(S09E12) The Amazing Race winds up with the usual frantic dash to the finish. I think having a two hour finale is a bit of a mistake (and not just because it made me miss Lost). When there is only one elimination it's like a game of basketball, it's interesting enough but only those last few minutes count.Our three remaining teams are :
Ray and Yolanda who have played the entire race by the skin of their teeth. They are the only ones participating in what Ray calls "The Amazing Relationship Race." Is racing with your partner a liability or an advantage? Ray doesn't help matters by referring to Yolanda as "Driving Ms. Crazy." These two would be such a great team if they could just navigate properly. They have incredibly bad luck when it comes to anything involve direction or driving.
BJ and Tyler: The beloved hippies fooled everyone into a sense of security early in the season but they have gradually gotten tougher and sneakier as each week has gone by. But they may be the happiest team in Amazing Race history. For a while it didn't seem as if they cared whether they won or lost which made it harder to cheer them on but that changed as the race went on.
Eric and Jeremy: The frat boys who vacillate between smarmy and just funny. They have dominated the entire season so it is their race to lose but they have been less on target as the weeks have gone by. Also hard to cheer for since it seems that any Race winnings will only subsidize their party boy lifestyle.
One thing I never noticed until tonight is that BJ and Tyler are always noted on the screen as "best friends" while Eric and Jeremy are only "friends." I am assuming this is their own designation but it still seems strange. I've also decided that BJ though very tiny, reminds me of Tom Green for some reason. I think it's the voice. I am not sure what Tyler reminds me of, a white rabbit perhaps.
The first section of tonight's race is in Japan which thrills Tyler since he speaks Japanese and has been there before. This gives them a bit of an advantage and keeps them from acting like classic Ugly Americans. The Detour is either Maiden, carry a Maiden in a litter, or Messenger, be a bike messenger in Tokyo. Of course the frat boys have to prove their manliness by taking the Maiden option. BJ and Tyler do the bike option. All teams get to spend the night in a capsule hotel so they are all caught up again.
The next morning it's amusement park time. One member of each team has to do the standard up in the air and locate something challenge only this time from a ride. Throughout the entire race, Ray and Yolanda lag behind.
At the first pit stop, the hippies and frat boys arrive neck and neck. These two have battled the entire season. Eric and Jeremy accuse BJ and Tyler of being sneaky and it is true, they are getting more clever and later convince a hotel to deny Eric and Jeremy internet access. Ray and Yolanda are last but are not eliminated and have to go through the begging ritual this time. I really think next season should do away with the non-elimination option. Taking the money from the team just doesn't seem to matter that much. It should be just two teams at the end of the race anyway in my opinion.
The teams take off for the deep snows of Alaska for some tough snow challenges. The second detour of the night is drill it or deliver it, either drill ice fishing holes or deliver supplies to an airfield. Unfortunately there isn't really a choice since bad weather grounds the flights. It's a tough task but not a frustrating one.
Next the teams head to the final destination, back in the U.S. to Denver, Colorado. The frat boys are looking rougher and rougher and it's suddenly apparent just how much hair product and manscaping is required to keep these boys looking hot. The hippies look the same as they always do.
The final roadblock sends the one member of each team off to gather flags from the places they have been. This turns out to be a challenge of both speed and brain power and the hippies and frat boys are neck and neck. Brains however are the frat boys' Achilles heels and so the hippies are victorious. This is the first season that the finale hasn't made me cry. None of the teams had a compelling enough backstory to make me feel as if the money was essential to them.
Andy Richter: The TV Squad Interview
Have any questions for Vik Sahay of Chuck? Ask them here!
Mike Henry and Daryl Hall on a Cleveland Show Thanksgiving
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
5-18-2006 @ 8:30AM
Missy said...
We noticed the "Friends" vs "Best Friends" thing tonight for the first time too. It made us laugh a little.
I was very happy to see the Hippies take it! They definitely avoided being Ugly Americans throughout the whole race and I hope more teams in the future do the same. The show is a lot more fun to watch when the teams are interacting with their international surrondings. I still think that Hippies should get their own travel show!
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5-18-2006 @ 9:38AM
ALLISON said...
