'The Amazing Race 10' - Ep. 6 -or- "Dumped in Kuwait"

Seven teams remain. Who will be eliminated next?

Yes, there are still seven teams, at least for the start of the show. Last week's non-elimination leg saved David and Mary, the last team to arrive at the Pit Stop. In a new twist this season, they kept their money and possessions, but were marked for elimination. If they didn't arrive at the Pit Stop first in the next leg (tonight's show), they would have to wait out a 30-minute penalty. That could very well cost them the race.

So, how did it all play out? I'm pleased with tonight's show.

The teams left Chennai (India), the location of their last Pit Stop, headed to Kuwait City. They were given a product placement video clue from Phil Keoghan instructing them to buy airline tickets at a travel agent, then fly to Kuwait where they would drive to the mystery location pictured on their screens.

At the travel agent, we saw not one, but two, "cards" played. Peter lied and said Sarah had a medical emergency with her leg that was dire. While she has the problem with the hydraulic fluid, there's no way they can fix it on the race. I noticed she didn't say one word about her leg. (Dump him, Sarah! He's using you and creeping me out!) The other card was the "We're Beauty Queens" card, used by Dustin and Kandice.

A lot of good the cards did -- all of the teams, including David and Mary, were on the same flight out of Mumbai. Ha! All of the teams also thought to check on the Internet at the travel agency or ask about the mystery location image. So, they all knew they were looking for the Kuwait Towers, too.

Even though the teams bunched up and all took the same flight, they once again bunched up at the Kuwait Towers as they didn't open until 11:00. Each team had to take a number, then search for the next clue when the doors opened. When they opened the clue, included was a Fast Forward - the first of two in this season's race. If a team successfully completes the Fast Forward task, they can go directly to the Pit Stop. Now, who needs the FF the most?

Well, David and Mary! The Cho brothers, Erwin and Godwin, bluffed other teams and indicated that they themselves were going to take the Fast Forward. Actually, they were anticipating David and Mary taking it so they would surely stay in the race. David/Mary, the ChoBros, and Lyn/Karlyn have a tight alliance going on. Even though they both are afraid of heights and it was apparent that the task at the Towers would be height-related, Erwin and Godwin wanted David and Mary to take a chance for first place with the Fast Forward. They rock!

That is where the line for the promo for this week's show took place. Nothing had really happened to the Cho brothers; David and Mary just didn't want them eliminated because they secured the FF for them.

Sure enough, the clue at the Towers was a Roadblock, a task only one member of the team can complete. And, yes, it had to do with heights. The team member had to climb the circular ladder (pictured above) up the side of one of the towers, 610 feet high. Once at the top, the racer had to retrieve a bag with puzzle parts, return to the ground, get more puzzle parts from a trunk, and complete a puzzle which contained a message in Arabic (their next clue).

Of course, Peter immediately said Sarah would climb - "I think you climb here, Sarah." He is so horrible to her and hasn't done not a one physical task. Peter, she has one leg, you creep! You climb! Again, editing may play a part, but they showed him relaxing as she struggled. She did better than Erwin Cho, though. It was evident that he was terrified almost to the point of choking on the task, but he made it. He knew how bad he was with heights and knew he could have easily gone for the Fast Forward.

Meanwhile, Team Kentucky (David and Mary) were off to the Fast Forward. This was an exciting one for them. They had to find a certain oil field and retrieve the clue leading them to the Pit Stop amidst a simulated (yet very real) oil fire. David what thrilled, he had a childhood dream of being a fireman. Both donned protective gear and went for the clue box using shields.

Back at the Towers, the teams all had their puzzles translated by locals and were off to a bead market, then to the Al Sadiq Water Towers where they faced a Detour, a task both members of the team must complete. Detours always are a choice between two tasks, each one having something to do with the region or its culture. This Detour was Manual (old-fashioned) or Automatic (new-fangled). In Manual, it was actually manual labor as teams had to fill several bags of camel feed, seal them, then lug and stack them. In Automatic, there were really neat little robotic jockeys they had to attach to the back of camels, then complete a race.

Some of the teams wanted to do the camel race, but couldn't find it so they went to Manual. It seems the teams who got very lost found the camel racing. Tyler and James drove aimlessly and hopelessly through the streets of Kuwait City, but not as aimlessly and hopelessly as did Peter and Sarah. The Pretty Boys took it well under the circumstances, not blamiming each other for being lost, but very disappointed. In contrast, Peter blamed Sarah, snapped at her and insulted her. Finally, the Boy Toys found the camel racing and made quick work of the task. Peter and Sarah were still searching for the Manual task in the dark.

The arrival oreger at the Pit Stop was as follows:

1. David and Mary - Came in long ahead of the others thanks to the ChoBros and the Fast Forward. They also won a trip for two to Jamaica for placing first.
2. Dustin/Kandice
3. Rob/Kimberly
4. Lyn/Karlyn
5. Erwin/Godwin
6. Tyler/James
7. Sarah/Peter - eliminated from the race.

The Good

• Sarah dumped Peter at the Pit Stop confessional. She said he wasn't the kind, compassionate, caring sort of amny she desires. You go, girl!
• The ChoBros are fantastic. I bet their parents are proud of them. They even got a local police officer to lead them at one point.

The Bad

• Lyn and Karlyn were very nasty to the Beauty Queens and I thought they treated the locals very abruptly in doing so. They wanted the locals to not give the other team directions and practically yanked at them. Sheesh!
• Peter in general.

The Ugly (American)

• The notable Kimberly/Rob exchange of the week when instructed to go by a certain mosque: Kimberly: "We have to go by the grand mass." Rob: "Mosque. Grande Mosque. It's not a street name." Kim: "Whatever."

I want Rob and Kimberly out next.

'The Amazing Race 10' East Coast Update 10/22 - Pit Stop Arrival and Philimination

The arrival at the Pit Stop:
1. Mary and David used the FF - Won a trip for two to Jamaica
2. Dustin and Kandice
3. Rob and Kimberly
4. Lyn and Karlyn
5. Erwin and Godwin
6. Tyler and James
7. Peter and Sarah - Philiminated.

And, more important... Sarah dumped him! You go, girl!

A full review/recap will be posted later tonight.

'The Amazing Race 10' East Coast Update 10/22 - FF Used

Thanks to the ChoBros, David and Mary used the Fast Forward, snagged 1st place and are now redeemed.

'The Amazing Race 10' Blogging Schedule Tonight 10/22

TAR is starting about ten minutes late here in the NYC area. Football, of course, is the blame for the late start. I will post an East Coast Update on the Finish Line order and the Philimination at about 9:10 ET for those in other time zones. Late tonight, I'll post the show review/recap.

'The Amazing Race' Goes All Stars Next Season

They've done it for other reality shows and its coming has been rumored for some time. Now it seems to be inevitable. According to the TVgasm website, the filming of The Amazing Race 11 is to start next month. And, not only that, we're in store for watching a season of teams who have previously raced the race. Big Brother did the same, as did Survivor even earlier. Apparently the "all star" format is successful, but it's not always this fan's favorite.

So far, two teams from TAR5 are listed as participants in the new season. I fear neither team was too popular in their season, at least not according to the Internet buzz at the time.

