Richness

Didn't like this episode because of the alliance scheming. I don't mind the occasional help in the heat of the moment if that's what teams want to do when they get desperate, but I do mind the pre-determined plans to do so. And of course, all that scheming is spearheaded by the boyfriends. Definitely dislike them now. They might have commented on the beauty of the village natives, but that didn't really come across as genuine to me. Still don't like the sisters, or at least the bitchy one. Also could have done without all the tears, though I realize how demoralizing it is when things aren't going your way. Never mind if it's just getting overwhelmed by the experience, though may because of who was crying at the time. I'm not fond of the shopping tasks, though it offers plenty of opportunities for position changes. I wonder if any teams ended up taking another team's items in the chaos of the check-in station. However, one thing really grabbed my attention again: Seeing the Amazing camera man. This has actually happened in every episode so far. I don't know if they got a new crew for this season or what, but they've been really sloppy by getting in the picture this year. I know it's happened before, but it seems to be especially bad now. It doesn't ruin the race, but it does take me out of the action a bit.

I loved that the corkscrew was made by another ninja. I find obstacles that make ninjas dizzy really entertaining, like the rolling log. I know they've modified obstacles from the qualifiers to the semi-finals, but is this the first time they've ever substituted entirely new obstacles into the first half of the course? And speaking of obstacle designers, where is the great Maker, Kevin Carbone? I continue to watch a two hour show in under an hour. Almost every sob story and interview gets skipped. I even starting to skip some of the runs themselves due to the personalities. I'm not happy with the move to Wednesdays either since it's going up against The Amazing Race. I love TAR more even if it's on its deathbed. It doesn't need ANW driving the nails into its coffin any quicker.

Welcome back TAR. Glad to see this show again, though I fear it may be the last. As far as the teams go, I was set to dislike the footballers, but then they go and show them cosplaying at Comic Con. Dammit guys, don't make me like you. Conversely, I want to root for the gay couple, but I just can't. I don't like the sisters that came in second. Well, I don't like the one at least. Not too fond of the brother and sister team either, though I feel like I'm betraying my nerdiness or something. And unlike most, I *like* the beards on the volleyball players, and the men themselves. Hopefully they won't turn to the dark side. I was also split on the noodling country boys. (Not to be confused with canoodling country boys, which is an entirely different thing. However... ) The country bumpkin mannerism might have gotten a bit irksome if they hung around for a while. They seemed like really nice guys, though, and I was sad to see them go. The rest of the teams are rather forgettable. I was also happy with most of the show. Thank-goodness for no gimmicks or stunt casting. Though three teams of professional athletes is a bit much. I loved the scenery and the challenges. Unlike many though, I don't like goats, so the "ending" was somewhat of a let down from all the other good stuff. And since it's so close to Halloween, Day-O made me think of Beetlejuice. Beetlejuice! Beetlejuice!

I love the casting of Shawn Ashmore as Lamplighter. The meta idea of him playing a fire manipulator on this show while playing a ice creator/manipulator in the X-Men movies is amusing. It's also sort of interesting that he fought against Pyro, who has the exact same powers as Lamplighter. I wonder if they specifically cast him because of that connection? And if I didn't think episode 3's whale ramming was entertainingly absurd, the tentacle "sausage" of death may just outdo it.

I was so heartbroken when Campbell got stuck on the Lunatic Ledges. And equally thrilled when he figured it out. I agree with Taeolas that move ranks right up there with Bull's upside down move from years ago. Graff continues to be super. I was also impressed by rookie Herrington that was the first to finish the course. Bravo young man!

Glad to have the show back, but I'm torn on this new format. I like Carla, but I can only take so much of her wackiness, and this is too much. They've also double downed on the most annoying aspect of this show: the surprise twist thrown at the contestants during the bake. Just no. Stop already! At least the third twist, the bloody knife hide and seek, can be ignored by those who are already pressed for time. As much as I like the baker as a person, especially for putting up with Zak's flirtations, the right one went home. That red devil blob was just a mess, and not even a hot mess. The top two must have been mind-blowingly delicious to win since they both had design troubles.

