TVSquad

(S13E01) "The bees are much calmer than all of this!" - Anita to Arthur

Well, The Amazing Race has won yet another Emmy and tonight we were treated to the premiere of the new season. I've decided this is never a show to watch just before retiring for the night. The pace on the viewers might not be as frantic as for the racing teams. But as the music builds and things get frantic, it's better than a caffeine rush! Read on past the jump for the skinny on the show.

As always with these shows, it's hard to get a handle on many of the teams. There was a team named Stephanie and Anthony? Really? I barely recall seeing them before they arrived at the Pit Stop at the end of the show. However, others certainly made an impression on me.

Nick and Star: I found this brother/sister team annoying. I don't like how they decided that they could call Ken and Tina "Mom and Dad." Now, if they were calling Anita and Arthur the same, maybe I'd be okay with it. Alas, they're a strong team so they'll probably be in it for a while to come.

Ken and Tina: This separated couple is one of those using the show to get back together. I never quite get that approach. Oh, let's get all stressed out so we can kill each other or get back together. That said, I kind of like them. They're a pretty strong team and get together better than some couples who are together.

Mark and Bill: These two comic book geeks from San Diego are my early favorites. Geekette that I am, I liked them even before they started doing well tonight. They're gamers at heart. My only real concern about them is that they're not all that physically fit. But I think they have it together in the thinking department.

Terence and Sarah: Yes, a couple. I like her okay, but he's an obnoxious so-and-so, isn't he? True, they're not there to make friends. But if they alienate people now, it might come back to bite them on the butt later in the race. Often when teams are friends, they'll help each other out. She's trying and he's just a you-know-what! He also seems to have real jealousy issues going on.

With the exception of Arthur and Anita, I really didn't get to "know" any of the other teams. I thought Arthur and Anita were quite the characters, but neither can keep up with the young'uns. Ty and Aja may bear watching down the line. The frat guys, Andrew and Dan, should put their thinking caps on. When the clue says "marked counter," it means a marked counter. You know, with one of those little Amazing Race flags. Duh. But that whole bunch wasn't too bright. Hopefully they learned their lesson early on. I think I like the mother and son (Toni and Dallas), but I need more to judge them.

Even though I love this show the scramble at the airport, especially as they take off for the season, is almost typical. This time they were headed to Salvador, Brazil. Six teams could get on a flight which was scheduled to arrive three hours earlier than the other flight carrying the rest of the teams. Yay, my comic book dudes were first on the first flight! Boo ... it was delayed an hour-and-a-half.

To get their first clue in town, they had to be a barista old school style maneuvering a really narrow cart of candies through the streets to a vendor for their next clue. My guys (Mark and Bill) thought to cover the candies with a jacket, but were beat out of first place. It didn't hurt them that much as the next clue sent them to a military base where they would stay overnight. The first four teams to arrive would leave at 9 AM, next three teams 9:30, last four left at 10 AM.

The Detour, Hard Way Up or Soft Way Down, looked like they were all going to descend the 240' in the cargo net. When Andrew and Dan chose the stairs, I was thinking ... what would be the only question which could be asked at the top? What would they know? Hmm ... they better count those stairs going up. Sheesh, they didn't. I told them so! So they had to do it all over again. I think this initial Detour was kind of a rough start physically compared to past seasons. I don't even want to think about climbing 53 stairs on my hands and knees.

The Pit Stop Order
1. Nick and Star - won a trip to Belize
2. Ken and Tina
3. Terence and Sarah
4. Mark and Bill
5. Kelly and Christy
6. Toni and Dallas
7. Andrew and Dan
8. Aja and Ty
9. Anthony and Stephanie
10. Marisa and Brooke
11. Anita and Arthur -- Philiminated

All in all, I think it's a good start to the season. But, as far as I'm concerned, there hasn't been a bad season of this show. Well, maybe that Family Edition one. I love getting glimpses of foreign lands, cultures, traditions, and even foods that I'll probably never experience in my lifetime. I'm adding the "meet the cast" video in case you have as much trouble remembering some of the teams as I do.