Bickering and sometimes "Ugly Americans on Exhibit" Colin Guinn and Christie Woods are one of the teams revealed. Colin, of course, is most remembered for his infamous line, "My ox is broken!" That happened when an ox just didn't want to steer the way he wanted it to go. The couple argued their way to near the finish line only to be beat out by the Force for Good, Kim and Chip. Their motivation for undertaking the race at the time, other than the million dollars, was to test their relationship and possibly marry. Whether they're married or not these days is unsure. But, it's sure they'll fuss and fight through the All Stars season.

The other team linked to the All Stars version is cousins Charla Faddoul and Mirna Hindoyan. This is a team that many fans so wanted to cheer on, but they made it hard for the fans to do so. Mirna fretted, made her cousin handle all the tougher tasks, and obsessed about looking pretty for Phil Keoghan at the finish mat each leg. She also did her best to perpetuate stereotypes of little people with the way she treated Charla. At least, that's this show fan's perception. On the other hand, there's Charla, a little person. She can do a lot, but needs a better partner. Fans called them out for using the "Dwarf Card" to get ahead. Charla and Mirna were most recently seen on last years Battle of the Reality Stars (BRAVO). Their relationship didn't seem to change much over time.

Amazing Race ALL STARS or Amazing Race Villains? It could be worse. We could be in for another season of watching Jonathan and Victoria Baker. It would be better if these shows polled the viewers about what teams they'd like to see return if they feel they have to have all "all star" season. Better yet, I'd rather not see an "all star" season at all.

TV Newsy Bits - Saturday, October 21, 2006

Oh, my. Yesterday was a double whammy day here for me and I couldn't post to the blog. First, strong wind gusts brought down a tree practically in front of my apartment building. It actually fell on one parked car and one car which was driving by - a huge tree uprooted. Yikes! No one was hurt, though two vehicles will go to car heaven. But, my power was out through the evening hours.

Then, when the power returned, I tried to post and Blogger's servers were down. As I said, a double whammy. But I'm here now and here are the TV Newsy bits from the past few days:

• Reality to set in at NBC with shift to cheaper fare - Orlando Sentinel : Television
• Amazing Race and Survivor Cook Islands Finales Announced
• The First Fifteen Days Are Revisited Next Week on Survivor Cook Islands
• Cao Boi and Cristina on The Early Show - Also linked there are separate Reality News Online interviews with each castoff, worth reading!
• The mystery of Jae's death - USATODAY.com - Some of these very same questions went through my mind.
• Big Brother's Howie hits eBay with auction items from the show.
• Jack is Called On to Save One of "The Others" Next Week on "Lost"

I received some promotional goodies from TBS (the SuperStation). I'll hopefully have time to investigate them thoroughly over the weekend and give you the lowdown on two new shows set to debut next month - My Boys and 10 Items or Less.

And, but of course, we have The Amazing Race tomorrow night. The promos make me think a team I enjoy may be in trouble. Eek!

'Survivor 13: Cook Islands' - Ep. 6 -or- "When Good Voodoo Goes Bad"

Fourteen are left. Who will be voted off tonight?

Now, this was one rockin' and rollin', get down and get dirty, episode! All they would need is some jello (or mud) and it could have been held ringside for the big bucks.

The show opened with Raro on Night 14. Tension, hurt feelings, and verbal jousting were the order of the night. Understandably, Cristina's feelings were hurt because Adam called her out as "annoying" at Tribal Council. So, they argued. Brad thought it was insensitive of Adam, yet let them orally duke it out without his interference. Cristina cried. Adam didn't cry.

Then it was Day 15 and we were plopped into Aitu territory where Ozzy once again was being Poseidon Man, fishing for the troops. Despite his vow a few weeks back, he continues to supply his tribe with food he catches or climbs to get. Jonathan remarked about Ozzy's talents, but noted that Ozzy isn't anyone to be against after the merge. He's right. But, then again, Jonathan himself isn't one to be against after the merge.

The tree mail they received promised a feast to the winning team and talked about a well-balanced team being needed. The mail was in the shape of a mast. It didn't say whether the challenge would be Reward only or Immunity, but since it didn't mention bringing the Idol, it appeared to be Reward only to most of the tribe members.

Except for the Lone Cao Boi, that is. He wants to drag the Idol to everything as a "spiritual" thing, pride, a fellow member of the tribe, and a host of other reasons. Jonathan told him he was against bringing it because it would come across as gloating over their wins. Cao Boi got very abrupt. Fine, just fine. It stayed at camp.

Ah, it was time for the down and dirty at the Reward Challenge. I have no clue what the producers are doing. This one almost begged for injuries and it's lucky no one got hurt besides bruises, scrapes, and scratches. Cao Boi sat out as the odd man over. Then each tribe chose three members to cling onto a pole which was secured to the ground. Two members from the opposing tribe then had to remove them from the poles and drag them across the sand for quite a ways to the finish line.

Cristina fought dirty as they JessFlicka fought her. Chokeholds, hair-pulling, attempts at disrobing were the off-color moves during that battle. When it came time for the guys to move Ozzy, they just snagged him from the pole and carried him by the pants for a ways. He struggled, but couldn't beat them for long.

Oh? The prize? Well, the winners got a feast. But there's a hitch. Jeff told them that both tribes would each vote out a member tonight. The winning tribe would go to Tribal Council first, then feast and sit in the jury box during the losing tribe's Tribal Council. The feast was lamb shanks, bread, and apple cider. He also said there would be one more surprise. Every tribe member of each tribe gave the challenge their all, but in the end it was another win for Aitu.

Back at the Aitu camp, they were proud of their win, but worried about Tribal Council. Cao Boi came up with Plan Voodoo, an attempt to bring the hidden Immunity Idol into play and vote out one of the original Caucasion tribe members. He fears that, after the merge, the ex-Caucasian tribe will be a huge alliance and wants their numbers decimated. He also thought Jonathan had the Idol when it's actually Yul (the one to whom he was telling his plan) who has it.

Jonathan, meanwhile, wants Cao Boi out as the wild card. He has his points, too. Cao Boi has proved a bit bizarre and, though interesting, he can be annoying and problematic. The women seemed to be leaning a bit more towards voting out Jonathan, even Becky who's in the Becky/Candice/Yul/Jonathan alliance. Ozzy seemed a bit iffy about it all. I think he may have just been happy to be off the radar at the moment -- the ex-Latino tribe members have been dropping like flies. Only Ozzy and Cristina remain from that tribe.

Over at Raro, Nathan decided they didn't need lamb and he caught a nice-sized octopus for their own little feast. With tensions they way they are, Cristina was the largest target. She knew it, campaigned, and only had a decent response from Nathan.

Cao Boi, of course, brought the Immunity Idol to Aitu's Tribal Council. When Jeff Probst questioned him about it, he decided it could be another tribe member sitting there. He also told Jeff that people either love or hate him. That got a snicker from his tribemates. He rambled on about his voting choice being a chess game scenario looking down the robe. Deep, man, deep. Or not. He admitted that his plan was to expose the hidden Immunity Idol, something which may have been better left unsaid at Tribal Council, but that's Cao Boi for you.

In the end, it was bad voodoo for the Zen Master. Cao Boi was voted off with the only votes not for him being his own (Candice) and JessFlicka (Jonathan), his Zen Buddy Grasshopper.