Just for the record, that's NOT the correct way to wear a mask. Speedo Ninja has some competition next year. Ninja Warrior Tim Shieff wears a mask as a thong.

Say what you will about all the whispering, but both Tribal Councils were boring as hell tonight without it. I may not like Adam personally, but I love that he recognized that the act Denise was putting on was fake.

Actually, I heard it about it from the official Facebook page, where Phil talks about the season and Covid-19.

Congratulations to the newlyweds! I definitely thought it was the most impressive of the final builds, but I still question whether they should be there at all after the previous episode. The slow, majestic, flapping wing movement was mind blowing. With that said, the bearded boys really disappointed me. If it wasn't for the paintbrush interactivity, I'd consider it a total failure. With all the other stuff they've done, a blockly building is just sad even with all the color rejuvenation going on. All it had going for it was height and a few rotating doors. Boreing!!! A post-apocalyptic setting is rarely cheerful; I even hated the bleakness of the second Lego movie because of it. With that said, I'm glad the bickersons didn't win. The peacock was gorgeous, but they've been in the bottom too often to be considered Lego masters. However, I actually thought they did a better job than the lumberjacks, so I was surprised they ranked third place. I too wish they had incorporated movement to reveal the beautiful plumage like on a real peacock. I could have done without the monkey business, though I realize that's what they used it to tell the story. The banana table legs are cute though. I think my dislike stims from my personal bias against monkeys because I find them and other primates the least appealing of all the mammals. I would have preferred a raccoon bandit as the feather thief, but that might have been too trite story-wise and less buildable/articulate. Of course, I find it interesting that my least favorite teams prompts the greatest amount of commentary from me. *shrugs* Anyway, glad this show is doing an additional season. I just hope there's a better host next season, and they focus more of the builds instead of stupid banter.

As much as I love the newlyweds, I can't help but feel there was some sort of behind the scenes shenanigans to keep them for the finale. Granted, while the other team's efforts popped a bit more with the color, I'm not sure it was that much better technically. It was great to see the actual droids on set. And while I still despise the host and his neverending shtick, I loved all the Star Wars lines. Regardless, I don't care who wins the entire thing so long as it's either the bearded lumberjacks or the newlyweds.

If I wanted another episode of awkward relationship drama on a tropical island, I'd watch Ex On The Beach. Neither of them are looking good, and I want both of them gone quickly. *sigh*

Every time I see Arin, I think of Stephen Stucker's Johnny Henshaw-Jacobs, the slightly unhinged Air Traffic Controller in Airplane!

This show is so much better when I fast forward any time Will Arnett is on the screen. Of course, it then turns a 60 minute show into a 30 minute show. Sure I may lose some of the drama and trauma, but that's what I got to do in order to watch. Looks like the bearded lumberjacks or the newlyweds are the ones to beat.

Will Arnett got on my nerves in the first episode, but he's nothing but annoying in the second episode. I suspect I'll be crafting a voodoo doll of him during the next episode, and moving on to death threats by the fourth. *exhales slowly* Sorry. Suffice to say, my dislike for him is right up there will Will Ferrell. Glad Big Hair is gone because I couldn't take another facial expression more extreme than a caricature. While I don't want to see her or anyone hurt, I probably would have gotten schadenfreude if a flying Lego piece had hit her in the eye when she looked out over the safety glasses. Plus, if you're going to be standing and running all day, wear some sensible shoes to begin with. Frat bros are talented, but still not very likable. And my opinion of the two brothers(?) is quickly dwindling due the smack talk toward the other contestants. Even though it's done light-heartedly and jokenly, I still don't like it. Apparently, the bickersons are going to be this show's cockroach team that just won't die. This episode was definitely not as enjoyable as the first. Granted, that just may have been due to them destroying the Lego creations.

