The Amazing Race - Aired Dec. 10 - Commentary

It's all finally over. After four continents and over 40,000 miles, we finally... ARGH! I can't pretend I didn't see it! What the hell is up with James' dad's eyebrows? Those are the freakiest damned things I've ever seen! I really wish I could bring a screen shot of those unnaturally long and elevated clumps of hair. It's a good thing I'll never meet him, as I don't think I'd be able to talk without staring. No wonder James got into drugs, what with the spectre of those alien brows haunting him his whole life!
Okay, that's out of my system. Congratulations James and Tyler, the Junkie Models. Of the final three, you were the least offensive of the possible winners so you did us proudish.
It was a race though once they got to New York. A race between two teams. The Single Moms didn't have a chance. When they couldn't make that direct flight to New York, the game was over for them. Even if they made it, there was no chance in Krispy Kreme hell that they would have been able to beat either of the other teams in a foot race of two miles. If they made it to New York in time, their only possible chance was a horrifically bad cab driver.
Oh god, those eyebrows...
For a season finale, it was a pretty boring episode overall. It had its moments, but it wasn't as good as the best episodes of the season. If there was another reason for wanting the Miss Americas in the final three, the friction between them and the other teams would have heated things up. At least we had Rob and Kimberley, they can always be counted on for a meltdown or two to keep us entertained. The Single Moms unfortunately were almost as bland as the Junkie Models without their archenemies to keep them agitated.
I'm sorry if this is all seeming disjointed and all over the place. I'm still a little freaked out. Couldn't he trim them? A small pair of scissors would make all the difference. As it is all I can think of is that long, black hair that shouldn't be that long, and it's keeping me from being able to establish any sort of cohesive, coherent narrative.
Let's see...
Boring? Check.
Two bland teams? Check.
Lease offensive winners? Check.
Single Moms didn't have a chance? Check.
Obligatory reference to Dustin and Kandice, the Miss Americas? Check.
Nightmarish brows? Check.
There really isn't much else. It was all over anticlimatic. I'd much rather see a Road Block or Detour just before the final mat. What did we get this season? Run two miles to a statue then take a cab. Oooooooooh! Goosebumps!
It was still enjoyable though, and it could have been much worse. For a while there it was looking like Rob and Kimberley would be the only team to catch the direct flight to New York, and short of some frantic editing it would have been a final one taking a leisurely stroll through the Big Apple. It sure was lucky that some seats opened up for James and Tyler so we were able to have an actual race at the end. Yeah, lucky.
Ah, sweet memories of Rob and Amber's plane actually backing up and reopening its doors so that Joyce and Uchenna could get on. That one took some clout. This time it could have been nothing more than the producers paying off a couple of passengers to get their seats. Maybe they bought them nicer seats on a later flight. That could do it. But I have no doubt there were some behind-the-scenes shenanigans in order to keep suspense levels up.
In both cases, the team that got the likely help ended up winning. That's gotta suck for the teams that made it on the planes first.
Anyway, I need to put those eyebrows behind me. It was a good season, and I'm looking forward to the next even if it is an All-Stars season as it appears to be. All-Star seasons invariably suck, but because of the nature of the Race it shouldn't be quite as plagued with the problems we saw on the Survivor and Big Brother All-Stars debacles.
And maybe, just maybe, we might get to cheer on the Miss Americas again.

The Amazing Race - Aired Dec. 3 - Commentary Update

I was reading B-Side's Amazing Race recap over at TVgasm and he commented on something that I missed. After the Road Block, there was both an airport equalizer and an opening time equalizer at the park with the maze.
The previous two non-elimination legs were followed by Fast Forwards, so there was at least a chance for people to beat being marked for elimination. This leg however seemed like it was almost deliberately set up for a team that is marked for elimination to fail. I doubt it was deliberate though. More a case of producers not thinking this new twist on non-eliminations all the way through.
Maybe an extra Fast Forward could be thrown in. Maybe they could have a leg with no time equalizers between the Road Block and the Detour. Something, anything, to give the marked team an actual chance.
As much fun as the begging for money was on previous seasons, I do like this change in non-eliminations. Just make it actually mean something, that's all I'm asking. Mary and David had two chances at Fast Forwards, two real chances to actually stay in the game. The Miss Americas, Beauty Queens if you prefer, Dustin and Kandice, they just got screwed over by poor planning on the producer's parts. They managed to build up a good position coming out from the Road Block, only to see any lead they worked at done away by two equalizers. That's just wrong.
So there you go. I was wrong about former pageant contestants being done in by a fourth place curse. As it turns out, they're being done in by a poor production decisions curse.