Then it was time for Aitu to sit in the jury box and feast and Raro to hold their Tribal Council. The "Cristina annoying" bit was all rehashed; Jeff mentioned how many challenges they've lost (most of them). Then he announced a new twist right before Raro was ready to vote. Aitu would kidnap one of Raro's tribe members. That member wouldn't vote in the Tribal Council, but would also be safe from the vote. He also would quickly feast for a few minutes, then return with Aitu to their camp through the next Reward Challenge. They chose Nate.

Aitu, including the kidnapped Nathan, left before the votes were cast for Raro. Even Nate's vote couldn't have saved her. Cristina was voted out by all but two votes. She voted for Jenny, as did Brad.

A few random thoughts...

• Ozzy is the sole Survivor of the original Latino tribe.
• I didn't know Cao Boi had the sneakiness in him to come up with Plan Voodoo. Had Yul not had the Idol, it probably would have played out. But both Becky and Yul knew Jonathan didn't have it.
• While Cao Boi wanted to break up the original Caucasion tribe, he neglected to include his buddy JessFlicka in there.
• I know some might think it as racist on Cao Boi's part, but the Caucasian tribe is the only one that is still intact. I'd target them, too.
• My personal favorite remains Yul, though I'm also liking Jonathan more each week, too. Ozzy is a tremendous player, but he's so dang moody when things don't go his way. To me, he's a bit of a wild card in his own right. He's actually playing the people end of things much better the past few weeks.

'Survivor 13: Cook Islands' - East Coast Update 10/19 - Raro Tribal Council

Cristina was voted out.

A full recap/review will be posted late this evening. Stop back! :-)

'Survivor 13: Cook Islands' - East Coast Update 10/19 - New Twist

Nate was kidnapped by Aitu in new twist. He's immune from Raro TC and eats with them. He will be returned to his tribe at the next Reward Challenge.

'Survivor 13: Cook Islands' - East Coast Update 10/19 - Aitu Tribal Council

Cao Boi voted out.

'Survivor 13: Cook Islands' - East Coast Update 10/19 - Reward

Aitu won Reward. They will get a feast.

But... it's going to be at Tribal Council. Jeff announced that both tribes will vote someone off. The winning tribe (Aitu) goes to TC first, then feasts in the jury box while observing Raro's Tribal Council.

Jeff also said there would be one more surprise tonight.

Tonight's 'Survivor 13: Cook Islands' Blogging Schedule

As per the usual, I'll be watching the show (you knew that) here on the East Coast. As important events air, I'll post East Coast Updates here. They generally include Reward, Immunity, and the boot. Later on tonight, I'll post a full recap/review of the episode.

In order to view the newest posts to the blog, you may have to refresh the main blog page. Sometimes it also works even better to hit the Archive link for October (located in the right sidebar of the main page).

Survivors ready?

'Lost' - "Further Instructions"

Sometimes the dead come back. And, sometimes they're still good-looking, too.

Oh, but I'm ahead of myself here. Tonight was the third episode of the anticipated six or so episodes before the show goes back on hiatus. Supposedly, we'll have 23 new episodes this season, but we're only getting a handful for the fall.

The spoilers had it right, yet had it wrong, too. Yes, this show was focused on John Locke, that's true. But another happening just didn't happen. Even according to the TV Guide, Claire was supposed to discover the two newcomers, Paulo and Nikki, in Jack's tent. It didn't happen. At the end of the show I noticed them in the crowd, but no tent incident and not even an introduction at all. Was it a foiler instead of a spoiler? One that even hit the big time? If the scene was cut, I certainly have to wonder how they're going to introduce these two new characters. Did they just fall out of the sky? Well, it's Lost. It could have happened.

Onto the show...
This week, it was more of Locke's backstory shown. We found out nothing further about the captives (Sawyer, Kate, and Jack). But I've always maintained that Locke is the key to the island, so it was all good for me. As its usual way, the show was set between present island happenings and flashbacks. Oh, and one odd dream-like mystical sequence, too.

The show's opening included Locke's previous statement "Each one of us was brought here for a reason." They briefly recapped Locke's decision to stop pushing the button - "You killed us all!" "No, I saved you all." And, then his admission that he was wrong as the hatch imploded.

Cut to the new -- Desmond was seen running naked through the woods and John Locke was laying wounded in the grass. Charlie discovers him and Locke asked for his help. Well, he lost his voice somehow, so he wrote it. He wrote to Charlie that he needed to "speak to the island." He wanted Charlie to guard him as he built some sort of meditation hut.

Now, since the show jumps back between flashbacks and the "now," it's hard to make it all make sense when writing about it. (That is, if Lost makes sense at all!) So, I'm going to segregate the flashbacks and the "now" and you'll see some connections betwixt the two.

Locke's Tale in Flashbacks
An unshaven Locke was driving a pick-up truck through a rural area and picked up a young hitchhiker named Eddie. Within minutes of picking him up, local police stopped the truck. When the cop asked Locke what was in the back of the truck, he replied, "Groceries and guns." Yep, there sure were guns of all types. Locke told the cop to look in a red book and he'd find all the proper records. Apparently all was legal and Locke (with the hitchiker) went on his way.

Locke took Eddie to what seemed to be a commune, one which had taken in Locke after his problems with his father. It was a place where he felt he was part of the family once again, a "real family." They talked about how some folks are farmers and others are hunters. All seemed hunky-dory. And, it was, on the surface.

Ah, but this wasn't just a commune. Eddie saw mysterious happenings by a greenhouse which seemed to be guarded and off limits. John just sort of hushed him and told him they had orchard duty.

Eddie told Locke that he wanted to be in on whatever they were going to blow up as he figured from the gun delivery, fertilizer, and mysteriously guarded greenhouse that was what the group was all about. John Locke laughed almost to a guffaw and told him he'd talk to Jan and Mike (the commune leaders).

But it was Jan and Mike who wanted to talk to Locke first. They had found that Eddie was a newly-hired cop, gone undercover to bust them. Bust them for bombs or terrorist activities? Nope, it was a major marijuana growing operation. John, who often lectured Charlie about drugs, was involved in heavy pot trade.

After they told him how he screwed up the whole operation, he told them he'd fix it. He went to the woods with Eddie on the premise of a hunting trip. John confronted him asking if the cops had picked him to target and Eddie finally admitted it. John had given Eddie an unloaded gun and was planning to shoot him. Eddie told him that he was a farmer, not a hunter. John told him he was wrong -- "I am a hunter." He took aim, then couldn't pull the trigger. End of the flashbacks.

The "Now" On The Island
Now, where did I leave off? No, I'm not Lost. Well, maybe. Oh, yeah... Locke was building his "magic hut" as Charlie dubbed it. He warned Charlie not to come in and his voice was still gone missing. When it was completed, he stepped inside.

Fire, potions, mystery, and meditation were the name of the game inside the hut. Boone (played by Ian Somerhalder) appeared, looking darn good for a dead guy. "I was the sacrifice the island demanded. I'm here to help you find your way."

He took Locke on a fantasy dream sequence to the airport, the one where the passengers boarded Oceanic Flight 815. It was the same, but different. The people were the same, but Hurley was a ticket agent; Desmond was on the escalater; Claire and Charlie were a couple with a baby; Henry was the security man.

