to use, too risky to play with. It’s just doesn’t work.

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As for the timing at the end, I’ve heard a rumor that C&C’s Lincoln got a flat and that’s what delayed them at the very end.

If so, serves them right. I was howling at the TV when their driver was being a complete ass in traffic.

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I actually got a some more respect for Colin, not just because of his graciousness, but because of his “pro-active” attitude (sorry for the biz speak jargon). As opposed to the fatalistic attitude of Brandon and Nicole, Colin was always thining “what could we have done”, “what did we do wrong”, which I actually admire. For example at the airport when C&K got the better flight, at no time (if I recall correctly) at no time did he say C&K were lucky (which they were) but that they should’ve gotten up earlier. No blaming the fates or Og or whatever. Even with the Yield, event though they didn’t particularly care for it, Colin’s attitude (not so much Christie who talked about Karma) was, “well now we just have to beat them and not let them get away with it.” If Colin could’ve controlled his Inner Hulk better I would’ve really appreciated him more.

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How much you wanna bet Chip gives Colin & Christie a really, really nice wedding present.

I feel sorry for the other parents and kids when Coloin & Christie’s kids compete in sports.

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Numfar: Do the dance of joy!

WOOHOO! What a fabulous episode!

Okay, I was wrong about the Vancouver thing, but it was still great to see the grand ol’ Canadian tradition of changing clothes in your car at the ski hill.

I loved Brandon trying to tag along with Chip and Kim, and nearly getting burned by it, and then the Bowling Moms doing the same thing to C&C, and making it work for them! I see why they aren’t allowed to bring travel guides with them-- although I’m pretty sure C&C bought a travel guide for Texas in one of their final airports.

I loved Brandon’s line about “picture Jesus with his arms wide open and you’re running into them”. He just left off the because you’re DYING OF HYPOTHERMIA bit, which I’m wagering she was. Being thin, hungry, and cold is a lousy thing, which explains the whole breakdown going up the mountain, and then trying to bike down it-- but it was still nasty when she LIED about whose decision it was to tackle the bicycle challenge.

MrsB was rooting for C&C because they were so incredibly competent-- and they were, hands down, especially arranging in advance to have a driver waiting-- but they screwed themselves by checking luggage through on their final leg. Yeah, they convinced Blue Lagoon to do the same thing, but it was a bad move that cost them the race.

Overall, the Yield is a good thing-- it takes guts and drive to deliberately target another team, and in doing so put a target on your own ass. Chip and Kim won this race when they bit down and used the Yield.

However, I wish we could see some of the outtakes that don’t make it to air.
Where were the yields on the last two legs? If they were at the beginning, I can understand why C&K didn’t get nailed, but the Moms (and Blue Lagoon) should have fingered C&C again just because they were so competent.

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Yeah, I got thinking about it, and to give them credit, C&C were always polite and gracious to the other teams (well, nearly always). When they flipped out and lost it, they only yelled at each other.

Best missed opportunity: When Chip and Kim got to the finish line, Phil should have said, “Chip and Kim (pause) - go back and pick up your luggage. You need to have it with you when you cross the finish line.” Then after a good comic closeup of their faces, he could have told them he was joking.

Incidentally, did God make it into the credits for His cameos?

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The problem with the Yield is that here it is, the show is over – and no one understands yet exactly what the deal was with it. Was there one in every leg? If not, how did they choose which legs to use it on? I recall (vaguely) Phil saying that the amount of time for the Yield would be different – how different? predetermined? on what basis?

It was kind of an interesting idea for changing the game a bit, but it didn’t work that well.

OTOH, as a couple of people have pointed out, the “losing your money” thing didn’t work at all. I wasn’t clear, though – weren’t C&C the first to do their begging before the departure? Or am I completely misremembering that?

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Brandon and Nicole begged before departure as well. I think in both situations that was likely the best option since they had time in the evening at were at a hotel which was going to be their only real oportunity to beg for cash…

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The only other Yields they showed were in Legs 1 & 10, both of which were elimination rounds.

I’m amazed that nobody used the Yield in the final 2 legs…maybe there wasn’t one? In any case, it seems like a pointless feature if it only gets used ONCE during the whole damn race. And I agree with those who say they need to rethink the whole begging-for-cash scenario – make them wait, or perhaps give them an extra task instead.