I want to really like this show, but I absolutely despise Will Arnett and his entire shtick. I admit some of it could be considered funny, but most of it just annoysme. I will fast forward through this in future episodes, but I had to endure every bit of it tonight. Torrential downpours in my area were causing DirecTV signal loss, so I watched it live Over The Air to ensure I didn't miss anything. I wanted more close-up camera work examining the finished designs in detail, and less awkward/missed high-fives. While I really enjoyed the animated CGI segments, just drop them entirely if you can't afford to do that for all of the contestants. I also wanted to see more commentary from the judges. Speaking of which, I liked the lumberjacks the most, so I was heartbroken that their amazing rollercoaster didn't work. They're my pick for winning it all. The young guys that won the Golden Brick are talented, but they come across as obnoxious frat douchebros. The newlyweds are cute and decently talented, but I really didn't need the staged/scripted make out session, especially just to set up a "funny" Arnett moment. I definitely agreed with the judges for the bottom two. However, I would have been fine if big hair lady joined them. I'd have more sympathy for her put-upon teammate, but that lady doesn't speak up enough for herself. The male princess just gets on my nerves. I'm all for him expressing himself as he wants, but the hair and overall look (pun intended) annoy me. The same usually happened with the blue haired "goths" on Face Off. When the son nearly broke into tears earlier in the show, I was moved. When he did it during the judging, I just wanted to barf. I'm about ready to implement a No Crying Rule for reality competition shows. If you cry, you get booted immediately. However, I do admire and appreciate the closeness between the father and son. Even with it's annoying aspects, I'm in it for the long haul. I really enjoy seeing their amazing creations. Hopefully, the ratings will justify their primo primetime spot during a regular season as opposed to a summer series.

The only thing I liked about this episode was William, and maybe his interactions with Mia. Everything else was a waste of time. If it's picked up as a series, I will NOT be watching it. I didn't like most of these characters when they were introduced, and I like them even less now. If I can abandon the Vampire Diaries universe after the Originals ended, I can do it for this show too.

She probably bathes in the blood of those she sacrificed in the Tribal Council pot that she stirs. Or maybe she has an excellent moisturizer routine. One or the other.

Ding dong, the bastard is gone! I was wondering about the odd placement of the advertisements surrounding tribal council. And when the show kept going after the nighttime torch walk, I was fearing that something really bad happened, like someone got seriously hurt. Well, something bad did happen, to a production member, but it's something good for the viewers as it means Dan's gone. Woo hoo! Too bad it's 11 episodes too late. With the obvious out of the way, here are my thoughts on a few other aspects of the episode. First, I fast forward through most of the Island of Idols build-up nonsense, most of the time at the island, and the follow-up nonsense once the contestant returns to the tribe. For several episodes now, I only watch the bare minimum to understand what's going on and what the outcome is. Second, as much as I've come to like Elaine, I fast forwarded through most of the tears at Tribal Council. Just like I don't want to hear the sob stories during family visits, I don't want to sit through tears at TC either no matter how touching the story might be. Third, as much as I'm sick of Boston Rob (and Sandra to a lesser extent), I did chuckle at Rob making fun of the stretch and flex guy. Fourth, while the editors usually give away stuff far in advance, they gave me some amusement during the Immunity Challenge. While one of the contestants was trying to spell "YOUR" (displayed on the screen as "YO R"), Jeff voice overs something about "You need to win," which I took to mean the missing "U" in "YOUR" and not "You". Fifth, did Disney pay for the "SITH" shout out in the IC word blocks so close to the release of "Rise of Skywalker"? However, given it was Dan's blocks, they probably don't want to be associated with the guy. All the Sith Lords out there should protest their unfortunate association with someone like Dan. Sixth, the entire Immunity Challenge was actually fairly amusing. I know lots of people love the "caller leading their blindfolded team through an obstacle course" challenge due to the hilarious pratfalls that occur. but the opening spin portion of this challenge seemed like a much nicer and less painful way to ensure hilarity ensues. I hope that have many more dizzy spin challenges in the future. If we're (un)lucky, they'll come right after a contestant has eaten, and someone will blow chunks.

