'The Amazing Race 11: All Stars' - Ep. 11 -or- "My karma ran over your dogma."

Sigh. Sometimes even my favorite teams make some incredibly stupid moves on the show. Now, I know I couldn't do any better; I might even do worse. But it's still frustrating for a viewer. I may have to go drown my sorrows and disappointment in chocolate ice cream or something.

Four teams remain. Who will be eliminated next?

The teams left in the order of arrival from the last Pit Stop, the Hong Kong Jockey Club. That was the tenth Pit Stop of the race and time is dwindling down. The season finale is set for Sunday, May 6th. Of course, that gave me a bit of a clue about tonight's finish before it even aired. Can anyone tell me how many teams go into the season finale night? Heh.

Oswald and Danny, Team ChaCha, left first while the last team, Danielle and Eric, left last while having the thought that they were marked for elimination hanging over their heads. Since they were saved in the non-Philimination leg last week, they have to come in first place on this leg or suffer a thirty-minute penalty.

Oswald and Danny had their own problems, though. In the previous leg, they spent almost every last penny they had. The show gave each of the teams $73 for this leg of the race. That money may not cover the cost of the leg as the producers might expect teams to have some money saved up by this late in the race.

Teams had to take the TurboJet Ferry to Macau, China. That costs money. From there, they had to figure out what the tallest structure in Macau is and take a taxi to that location. Taxis cost money. Just getting from there to anywhere... costs money. Oh, and caution -- there's a Yield ahead. This is the last Yield in the race and Danielle/Eric are still mighty miffed about the Beauty Queens, Dustin and Kandice, using the Yield on them.

Uh-oh.

Desperate for money, Oswald and Danny sold their souls. Well, perhaps not their souls themselves, but they sold their Yield rights to the Beauty Queens. Yipes. They told them that they would Yield the team of their choice for money. Ack! Team ChaCha was in first place at the time, and Dustin/Kandice had caught up with them. The latter can't use the Yield for a second time.

But do the girls use it the way I would like them to for their Oswald/Danny Yield Buy-Out? Do they use it on Charla and Mirna? (It would be interesting to see how the ChaChas would have reacted to that choice.) Nope, the BQs wanted Danielle and Eric Yielded again!

I don't want Danielle and Eric to win the race and don't think all that highly of them as a team, but that's kind of nasty to Yield them again when they're already marked for elimination. Oh, well. It's the love of money that's the root of all evil, not the money itself.

Teams found out easily that the highest structure in Macau is the Macau Tower. Once Mirna and Charla caught up to the ChaChas, Charla offered them money. But it was too late. Oswald and Danny told them what they had done. Mirna, right for once, said they made a deal with the Devil.

It looks like we don't have many fear-of-heights teams left. The Roadblock teams encountered at the Macau Tower had them walking the perimeter of the top, then doing a sky jump guided by cables. It actually didn't look too tough, but would have been horrible for someone who suffers acrophobia.

When Danielle and Eric arrived at the Yield, Eric made obscene gestures, talked in bleeped expressions, and were definitely displeased with the ChaChas. I don't think it crossed their minds that any sort of deal was made and they took it as a personal affront from Oswald and Danny. Meanwhile, Oswald in particular, seems to be very unsettled about their decision to sell the Yield rights. A bit late now, ChaCha Boy.

From the Roadblock, teams had to take a taxi to the Lou Lim Ioc Gardens where they would receive their next clue. It's too bad it was pouring as they arrived -- the gardens looked stunning even in the rain. Once there, the clue led to a Detour. They could Noodle or Dragon.

In Noodle, teams had to make two bundles of noodles to be approved by Official Noodle Dudes. In Dragon, teams had to pick up a dragon head (not a real one) and drum, then carry it less than a mile to fit the head to a specific boat. The ChaChas were first to the task and for odd sentimental reasons, chose the Dragon task. In their season there was a neat dragon head task, but this certainly didn't compare. Dustin and Kandice immediately went for Noodles, as did Charla and Mirna when they arrived.

While Oswald and Danny's driver took them to the end of their destination (where the boats were) instead of where they needed to go first to pick up the head, the noodle-making was going on and very bizarre. I don't think I'll ever eat any noodles made in Macau. Charla was climbing all over the food, the girls were doing a teeter-totter odd horizontal pole dance move. I don't know. It all frightened me. I may now have noodle-phobia.

The Beauty Queens finished first and were off to find their mini-moto cars, retrieve the clue from the windshields, then drive off to the Pit Stop. Back at Noodle, Charla and Mirna were struggling. Danielle and Eric finished their Yield time, did the Roadblock and then chose Noodle. Mirna told them that Dustin and Kandice offered the ChaChas money to Yield them. That was a bit away from the real story, but it doesn't really matter. Danielle and Eric are mad at both teams. But their anger made quick work of Noodle and they finished before the girls.

But where were the ChaChas? Still wandering around lost! Argh! Maybe there is something to the karma thing. They thought about good karma when they were nice to another team, perhaps they should have thought of the bad karma their latest actions may bring.

The show tried to make it look like it was close between Charla and Mirna and the ChaChas, but it wasn't. Although Mirna was a hoot with not being able to drive the cheap car, they were minutes ahead of the ChaChas.

At the Pit Stop in Taipa, this was the arrival order:
1. Dustin and Kandice - each won a Waverunner
2. Originally Eric and Danielle, but in waiting out their 30-minute penalty, Charla and Mirna took their place.
3. Danielle and Eric
4. Oswald and Danny

Oswald and Danny were saved by the non-elimination leg, but they're now marked for elimination and will suffer a 30-minute penalty if they don't arrive in first place next week. Since it's always been three teams heading into the finale, non-Philimination won't save any team from now on. The race is on!

I think Eric and Danielle made incredible time this week even though I don't care for them as a team. I think my favorite team, Oswald and Danny, made some really bad decisions this week ranging from the choice to sell their Yield to Dustin and Kandice to not verifying directions. While the Beauty Queens are playing a bit evil, they're running the race well. Once again, we saw a toned-down Mirna and Charla stepped up to the plate for tasks.

I still want the ChaChas to win. Of course, I might not get what I want.