Friday, November 02, 2007

'The Amazing Race 12' - The Teams - Part Three

Here it is! The last installment on the teams we'll be seeing starting this Sunday, November 4, 8 PM ET?/PT in most viewing areas -- or, seeing the time slot, possibly delayed for sports in many areas. Sigh.

I covered the other teams in this post and in this one, too.

Ari and Staella are one of the younger teams -- 21 and 24 respectively -- and they're best friends all about having fun. Okay.

He's a waiter and she's a restaurant
manager. He lives with her family which seems to indicate that neither have been out on their own. Ari says he's catty, mean, rude, hilarious and is never afraid to speak his mind, loves to dance -- always great qualities for the race, right? Staella thinks she's honest, trustworthy, and caring. (I do like that more.)

They think they'll ruffle feathers of the other teams and have a great time. Me? I don't like their attitudes. Well, his attitude. She seems okay.

Marianna and Julia are sisters hailing from Miami. They describe themselves as feisty, best friends, and worst enemies. Julia is the problem-solver while Marianna is the athlete. Both consider themselves to be very competitive and think they're unbeatable. Good. It's always nice to have a strong all-woman team even if we're lacking the all-men teams this season.

Supposedly Julia is emotional while Marianna is as steady as a rock. Julia thinks Marianna doesn't self-censor and is often mean. They've traveled together before and say that their favorite team was BJ and Tyler due to their upbeat energy. Well, hopefully these two will have the same!

Like the blondes this season, they aren't afraid to flirt.

Speaking of BJ and Tyler, look! It's TK and Rachel! They're a dating couple -- she's a florist and store owner while he's a substitute teacher. Their mothers were friends for years, but they're only recently dating.

They say they're always laughing (good) and want to see how their relationship stands up to the race. Rachel believes she's bright and ambitious. She thinks the biggest difference between her
and TK are the lives they've led. She started working and bought a business right out of high school while he was a collegiate athlete at UC Santa Barbara.

TK's sport was swimming. He thinks he's dedicated, witty, and intelligent. They hope to spend their lives together starting out with a million dollar nest egg.

Now, here's a team a bit different from many of the ones we've seen before. Kate and Pat are married lesbian ministers. They dated for seven years and married three years ago. They say not to worry -- they aren't afraid to play dirty. Pat is the second-oldest racer this season at 65. (Grandfather Donald is 68.)

Kate thinks she avoids conflict while Pat dives right in. Kate says she's passionate and sarcastic while Pat claims to be persistent and dependable. Pat thinks Kate often misjudges her time, something which might affect them as a team during the race. They're not afraid to compete against anyone and think their years of experience will beat out the physical prowess of other teams. I think others have thought along those lines before and it hasn't won the race yet. But I think they'll be an interesting team to watch.

Although technically California heavy, I like the mix of racers this season. I'm so glad we're not seeing a season full of model couples. What do you think?

8 comments:

joy n said...

I don't think I'm too crazy about any of these pairs. Sounds like they may be the cause of a lot of drama. Well, drama does make it more interesting, I guess.

joy n said...

Jackie, just read your review on upcoming TAR season. I'm very glad to hear that they are dropping the non-elimination legs. More often than not, I hated those legs. Even if it means a shorter season, I'm glad to see them go.

Brent McKee said...

I'm less than happy that they're dropping the non-elimination legs. They needed to be tweaked because the need for a penalty for finishing last in one was was never properly addressed (the time penalty was actually the worst in most cases) but my own feeling was that worse than the non-eliminations in the last two races was the "Intersection" that forced teams to work together and allowed the possibility for teams to win two Fast Forwards in a season.

joy n said...

Brent, I hate the "intersection" thing, too!

Anonymous said...

I'm with Brett and Joy,I thought the "intersection" was a poorly thought out idea. I still like the yield and am not sure how I feel about axing the non-elimination,as it kind of mixed it up,at times,and more than once,kept in a team I liked. But it's almost impossible for any last team to catch up,most times,so I guess it's not a big deal to eliminate it.

I'm not liking the two lady ministers much and don't think much of their chances. Nothing about them says "athlete" and the comment about "playing dirty" coming from ministers just doesn't sit well somehow. They may surprise me,but they are my first team to go at the moment.I agree with Jackie,though,the group does seem diverse this time.

Zoetawny said...

Jackie~

On your mark, ready, set GO!

Thanks for taking so much time to review this season's cast. I'm trying hard not to prejudge anyone because you never know who's going to surprise you either negatively or positively. I agree with you regarding the diversity of the teams and not just model couples looking for exposure. It always takes me a few episodes to choose my fav teams. I don't think we'll be disappointed with all the drama waiting to explode.

Anonymous said...

John-Robert from Survivor is on the Travel Channel playing poker.
Too funny...

Anonymous said...

i too hated the "intersection" concept...but i'm not happy that they've done away with non elimination legs all together...maybe just one...so it would be less predictable...
but wouldn't a neat concept be to have it be something they could "go for" or "win"...a "get out of jail free card" so to speak that they could use at any time?
just thinking out loud of different ways to keep it new...
can't wait for tomorrow night...we'll see what first impressions bring
racers ready?

joyzjenn