Locke still couldn't talk, but Boone told him he'd talk when he had something to say. The ongoing theme to the "dream" was that he had to clean up his own mess. It was apparent that Locke had to save someone, but everyone they went by Boone pretty much declared as safe or not in trouble.

"You have to clean up your own mess. They've got him. You don't have much time."

A bear's face briefly flashed the screen, then John burst from the hut with a knife in his hand declaring that he had to save Mr. Eko's life. Charlie followed him although John asked him not to. "Bad things happen to people who hang around me." They found signs that Eko had been dragged by a large polar bear. (Woohoo! The polar bear is back!)

As they tracked through the woods, they came upon the site of what was once the hatch, now just a huge crater in the ground. Then John found an "active kill" - a dead animal of some sort - and decided the bear must be nearby. A noise in the woods! Run! John Locke throws his knife... right into Hurley's canteen. The timeframe is such that Hurley is on his way back to the camp after being released by the Others.

Hurley told John and Charlie about the Others taking Jack, Sawyer, and Kate captive. They told him that John wanted to save Eko and that the bear was nearby. "What bear?" Well, dang it, what other bear, dude? Sheesh! Hurley headed to the beach campsite and Charlie and John continued on their mission at hand.

They came across what appeared to be the bear's lair. Okay, bear's den? A cave and John insisted he enter alone, leaving Charlie to look worried outside. With a lighted torch in hand, John stumbled over what seemed to me to be a computer part of some kind, perhaps it was some metal casing from something else.

He found a skull. And, he found Eko. And, even better yet, Eko was not the skull! He also found the bear. Eep. He fought it off with the torch while dragging Eko from the cave. Eko was in very rough shape.

Meanwhile, Hurley came across the still naked Desmond in the woods. He gave Desmond his tie-dyed shirt from his pack and they talked about the "fail-safe" key Desmond had used when the button wasn't pushed to save the world. (If you watch the show, you know what I mean.) Hurley told Desmond that the sky turned purple and everything vibrated. Desmond seemed to know that the Others took captives and that "Locke's going after them. He said so in a speech." Hurley told him no; Locke's going to save Eko and kill bears.

Back to Locke and Eko, John told Eko he saw Boone and that if he hadn't have stopped pushing the button, he wouldn't have had to save him (Eko). Cleaning up his mess, eh? John apologized. He also said he could have saved them -- Sawyer, Kate, and Jack.

Eko came to for long enough to tell Locke that it wasn't too late. He could still protect and save them. "You will find them. You are a hunter, John." He then closed his eyes. Charlie and John carried him back to the beach camp where there are two new people lurking about in the crowd not introduced and that was that for the episode. Locke said he will find their friends and bring them home.

Okay, the new issues this week:

• In the cave, that didn't look like the giant polar bear to me.
• Why was Locke messed up with a militant pot operation? How did he go from there to working in a box factory?
• Didn't Mike (commune) make a showing as an Other before? He looks familiar.
• How come Desmond lost all of his clothes in the explosion of the hatch, yet doesn't seem to be hurt at all?
• How does Desmond know things which happened or will happen? Has he become suddenly psychic?

No answers this week, just new questions.

Oh, heck. I'm Lost.

TV Newsy Bits - Monday, October 16, 2006

It's Monday! That means I watched How I Met Your Mother and Heroes. Yes, I watched The Class, but I'm writing that one off a bit. Well, maybe not. I don't know. The jury is still out on that one for me. (And I also got a summons to do actual jury duty today. Hopefully it's a television show jury! Yeah, right.) I tried once again with Studio 60 and it's just not keeping my interest. I ended up turning to the earlier news and plan to hit the sack a bit early. After all, Letterman is a rerun tonight.

In Blog TV News, don't forget there are show discussion posts for people following AOL GoldRush, Grey's Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, and the odd bedfellows of Nip/Tuck and The Bachelor. If you're following the AOL contest and want to talk clues, or if you're a fan of any of those shows - drop on in! There are some great folks talking about 'em! The links are also located in the right sidebar of my main blog page.

In other TV news, here's the Link o' Interest I've found:

• Janelle and Will from Big Brother 7: All Stars will be doing a Jokers Update chat next Thursday, Oct. 26.
• In-depth info on next week's Amazing Race episode. Minor spoilers, beware.
• What? You haven't had enough of Boston Rob (Survivor, TAR, etc.)? Check out his latest TV adventure.

'The Amazing Race 10' - Ep. 5 -or- "Is that a homeless cow?"

Seven teams remain. Who will be eliminated next?

Finally, the teams go to another country. While I found Vietnam a wonderfully exotic and interesting place, this is supposed to be a race around the world. More than one leg in one country feels sort of like they're stagnating. At least, it does to me.

Unlike last week's rather close departure times from the Pit Stop, I noticed there was a three-hour gap between first and last place. That would be Rob/Kimberly and Dustin/Kandice, respectively. Will it matter or will the teams encounter another infamous TAR bunching point waiting for something to open or a flight or somesuch? Only time will tell.

It's off to Chennai, India! For some reason, Vietnam doesn't allow the sale of tickets at airlines and all plane tickets must be purchased from travel agents. It doesn't seem to be a show rule, but a restriction placed by the government. That's odd.
Sarah told us more about her feelings for Peter in a confessional segment. She doesn't put him on the pedestal she once did. Yes, Sarah! Dump him. He's a pompous so-and-so who treats you poorly. He's using you and he really seems like he's not a nice guy, not at all.

Tyler and James saw an addict shooting up drugs near the railroad tracks, so we heard another "so happy to be recovered" bit. The ChoBros have really hooked up with Lyn and Karlyn to develop an alliance which seems to help Lyn and Karlyn more than themselves. Peter seems to be getting creepier in each leg of the race. In addition to treating Sarah poorly and being a pompous you-know-what, he's taken to spying on the other teams to get a step ahead and mocking other teams.

So, what do the ChoBros do? They borrow a cellphone and make a totally fake phone call to make reservations so he could eavesdrop and freak out. And, that he did. Ultimately, it didn't really help the brothers out much, but it was worth it to make a fool of Peter. Even the Barbies (Dustin/Kandice), Peter's supposed allies, were turned off by his spying and no longer trust him.

The teams ended up split between three flights to Chennai. Some had to buy tickets for a connection and poor David and Mary were alone on a later flight. Again, it really didn't make a huge difference in the overall race.

Once in Chennai, the teams had to take a bus to Mallapuram. While David and Marry and the ChoBros tend to look at everything as wondrous and exciting, Rob mumbled, "From one polluted city to another." And, his lovely Kimberly declared she wanted to go to Europe. Tyler and James got lost with a lost cab driver, but most of the teams made it to the arts and crafts store where they received their next clue -- a Detour.

The Detour, a choice between two tasks which are relevant to the region or its culture, was between Wild Things or Wild Rice. In Wild Things, the teams had go tie a crocodile's snout shut, tie the crocodile to a stretcher, then transport it to a man who would give them their next clue. In Wild Rice, teams had to take colored rice powder to make designs according to speculation. Believe it or not, the crocodile choice seemed to be the easier of the two tasks. Most of the teams picked Wild Things, but David/Mary and James/Tyler struggled through Rice.