I was happy the hippies won -- I was rooting for them from the start because of their 'let's have fun' attitude. They were a joy to watch, even when they played mind games (or tried to). I was surprised that they didn't have any grand plans for the money -- like going to an ashram in Tibet or starting a commune or helping humanity in some lofty way. But, hey, they're 2000 hippies, not 1960's hippies. It's a different world, dude.
Overall, a great bounce back season for the Amazing Race. I'd love to see an all-star version -- and they can add Terry Dietz (from Survivor) with his wife for fun!
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5-18-2006 @ 9:42AM
Adam said...
You cried during the Family Edition? Yikes.
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5-18-2006 @ 9:43AM
Adam E said...
Great episode. I was worried that BJ and Tyler were going to lose it after the pulled a Fran and Barry with the snow shoes. I was so nervous! I was relieved when I saw the final challenge and was confident again in BJ and Tyler.
"You're beard is funny."
"Touch it!"
Here are some pics from the finale party in NY.
http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=tarcon9
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5-18-2006 @ 9:48AM
shakespear said...
The ending was spoiled on O & A yesterday morning. The winners spoke
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5-18-2006 @ 9:48AM
Mook said...
There seemed to be something off with the timing in yesterday's episode.
All the racers land in Tokyo in the morning but when they get to the "Scramble" intersection, it's quite dark (maybe 8 or 9pm). There's no way that the airport is like 10 hours away from the city.
Production problems???
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5-18-2006 @ 11:05AM
Crod said...
Yes! I had hoped the hippies would win. It seemed in the beginning they were getting so much slack for just being cheerful life and fun loving guys. I thought for sure they were going to be eliminated that second time they won the non elimination round. Right on guys. Gonna check it out on DVR tonight ^_^
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5-18-2006 @ 12:49PM
Miguel said...
I have to say that this season was without question much better than last season's "Famly Edition" witch was a bad idea from the start, but let's forget about that and focous on this season.
I have no idea how Ray and Yolanda made it to the final 3 because they were so dysfunctional and clueless abut directions that I'm amazed they weren't eliminated in the first leg of the race. All Ray and Ylanda did throughout the race was yell at each other. I never thought that they had a chance to win the race.
Erick & Jeremy: I thoguht were one of the most competitive teams in the history of the race. Evern tought all they cared about was hooking up with some gril during the race, but besides that, I thought they were a great team to watch on the race, it seemd like they were the first team to reach the pit stop. I thought at one point that Phil was going to hand the " Frat boys" the $1 Million Dollar check because they were making it to the pit stop first so often. But all an all, I thoght the "Frat Boys" were a great team.
Bj & Tyler: What can you say aoout this 2, well, they were entranaing TV. They seemed like they didn't care if they won or lost as long as they had fun. And that was one of the reason why they were so much fun to watch, they deserved to win because they played a great game and they got those lucky breaks that you need once in a while to win it.
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5-18-2006 @ 1:59PM
Ben said...
This may have been mentioned earlier, but Tyler made a move called "Kintaro Walks Japan" where he traverses from
one side of the island to the other trying to find
the birthplace of his father. You should defintely check it out.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3067683435545761102&q=Kintaro+Walks+Japan
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5-18-2006 @ 8:11PM
Paul said...
I was so glad the hippies won! They deserved it. They have been one of my favorite teams ever. I hope we have some more good teams like this in the next seasons. I'm applying for 11!
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5-18-2006 @ 9:02PM
BartmanDK said...
9: Heard about that movie about a week ago.. He also mentioned it in this episode.. well not the movie but that fact that he has walked from one end to the other! :D
Dident know it was on YouTube.. its fun how much stuff there is up there these days! :D
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5-19-2006 @ 9:47PM
Terry Poling said...
My understanding? If you come in last on the non-elimination rounds. You start the next round with nothing but your pass ports and the cloths on your back. How did Ray and Yolonda Get new winter coats for the Alaska part of the race?
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5-24-2006 @ 4:04AM
Deidre said...
I just wanted to say that this is the first time I saw someone with my name spelled just like me. My name is Deidre pronounced DEADREE and I love it...you go girl....
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