My apologies if this is in reference to an older season, but but my DVR is set to record both old and new episodes. Anyway, it was the episode with Kirstie Mas, because I remember her distinctive Christmas name. I also agree with the judges for selecting her as the winner. However, what I wanted to comment on was Melissa, or whatever her name was. She's the one that had so much trouble unwrapping the candy canes. I don't even really remember what she made since I've done deleted the episode off my DVR and it's been a few days since I saw it. I just remember being amused by, and identifying with, her hot mess meltdown trying to open the candy canes. I feel you!

I think what annoys me about Sarah (other than an adult woman bubbling over with a teen girl personality) is that she talks and gesticulates with her hands non-stop. Granted, I don't dislike her as much as Erin. At least Sarah can bake. Jason country bumpkin stick doesn't bother me too much either. What I don't get is the dislike for Nancy feeding Jesse, or the size of Lorraine's bites. The former just shows the fondness the two have for each other. If they don't mind it, I don't mind it. And the latter just doesn't make sense to me. The only judge that tends to annoy me is Duff. His taking a huge bite, then looking up and to the side in an overly dramatic fashion. Furthermore, his commentary fake out is getting overdone too. "I don't like this cake. *dramatic pause* I LOVE THIS CAKE!" Whatever Duff. Just comment directly and be done with it. The contestants are already stressed enough; they don't need you triggering a heart attack.

Hated this episode and nearly fell asleep during the "dramatic" moments. Just about every show out there has done the time loop trope better. I still don't know what the point of this episode was. Too bad Quentin's return was wasted with this crap.

I was enjoying this season immensely until this episode.

Wow. I've forgotten what it's like to enjoy an episode of Arrow. Not just a few scenes, but an entire episode. Granted, I still hate everything about the flash-forwards. But the alternate universe peek was awesome, and brought back all the best stuff from the Arrow that I loved.

Finally got around to watching this episode. I'd rather have too many finishers than too few, so this was definitely better than last year. However, it would be even better if it was somewhere in the middle of the two extremes. It would also be even better if we could actually see more of the runs instead of the stupid back/sob stories, especially at this stage of the competition. I am so sick of the Island Ninja show. Grant McCartney should spend more time training on variations of the Salmon Ladder than dancing and dating. Though I will admit it's more the show's fault that we're subjected to so much of the latter. The Drew Drechsel hype train doesn't bother me as much though since I skipped it entirely. The editing certainly makes it seem that Drew is our next winner though. Though I admit to giggling at his dolphin dive. Seeing Flip Rodriguez timeout so close to finishing was crushing though. My reaction surprises me since I couldn't stand him during his earlier masked ninja days. I was impressed by Nate Burkhalter powering through the food poisoning to barely finish the course in time. I was amused by the moms on the sideline. It's a good thing Karsten Williams was given the WWWA treatment, because his mom must have went crazy when he completed the stage. And my sympathies to Jake Murray who got his bicep mangled by Adam Rayl's Mom during his run. And speaking of Adam, thank-you show for the gratuitous, long, slow-motion shot of his dripping wet victory hand stand. I agree their needs to be a Men of ANW calendar, especially with everyone going shirtless. However, I thought Jamie Rahn looked more like Jared Leto’s Suicide Squad Joker than ever before since he wasn't wearing his pleather Captain NBC outfit, exposing his bare torso and tatts. He also looked more buffed since the outfit hid his definition. I thought for sure someone was going to crush their trachea in a horrible clothes-lining near-decapitation on Snap Back. They really need to extend that clear guard cover all the way toward the front bar handle. The clear aspect prevents it from being a true blind grab though. If they wanted to make that even harder, they could switch to an opaque guard cover. I prefer the more difficult Deja Vu from last year. Speaking of new Stage 2 obstacles, as much as I like and prefer the design and flow aspects of the Grim Sweeper, Wingnut Alley was much tougher.