In personal bits, Mary declared she would not fight a crocodile no way, no how. Sarah told Peter she's not having fun when he told her he has to either win or just not care and that she should just have fun. She's tired of him giving up or pushing her so hard. All she really wants is a middle road and he's not giving her one. (Dump him, Sarah!) Peter and Sarah passed by their "allies" Dustin and Kandice who were stuck with a flat tire. And, tonight's Dumb Line of the Week came from Kimberly. Now, they're in India. Anyone who knows anything about India knows that the folks there often think the cow is a sacred being. They wander the streets, no one bothers them. So, Kimberly sees one and says, "Oh. Is that a homeless cow?" Even Rob thunked his head over that one. Duh.

Next up was a Roadblock -- a task which can only be completed by one member of each team. This one was a hoot! They had to go to the Karthik Driving School, take a lesson, do a road test and receive a driver's license in India. Of course, if this were happening in the USA, it would take the whole season, but we're talking India. Hand signals and a Harpo Marx horn to honk at children and animals (and only children and animals, please) were the rules of the road. Other than those, the only rule was to make it out of there alive without hitting anything, it seemed. All on the left side of the road, as per their laws.

License in hand and driving school car on the road, it was off to the Pit Stop. Here was the order of arrival:
1. Peter/Sarah - Each won a home gym for placing first in the leg.
2. Dustin/Kandice
3. Rob/Kimberly
4. Erwin/Godwin
5. Lyn/Karlyn
6. Tyler/James
7. David/Mary

This was the first of probably three non-elimination legs this season. Unlike the last few years which had the money and possessions stripped from the teams in last place, Phil Keoghan (the Philiminator) told David and Mary that they're "marked for elimination." In the next leg, they must arrive in first place or suffer a 30-minute penalty. That time penalty could very well knock them out, so first or the closest they can get to it is a must. Next week should be interesting. They're not the fastest or strongest team, but I'd like to see them hang in there.

Rob and Kimberly weren't as annoying with bickering this week, but I still wouldn't miss them if they were out of the running. I like Peter less each time I see him. The ChoBros, Erwin and Godwin, are still my favorites for the win. Of course, I'm horrible at picking the winning team so that might be bad luck for them. This week they wore LOST shirts with a picture of Phil on them and a lookout notice for a missing Kiwi. Phil is from New Zealand, thus the Kiwi. He laughed at the shirts when they got to the Pit Stop. I think Phil likes these guys, too!

'The Amazing Race 10' Pit Stop Arrival East Coast Update

Arrival order -

1. Sarah/Peter - Each won a home gym
2. Dustin/Kandice
3. Rob/Kimberly
4. Erwin/Godwin
5. Lyn/Karlyn
6. Tyler/James
7. David/Mary

This was a non-elimination leg. David and Mary are still in the race. The rules have changed - they keep their money and possessions. But, if they don't come in first at the Pit Stop in the next leg, they will receive a 30 minute penalty as they're "marked for elimination."

A full report will be posted later tonight.

Tonight's 'The Amazing Race 10' Blogging Schedule

Tonight's TAR is running about 20-25 minutes behind schedule here in the NYC area due to football. (Sigh.)

Once the show finally airs here, I'll post an East Coast Update with the Pit Stop arrival order and the Philimination or non-Philimination if it's time for one of those.

Late tonight, I'll post a recap/review of the show.

In the meantime, I watched a show about hot dogs on WNET, Channel 13, public television. They didn't even mention Jimmy Buff's (local cool Newark-style dogs with potatoes!) or Hot Dog Charlie's (my early childhood hot dogs). Sheesh!

Um. I'm kind of hungry now.

'The Bachelor' and 'Nip/Tuck' - Blog Meet Up Discussion Post

You asked for it, you got it!

Here's a place for you to talk about The Bachelor and Nip/Tuck with friends. Share links to websites, share this post link with friends, discuss the latest episode!

The link to this entry will be posted on the sidebar of the main page along with other discussion posts. Please feel free to have fun.

:-)


The official websites for these shows are at:
The Bachelor
Nip/Tuck



I don't watch the shows, but who knows? After reading your discussions, I just might have to check them out!

'Survivor 13: Cook Islands' - Ep. 5 -or- "Ankle Octopi, the Newest Fad"

16 are left. Who will be voted out tonight?

After the inevitable recap of last week, the show opened with the Raro Dudes hustling. Since JP was voted off last week, they're worried the women will come gunning for them. They're outnumbered and they're worried. And, more importantly, they're working. While they want to show how much they can actually do, the women are just taking it all in.

Over on Aitu, the gender war sort of continues. At least Cao Boi is irked about the women on his tribe doing less than the manly men. With the way he irks others, he may not be in a position to cast stones.

Treemail with its hints of challenges to come sent the castaways to meet up with Jeff. This was a rather new one for a change, not a recycled past challenge with new casting. Each tribe had to pick three pairs from their ranks. The pairs had to stand tied together as the remaining folks placed weights on the pairs of their choosing in five pound increments.

When I saw Adam and Nathan were a pair, I figured them for both the target of others and for the win. Sure enough, they were loaded up with the most weight and struggled to hold each other in the competition. The idea of wine kept Nathan going and they persevered. Since JessFlicka decided to taunt others, I chortled when she and her partner, Ozzy, went down. As Nathan would say, "Karma is a bizzle."

So, Raro won Reward - a bottle of wine, spices, and more fishing gear. They also won the opportunity to choose someone from Aitu to go to Exile Island. Now, we know it's a waste, but only Becky and Yul know for sure that the hidden Immunity Idol has already been found (by Yul). They chose to send Jonathan. He will return before the Immunity Challenge and will not be safe from Tribal Council voting should Aitu lose immunity.

After the challenge, back at the Raro camp, the guys are still hustling. Adam hustled so mightily that he somehow caught an octopus who must have thought he was a constricting snake. The octopus wrapped itself right around Adam's ankle. I can see it being the next utilitarian fashion trend -- ankle weights and, after exercise, it's dinner!

You would think that since they won something, they'd be happier. Nuh-uh! Jenny complained that Cristina is the "new JP." And, Cristina didn't help matters any when she accidentally spilled the pot of octopus (yes, ankle-octopus), then tried to blame Jenny. Actually, she just claimed that she thought Jenny was watching it, but blame enough. The girls want Cristina to be the next out.

Over at the Aitu camp, Yul wants to try to catch a chicken and the tribe is lamenting about the lack of resources there. Some want to row to a nearby island to see if they can collect coconuts and other needed supplies. Cao Boi, Ozzy, and Jessica tried to convince Sundra to join them in their quest, but she turned them down, preferring to stay behind with Yul, Becky, and Candice.

With most of the Alliance of Four (who wants to be of five), and just Jonathan missing on Exile Island, Yul tried to sway Sundra to join them. Sundra seemed a bit reluctant to commit, but said she feels more comfortable with them than with Ozzy and Cao Boi. Yul told her he didn't trust Ozzy.

Oh... the island that decided to explore? Well, it was none other than the Raro camp island! Oy! That did not go over well at all with Raro, and Adam, in particular was not a happy neighbor. Cao Boi went into a bizarre Cao Boi long tale of rats, snakes, and other animals being friends, being feared, and on and on. And, on and on some more. Perhaps it was his attempt to hypnotize the tribe to steal their spices. I don't know. He did have the nerve to ask them for just a bit and the answer was laughter, followed by an empatic no.

On Exile Island, Jonathan dug a huge trench following the clues. He decided the hidden Idol has already been found or that he's the biggest moron in the world. You're not a moron, Jonathan.

Not only did we have a fresh new Reward Challenge, the Immunity Challenge was also new fodder! The tribes had to put together three "stepping poles" each, two tribe members had to use the poles to cross to a platform with the other tribemates supporting them and moving them forward. Then, they all had to swim to a tiered platform and all had to gather at the top of a small platform.

Aitu kept up their mini-streak and was declared the winner. Raro almost won it, but every single tribe member fell off their platform, so they had to all get up there again.
So, it's the "who are we voting for" routine as Raro returned to their camp. Remember, earlier they wanted to vote Cristina off because she's bossy. It was all going that way once again until -- almost like last week -- Stephannie said something a bit dumb, this time to Nathan. They were talking about the plan to vote Cristina off when Stephannie said, "I wouldn't mind eating some mashed pototoes tonight."

That was all Nathan needed even though she's his Hiki-hood Love. He went to Adam and Brad, told them that he felt her spirit was broken and she wanted to go home. It spread. Parvati asked Stephannie and she denied she wanted to go home. She also said she wouldn't beg to stay.

Perhaps she should have begged.

At Tribal Council, the vote was unanimous with the exception of her own vote for Cristina. Stephannie is history. The other rather interesting event other than the vote was that Nathan spoke up and said how bossy Cristina was to others. That may come back to bite him or it could warn her. I guess we'll see.

At the end of the show, in the promos for next week, it appears we'll get the double-castoff I predicted due to too many on the show. Jeff said something about one from each tribe would be evicted. Of course, that doesn't leave much incentive to win Immunity, does it? Unless they don't know -- it's certainly too early to break down for individual immunity.

'Survivor 13: Cook Islands' - East Coast Show Update 10/12 - Tribal Council Boot

6 votes were read. One was for Cristina, the other five were for Stephannie.

Bye-bye, Stephannie. I liked ya!

'Survivor 13: Cook Islands' - East Coast Show Update 10/12 - Immunity

Aitu won Immunity.

'Survivor 13: Cook Islands' - East Coast Show Update 10/12 - Reward/Exile Choice

Raro won the Reward Challenge - more fishing equipment and a bottle of wine.

They also chose a person from Aitu to send to Exile Island (not immune) - Jonathan.

Tonight's 'Survivor 13: Cook Islands' Blogging Schedule

The show will be starting here in a few minutes. As usual, any important events will be posted in East Coast Updates - Immunity, Boot, and any other critical happenings - will be posted as aired here in the East.

If you don't see a new post, try refreshing the page or hitting the Archive link (right sidebar) for this month.

Sometime tomorrow I'll be adding discussion posts for both Nip/Tuck and The Bachelor. If you're interested in various discussion posts, check out the right sidebar of the main page!

Late tonight, I'll post a full review/recap of tonight's Survivor.

'Lost' - "The Glass Ballerina"

Graphic artist Zoetawny made me a Lost maze mug. It's great, but I have to keep entering the code to save the world. Now, how am I going to get some sleep tonight? Maybe I can take in a stranger and convince him to enter the code while I flee!

Tonight's episode of Lost was called "The Glass Ballerina" and it won't rank in my favorites. Not that it was horrible, mind you. Not at all. It was entertaining enough, but I feel a bit stuck in place after watching it.

The show opened with a flashback sequence of Sun as a child. She broke a glass ballerina figurine in her house, then lied to her very authoritative father, telling him the maid broke it. Even after he told her the maid would be fired and he obviously thought Sun broke it, she lied.

As usual, the show cut back and forth from flashbacks to vignettes on the island interweaving them throughout the episode. Sometimes it can make you dizzy, but that's Lost for you. I'm going to split this into the main threads of tonight's show. We have the Sun/Jin backstory in flashbacks, the Sayid/Jin/Sun mission on the island, and then the Kate/Sawyer/Jack/Others events.


The Sun and Jin Backstory
After the initial flashback with the busted ballerina, the next one also focused on Sun's lies or, to be more precise, her infidelity. A motel room, Sun in bed with her lover, Jae. He told her that her English is good enough to leave. "You could go to America!" He showed her a pearl necklace and vowed his love for her. She teared up and doesn't commit. Or, she didn't really have a chance to as her father arrived into the room. Eep!

Then it was Jin meeting up with his father-in-law, Sun's very authoritative Dad. Her father, his boss, wants him to take care of a man who's been "stealing" from him. Although the father never comes out point-blank and said it, he used phrases like "my shame is your shame." Jin knew it was basically a contract hit and refused, even tried to quit. Quitting wasn't allowed - he must restore their honor. Jin told Sun he had to deliver a message for her father and she knew. She begged him not to, claimed they could run away. But, he couldn't.

So, Jin confronted Jae, beat him and held a gun to his head. Well, there was a pillow in between the gun and the head, but I don't believe that's great cover. He couldn't do it. He couldn't kill Jae. Jae cried, he apologized. Jin told him to vanish. But, he didn't. Instead, as Jin sat in his car still shaking from the encounter, Jae's body thumped down. A suicide? He held the pearls he had planned to give to Sun.

The last flashback was Jae's funeral. Sun and dear rather evil Dad met up by surprise. Sun asked him if he was going to tell Jin. He told her that's not his place and commented on the suicide as well as the shame.

The Sayid, Sun, and Jin Island Mission
Sayid has hatched a rescue mission to save Jack, Sawyer, and Kate. He wants to sail to where the others are and save the world. Wait, that's Locke pushing the button. No, Sayid wants to save the captives. Or, perhaps, he just wants to confront the others?

Jin was reluctant to go with Sayid's plan and there doesn't seem to be a lot of trust there. Sun told Jin she wanted to go because she didn't want to be without him. (She sure was without him with Jae!)

They set sail and found a dock which seemed very out of place. Sayid suggested they camp for the night and make a fire. Supposedly the plan was to build a fire so Jack could see the smoke. But Sun saw through it and questioned Sayid. He admitted his plan was to build the fire to attract the Others. When they came, he'd kill all but two hostages. Why two? So they could be used against each other. "Just lie to Jin for twenty minutes more," he pleaded as they built the fire. Lie to Jin? Say it ain't so!

There was no need to lie to Jin, though. He figured it all out and said he also understands English more than people think he does. He and Sayid took guns and waited by the fire for the Others, sending Sun to the "safety" of the boat.

Oh, no! The Others want the boat, not the people! Several boarded in the dark of night. Down below deck, Sun retrieved a gun and tried to convince a blonde female Other (not Juliet) to let her escape. The female Other knew Sun's name and didn't think she'd shoot. No go with that and Sun shot her. She barely escaped with her own life as the men on deck shot at her.

Ah, but she fell overboard and swam to Jin, who was already frantically swimming to her. All lovey-dovey and even Sayid showed remorse for his wayward mission.

Jack, Sawyer, and Kate Still Held Captive
Juliet made soup for Jack who's still being held in the dry dolphin tank. He seems to have lost his appetite and wasn't overly cooperative. When Juliet met up with Benry (Henry/Ben), he flirted just a bit... a bit bitter, it seems. "You never made soup for me." They were interrupted by the blonde Not Juliet (possibly Colleen) who told them that the "Iraqi found the decoy village and had a boat."

"I want that boat," said Benry in an absolutely chilling tone. It was like he didn't care if the people lived or died - he wanted the boat.

Sawyer and Kate were awakened by loud parade music, then carted off to a workfarm just a bit short of being on the chain gang. Kate had to chop up rocks while Sawyer had to haul the chopped rocks in a wheelbarrow. There were several other prisoners doing the same work. They were warned not to talk or try to escape; the punishment would be electrical shocks from a handheld shock doohickey.

A woman in the bushes (not one of the prisoners) whispered to Kate, said the dress she was wearing was hers, and asked if they were living in the bear cages. She asked about Carl, someone she seems to think may be in one of the cages. She disappeared as quickly as she had appeared. Was this Alex, Rousseau's daughter? I believe it was.


Then there was The Kiss, the one featured in promos. And, just as the spoilers predicted, the kiss wasn't what it seemed. Oh, yes, it was a kiss and indeed a kiss between Sawyer and Kate. But, it was a scheme on Sawyer's part to either escape or, failing that, size up the enemy. It ended up being the latter as he reported back to Kate after their return to the cages. He thinks most of the men have never had to fight anyone, but the blonde woman would kill in a minute. As Kate and Sawyer talked, Benry monitored every bit of their conversation on several monitors much like the hatch with the monitors of the other hatches.

Back to Jack, Benry tried to start over by explaining that he couldn't say anything when he was held captive. He introduced himself to Jack, which got the Rolling Stones song "Sympathy for the Devil" running through my mind -- "Please allow me to introduce myself, I'm a man of wealth and fame... what's puzzling you is the nature of my game." He said his full name is Benjamin Linus and he extended his hand, a hand Jack refused to shake.

He told Jack that he's lived on the island all of his life and that Jack needs to change his perspective. When Jack questioned if home was where he had sent Walt and Michael, he affirmed it. Then he proved to Jack that he has contact with the world at large. His proof? The Boston Red Sox winning the world series. He showed him a videotape of the win.

"I will take you home. But you must listen and do what I tell you..."

And that was that; the episode is done. Very few answers, if any. Not even too many new questions. What I'm left with are nagging issues:

• The Others claim to be Good, not Evil. Jack, Sawyer, and Kate were handpicked to be captives. Sawyer and Kate have outlaw backgrounds, Jack has issues. Are they Evil?
• How did the Blonde Other know Sawyer's name is James? How did the Other on the boat know Sun's name? Where did they get that file on Jack last week?
• Last week there was a reference that DHARMA was long ago, but there has to be some sort of organization behind the flow of information.
• Where are the children?
• Each backstory exposes weaknesses of the stranded. What are the weaknesses of the Others?
• Why was Benry so intent on getting ahold of the boat? After all, if he has contact with the world, he wouldn't need it. Or, is it just that he doesn't want them to have it?
• What's the reason behind a decoy village? How many others have fallen into the island's grip?
• Are all of the Others like Benry, lifelong island residents?

Oh, I just don't know. I'm as Lost as all get-out!

What's On TV Tonight? Wednesday - Oct. 11, 2006

I guess it's a good thing that I won't be watching all of the shows which catch my eye as I peruse tonight's listings. It's a rainy night here and the perfect sort of evening to be curled up with a throw over my shoulders, a mug of hot chocolate, and a warm television. Or two, and don't forget the VCR!

Here are the shows on the schedule which have my attention, some enough to note here, others enough to watch, and one I'll be watching and blogging.

• CBS at 8 PM ET/PT has a new episode of Jericho. This week should see the arrival of strangers, or at least one stranger, to the town - the first to come from outside Jericho since the nuclear explosion. The episode is entitled "Wall of Jericho" and I'll watch.
• Also at 8 PM, but on NBC and for only a half-hour is the debut of 30 Rock. I like Tina Fey, but I'm a bit ambivalent about the rest of the cast. Due to my old love of SNL back in the days, I'll tape this one and give it a shot.
• At 8:30 on NBC, the debut of Twenty Good Years with John Lithgow and Jeffrey Tambor. Two "older" guys decide to live every day like it's their last. Okay. Maybe, maybe not. It's not something that's striking me as a must-watch, but since I'll be taping 30 Rock, I'll tape the hour.
• On ABC at 8 PM, it's Dancing With The Stars. I've watched about ten minutes of this so far this season and just a bit more last season. It's popular, though. I just don't think I want to see Jerry Springer waltzing. I just don't.
• On the CW Network at 8 PM, there's America's Next Top Model, another show with its fans. But, not my cuppa tea.
• At 9 PM, I'm going to be Lost! According to the listings: "The Glass Ballerina" Sun's and Jin's lives are in danger; Kate and Sawyer must work in harsh conditions; Henry makes Jack a tempting offer that will be difficult to refuse." I'll be watching, probably taping, and blogging later on tonight about the episode.
• While I'm all about Lost, CBS has Criminal Minds and NBC has The Biggest Loser. I keep wanting to watch CM, but its timeslot is bad. And, the one time I caught it in a rerun, it didn't catch me. I've no desire to watch The Biggest Loser.
• At 10 PM, it's a toss-up which I'll watch and which I'll tape... C.S.I.: NY or The Nine. Both will eventually be seen by me.

What are your TV plans for tonight? Is anyone watching those odd soap opera type shows on stations like My9 in NYC? I'm talking Desire and Fashion House. I don't believe I've ever heard anyone mention them and, as far as I'm concerned, I'd rather watch old syndicated reruns. But that could be me.

TV Newsy Bits and Other Stuff - Oct. 10, 2006

Well, well, well. What's been happening with the boob tube and me last night and today?

Last night, I once again watched Heroes. I'm not sure where the story is going, but I'm sticking with this one. I've been a comic book fan for eons, although I've fallen away some over the years. I love the character of Hiro more each time I see him. I'm not sure how the show can work longterm as there's supposedly some sort of nuclear disaster appearing within weeks, but I'll go for the ride with them. And... if I were to have some sort of superpower of my choice, I'd choose flight. After all, I could skip all the New Jersey traffic congestion.

I also caught JP, recently cast out on Survivor, on Late Night with David Letterman. He seemed very different than he did on the island. He definitely wants a job and sure sounds like he wants show biz.

Tonight, it was the Law and Order block for me. The second one (SVU) had Jerry Lewis appearing as Munch's uncle. He's suffering from a depression-related disease which at times mimics Alzheimer's. I think he did very well in the role, but in the end, the episode was more tragic than most. But, sometimes it's good to think.

What did you watch?

In TV Newsy Bits, here's some of the scoop I found out there:

• For American Idol fans, Bo Bice Hospitalized
• William Shatner to Host New ABC Reality Game Show "Show Me the Money"
• Big Brother 7 Contestant Will Kirby to Appear on "The Young and the Restless"
• Suresh Tracks Down a Genetically Advanced "Superman" Next Week on Heroes
• Laying odds on this season's ‘Amazing Race’ - REALITY TV - MSNBC.com
• 'Amazing Race' Upcoming Episode In-Depth
• IGN: Exclusive Survivor: Cook Islands Interview: J.P.
• TV Cocktail: A TV Blog at iVillage.com
• Boogie Has Had A Good Year - Something I'm sure we're happy to hear!

'The Amazing Race 10' - Ep. 4 -or- "Up, Over, Under and Around in Circles"

Eight teams remain. Who will be eliminated next?

Once again, they switched the introduction to the show. They should be due for a non-elimination leg soon - I'm thinking next week. When the show started off with the word "next" in lieu of "tonight," I thought it may be this show, but it was indeed a Philimination leg.

And, I have the lowdown.

Health concerns continue to plague some of the teams as we head into the fourth leg. Mary's sprained ankle is still a problem and we learned that Rob collapsed due to heat dehydration. He was treated and deemed fit to continue racing. Since he's one of my own personal least favorites, I wouldn't have minded if they told him, "No! Stop racing! Rest for three days!" Ah, but that wasn't the case.

As the teams took off from the last Pit Stop, a rice paddy in Vietnam, I noticed that the gap betwixt first and last place had narrowed in comparison to last week's start. The first team (ChoBros) left at 10:55 PM and the last team (TnT) left at 11:48 - not even an hour apart.

The teams had to take a taxi to Hanoi, then collect 588 Vietnamese Dong. That's the currency in Vietnam; 1 Vietnamese Dong = 0.00006458 US Dollar, so it's not a heck of a lot of money, eh? They then had to travel to a park where an auditory clue, in addition to crickets, started a fiasco of mixed-up directions and a Kimberly/Robert rude cab blow-out. The clue itself was hard to understand in either language - English or Vietnamese. Some teams wrote it phonetically; other teams asked their cabbies to listen.

Some just disrespected their cabbies. Yes, I'm talking about Rob. I don't know why someone would expect a cab driver in Vietnam to understand English and, even when the cabbie doesn't speak the language, he sure can understand tone. Give me Mary and David, with Mary hugging the taxi driver and telling him she loved him instead.

After all the clue confusion and cab-clamoring, all the teams ended up on the same bus headed to Ha Long Bay. There they faced a Roadblock, a task only one member of the team must perform. This particular Roadblock had them using mechanical ascenders to scale the side of a cliff. It was a 90' ascension directly up and used both arm and leg strength.

And, this is where I get surly. Peter, of Peter/Sarah fame, takes the easy Roadblocks and lets Sarah, who has a prosthetic leg, perform the hard ones. (Dump him, Sarah!) Yes, I know editing plays a part, but if Peter hadn't made yet another remark in the line of his "disability card" utterances and then sat smugly drinking a cold beverage as Sarah struggled...! His line this time was "Pull the handicapped placard out and get in the front of the line" as only three ascenders were available at a time. This guy needs some serious dumping by Sarah, seriously. Watching Sarah climb the cliff, I think I had more concern than he did.

As Godwin Cho prepared to go up, he declared he was leaving all of his possessions to his brother. And, it was neat to watch Karlyn go up the cliff struggling, yet busting with pride at her accomplishment. It could have been editing, but it looked like every other team member remaining at the bottom cheered their mates on while Peter relaxed.

The teams had to find their next clue in an absolutely stunning cave - Sung Cot Cave. It reminded me of visiting Carlsbad Caverns. There wasn't too much excitement at hand in the cave as the teams basically just had to find their clues to their next destination, which happened to be a Detour. A Detour is a choice between two tasks, each with a local touch, performed by both members of the team.

The choices this leg were Over or Under. In Over, the teams had to take a boat called a junk, then row a smaller boat called a sandpan - sort of a wide and flat rowboat to pick up and deliver goods to two destinations in a floating village. In Under, teams took a junk, then rowed a sandpan to a location where oyster baskets were marked by buoys. They had to harvest and deliver 30 baskets of oysters.

All of the teams had trouble manuevering their sandpans and I don't think I've heard that much fussing and fretting on one task in ages. Tears, whining, arguing, and then some more tears. Peter fussed that he wanted to give up and I thought I saw contempt in Sarah's eyes. (Dump him, Sarah!) Mary and David snapped at each other and she gave him a "you're not the boss of me" comeback. Remember, at the beginning of the season, she claimed that where they're from, the man is the boss. I don't think so! Most of the teams went for Under, but Lyn and Karlyn succeeded at Over. All of the teams found out that rowing a sandpan in high winds isn't like rowing a canoe.
Much to my dismay, Rob and Kimberly finished the task first and hit the mat at the Pit Stop at Soi Sim Island first. I don't like their bickering. Phil commented on it, too. "Are you being nice to each other?" Yeah, sure they are! As the first place winners of the leg, they each won a jet ski. That's better than the one home entertainment center that Godwin and Erwin won last week, but it's no trip for two... which may be a good thing in the light of their relationship or lack thereof.



This is the order at the Pit Stop:

1. Rob/Kimberly
2. Peter/Sarah
3. Tyler/James
4. Erwin/Godwin
5. David/Mary
6. Lyn/Karlyn
7. Dustin/Kandice
8. Tom/Terry (TnT) - last and Philiminated.

In a bit towards the end of the show, Sarah told Peter she didn't appreciate him saying he was going to give up when she had worked so hard to climb the cliff. He sat there and said nothing. In a confessional she held without him, she seems to realize he's not the dream love she thought he was. Dump him, Sarah!

Supposedly, this race is one of the most extensive ever. Why are they still in Vietnam? I'm finding it a beautiful and exotic country, but they've traveled hardly at all the last two legs.

Mary is proving to be my must-watch racer each week. Between her funny lines and her reaction to wondrous places and peoples, she's fun to watch. Yes, she fussed some about her sprained ankle, but I could see her forging on with a cast if she had to do so. She may be one of the more "country bumpkin" types than we've seen on the show before, but she's definitely an ambassador of good will with the natives.

I'm still cheering on the ChoBros for the win, but David and Mary would certainly make for a very different finale. I like Sarah, but not Peter. I'm not too thrilled with either Kimberly or Rob, and the pretty teams (Dustin/Kandice, Tyler/James) aren't striking me much at all, nor did TnT. I wouldn't mind seeing Karlyn and Lyn hang in there. I think they're pretty amazed at what they've done and I bet their children are thrilled, too.

Just get out of Vietnam and stop all the crying, teams!

Oh.

And, dump him, Sarah!

'The Amazing Race 10' - 10/08 East Coast Update - Arrival Order and Philimination

The arrival to the Pit Stop:

1. Rob/Kimberly - Won a jet ski each
2. Peter/Sarah
3. Tyler/James
4. Erwin/Godwin
5. David/Mary
6. Lyn/Karlyn
7. Dustin/Kandice
8. Tom/Terry - Eliminated

Tonight's 'Amazing Race 10' Blogging Schedule

Once again, here on the East Coast (at least in the NYC viewing area), TAR is a bit delayed due to the football game running over.

I know football has its fans, but I'm not one of them.

I'm not quite sure when 60 Minutes started as I started watching America's Funniest Home Videos on ABC. Once it's over, I'll switch to the tail end of 60 Minutes to await TAR. I believe it's less than 10 or 15 minutes behind schedule, but I'm not sure. But, as a result, East Coast Update posts on the show will be running as late as the show is. As usual, an entire review/recap will be posted later in the evening. But I will post East Coast Updates as far as the Pit Stop Arrival Order and Philimination as they appear.

Darn football.